Saul: The Rise of a King
1 Samuel 8-12
This morning I’d like to really just share the journey I was taken on in preparing for this morning’s message. We’ll be in 1 Samuel Chapters 8-12. This week, I really had to wrestle with some biases and ideas I had toward Saul. Saul was the first physical king of the Nation of Israel, and I have grown up hearing about Saul, especially how awful he was and the bad things he did. And realistically, whenever I hear the word, “Saul,” I think – “Oh! That guy.” And I think it can be true for most of us who know Saul.
And the Lord reminded me this week, and he said, I want you to come to scripture and allow scripture to inform you of who Saul was. And that was transformational for me. I read through 1 Samuel Chapters 8-12. And what I found was interesting. I found God preparing and prepping and leading and guiding a person to become the first physical king of the Nation of Israel.
Why? Why was God doing this in the first place? And what did it look like when he was preparing the “who”? These are questions I was asking myself, and I encourage you to ask these same questions this morning as we look through this text today. I want us to be thinking as we work through these scriptures about how God shapes a person he selects to lead others in a way that glorifies him while understanding exactly what God requires from that person and the people who serve that leader.
I absolutely believe that God wants a person whose heart is seeking him, who is focused on having a life that is in obedience to God, his commandments, and who places God first. A person who loves, leads, and serves out of an abundant love that comes from God and is poured out to his people. God wants hearts that are broken before him, people who act in obedience and who see the hand of God at work in their lives. I asked myself during my preparation, was Saul this person for the Nation of Israel?
We’re going to cover a lot of verses today, but we are doing it in a story format. As you make your way to 1 Samuel 8, verses 19-22, I think it’s important for you guys to understand the background.
Samuel the Prophet has gotten older, and he starts to pray to the Lord on behalf of the Nation of Israel. The Nation of Israel slowly started to turn away from God. And they come to Samuel and ask for a physical King who will reign over them. This is not a good thing that they are asking for this, and this is huge because up until this point, God himself is literally King of Israel. God is their deliverer; he is their God. He is the one who has made a way for them through the Wilderness. He has brought them up out of Egypt and brought them into the Land of Promise. God has proven himself faithful to the Nation of Israel.
God made it very clear that he is a jealous God. He demands their praise, their worship, and he asks them to fear him, love him, and obey. But now Israel asks for a King. Why? It’s because they have taken their eyes off of God, and they are looking at all the other gods and nations around them, and they want what they have. These are nations that do not acknowledge God or Yahweh. But they, themselves, have their own idols. They have their own kings who serve as the face of their nation.
Now, for the Israelites, that person is God. Again, this is not a good thing they are asking for. Samuel has just finished explaining to the Nation of Israel what will happen to them should they continue to desire a physical king instead of God himself. The new king will take from them, devour their land, and use them and their children. Just to be clear, what the people are asking for when they are asking for this new king is not a good thing. God is not pleased with them because it goes completely against who he is and what he has already declared.
1 Samuel 8:19-22 (NLT)
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel’s warning. “Even so, we still want a king,” they said.
20 “We want to be like the nations around us. Our king will judge us and lead us into battle.”
21 So Samuel repeated to the Lord what the people had said,
22 and the Lord replied, “Do as they say, and give them a king.” Then Samuel agreed and sent the people home.
Then look with me. In the next few verses, which you can find in 1 Samuel 10, verses 17-19.
1 Samuel 10:17-19 (NLT)
17 Later Samuel called all the people of Israel to meet before the Lord at Mizpah.
18 And he said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, has declared: I brought you from Egypt and rescued you from the Egyptians and from all of the nations that were oppressing you.
19 But though I have rescued you from your misery and distress, you have rejected your God today and have said, ‘No, we want a king instead!’ Now, therefore, present yourselves before the Lord by tribes and clans.”
I think it’s clear as we read these verses that not only did Samuel declare God’s warnings to the Nation of Israel as to what would happen should they continue down this road and want a physical king. But it also shows the heart of the people.
It shows the heart of the nation. They want to be like the nations around them. And these aren’t nations that are seeking the Lord; these are nations that are engaging in idolatry. These are nations that are essentially against everything the Nation of Israel represents under God’s leadership.
But the people don’t care. They don’t care what God has declared to them through Samuel. They just want a king. They think they know what they need – but they don’t.
God does remind the people of who he is. He reminds the people of what he has done. He is loving to his people because he has literally chosen the Nation of Israel. God shows his faithfulness, his steadfastness, his loving-kindness, and his unmerited favor when it comes to the disobedience of his people. And that’s what God does. In the midst of sin, God reminds us of who he is. God reminds us of all the things he has done for us. He says he is good, faithful, just, righteous. I’ve proven myself over and over and over again in your life, and yet you still think you know what is best for yourself.
And so, what does God do? Who does God choose? Let’s look at the who together in 1 Samuel 9, verses 1-2.
But a quick reminder before we read these verses together. I read through these chapters many times. And as I was reading through them, I was literally just looking at the passages and verses that would inform us of who God is choosing to make as the physical King of Israel. I was allowing scripture to inform my mind of what God was doing in raising up a King and how God was doing it. I tried my best to remove all the assumptions and biases that I had coming into this message because, as I said, I had a lot of them. I know what happens to Saul – he turns away from the Lord. He says and does some ridiculous things. He throws spears at David. But I wanted to let scripture govern about why God chose this man in the first place.
