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thirsting for blood. Then he gently reproaches the desire for slaughter: "Why is it that my lord the king pursues his servant? What have I sinned, or what evil has been found in me? And now let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If God is inciting you against me, may he smell your sacrifice. But if it is the sons of men, cursed are they before the Lord." And he also stated the reason for which he cursed them: for "They have driven me out today, from being established in the inheritance of the Lord, saying, ‘Go and serve other gods.’" But this they did not say with words, 80.589 but through deeds they compelled him to do. For driving him out from all sides, they brought about the necessity of fleeing for refuge to the cities of the foreigners as strongholds. And he gave back both the spear and the flask, and committed his own judgment to the just judge. Q. 62. Why then, having previously written about the death of Samuel, did he make mention of it again? Being about to narrate the story of the ventriloquist, he was compelled to make mention of Samuel's death. Q. 63. How are we to understand the story of the ventriloquist? Some say that she truly brought up Samuel. But others have overturned this account, and said that some deceiving demon showed the form of Samuel, and said what he had often heard Samuel say, but was ignorant of the time of Saul's death. But I consider the first account unholy and impious. For I am not persuaded that necromancers can bring up even an ordinary soul, let alone that of a prophet, and such a great prophet. For it is clear that souls abide in some other place, awaiting the resurrection of their bodies. Therefore it is utterly impious to believe that ventriloquists have such great power. And the second account is one of foolishness rather than of impiety. For having tried to overturn that unholy account, they supposed the prophecy that had been made was false, and for this reason they attributed it to the teachers of falsehood, the demons; but I, having read the book of Chronicles, found that the one who wrote the history spoke thus: "And Saul died for his iniquities, which he committed against the Lord, concerning the word of the Lord; because he did not keep it, and because Saul inquired of the ventriloquist to seek counsel; and Samuel the prophet answered him. And he did not seek counsel of the Lord; and he killed him." It is clear then from this, that God himself, the God of all, having fashioned as he wished the appearance of Samuel, delivered the sentence, not with the ventriloquist being able to do this, but with God delivering the verdict even through contrary means. For we hear him saying, "Even if he goes to the false prophet, I the Lord will answer him." Thus