FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL

Study Continued

For the TEXT of the following study please see previous posting

CHAPTER 12

Verse 1 - 5

Chapter 12 is the proclamation of Samuel at this important moment in the history of the Hebrew People. Saul is chosen as king and has ‘ proven ‘ himself for the first time in the arena of war.                                Saul is their King. And yet here Samuel reminds the People of their true king – the Lord God.

Since the day of his birth and his dedication by his mother Hannah and father Elkanah he has faithfully served the Lord. He was presented to the Jewish Priest Eli and since then has favoured God. He has always served the People of God well. Perhaps Samuel felt a deep sense of personal rejection. He was without fault and yet the Hebrew People rejected him and wanted another , a King not a Judge. It was also a reminder that he was blameless and thus if any disaster fell upon the People it would be their fault not his.

Samuel is to be the last of the Judges of Israel. How wonderful that the last Judge is to be one who is so devoted to God. This is Samuel’s final address as Judge.

As one author states:

"With this address Samuel laid down his office as judge, but without

therefore ceasing as prophet to represent the people before God, and to

maintain the rights of God in relation to the king."

Verse 6 – 10

Samuel then reminds the People of the great foundational events of their faith – the Passover from Egypt. Samuel purposely recalls Pharaoh, another king whose heart was hard against God and His People. This must not happen with King Saul. The Lord God was the one who also conquered the many other pagan kings of the region. Once again Samuel gives warning of what kingship is all about. That God alone, as ‘ proven ‘ here is the King of kings.  

Verse 10 -11

Samuel reminds the People that God then sent Judges – among them --

Jerubbaal ( also known as Gideon – see Judges 6 – After 40 years of peace following the great Judge Deborah the Hebrew People turned to pagan worship and morals. Gideon was sent to deliver them. With only 300 men he slew the Midianites and the Amalekites in the Valley of Jezreel. During his 40 year reign peace prevailed. The People wished to make him king to which he refused. He had 70 sons – one of which is Abimelech ( meaning ‘ my father is king’) Perhaps this is why Samuel reminds them of Gideon – he refused to be made king.

Bedan or Barak ( Bedan translated as ‘Son of Dan’ – that is Samson, the great Judge. Manoah was Samson’s father of the tribe of Dan)  or other translations of the Bible render the name as Barak – the commander with the Judge Deborah

Jephthanh  ( Faithful Judge who slew the Ephraimites and Ammonites. Then peace prevailed. )

and Samuel, the present great judge.

For list of Judges see http://www.bible-history.com/resource/r_judge.htm

Verse 12 - 13

Samuel reminds the People of this recent battle – how King Saul won his first offensive against the evil king Nahash ( translated as “Serpent” and the Ammonites, from the preceding chapter ) God was victorious.

Verse 14 -15

Samuel gives the People a clear commandment – if you do not rebel against the command of the Lord  all WILL go well. Although the People preferred a King and God allowed it – here then is the rule – to continue to serve God.  

Verse 16 – 18

To ‘ prove ‘ this point Samuel then calls upon God to give a sign. In the midst of the dry season he calls down rain and thunder and it happens. The People are forewarned.

Verse 19 - 21

The People cry out. Samuel tells them that they have their king – they have made their choice - and yet they are still called to worship and obey and follow the one and only true king – the Lord. 

Verse 22

To me this is the heart of the chapter -- For the LORD will not cast away His people, for His great name's sake, because it has pleased the LORD to make you a people for Himself. The reason that God stays by His People – in spite of their choice of an earthly king is that He still wishes and invests in the People so that His Name may be glorified. This is the heart of the COVENANT that He made with His People. Perhaps in spite of or because they do have an earthly king God must now make His Name known and glorified now by other means.

Verse 23 -  25

Samuel promises that he shall remain with the Hebrew People and continue to teach them. That the King and People may serve God with all their hearts. If not – then they and King shall be consumed. What will happen ?

QUESTIONS

1.       Samuel has to remind the Hebrew People of the foundational events within their lives. When did you have to remind yourself of God’s faithfulness in this world or within your life ?

2.       What were the foundational events in your Faith Life ? Like the great ones mentioned by Samuel who were the foundational people in your faith life ?

