In The Word
Read: 1 Samuel 27-28
David Flees to the Philistines
27 Then David said to himself, “Now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to safely escape into the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of searching for me anymore in all the territory of Israel, and I will escape from his hand.” 2 So David set out and went over, he and the six hundred men who were with him, to Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath. 3 And David lived with Achish in Gath, he and his men, each with his own household—David with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess, Nabal’s widow. 4 Now it was reported to Saul that David had fled to Gath, so he no longer searched for him.
5 Then David said to Achish, “If now I have found favor in your sight, have them give me a place in one of the cities in the country, so that I may live there; for why should your servant live in the royal city with you?” 6 So Achish gave him Ziklag that day; therefore Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah to this day. 7 The number of days that David lived in the country of the Philistines was a year and four months.
8 Now David and his men went up and attacked the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites; for they were the inhabitants of the land from ancient times, as you come to Shur even as far as the land of Egypt. 9 David attacked the land and did not leave a man or a woman alive, and he took the sheep, the cattle, the donkeys, the camels, and the clothing. Then he returned and came to Achish.10 Now Achish said, “Where did you carry out an attack today?” And David said, “Against the Negev of Judah, against the Negev of the Jerahmeelites, and against the Negev of the Kenites.” 11 And David did not leave a man or a woman alive to bring to Gath, saying, “Otherwise they will tell about us, saying, ‘This is what David has done, and this has been his practice all the time that he has lived in the country of the Philistines.’” 12 So Achish believed David, saying, “He has undoubtedly made himself repulsive among his people Israel; therefore he will become my servant forever.”
Saul and the Spirit Medium
28 Now it came about in those days that the Philistines gathered their armed camps for war, to fight against Israel. And Achish said to David, “Know for certain that you will go out with me in the camp, you and your men.” 2 David said to Achish, “Very well, you will learn what your servant can do.” So Achish said to David, “Then I will assuredly make you my bodyguard for life!”
3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had mourned him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. And Saul had removed the mediums and spiritists from the land. 4 So the Philistines assembled and came and camped in Shunem; and Saul gathered all Israel together, and they camped in Gilboa. 5 When Saul saw the camp of the Philistines, he was afraid and his heart trembled greatly. 6 So Saul inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him, either in dreams, or by the Urim, or by the prophets. 7 Then Saul said to his servants, “Find for me a woman who is a medium, so that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold, there is a woman who is a medium at En-dor.”
8 Then Saul disguised himself by putting on different clothes, and went, he and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night; and he said, “Consult the spirit for me, please, and bring up for me the one whom I shall name for you.”9 But the woman said to him, “Behold, you know what Saul has done, that he has eliminated the mediums and spiritists from the land. Why are you then setting a trap for my life, to bring about my death?” 10 So Saul swore an oath to her by the Lord, saying, “As the Lord lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” 11 Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” And he said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” 12 When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice; and the woman spoke to Saul, saying, “Why have you deceived me? For you are Saul!” 13 But the king said to her, “Do not be afraid; but what do you see?” And the woman said to Saul, “I see a divine being coming up from the earth.” 14 He said to her, “How does he appear?” And she said, “An old man is coming up, and he is wrapped in a robe.” Then Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and paid homage.
15 And Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” Saul replied, “I am very distressed, for the Philistines are waging war against me, and God has abandoned me and no longer answers me, either through prophets or in dreams; therefore I have called you, so that you may let me know what I should do.” 16 Samuel said, “But why ask me, since the Lord has abandoned you and has become your enemy? 17 And the Lord has done just as He spoke through me; for the Lord has torn the kingdom from your hand and given it to your neighbor, to David. 18 Just as you did not obey the Lord and did not execute His fierce wrath on Amalek, so the Lord has done this thing to you this day. 19 Furthermore, the Lord will also hand Israel along with you over to the Philistines; so tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. Indeed, the Lord will hand the army of Israel over to the Philistines!”
20 Then Saul immediately fell full length to the ground and was very afraid because of Samuel’s words; there was no strength in him either, because he had eaten no food all day and all night. 21 The woman came to Saul and saw that he was utterly horrified, and she said to him, “Behold, your servant has obeyed you, and I have taken my life in my hand and have listened to your words which you spoke to me. 22 So now you too, please listen to the voice of your servant, and let me serve you a piece of bread, and eat it, so that you will have strength when you go on your way.” 23 But he refused and said, “I will not eat.” However, his servants together with the woman urged him, and he listened to them. So he got up from the ground and sat on the bed. 24 Now the woman had a fattened calf in the house, and she quickly slaughtered it; then she took flour, kneaded it and baked unleavened bread from it. 25 She then served it to Saul and his servants, and they ate. Then they got up and left that night.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
As Saul begins to sense that things are not right, he inquires of the Lord through priests, prophets, and dreams; but it is to no avail (28:6). God has already spoken, and he has abandoned Saul. Saul now seeks help from another, even if the help comes from a pagan ritual he himself had outlawed in the land. He finds a medium, a spiritualist that God had warned against. He declared that anyone found practicing such a thing should die.
The woman he finds is very cautious at first, but eventually, she gives in to Saul’s request. The thing most disturbing in this story is that she was actually able to summon Samuel! God allowed Samuel to appear to them and pronounce judgment on Saul’s ungodly behavior. God had strictly forbidden the art of witchcraft, and Saul will eventually reap the consequence of his action.
You probably know someone who has tried to have the future predicted to them by card readers or other spiritualists that promise answers to their most dire questions. Know this: God has forbidden this type of activity by Christian believers. We have a direct line with the Father, we have prophets, dreams, and other means to find out what God wants of us. And the most important thing we have is His Word; it will not fail you. Many times the Father has answered important questions in my life through His holy Word. So the next time you really need to hear from God, open up His word first; you may be surprised at what you find!