When Saul consulted the witch (medium) of En Dor, was it really the prophet Samuel that appeared?
No. There are several important scriptures to consider before we examine the actual story, recorded in 1 Samuel 28:7-25. The first is the verse immediately prior, which informs the reader that “when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by the prophets” (1 Samuel 28:6). God was refusing to communicate with Saul through any means, including His prophets. Samuel, even if he had been still alive, would have had nothing to tell Saul. From this we can infer that the “Samuel” who communicated with Saul was not a prophet of God speaking from beyond the grave. Another important passage is in Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10, which says plainly that “the living know that they will die; but the dead know nothing…for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.” When we die, we enter a state the Bible likens to “sleep” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14), remaining unconscious until the resurrections at or after Christ’s return.