3.       Imagine how rejected Samuel must have felt. He was faithful but the People wanted a king. How do you think Samuel felt ? Have you had any similar experience of rejection as Samuel ? How did you handle it ?

Text

1 Samuel

Chapter 12

1 And Samuel said to all Israel, "Behold, I have hearkened to your voice in all that you have said to me, and have made a king over you. 2 And now, behold, the king walks before you; and I am old and gray, and behold, my sons are with you; and I have walked before you from my youth until this day. 3 Here I am; testify against me* before the LORD and before his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Or whose ass have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? Testify against me and I will restore it to you." 4 They said, "You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from any man's hand." 5 And he said to them, "The LORD is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand." And they said, "He is witness." 6 And Samuel said to the people, "The LORD is witness, * who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore stand still, that I may plead with you before the LORD concerning all the saving deeds of the LORD which he performed for you and for your fathers. 8 When Jacob went into Egypt and the Egyptians oppressed them, * then your fathers cried to the LORD and the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and made them dwell in this place. 9 But they forgot the LORD their God; and he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of Jabin king of* Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab; and they fought against them. 10 And they cried to the LORD, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth; but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve thee.' 11 And the LORD sent Jerubbaal and Barak,* and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side; and you dwelt in safety. 12 And when you saw that Nahash the king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, No, but a king shall reign over us,' when the LORD your God was your king. 13 And now behold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you have asked; behold, the LORD has set a king over you. 14 If you will fear the LORD and serve him and hearken to his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the LORD your God, it will be well; 15 but if you will not hearken to the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then the hand of the LORD will be against you and your king. * 16 Now therefore stand still and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes. 17 Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call upon the LORD, that he may send thunder and rain; and you shall know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking for yourselves a king." 18 So Samuel called upon the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19 And all the people said to Samuel, "Pray for your servants to the LORD your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king." 20 And Samuel said to the people, "Fear not; you have done all this evil, yet do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; 21 and do not turn aside after* vain things which cannot profit or save, for they are vain. 22 For the LORD will not cast away his people, for his great name's sake, because it has pleased the LORD to make you a people for himself. 23 Moreover as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you; and I will instruct you in the good and the right way. 24 Only fear the LORD, and serve him faithfully with all your heart; for consider what great things he has done for you. 25 But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king."

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 ?

1 Samuel Chapter 10

Verse 24 – 27

And Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among all the people." And all the people shouted, "Long live the king!" 25 Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship; and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home. 26 Saul also went to his home at Gibe-ah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched. 27 But some worthless fellows said, "How can this man save us?" And they despised him, and brought him no present. But he held his peace

1 Samuel Chapter 11

1 Then Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, "Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you." 2 But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, "On this condition I will make a treaty with you, that I gouge out all your right eyes, and thus put disgrace upon all Israel." 3 The elders of Jabesh said to him, "Give us seven days respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you." 4 When the messengers came to Gibe-ah of Saul, they reported the matter in the ears of the people; and all the people wept aloud. 5 Now Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen; and Saul said, "What ails the people, that they are weeping?" So they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh. 6 And the spirit of God came mightily upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled. 7 He took a yoke of oxen, and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying, "Whoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!" Then the dread of the LORD fell upon the people, and they came out as one man. 8 When he mustered them at Bezek, the men of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. 9 And they said to the messengers who had come, "Thus shall you say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have deliverance.'" When the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh, they were glad. 10 Therefore the men of Jabesh said, "Tomorrow we will give ourselves up to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you." 11 And on the morrow Saul put the people in three companies; and they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch, and cut down the Ammonites until the heat of the day; and those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together. 12 Then the people said to Samuel, "Who is it that said, Shall Saul reign over us?' Bring the men, that we may put them to death." 13 But Saul said, "Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the LORD has wrought deliverance in Israel." 14 Then Samuel said to the people, "Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom." 15 So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the LORD in Gilgal. There they sacrificed peace offerings before the LORD, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL

Study Continued

For the TEXT of the following study please see previous posting

CHAPTER 10

Verse 1

Samuel anoints Saul with oil. Up to this point only the Jewish Priests and the Tabernacle were anointed with oil. This is the way that Samuel anointed Saul to be the first king of Israel. In the Hebrew text "mashach, maw-shakh'; a prime root; to rub with oil, i.e. to anoint, to consecrate." Samuel's purpose was to "consecrate" Saul into a sacred office, and that office was that Saul would be king. Remember prior to this the duty of the judge fell on the shoulders of the high priest, the religious leader of Israel, and now the priesthood and the duties of Judge are separated into two different offices. The kiss of Samuel to Saul is this recognition.