also 80.592 through Balaam he blessed the people, and through the impious soothsayer he foretold the things to come, and he prophesied the salvation of the world, not with the defiled spirit speaking, but with the divine and all-holy Spirit working. But since some have supposed the prophecy to be false, I think it worthwhile also to discuss this briefly. The writer said before, that "In those days the foreigners gather their armies, to go out to war against Israel; and they go out, and they encamp in Shunem. And Saul gathers every man of Israel, and they encamp at Gilboa. And Saul saw the camp of the foreigners, and he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly, and Saul inquired of the Lord, and the Lord did not answer him, neither by dreams, nor by the Urim, nor by the prophets;" And he called "Urim" the things signified through the ephod; "and Saul said to his servants, ‘Seek for me a woman who is a ventriloquist.’" It is clear then, that when the Hebrews and the foreigners were encamped, Saul sought the ventriloquist; "For he saw," it says, "the camp of the foreigners, and he was afraid. and his heart trembled greatly." And having gone to the ventriloquist, and having received the sentence from God, he fell immediately, having neither eaten during the night, when

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διψῶντος τοῦ αἵματος. Εἶτα πράως τῷ τῆς σφαγῆς ἐπιμέμφεται πόθῳ· "Ἵνα τί τοῦτο καταδιώκει ὁ κύριός μου ὁ βασιλεὺς ὀπίσω τοῦ δούλου αὐτοῦ; Τί ἥμαρτον, ἢ τίς ἐν ἐμοὶ κακία εὑρέθη; Καὶ νῦν ἀκουσάτω δὴ ὁ κύριός μου ὁ βα σιλεὺς τὰ ῥήματα τοῦ δούλου αὐτοῦ. Εἰ ὁ Θεὸς ἐπι σείει σε ἐπ' ἐμὲ, ὀσφρανθείη ἡ θυσία σου. Εἰ δὲ υἱοὶ ἀνθρώπων, ἐπικατάρατοι οὗτοι ἐνώπιον Κυ ρίου." Ἔφη δὲ καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν, δι' ἣν αὐτοῖς ἐπηράσατο· ὅτι "Ἐξέβαλόν με σήμερον, μὴ ἐστη ρίχθαι ἐν κληρονομίᾳ Κυρίου, λέγοντες, Πορεύου καὶ δούλευε θεοῖς ἑτέροις." Τοῦτο δὲ οὐ διὰ ῥημά 80.589 των ἔλεγον, ἀλλὰ διὰ πραγμάτων ἠνάγκαζον δρᾷν. Πάντοθεν γὰρ αὐτὸν ἐξελαύνοντες, ἀνάγκην ἐπῆγον εἰς τὰς τῶν ἀλλοφύλων πόλεις ὡς ὀχυρὰς κατα φεύγειν. Ἀπέδωκε δὲ καὶ τὸ δόρυ, καὶ τὸν φακὸν, καὶ τῷ δικαίῳ κριτῇ τὴν οἰκείαν κρίσιν ἀνέθηκεν. ΕΡΩΤ. ΞΒʹ. Τί δήποτε τὰ περὶ τῆς τελευτῆς τοῦ Σα μουὴλ συγγράψας ἔμπροσθεν, πάλιν αὐτῆς ἐμνήσθη; Μέλλων τὰ κατὰ τὴν ἐγγαστρίμυθον διηγεῖσθαι, ἠναγκάσθη μνησθῆναι Σαμουὴλ τελευτῆς. ΕΡΩΤ. ΞΓʹ. Πῶς τὰ κατὰ τὴν ἐγγαστρίμυθον νοητέον; Τινές φασιν, ἀληθῶς αὐτὴν ἀνενηνοχέναι τὸν Σα μουήλ. Τινὲς δὲ τοῦτον μὲν τὸν λόγον ἀνέτρεψαν, δαίμονα δέ τινα λαοπλάνον ἔφησαν δεῖξαι τὸ σχῆμα τοῦ Σαμουὴλ, καὶ εἰπεῖν ἃ πολλάκις ἀκήκοε τοῦ Σαμουὴλ εἰρηκότος, ἀγνοῆσαι δὲ τὸν χρόνον τῆς τοῦ Σαοὺλ τελευτῆς. Ἐγὼ δὲ τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἀνόσιον ἡγοῦμαι καὶ δυσσεβές. Οὐ πείθομαι γὰρ τὰς νέ κυας, οὐδὲ τὴν τυχοῦσαν ἀνάγειν