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The Truth About Angels
Satan to yield herself to his control, to fulfill his purposes; and in
return, the prince of evil wrought wonders for her, and revealed secret
things to her.
Disguising himself, Saul went forth by night with but two atten-
dants, to seek the retreat of the sorceress.... Under the cover of dark-
ness, Saul and his attendants made their way across the plain, and
safely passing the Philistine host, they crossed the mountain ridge, to
the lonely home of the sorceress of Endor....
After practicing her incantations, she said, “I saw gods ascending
out of the earth.... An old man cometh up, and he is covered with a
mantle. And Saul perceived that it was Samuel.” ...
It was not God’s holy prophet that came forth at the spell of a
sorcerer’s incantation. Samuel was not present in that haunt of evil
spirits. That supernatural appearance was produced solely by the
power of Satan.—
Patriarchs and Prophets, 675, 676, 679
.
The woman’s first words under the spell of her incantation had
been addressed to the king, “Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art
Saul.” Thus the first act of the evil spirit which personated the prophet,
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was to communicate secretly with this wicked woman, to warn her
of the deception that had been practiced upon her. The message to
Saul from the pretended prophet was, “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”.
When Samuel was living, Saul had despised his counsel, and had
resented his reproofs. But now, in the hour of his distress and calamity,
he felt that the prophet’s guidance was his only hope, and in order
to communicate with Heaven’s ambassador, he vainly had recourse
to the messenger of hell! Saul had placed himself fully in the power
of Satan; and now he whose only delight is in causing misery and
destruction, made the most of his advantage, to work the ruin of the
unhappy king. In answer to Saul’s agonized entreaty came the terrible
message, professedly from the lips of Samuel:
“Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the Lord is departed
from thee, and is become thine enemy? ... Because thou obeyedst not
the voice of the Lord, ... therefore ... the Lord will also deliver Israel