Verse 2 – 8

There are three prophecies now foretold by Samuel: 1. Saul will meet two men by the tomb of Rachel who will tell him that his father is looking for him. This was a SIGN that king Saul could control the people that were entrusted to him.   2. Next, near the oak of Tabor three men will greet him - one with three sacrificial lambs, another with three breads and another with a wine skin. This was a SIGN that the People would offer sacrifices for Saul   3.  At Gibe-ath-elohim, Saul will meet a band of prophets and God’s Spirit will fall upon him and he will prophesy. This was a SIGN that Saul would indeed be endowed as king with God’s Spirit ( see David’s homage paid to Saul always )
These three prophecies will prove to Saul and to the people that Saul is to be king.  They also served to prove to Saul that Samuel was indeed a Judge and Prophet.
Saul is told to go to at the land of Benjamin Rachel's sepulchre is the place where Benjamin was born, for Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin. Remember that Saul was a Benjamite, and at the time of Benjamin's birth, Rachel named Benjamin, "son of my sorrow" at her death, however Jacob renamed him "Son of my right hand
Samuel had a school of prophets at Gibe-ath-elohim ( Translated as ‘Hill of God’) . This may be the town of Gibeon. Those that finished their training were called "masters". The head of the school is called the "father" as is spoken of in verse twelve of this chapter. These schools of study for the prophets were also found at Beth-el, Jericho, and Gilgal, as recorded in    2 Kings 2:3, 4; 4:38. To be declare a prophet doesn't necessarily mean that you tell the future, but it also mean that you have an understanding of those words spoken by the prophets. To prophesy means that you are a teacher of the Words and things of God.

Verse 9
I think that this is the key phrase. For although God was displeased that the People wanted a king He chose Saul. It would be at this point that God changed Saul’s heart. Up to now ( see previous posts ) Saul is not much of a kingly person – materially or spiritually. God now changes this.

Verse 12
Even the people are confused of how Saul began to prophesy. They ask who is his ‘father’ – that is who is his teacher for certainly his biological father Kish did not do this for Saul. It was God’s grace and Spirit. This was an external sign that Saul was now of God.  

Verse 16
Saul himself does not tell his uncle how he came to be. Perhaps Saul was a simpleton or that he was amazed and dumbfounded of what had just happened. Or he was humbled by it all.

Verse 17 – 18

Samuel declares Saul king.

Saul's rise to kingship over Israel took place in three distinct stages:

          He was (1) anointed by Samuel (9:1—10:16),

                      (2) chosen by lot (10:17 -27),

               and (3) confirmed by public acclamation (11:1-15).

Samuel gathers all the People of Israel at Mizpah (A place in Gilead, so named by Laban, who overtook Jacob at this spot ( See Genesis 31:49) on his return to Palestine from Padan-aram, the Plain of Aram Here Jacob and Laban set up their memorial cairn of stones. It is the same as Ramath-mizpeh- see Joshua 13:26 )
The first thing that Samuel does is to remind the People of Israel of the great events of the Exodus. In this way he is reminding them that GOD alone is KING. That He has and continues to do great things. Why do we need an earthly king ?

Verse 20 – 25
The rather curious presentation of Saul as the first king of Israel.
Samuel selected the tribe of Benjamin by the use of the Urim and Thumim."Was taken" in the Hebrew text, meant that it was selected by lot. The Urim and Thimmim were two precious stones that were placed in the breastplate of judgement that was worn by the High Priest. When there was a question that needed God's help in selection, these stones or lots were drawn out of their bag, and cast to give instructions of Gods judgement on the matter. The words, "Urim and Thimmim" mean "lights and perfection", and then cast to the ground, the judgements would be such as yes and no, gilt or innocent. In the making of a selection, the High Priest was the only one that decided whether the stones would be taken from the bag and used for a decision.  The Israelites even used these stones to determine who gets what land, and how the land would be divided [by lot], and it was from these stones that our lots of today are determined. Samuel used the Urim and Thimmim to decide which tribe, which family of that tribe and the man from that family that would be the king that God selected. For the lots, or stones fell as God would have the choice be made. The tribe was Benjamin, the family was Matri, the son of Matri was Kish, and the son of Kish was Saul.