1 Samuel 9:1-2 (NLT)
1 Now there was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, son of a Benjaminite, a valiant mighty man.
2 He had a son whose name was Saul, a young and handsome man, and there was not a more handsome man than he among the sons of Israel; from his shoulders and up he was taller than any of the people.
What’s interesting to see here in these verses is the four generations of men that are described before Saul is mentioned. It helps inform us of the man we are talking about, and it helps inform us of the men that have come before him. And for our focus this morning, it helps us remember Saul came from an honorable lineage. This is important because generations are a big deal in the Bible. Kish was not only a son of Abiel, who is part of the Tribe of Benjamin, but he was a valiant, mighty man from a long line of honorable men. And this is important for us because it lets us know Saul comes from a generation of people who were well off and well known as men of valor, stature, and favor with the people.
We also see here a physical description of Saul. Why does scripture focus on the description of Saul? Why would we literally need to hear he was young and handsome, and there was nobody more handsome among the Sons of Israel? And he was really tall – why does the Bible tell us this?
Some people would come to the conclusion that scripture is trying to give us a picture of where the heart of Israel is coming from. They have turned their face from the Lord. They are no longer in tune with God’s heart. And so, their own hearts are driving their perception, their ideas of what they think their king should look like. I think scripture is trying to show us that, for the moment, he was what looks good for the Nation of Israel.
Is God preparing this young man who is from a wealthy family, who is not only physically handsome and young but stands out in a crowd because it is exactly who the people need, or is it because it is who the people think they want as a king?
It’s probably pretty safe to say that if you saw Saul in the crowd, you would be naturally drawn to him. I believe that the Nation of Israel was looking at outward appearances, and we can see that in scripture based on what they are asking God for. They are looking at the other nations, and they want what they have.
You know what’s also interesting here? We as a people do this as well. We take a person’s physical stature, their appearance, the way they lead, the way they talk, the way they hold themselves, and we literally make assumptions and conclusions based on what we see.
Now, is this necessarily a bad thing? I don’t think so. But what we have to be reminded of this morning is that when God is selecting or has selected a person or persons to represent him, he looks at their heart. God doesn’t care about what you look like; he cares about where your heart is. He cares about a broken and humble heart that is so obedient to him that when he asks us to move, we move!
Wes Bentley from Far Reaching Ministries said this (I’ll never forget it), An act of obedience moves the hand of God. And when he said it in that way, it blew my mind. It’s so true. When we act in obedience to God, we can see his hand at work. And I have to ask myself, is this true of Saul?
We are going to move into another area of scripture (1 Samuel 9, verses 14-17), but before we do, it is important to give you some background.
Saul and his servant are looking for his dad’s missing cattle (donkeys). Saul decides to return to his father, but his servant suggests visiting Samuel for help first. Saul meets a few young women and asks them where Samuel is, and they direct him to Samuel.
I haven’t seen this in scripture, but some people conclude that Saul’s inability to find the cattle was a lack of his shepherd’s heart. He was raised in the Tribe of Benjamin. His dad was wealthy, and his family probably had lots of land, cattle, and sheep. And so, he probably grew up around sheep and knew what to do. So, some people draw the conclusion that he wasn’t a good shepherd. And, in fact, he wasn’t going to be a good shepherd to the Nation of Israel. I’m not going to push back on that, nor am I going to simply agree with it because as I was studying, I didn’t really see that in scripture. But I would encourage you to do your own research into that. It’s an interesting point, and maybe it does get to the point that Saul may have never ever really been the best king because God was the Great Shepherd, but I don’t know. I’ll let you guys work through that on your own.
The point is that Saul ended up going to Samuel. The reality is God led Saul to Samuel.
1 Samuel 9: 14-17 (NLT)
14 So they went up to the city. As they came into the city, behold, Samuel was coming out toward them to go up to the high place. (The place where they offered sacrifices to the Lord)
15 Now a day before Saul’s coming, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel, saying,
16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him as ruler over My people Israel; and he will save My people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have considered My people, because their outcry has come to Me.”
17 When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him, “Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! This one shall rule over My people.”
God’s Word is not complicated.
Before we move to 1 Samuel 10, verses 9-13, here is what has happened.
Samuel has anointed Saul with oil which is symbolic of kingship and rule, and tells Saul he is God’s anointed ruler. Samuel tells Saul where he can find his dad’s donkeys and then has him head to the Hill of God, where there is a Philistine Garrison. Remember, God has already declared that the future King of Israel would destroy God’s enemies. And so, we see this happening here. God is sending Saul to this Philistine Garrison in preparation to not only anoint Saul with oil, but where he will literally have the Spirit of God come upon him powerfully, and he will prophesy with the prophets there.
1 Samuel 10:9-13 (NLT)
9 As Saul turned and started to leave, God gave him a new heart, and all Samuel’s signs were fulfilled that day.
10 When Saul and his servant arrived at Gibeah, they saw a group of prophets coming toward them. Then the Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he, too, began to prophesy.
