Image of Saul created by Artificial Intelligence.
Israel wanted a king because the neighbouring nations had a king and they did not want to be different. God granted their request and Samuel, God's prophet and priest, was given the task of finding the right person and then carrying out the ceremony of anointing the first king. There are many lessons from this part of the book of First Samuel but, in today's blog, we want to consider briefly the character of Saul, the man whom God chose to be king of Israel. He was not a good king and, in a later blog, we are going to study briefly his downfall. However, Saul could have been a great king because he had all the qualities and attributes needed to be king. He also had the support of Samuel, the son of Hannah, the godly woman we have considered in a previous Day Share blog. Samuel was God's mouthpiece who had the God-given task of communicating God's messages to Saul. God had chosen Samuel to replace Eli, the old priest who could not control the behaviour of his two rebellious sons.
It was never God's intention that Saul would be an autocrat or a dictator. He was meant to be subject to God's will in his life and to carry out God's government on the nation. If Saul had grasped this important point, he would have been a good king - a man after God's heart as was said of David, the shepherd boy who was treated as a nonentity before God chose him to be Saul's successor.
Saul, the first king of Israel, is one of the most striking and tragic figures in the Old Testament. If we are at all sensitive as to the supreme values and vital issues of human life, the story of Saul will challenge us. In some ways he is very big; in others very little. In some ways he is commandingly handsome; in others definitely ugly. He began so reassuringly, but declined so disappointingly, and ended so wretchedly, that the downgrade process which ruined him becomes monumental to all who will give heed. We note the three main phases of his career—(1) his early promise, (2) his later decline, (3) his final failure. [J. Sidlow Baxter: Explore the Book Lesson Number 29.]
In today's blog, I provide a PDF document containing a chart showing the references for this short blog with annotations. I hope you will find this helpful. You can view it or download it here. Here are the main points.
Saul was a tall, impressive figure from a wealthy family. His exceptional height would give him an advantage as a military leader. Despite that, when he first comes on the pages of Scripture, he is humble and unselfish.
In his early days, Saul demonstrates some commendable features. He displayed decisive leadership under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. This is seen in his call to war against the Ammonites and in his courageous decision to banish mediums and all those who communicated with dead spirits. Saul clearly saw that God did not want his people to communicate with dead spirits.
God makes special provision for Saul: he grants him the power of His Holy Spirit to accomplish the task of being a new king of Israel. He becomes a different person (a new man) and we might discuss this in more depth in our study at Dawson Community Church.
When we read the description of Samuel's ordination of the new king, we might be forgiven for thinking that Israel has a new powerful king who will rule the nation in these troubled times.
Then Samuel said to the people., "Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom." 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. [1 Samuel 11:14-15 ESV]
But Saul did not live up to this early promise. He did not fulfill his potential and he ended up taking his own life in tragic despair.
It is not enough to be talented and gifted in God's service. God expects submission and obedience to His will. And that's where Saul failed miserably. But that's for another day and another study.
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