Verse 21
Saul is declared king – and yet he is nowhere to be found ! Even after the anointing with oil, the three-fold prophecy and the sending of the Spirit into the heart of Saul he still hid himself on the day of his ‘corination‘. Was he overwhelmed or afraid or humble ? Perhaps he was wisely reluctant.

Verse 24
All the People of Israel shout a very familiar proclamation – Long live the king!  Now they have an earthly king like all others. How sad.

Verse 25
The first thing that Samuel did after the king was selected, was to write the manner or the constitution of the government that would exist under their king. The king would rule by the guidelines of God's laws that were stated in that constitution, and it was presented before God and to the people. The people now had a king, and a constitution that they would be governed by. Then Samuel sent the people back home.

Verse 26

Samuel is given a small band of men to protect him. Right away we know there will be harsh times for King Saul. King Saul went to his home at Gibe-ah. The ancient tell (archaeological mound) of Gibeah now stands three miles north of the old city of Jerusalem, the buildings of which are clearly visible from Gibeah. It is now a northern "suburb" of Jerusalem.

Verse 27
There will be harsh times indeed starting right here – beginning with the “children of Belia”. Belia is one of the four crown princes of Hell. That is why they did not give Saul gifts. They shall attack and be amongst Saul’s reign. Let us see Saul’s kingship.......

QUESTIONS

1. Did they need a king ?  Do we need a king ?

2. The Kingship of Saul was marked thus far with unity ( he settled the issue of the lost donkeys ),  sacrifice ( the offerings for him ) and the spirit of God ( his prophecy ).  Can you name some leaders that exhibit one or more of these ? And you ?

3. King Saul was given prophetic visions. Can you name some prophets of our times ?  

FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL

Continued

CHAPTER 10

 1 Samuel Chapter 10

1 Then Samuel took a vial of oil and poured it on his head, and kissed him and said, "Has not the LORD anointed you to be prince over his people Israel? And you shall reign over the people of the LORD and you will save them from the hand of their enemies round about. And this shall be the sign to you that the LORD has anointed you to be prince* over his heritage. 2 When you depart from me today you will meet two men by Rachel's tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, The asses which you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased to care about the asses and is anxious about you, saying, "What shall I do about my son?"' 3 Then you shall go on from there further and come to the oak of Tabor; three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one carrying three kids, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine. 4 And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall accept from their hand. 5 After that you shall come to Gibe-ath-elohim, * where there is a garrison of the Philistines; and there, as you come to the city, you will meet a band of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying. 6 Then the spirit of the LORD will come mightily upon you, and you shall prophesy with them and be turned into another man. 7 Now when these signs meet you, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you. 8 And you shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I am coming to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do." 9 When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart; and all these signs came to pass that day. 10 When they came to Gibe-ah, * behold, a band of prophets met him; and the spirit of God came mightily upon him, and he prophesied among them. 11* And when all who knew him before saw how he prophesied with the prophets, the people said to one another, "What has come over the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?" 12 And a man of the place answered, "And who is their father?" Therefore it became a proverb, "Is Saul also among the prophets?" 13 When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place. 14 Saul's uncle said to him and to his servant, "Where did you go?" And he said, "To seek the asses; and when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel." 15 And Saul's uncle said, "Pray, tell me what Samuel said to you." 16 And Saul said to his uncle, "He told us plainly that the asses had been found." But about the matter of the kingdom, of which Samuel had spoken, he did not tell him anything. 17 Now Samuel called the people together to the LORD at Mizpah; 18 and he said to the people of Israel, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.' 19 But you have this day rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses; and you have said, No! but set a king over us.' Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by your thousands." 20 Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. 21 He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its families, and the family of the Matrites was taken by lot; finally he brought the family of the Matrites near man by man, * and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found. 22 So they inquired again of the LORD, "Did the man come hither?" * and the LORD said, "Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage." 23 Then they ran and fetched him from there; and when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. 24 And Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among all the people." And all the people shouted, "Long live the king!" 25 Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship; and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home. 26 Saul also went to his home at Gibe-ah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched. 27 But some worthless fellows said, "How can this man save us?" And they despised him, and brought him no present. But he held his peace.

