296. * raised up, representing Samuel. For whenever evil spirits, or their leader, are permitted, then they are able to impersonate whomsoever they wish, so skillfully - provided that person has been seen by and known to them - indeed, so cleverly, that not the least inflection of the voice, or anything that was natural to the person, is missing. This I have been made to experience two or three times by certain spirits, who presented before me some people known to me during their lifetime, and I spoke with them for a long time. They were just like they had been during their life, yet I still doubted whether they were the same people, and I said as much to the spirits. So they are able to put on whatever person they are allowed, provided it had been an acquaintance. (But let us see how this may be set forth, as it should be told with prudence. For I do not know whether the spirits were good who were allowed to do this. Also, lest people doubt about those visions spoken of above.) [People; Person] 6156. That it was not Samuel, is clear enough, because it was a medium woman who did it; also because we read in verse 13 that gods ascended, and in verse 14 that he asked whether it was Samuel.