1 Samuel 28:8
And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night: and he said, I pray thee, divine unto me by the familiar spirit, and bring me him up, whom I shall name unto thee.
Saul, terrified before the Philistine army at Shunem and feeling forsaken because God would not answer him, disguised himself in other clothing and went by night with two men to the woman at Endor to have her divine by her familiar spirit and bring up Samuel. His appeal was not to God but to a forbidden source in communion with Satan, seeking knowledge God had not revealed because he would not wait upon and trust God. That secret resort was his last act of rebellion, cutting the final tie that held him to God and placing himself under demonic control. Samuel did not actually rise from the dead, for God does not allow Satan to disturb the dead, but Satan through the woman impersonated Samuel and foretold Saul's doom in order to deceive him and mislead Israel. The dead know nothing and hold no communion with the living, and the power that spoke at Endor is the same prince of darkness working through modern Spiritualism, mediums, seances, and fortune-tellers, warning all not to seek hidden knowledge of the future from Satan while rejecting the safe guide God has given in His word.
Night Journey to Endor
The setting is Saul's final conflict with the Philistines, with their army near Shunem while Israel was camped at Mount Gilboa. He was afraid and greatly shaken because he felt alone and defenseless, having been forsaken by God. In that condition he disguised himself to hide his identity, put on other clothing, took two men with him, and came to the woman by night. She was secretly continuing her forbidden incantations, his disguise did not conceal his kingly appearance, and his gifts heightened her suspicion that he was the king who had driven mediums and wizards from the land.
His request to divine by the familiar spirit and bring up whomever he would name was an inquiry of a familiar spirit, not communication with Samuel or with God. He named Samuel because he wanted knowledge of what God had not revealed. His impatience and refusal to trust God led him to seek guidance from that forbidden source, and by it he gained only knowledge of evil.
Final Break With God
God had left Saul and would not answer him, and in fear and guilt he turned to a woman who consulted a familiar spirit and was in communion with Satan. Disguising himself and coming to her by night, he sought forbidden knowledge and guidance from her, asking her to divine by the familiar spirit and bring up whomever he would name. That appeal was an example of turning from God to satanic agencies, whose voices speak lying words to mislead men.
This secret appeal was a deliberate turn from God and his last act of rebellion, cutting the last shred that held him to God. Even if he had not before willfully separated himself from God, this act sealed that separation and made it final. By seeking the familiar spirit he made an agreement with death and a covenant with hell, and the cup of his iniquity was full. Having willingly let Satan lead him captive, by seeking light from a source associated with Satan he placed himself under demonic control.
Samuel did not actually appear or rise from the grave, and Saul himself saw nothing. God did not allow Satan to disturb the dead or to raise Samuel from the grave. What Saul sought was an inquiry of a familiar spirit, not communication with Samuel or with God, and the apparition presented through the woman was a counterfeit used to deceive him.
Satan's angels can impersonate and imitate the dead and speak as they did. Satan used his knowledge of Samuel to convincingly represent him through the woman. Through her he gave Saul a correct and true account of his coming fate and that of his sons, in order to deceive him and to further mislead Israel.
Exposure of Modern Spiritualism
The mystic voice that answered at Endor was a heathen oracle speaking lying words to mislead men, not a departed friend returned to commune with the living. The dead know nothing, their thoughts and their love and hatred have perished, and they hold no communion with the living. Satan works under the guise of departed friends to deceive through such voices.
The power behind Endor was the prince of darkness, with Satan working through evil spirits and evil angels. His aim was to gain control of minds, to deceive and destroy, and to cause men to forget God. That work bewilders the mind and pollutes the soul.
That ancient magic is the same as modern Spiritualism, working under a new guise and in a different form. Its counterpart today is found in spiritualistic mediums, clairvoyants, and fortune-tellers, and in secret associations and seances and the obscurities and wonders of modern sorcerers. All who communicate with such spirits are on dangerous ground.
The prediction of Saul's doom through the woman was used by Satan to draw Israel into trusting sorcery, turning from God as counselor and placing themselves under Satan's guidance. By rebelling against God and learning from Satan, men can sever their last link to God. God's word gives all essential knowledge and a safe guide, and the episode warns against seeking hidden knowledge of the future while rejecting what God has revealed. That warning is still needed because its disclosures are eagerly received by thousands who refuse light from God's word and from His Spirit, while men speak with scorn of the magicians of old yet yield to the same arts of the great deceiver in a different form.