FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL

Study Continued

For the TEXT of the following study please see previous posting

CHAPTER 11

Verse 1

The chapter opens with Nahash the Ammonite going up and besieging Jabesh-gilead;                           

"Nashash" means "serpent" and this should give us a hint who is behind the aggression of Nashash and the Ammonites. Remember from Judges 19 the men of Israel went to war against the people of Gibeah because of they had turned into a community of Sodomites, and had attacked and killed the Levite priest's wife, and the daughter of the old man that the Levite was staying with. All the tribes of Israel were called to war against Gibeah. When they were all gathered together at Mizpeh, it was known that no one from Jabesh-gilead was there to answer the call to go to war. So the other 11 tribes killed the entire tribe of Benjamin, except six hundred men. This almost wiped out the tribe. The problem was solved when they determined that the men of Israel would use the dance of the feast at Shiloh that was held each year as a method of allowing the six hundred men of Benjamin to continue their tribe. The plan was to have the men hide in the bushes, select a wife and steal her away, then rush her back to their land. A priest would be there to marry them instantly, and thus a new family unit would be established so that children would be born and the tribe would have an inheritance.

Saul was a child that came from one of these marriages, and the city of Jabesh-gilead were the descendants of part of those six hundred men. The Ammonites were coming against the town of Jabesh, and before the men of that town would give into the Ammonites, they sent word out to the rest of Israel for help. Remember that the tribe of Benjamin was the smallest of all the tribes because of that war, and the rest of Israel did not want that tribe to be done away

Jabesh Gilead ( or Jabesh in Gilead ) is a town on the east side of the Jordan River, on the top of one of the green hills of Gilead. Jabesh means ‘dry’.

The Ammonites were the offspring of Lot, the nephew of Abraham. The Ammonites had been previously defeated by Jephthah ( See Judges 11:12-33). Nahash evidently sought revenge for Jephthah's victory over his nation The Ammonites heard the plea from the people of Jabesh and their desire to make an a treaty with them. But first they wanted to hear the terms of agreement.

Verse 2

The condition that Nahash put before the men of Jabesh was that he and the Ammonites wanted to enter into Jabesh, and put out the right eye of all the men in the town. The right eye is the eye used by the swordsman and the archers in their marksmanship, and to do this would destroy the town from ever defending themselves. In battle the shield covered the left eye, and thus the loss of the right eye made the man incapacitated for fighting.
God is trying to give us a lesson here, in letting us know the mess that we can get ourselves into when we try to negotiate with the "serpent", old Nahash [the devil], and his type. The Israelites of Jabesh-gilead are pulling away from God, and turning to a man to save them. The first thing that these people of the serpent will try to do is to disarm us, and make us ineffective to fight the battles that God expects of us. Nahash wants to gouge of all of the right eyes of all Israel, and he wants to start with these men of Jabesh.

Verse 3

The Israelites of Jabesh ask for seven days to see if their fellow countrymen will come and save them. How ironic that this time, unlike Book of Judges, the tribe of Benjamin now has to call on the other tribes for help and protection. Still seven days is not alot of time to seek an answer in what to do.

The Ammonites permit this. It is a sign of the self-confidence of the Ammonites and their belief that no one would come to the rescue of Jabesh.  

Verse 4 – 6

When it is reported to the others what is happening a great cry goes up. Yet this is not the time for weeping, for the enemy is at the gate of the city, it is time for action. The people again forgot that God had promised to protect them. Gibeah was that small community that was wiped out some two hundred years prior for their inactions against sin, and this was the community that was reformed after the first community was destroyed. This is also Saul's birthplace, and the place where his family lives.
When Saul hears of it all the Spirit falls upon him and he is filled with anger. A tremendous showing of righteous indignation. For the sake of the Lord something must be done ( and for the sake of Saul’s birthtown )  – stop your crying and wailing. In a very clear sign Saul cuts a yoke of oxen and sends pieces of them to all the tribes – if you do not act as one and save the people of Jabesh the same will happen to you.  This also invoked Book of Judges 19: 29 – 30 where the Levite cut up and sent parts of his mistresses body to all the tribes of Israel. Again this occurred in Jabesh, the same town. A clear parallel.
Side note – here we find Saul still minding the animals. Why did the king continue to work in this way ? Perhaps he was waiting for further direction from Samuel and from God. Certainly it shows Saul humility.

Verse 7 - 9

The Hebrew army very quickly assembles ( I guess they got the message ! ) at Bezek. Bezek means ‘lightning’ - certainly in reference to how quickly they gathered for war. It is 16 miles on the west side of the Jordan river. The army is formed into fighting divisions - the men of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand
This is the start of the separation between the house of Israel and the house of Judah. The mention of Israel refers to all the tribes except for Judah, and Benjamin, while when Judah is mentioned it is referring to only Judah and Benjamin.

Verse 10

The leaders of Jabesh send their answer to the Amorites – they tell the Ammonite leaders that they would meet them the next day. This ofcourse is a "covert activity". The leaders of Jabesh are leading the Ammonites on to believe that they are going to get their treaty, and that the Israelites will yield to their every wish. However, the time of the agreement must be set for tomorrow. This buys the time that was needed for the army of Israel to get to the battlefield. They are lying to Nahash to save their right eyes.

Verse 11

Saul's army arrived at Jabesh sometime between 3:00 a.m. and 6 a.m., just before the sun came up,           and Saul's army went right into battle. They slew the Ammonites while they were least expecting trouble, for they thought they had won the battle. As seen in verse 12 Samuel was with them. He had brought God’s blessings to save the tribe in Jabesh. King Saul’s first victory.

Verse 12 - 13

The people remembered the men who refused to pay tribute to Saul on his coronation day. They called for them to be put to death. For now it had been ‘proven’ that Saul was to be their king. For after this battle and the complete scattering of the Ammonites, the rest of the Israelites thought that Saul would be a very good king. However, it still doesn't change the fact that God wanted to be our king.  To give credit to Saul he states in verse 13 that it was God that gave them victory.

Verse 14 – 15

Saul then calls the Hebrew People to go to Gilgal to renew the covenant there. The name "Gilgal" means wheel, and Gilgal was the hub of the center of activity. Gilgal is near Jericho and was the Israelites' first camp after they entered the Promised Land, and the place where they first renewed the covenant in the land (Book of Joshua 4—5). For this reason, that site would have stimulated the people's remembrance of God's faithfulness to them and His plans for them as a united nation They all went down to Gilgal, with the victory of the battle fresh in their minds. At Gilgal the elders would anoint Saul as king before all the people of Israel. The people are keeping God in the forefront and trying to do it all God's way. This was the first victory that Israel would have with a king in the lead. Following the battle Saul and all the people gave God all the glory, they made their peace offerings before the Lord, and Samuel was ahead of the celebration. The time that began with weeping because of the forgetting of the trust in God is now replaced with joy !

But would it and he last ?

QUESTIONS

1. Saul had to ' prove' himself before being accepted as king. In his times victory at war was a clear way of doing so. Why did they not fully accept him as king from the beginning ? Why did they need ' proof' of his temporal and spiritual leadship ?  Do we seek ' proves ' from others before accepting them as ' chosen ones ' temporally or spiritually ? 

2. Saul went back to minding the herds. Reminds me of the apostles returning back to fishing in Galilee after Easter Sunday. Why did Saul / why did the apostles do this? Is this reflected in any way in your life ?

3. Is there any chance for Saul to succeed as king ?  Do you think that he will remain rooted in his initial call as king ? Without knowing the rest of the Old Testament what would be your guess ? How can you remain faithful to your initial call ?