Josh Benner

Tag: 1 samuel

  • The height of the reign of Saul. Studying 1 Samuel 11:8-15

    The height of the reign of Saul. Studying 1 Samuel 11:8-15

    Israel defeats the Ammonites

    In 1 Samuel 11, the Israelites face their first major military test under their new king, Saul. He has found out that the Ammonites have besieged the city of Jabesh-Gilead and so Saul assembles an Israelite force. 

    Verse 8: 

     8 When he mustered them at Bezek, the people of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.

    Numbers can always be a little bit difficult in the Bible. Especially in the Old Testament. In English, our word for thousand always refers to a numerical value. The Hebrew word translated thousand can mean more than one thing. So it’s possible that it’s 300 thousand. It’s also possible it’s 300 military units, but not necessarily 300 thousand men. 

    It’s a large group in any event. 

    It’s also noteworthy that you have a split between Israel and Judah – north and south – just two generations later and even here, it’s listing the military numbers for these primary regions of the kingdom separately. The news of this army is shared with the besieged city of Jabesh-Gilead. 

    Verse 9: 

     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 salvation.’ ” When the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh, they were glad.

    And so they give their response to the Ammonite king: 

     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.”

    In the Hebrew, their wording is actually a little bit cryptic. 

    The ESV translates it as we will give ourselves up to you. 

    The ESV commentary on 1 Samuel says that more literally, what they’re saying is we will come out to you.

    Which has a double meaning where the Ammonites could think they were coming out to surrender, but in reality they would be coming out to do battle. 

    In verse 11, the battle is recorded. 

     11 And the next day Saul put the people in three companies. And they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch and struck down the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together. 

    Again, it’s a passage where a battle happens but it’s not really a passage about the battle itself. It gets summarized in one verse. Saul divided his men and they surrounded the Ammonites and so we see some skill in planning on the part of Saul. 

    The Israelites have a decisive victory. No two of them were left together. 

    The Ammonites are decimated. More attention is actually given to the aftermath of the victory than to the battle itself. 

    To explain the end of this chapter, we need to understand the end of chapter 10.

    Team of rivals

    In chapter 10, after Saul becomes king, he returns to his home and chapter 10 ends by mentioning that there were some who were enthusiastic about the new king, and there were some who were not. 

    Chapter 10, verses 26-27: 

    26 Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, 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. 

    After the victory, people wanted to round up those detractors who had been less enthusiastic about Saul and see them executed. 

    Back in chapter 11, verse 12: 

    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.” 

    The high point of a doomed kingdom

    Verse 13:

    13 But Saul said, “Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has worked salvation in Israel.”

    As I said in the beginning of our time, this is the high point of the reign of Saul. 

    For a brief moment, Israel has the king they wanted. 

    Saul could have been vengeful to his detractors but chose grace instead. He could have hogged the glory but he gives the credit where it’s due when he says that it was the Lord who has worked salvation in Israel. 

    All is well in Israel. 

    There is a celebration. 

    It’s like when a team brings in a new coach or a new general manager and it takes them a few years to built up and then it culminates in a championship. The Cubs winning the World Series in 2016 comes to mind. All that time without winning a World Series and then they get the right people on staff and on the roster and they get there. 

    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. 

    So we’ve had this great victory. The Israelites are carrying Saul around on their shoulders. The Prophet Samuel suggests that they go to Gilgal to renew the kingdom. 

    Why would they need to renew the kingdom when they literally just installed a new king? 

    I think that John L Mackay argues convincingly that the renewal of the kingdom in light of this great victory is not about Saul. That Samuel is seeking to renew the covenant to the kingdom that they have with the Lord who gave them this victory. 

    Gilgal was mentioned in chapter 10. It’s the place where Saul became king. It was also the place where Joshua built the first altar to the Lord within the Promised Land after they had crossed the Jordan River. In renewing the kingdom at Gilgal, it is also tying the future of Israel to God’s past faithfulness.

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  • Studying 1 Samuel 11:1-7

    Studying 1 Samuel 11:1-7

    In 1 Samuel 11, Israel is on the verge of war against the Ammonites, a surrounding enemy.

    At the beginning of the passage, the Ammonite king – Nahash – has the Israelite city of Jabesh-Gilead surrounded. The Israelites seek out a treaty with the Ammonites. 1 Samuel 11:1 says: 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.”