FIRST BOOK OF SAMUEL

Continued

For the text of the Bible Study below please scroll down to another post

CHAPTER   8 – 10

The following Chapters in First Samuel are most interesting. For they proclaim the story of the anointing of the first king of Israel – Saul – by the great Judge ( seer, prophet, judge ) Samuel.

And yet there is a marked contrast between Chapters 8 and 9. In Chapter 8 it is the People of Israel who demand ‘ a king, like all the other nations.’ Samuel presents this to God and a king is given. And yet with this king there are a multitude of warnings and prophecies of what will happen.

This is compared to Chapter 9. This is quite a ‘ different ‘ version. Here God states – in verse 16  "Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have seen the affliction of my people, because their cry has come to me."

Many theologians and spiritual writers see in this two versions or two truths of how Saul became king. We even note the different ways in which Saul is chosen – in one ‘ version ’ Saul meets Samuel by the journey to find his father’s donkeys while in chapter 10 verse 7 Saul is chosen by lots ( the roll of the dice)

I find this most interesting in that this, the Word of God, speaks of two versions of the kingship of King Saul. Each in their own way, with their own ‘ truth’ speaks differing messages of faith of the same event.

The Israelites had pressed their leaders for a king at least twice in their past history.

The first time was during Gideon's judgeship (Judg. 8:22), and the second was during

Abimelech's conspiracy (Judg. 9:2). Now in Samuel's judgeship they demanded one

again.

CHAPTER 8 

Verse 1

Just as Eli’s two sons, Jewish priests became corrupt, we here see that Samuel’s two sons Joel and Abiah likewise becoming corrupt and sinful ( poor parents in the Bible eh )

Verse 2

They were judges in Beer-sheba

Beersheba means "well of the oath". The southern limit of the Holy Land, as in "from Dan to Beersheba" comprehends the whole. Called so from the oath of peace between Abraham and Abimelech, king of the Philistines (Genesis 21:31), else from the seven (sheba' ) ewe lambs slain there: indeed sheba', an oath, is from the custom of binding one's self by seven things, as Abraham made the seven ewe lambs a pledge of his covenant with Abimelech.

It is this special place of the oath that the two sons ruled.

Verse 5

The People of Israel cry out to Samuel not only for a king but ‘ a king like all of the other nations.’ They did not even seek to desire a king UNLIKE the other pagan nations.

Verse 7

God ALLOWS the People’s desire. He reminds Samuel that the People are not rejecting Samuel or even his corrupt sons but they are rejecting God and His Kingdom and Rule.

Verse 8

God states how the People have continually rejected Him from the time they left Egypt until the present when they still did not believe even when God overcame Dagon, the false god of the last chapter.

Verse 10 – 17

The warnings from God, through Samuel, of the hardships that the People will face under a king. The honours to God will be overwhelmed by the forced tribute to the king. Even the tithing of the 10% will first be to the king and not to God. They would ‘take’ their ‘best’. These words are most often repeated. 

Verse 19

Even with these grave warnings the People of Israel still demand a king.

CHAPTER 9

Verse 1

The first king of Israel would come from the Tribe of Benjamin, known as the least amongst the Tribes of Israel. Recall that the Benjamites were the smallest of all the tribes at this time, because of the war that took place against the Benjamites by all the other tribes of Israel. This was discussed in the Book of Judges chapters nineteen and twenty, when the Levite was passing through the Bethlehem-judah with his concubine, and stopped in Gibeah for the night. While in the home of an old man that took them in, the entire population of men from the town came and wanted to sodomize the Levite priest. Instead of giving the Levite to the men of Gibeah, they gave the old man's daughter and the Levites concubine, who had their way with the women, and left the concubine dead on the door step.
When the Levite returned home, he parted the remains of the concubine into twelve parts, and sent those parts to all the tribes of Israel, and this created hatred for the town of Gibeah, to where all Israel went to war against the sodomites of Gibeah. When the rest of the tribe of Benjamin heard of the action taken against their brothers in Gibeah, they sided with the men of Gibeah, and from that war there remained only six hundred men left of the tribe of Benjamin left alive.
It was from this war that the rest of the tribes decided that they would have to rebuild their brother's tribe [the Benjamites], or Benjamin would just not exist any more. There was an annual dance that took place, and the advise to the Benjamites was to lie in the bushes, and when the families came to the dance, the men of Benjamin would jump out of the bushes, take a daughter to themselves, and whisk her off to the land of the Benjamites to be his wife. It was from these six hundred men that the stock of Benjamin grew to the point that it was at the time of Samuel, some four or five generations later.
This is why the tribe of Benjamin was looked at as the least, and why their numbers were so few, as compared to the rest of the tribes. Just as Saul was a Benjamite, so was the Apostle Paul, as recorded in Acts 13:21. It was from the tribe of Benjamin that Israel would have their first king.

