What happens when Saul receives no answer from the Lord and goes to the woman at Endor?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

He goes disguised with two men by night, promises the woman no harm and asks for Samuel. Samuel announces the kingdom’s loss to David, Israel’s defeat and Saul and his sons being with him tomorrow. Saul falls without strength, then yields to the woman and his servants, eats and walks all that night.

Chapter breakdown

The Philistines gather armies for war against Israel. Achis tells David assuredly that he and his men will go to war with him. David says Achis will now know what his servant will do; Achis says he will appoint him to guard his life forever. The account recalls Samuel’s death, all Israel’s mourning and his burial in Ramatha, his city, and Saul’s removal of all magicians and soothsayers from the land. The Philistines camp in Sunam, while Saul gathers all Israel and comes to Gelboe. Seeing their army, Saul is afraid and his heart greatly dismayed. He consults the Lord and receives no answer by dreams, priests or prophets. He asks his servants to find a woman with a divining spirit so he can go and inquire through her. They name a woman at Endor.

Saul disguises himself with other clothes and goes with two men to the woman by night. He asks her to divine by her spirit and bring up the one he will name. She reminds him that he knows Saul rooted magicians and soothsayers out of the land, and asks why he lays a snare to have her put to death. Saul swears by the living Lord that no evil will happen to her for this. When she asks whom to bring up, he names Samuel. Seeing Samuel, she cries loudly and asks why Saul deceived her, recognizing him as Saul. He tells her not to fear and asks what she saw. She reports gods ascending from the earth. Asked the form, she describes an old man coming up covered with a mantle. Saul understands it is Samuel and bows his face to the ground in homage.

Challoner separately says the more common opinion of the holy fathers and interpreters is that Samuel’s soul truly appeared, rather than an evil spirit in his shape as some imagined. He says the woman’s magic did not have power to bring him there: God was pleased, for Saul’s punishment, that Samuel himself should announce the evils falling on him. The note refers to Eccli. 46.23. This is the note’s stated opinion and explanation, with its account of an alternative view preserved.

Samuel asks why Saul disturbed his rest to have him brought up. Saul says he is in great distress: the Philistines fight him, God has departed and will not hear through prophets or dreams, so he called Samuel to show him what to do. Samuel asks why he asks when the Lord has departed and gone over to his rival. He says the Lord will do as he spoke through Samuel, tear the kingdom from Saul’s hand and give it to his neighbour David. Because Saul did not obey the Lord’s voice or execute his anger’s wrath on Amalec, the Lord has brought what Saul suffers that day. The Lord will deliver Israel with Saul into Philistine hands; tomorrow Saul and his sons will be with Samuel, and Israel’s army will also be delivered to the Philistines. Challoner separately explains with me as the state of the dead and another world, though not in the same place.

Saul immediately falls full length on the ground, frightened by Samuel’s words and without strength because he has eaten no bread all that day. The woman comes to the very troubled Saul and says she obeyed his voice, put her life in her hand and heeded his words. She asks him also to hear her, allowing a morsel of bread so he can eat, recover strength and make his journey. Saul refuses to eat. His servants and the woman press him, and at last he listens, gets up and sits on the bed. She hurries to kill the fatted calf in her house, takes meal, kneads it and bakes unleavened bread. She sets the food before Saul and his servants. After eating, they rise and walk all that night.

The story inside

The war assembly links David to Achis’s demand, while Saul’s view of the enemy army leads to fear and unanswered consultation. He requests the woman despite his earlier expulsion of magicians and soothsayers. Her fear of a fatal snare receives his oath; her sight of Samuel leads to her recognition of Saul and her description of the figure. Saul asks what to do, but Samuel repeats the reason for kingdom loss and announces the next day’s defeat and deaths. The words and lack of bread lead to Saul’s fall. The woman appeals to her own obedience and risk to persuade him to eat, and he finally does before the all-night walk. Both Challoner notes remain separately identified, including the more common opinion and the distinction about the dead’s place.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The unanswered channels are dreams, priests and prophets in this source. Saul’s next request concerns a divining woman after his own removal of magicians and soothsayers. No extra account of lifelong spiritual alienation is added.
2
Challoner’s explanation has a stated level of agreement. He calls Samuel’s real appearance the more common opinion, mentions the evil-spirit alternative and denies the woman’s magic brought him. This is attributed commentary rather than a new unanimous ruling.
3
The announcement and ending have different time frames. Samuel speaks of tomorrow’s defeat and deaths; this chapter ends after Saul eats and walks all that night. The source gives fright and no bread that day as reasons for his weakness without a diagnosis or invented travel destination.

