Saul and the Medium of Endor – Part 3
In this post we explore necromancy in Endor, both the ritual process and the spirit beings which facilitated the fateful encounter with Saul. We also explore the narrative timeline.
Click here for the full text of 1 Samuel 28
The terminology of spirit beings mentioned in this passage moves on from discussing the woman with the ‘ôb inside her, to her seeing elohim, gods (plural, not a single entity[1]) coming up from the ground with Samuel (v13).
Irvine Finkel[2] notes from the archaeological evidence of the neighbouring Mesopotamian culture, that summoning the dead first required supplication to Šamaš, a god who had the power and authority to raise the dead from the underworld. This evidence partly mirrors the Endorean medium’s usage of an intermediary being to summon Samuel. It also also helps explain the other beings mentioned in the text which arrive from the underworld with Samuel. Her own ‘ôb familial spirit acted as an intermediary to the gods of the underworld, which in turn raised Samuel.
Conjuring Samuel at Sunrise
Finkel describes one particular ritual for summoning the dead, recorded in an Akkadian tablet. This includes the recipe for a magical oily salve of animal products. Smearing these upon the eyelids allows one to see ghostly apparitions. According to Schmidt[3] this itself would have taken all night to prepare, probably as the psychotropic ingredients leached into the base cream. After its conjuring, the spirit takes residence within a skull, after which conversation follows between the spirit and the necromancer.
The passage states Saul’s meeting with the woman began at night (v8) and ended at night (v25). On a quick first reading, it looks like he departs on the same night he arrives. However, we’re told Saul hadn’t eaten anything all day and night (v20) and fell to the ground after Samuel appears. This leads us to believe the ritual ointment preparation may well have begun shortly after his arrival. It also suggests the necromancy process for the woman in Endor took place in the morning. This mirrors neighbouring Mesopotamian sun cult rituals involving Šamaš that also involved conjuration of the dead at sunrise.
Timeline of Events
Night 1: Not wishing to be seen as this would be politically embarrassing for him, Saul arrives at the medium’s abode after sunset and states his wish to her. After the initial conversation as recorded in the text, she begins to prepare the ointments that would aid in the ritual. These are left standing overnight.
Sunrise: The medium’s ritual begins and Samuel is conjured, delivering his fateful message to Saul. Saul falls on the floor, weak from hunger, as well as shock at the news of his doom. His servants and the woman advise him to eat in order to regain his strength. After agreeing, she prepares and bakes bread, and slaughters / butchers a calf. Eating his fill of the meal, and thinking he may be seen leaving during daylight, he rests on his bed.
Night 2: Under the cover of darkness Saul and his servants depart to his royal abode.
Summary
Our exploration of necromancy in Endor required us to look at how surrounding cultures achieved this. It appears the medium of Endor, using her ancestral ‘ôb spirit, was able to engage with other chthonic spirits as part of a sunrise ritual to summon Samuel.
Bibliography
Finkel, I. L. (1983) ‘Necromancy in Ancient Mesopotamia’, Archiv für Orientforschung, 29./30. Bd. (1983/1984), pp. 1-17
Schmidt, B. B. (1996) Israel’s Beneficient Dead: Ancestor Cult and Necromancy in Ancient Israelite Religion and Tradition, Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns
References
[1] Schmidt, 217
[2] Finkel, 5
[3] Schmidt, 219
