know what she did; and that he would not
tell any one else what she foretold, but that she should incur no
danger. As soon as he had induced her by this oath to fear no harm, he
bid her bring up to him the soul of Samuel. She, not knowing who Samuel
was, called him out of Hades. When he appeared, and the woman saw one
that was venerable, and of a divine form, she was in disorder; and being
astonished at the sight, she said, "Art not thou king Saul?" for Samuel
had informed her who he was. When he had owned that to be true, and had
asked her whence her disorder arose, she said that she saw a certain
person ascend, who in his form was like to a god. And when he bid her
tell him what he resembled, in what habit he appeared, and of what
age he was, she told him he was an old man already, and of a glorious
personage, and had on a sacerdotal mantle. So the king discovered by
these signs that he was Samuel; and he fell down upon the ground, and
saluted and worshipped him. And when the soul of Samuel asked him why
he had disturbed him, and caused him to be brought up, he lamented the
necessity he was under; for he said, that his enemies pressed
heavily upon him; that he was in distress what to do in his present
circumstances; that he was forsaken of God, and could obtain no
prediction of what was coming, neither by prophets nor by dreams; and
that "these were the reasons why I have recourse to time, who always
took great care of me." But [27] Samuel, seeing that the end of Saul's
life was come, said, "It is in vain for thee to desire to learn of me
any thing future, when God hath forsaken thee: however, hear what I say,
that David is to be king, and to finish this war with good success; and
thou art to lose thy dominion and thy life, because thou didst not obey
God in the war with the Amalekites, and hast not kept his commandments,
as I foretold thee while I was alive. Know, therefore, that the people
shall be made subject to their enemies, and that thou, with thy sons,
shall fall in the battle tomorrow, and thou shalt then be with me [in
Hades]."

3. When Saul heard this, he could not speak for grief, and fell down on
the floor, whether it were from the sorrow that arose upon what Samuel
had said, or from his emptiness, for he had taken no food the foregoing
day nor night, he easily fell quite down: and when with difficulty he
had recovered himself, the woman would force him to eat, begging this of
him as a favor on account of