Where Were Samuel And Saul?

Q

In 1 Samuel 28:19, Samuel says that Saul and his sons will be with him after they die. Samuel was faithful to God and served God all his life so I’m assuming the he went to Sheol to wait to go to heaven when Jesus died on the cross for our sins. Also Saul’s son Jonathon was a man of God and King David’s closest friend. If Samuel went to Sheol, Saul must have gone there, too. But if Saul, who according to 1 Samuel 28:16 had become God’s enemy, went to hell then Samuel and Saul’s sons must have too since the Bible says they are all in the same place. So does that mean Samuel is in hell?

A

1 Samuel 28: 16-19 says,

Samuel said, “Why do you consult me, now that the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? The Lord has done what he predicted through me. The Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hands and given it to one of your neighbors–to David. Because you did not obey the Lord or carry out his fierce wrath against the Amalekites, the Lord has done this to you today. The Lord will deliver both Israel and you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The Lord will also give the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.”

From reading the account of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) we can see that before the cross both the righteous and the unrighteous went to the same place after dying, although their treatment while there was remarkably different. All Samuel was saying to Saul is that both he and his sons would die in the coming battle.