28:12 the woman saw Samuel. Probably this was Samuel, and not merely an apparition. The consternation of the medium shows that the figure was something outside her usual experience of magic arts. The narrator calls it simply “Samuel,” and what the figure says is consistent with Samuel’s pronouncements when alive (especially ch. 15). For some reason the Lord allowed Samuel to visit Saul. It is clear from the medium’s reaction that she could not compel him to appear.