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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1708)
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>F I R S T S A M U E L</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. XXVIII.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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Preparations are herein making for that war which will put an end to
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the life and reign of Saul, and so make way for David to the throne. In
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this war,
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I. The Philistines are the aggressors and Achish their king makes David
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his confidant,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:1,2">ver. 1, 2</A>.
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II. The Israelites prepare to receive them, and Saul their king makes
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the devil his privy-counsellor, and thereby fills the measure of his
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iniquity. Observe,
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1. The despairing condition which Saul was in,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:3-6">ver. 3-6</A>.
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2. The application he made to a witch, to bring him up Samuel,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:7-14">ver. 7-14</A>.
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3. His discourse with the apparition,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:15-19">ver. 15-19</A>.
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The damp it struck upon him,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:20-25">ver. 20-25</A>.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Philistines Make War on Israel.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1055.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 And it came to pass in those days, that the Philistines
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gathered their armies together for warfare, to fight with Israel.
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And Achish said unto David, Know thou assuredly, that thou shalt
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go out with me to battle, thou and thy men.
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2 And David said to Achish, Surely thou shalt know what thy
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servant can do. And Achish said to David, Therefore will I make
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thee keeper of mine head for ever.
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3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and
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buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away
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those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the
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land.
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4 And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came
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and pitched in Shunem: and Saul gathered all Israel together, and
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they pitched in Gilboa.
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5 And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid,
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and his heart greatly trembled.
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6 And when Saul enquired of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> answered him
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not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Here is,
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I. The design of the Philistines against Israel. They resolved to
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<I>fight them,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:1"><I>v.</I> 1</A>.
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If the Israelites had not forsaken God, there would have been no
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Philistines remaining to molest them; if Saul had not forsaken him,
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they would by this time have been put out of all danger by them. The
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Philistines took an opportunity to make this attempt when they had
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David among them, whom they feared more than Saul and all his
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forces.</P>
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<P>
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II. The expectation Achish had of assistance from David in this war,
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and the encouragement David gave him to expect it: "<I>Thou shalt go
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with me to battle,</I>" says Achish. "If I protect thee, I may demand
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service from thee;" and he will think himself happy if he may have such
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a man as David on his side, who prospered whithersoever he went. David
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gave him an ambiguous answer: "We will see what will be done; it will
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be time enough to talk of that hereafter; but <I>surely thou shalt know
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what thy servant can do</I>"
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:2"><I>v.</I> 2</A>),
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that is, "I will consider in what post I may be best able to serve
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thee, if thou wilt but give me leave to choose it." Thus he keeps
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himself free from a promise to serve him and yet keeps up his
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expectation of it; for Achish took it in no other sense than as an
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engagement to assist him, and promised him, thereupon, that he would
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make him captain of the guards, protector, or prime-minister of
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state.</P>
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<P>
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III. The drawing of the armies, on both sides, into the field
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>):
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<I>The Philistines pitched in Shunem,</I> which was in the tribe of
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Issachar, a great way north from their country. The land of Israel, it
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seems, was ill-guarded, when the Philistines could march their army
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into the very heart of the country. Saul, while he pursued David, left
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his people naked and exposed. On some of the adjacent mountains of
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Gilboa Saul mustered his forces, and prepared to engage the
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Philistines, which he had little heart to do now that the <I>Spirit of
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the Lord had departed from him.</I></P>
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<P>
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IV. The terror Saul was in, and the loss he was at, upon this occasion:
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He <I>saw the host of the Philistines,</I> and by his own view of them,
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and the intelligence his spies brought him, he perceived they were more
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numerous, better armed, and in better heart, than his own were, which
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made him afraid, so that <I>his heart greatly trembled,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:5"><I>v.</I> 5</A>.
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Had he kept close to God, he needed not have been afraid at the sight
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of an army of Philistines; but now that he had provoked God to forsake
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him his interest failed, his armies dwindled and looked mean, and,
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which was worse, his spirits failed him, his heart sunk within him, a
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guilty conscience made him tremble at the shaking of a leaf. Now he
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remembered the guilty blood of the Amalekites which he had spared, and
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the innocent blood of the priests which he had spilt. His sins were set
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in order before his eyes, which put him into confusion, embarrassed all
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his counsels, robbed him of all his courage, and produced in him a
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certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation. Note,
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Troubles are terrors to the children of disobedience. In this distress
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<I>Saul enquired of the Lord,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>.
