1 Samuel 28:8–12 (ESV)

So Saul disguised himself and put on other garments and went, he and two men with him. And they came to the woman by night. And he said, “Divine for me by a spirit and bring up for me whomever I shall name to you.” The woman said to him, “Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off the mediums and the necromancers from the land. Why then are you laying a trap for my life to bring about my death?” But Saul swore to her by the LORD, “As the LORD lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this thing.” Then the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” He said, “Bring up Samuel for me.” When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice. And the woman said to Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul.”

How does she suddenly recognize Saul?

Hmmm, the text doesn’t say, so let’s dig.

We start with two basic facts: She suddenly recognized Saul, and she screamed (cried out with a loud voice). Her recognizing Saul means that something real happened; this can’t be some fake parlor trick. Her screaming means that something was scary and unexpected. Since recognizing Saul would be plenty scary for her, that could explain the scream.

But there’s a better explanation. The pieces all fit together perfectly if we add an assumption—she’s a fraud. Nothing in scripture, or elsewhere, contradicts this assumption. If she’s a fraud, seeing the real Samuel would surely make her scream. That’s the exact timing described in the text.

And there’s one more clue—scripture leaving out how she learned Saul’s identity. Clearly she had some kind of epiphany, yet the passage doesn’t describe it. That hints that it’s indescribable.

So this poor lady, for all her faults, is suddenly way out of her depth. She’s playing her usual parlor tricks, and God (whose sense of humor knows no bounds) drops the real Samuel onto the scene.

Boo!

When a scripture passage clearly raises a question, and then just as clearly leaves out the answer, that’s a sign. It’s supposed to pique the reader’s interest. There’s gold in them there hills.

The same thing holds for art. If something surprising or impossible is in a painting, it’s there to get the viewer’s attention. Artists often hide messages and themes this way, but you need to dig to find them.

The trick with the “missing answer” Bible passages is to not get stuck on the question you can’t answer. Just let it draw your attention to the nuggets nearby.

Today’s passage is filled with action and meaning, even comedy.

Its unanswered question can be a distraction, or a guide.

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These weekday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay. The Saturday ones are written by Matt Richardson. To subscribe to the DEEP click here: https://www.ailbe.org/resources/community

The weekly study guides, which include questions for discussion or meditation, can be downloaded here: https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies

Scripture taken from the English Standard Version. © Copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.