Citation

Reis PT. J. Stud. Old Testament 1997; 22(73): 3-28.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1997, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/030908929702207301

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article re-examines the encounter between King Saul and the witch of Endor and demonstrates by a close reading of the text that the witch is not a solicitous hostess but an adroit strategist intent upon survival. The food she prepares for Saul is, firstly, a mantic sacrifice to the spirits of the dead entailing the stringently proscribed eating of blood. Secondly, the shared meal is an unholy but legally effective covenant between God's anointed first king of Israel and a sorceress. Thirdly, the forbidden meal serves an apostasy that warrants Saul's consequent suicide; and lastly, it provides a scenario for the contrast of Saul's treachery with David's constancy in an analogous situation.

Language: en