1 Samuel 7-10

Under the head priest Eli and his wicked sons, Israel has trouble against the Philistines. In last week's reading the Philistines even captured the Ark! Fortunately, the Lord plagues the Philistines and the Ark is returned. However, the Israelites still are wont to behave badly. They will live righteously for a short time under Samuel, but afterwards will reject God and demand a king for themselves. The first king of Israel, Saul, seems to serve as a rejection of Israel's choice. He is inept, incompetent. Later we will see that David is not perfect either. However, Israel in a very real sense seems to be punished by the Lord under Saul.

Samuel as Judge
Though the description of his life as judge is brief, Samuel is nevertheless a highly effective leader, and clearly one with divine support. Samuel is able to focus the Israelites' worship on God alone, which actually lasts through the tenure of his judgment. Samuel is also an excellent (nonviolent) commander in war. When the Philistines, who have caused Israel so much trouble, attempt an invasion, Samuel holds them off by offering burnt offering, at which time the Lord throws the Philistines into confusion and the Israelites pursue them. Under Samuel, Israel regains all the territory it lost - and Samuel judges on a circuit, travelling from town to town to administer justice.

Unfortunately, Samuel's sons are as bad as Eli's sons, which is perhaps the biblical author's attempt to tell us something about rebellious children as a way to preemptively reject a dynastic monarchy. in any case, it fits into the apostasy cycle, which seems to last roughly two generations. In the cycle one generation is faithful to the Lord, the next unfaithful, the one after that faithful, and so forth. The biblical author seems to be reacting to his source materials: If the sons of the high priest and judge of Israel cannot live up to their father's name, what will happen when the king - supreme overlord of Israel - has a son?

The elders of Israel use Samuel's rebellious sons as the prime example for why they need a king (and this is exactly what the biblical author is railing against - the Ignorance of Israel). Samuel (the mouthpiece of good sense) is not pleased. A king, he knows, will ultimately be very bad for Israel. But the people respond as a whole:

"No! but we are determined to have a king over us, so that we also may be like the other nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles."
(1 Sam. 8.19-20)

In effect this is a rejection of holiness - the separateness that differentiates the Israelites from the surrounding peoples. The Israelites are holy because they have no human king - because God is their "king." It is God as YHWH Sabaoththat leads them and fights for them in war and governs them through intermediaries on earth.

Even with Samuel's warning in 1 Samuel 8.11-18, the Israelites still desire a king. God knew this, of course, but Samuel is livid.

The man chosen to lead Israel as ing is a tall young wealthy Benjaminite named Saul. He is a man of Gibeah (AKA Benjamin), which seems to be a rather odd choice for a king. Gibeah was singled out in Judges 19-20 as a heinous town whose sins are not unlike those of Sodom. God's choice in the first king of Israel, however, is very suitable. Saul, who is tall, rich, and handsome, and from a militaristic tribe, only displays signs of outward greatness. (Plus he is a member of the tribe of Benjamin, the youngest son of Israel. [The youngest is generally the favorite in the biblical narrative]). What we don't see at first is that he is just as depraved and incompetent as anyone else. Saul will stand in stark contrast to the shorter lyre-playing Judahite David, who will become the second King of Israel.

God engineers a very complex method for establishing Saul's kingship, which will also stand in stark contrast to the ease of David's appointment. David will have to fight for the throne, but God's favor will be bestowed on his quickly and simply.

In the narrative of Saul's rise to power, what would normally be the extraordinary event of the choosing of a king is cloaked in a folkloric tale about lost donkeys and a seer (Samuel). Saul is drawn away from the donkeys and finds the seer, who proclaims him king and anoints him, before giving him specific instructions involving meeting different groups of people, gathering items, and going into a prophetic frenzy. Saul is also to wait seven days for Samuel once he gets to Gilgal. Samuel then comes to choose by lot a king from the tribe of Benjamin. In the earliest display of Saul's incompetence, he is nowhere to be found at the ceremony of his choosing - until we discover - oh, wait - he's actually over there in the baggage. It's a rather embarassing start to his tenure as king.