1 Samuele 28:13 Commento

Preparations are herein making for that war which will put an end to the life and reign of Saul, and so make way for David to the throne. In this war, I. The Philistines are the aggressors and Achish their king makes David his confidant (Sa1 28:1, Sa1 28:2). II. The Israelites prepare to receive them, and Saul their king makes the devil his privy-counsellor, and thereby fills the measure of his iniquity. Observe, 1. The despairing condition which Saul was in (Sa1 28:3-6). 2. The application he made to a witch, to bring him up Samuel (Sa1 28:7-14). 3. His discourse with the apparition (Sa1 28:15-19). The damp it struck upon him (Sa1 28:20-25).

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 28 The Philistines gathering together, to fight with Israel, Saul trembled at it, not being able to get any answer from the Lord about it in any way whatever, Sa1 28:1; upon which he applies to a woman that had a familiar spirit to bring him up Samuel, which she did, Sa1 28:7; and what passed between Saul and Samuel, or at least the apparition in his form, is recorded, Sa1 28:15; which so struck him, as to make him strengthless, and so melancholy, that he refused to eat until persuaded, or rather compelled, by the woman and his servants, Sa1 28:20.

And the king said unto her, be not afraid,.... Meaning not of the apparition, but of him; since he had sworn no punishment should come upon her, and he should inviolably observe his oath: for what sawest thou? for as yet Saul himself saw not anything, the woman being between him and the apparition; or she might be in another room with her familiar spirit performing the operations when Samuel appeared: and the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth; a great personage, one of a majestic form, like the gods, or judges and civil magistrates, sometimes so called, as Kimchi and R. Isaiah rightly interpret it; and so the Targum,"I saw an angel of the Lord;''a person that looked like one; for not many came up with him, and particularly Moses, as say some Jewish writers (d). (d) T. Bab. Chagigah, fol. 4. 8. Pirke Eliezer, c. 33.

They [the Jews] reflected on the death of Abraham and the prophets, understanding that Samuel, too, when he was under the earth because of death, was brought up by a medium who thought the gods were somewhere below the earth and who said, “I saw gods ascending from the earth.” They had not, however, comprehended the life of Abraham and the prophets, nor that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was not the God of them as men who were dead, but as men who were alive.

Samuel in hades! Samuel, he who was special among the prophets, who was dedicated to God from his birth, who before his birth is said to be in the temple, who at the same time he was weaned was clothed with the ephod and double cloak and became a priest of the Lord, the child to whom the Lord when he speaks uttered his messages, he was brought up by a medium?… Why is Samuel in hades?…Samuel comes up, and note that she does not say that she saw the soul of Samuel. She does not say she saw a man. She has been scared by this thing which she saw. What did she see? “I saw gods,” she says, “coming up from the earth.” And perhaps Samuel has not only come up in order just to prophesy to Saul, but it is likely, just as here “with the holy he will be holy, and with an innocent man he will be innocent,” and with the one of the chosen he will be as one of the chosen, and here the ways of the holy are with the holy but not with the sinners. And if then at some point the way of life of the holy is with the sinners for the purpose of saving the sinners, so perhaps also you may speculate whether either the holy souls of the other prophets in the coming up of Samuel come up together or perhaps whether they were angels of their spirits—the prophet says, “the angel who speaks in me”—or whether they were angels who came up together with the spirits. And every [place] is filled with those who need salvation, and “are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to serve for the sake of those who are to obtain salvation?” Why do you fear to say that every place has need of Jesus Christ? Those who have need of Christ have need of the prophets. But if he has no need of Christ, he has no need of those who prepare for the appearance and dwelling of Christ.

The Philistines prepare to attack the Israelites, and Achish informs David that he shall accompany him to battle, Sa1 28:1, Sa1 28:2. Saul, unable to obtain any answer from God, applies to a witch at En-dor to bring up Samuel that he may converse with him on the issue of the war, Sa1 28:3-11. Samuel appears, Sa1 28:12-14. He reproaches Saul with his misconduct, and informs him of his approaching ruin, Sa1 28:15-19. He is greatly distressed; but at the solicitations of the woman and his own servants, he takes some food, and departs the same night, Sa1 28:20-25.

I saw gods ascending out of the earth - The word אלהום elohim, which we translate gods, is the word which is used for the Supreme Being throughout the Bible; but all the versions, the Chaldee excepted, translate it in the plural number, as we do. The Chaldee has, I see מלאכא דיי malacha dayeya, an angel of the Lord, ascending from the earth. This sight alarmed the woman; it was what she did not expect; in this she could not recognise her familiar, and she was terrified at the appearance.

ACHISH'S CONFIDENCE IN DAVID. (Sa1 28:1-6) The Philistines gathered their armies together for warfare, to fight with Israel--The death of Samuel, the general dissatisfaction with Saul, and the absence of David, instigated the cupidity of those restless enemies of Israel. Achish said to David, Know thou assuredly, that thou shalt go out with me to battle--This was evidently to try him. Achish, however, seems to have thought he had gained the confidence of David and had a claim on his services.

David in the Army of the Philistines. Attack upon Israel. Saul and the Witch of Endor - 1 Samuel 28 The danger into which David had plunged through his flight into the land of the Philistines, and still more through the artifice with which he had deceived the king Achish as to his real feelings, was to be very soon made apparent to him. For example, when the Philistines went to war again with Israel, Achish summoned him to go with his men in the army of the Philistines to the war against his own people and land, and David could not disregard the summons. But even if he had not brought himself into this danger without some fault of his own, he had at any rate only taken refuge with the Philistines in the greatest extremity; and what further he had done, was only done to save his own life. The faithful covenant God helped him therefore out of this trouble, and very soon afterwards put an end to his persecution by the fact that Saul lost his life in the war.