What is interesting for us to see here is that when Saul leaves and goes to do what Samuel has commanded him to do, God gives him a new heart, and all the things that Samuel had said would happen were fulfilled.
Not only that, but God’s Spirit comes upon Saul powerfully.
I have to stop and ask the question, why it is when we talk about Saul that we oftentimes press into the bad Saul and not remember what he was before he turned his face away from God? It’s huge. It answers the question I asked myself, is Saul that broken and humble heart that is obedient to God that God wants to use in leading his people? And I think the answer at this point is yes. It has to be yes because scripture is telling us that it is yes.
I learned a lesson here. I think it is easy for me to view another leader, or maybe someone in authority, in a negative light based on the things they have done that I can see. And I forget, sometimes, what happed leading up to what I see, and has God placed him in a position of authority over me. It doesn’t necessarily matter in that moment what they’ve done to me, but the reality is, God, have you placed this person over me because you have placed them in leadership over me? And if so, what am I to do with that? What am I to do when a person in leadership does something to offend me? What do I do when someone in a position of authority does something that negatively impacts my life?
We have to start with remembering they are there for a reason, and that reason might just be for you because, let’s be honest, the Saul that we think about when we think about Saul (the spear throwing, bad decision-making Saul), that’s all of us. At some point, all of us have thrown spears at someone else. We’ve all thrown spears at a leader. So that was my takeaway from this – please help me have a broken and humble heart in recognizing and understanding that no matter what happens to me from a person that you’ve placed in authority over me, help me to remain humble and broken, and have my eyes focused on you so that I don’t lose sight of you so that I can view this person in light of what you’re doing in their life and in my life. See how that works? It’s a really hard thing to do.
I think it was really hard for the Nation of Israel after Saul ended up being Saul when he took his eyes off the Lord.
Now when it says that God gave him a new heart, I believe that the Saul we come into contact with before 1 Samuel 10, verses 9-13 was changed in this moment.
Now, was this new heart God giving Saul a better understanding of how to be a king and how to rule a nation? It could have been. It could have been God giving Saul a desire to accomplish what God had said would happen in destroying the enemies of God. Whatever it was, it’s clear that God changed his heart. And that’s what I believe scripture is saying. And this is huge because I truly believe God comes alongside Saul in preparing him to be king.
Now, I just want to be clear here. Did Saul eventually fall away from the Lord? Yes. Did Saul make really dumb choices when he was king? Yes. Did Saul ultimately try to kill David and drive his son Jonathan away from him? Yes. Did God ultimately remove himself and his Spirit from Saul? Yes.
All of these are true, but it is important for us to understand that God chose Saul for specific reasons to be the first king of the Nation of Israel. This is huge. It’s important for us to remember. And there’s a reason why we need to remember this because, toward the end of this message, we’re going to read verses that make it very clear that God demands something from Saul.
Let’s look at our next section of scripture.
1 Samuel 10: 20-27 (NLT)
17 Later Samuel called all the people of Israel to meet before the Lord at Mizpah.
18 And he said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, has declared: I brought you from Egypt and rescued you from the Egyptians and from all of the nations that were oppressing you.
19 But though I have rescued you from your misery and distress, you have rejected your God today and have said, ‘No, we want a king instead!’ Now, therefore, present yourselves before the Lord by tribes and clans.”
20 So Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel before the Lord, and the tribe of Benjamin was chosen by lot.
21 Then he brought each family of the tribe of Benjamin before the Lord, and the family of the Matrites was chosen. And finally Saul son of Kish was chosen from among them. But when they looked for him, he had disappeared!
22 So they asked the Lord, “Where is he?” And the Lord replied, “He is hiding among the baggage.”
23 So they found him and brought him out, and he stood head and shoulders above anyone else.
24 Then Samuel said to all the people, “This is the man the Lord has chosen as your king. No one in all Israel is like him!” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!”
25 Then Samuel told the people what the rights and duties of a king were. He wrote them down on a scroll and placed it before the Lord. Then Samuel sent the people home again.
26 When Saul returned to his home at Gibeah, a group of men whose hearts God had touched went with him.
27 But there were some scoundrels who complained, “How can this man save us?” And they scorned him and refused to bring him gifts. But Saul ignored them.
We see in these verses Samuel bringing the Nation of Israel together in preparation to choose a king. But before Saul is chosen, Samuel again reminds the Nation of Israel that what they are asking for is not at all what God has prepared for his people.
In fact, it’s completely opposite and contrary to what God has already commanded. God has literally told the Nation of Israel, I am your God, I am your King. Serve me, love me, fear me, be obedient to me, and I will take care of you. But again, what has happened is the Nation of Israel has chosen to copy the surrounding nations, which are completely contrary to God.
Now, when Saul is chosen, it’s interesting that we find him hiding in the luggage. God doesn’t say, oh, choose somebody else who’s not hiding from me. But God literally tells Samuel where to find Saul.
And it’s interesting because we can be quick to poke fun at this young and handsome man who towered over everybody else, who seemingly was the right choice. And we can poke fun at him and say, well, he was so scared and ran away. Well, I think it is interesting that God still chooses him, and what I find that’s practical for us is that oftentimes, when God chooses a leader or chooses someone to serve over us, we can be quick to poke fun at and throw spears at them.
