The history of the United Kingdom period in Israel focuses on a few main characters, namely, Saul, David and Solomon. However the story begins with the life of Samuel who was a prophet, priest, and the last judge of Israel. Samuel was unique in that he was set apart for God from birth and had been called by God from a young age. Samuel was the spiritual leader prior to the Kingship of Israel. Samuel listened to God and obeyed Him only. In the early United Kingdom period Samuel is the chosen voice of God who shows God’s will. However, Samuel was aging and the people were restless.
The time of transition from the Judges to the time of the first Kings of a united Israel was chaotic. The transition begins due to the failures of Samuel
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That is not to say that Saul was evil; many of Saul’s early actions seem God-fearing. Saul appears for the first time in the story as a shy young man but he grows to be strong. However, as time goes on, Saul put other things before God and trusted in his own wisdom and strength instead of God’s words through Samuel. Ming Him Ko describes how the central sin of Saul was the disobedience of God’s commandments. Saul’s heart was not in the right place and Saul was ultimately rejected by God because of his disobedience. Saul was shown to be the disobedient King who ruled under God’s displeasure throughout 1 Samuel.
God shows that even in His displeasure he takes care of His people. God chose to take what was bad and use it for His glory. He judged the people and not the institution of the Kingship. (Bruce Birch). When God rejected the Kingship of Saul God directed Samuel to anoint the King that God had chosen to lead the people, David. David would never have been chosen by the people. He was the youngest son in his family good only for tending the sheep. However, God had greater purposes. Through the demise of Saul and the rise of unlikely David God would show His glory to the people. God revealed that even though the people had rejected Him He would chase after their hearts until He regained them.
There are many different themes common on the subject of Kingship in Israel that are highlighted throughout scholarly analysis of the subject. Sages of the time, thought to have written Proverbs, believed that the king was a person way beyond the normal run of things. This piece from “Proverbs 30:29-31” is a prime example:
Here we see David in his first major fall from grace. King David accomplished a great evil, a two-fold sin. Not only did he commit adultery, but also he also sent Uriah into battle so that he would be killed. David, being blinded by his selfishness, did not notice that he had committed a great sin in the eyes of God.
In 2 Samuel the narrative shifts to the reign of David as he rises above Saul’s son Ish-bosheth to become the king, first of Judah and then of all the tribes of Israel (5:1–4). The book records David’s wars of conquest including the capture of Jerusalem and the relocation of the ark of the covenant to the City of David (6:1–19). But the author also records David’s failures: his adultery with Bathsheba (11:1–26), Absalom’s rebellion (15:1–18:30), Sheba’s revolt (20:1–26), and the disastrous census (24:1–25). Like all the prophetic writers, the author presents a portrait of his historical figures from the perspective of their faithfulness to God’s covenant.
He shows he is weak and not ready to lead. (1 Samuel 9:21). Saul even hides when he is supposed to show himself to the Israelites as the chosen King (1 Samuel 11: 22). Although Saul knows that he cannot lead, he has no choice, he has to follow the Lord’s order. At last, God realizes that Saul was indeed not a leader-type person and chooses another person. God must have known that people are not forced to be leaders, but they themselves should be aware of the ability to be leaders.
Even as Samuel wrestled with God, God told him & the nation what a king would demand, and take from them. However, they shouted out they still wanted a king and to be like other nations. They didn’t care they would accept and deal with the cost associated with their request. They wanted what they wanted and it didn’t matter. We are the same today we want what we want it and don’t consider the cost, but as is often said, the devil is in the details or the cost as we see here.
There is a strong correlation between Samuel and Eli. Both men were very involved in ministry, giving them less time to invest into the spiritual lives of their
From a biblical perspective we see in 1 Samuel 12:1-4 Israel’s high regard for Samuel. He was a man who exuded integrity. Samuel said to all of Israel, “I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these, I will make it right.” “You have not cheated or oppressed us,” they replied. “You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”
During the time of Samuel, the people of Israel desire a king. God had promised to provide for the Israelites and in return God asked for obedience and love. Throughout the Old Testament God always provided for the Israelites yet God’s people regularly rejected him.
According to the New Living Translation (1996) King David lived halfway between the lives of Abraham and Jesus, in addition to becoming one of the most important leaders for Israel and "a man after God's own heart" ( 1 Samuel 13:14). David's place of birth was Bethlehem, City of David Jerusalem where he grew up as a shepherd, but he is better known for his youthful triumph over Goliath, as well as being a poet, musician, soldier, and a king (Holy Bible, NLT, 1996). King David died at the age of seventy after ruling for forty years.
In this section historical information concerning the lives of Saul and Samuel have been discussed. Such information will enlighten ones cultural and contextual study of 1 Samuel 8–15. Moreover, the reader will have more insight into the referential world of the author, thereby allowing one to discern their intended meaning.
1 When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beer-sheba. 3 Yet his sons did not follow in his ways, but turned aside after gain; they took bribes and perverted justice. 4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, 5 and said to him, “You are old and your sons do not follow in your ways; appoint for us, then, a king to govern us, like other nations.” 6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to govern us.” Samuel prayed to the Lord,
The book of 1 Samuel, a part of the Old Testament, sparks the dawn of the United Kingdom of Israel by telling of its first king, Saul. Samuel is one of the first talked about pre-literary prophets in the bible perhaps because he anointed the first king of the United Kingdom. He is a prophet by definition because he possessed the ability to converse with the almighty Yahweh. Samuel and Saul are key players to the rise of the kingdom but Saul runs into trouble and disobeys God, which leads him to his own inevitable demise.
The nation of Israel was set apart as holy to the LORD. But they When the children of Israel demanded a king, they did so to be like the other nations. The first three kings were Saul, (outwardly tall, handsome and strong—a seemingly good choice for a king, but inwardly arrogant, proud and unrepentant—not God’s choice), David (a man after God’s own heart who repented of his sins and as such was God’s choice), and Solomon (the wisest man who ever lived, but because of covenant disobedience became the catalyst for the division and ultimate exile of Israel.
God told Samuel to locate the right person to be Israel’s first king. Well, he looked at a lot of people; God guiding him all the time. And finally he selected Saul. Saul was just a boy, but he was a tall, striking and modest young man.
In The Bible there are multiple ideal societies which are presented, each denoted by the God's approval of that society and its leader. One of these societies is that portrayed in the story of Saul. In this story Samuel, a prophet of God, is given the task of revealing Saul, the ruler who is specified