(yrrs. 7,_ 8). " 1 hn_t extra~:_dinary pains ?omen sometimes undergo in the practice of snpcrst1tion I (1 Kmgs xnn. 28). 2. A.fleet darkness and secrecy, and necessitate the • a<loption of undignified, mean, and sh,unefnl courses. They are carried out under the cover of night, which is favourable to deception. Saul disguised himself not to -escape the Philistines, but to elude the observatio~ of his own people, and to impose upon t_he sorceress (ver. 9). 3. Involve mental blindness and credulity, so that those who yield to them become the ready dupes of others who traffic on their gloomy fears and illusory hopes, "deceiving and being deceived." "It was a shame that the king who ha<l expelled all sorcerers must himself at last fall into the hands of a sorceress" ("'iner). II_I. hs SI XFUL~ESS. 1. It casts contempt upon the sufficiency of Divine revelation. '· ·wilt thou ha Ye light for all the riddles and dark questions of this life? betake thy- self to God's word, there enough is revealed, and what goes beyond that comes of -e,il." 2. It chooses evil instead of good, disregards the moral dispositions which God requires, and violates the sense of goodness, righteousness, and truth. Saul took an oat~ "by the L?rd" to protect wh~t he knew was displeu~ing to the Lord, .·rnd was gmlty of conmvance at what he l11mself had condemned as worthy of death (ver. 10). 3. It d.oes what th.e word of God proliibits, and in its worst forms, casts -0ff allegiance to God, and ruakes alliance with his enemies (Levit. xix. 31 ; xx. 6, :2i ; Deut. xviii. 10; 2 Kings xxiii. 24; Gal. v. 20; Rev. xxii. 15). 11 Knowing that the act of divination co-operates in no slight degree with the errors of the lives of the multitude, so as to lead them out of the right way, Moses did not suffer his dis- ciples to use any species of it whatever. All these things are but the furniture of impiety. How so ? Because he who attends to them and who allows himself to be i11fl uenced by them disregards the cause of all things, looking upon those things alone as the causes of all things, whether good or evil" (Philo, ' On Monarchy'). IV. ITS INJuBIOUSNESS. 1. It fills the votaries of superstition with miserable dis- appointment. 2. It makes them the victims of delusion, and further estranges them •from the way of truth. 3. It increases their guilt, hardens their heart, and quickens their pace to final ruin. Saul's.night-visit was an ill preparation for the coming con- flict. It extinguished every ray of hope, and turned his fear into despair.-D.
Ver. 11. (ENDOR.)-Samuel's counsel vainly desired. "Bring me up Samuel." The character of Samuel was so great, his life had been so long-continued, his appear- ance so familiar to all, his influence so powerful and extensive, that after his depart- ure his form must have seemed still to brood over the land. What the thoughts of Saul were at his death we know not. Perhaps he was glad of his removal. Although -dwelling near him, he was a~together estranged fro~ him, and entirely ~e_gl~cted ~o seek his counsel. But the time came--the threatenmg hosts of the Ph1hstmes, his overwhelming fear, the silence of Heaven-when he urgently needed it, and earnestly but vainly desired the benefit of it. Whether he went to the sorceress with the deliberate purpose of seeking an interview with his old and faithful counsellor, or soucrht it under the impulse of the moment, is not stated. The former is the more probable. He was certainly persuaded of the power which she professed to have ( .-er. 11) of raising up the spirits of the departed, and ( after her expression of sur- prise, and her description of his well-known appearance) ~~ the actual presence of Samuel in consequence of his request(" I have called thee, ver. 15). The result of the interview, however, proved that his hope of obtai!1ing good from it w~s vain. It is not unusual for those who have neglected the advice of a teacher or friend to desire, when he is gone, that he might come back and again grant it to them. In such a desire we see- I. THE VALUE OF FAITHFUL COUNSEL, to which it is a testimony. The reproofs and warnings which a faithful counsellor gives are not always agreeable. They are often deemed unnecessary, regarded with contempt, and cause him to be accounted an enemy. But they are justified by events; and then their worth is felt, and they are longed for, when perchance it is too l~te. The sore distress which Saul now s~ffered would have been averted if he had listened to the counsel of Samuel. He 1s your best friend who tells yon the truth, and seeks your welfare rather than yonr favour. Give heed to what he says while it may conduce to your profit. CH. XXVIJI, 1-26.] 'l'HE FIRST BO'JK O~' SA:\IUEL. 535