We can be quick to think we can do a better job than the person that God has positioned and placed over us. We say things like, if only I had their position, I would show them how to do it. Or, they’re not doing it right – I can do it better. Now, this is a very dangerous place to be because, essentially, God puts people in places of authority for specific reasons.
For me, I was put in a position where I served under a man who God used to shape me and mold me and refine me for a season. And at first, we didn’t really mesh. But then God reminded me that I was put in that position because it was completely okay to serve from the second chair and that it is perfectly fine to do everything in my power to make sure that the leader God has positioned over me thrives and grows, and is empowered by my actions.
So, we can be so quick to poke fun at Saul (or a Saul) sometimes. But in reality, let’s put ourselves in Saul’s shoes. He’s literally getting ready to be made the King of Israel. How would you feel? What would you do?
I think we get a really good example of two kinds of response to a person that God places in a position over us to serve us and to lead us. God allows our hearts to be aligned with theirs, and we not only accept their position and leadership over us but our hearts are knit with them. And we long to be with them, and we want to do everything we can to make sure that they succeed. I truly believe that these people have hearts that are broken and contrite before the Lord. They understand and fear the Lord because they understand that God is in control, and this is what God requires. Hearts of obedience. A heart that is broken before him, receptive to his leadership, and a heart that will not seek to undermine those he puts in authority but seek to empower, encourage, and edify that person.
Now, the other person is literally called a scoundrel. A worthless person. A person who literally pushes back on God’s divine institution of Saul as ruler in their life and their future king. These people give us an amazing example of how when we do not have a broken and contrite heart before the Lord, we do not and are maybe even unable to recognize God’s moving hand in the life of a person, regardless of what they may do later on. God is seeking broken and contrite, obedient hearts, and maybe God has put that person in that position of leadership over you to get rid of your own pride, to get rid of your own self-centeredness. It’s a hard thing to do.
It is clear that God was making Saul the future king of the Nation of Israel, and yet there were still some whose hearts were twisted and whose hearts were blackened, and whose hearts would not submit.
I think the lesson is clear here.
Finally, what’s interesting is to see how Saul responded to these people. He does nothing. He ignores them. Why? We understand and get a better picture of why Saul does this in the next couple of verses.
But here’s the background before we read these actual verses. Saul has rallied the army of the Nation of Israel together against Nahash the Ammonite, and Israel is getting ready to make an attack on the army of Nahash.
1 Samuel 11:11-14 (NLT)
11 But before dawn the next morning, Saul arrived, having divided his army into three detachments. He launched a surprise attack against the Ammonites and slaughtered them the whole morning. The remnant of their army was so badly scattered that no two of them were left together.
12 Then the people exclaimed to Samuel, “Now where are those men who said, ‘Why should Saul rule over us?’ Bring them here, and we will kill them!”
13 But Saul replied, “No one will be executed today, for today the Lord has rescued Israel!”
14 Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us all go to Gilgal to renew the kingdom.”
15 So they all went to Gilgal, and in a solemn ceremony before the Lord they made Saul king. Then they offered peace offerings to the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites were filled with joy.
God gives Saul such an overwhelming victory and affirms his leadership in doing exactly what Samuel was told Saul would do from God. God defeats the Ammonites and establishes Saul as the future king of the Nation of Israel.
And what is interesting is the people are looking are looking for those who said they would not submit to Saul’s rule. Those scoundrels and worthless people. But Saul extends mercy. And Saul gives credit to the Lord because God was the one who rescued Israel. It seems clear here that Saul understood mercy. Saul understood his rightful place and recognized God was the one who deserved glory.
Now, when we look at this, I think we can understand that at some point, Saul understood God was with him and established him as king.
Let’s look at our final section of verses.
1 Samuel 12:20-25 (NLT)
20 “Don’t be afraid,” Samuel reassured them. “You have certainly done wrong, but make sure now that you worship the Lord with all your heart, and don’t turn your back on him.
21 Don’t go back to worshiping worthless idols that cannot help or rescue you—they are totally useless!
22 The Lord will not abandon his people, because that would dishonor his great name. For it has pleased the Lord to make you his very own people.
23 “As for me, I will certainly not sin against the Lord by ending my prayers for you. And I will continue to teach you what is good and right.
24 But be sure to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you.
25 But if you continue to sin, you and your king will be swept away.”
We see, here again, another final warning for the people and Nation of Israel, and what they had asked for in making Saul their physical king was actually a move away from God.
In fact, it was completely contrary to what God commanded for his people. And yet, we see here God not abandoning his people.
I love how God tells the Nation of Israel to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him, to remember everything he’s done, and do not sin. You will be fine, God says, but if you turn away from me, if you do not have a broken heart, if you do not have an obedient heart, if you don’t have a submissive heart, if you do not follow my commands and turn back to your sin of adultery, then you as a nation and the king will be destroyed.
And that’s the lesson for us this morning, that although we all can’t be a king, God has literally placed people in our lives who are leading us, who are serving us, whom God has specifically put in positions of authority so that we could come alongside them and serve them and love them. Because we know that God’s desire for us is to love him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. To love our neighbors as we love ourselves and to have hearts that are broken and contrite before our God.
