Enter Saul Stage Right
Once again, we want to use this platform to bridge the gap between two sermons as we walk through 1 Samuel. Last Sunday, Pastor Brandon Henson from Anchor Church took us through 1 Samuel 8; and next Sunday, Pastor Robbie will start in the middle of chapter 10. So let’s find out what happens in the meantime.
When we left off last week, Samuel had laid out the negatives and dangers of Israel having a king (other than God as their King of course). But even when presented with 8 verses worth of compelling warnings against an earthly king, Israel still demanded one because they wanted to be like all of the other nations (1 Samuel 8:20). They ignored Samuel and doubled down on an earthly king that will “ judge us and go out before us and fight our battles” - which incidentally is exactly what God has done and wanted to do for them. Instead of forcing his agenda, the Lord relents and allows Israel to choose a path that will lead to much destruction and devastation over the coming centuries.
This brings us to chapter 9 where we meet the second of three main characters from 1 Samuel: Saul.
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. 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. 1 Samuel 9:1-2
We start the section with a man named Kish who, like Elkanah in 1 Samuel 1:1, was essentially a nobody. Not only that, but Kish belonged to the tribe and the land of Benjamin, which was the smallest of Israel’s tribes. The author is setting us up with the same info as Elkanah in chapter 1, and like chapter 1, we’re being shown that God does not need our fame, fortune, and influence to raise up a leader. The author transitions quickly to Kish’s son, Saul, who by all accounts was an impressive young man. We was tall and good looking, and the literal translation of verse 2 would imply that “There was not a man among the people of Israel better than he.” Since most of us are aware that Saul becomes the king that Israel was asking for in the last chapter, it seems like he’s a great choice so far.
Our first interaction with Saul (vv 3-10), involves him and a servant searching for his father’s lost donkeys. One verse in particular stands out as interesting considering all that we’ve already read and experienced.
5 When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant1 who was with him, “Come, let us go back, klest my father cease to care about the donkeys and become anxious about us.” 1 Samuel 9:5
There have been several father/son relationships we’ve seen thus far; Eli and his sons and Samuel and his sons. In both of those situations, the sons strayed far from their father, with scripture even calling Eli’s sons as “worthless.” In this passage though, Saul’s concern for his father (more than for the donkeys) is honestly a welcome contrast to the failure of Eli’s and Samuel’s sons to care about their fathers. Once Saul declares his intent to return home without the donkeys, his servant suggests going to meet a man of God in the nearby town. It takes a little convincing, but Saul agrees.
They enter the town (possibly Ramah) to find the seer. At this point, alarm bells should be ringing. Who have we heard called a “seer” before? Samuel. Where did the end of chapter 8 take place? Ramah. Worlds are colliding!
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. 1 Samuel 6:2
Confirmed, Samuel is the man of God, the “seer” that they are looking for. Donkeys lost, Saul sent on a search and recovery mission with a servant that has somehow heard of a holy seer in the lands they were searching in, and they arrive in the city conveniently at the same time Samuel is coming through. In case you thought any of this was coincidence, God dispels that notion in the next few verses.
15 Now the day before Saul came, the LORD had revealed to Samuel: 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 my people, because their cry has come to me.” 1 Samuel 9:15-16
God’s sovereignty on display. That’s what we’re seeing. We’re also seeing the boundless love of the Father. Even though Israel is asking for something they already have in God (a King), even though they are asking for a lesser, fallible leader so they can blend in with the world around them, even though they are asking for something that Samuel has already warned will ultimately harm them - God still hears their cry and provides deliverance from their enemies. Saul is going to be that leader and he’s going to deliver them from the hands of the Philistines.
The rest of the chapter describes the initial interaction between Samaul and Saul. Samuel recognizes Saul as God’s appointed man, and invites him to a feast as the guest of honor. Saul goes from searching for donkeys in the countryside to being the guest of honor at a priestly feast.
27 As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to pass on before us, and when he has passed on, stop here yourself for a while, that I may make known to you the word of God.” 1 Samuel 9:27
Samuel was about to make known to Saul, for the first time, the word of God. We see the significance of the events here in 1 Samuel 9 only when we see that the word of God was at the heart of it all. Saul was oblivious to this, but God had said to Samuel, “Obey their voice and make them a king” (1 Samuel 8:22a). Then he had said, “Tomorrow . . . I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin” (1 Samuel 9:16). Everything that happened in this chapter was according to the word of God. We know that Saul will become Israel’s king by the word of God, and he will be required to listen to and obey the word of God as king (1 Samuel 12:14; 15:1).
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. 1 Samuel 10:1-2
Samuel does as the Lord commanded back in 1 Samuel 8, and he anoints a king. And specifically, he does what God asked in 1 Samuel 9, and he anoints Saul the Benjaminite. This is certainly a shock to Saul, who understands his heritage; he’s a nobody from nowhere, not “royalty material.” So Samuel prophesies about a few signs that Saul will experience that will confirm God’s intentions. First, two men will meet him at Rachel’s tomb to tell him that the donkeys are safe. Second, three men will meet him at Bethel to offer him bread. Thirdly, a group of prophets will meet him at Gibeah.
9 When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart. And all these signs came to pass that day. 1 Samuel 10:9
God confirms to Saul his intention and fulfills all of the signs that Samuel spoke. The Spirit of God rushed upon Saul and he experienced the power and presence of the Lord. All of this will set us for next week, when Saul is finally proclaimed King.