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Need drives those to God who in the day of their prosperity slighted
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his oracles and altars. <I>Lord, in trouble have they visited thee,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+26:16">Isa. xxvi. 16</A>.
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Did ever any seek the Lord and not find him? Yes, Saul did; <I>the Lord
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answered him not,</I> took no notice either of his petitions or of his
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enquiries; gave him no directions what to do, nor any encouragement to
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hope that he would be with him. <I>Should he be enquired of at all</I>
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by such a one as Saul?
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Eze+14:3">Ezek. xiv. 3</A>.
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No, he could not expect an answer of peace, for,
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1. He enquired in such a manner that it was as if he had <I>not
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enquired at all.</I> Therefore it is said
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ch+10:14">1 Chron. x. 14</A>),
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<I>He enquired not of the Lord;</I> for he did it faintly and coldly,
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and with a secret design, if God did not answer him, to consult the
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devil. He did not enquire in faith, but with a double unstable mind.
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2. He enquired of the Lord when it was too late, when the days of his
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probation were over and he was finally rejected. <I>Seek the Lord while
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he may be found,</I> for there is a time when he will not be found.
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3. He had forfeited the benefit of all the methods of enquiry. Could
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he that hated and persecuted Samuel and David, who were both prophets,
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expect to be answered by prophets? Could he that had slain the high
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priest, expect to be answered by Urim? Or could he that had sinned
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away the Spirit of grace, expect to be answered by dreams? No. <I>Be
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not deceived, God is not mocked.</I></P>
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<P>
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V. The mention of some things that had happened a good while ago, to
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introduce the following story,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>.
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1. The death of Samuel. Samuel was dead, which made the Philistines the
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more bold and Saul the more afraid; for, had Samuel been alive, Saul
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probably thought that his presence and countenance, his good advice and
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good prayers, would have availed him in his distress.
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2. Saul's edict against witchcraft. He had put the laws in execution
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against <I>those that had familiar spirits,</I> who must not be
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<I>suffered to live,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ex+22:18">Exod. xxii. 18</A>.
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Some think that he did this in the beginning of his reign, while he was
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under Samuel's influence; others think that it was lately done, for it
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is spoken of here
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>)
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as a late edict. Perhaps when Saul was himself troubled with an evil
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spirit he suspected that he was bewitched, and, for that reason, cut
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off all that had familiar spirits. Many seem zealous against sin, when
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they themselves are any way hurt by it (they will inform against
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swearers if they swear at them, or against drunkards if in their drink
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they abuse them), who otherwise have no concern for the glory of God,
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nor any dislike of sin as sin. However it was commendable in Saul thus
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to use his power for the terror and restraint of these evil-doers.
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Note, Many seem enemies to sin in others, while they indulge it in
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themselves. Saul will drive the devil out of his kingdom, and yet
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harbour him in his heart, by envy and malice.</P>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_10"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_11"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_12"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_13"> </A>
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<A NAME="1Sa28_14"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Saul Consults the Witch at Endor.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1055.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>7 Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a
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familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And
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his servants said to him, Behold, <I>there is</I> a woman that hath a
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familiar spirit at Endor.
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8 And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he
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went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night:
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and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit,
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and bring me <I>him</I> up, whom I shall name unto thee.
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9 And the woman said unto him, Behold, thou knowest what Saul
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hath done, how he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits,
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and the wizards, out of the land: wherefore then layest thou a
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snare for my life, to cause me to die?
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10 And Saul sware to her by the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, saying, <I>As</I> the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>
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liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing.
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11 Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he
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said, Bring me up Samuel.
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12 And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice:
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and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me?
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for thou <I>art</I> Saul.
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13 And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest
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thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of
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the earth.
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14 And he said unto her, What form <I>is</I> he of? And she said, An
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old man cometh up; and he <I>is</I> covered with a mantle. And Saul
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perceived that it <I>was</I> Samuel, and he stooped with <I>his</I> face to
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the ground, and bowed himself.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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Here,
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I. Saul seeks for a witch,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:7"><I>v.</I> 7</A>.