    In verse 2, the Ammonite king makes an audacious request:
    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 bring disgrace on all Israel.”

    An immodest proposal

    There are two reasons why Nahash would make such a demand. From the text, it says that it would bring disgrace upon them. I think that’s pretty obvious. A way to shame and humiliate the people by half-blinding the nation and also the pain which that would involve. 

    A second reason is also likely for such a request. If they just gouged out one eye, they could still farm and therefore serve the Ammonite conquers. But it would make it much harder for them to have any type of military resistance. It would affect depth perception. 

    Most people are right handed and so to have to carry a sword in your right hand when you couldn’t see in your right eye would also cause problems. Carrying a shield with the left hand could also potentially obstruct the view in the left eye, especially when marching in formations as was common in ancient warfare. 

    So there is strategy behind this, but given that Nahash wanted to bring disgrace upon Israel, we also see hatred and vengeance as motivations for why he wanted to defeat them. 

    Back in our passage. Verse 3, we see a request from the Israelites in Jabesh: 

    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.”

    They ask for a reprieve of seven days. They want to see if they have any options.

    It’s obvious from the context of the passage that the Ammonite king agrees because messengers get sent out in the following verse. 

    Perhaps he’s overconfident or assumes that the Israelites couldn’t possibly mobilize a force in seven days.

    We’ve seen Israel’s situation as they come under threat. 

    And we will see in this passage that it is ultimately a story about the Lord protecting his people. 

    The king and the battle

    So the Israelites asked for a seven day reprieve. They send out messengers. 

    Verse 4: 

    4 When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the ears of the people, and all the people wept aloud. 

    We don’t know how many messengers are sent or how wide ranging these messengers were sent throughout Israel. But some messengers had made their way to Gibeah, the hometown of Saul, Israel’s new king. 

    There is one point worth making that helps us understand the connection between Saul’s hometown of Gibeah within the Benjaminite territory and Jabesh-Gilead which was the city under Ammonite siege. 

    A tale of two cities

    As I keep mentioning, Saul was a Benjaminite and so he lived in the Benjaminite territory. 

    The Benjaminites had fought a war against other Israelite tribes. One area that did not participate in this war were the soldiers from Jabesh-Gilead. So Jabesh-Gilead is under attack in today’s passage. They go to a place that they had previously spared and ask for help.

    So you have some good historical relations between these two cities. And that place just “happens to be” the home of the new king. 

    I say “happens to be” in quotes because it wasn’t just some random coincidence. Once again in this passage, we continue to see this theme in Samuel of the providence of God. And I want to reiterate the point I keep making. That this passage is about God’s faithfulness. Here, we see it through his providential actions. 

    Verse 5: 
    Now, behold, Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen. And Saul said, “What is wrong with the people, that they are weeping?” So they told him the news of the men of Jabesh. 

    So it just happens to be these two cities who had this warm relationship with each other, and it just happens to be the hometown of Saul, and now Saul just happens to pass by. 

    People are weeping. We’re not sure if the messengers even know that there’s a king, or know that they’re in his hometown. 

    He’s just coming by with his livestock. 

    We continue to see God’s divine initiative in verse 6. 

     6 And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled.

    So we’ve seen the providence of God, now we see the equipping from God. 

    The Spirit rushed upon Saul. 

    This is something that we also see in the Book of Judges where the judges are endowed by the divine Spirit in times of crisis and then act. 

    The same thing happens to Saul and he goes to work. 

    Verse 7: 

     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 the 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. 

    If nothing else, Saul is a showman. Pretty gruesome. 

    Cutting up the oxen alludes back to events in Judges but it is also giving a stern warning to his people that they’re being called upon by their king to serve. 

    The verse ends with they came out as one man. 

    Saul’s action had its intended effect. And for one of the few times in the history of Ancient Israel, the people are united. 

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  • Chosen to be king. Studying 1 Samuel 10:1-10

    Chosen to be king. Studying 1 Samuel 10:1-10

    In 1 Samuel 9, we are introduced to a man from relative obscurity named Saul. But we quickly learn that he was set aside for a very special task. He would be the First King of Israel. That’s a pretty incredible piece of news for a person to be told and so chapter 10 begins with the Prophet Saul anointing Samuel and then giving him further instructions to prepare him to become king. 

