1 Samuel 6:2

The priests and the diviners. The ark had been in the land of Philistia for seven months. The inhabitants of the three cities, Ashdod, Gath, and Ekron (see ch. 5:5-12), had suffered from a dreadful plague, and the land had been overrun with mice and the crops destroyed (v. 5). Among ancient peoples the mouse was the symbol of pestilence, and so appears in Egyptian hieroglyphics. In their extremity the Philistine lords turned to their wise men. These “diviners” studied natural phenomena and portents. They inspected the entrails of sacrificial animals — the so-called “liver omens” of the Babylonians; they observed the flight of birds, the fall of talismans, the behavior of flowers, etc. It was the responsibility of the astrologers, soothsayers, spirit mediums, and necromancers to separate everything into two classes, the lucky and the unlucky, the good and the evil, portents favorable and unfavorable. The Lord specifically commanded His people not to practice the art of divination (Deut. 18:10-12). Balaam, an apostate prophet of the Lord whom Balak the king of Moab had called to curse Israel, stated that there was no such thing as enchantment or divination against Israel (Num. 23:23). But evidently Saul, influenced by the practices of surrounding peoples, and driven to desperation by the silence of divine counsel, turned to the witch of Endor for help (1 Sam. 28).

What shall we do? Among the nations of the Near East not even the king dared go on a campaign without first consulting his wise men. Among heathen tribes today no one is more respected and feared than the medicine man. It is in perfect harmony with the customs of the time that the lords of the Philistines should counsel with the diviners as to the proper course to pursue.