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When God <I>answered him not,</I> if he had humbled himself by
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repentance and persevered in seeking God, who knows but that at length
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he might have been entreated for him? but, since he can discern no
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comfort either from heaven or earth
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+8:21,22">Isa. viii. 21, 22</A>),
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he resolves to knock at the gates of hell, and to see if any there will
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befriend him and give him advice: <I>Seek me a woman that has a
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familiar spirit,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:7"><I>v.</I> 7</A>.
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And his servants were too officious to serve him in this evil affair;
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they presently recommended one to him at Endor (a city not far off) who
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had escaped the execution of Saul's edict. To her he resolves to apply.
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Herein he is chargeable,
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1. With contempt of the God of Israel; as if any creature could do him
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a kindness when God had left him and frowned upon him.
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2. With contradiction to himself. He knew the heinousness of the sin of
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witchcraft, else he would not have cut off those that had familiar
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spirits; yet now he had recourse to that as an oracle which he had
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before condemned as an abomination. It is common for men to inveigh
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severely against those sins which they are in no temptation to, but
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afterwards to be themselves overcome by them. Had one told Saul, when
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he was destroying the witches, that he himself would, ere long, consult
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with one, he would have said, as Hazael did, <I>What? Is thy servant a
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dog?</I> But who knows what mischiefs those will run into that forsake
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God and are forsaken of him?</P>
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<P>
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II. Hearing of one he hastens to her, but goes by night, and in
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disguise, only with two servants, and probably on foot,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>.
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See how those that are led captive by Satan are forced,
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1. To disparage themselves. Never did Saul look so mean as when he went
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sneaking to a sorry witch to know his fortune.
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2. To dissemble. Evil works are works of darkness, and they hate the
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light, neither care for coming to it. Saul went to the witch, not in
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his robes, but in the habit of a common soldier, not only lest the
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witch herself, if she had known him, should decline to serve him,
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either fearing he came to trepan her or resolving to be avenged on him
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for his edict against those of her profession, but lest his own people
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should know it and abhor him for it. Such is the power of natural
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conscience that even those who do evil blush and are ashamed to do
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it.</P>
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<P>
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III. He tells her his errand and promises her impunity.
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1. All he desires of her is to bring up one from the dead, whom he had
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a mind to discourse with. It was necromancy or divination by the dead,
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that he hoped to serve his purpose by. This was expressly forbidden by
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the law
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=De+18:11">Deut. xviii. 11</A>),
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seeking <I>for the living to the dead,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+8:19">Isa. viii. 19</A>.
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<I>Bring me up him whom I shall name,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>.
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This supposes that it was generally taken for granted that souls exist
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after death, and that when men die there is not an end of them: it
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supposes too that great knowledge was attributed to separate souls. But
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to think that any good souls would come up at the beck of an evil
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spirit, or that God, who had denied a man the benefit of his own
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institutions, would suffer him to reap any real advantage by a cursed
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diabolical invention, was very absurd.
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2. She signifies her fear of the law, and her suspicion that this
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stranger came to draw her into a snare
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>):
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<I>Thou knowest what Saul has done.</I> Providence ordered it so that
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|
Saul should be told to his face of his edict against witches, at this
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|
very time when he was consulting one, for the greater aggravation of
|
|
his sin. She insists upon the peril of the law, perhaps to raise her
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price; for, though no mention is made of her fee, no doubt she demanded
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and had a large one. Observe how sensible she is of danger from the
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edict of Saul, and what care she is in to guard against it; but not at
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|
all apprehensive of the obligations off God's law and the terrors of
|
|
his wrath. She considered what <I>Saul</I> had done, not what
|
|
<I>God</I> had done, against such practices, and feared a snare laid
|
|
for her life more than a snare laid for her soul. It is common for
|
|
sinners to be more afraid of punishment from men than of God's
|
|
righteous judgment. But,
|
|
|
|
3. Saul promises with an oath not to betray her,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:10"><I>v.</I> 10</A>.
|
|
|
|
It was his duty as a king to punish her and he knew it, yet he swears
|
|
no to do it; as if he could by his own oath bind himself from doing
|
|
that which, by the divine command, he was bound to do. But he promised
|
|
more than he could perform when he said, <I>There shall no punishment
|
|
happen to thee;</I> for he that could not secure himself could much
|
|
less secure her from divine vengeance.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
IV. Samuel, who was lately dead, is the person whom Saul desired to
|
|
have some talk with; and the witch, with her enchantments, gratifies
|
|
his desire, and brings them together.
