Bede — Commentary on Scripture

1 Samuel 28:2

And David said to Achish, Surely thou shalt know what thy servant can do. And Achish said to David, Therefore will I make thee keeper of mine head for ever.

And David said to Achis: Now you will know, etc. It is clear according to the letter, because David, promising aid to the king, also promises to be his guardian, whether in the battle or after the victory. But according to the spiritual sense, the head of the strong brothers and those acting manfully is Christ. To whom, he saying, And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Matthew XXVIII); they respond: And we have learned that no one should be our guardian of the grace leading us, by which you remain in us, other than yourself, not only on all the days of this age, but also in the future, where one day in your courts is better than thousands (Psalm LXXXIII).

1 Samuel 28:3 · 2 passages

Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that had familiar spirits, and the wizards, out of the land.

And Saul removed all the magicians, etc. Magicians and soothsayers, the first of whom, commonly called sorcerers, use blood and sacrifices, and often touch the bodies of the dead, following (whom other translations call enchanters) accomplish their work with words; all these soothsayers and idolatries of the Gentiles are mystically designated, whom the people of the Jews, although more wise in earthly things than heavenly, removed completely at this time. For no one now dares to worship Baalim, or Astaroth, or any other monsters of the Gentiles, although they are not perfectly faithful to the Lord.

Now, Samuel was dead, etc. Josephus narrates that this happened two years before the death of Saul, writing thus (Antiq. VI, 14): "Saul reigned, with Samuel living for eighteen years, and for another two years after his death." Indeed, earlier in the order of history, the death and burial of Samuel are described in nearly the same words; but it is recapitulated here so that the necessity that prompted Saul to seek out the necromancer might be recalled to the readers. However, mystically, the death of Samuel, with the Lord suffering, indicates the cessation of the legal figures as well as the prophets, which foretold His future incarnation. The mourning of Israel signifies that not without great sorrow could the carnal ones be separated from the old institutions of the Lord. I believe that all of Israel, which was able to see the desolation of the temple of Jerusalem and the land of promise—both of which were given to the fathers as a type of heavenly grace—could not at all withhold their lamentation and tears. The burial, which took place after the death and mourning, signifies that…

Now, Samuel was dead, etc. Josephus narrates that this happened two years before the death of Saul, writing thus (Antiq. VI, 14): "Saul reigned, with Samuel living for eighteen years, and for another two years after his death." Indeed, earlier in the order of history, the death and burial of Samuel are described in nearly the same words; but it is recapitulated here so that the necessity that prompted Saul to seek out the necromancer might be recalled to the readers. However, mystically, the death of Samuel, with the Lord suffering, indicates the cessation of the legal figures as well as the prophets, which foretold His future incarnation. The mourning of Israel signifies that not without great sorrow could the carnal ones be separated from the old institutions of the Lord. I believe that all of Israel, which was able to see the desolation of the temple of Jerusalem and the land of promise—both of which were given to the fathers as a type of heavenly grace—could not at all withhold their lamentation and tears. The burial, which took place after the death and mourning, signifies that time when the faithful Jews altogether ceased from the observation of legal shadows. For it is known that for a considerable time the early Church observed Jewish customs, until the evangelical doctrine gradually prevailed, and it itself completely abstained from legal observation. And fittingly, Samuel is buried in Ramah, his city where he was born, which is interpreted as "exalted": because the same Church of Christ, which once gave forth the beginnings of prophecy, concluded the fulfilled figures of prophecy with honorable devotion, as if they were the limbs of the dead Samuel.

1 Samuel 28:4

And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and pitched in Shunem: and Saul gathered all Israel together, and they pitched in Gilboa.