Test your recall

How do fear and unanswered consultation lead to Endor, how do the woman’s questions and Saul’s oath lead to Samuel’s message, and why does Saul eventually eat?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 31330–31361
1 Kings Chapter 28 The Philistines go out to war against Israel. Saul being forsaken by God, hath recourse to a witch. Samuel appeareth to him. 28:1. And it came to pass in those days, that the Philistines gathered together their armies, to be prepared for war against Israel: And Achis said to David: Know thou now assuredly, that thou shalt go out with me to the war, thou, and thy men. 28:2. And David said to Achis: Now thou shalt know what thy servant will do. And Achis said to David: And I will appoint thee to guard my life for ever. 28:3. Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel mourned for him, and buried him in Ramatha, his city. And Saul had put away all the magicians and soothsayers out of the land. 28:4. And the Philistines were gathered together, and came and encamped in Sunam: and Saul also gathered together all Israel, and came to Gelboe. 28:5. And Saul saw the army of the Philistines, and was afraid, and his heart was very much dismayed. 28:6. And he consulted the Lord, and he answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by priests, nor by prophets. 28:7. And Saul said to his servants: Seek me a woman that hath a divining spirit, and I will go to her, and enquire by her. And his servants said to him: There is a woman that hath a divining spirit at Endor.
Lines 31363–31388
28:8. Then he disguised himself: and put on other clothes, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night, and he said to her: Divine to me by thy divining spirit, and bring me up him whom I shall tell thee. 28:9. And the woman said to him: Behold thou knowest all that Saul hath done, and how he hath rooted out the magicians and soothsayers from the land: why then dost thou lay a snare for my life, to cause me to be put to death? 28:10. And Saul swore unto her by the Lord, saying: As the Lord liveth, there shall no evil happen to thee for this thing. 28:11. And the woman said to him: Whom shall I bring up to thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel. 28:12. And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice, and said to Saul: Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul. 28:13. And the king said to her: Fear not: what hast thou seen? and the woman said to Saul: I saw gods ascending out of the earth. 28:14. And he said to her: What form is he of? And she said: An old man cometh up, and he is covered with a mantle. And Saul understood that it was Samuel, and he bowed himself with his face to the ground, and adored.
Lines 31390–31396
Understood that it was Samuel.... It is the more common opinion of the holy fathers, and interpreters, that the soul of Samuel appeared indeed: and not, as some have imagined, an evil spirit in his shape. Not that the power of her magic could bring him thither, but that God was pleased for the punishment of Saul, that Samuel himself should denounce unto him the evils that were falling upon him. See Eccli. 46.23.
Lines 31398–31420
28:15. And Samuel said to Saul: Why hast thou disturbed my rest, that I should be brought up? And Saul said: I am in great distress: for the Philistines fight against me, and God is departed from me, and would not hear me, neither by the hand of prophets, nor by dreams: therefore I have called thee, that thou mayst shew me what I shall do. 28:16. And Samuel said: Why askest thou me, seeing the Lord has departed from thee, and is gone over to thy rival? 28:17. For the Lord will do to thee as he spoke by me, and he will rend thy kingdom out of thy hand, and will give it to thy neighbour David: 28:18. Because thou didst not obey the voice of the Lord, neither didst thou execute the wrath of his indignation upon Amalec. Therefore hath the Lord done to thee what thou sufferest this day. 28:19. And the Lord also will deliver Israel with thee into the hands of the Philistines: and to morrow thou and thy sons shall be with me: and the Lord will also deliver the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines. With me.... That is, in the state of the dead, and in another world, though not in the same place.
Lines 31422–31446
28:20. And forthwith Saul fell all along on the ground; for he was frightened with the words of Samuel, and there was no strength in him, for he had eaten no bread all that day. 28:21. And the woman came to Saul, (for he was very much troubled) and said to him: Behold thy handmaid hath obeyed thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand: and I hearkened unto the words which thou spokest to me. 28:22. Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also to the voice of thy handmaid, and let me set before thee a morsel of bread, that thou mayst eat and recover strength, and be able to go on thy journey. 28:23. But he refused, and said: I will not eat. But his servants and the woman forced him, and at length hearkening to their voice, he arose from the ground, and sat upon the bed. 28:24. Now the woman had a fatted calf in the house, and she made haste and killed it: and taking meal, kneaded it, and baked some unleavened bread, 28:25. And set it before Saul, and before his servants. And when they had eaten they rose up, and walked all that night.