Language:
English
Year of publication:
2021
Titel der Quelle:
Hebrew Studies
Angaben zur Quelle:
62 (2021) 117-136
Keywords:
Witch of Endor
;
Saul,
;
Bible. Criticism, interpretation, etc.
;
Future life Biblical teaching
Abstract:
Since God did not answer Saul either by dreams or by the Urim or by prophets, the king of Israel went to the witch of Endor; who is referred as .אֵשֶׁת בַּעֲלַּת-אוֹב According to the story she raised Samuel from his grave. She did this with the aid of אוֹב . The rites that were used to divine are referred as אֹבוֹת וְ ׅ ידְּעׄ ׅ נים . The precise meaning of the words has been disputed to a great extent. Hence, we will show that אֵשֶׁת בַּעֲלַּ ת-אוֹב is a woman that is the possessor of an אוֹב which means a person who serves as the medium for the אוֹב or יִדְּעֹנִי The Israelite society believed that the dead have mantic powers and could help the living. However, the Bible prohibits magic and necromancy, fortune-telling is illegitimate because it is an attempt to know God’s actions by means of powers that do not depend on Him. According to the Bible the dead do not know the living, and there is no return from death. Samuel, on the other hand, returned from the dead and knew the future that awaited Saul and his sons. Thus, we will show that the belief of afterlife already existed in the Hebrew Bible and the witch of Endor did not have special powers and it was God who allowed Samuel to rise from his grave.
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