So, a practical challenge for us this morning as we leave is this… Where is our heart? Is it broken and contrite before the Lord? If so, praise the Lord. If not, let us seek him, ask him to search us, examine us, and see where we need to realign back to the Father.
And the Lord reminded me this week, and he said, I want you to come to scripture and allow scripture to inform you of who Saul was. And that was transformational for me. I read through 1 Samuel Chapters 8-12. And what I found was interesting. I found God preparing and prepping and leading and guiding a person to become the first physical king of the Nation of Israel.
Why? Why was God doing this in the first place? And what did it look like when he was preparing the “who”? These are questions I was asking myself, and I encourage you to ask these same questions this morning as we look through this text today. I want us to be thinking as we work through these scriptures about how God shapes a person he selects to lead others in a way that glorifies him while understanding exactly what God requires from that person and the people who serve that leader.
I absolutely believe that God wants a person whose heart is seeking him, who is focused on having a life that is in obedience to God, his commandments, and who places God first. A person who loves, leads, and serves out of an abundant love that comes from God and is poured out to his people. God wants hearts that are broken before him, people who act in obedience and who see the hand of God at work in their lives. I asked myself during my preparation, was Saul this person for the Nation of Israel?
We’re going to cover a lot of verses today, but we are doing it in a story format. As you make your way to 1 Samuel 8, verses 19-22, I think it’s important for you guys to understand the background.
Samuel the Prophet has gotten older, and he starts to pray to the Lord on behalf of the Nation of Israel. The Nation of Israel slowly started to turn away from God. And they come to Samuel and ask for a physical King who will reign over them. This is not a good thing that they are asking for this, and this is huge because up until this point, God himself is literally King of Israel. God is their deliverer; he is their God. He is the one who has made a way for them through the Wilderness. He has brought them up out of Egypt and brought them into the Land of Promise. God has proven himself faithful to the Nation of Israel.
God made it very clear that he is a jealous God. He demands their praise, their worship, and he asks them to fear him, love him, and obey. But now Israel asks for a King. Why? It’s because they have taken their eyes off of God, and they are looking at all the other gods and nations around them, and they want what they have. These are nations that do not acknowledge God or Yahweh. But they, themselves, have their own idols. They have their own kings who serve as the face of their nation.
Now, for the Israelites, that person is God. Again, this is not a good thing they are asking for. Samuel has just finished explaining to the Nation of Israel what will happen to them should they continue to desire a physical king instead of God himself. The new king will take from them, devour their land, and use them and their children. Just to be clear, what the people are asking for when they are asking for this new king is not a good thing. God is not pleased with them because it goes completely against who he is and what he has already declared.
1 Samuel 8:19-22 (NLT)
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel’s warning. “Even so, we still want a king,” they said.
20 “We want to be like the nations around us. Our king will judge us and lead us into battle.”
21 So Samuel repeated to the Lord what the people had said,
22 and the Lord replied, “Do as they say, and give them a king.” Then Samuel agreed and sent the people home.
Then look with me. In the next few verses, which you can find in 1 Samuel 10, verses 17-19.
1 Samuel 10:17-19 (NLT)
17 Later Samuel called all the people of Israel to meet before the Lord at Mizpah.
18 And he said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, has declared: I brought you from Egypt and rescued you from the Egyptians and from all of the nations that were oppressing you.
19 But though I have rescued you from your misery and distress, you have rejected your God today and have said, ‘No, we want a king instead!’ Now, therefore, present yourselves before the Lord by tribes and clans.”
I think it’s clear as we read these verses that not only did Samuel declare God’s warnings to the Nation of Israel as to what would happen should they continue down this road and want a physical king. But it also shows the heart of the people.
It shows the heart of the nation. They want to be like the nations around them. And these aren’t nations that are seeking the Lord; these are nations that are engaging in idolatry. These are nations that are essentially against everything the Nation of Israel represents under God’s leadership.
But the people don’t care. They don’t care what God has declared to them through Samuel. They just want a king. They think they know what they need – but they don’t.
God does remind the people of who he is. He reminds the people of what he has done. He is loving to his people because he has literally chosen the Nation of Israel. God shows his faithfulness, his steadfastness, his loving-kindness, and his unmerited favor when it comes to the disobedience of his people. And that’s what God does. In the midst of sin, God reminds us of who he is. God reminds us of all the things he has done for us. He says he is good, faithful, just, righteous. I’ve proven myself over and over and over again in your life, and yet you still think you know what is best for yourself.
And so, what does God do? Who does God choose? Let’s look at the who together in 1 Samuel 9, verses 1-2.
But a quick reminder before we read these verses together. I read through these chapters many times. And as I was reading through them, I was literally just looking at the passages and verses that would inform us of who God is choosing to make as the physical King of Israel. I was allowing scripture to inform my mind of what God was doing in raising up a King and how God was doing it. I tried my best to remove all the assumptions and biases that I had coming into this message because, as I said, I had a lot of them. I know what happens to Saul – he turns away from the Lord. He says and does some ridiculous things. He throws spears at David. But I wanted to let scripture govern about why God chose this man in the first place.