And the Philistines gathered together, etc. The Philistines in this place, inasmuch as they seek the aid of David and his men, represent the faithful from the Gentiles; but inasmuch as they scorn and reject him, they represent the unfaithful who oppose Christ. For they oppose both the unfaithful Jews and the heretically unfaithful, and the Catholics, Christians and pagans alike. Therefore it is fitting that the Philistines are said to have been encamped in Sunam, which is interpreted as 'crimson'. For crimson holds the appearance of fire. Indeed, the faithful, fervent with the love of Christ, and the pagans, raging with the fire of persecution, do not hesitate to fight against their adversaries. For the good fight against the evil; the evil fight among themselves; but the good cannot fight among themselves at all. Moreover, Israel, because it gathered under Saul who was dying and impious, not under David who was just and destined to rule, either signifies the present blindness of its own people, as we said above, or the heretical depravity; and thus rightly it is described to have ga…

And the Philistines gathered together, etc. The Philistines in this place, inasmuch as they seek the aid of David and his men, represent the faithful from the Gentiles; but inasmuch as they scorn and reject him, they represent the unfaithful who oppose Christ. For they oppose both the unfaithful Jews and the heretically unfaithful, and the Catholics, Christians and pagans alike. Therefore it is fitting that the Philistines are said to have been encamped in Sunam, which is interpreted as 'crimson'. For crimson holds the appearance of fire. Indeed, the faithful, fervent with the love of Christ, and the pagans, raging with the fire of persecution, do not hesitate to fight against their adversaries. For the good fight against the evil; the evil fight among themselves; but the good cannot fight among themselves at all. Moreover, Israel, because it gathered under Saul who was dying and impious, not under David who was just and destined to rule, either signifies the present blindness of its own people, as we said above, or the heretical depravity; and thus rightly it is described to have gathered on the mountain of downfall, which the name Gelboe signifies, and to have fallen there.

1 Samuel 28:7 · 2 passages

Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.

And his servants said to her, etc. Correctly it is narrated that the woman with a familiar spirit, whom some call a ventriloquist, lived in Endor, which means in the fountain or eye of generation, so that the very place of her habitation bears witness to the already lost Synagogue, which, deceived by the serpent's conversation, feigns to give light and the cup of wisdom to its listeners.

And Saul said to his servants: Seek me a woman who has a familiar spirit, etc. Denied an answer by the Lord, Saul sought a woman with an unclean spirit, through whom he might inquire; and with the cessation of the prophets and the ceremonies of old after the Lord's passion, the people of the Jews consult and frequent the synagogue of Satan, such as today is their synagogue, having a familiar spirit, which in their language signifies the mouth of the abyss. Nor is anything understood better than entrance into eternal punishments. But even the name itself, customary from the meaning of the perfidious faction, does not differ. For it is said to be derived from Apollo Pythius, who was a diligent practitioner of these arts, who himself is said to have borrowed such a name from that place, because he struck the serpent Python in vengeance for his son being killed by him.

1 Samuel 28:8

And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee.

He therefore changed his appearance, etc. The people of the Jews, having changed their habit in worst either of their earthly kingdom or of faith and works, by which they ought to have been spiritually adorned and loved, came to the hearing of such a Synagogue, which the woman with a familiar spirit signifies, in the blindness of a darkened heart; with those who, transgressing the unity of the true faith or charity, have by no means come to the knowledge of the holy Trinity. For he knows that the number two is sometimes placed in evil, who knows on what account the work of the second day alone in the creation of the world did not deserve the blessing of divine vision, and that unclean animals entered the ark under this number, and he rightly understands innumerable other things of this kind in the Scriptures.

1 Samuel 28:11 · 2 passages

Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.

And the woman said to Saul, etc. She calls one seen in the plural, as is very customary in Scripture, where often many are designated by the singular, and singular individuals by the plural number. Finally, when one calf was made, the people said: These are your gods, O Israel (Exodus 32). And not one frog or fly was sent against the wicked, but it is said: He sent among them the dog-fly, and it devoured them; the frog, and it destroyed them (Psalm 77); and countless others of this kind.

And the woman said to him: Whom shall I raise up for you? etc. And the people of the Jews, entering their synagogue, through the prophecies once summarized and completed in Christ, desire as if to be raised up from the dead for themselves, namely practicing so as to serve anew the shadows of sacrifices, the Sabbath, new moons, leprosy of houses and clothes, and the other literal observances.

1 Samuel 28:15 · 2 passages

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.

But Samuel said to Saul: Why have you disturbed me? etc. And the books of the Old Testament, very full of the grace of prophecy, openly testify to readers that after the passion of the Lord they should not be raised again to the symbolic observance of the letter, but rather that the very ministers of prophecy are disturbed when they see what they wrote understood differently than they themselves sensed.