ψυχὴν, μήτοιγε προφήτου, καὶ τοσούτου προφήτου. ∆ῆλον γὰρ, ὡς ἐν ἄλλῳ τινὶ χωρίῳ διάγουσιν αἱ ψυχαὶ, προσμένου σαι τὴν τῶν σωμάτων ἀνάστασιν. Τοιγάρτοι κο μιδῆ δυσσεβὲς τὸ πιστεύειν τοσαύτην ἔχειν τὰς ἐγ γαστριμύθους ἰσχύν. Τὸ δέ γε δεύτερον ἀνοίας μᾶλλον, ἢ δυσσεβείας ἐστί. Τὸν ἀνόσιον γὰρ ἐκεῖνον ἀνατρέψαι πειραθέντες λόγον, ψευδῆ τὴν γεγενημέ νην ὑπέλαβον πρόῤῥησιν, καὶ τούτου χάριν αὐτὴν τοῖς τοῦ ψεύδους διδασκάλοις ἀνέθεσαν δαίμοσιν· ἐγὼ δὲ ἀναγνοὺς τῶν Παραλειπομένων τὴν βίβλον, εὗρον οὕτως εἰρηκότα τὸν τὴν ἱστορίαν συγγεγρα φότα· "Καὶ ἀπέθανε Σαοὺλ ἐν ταῖς ἀνομίαις αὑτοῦ, αἷς ἠνόμησεν ἐν Κυρίῳ κατὰ τὸν λόγον Κυρίου· διότι οὐκ ἐφύλαξεν αὐτὸν, καὶ ὅτι ἐπηρώτησε Σαοὺλ ἐν τῇ ἐγγαστριμύθῳ τοῦ ἐκζητῆσαι· καὶ ἀπ εκρίνατο αὐτῷ Σαμουὴλ ὁ προφήτης. Καὶ οὐκ ἐξεζήτησεν ἐν Κυρίῳ· καὶ ἀπέκτεινεν αὐτόν." ∆ῆ λον τοίνυν ἐντεῦθεν, ὡς αὐτὸς ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεὸς, σχη ματίσας ὡς ἠβουλήθη τὸ εἶδος τοῦ Σαμουὴλ, ἐξήνε γκε τὴν ἀπόφασιν, οὐ τῆς ἐγγαστριμύθου δρᾶσαι τοῦτο δυνηθείσης, ἀλλὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ διὰ τῶν ἐναντίων ἐξενεγκόντος τὴν ψῆφον. Ἀκούομεν γὰρ αὐτοῦ λέγοντος, "Κἂν ἀπέλθῃ πρὸς τὸν ψευδοπροφή την, ἐγὼ Κύριος ἀποκριθήσομαι αὐτῷ." Οὕτω καὶ διὰ 80.592 τοῦ Βαλαὰμ ηὐλόγησε τὸν λαὸν, καὶ διὰ τοῦ δυσσε βοῦς μάντεως προηγόρευσε τὰ ἐσόμενα, καὶ τὴν τῆς οἰκουμένης προεθέσπισε σωτηρίαν, οὐ τοῦ μια ροῦ πνεύματος φθεγξαμένου, ἀλλὰ τοῦ θείου καὶ παναγίου Πνεύματος ἐνεργήσαντος. Ἐπειδὴ δέ τινες ψευδῆ τὴν πρόῤῥησιν ὑπειλήφασι, προύργου νομίζω καὶ περὶ τούτου βραχέα διεξελθεῖν. Προεῖ πεν ὁ συγγραφεὺς, ὅτι "Ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις συναθροίζουσιν οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι τὰς παρεμβολὰς αὐτῶν, τοῦ ἐξελθεῖν εἰς πόλεμον ἐπὶ Ἰσραήλ· καὶ ἐξέρχον ται, καὶ παρεμβάλλουσιν εἰς Σωνάμ. Καὶ συναθροί ζει Σαοὺλ πάντα ἄνδρα Ἰσραὴλ, καὶ παρεμβάλλου σιν εἰς Γελβουέ. Καὶ εἶδε Σαοὺλ τὴν παρεμβολὴν τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ ἐφοβήθη, καὶ ἐξέστη ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ σφόδρα, καὶ ἐπηρώτησε Σαοὺλ διὰ τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ οὐκ ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῷ Κύριος, καὶ ἐν τοῖς ὕπνοις, καὶ ἐν τοῖς δήλοις, καὶ ἐν τοῖς προφήταις·" ∆ήλους δὲ ἐκάλεσε τὰ διὰ τοῦ ἐφοὺδ σημαινόμενα· "καὶ εἶπε Σαοὺλ τοῖς παισὶν αὑτοῦ, Ζητήσατέ μοι γυ ναῖκα ἐγγαστρίμυθον." ∆ῆλον τοίνυν, ὡς τῶν Ἑβραίων καὶ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων ἐστρατοπεδευκότων, ἐπεζήτησε τὴν ἐγγαστρίμυθον ὁ Σαούλ· "Εἶδε γὰρ, φησὶ, τὴν παρεμβολὴν τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ ἐφοβήθη. καὶ ἐξέστη ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ σφόδρα." Ἀπελθὼν δὲ πρὸς τὴν ἐγγαστρίμυθον, καὶ θεόθεν δεξάμενος τὴν ἀπόφασιν, ἔπεσε παραυτίκα, οὔτε νύκτωρ φαγὼν, ἡνίκα