|
|
|
|
1. As soon as Saul had given the witch the assurance she desired (that
|
|
he would not discover her) she applied to her witchcrafts, and asked
|
|
very confidently, <I>Whom shall I bring up to thee?</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:11"><I>v.</I> 11</A>.
|
|
|
|
Note, Hopes of impunity embolden sinners in their evil ways and harden
|
|
their hearts.
|
|
|
|
2. Saul desires to speak with Samuel: <I>Bring me up Samuel.</I> Samuel
|
|
had anointed him to the kingdom and had formerly been his faithful
|
|
friend and counsellor, and therefore with him he wished to advise.
|
|
While Samuel was living at Ramah, not far from Gibeah of Saul, and
|
|
presided there in the school of the prophets, we never read of Saul's
|
|
going to him to consult him in any of the difficulties he was in (it
|
|
would have been well for him if he had); then he slighted him, and
|
|
perhaps hated him, looking upon him to be in David's interest. But now
|
|
that he is dead, "O for Samuel again! By all means, <I>bring me up
|
|
Samuel.</I>" Note, Many that despise and persecute God's saints and
|
|
ministers when they are living would be glad to have them again when
|
|
they are gone. <I>Send Lazarus to me,</I> and <I>send Lazarus to my
|
|
father's house,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+16:24-27">Luke xvi. 24-27</A>.
|
|
|
|
The sepulchres of the righteous are garnished.
|
|
|
|
3. Here is a seeming defector chasm in the story. Saul said, <I>Bring
|
|
me up Samuel,</I> and the very next words are, <I>When the woman saw
|
|
Samuel,</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>),
|
|
|
|
whereas one would have expected to be told how she performed the
|
|
operation, what spells and charms she used, or that some little
|
|
intimation would be given of what she said or did; but the profound
|
|
silence of the scripture concerning it forbids our coveting to <I>know
|
|
the depths of Satan</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+2:24">Rev. ii. 24</A>)
|
|
|
|
or to have our curiosity gratified with an account of the mysteries of
|
|
iniquity. It has been said of the books of some of the popish
|
|
confessors that, by their descriptions of sin, they have taught men to
|
|
commit it; but the scripture conceals sinful art, that we may be
|
|
<I>simple concerning evil,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ro+16:9">Rom. xvi. 19</A>.
|
|
|
|
4. The witch, upon sight of the apparition, was aware that her client
|
|
was Saul, her familiar spirit, it is likely, informing her of it
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>):
|
|
|
|
"<I>Why hast thou deceived me</I> with a disguise; for thou art Saul,
|
|
the very man that I am afraid of above any man?" Thus she gave Saul to
|
|
understand the power of her art, in that she could discover him through
|
|
his disguise; and yet she feared lest, hereafter, at least, he should
|
|
take advantage against her for what she was now doing. Had she believed
|
|
that it was really Samuel whom she saw, she would have had more reason
|
|
to be afraid of him, who was a good prophet, than of Saul, who was a
|
|
wicked king. But the wrath of earthly princes is feared by most more
|
|
than the wrath of the King of kings.
|
|
|
|
5. Saul (who, we may suppose, was kept at a distance in the next room)
|
|
bade her not to be afraid of him, but go on with the operation, and
|
|
enquired <I>what she saw?</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:13"><I>v.</I> 13</A>.
|
|
|
|
<I>O,</I> says the woman, <I>I saw gods</I> (that is, a spirit)
|
|
<I>ascending out of the earth;</I> they called angels <I>gods,</I>
|
|
because spiritual beings. Poor gods that ascend <I>out of the
|
|
earth!</I> But she speaks the language of the heathen, who had their
|
|
infernal deities and had them in veneration. If Saul had thought it
|
|
necessary to his conversation with Samuel that the body of Samuel
|
|
should be called out of the grave, he would have taken the witch with
|
|
him to Ramah, where his sepulchre was; but the design was wholly upon
|
|
his soul, which yet, if it became visible, was expected to appear in
|
|
the usual resemblance of the body; and God permitted the devil, to
|
|
answer the design, to put on Samuel's shape, that those who would not
|
|
<I>receive the love of the truth</I> might be <I>given up to strong
|
|
delusions and believe a lie.</I> That it could not be the soul of
|
|
Samuel himself they might easily apprehend when it <I>ascended out of
|
|
the earth,</I> for the <I>spirit of a man,</I> much more of a good man,
|
|
<I>goes upward,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ec+3:21">Eccl. iii. 21</A>.