1 Samuel 9:1-2 (NLT)
1 Now there was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, son of a Benjaminite, a valiant mighty man.
2 He had a son whose name was Saul, a young and handsome man, and there was not a more handsome man than he among the sons of Israel; from his shoulders and up he was taller than any of the people.
What’s interesting to see here in these verses is the four generations of men that are described before Saul is mentioned. It helps inform us of the man we are talking about, and it helps inform us of the men that have come before him. And for our focus this morning, it helps us remember Saul came from an honorable lineage. This is important because generations are a big deal in the Bible. Kish was not only a son of Abiel, who is part of the Tribe of Benjamin, but he was a valiant, mighty man from a long line of honorable men. And this is important for us because it lets us know Saul comes from a generation of people who were well off and well known as men of valor, stature, and favor with the people.
We also see here a physical description of Saul. Why does scripture focus on the description of Saul? Why would we literally need to hear he was young and handsome, and there was nobody more handsome among the Sons of Israel? And he was really tall – why does the Bible tell us this?
Some people would come to the conclusion that scripture is trying to give us a picture of where the heart of Israel is coming from. They have turned their face from the Lord. They are no longer in tune with God’s heart. And so, their own hearts are driving their perception, their ideas of what they think their king should look like. I think scripture is trying to show us that, for the moment, he was what looks good for the Nation of Israel.
Is God preparing this young man who is from a wealthy family, who is not only physically handsome and young but stands out in a crowd because it is exactly who the people need, or is it because it is who the people think they want as a king?
It’s probably pretty safe to say that if you saw Saul in the crowd, you would be naturally drawn to him. I believe that the Nation of Israel was looking at outward appearances, and we can see that in scripture based on what they are asking God for. They are looking at the other nations, and they want what they have.
You know what’s also interesting here? We as a people do this as well. We take a person’s physical stature, their appearance, the way they lead, the way they talk, the way they hold themselves, and we literally make assumptions and conclusions based on what we see.
Now, is this necessarily a bad thing? I don’t think so. But what we have to be reminded of this morning is that when God is selecting or has selected a person or persons to represent him, he looks at their heart. God doesn’t care about what you look like; he cares about where your heart is. He cares about a broken and humble heart that is so obedient to him that when he asks us to move, we move!
Wes Bentley from Far Reaching Ministries said this (I’ll never forget it), An act of obedience moves the hand of God. And when he said it in that way, it blew my mind. It’s so true. When we act in obedience to God, we can see his hand at work. And I have to ask myself, is this true of Saul?
We are going to move into another area of scripture (1 Samuel 9, verses 14-17), but before we do, it is important to give you some background.
Saul and his servant are looking for his dad’s missing cattle (donkeys). Saul decides to return to his father, but his servant suggests visiting Samuel for help first. Saul meets a few young women and asks them where Samuel is, and they direct him to Samuel.
I haven’t seen this in scripture, but some people conclude that Saul’s inability to find the cattle was a lack of his shepherd’s heart. He was raised in the Tribe of Benjamin. His dad was wealthy, and his family probably had lots of land, cattle, and sheep. And so, he probably grew up around sheep and knew what to do. So, some people draw the conclusion that he wasn’t a good shepherd. And, in fact, he wasn’t going to be a good shepherd to the Nation of Israel. I’m not going to push back on that, nor am I going to simply agree with it because as I was studying, I didn’t really see that in scripture. But I would encourage you to do your own research into that. It’s an interesting point, and maybe it does get to the point that Saul may have never ever really been the best king because God was the Great Shepherd, but I don’t know. I’ll let you guys work through that on your own.
The point is that Saul ended up going to Samuel. The reality is God led Saul to Samuel.
1 Samuel 9: 14-17 (NLT)
14 So they went up to the city. As they came into the city, behold, Samuel was coming out toward them to go up to the high place. (The place where they offered sacrifices to the Lord)
15 Now a day before Saul’s coming, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel, saying,
16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him as ruler over My people Israel; and he will save My people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have considered My people, because their outcry has come to Me.”
17 When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him, “Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! This one shall rule over My people.”
God’s Word is not complicated.
Before we move to 1 Samuel 10, verses 9-13, here is what has happened.
Samuel has anointed Saul with oil which is symbolic of kingship and rule, and tells Saul he is God’s anointed ruler. Samuel tells Saul where he can find his dad’s donkeys and then has him head to the Hill of God, where there is a Philistine Garrison. Remember, God has already declared that the future King of Israel would destroy God’s enemies. And so, we see this happening here. God is sending Saul to this Philistine Garrison in preparation to not only anoint Saul with oil, but where he will literally have the Spirit of God come upon him powerfully, and he will prophesy with the prophets there.
1 Samuel 10:9-13 (NLT)
9 As Saul turned and started to leave, God gave him a new heart, and all Samuel’s signs were fulfilled that day.
10 When Saul and his servant arrived at Gibeah, they saw a group of prophets coming toward them. Then the Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he, too, began to prophesy.
What is interesting for us to see here is that when Saul leaves and goes to do what Samuel has commanded him to do, God gives him a new heart, and all the things that Samuel had said would happen were fulfilled.
Not only that, but God’s Spirit comes upon Saul powerfully.
