1 Samuel 28
by Pastor David Groendyk

If there’s one word to summarize this chapter it’s ‘dilemma’. David, through all of his deceptive maneuvering, has put himself in good graces with the Philistine king, and now he’s expected to go to war against Israel fighting side-by-side with the Philistines (vv. 1–2). Surely that’s not the position David wants to be in. Maybe David shouldn’t have been so quick to compromise his loyalty. How’s he going to get out of this mess? We’ll have to wait!

There’s another dilemma brewing as well, and this one is much, much worse. Saul is trembling at the Philistine army lined up against him, and he’s desperate (v. 5). He’s so desperate that he goes to a medium to get advice from Samuel’s spirit who’s long since died (v. 7). The irony is that Saul has banished all the mediums and necromancers in the land (v. 3). Why? Because they were forbidden by the Lord (Deut. 18:9–22; Isa. 8:19). Don’t miss the other irony either: Saul swears an oath by the name of Yahweh that no punishment will befall this woman who is breaking Yahweh’s law (v. 10). According to Ralph Davis, “For all his degeneration Saul is orthodox to the last.” Although he knows how to project a holy image and follow God’s words in form, Saul is a perverted and wicked man who has no intention of truly obeying God. It’s almost like he believes God’s rules don’t really apply to him. Can you think of modern day examples of people like this? In what ways are you tempted to excuse yourself from keeping God’s laws?

Then comes a scene straight out of a horror movie. It truly is one of the most dark and disturbing passages in all of Scripture. Does Samuel really come back from the dead and speak to Saul? The chapter seems to indicate, ‘yes’. However, this chapter also seems to indicate that something is different about this particular séance for this medium. It’s not a secret that there are dark powers at work in the world, but 1 Samuel 28 reinforces that they only operate under the permission of God’s power. Deuteronomy doesn’t forbid diviners and sorcerers because they’re fake but because they’re abominations to God and a form of idolatry (1 Chron. 10:13–14). There is only one almighty God. Notice that there is almost nothing written here about how the medium does her work. That’s intentional. We’re not meant to pry or have our curiosity piqued. Every indication in this chapter is that this séance is an abomination to God, not ever to be imitated. It’s one of the most horrific evils Saul commits in his life, and it leads directly to his death. Stephen Dempster points back to Hannah’s song in 1 Samuel 2:6: “The Lord kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up.” Here is a peculiar fulfillment of that verse. The Lord raises up one of his faithful servants to do his bidding and will soon bring the living Saul down to the grave because of his disobedience.

Here’s the real lesson of this chapter. Saul has asked the Lord for help, but the Lord is no longer guiding him (vv. 6, 15). His Spirit left Saul a long time ago. David is certainly in a tight spot, but Saul is experiencing what Ralph Davis calls the most hopeless misery in all of life—being abandoned by God. As he continues getting no response from God, Saul’s reaction should have been one of humility and repentance for all the ways he’d opposed God, but instead he turns to an even greater abomination. All those instances in Scripture where God or his angels proclaim to his children, “Fear not!” or “Do not be afraid!” don’t apply to someone like Saul. A good lesson for us is that the only reason we would ever have reason to fear is because God is no longer with us; but when God is with us, we’re never in a truly hopeless situation. And the good news is that God doesn’t ever leave or forsake his children, and so we never truly have anything to fear (Deut. 31:6, 8). Praise God for that promise!