|
|
|
|
But, if people will be deceived, it is just with God to say, "Let them
|
|
be deceived." That the devil, by the divine permission, should be able
|
|
to personate Samuel is not strange, since he can <I>transform himself
|
|
into an angel of light!</I> nor is it strange that he should be
|
|
permitted to do it upon this occasion, that Saul might be driven to
|
|
despair, by enquiring of the devil, since he would not, in a right
|
|
manner, enquire of the Lord, by which he might have had comfort. Saul,
|
|
being told of gods ascending, was eager to know what was the form of
|
|
this deity, and in what shape he appeared, so far was he from
|
|
conceiving any horror at it, his heart being wretchedly <I>hardened by
|
|
the deceitfulness of sin.</I> Saul, it seems, was not permitted to see
|
|
any manner of similitude himself, but he must take the woman's word for
|
|
it, that she saw <I>an old man covered with a mantle, or robe,</I> the
|
|
habit of a judge, which Samuel had sometimes worn, and some think it
|
|
was for the sake of that, and the majesty of its aspect, that she
|
|
called this apparition <I>Elohim, a god or gods;</I> for so magistrates
|
|
are styled,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+82:1">Ps. lxxxii. 1</A>.
|
|
|
|
6. Saul, perceiving, by the woman's description, that it was Samuel,
|
|
<I>stooped with his face to the ground,</I> either, as it is generally
|
|
taken, in reverence to Samuel, though he saw him not, or perhaps to
|
|
listen to that soft and muttering voice which he now expected to hear
|
|
(for those that had familiar spirits <I>peeped and muttered,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+8:19">Isa. viii. 19</A>);
|
|
|
|
and it should seem Saul bowed himself (probably by the witch's
|
|
direction) that he might hear what was whispered and listen carefully
|
|
to it; for the <I>voice of one that has a familiar spirit</I> is said
|
|
to come <I>out of the ground, and whisper out of the dust,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Isa+29:4">Isa. xxix. 4</A>.
|
|
|
|
He would stoop to that who would not stoop to the word of God.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_15"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_16"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_17"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_18"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_19"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Saul's Death Foretold.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1055.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>15 And Samuel said to Saul, Why hast thou disquieted me, to
|
|
bring me up? And Saul answered, I am sore distressed; for the
|
|
Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and
|
|
answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams:
|
|
therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me
|
|
what I shall do.
|
|
16 Then said Samuel, Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing
|
|
the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> is departed from thee, and is become thine enemy?
|
|
17 And the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> hath done to him, as he spake by me: for the
|
|
L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> hath rent the kingdom out of thine hand, and given it to thy
|
|
neighbour, <I>even</I> to David:
|
|
18 Because thou obeyedst not the voice of the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>, nor
|
|
executedst his fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT>
|
|
done this thing unto thee this day.
|
|
19 Moreover the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> will also deliver Israel with thee into
|
|
the hand of the Philistines: and to morrow <I>shalt</I> thou and thy
|
|
sons <I>be</I> with me: the L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD</B></FONT> also shall deliver the host of Israel
|
|
into the hand of the Philistines.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
We have here the conference between Saul and Satan. Saul came in
|
|
disguise
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:8"><I>v.</I> 8</A>),
|
|
|
|
but Satan soon discovered him,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:12"><I>v.</I> 12</A>.