I have to stop and ask the question, why it is when we talk about Saul that we oftentimes press into the bad Saul and not remember what he was before he turned his face away from God? It’s huge. It answers the question I asked myself, is Saul that broken and humble heart that is obedient to God that God wants to use in leading his people? And I think the answer at this point is yes. It has to be yes because scripture is telling us that it is yes.
I learned a lesson here. I think it is easy for me to view another leader, or maybe someone in authority, in a negative light based on the things they have done that I can see. And I forget, sometimes, what happed leading up to what I see, and has God placed him in a position of authority over me. It doesn’t necessarily matter in that moment what they’ve done to me, but the reality is, God, have you placed this person over me because you have placed them in leadership over me? And if so, what am I to do with that? What am I to do when a person in leadership does something to offend me? What do I do when someone in a position of authority does something that negatively impacts my life?
We have to start with remembering they are there for a reason, and that reason might just be for you because, let’s be honest, the Saul that we think about when we think about Saul (the spear throwing, bad decision-making Saul), that’s all of us. At some point, all of us have thrown spears at someone else. We’ve all thrown spears at a leader. So that was my takeaway from this – please help me have a broken and humble heart in recognizing and understanding that no matter what happens to me from a person that you’ve placed in authority over me, help me to remain humble and broken, and have my eyes focused on you so that I don’t lose sight of you so that I can view this person in light of what you’re doing in their life and in my life. See how that works? It’s a really hard thing to do.
I think it was really hard for the Nation of Israel after Saul ended up being Saul when he took his eyes off the Lord.
Now when it says that God gave him a new heart, I believe that the Saul we come into contact with before 1 Samuel 10, verses 9-13 was changed in this moment.
Now, was this new heart God giving Saul a better understanding of how to be a king and how to rule a nation? It could have been. It could have been God giving Saul a desire to accomplish what God had said would happen in destroying the enemies of God. Whatever it was, it’s clear that God changed his heart. And that’s what I believe scripture is saying. And this is huge because I truly believe God comes alongside Saul in preparing him to be king.
Now, I just want to be clear here. Did Saul eventually fall away from the Lord? Yes. Did Saul make really dumb choices when he was king? Yes. Did Saul ultimately try to kill David and drive his son Jonathan away from him? Yes. Did God ultimately remove himself and his Spirit from Saul? Yes.
All of these are true, but it is important for us to understand that God chose Saul for specific reasons to be the first king of the Nation of Israel. This is huge. It’s important for us to remember. And there’s a reason why we need to remember this because, toward the end of this message, we’re going to read verses that make it very clear that God demands something from Saul.
Let’s look at our next section of scripture.
1 Samuel 10: 20-27 (NLT)
17 Later Samuel called all the people of Israel to meet before the Lord at Mizpah.
18 And he said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, has declared: I brought you from Egypt and rescued you from the Egyptians and from all of the nations that were oppressing you.
19 But though I have rescued you from your misery and distress, you have rejected your God today and have said, ‘No, we want a king instead!’ Now, therefore, present yourselves before the Lord by tribes and clans.”
20 So Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel before the Lord, and the tribe of Benjamin was chosen by lot.
21 Then he brought each family of the tribe of Benjamin before the Lord, and the family of the Matrites was chosen. And finally Saul son of Kish was chosen from among them. But when they looked for him, he had disappeared!
22 So they asked the Lord, “Where is he?” And the Lord replied, “He is hiding among the baggage.”
23 So they found him and brought him out, and he stood head and shoulders above anyone else.
24 Then Samuel said to all the people, “This is the man the Lord has chosen as your king. No one in all Israel is like him!” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!”
25 Then Samuel told the people what the rights and duties of a king were. He wrote them down on a scroll and placed it before the Lord. Then Samuel sent the people home again.
26 When Saul returned to his home at Gibeah, a group of men whose hearts God had touched went with him.
27 But there were some scoundrels who complained, “How can this man save us?” And they scorned him and refused to bring him gifts. But Saul ignored them.
We see in these verses Samuel bringing the Nation of Israel together in preparation to choose a king. But before Saul is chosen, Samuel again reminds the Nation of Israel that what they are asking for is not at all what God has prepared for his people.
In fact, it’s completely opposite and contrary to what God has already commanded. God has literally told the Nation of Israel, I am your God, I am your King. Serve me, love me, fear me, be obedient to me, and I will take care of you. But again, what has happened is the Nation of Israel has chosen to copy the surrounding nations, which are completely contrary to God.
Now, when Saul is chosen, it’s interesting that we find him hiding in the luggage. God doesn’t say, oh, choose somebody else who’s not hiding from me. But God literally tells Samuel where to find Saul.
And it’s interesting because we can be quick to poke fun at this young and handsome man who towered over everybody else, who seemingly was the right choice. And we can poke fun at him and say, well, he was so scared and ran away. Well, I think it is interesting that God still chooses him, and what I find that’s practical for us is that oftentimes, when God chooses a leader or chooses someone to serve over us, we can be quick to poke fun at and throw spears at them.
We can be quick to think we can do a better job than the person that God has positioned and placed over us. We say things like, if only I had their position, I would show them how to do it. Or, they’re not doing it right – I can do it better. Now, this is a very dangerous place to be because, essentially, God puts people in places of authority for specific reasons.
