Frymer-Kensky, Tikva. Wisdom from the Witch of Endor: Four Rules for Living. Foreword by Adele Reinhartz. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2024. xvii+78 pp.; Pb; $12.99. Link to Eerdmans
This sermon was discovered among Frymer-Kensky’s papers after she died in 2006. She served as professor of Hebrew Bible and history of Judaism at the University of Chicago. She was known for In the Wake of the Goddesses: Women, Culture and the Biblical Transformation of Pagan Myth (Random House, 1993) and Reading the Women of the Bible (Schocken, 2006).
In her forward, Adele Reinhartz describes the book as a “homily, a modern midrash, on the story of the witch of Endor” (xiv). 1 Samuel 28:1–25 describes King Saul’s encounter with the woman who calls up the spirit of Samuel. Rather than comforting Saul, Samuel condemns Saul and reminds him that the Lord has torn the kingdom out of his hand and given it to David (1 Sam 28:17). The story ends with Saul “filled with fear because of the words of Samuel” and “there was no strength in him” (28:20). The next day the Philistines defeat the armies of Israel, Saul’s sons are killed. Saul is forced to take his own life (1 Samuel 31).
To use the witch of Endor to illustrate positive character traits or as a demonstration of biblical wisdom is a bold move. Most interpreters see the story as the last in a series of questionable choices by an increasingly desperate Saul. While David is led by the Lord (1 Samuel 30:7–8), Saul is completely cut off from the Lord and must resort to visiting a necromancer. If the witch comes up at all in the interpretation of the story, it is only to highlight how despairing Saul is on the eve of his death. Most people who preach or teach from this passage more or less ignore the woman in order to focus on the glaring contrast between Saul and David at this point in their careers as kings of Israel. Frymer-Kensky does not ignore the woman but focuses attention on her as a model for living a life of wisdom.
Instead of Saul and David, Frymer-Kensky offers a meditation on a marginalized woman. Since Saul suppressed mediums and the necromancers, she was pushed to the edges of Israelite society. Nevertheless, she excelled at what she did, and when needed, she did what Saul asked (call up the spirit of Samuel) at the risk of her own life. Frymer-Kensky points out that she comforts Saul and humbly provides food for him. She killed a fattened calf and made bread for Saul and his servants (28:23-24). She chose the moment to excel, and at the end of the story, she is the one who behaves properly.
Wisdom from the Witch of Endor is a modestly priced, small-format book (4.5×6.5) with ample margins and frequent block-style quotations highlighting key lines. It is indeed a short sermon in a convenient format. Most readers will finish the book in less than an hour.
NB: Thanks to Eerdmans for kindly providing me with a review copy of this book. This did not influence my thoughts regarding the work.
Dear Mr. Prime Minister arouse the אומץ Spirit of courage within your heart Sir! Oct 7th Abomination and the SA condemns Israel of genocide. The UN “court” sides with the SA, despite UNRA guilt in joining the Oct 7th Abomination! Sir, at the beginning, on Oct 7th you said Israel, in a War! Time for Israel to break off all diplomatic relations with Hamas/PA Arabs, the UN, the Red Cross double-cross, and all supporting friends of our enemies among all nations. Sir, Israel fights a war, and war like all wars hurt. Family members demand the return of our stolen hostages. But this pain our people simply must endure till we achieve the complete and total unconditional surrender of Hamas from Gaza & Samaria. Read over Shabbat in an Isreali newspaper, the demands made by Hamas! Sir this most definitely does not qualify as unconditional surrender.