|
|
|
|
Satan comes in disguise, in the disguise of Samuel's mantle, and Saul
|
|
cannot discover him. Such is the disadvantage we labour under, in
|
|
wrestling with <I>the rulers of the darkness of this world,</I> that
|
|
they know us, while we are ignorant of their wiles and devices.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
I. The spectre, or apparition, personating Samuel, asks why he is sent
|
|
for
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>):
|
|
|
|
<I>Why hast thou disquieted me to bring me up?</I> To us this discovers
|
|
that it was an evil spirit that personated Samuel; for (as bishop
|
|
Patrick observes) it is not in the power of witches to disturb the rest
|
|
of good men and to bring them back into the world when they please; nor
|
|
would the true Samuel have acknowledged such a power in magical arts:
|
|
but to Saul this was a proper device of Satan's, to draw veneration
|
|
from him, to possess him with an opinion of the power of divination,
|
|
and so to rivet him in the devil's interests.</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
II. Saul makes his complaint to this counterfeit Samuel, mistaking him
|
|
for the true; and a most doleful complaint it is: "<I>I am sorely
|
|
distressed,</I> and know not what to do, <I>for the Philistines make
|
|
war against me;</I> yet I should do well enough with them if I had but
|
|
the tokens of God's presence with me; but, alas! <I>God has departed
|
|
from me.</I>" He complained not of God's withdrawings till he fell into
|
|
trouble, till the <I>Philistines made war against him,</I> and then he
|
|
began to lament God's departure. He that in his prosperity enquired not
|
|
after God in his adversity thought it hard that God answered him not,
|
|
nor took any notice of his enquiries, either by dreams or prophets,
|
|
neither gave answers immediately himself nor sent them by any of his
|
|
messengers. He does not, like a penitent, own the righteousness of God
|
|
in this; but, like a man enraged, flies out against God as unkind and
|
|
flies off from him: <I>Therefore I have called thee;</I> as if Samuel,
|
|
a servant of God, would favour those whom God frowned upon, or as if a
|
|
dead prophet could do him more service than the living ones. One would
|
|
think, from this, that he really desired to meet with the devil, and
|
|
expected no other (though under the covert of Samuel's name), for he
|
|
desires advice otherwise than from God, therefore from the devil, who
|
|
is a rival with God. "God denies me, <I>therefore I come to thee.
|
|
Flectere si nequeo superos, Acheronta movebo.</I>" --<I>If I fail with
|
|
heaven, I will move hell.</I></P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
III. It is cold comfort which this evil spirit in Samuel's mantle gives
|
|
to Saul, and is manifestly intended to drive him to despair and
|
|
self-murder. Had it been the true Samuel, when Saul desired to be told
|
|
what he should do he would have told him to repent and make his peace
|
|
with God, and recall David from his banishment, and would then have
|
|
told him that he might hope in this way to find mercy with God; but,
|
|
instead of that, he represents his case as helpless and hopeless,
|
|
serving him as he did Judas, to whom he was first a tempter and then a
|
|
tormentor, persuading him first to sell his master and then to hang
|
|
himself.
|
|
|
|
1. He upbraids him with his present distress
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>),
|
|
|
|
tells him, not only that God had departed from him, but that he had
|
|
become his enemy, and therefore he must expect no comfortable answer
|
|
from him: "<I>Wherefore dost thou ask me?</I> How can I be thy friend
|
|
when God is thy enemy, or thy counsellor when he has left thee?"
|
|
|
|
2. He upbraids him with the anointing of David to the kingdom,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:17"><I>v.</I> 17</A>.
|
|
|
|
He could not have touched upon a string that sounded more unpleasant in
|
|
the ear of Saul than this. Nothing is said to reconcile him to David,
|
|
but all tends rather to exasperate him against David and widen the
|
|
breach. Yet, to make him believe that he was Samuel, the apparition
|
|
affirmed that it was God who spoke by him. The devil knows how to speak
|
|
with an air of religion, and can teach <I>false apostles to transform
|
|
themselves into the apostles of Christ</I> and imitate their language.
|
|
Those who use spells and charms, and plead, in defence of them, that
|
|
they find nothing in them but what is good, may remember what good
|
|
words the devil here spoke, and yet with what a malicious design.
|
|
|
|
3. He upbraids him with his disobedience to the command of God in not
|
|
destroying the Amalekites,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:18"><I>v.</I> 18</A>.
|
|
|
|
Satan had helped him to palliate and excuse that sin when Samuel was
|
|
dealing with him to bring him to repentance, but now he aggravates it,
|
|
to make him despair of God's mercy. See what those get that hearken to
|
|
Satan's temptations. He himself will be their accuser, and insult over
|
|
them. And see whom those resemble that allure others to that which is
|
|
evil and reproach them for it when they have done.