And Saul said: I am greatly distressed, etc. The Jews, abandoned by God, possess the gift of prophecy not by merit, attacked by all nations, follow, so to speak, a dead shadow of the law and the prophets under blind night. This, beset by miseries, they think should be consulted as to what should be done with them. Indeed, those same legal ceremonies, now celebrated in vain and in corners, signify that which was once shown publicly by the command and gracious acceptance of God, namely that the old things were to pass away, and all things were to be made new, that the kingdom of the Jews was to be utterly destroyed and the kingdom of Christians to be spread throughout the whole world, just as Samuel, though dead, but raised through impious art, revealed everything about the change of kingdom which he had foretold while alive. If anyone is indeed troubled by how a woman with demonic art could disturb and raise a prophet after death, let him know for certain either that the devil showed then a false shade to those seeking it, or if Samuel truly appeared, that the devil could only do as m…

And Saul said: I am greatly distressed, etc. The Jews, abandoned by God, possess the gift of prophecy not by merit, attacked by all nations, follow, so to speak, a dead shadow of the law and the prophets under blind night. This, beset by miseries, they think should be consulted as to what should be done with them. Indeed, those same legal ceremonies, now celebrated in vain and in corners, signify that which was once shown publicly by the command and gracious acceptance of God, namely that the old things were to pass away, and all things were to be made new, that the kingdom of the Jews was to be utterly destroyed and the kingdom of Christians to be spread throughout the whole world, just as Samuel, though dead, but raised through impious art, revealed everything about the change of kingdom which he had foretold while alive. If anyone is indeed troubled by how a woman with demonic art could disturb and raise a prophet after death, let him know for certain either that the devil showed then a false shade to those seeking it, or if Samuel truly appeared, that the devil could only do as much as the Lord permitted. Nor is it surprising that such things are allowed to a malign spirit for certain secret reasons, since he set the Savior on the pinnacle of the temple, and asked for and received Job to tempt. But if we believe that it was rather the fantasy of an unclean spirit that appeared, this should not disturb as to how such a one could speak true and prophetic things. For we know that the devil often can foretell many future things which he has learned from holy angels, but thereby one ought to listen to his words the less, because all that he speaks or does among men, he does with the intention of deceiving. And what was said among other things:

1 Samuel 28:19

Moreover the LORD will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines: and to morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: the LORD also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.

Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me, whether Samuel said it, or an evil spirit, it is understood no otherwise than without a body, that is, in another life. For by no means could wicked Saul be there after death, where good Jonathan could be received, indeed a great chasm is established between them, where one is received into the bosom of Abraham with Samuel, the other buried in the flame of hell with the devil. However, both are taken from the conversation of this life, which the devil always lacked. Nor does anything hinder the understanding, if we believe these things fantastically said and shown by the devil, that the evil one wanted to mix falsehoods among the truths he would speak; and saying under the person of Samuel to the wicked one, You and your sons will be with me. To secretly persuade sinners that after death, even the worst sins being put to sleep and dismissed, they can then live blessedly with those who lived well before death.

1 Samuel 28:20

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.

And immediately Saul fell full length on the ground, etc. Reading the words of the prophets, the people of the Jews celebrating vain sacrifices, indeed the wretched suffer terror, but they do not have the strength of faith by which they may be blessed, because the grace of evangelical preaching has been shining around the world for such a long time, and they did not know how to eat the living bread that came down from heaven.

1 Samuel 28:21

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.

Therefore that woman came in to Saul, etc. And that faithless people, oppressed by so many calamities among the nations today, is troubled on all sides, so that not even the very words of sacred reading, which they still perceive in the darkness of ignorance, would delight it, though perceiving by reading or hearing them, compelled by its own synagogue.

