1 Samuel 28 · Verse 11

1 Samuel 28:11

Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.
1 Samuel 28:11, King James Version

1 Samuel 28:11 in other translations

BSB“Whom shall I bring up for you?” the woman asked. “Bring up Samuel,” he replied.
WEBThen the woman said, “Whom shall I bring up to you?” He said, “Bring Samuel up for me.”
ASVThen said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.
YLTAnd the woman saith, ‘Whom do I bring up to thee?' and he saith, ‘Samuel--bring up to me.'
DARBYThen said the woman, Whom shall I bring up to thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.
BBEThen the woman said, Who am I to let you see? And he said, Make Samuel come up for me.
WebsterThen said the woman, whom shall I bring up to thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.

What does 1 Samuel 28:11 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Samuel 28:7-14

7-8. Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit--From the energetic measures which he himself had taken for extirpating the dealers in magical arts (the profession having been declared a capital offense), his most attached courtiers might have had reason to doubt the possibility of gratifying their master's wish. Anxious inquiries, however, led to the discovery of a woman living…

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Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 11 Whom shall I bring up - The woman certainly meant no more than making her familiar personify whomsoever the querist should wish. In the evocation of spirits this is all that, according to the professed rules of their art, such persons pretend to; for over human souls in paradise or in the infernal regions they have no power. If we allow that there is such an art founded on true principles, all it can pretend to is, to bring up the familiar; cause him when necessary to assume the form and character of some particular person, and to give such notices relative to futurity as he is able to collect. And this even in the cases to which authenticity is generally allowed, is often scanty, vague, and uncertain, for fallen spirits do not abound in knowledge: this is an attribute of God, and rays of this perfection are imparted to pure and holy intelligences; and even Satan himself, as may be seen from most of his temptations, is far from excelling in knowledge. He may be cunning and insidious, but he certainly is not wise and prudent; we in general give this fallen spirit credit for much more wisdom than he possesses.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 1 Samuel 28:7-19

When we go from the plain path of duty, every thing draws us further aside, and increases our perplexity and temptation. Saul desires the woman to bring one from the dead, with whom he wished to speak; this was expressly forbidden, De 18:11. All real or pretended witchcraft or conjuration, is a malicious or an ignorant attempt to gain knowledge or help from some creature, when it cannot be had from the Lord in the…

Read the full comment on 1 Samuel 28:7-19 →

1 Samuel 28:11 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַתֹּ֙אמֶר֙va.To.merand she saidH559
הָֽאִשָּׁ֔הha.'i.Shahthe womanH802
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
מִ֖יmiwhom?H4310
אַֽעֲלֶה\־'a.'a.leh-will I bring upH5927
לָּ֑ךְLakhfor <the> you
וַיֹּ֕אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
שְׁמוּאֵ֖לshe.mu.'ElSamuelH8050
הַֽעֲלִי\־ha.'a.li-bring upH5927
לִֽי\׃Lifor <the> me

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Context

  • 1 Samuel 28:10

    And Saul sware to her by the Lord, saying, As the Lord liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing.

  • 1 Samuel 28:11

    Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring me up Samuel.

  • 1 Samuel 28:12

    And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul.

Read all of 1 Samuel 28

1 Samuel 28:11 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		La mujer entonces dijo: ¿A quién te haré venir? Y él respondió: Hazme venir á Samuel.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et la femme dit: Qui te ferai-je monter? Et il dit: Fais-moi monter Samuel.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Da sprach das Weib: Wen soll ich dir heraufbringen? Und er sprach: Bringe mir Samuel herauf.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Dixitque ei mulier: Quem suscitabo tibi? Qui ait: Samuelem mihi suscita.