    Saul anointed as king

    Verse 1: 

    Then Samuel took a flask 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 surrounding enemies. And this shall be the sign to you that the Lord has anointed you to be prince over his heritage.

    Samuel anoints Saul in a private ceremony. 

    As always, anointing in the Old Testament is something done at the beginning of the ministry of a prophet or a priest, and now of a future king. It is meant to set someone aside for a divine task. 

    Saul is not yet king. And interestingly, just as we saw in chapter 9, this verse does not use the word king. It uses the word prince. This is another reminder that even though Israel will have a human ruler, God is still the king. 

    Saul will rule as God’s emissary in the land. 

    The people’s demand for a king

    As a reminder, though this will come up at the end of the chapter, the reason why Israel is getting a king is because they had asked for one. In 1 Samuel 8[], the Israelites had been in various struggles and wars. Samuel’s sons were not as godly as he was and the people did not want them to be in power and so the people demanded a king. 

    In that same chapter, the Lord warned the Israelites about how badly it would go for them. 

    More men will have to serve in the army, more taxes, more of their goods will have to be given up in service of the king.

    But the people still want a king anyway. 

    1 Samuel 8:19-20:

    No! But there shall be a king over us, 20 that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.”

    They want a king because they think it’ll make life easier, even though they’re told it will actually make their lives much, much harder. 

    It’s especially interesting that one of the reasons why they want a king is so that they can be like all of the other nations, when God had chosen Israel and redeemed them from slavery in Egypt preciseisly so that they would not be like all the other nations. 

    Leviticus 20:26: 

    You shall be holy to me, for I the Lord am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine.

    So you have a sinful nation who were trying to usurp God and who were graciously warned and yet still wanted a king anyway.

    Sometimes God gives us what we want. But in the process, we learn that what we wanted really wasn’t good. 

    Sometimes God’s “yes” is a judgment. Is that because God is unloving? No. But man is sinful and some of us seem to only learn lessons the hard way! 

    Romans 1:28 says: 

    since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.

    God is the king Israel needs but he’ll give them Saul, the king they deserve. 

    Saul prepared to be king

    Now let’s take a step back and look at this all from Saul’s perspective. 

    That is quite the series of events. In chapter 9, he’d simply gone out looking for some lost donkeys and now he finds out that he’s going to be king! 

    What would you think if you were Saul? 

    I’ll just speak for myself. I’m a pretty skeptical person. There are lots of things I hear that I question. I think I’d have a hard time believing that a prophet picked me out from obscurity and that it was my destiny to be the king of a nation that’s never even had a king. 

    Three signs

    So to prove that it’s all true, the Prophet Samuel gives Saul three signs or prophecies which will happen which are meant to validate that he really has been anointed to be the king. 

    First, his lost donkeys will be found. 

    Verse 2:

    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 donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased to care about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?” 

    Part of what this sign is also doing is tying up loose ends from Saul’s prior life. It is showing a completion of his former life as a farmer and things that will not be his responsibility when he is king.

    We see the second sign. People will give Saul bread. 

    Verses 3-4: 

    3 Then you shall go on from there farther and come to the oak of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one carrying three young goats, 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.

    The New Bible Commentary is helpful on this verse. 

    There was a shrine at Bethel and the bread was meant to be given to the priests. So these aren’t just ordinary loaves of bread. They’re for a special purpose but when the people give the bread to Saul, it’s a reminder that he too has been set aside for a special purpose. 

    We see the third sign. 

    Verses 5-7:

    5 After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim, where there is a garrison of the Philistines. And there, as soon as you come to the city, you will meet a group 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 rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. 7 Now when these signs meet you, do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you.

    This sign points to Saul having the necessary skills to govern. 

    Borrowing again from the New Bible Dictionary, “Once these signs had been fulfilled, Saul could have full confidence to act as king, because God would clearly be with him.”

    At this point, Samuel is still telling Saul what will happen.

    Next, he tells Saul what to do after these things happen. 

    Verses 8:

     8 Then go down before me to Gilgal. And behold, I am coming down 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.” 

    So after the signs Saul will then spend seven days in the city of Gilgal and wait for Samuel. Gilgal was a city in the Benjaminite territory. Saul was a Benjaminte. 

