Lectionary Calendar
Tuesday, August 26th, 2025
the Week of Proper 16 / Ordinary 21
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Read the Bible

New Living Translation

1 Samuel 28:13

"Don't be afraid!" the king told her. "What do you see?" "I see a god coming up out of the earth," she said.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Clairvoyance;   En-Dor;   Familiar Spirits;   Miracles;   Necromancy;   Samuel;   Saul;   Sorcery;   Witchcraft;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Miracles through Evil Agents;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Endor;   Soul;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Samuel;   Saul, king of israel;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Demon;   Descent into Hell (Hades);   Magic;   Sheol;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Prayer;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Magic;   Saul;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Divination;   Saul;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Divination and Magic;   Medium;   Samuel, Books of;   Urim and Thummim;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Ancestor-Worship;   Death;   En-Dor;   Eschatology;   God;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Descent into Hades;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Magic;   Saul;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Endor;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Hebrew Monarchy, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Ascend;   Decease, in the Old Testament and Apocyphra;   God, Names of;   Intercession;   Resurrection;   Samuel;   Samuel, Books of;   Sheol;   Woman;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Ancestor Worship;   Endor, the Witch of;   Immortality of the Soul;   Necromancy;   Samuel;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
But the king said to her, “Don’t be afraid. What do you see?”
Hebrew Names Version
The king said to her, Don't be afraid: for what do you see? The woman said to Sha'ul, I see a god coming up out of the eretz.
King James Version
And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.
Lexham English Bible
The king said to her, "Do not be afraid! What do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a god coming up from the ground!"
English Standard Version
The king said to her, "Do not be afraid. What do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a god coming up out of the earth."
New Century Version
The king said to the woman, "Don't be afraid! What do you see?" The woman said, "I see a spirit coming up out of the ground."
New English Translation
The king said to her, "Don't be afraid! What have you seen?" The woman replied to Saul, "I have seen one like a god coming up from the ground!"
Amplified Bible
The king said to her, "Do not be afraid; but [tell me] what do you see?" The woman said to Saul, "I see a divine [superhuman] being coming up from the earth."
New American Standard Bible
But the king said to her, "Do not be afraid; but what do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a divine being coming up from the earth."
Geneva Bible (1587)
And the King said vnto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said vnto Saul, I saw gods ascending vp out of the earth.
Legacy Standard Bible
And the king said to her, "Do not be afraid; but what do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a divine being coming up out of the earth."
Contemporary English Version
"Don't be afraid," Saul replied. "Just tell me what you see." She answered, "I see a spirit rising up out of the ground."
Complete Jewish Bible
The king replied, "Don't be afraid. Just tell me what you see." The woman said to Sha'ul, "I see a god-like being coming up out of the earth."
Darby Translation
And the king said to her, Be not afraid; but what didst thou see? And the woman said to Saul, I saw a god ascending out of the earth.
Easy-to-Read Version
The king said to the woman, "Don't be afraid! What do you see?" The woman said, "I see a spirit coming up out of the ground."
George Lamsa Translation
And the king said to her, Fear not; what do you see? And the woman said to Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.
Good News Translation
"Don't be afraid!" the king said to her. "What do you see?" "I see a spirit coming up from the earth," she answered.
Literal Translation
And the king said to her, Do not be afraid. For what have you seen? And the woman said to Saul, I have seen a god coming up out of the earth.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the kynge sayde vnto her: Feare not, what seist thou? The woman sayde vnto Saul: I se goddes comynge vp out of ye earth?
American Standard Version
And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what seest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth.
Bible in Basic English
And the king said to her, Have no fear: what do you see? And the woman said to Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the king saide vnto her: Be not afrayd: What sawest thou? The woman saide vnto Saul: I sawe gods ascending vp out of the earth.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the king said unto her: 'Be not afraid; for what seest thou?' And the woman said unto Saul: 'I see a godlike being coming up out of the earth.'
King James Version (1611)
And the king sayd vnto her, Be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said vnto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the king said to her, Fear not; tell me whom thou has seen. And the woman said to him, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.
English Revised Version
And the king said unto her, Be not afraid: for what seest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth.
Berean Standard Bible
"Do not be afraid," the king replied. "What do you see?" "I see a god coming up out of the earth," the woman answered.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And the kyng seide to hir, Nyl thou drede; what hast thou seyn? And the womman seide to Saul, Y siy goddis stiynge fro erthe.
Young's Literal Translation
And the king saith to her, `Do not fear; for what hast thou seen?' and the woman saith unto Saul, `Gods I have seen coming up out of the earth.'
Update Bible Version
And the king said to her, Don't be afraid: for what did you see? And the woman said to Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth.
Webster's Bible Translation
And the king said to her be not afraid: for what sawest thou? And the woman said to Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth.
World English Bible
The king said to her, Don't be afraid: for what do you see? The woman said to Saul, I see a god coming up out of the earth.
New King James Version
And the king said to her, "Do not be afraid. What did you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I saw a spirit [fn] ascending out of the earth."
New Life Bible
The king said to her, "Do not be afraid. What do you see?" The woman said to Saul, "I see a god coming up out of the earth."
New Revised Standard
The king said to her, "Have no fear; what do you see?" The woman said to Saul, "I see a divine being coming up out of the ground."
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And the king said unto her - Be not afraid, but what sawest thou? And the woman said unto Saul, A god, saw I, coming up out of the earth.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the king said to her: Fear not: what hast thou seen? and the woman said to Saul: I saw gods ascending out of the earth.
Revised Standard Version
The king said to her, "Have no fear; what do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a god coming up out of the earth."
THE MESSAGE
The king told her, "You have nothing to fear... but what do you see?" "I see a spirit ascending from the underground."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
The king said to her, "Do not be afraid; but what do you see?" And the woman said to Saul, "I see a divine being coming up out of the earth."

