Samuel 10:1-27 - Long Live the King!

1 Samuel 10:1-27

1 Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head, and kissed him and said: “Is it not because the LORD has anointed you commander over His inheritance? 2 When you have departed from me today, you will find two men by Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys which you went to look for have been found. And now your father has ceased caring about the donkeys and is worrying about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?“‘ 3 Then you shall go on forward from there and come to the terebinth tree of Tabor. There three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you, 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 receive from their hands. 5 After that you shall come to the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is. And it will happen, when you have come there to the city, that you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with a stringed instrument, a tambourine, a flute, and a harp before them; and they will be prophesying. 6 Then the Spirit of the LORD will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. 7 And let it be, when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands; for God is with you. 8 You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, till I come to you and show you what you should do.”

9 So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day. 10 When they came there to the hill, there was a group of prophets to meet him; then the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them. 11 And it happened, when all who knew him formerly saw that he indeed prophesied among the prophets, that the people said to one another, “What is this that has come upon the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?” 12 Then a man from there answered and said, “But who is their father?” Therefore it became a proverb: “Is Saul also among the prophets?” 13 And when he had finished prophesying, he went to the high place.

14 Then Saul’s uncle said to him and his servant, “Where did you go?”

So he said, “To look for the donkeys. When we saw that they were nowhere to be found, we went to Samuel.”

15 And Saul’s uncle said, “Tell me, please, what Samuel said to you.”

16 So Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingdom, he did not tell him what Samuel had said.

Saul Proclaimed King

17 Then Samuel called the people together to the LORD at Mizpah, 18 and said to the children of Israel, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all kingdoms and from those who oppressed you.’ 19 But you have today rejected your God, who Himself saved you from all your adversities and your tribulations; and you have said to Him, ‘No, set a king over us!’ Now therefore, present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by your clans.”

20 And when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. 21 When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was chosen. And Saul the son of Kish was chosen. But when they sought him, he could not be found. 22 Therefore they inquired of the LORD further, “Has the man come here yet?”

And the LORD answered, “There he is, hidden among the equipment.”

23 So they ran and brought him from there; and when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. 24 And Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen, that there is no one like him among all the people?”

So all the people shouted and said, “Long live the king!”

25 Then Samuel explained to the people the behavior of royalty, and wrote it in a book and laid it up before the LORD. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. 26 And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and valiant men went with him, whose hearts God had touched. 27 But some rebels said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.

Samuel anointed Saul for the God given role of a king and commander of the armies of the LORD.  He then sent him on his way home with instructions to follow God’s plan to recover his father’s lost donkeys and then meet a group of prophets to join with them as the Spirit of the LORD would come upon him to speak His word with them there.  It even became a saying later, “Is Saul also among the prophets?”  He was then to go to Gilgal and wait seven days for Samuel to come and offer sacrifices there with him.  Saul’s uncle asked what Samuel said to him and Saul on;y told him about how to find the lost donkeys, not about the prophetic anointing of him as the man who would be king.  Samuel then called everyone together for the great reveal of their king whom God did not wish to give but whom they urged Him to put over them to be like the nations not under God.  He reminded them all of their deliverance by Him and not their leaders like Moses and Joshua from Egyptian bondage and the enemies of the promised land where He had brought them and fought their battles to victory by His mighty hand.  He told them plainly that this was rejection of the LORD who alone had saved them from all their adversities and tribulations along the way and still demanded a mortal king over the King of kings to rule and lead them from that point onward.  He then went through the clans to narrow the field until Saul was finally chosen by God’s lot.  But he was not to be seen, hiding meekly or fearfully in the equipment out of sight until revealed by the LORD where he was and brought out to be presented as their king.  He was the tallest one there and most handsome outwardly, which is what the people saw and Samuel announced to them as a reminder of their misplaced qualities they wanted in a king over them to look good and powerful to the nations they would do battle with.  They neglected and rejected the LORD as their sovereign protector and deliverer.  We must not repeat their error by pitting any pastor or teacher above the rule and wisdom of God and His loving and written word lest we suffer defeat for placing Christ beneath our chosen leaders we would follow (Hebrews 13:7, 17, 1 Peter 5:2-3), even when they are not following Him.  The people of Israel saw the outward appearance they sought and trusted in and loudly shouted, “Long live the king!”  Then Samuel wrote down how royalty should behave and sent the people home.  Many were rejoicing as valiant warriors followed Saul, but some despised him and asked, “How can this man save us?”  Their apparent rebellion was noted but not stopped.  This may not have been a criticism of their rejection of Saul, but God’s wisdom and providence to protect the ones who understood the issue of putting a king in the true King’s throne over them.  May we who are valiant warriors of the gospel not put anyone in the Lord’s place either, no matter the popular sentiment to overly support certain leaders and teachers among us.  Instead let us continually shout, “Long live the King of kings and Lord of lords (1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 17:14, 19:16)!”