I know of a woman
She was most discreet
So she begged all that came
Her secret to keep.
Now this is not hearsay
I have a reliable word,
It is through something I read
And not something I heard.
You could take my word though
This is as true as they come,
I’ll tell you what I know
And then I’ll be done.
I know of this man
He was a very powerful man
But he did as he liked
And did not stick to the plan.
Well he got into trouble
And was at his wit’s end,
There was none to help him
Not a relative or a friend.
He tried calling on God
But that didn’t help
So you could well imagine
How this man felt.
Well, he asked around
Through the people he knew
And soon a particular woman
Came into view.
But to do what he wanted
His own law he must contravene
However, this was no big thing
It was a regular scene.
After all he was a big one
And a law maker too,
Remember I told you
He did whatever he wanted to do.
To this woman he went
And of her made his request,
It was clearly illegal
But she promised her best.
She reminded him of the law
And the penalty of death
But he swore to secrecy
Putting her mind at rest.
He took with him two men
And it was night:
The ideal time to do those things
Which by law were not right.
Well she knew his request
But she needed the specifics,
This he revealed to her
And the results were terrific.
An old man appeared
He was wearing a mantle,
By now you must have guessed
It was the prophet Samuel.
When the woman saw Samuel
She cried with a loud voice,
What she had encountered
Was not of her choice.
Straightway she recognized
That her patron wore a disguise,
It was he who’d passed this law
This law he’d now despised.
He inquired of her
Of what form was he,
"An old man wearing a mantle,"
Alarmingly said she.
This great man showed respect
To the prophet he had ignored,
Now before him bowed
Unlike what he had done before.
There one conversation ended
And another begun
Initiated by the prophet Samuel
That this man had shunned.
“Why have you disquieted me?
Why have you brought me up?”
This powerful man responded
By detailing his bitter cup.
He had had little regard
For the prophet during his life
But now disturbs his rest
Alerting him of his strife.
Well the prophet reminded him
There was nothing he could do,
God had rejected him
And that was his just due.
Before the prophet left him
He did prophesy
But the prophecy was of no comfort
For on the morrow he would die.
To the woman he kept his word,
She even prepared him a meal,
Eventually he and his two men left
Anticipating what was revealed.
True to every word
Came to pass what the prophet said,
The Philistines defeated his armies
Leaving him and his sons also dead.
Noticed the play on the title?
Did you pick it up?
To make a law than break it
Must be a poisoned cup.
How this great man had fallen!
What a devastating plunge had he!
Right down to the witch at En-dor!
I wonder how much was her fee.
Such has been the case
Of many a man in God’s Word,
That’s where I read it
It was not something I heard.
Stewart Russell © October 2017