Verse 2

To human eyes Saul truly looks like a king. He towers over all the People, is handsome and goodly ( versus godly ) “Saul” translates as “Asked of God”.

Verse 3

Saul was a keeper of donkeys. Although an important animal it was not the cleanest. Compare this to King David, the keeper of Sheep. We see Saul wandering around the countryside looking for the lost donkeys and cannot easily find them. Is this the kind of king you want ?

T o his credit – Saul's concern for his father's peace of mind was commendable. It shows a sensitivity that would have been an asset in a king (verse 5). Likewise his desire to give Samuel a present for his help was praiseworthy (verse 7; cf. 1 Kings 14:3; 2 Kings 8:8-9). Saul had some

appreciation for social propriety. He was also humble enough to ask directions from a

woman (verses 11-14). Years later, at the end of the story of Saul's reign, the king asked directions from another women, but she was a forbidden witch (ch. 28).

Verse 6 – 10

The meeting of Saul and Samuel. Take note that it is the SERVANT who appears to be more knowledgeable of the Seer of Judge Samuel. It is the Servant that suggests to see Samuel. The Servant and not Saul knows the faith of such a Seer.

Verse 11 – 14

God sets up the meeting of Samuel and Saul. As Judge Samuel had to travel through all the lands of Israel. It was a ‘coincidence’ that Samuel was in the Land of Zuph and this city when Saul was searching.

Verse 15

Samuel knew that God had set up the meeting with Saul.

Verse 16 – 24

Saul is invited to dine with Samuel. During the meal the choicest portion is set before Saul. There is a lot said in this verse that must be understood. The portion that is left for the Levitical priest, and their families portion is the shoulder of the animal, and a brisket. This is the rightful portion for the priest is the portion that Samuel saved for Saul to eat. In this statement that Samuel is showing these leaders of the community, is that the Judgeship is passing on from the priest to the next king of Israel. Israel is about to enter into a monarchy, and Saul will be the first king of all Israel. Saul will be the next Judge of Israel once his is made king. The one thing is Saul's favour is that Saul would always listen to Samuel and try to keep him happy.

CHAPTER 10

Verse 1

Samuel anoints Saul as the first King of Israel.

Anointing with oil was a symbolic act in Israel that pictured consecration to service. The

only things anointed with oil before this anointing were the priests and the tabernacle.

The oil symbolized God's Spirit, and anointing with oil represented endowment with that

Spirit for enablement (cf. 1 John 2:27). In the ancient Near East, a representative of a

nation's god customarily anointed the king, whom the people viewed from then on as the

representative of that god on earth. Thus Saul would have understood that Samuel was

setting him apart as God's vice-regent and endowing him with God's power to serve

effectively. Beginning with Saul, kings were similar to priests in Israel as far as

representing God and experiencing divine enablement. Samuel's kiss was a sign of

affection and respect since now Saul was God's special representative on the earth.

Samuel reminded Saul that the Israelites were the Lord's inheritance, another comment

that Saul unfortunately did not take to heart ( Verse 9:13).

QUESTIONS

1. The People of Israel wanted a king like all other nations. Why ?
      What did they think they would ' gain '?  What did they think that they would ' lose ' ?
      With our choices as to the Kingship of God in our lives when we choose Him what do we gain ?
      When we fail to choose Him what do we lose ?

2. Okay this is a tricky question or not ! What is the role of the separation of ' church and state' ?
    Do these chapters speak to this question ?
    On one side the 'portion' is passed on from Samuel the Judge fully to Saul the King
    The dinner scene states this. On the other side spiritual and temporal disaster awaits .