|
|
|
|
4. He foretels his approaching ruin,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:19"><I>v.</I> 19</A>.
|
|
|
|
(1.) That his army should be routed by the Philistines. This is twice
|
|
mentioned: <I>The Lord shall deliver Israel into the hand of the
|
|
Philistines.</I> This he might foresee, by considering the superior
|
|
strength and number of the Philistines, the weakness of the armies of
|
|
Israel, Saul's terror, and especially God's departure from them. Yet,
|
|
to personate a prophet, he very gravely ascribes it once and again to
|
|
God: <I>The Lord shall do it.</I>
|
|
|
|
(2.) That he and his sons should be slain in the battle:
|
|
<I>To-morrow,</I> that is, in a little time (and, supposing that it was
|
|
now after midnight, I see not but it may be taken strictly for the very
|
|
next day after that which had now begun), <I>thou and thy sons shall be
|
|
with me,</I> that is, in the state of the dead, separate from the body.
|
|
Had this been the true Samuel, he could not have foretold the event
|
|
unless God had revealed it to him; and, though it were an evil spirit,
|
|
God might by him foretel it; as we read of an evil spirit that foresaw
|
|
Ahab's fall at Ramoth-Gilead and was instrumental in it
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Ki+22:20-23">1 Kings xxii. 20</A>,
|
|
|
|
&c.), as perhaps this evil spirit was, by the divine permission, in
|
|
Saul's destruction. That evil spirit flattered Ahab, this frightened
|
|
Saul, and both that they might fall; so miserable are those that are
|
|
under the power of Satan; for, <I>whether he rage or laugh, there is no
|
|
rest,</I>
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Pr+29:9">Prov. xxix. 9</A>.</P>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_20"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_21"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_22"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_23"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_24"> </A>
|
|
<A NAME="1Sa28_25"> </A>
|
|
|
|
<A NAME="Sec4"> </A>
|
|
<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
|
|
<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>Saul's Despair.</I></FONT></TD>
|
|
<TD ALIGN=RIGHT><FONT SIZE=-1>B. C.</FONT> 1055.</TD></TR>
|
|
<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
|
|
</TABLE>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
<FONT SIZE=+1>20 Then Saul fell straightway all along on the earth, and was
|
|
sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel: and there was no
|
|
strength in him; for he had eaten no bread all the day, nor all
|
|
the night.
|
|
21 And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore
|
|
troubled, and said unto him, Behold, thine handmaid hath obeyed
|
|
thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened
|
|
unto thy words which thou spakest unto me.
|
|
22 Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also unto the voice
|
|
of thine handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee;
|
|
and eat, that thou mayest have strength, when thou goest on thy
|
|
way.
|
|
23 But he refused, and said, I will not eat. But his servants,
|
|
together with the woman, compelled him; and he hearkened unto
|
|
their voice. So he arose from the earth, and sat upon the bed.
|
|
24 And the woman had a fat calf in the house; and she hasted,
|
|
and killed it, and took flour, and kneaded <I>it,</I> and did bake
|
|
unleavened bread thereof:
|
|
25 And she brought <I>it</I> before Saul, and before his servants;
|
|
and they did eat. Then they rose up, and went away that night.
|
|
</FONT></P>
|
|
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
We are here told how Saul received this terrible message from the ghost
|
|
he consulted. He desired to be told <I>what he should do</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>),
|
|
|
|
but was only told what he had not done and what should be done to him.
|
|
Those that expect any good counsel or comfort otherwise than from God,
|
|
and in the way of his institutions, will be as wretchedly disappointed
|
|
as Saul here was. Observe,</P>
|
|
|
|
<P>
|
|
|
|
I. How he sunk under the load,
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:20"><I>v.</I> 20</A>.
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He was indeed unfit to bear it, having <I>eaten nothing all the day</I>
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before, nor <I>that night.</I> He came fasting from the camp, and
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continued fasting; not for want of food, but for want of an appetite.
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The fear he was in of the power of the Philistines
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:5"><I>v.</I> 5</A>)
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took away his appetite, or perhaps the struggle he had with his own
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conscience, after he had entertained the thought of consulting the
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witch, made him to nauseate even his necessary food, though ever so
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dainty. This made him an easy prey to this fresh terror that now came
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upon him like an armed man. <I>He fell all along on the earth,</I> as
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|
if the archers of the Philistines had already hit him, <I>and there was
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no strength in him</I> to bear up against these heavy tidings. Now he
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had enough of consulting witches, and found them miserable comforters.