For me, I was put in a position where I served under a man who God used to shape me and mold me and refine me for a season. And at first, we didn’t really mesh. But then God reminded me that I was put in that position because it was completely okay to serve from the second chair and that it is perfectly fine to do everything in my power to make sure that the leader God has positioned over me thrives and grows, and is empowered by my actions.
So, we can be so quick to poke fun at Saul (or a Saul) sometimes. But in reality, let’s put ourselves in Saul’s shoes. He’s literally getting ready to be made the King of Israel. How would you feel? What would you do?
I think we get a really good example of two kinds of response to a person that God places in a position over us to serve us and to lead us. God allows our hearts to be aligned with theirs, and we not only accept their position and leadership over us but our hearts are knit with them. And we long to be with them, and we want to do everything we can to make sure that they succeed. I truly believe that these people have hearts that are broken and contrite before the Lord. They understand and fear the Lord because they understand that God is in control, and this is what God requires. Hearts of obedience. A heart that is broken before him, receptive to his leadership, and a heart that will not seek to undermine those he puts in authority but seek to empower, encourage, and edify that person.
Now, the other person is literally called a scoundrel. A worthless person. A person who literally pushes back on God’s divine institution of Saul as ruler in their life and their future king. These people give us an amazing example of how when we do not have a broken and contrite heart before the Lord, we do not and are maybe even unable to recognize God’s moving hand in the life of a person, regardless of what they may do later on. God is seeking broken and contrite, obedient hearts, and maybe God has put that person in that position of leadership over you to get rid of your own pride, to get rid of your own self-centeredness. It’s a hard thing to do.
It is clear that God was making Saul the future king of the Nation of Israel, and yet there were still some whose hearts were twisted and whose hearts were blackened, and whose hearts would not submit.
I think the lesson is clear here.
Finally, what’s interesting is to see how Saul responded to these people. He does nothing. He ignores them. Why? We understand and get a better picture of why Saul does this in the next couple of verses.
But here’s the background before we read these actual verses. Saul has rallied the army of the Nation of Israel together against Nahash the Ammonite, and Israel is getting ready to make an attack on the army of Nahash.
1 Samuel 11:11-14 (NLT)
11 But before dawn the next morning, Saul arrived, having divided his army into three detachments. He launched a surprise attack against the Ammonites and slaughtered them the whole morning. The remnant of their army was so badly scattered that no two of them were left together.
12 Then the people exclaimed to Samuel, “Now where are those men who said, ‘Why should Saul rule over us?’ Bring them here, and we will kill them!”
13 But Saul replied, “No one will be executed today, for today the Lord has rescued Israel!”
14 Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us all go to Gilgal to renew the kingdom.”
15 So they all went to Gilgal, and in a solemn ceremony before the Lord they made Saul king. Then they offered peace offerings to the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites were filled with joy.
God gives Saul such an overwhelming victory and affirms his leadership in doing exactly what Samuel was told Saul would do from God. God defeats the Ammonites and establishes Saul as the future king of the Nation of Israel.
And what is interesting is the people are looking are looking for those who said they would not submit to Saul’s rule. Those scoundrels and worthless people. But Saul extends mercy. And Saul gives credit to the Lord because God was the one who rescued Israel. It seems clear here that Saul understood mercy. Saul understood his rightful place and recognized God was the one who deserved glory.
Now, when we look at this, I think we can understand that at some point, Saul understood God was with him and established him as king.
Let’s look at our final section of verses.
1 Samuel 12:20-25 (NLT)
20 “Don’t be afraid,” Samuel reassured them. “You have certainly done wrong, but make sure now that you worship the Lord with all your heart, and don’t turn your back on him.
21 Don’t go back to worshiping worthless idols that cannot help or rescue you—they are totally useless!
22 The Lord will not abandon his people, because that would dishonor his great name. For it has pleased the Lord to make you his very own people.
23 “As for me, I will certainly not sin against the Lord by ending my prayers for you. And I will continue to teach you what is good and right.
24 But be sure to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you.
25 But if you continue to sin, you and your king will be swept away.”
We see, here again, another final warning for the people and Nation of Israel, and what they had asked for in making Saul their physical king was actually a move away from God.
In fact, it was completely contrary to what God commanded for his people. And yet, we see here God not abandoning his people.
I love how God tells the Nation of Israel to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him, to remember everything he’s done, and do not sin. You will be fine, God says, but if you turn away from me, if you do not have a broken heart, if you do not have an obedient heart, if you don’t have a submissive heart, if you do not follow my commands and turn back to your sin of adultery, then you as a nation and the king will be destroyed.
And that’s the lesson for us this morning, that although we all can’t be a king, God has literally placed people in our lives who are leading us, who are serving us, whom God has specifically put in positions of authority so that we could come alongside them and serve them and love them. Because we know that God’s desire for us is to love him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. To love our neighbors as we love ourselves and to have hearts that are broken and contrite before our God.
So, a practical challenge for us this morning as we leave is this… Where is our heart? Is it broken and contrite before the Lord? If so, praise the Lord. If not, let us seek him, ask him to search us, examine us, and see where we need to realign back to the Father.