Samuel the Prophet is a well-known figure in biblical literature. But if you haven’t heard of him, don’t worry. We will explain his life, childhood, legacy of being the last judge of Israel, and more.
You can read all about Samuel in—surprise, surprise—1 Samuel. Hence, the name. But he appears in several other verses that mention him by name in other books.
Without further ado, let’s explore Samuel the Prophet and his life.
Why Did Samuel the Prophet’s Mother Give Him Up for the Priesthood?
You may be familiar with Samuel’s mother, Hannah.
She was in a relationship with a man who had two wives. The other wife liked to rub in Hannah’s face that Hannah couldn’t have children. So Hannah prayed vehemently—to the point where a nearby priest, Eli, mistook her for being drunk.
She’d asked God for an heir but promised that she’d give that heir up to serve in the house of the Lord. During the time of the judges, this was known as the tabernacle. It was essentially a mobile temple.
God granted Hannah her prayer, and she had Samuel.
Hannah made good on her promise and dedicated Samuel to God’s service at a young age.
Perhaps the strongest reason why Hannah was willing to give up Samuel to the priesthood is that she wanted to show God that she had not idolized having a child. Many mothers may have rescinded that promise and decided to keep the child for themselves.
Samuel served under the high priest at the time, Eli. Eli had two terrible sons who had abused Levitical practices (1 Samuel 2:12-36).
Samuel continued to remain upright, and God called him vocally one night. You can read all about that story in the article linked in the previous sentence.
Samuel’s life has a lot to cover, so we can’t get to everything above. We can turn to the latter stages of his life—his time as a judge and prophet.
Why Was Samuel the Prophet Also the Last Judge?
Samuel the Prophet was the last judge of Israel for several reasons. We see a constant degradation of the morals of the judges in the book of (surprise) Judges. We start with morally upright judges, such as Ehud, and wind up with downright heedless ones, such as Samson.
Israel was starting to get tired of these judges and was getting envious of other nations. They’d seen that other nations had kings and wanted to be like them.
Samuel tried to dissuade them—and his cautions proved accurate. The line of kings not only treated Israelites horribly but ended up splitting apart the kingdom, leading people into exile.
The people wouldn’t listen. They demanded a king.
So the first king of Israel was appointed: Saul (1 Samuel 9-10).
Saul had a good start but made some big mistakes in his reign.
Why Did Samuel the Prophet Rebuke Saul?
There is more than one time when Samuel rebukes Saul.
The first mention is when Saul fought against Israel’s enemies without consulting God first (1 Samuel 13). Later, Saul disobeyed God’s orders to wipe out an entire town of people (1 Samuel 15).
Because of these instances, Samuel rebuked Saul and informed him his reign would be cut short. This comes to fruition in battle, where Saul dies by falling on his own sword (1 Samuel 29).
It’s clear from these interactions with Saul that Israel needed a new king. Samuel next anointed David as the successor to rule Israel (1 Samuel 16).
What Happened to Samuel the Prophet After He Anointed David?
Samuel seems to step out of the picture in Scripture after he anoints David. We’re told he then went to a place called Ramah. He seems to stay there—that’s where he ends up being buried in 1 Samuel 25.
It’s unclear why Scripture doesn’t tell us what happened to him between 1 Samuel 16 and 1 Samuel 25. We mostly hear about Saul being tormented by a demon and how many times he attempts to kill David.
Perhaps Samuel’s prophetic role had been fulfilled, and he’d entered retirement.
We must remember that many kings would have prophets as advisors. We see this with David and Nathan. Understanding this fact helps us understand why after Samuel died, Saul took some strange methods to try and get his advice from beyond the grave.
Before a battle, Saul decided to consult a medium to talk with his dead friend.
Did Samuel the Prophet Really Appear to Saul?
This is probably one of the most controversial passages in Scripture: the witch of Endor. Some people will point to this passage and say, “Look, there’s the evidence that ghosts are real.” Others will say, “The witch conjured a demon, not Samuel.”
Before we can address that, let’s talk about what happens.
Saul goes to a witch in disguise (1 Samuel 28:8). He had given royal orders that any witches and mediums in Israel be executed, so appearing as Saul would make for an awkward business exchange.
The woman calls up the spirit of Samuel, and the spirit must have revealed to her that her disguised customer was Saul. She freaks out (1 Samuel 28:12).
The spirit of Samuel is not too happy that Saul has called him up and tells Saul that he and his son Jonathon will die in battle (1 Samuel 28:16-19).
Okay, now to address the question: Is this a ghost or a demon?
Most theologians tend to believe that this is a demon taking on the appearance of Samuel (also called a familiar spirit). Scripture makes it clear that when a person has entered the realm of the undead (what the Israelites called Sheol), there’s no return from it. The exception is if God himself performs a miracle—and God is certainly not performing a miracle in this case.
Even if it were Samuel’s spirit conjured up from Sheol, Samuel certainly isn’t too pleased by how he was summoned. He does declare that Saul will die soon.
Other theologians assert that this was possibly God making an exception for Samuel’s spirit to speak to Saul this one time. The spirit does accurately predict how Saul will die.
No matter what the case, Scripture is clear that we’re to steer away from mediums and speaking with the dead. Most likely, it’ll result in us engaging with familiar spirits. Demonic activity tends to thrive in practices such as this.
What Can We Learn from Samuel the Prophet?
Samuel lived a long life in which many events took place. It can be hard to boil his life down to three nice and easy points. As always, we’ll try our best.
Samuel the Prophet was upright when many in his circles were not. In addition to Eli’s passiveness and Eli’s wicked sons’ corruption, Samuel dealt with the likes of King Saul. Too often, the prophets in Israel were the few righteous among a group who had been led astray.
Samuel the Prophet lived through an important transition period in Israel. Samuel was the last judge before the time of the kings. Maybe he’d experienced some uncertainty about the future. Maybe Saul knew that kings would ultimately lead to a fractured Israel. Certainly, he was saddened that his sons wouldn’t carry on his legacy (1 Samuel 8:1-4). But he continued to trust the Lord in a major transition period.
Samuel the Prophet makes it into the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11. Perhaps one of the most important passages someone could end up in happens in Hebrews 11. The passage reminds New Testament readers that Samuel—a child born out of the faithful prayers of a mother—stands firm in his faith throughout his lifetime. We can learn faithfulness at every age from him.
Photo Credit: Public Domain (illustration from 1919 Bible primer) via Wikimedia Commons.
Hope Bolinger is an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, book editor for hire, and the author of almost 30 books. More than 1500 of her works have been featured in various publications. Check out her books at hopebolinger.com for clean books in most genres, great for adults and kids. Check out her editing profile at Reedsy.com to find out about hiring her for your next book project.
This article is part of our People of Christianity catalog that features the stories, meaning, and significance of well-known people from the Bible and history. Here are some of the most popular articles for knowing important figures in Christianity:
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