    Gilgal was also the place where Joshua built the first monument to the Lord after the Israelites had crossed the Jordan and entered into the Promised Land in Joshua 4:20. 

    Verse 9:

    9 When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart. And all these signs came to pass that day. 

    This is probably the most hotly debated verse in this entire chapter. What does it mean that Saul was given another heart? Is that a metaphor for conversion or being born again? 

    Given that this event happens prior to the New Covenant, I don’t assume that it refers to regeneration. And given the way Saul’s life plays out, we don’t see much in the way of fruit or a life dedicated to God. 

    But in being given another heart, it points to Saul being equipped with what was needed to where he could have been a good king. 

    It’s also important that these verse mention that all of the signs that Samuel had mentioned came to pass. 

    Continuing in our passage. 

    Verse 10: 

    10 When they came to Gibeah, behold, a group of prophets met him, and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he prophesied among them.

    The signs come to pass because Saul truly has been chosen by God to be the King of Israel. He’s chosen, he’s anointed, he’s been given the signs as confirmation. And at the end of chapter 10, he will officially become the first king of Israel. 

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  • Saul, the first king of Israel. Studying 1 Samuel 9:1-14

    Saul, the first king of Israel. Studying 1 Samuel 9:1-14

    In 1 Samuel 8, the Israelites demand a king. They will have to pay more in taxes, more of their men will have to serve in the army and fight in wars. The best of their land will have to be given up for service to the king. Women will have to work in various trades that will serve the kingdom. They will be subjects. In spite of all of that, the people still say they want a king.

    In chapter 9, we’re introduced to Saul, the man who would be the first king of Israel. 

    Humble beginnings 

    1 Samuel 9:1:
    There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite, a man of wealth. 

    As is often the case in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament, when a new person is introduced, we see a family line given to introduce the person. 

    The Benjaminites were one of the 12 tribes of Israel. They were the smallest of the tribes numerically. 

    Other noteworthy Benjaminites in the Bible include Esther and the Apostle Paul. 

    The verse also mentions that the family was wealthy. 

    Continuing in verse 2:

    2 And he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people. 

    Physical descriptions of people in the Bible are generally pretty rare and when we see them, it’s usually for a reason. We don’t even know what Jesus looked like. But First Samuel mentions that Saul is a tall, handsome man. 

    Saul’s appearance matters to the story. Saul is the only Israelite who’s ever referred to as being tall in the Bible. And the word handsome is found just a handful of times. 

    So now that the general introductory things have been told about Saul, the author gets into the story. 

    The lost donkeys

     3 Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. So Kish said to Saul his son, “Take one of the young men with you, and arise, go and look for the donkeys.”

    So Saul might come from a wealthy family, but we’re introduced to him having to engage in a fairly inglorious task of looking for some lost donkeys. 

    Verses 4-5: 

      4 And he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and passed through the land of Shalishah, but they did not find them. And they passed through the land of Shaalim, but they were not there. Then they passed through the land of Benjamin, but did not find them. 5 When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, “Come, let us go back, lest my father cease to care about the donkeys and become anxious about us.”

    Still talking about donkeys. 

    It seems that the author is trying to show us the simple life that Saul was living. He’s going to be a king, but here, he’s just doing what his father sent him to do.

    Agin, he’s just some Benjaminite. The smallest tribe. While his family seems well off, they’re not even the most prominent family within their tribe. 

    Saul has no ambition of being a King. Israel has never even had a king at this point! 

    It’s kind of like how I doubt George Washington grew up with aspirations of being president. 

    Because he grew up in a time when the presidency wasn’t a thing. 

    Saul has no aspiration of being the leader of Israel. So Saul is with one of his servants looking for the donkeys and they have wandered into this small town: Zuph. Still no donkeys. But they’ve been gone for awhile and Saul starts to worry that his father is going to start to worry. 

    But the servant of Saul makes a suggestion. 

    Verse 6:
    6 But he said to him, “Behold, there is a man of God in this city, and he is a man who is held in honor; all that he says comes true. So now let us go there. Perhaps he can tell us the way we should go.”

    The servant refers to “a man of God” in that city. The man of God is the Prophet Samuel. 

    Samuel is essentially a leader over Israel. He’s not a king. But he’s known throughout the land. 