Contextual Overview

7 Saul then said to his advisers, "Find a woman who is a medium, so I can go and ask her what to do." His advisers replied, "There is a medium at Endor." 8 So Saul disguised himself by wearing ordinary clothing instead of his royal robes. Then he went to the woman's home at night, accompanied by two of his men. "I have to talk to a man who has died," he said. "Will you call up his spirit for me?" 9 "Are you trying to get me killed?" the woman demanded. "You know that Saul has outlawed all the mediums and all who consult the spirits of the dead. Why are you setting a trap for me?" 10 But Saul took an oath in the name of the Lord and promised, "As surely as the Lord lives, nothing bad will happen to you for doing this." 11 Finally, the woman said, "Well, whose spirit do you want me to call up?" "Call up Samuel," Saul replied. 12 When the woman saw Samuel, she screamed, "You've deceived me! You are Saul!" 13 "Don't be afraid!" the king told her. "What do you see?" "I see a god coming up out of the earth," she said. 14 "What does he look like?" Saul asked. "He is an old man wrapped in a robe," she replied. Saul realized it was Samuel, and he fell to the ground before him.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

gods ascending: Exodus 4:16, Exodus 22:28, Psalms 82:6, Psalms 82:7, John 10:34, John 10:35

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 13:28 - fear not Luke 24:37 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 12:7
Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, "I will give this land to your descendants." And Abram built an altar there and dedicated it to the Lord , who had appeared to him.
Genesis 13:15
I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants as a permanent possession.
Genesis 15:1
Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, "Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great."
Genesis 26:3
Live here as a foreigner in this land, and I will be with you and bless you. I hereby confirm that I will give all these lands to you and your descendants, just as I solemnly promised Abraham, your father.
Genesis 26:24
where the Lord appeared to him on the night of his arrival. "I am the God of your father, Abraham," he said. "Do not be afraid, for I am with you and will bless you. I will multiply your descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will do this because of my promise to Abraham, my servant."
Genesis 28:4
May God pass on to you and your descendants the blessings he promised to Abraham. May you own this land where you are now living as a foreigner, for God gave this land to Abraham."
Genesis 28:6
Esau knew that his father, Isaac, had blessed Jacob and sent him to Paddan-aram to find a wife, and that he had warned Jacob, "You must not marry a Canaanite woman."
Genesis 28:7
He also knew that Jacob had obeyed his parents and gone to Paddan-aram.
Genesis 28:15
What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you."
Genesis 28:16
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn't even aware of it!"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the king said unto her, be not afraid,.... Meaning not of the apparition, but of him; since he had sworn no punishment should come upon her, and he should inviolably observe his oath: for what sawest thou? for as yet Saul himself saw not anything, the woman being between him and the apparition; or she might be in another room with her familiar spirit performing the operations when Samuel appeared:

and the woman said unto Saul, I saw gods ascending out of the earth; a great personage, one of a majestic form, like the gods, or judges and civil magistrates, sometimes so called, as Kimchi and R. Isaiah rightly interpret it; and so the Targum,

"I saw an angel of the Lord;''

a person that looked like one; for not many came up with him, and particularly Moses, as say some Jewish writers d.

d T. Bab. Chagigah, fol. 4. 8. Pirke Eliezer, c. 33.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Gods - אלהים 'ĕlohı̂ym is here used in a general sense of a supernatural appearance, either angel or spirit. Hell, or the place of the departed (compare 1 Samuel 28:19; 2 Samuel 12:23) is represented as under the earth Isaiah 14:9-10; Ezekiel 32:18.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Samuel 28:13. I saw gods ascending out of the earth. — The word אלהום elohim, which we translate gods, is the word which is used for the Supreme Being throughout the Bible; but all the versions, the Chaldee excepted, translate it in the plural number, as we do. The Chaldee has, I see מלאכא דיי malacha dayeya, an angel of the Lord, ascending from the earth. This sight alarmed the woman; it was what she did not expect; in this she could not recognise her familiar, and she was terrified at the appearance.


 
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