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When God in his word speaks terror to sinners he opens to them, at the
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|
same time, a door of hope if they repent: but those that apply to the
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gates of hell for succour must there expect darkness without any
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glimpse of light.</P>
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<P>
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II. With what difficulty he was persuaded to take so much relief as was
|
|
necessary to carry him back to his post in the camp. The witch, it
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|
should seem, had left Saul alone with the spectre, to have his talk
|
|
with him by himself; but perhaps hearing him fall and groan, and
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|
perceiving him to be in great agony, she came to him
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:21"><I>v.</I> 21</A>),
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and was very importunate with him to take some refreshment, that he
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|
might be able to get clear from her house, fearing that if he should be
|
|
ill, especially if he should die there, she should be punished for it
|
|
as a traitor, though she had escaped punishment as a witch. This, it is
|
|
probable, rather than any sentiment of kindness, made her solicitous to
|
|
help him. But what a deplorable condition had he brought himself to
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|
when he needed so wretched a comforter!
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|
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1. She showed herself very importunate with him to take some
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|
refreshment. She pleaded
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|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:21"><I>v.</I> 21</A>)
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that she had obeyed his voice to the endangering of her life, and why
|
|
therefore should not he hearken to her voice for the relieving of his
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|
life?
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|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:22"><I>v.</I> 22</A>.
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She had a fat calf at hand (and the word signifies one that was made
|
|
use of in treading out the corn, and therefore could the worse be
|
|
spared); this she prepared for his entertainment,
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|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:24"><I>v.</I> 24</A>.
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|
Josephus is large in applauding the extraordinary courtesy and
|
|
liberality of this woman, and recommending what she did as an example
|
|
of compassion to the distressed, and readiness to communicate for their
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|
relief, though we have no prospect of being recompensed.
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2. He showed himself very averse to it: <I>He refused, and said, I will
|
|
not eat</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>),
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choosing rather to die obscurely by famine than honourably by the
|
|
sword. Had he laboured only under a defect of animal spirits, food
|
|
might have helped him; but, alas! his case was out of the reach of such
|
|
succours. What are dainty meats to a wounded conscience? <I>As vinegar
|
|
upon nitre, so is he that sings songs to a heavy heart,</I> so
|
|
disagreeable and unwelcome.
|
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|
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3. The woman at length, with the help of his servants, overpersuaded
|
|
him, against his inclination and resolution, to take some refreshment.
|
|
Not by force, but by friendly advice, they <I>compelled him</I>
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:23"><I>v.</I> 23</A>),
|
|
|
|
and of no other than such a rational and courteous compulsion are we to
|
|
understand that in the parable, <I>Compel them to come in,</I>
|
|
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Lu+14:23">Luke xiv. 23</A>.
|
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|
<I>How forcible are right words,</I> when men are pressed by them to
|
|
that which is for their own interest!
|
|
|
|
<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Job+6:25">Job vi. 25</A>.
|
|
|
|
Saul was somewhat revived with this entertainment; so that he and his
|
|
servants, when they had eaten, <I>rose up and went away</I> before it
|
|
was light
|
|
|
|
(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=1Sa+28:25"><I>v.</I> 25</A>),
|
|
|
|
that they might hasten to their business and that they might not be
|
|
seen to come out of such a scandalous house. Josephus here much admires
|
|
the bravery and magnanimity of Saul, that, though he was assured he
|
|
should lose both his life and honour, yet he would not desert his army,
|
|
but resolutely returned to the camp, and stood ready for an engagement.
|
|
I wonder more at the hardness of his heart, that he did not again apply
|
|
to God by repentance and prayer, in hopes yet to obtain at least a
|
|
reprieve; but he desperately ran headlong upon his own ruin. Perhaps,
|
|
indeed, now that rage and envy possessed him to the uttermost, he was
|
|
the better reconciled to his hard fate, being told that his sons, and
|
|
Jonathan among the rest, whom he hated for his affection to David,
|
|
should die with him. If he must fall, he cared not what desolations of
|
|
his family and kingdom accompanied his fall, hoping it would be the
|
|
worse for his successor. <B><I>Emou thanontos gaia michtheto
|
|
pyri.</I></B>--<I>I care not if, when I am dead, the world should be
|
|
set on fire.</I> He begged not, as David, "Let thy hand be against me,
|
|
but not against thy people."</P>
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