1 Samuel 28:24

And the woman had a fat calf in the house; and she hasted, and killed it, and took flour, and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof:

But that woman had a Paschal calf in her house, etc. The most tender and excellent calf, and fine flour bread, which Abraham and Sarah prepared to refresh the Lord during the fervent midday sun (Gen. XVIII), implies the faith in the Lord's incarnation and the perfection of devout humility, with which the holy Church, together with its spiritual teachers glowing with the light of love and wisdom, placates the Lord. But on the other hand, this Paschal calf, and the flour which the demon-possessed woman cooked for Saul who was about to die, and presented for his servants to eat in the middle of the night, express the birth and reign of the Antichrist, and the breaking of the hearts of those who serve him with foolish humility: which the synagogue of Satan, enveloped in the darkness of impiety, suggests to its hearers who are wretched and condemned to eternal death as things to be believed and hoped for, as if it refreshes them with sweet feasts from the fear of surrounding troubles; so that the hearts nourished with this food, progressing in wickedness, go darkly through the shadow unde…

But that woman had a Paschal calf in her house, etc. The most tender and excellent calf, and fine flour bread, which Abraham and Sarah prepared to refresh the Lord during the fervent midday sun (Gen. XVIII), implies the faith in the Lord's incarnation and the perfection of devout humility, with which the holy Church, together with its spiritual teachers glowing with the light of love and wisdom, placates the Lord. But on the other hand, this Paschal calf, and the flour which the demon-possessed woman cooked for Saul who was about to die, and presented for his servants to eat in the middle of the night, express the birth and reign of the Antichrist, and the breaking of the hearts of those who serve him with foolish humility: which the synagogue of Satan, enveloped in the darkness of impiety, suggests to its hearers who are wretched and condemned to eternal death as things to be believed and hoped for, as if it refreshes them with sweet feasts from the fear of surrounding troubles; so that the hearts nourished with this food, progressing in wickedness, go darkly through the shadow under the solitary night.

1 Samuel 29:1

Now the Philistines gathered together all their armies to Aphek: and the Israelites pitched by a fountain which is in Jezreel.

But also Israel encamped by the fountain, etc. The fountain which was in Jezreel, that is, in the seed of God, indicates the baptismal washing, by which the children of the Church are regenerated through the grace of the Holy Spirit. If therefore you understand the unbelieving Jews, or the heretics worse than unbelievers, figured in the name of Israel, both place their treacherous camps over the fountain of renewing grace; one through pride by despising it, the other through heresy by violating it.

1 Samuel 29:2

And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds, and by thousands: but David and his men passed on in the rereward with Achish.

And the satraps of the Philistines indeed marched by the hundreds, etc. Understand the last contingent either by the merit of humility or by the order of time. For in every age of the world, the nations of the gentiles have set up in battle array against the Jews, since that nation was founded, and strive to defeat them by hand or mouth; but also against the heretics, because they are a portion of the Church, burning with a similar mind due to envy of the name of Christ, the Lord appears humble and despised by those chosen from the secular world; because the children of this age are wiser in their generation than the children of light (Luke XVI). He also, having incarnated in his time, and in the fullness of times, appeared humble to the world, showing examples of humility, rejection, and poverty outwardly to his followers, whom he instructed within on how desirable it is to be mighty in hand for defeating the proud, and in blessing the submissive.

1 Samuel 29:3 · 3 passages

Then said the princes of the Philistines, What do these Hebrews here? And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines, Is not this David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, which hath been with me these days, or these years, and I have found no fault in him since he fell unto me unto this day?

And Achish said to the princes of the Philistines, etc. Achish praising the friendship of David, the angry princes of the Philistines avoid his companionship in battle, fearing his fighting prowess as fame spreads. Finally, among other things they say:

And Achish called David, and said to him, etc. Achish himself indeed declares David to be upright, innocent, and good, as an angel of God; but so as not to offend the eyes of the Philistine princes, he orders him to withdraw from the battle, in peace, with anger. The crowd of believers from the nations praises, loves, and proclaims Christ's justice, mercy, and holiness, as of Him who was sent by God for the salvation of the nations, but prays that the word should not be entrusted to blasphemous and proud leaders of idolatry, lest by hearing and not believing they incur a greater judgment; and it urges the Lord, as it were, to be content to rest in the calm and serene hearts of believers, rather than offering Himself to the non-believing by preaching, thus providing a cause for scandals and persecutions.

Is this not David? etc. While the Church of the nations praises the faith in Christ, through which eternal life is deserved, angry philosophers and priests of idols fear to believe in Him, whose word they mourn has destroyed their worship and wisdom; they see His triumph over the ancient enemy being celebrated in the unanimous chorus of the holy Church, one which no other could have merited, they refuse to unite themselves to His members, to be subject to His rule by receiving faith.