     For instance, 1 Samuel 3:20 says:
    20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. 

    Back in our passage. So it’s not Saul that has the idea to see Samuel. It’s his servant who has the idea. The servant knows and Saul doesn’t. And this is the future king of Israel! So Saul’s servant suggests Saul seek out Samuel. To find some donkeys. 

    Saul responds. He’s uncertain.

     7 Then Saul said to his servant, “But if we go, what can we bring the man? For the bread in our sacks is gone, and there is no present to bring to the man of God. What do we have”

    Culturally, he feels like he needs to have some sort of gift to present before a prophet. 

    His servant happens to have some silver on him in verse 8. And so the two men go in pursuit on Samuel. 

    After a quick note on how they needed to have a gift, we see in verses 11-12, their journey is interrupted by a group of women. 

    Saul and his servant are looking for Samuel. And the women tell Saul and his servant that Samuel has just returned to the city. 

    1 Samuel 9:11-12:
    11 As they went up the hill to the city, they met young women coming out to draw water and said to them, “Is the seer here?” 12 They answered, “He is; behold, he is just ahead of you. Hurry. He has come just now to the city, because the people have a sacrifice today on the high place.

    So the women tell Saul and his servant to hurry because Samuel has to perform a sacrifice that day. 

    1 Samuel 9:13:
    13 As soon as you enter the city you will find him, before he goes up to the high place to eat. For the people will not eat till he comes, since he must bless the sacrifice; afterward those who are invited will eat. Now go up, for you will meet him immediately.”

    So the women are talking about this feast. Unknown to the women, unknown to Saul, but the feast is for him. 

    Verse 14:
    14 So they went up to the city. As they were entering the city, they saw Samuel coming out toward them on his way up to the high place. 

    And it is there where they will meet the Prophet Samuel and where Saul will receive some news which will change his life and the future history of Israel.

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  • Darth Vader and the first king of Israel

    Darth Vader and the first king of Israel

    In Star Wars, you have Anakin Skywalker who becomes Darth Vader. 

    Anakin starts off from very humble beginnings. He’s a slave, but unbeknownst to him, he is set aside for a historic task. 

    A Jedi meets young Anakin and senses that Anakin has a strong presence of the force and that he is the chosen one who will be the Jedi who will restore power to the force. 

    And at first, Anakin does a lot of good things. He’s a heroic figure. He’s serving honorably as a Jedi. He saves an entire planet. 

    He has this priestly figure in Obi Wan Kenobi who trains him in the ways of the Jedi. 

    But then. 

    He joins the dark side. 

    He becomes Darth Vader. He’s evil. He is vengeful. He destroys entire planets. He nearly wipes out the Jedi. He kills his teacher, Obi Wan Kenobi. 

    I give those details because the life of Saul follows the same trajectory of that of Darth Vader. 

    In our passage today, we’re first introduced to Saul, who is a man of humble beginnings. Without knowing it, he finds out that he will be the king of Israel. Saul starts out well and has everything he needs to succeed before turning to sin in later chapters. 

    And he goes on a downward spiral of destruction and murder. 

    Darth Vader kills off most of the Jedi. Saul kills off all of the priests but Abiathar. 

    Both are replaced by greater men. Darth Vader’s son Luke Skywalker restores order to the force. Saul is replaced by David, the greatest of the Israelite kings. 

    Darth Vader fights his son, Luke Skywalker. Saul has a son – Jonathan who opposes Saul and abdicates any opportunity to sit on the throne. 

    Both Vader and Saul have daughters who oppose the evils of their fathers. Princess Leia is a Jedi. Saul’s daughter marries King David. 

    Saul and David are both anointed by Samuel. Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker are both trained by Obi Wan Kenobi. 

    Darth Vader dies on a moon called Endor. Saul dies in battle at a place near Endor! 

    1  Samuel 28:7

    7 Then Saul said to his servants, “Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “Behold, there is a medium at En-dor.” 

    He dies in chapter 31 at Gilboa. 

    I think the Star Wars writers might have had a Bible handy when they were writing their script! 

    Humble origins, early successes, a turn to evil and a downward spiral of muder that ends in violent death. I think the comparison is helpful as we consider the long story arc of King Saul in the Book of First Samuel. 

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