1 Samuel 11

Wow, now this chapter is pretty amazing! Some of the Israelites weren't sure that Saul was the right man to lead them - questioning God yet again - but when one of their towns is attacked and Saul finds out about it the Spirit comes on him again and he summons the Israelites to war. He is very persuasive, in that he threatens death to anyone (presumably any man fit for battle, at least) who doesn't come with him, and in turn 300,000 men report for duty. Saying they defeated the invaders would be an understatement: no two enemy survivors made it out together.

Some interesting things to take away from this chapter:

- Saul was working his fields when the news of the invasion came to him. Working... in his fields... despite being king. I guess the Israelites really didn't have the concept of what a king was like yet, or maybe things were just different back then.

- After the battle, many called for the execution of those who had spoken out against Saul's kingship. Saul prevented it, though... again showing that he at least started his reign with honor.

1 Samuel 10

As I suspected in my last entry, this chapter contains a bit more activity. Samuel privately anoints Saul and tells him that he is to be king. He then foretells of a few signs that this is true, which happen in their turn. Once that is all complete Samuel calls the Israelites together and reveals the king that God has selected for them (since they rejected His divine leadership).

It is interesting, as I mentioned last time, that we see a very different side of Saul here. I suppose I should look at it the other way - this is Saul as he was when young, when God picked him and His Spirit filled the young king and led him to prohecy.

I am also a bit ammused at the image of Saul hiding among the luggage when it is time to reveal him publicly as king. It seems that stagefright is not a recent contrivance!

1 Samuel 9

There isn't a ton to say about this chapter - nothing terribly deep is said - but it sets up the next chapter for what I expect will be the anointing of Saul as king.

What I find most interesting, though, is the way he is described here: a youth, very tall, and so far seemingly obedient and thoughtful (he didn't want to go inquire advice of prophet Samuel without a gift to bring). Throughout my childhood, in sunday school especially, it always seemed as if Saul was a villain - and no doubt he will be in later parts of the Bible, but here before he is king he's just a young man doing his father's work. This is an apt reminder that anyone, no matter how innocent he may seem, can become corrupted by power and sin.

1 Samuel 8

And I was right (see previous post if you don't know what I'm referring to). Just like Eli before him, Samuel grows old and his sons don't follow in his footsteps.

A side note here, if I may - you'll note that priests in this time had children. That means that even though in Samuel's case he was dedicated to the Lord from childhood, he still married and had a family. I really think the modern Catholic church needs to rethink their policy of celibate priests: there is no basis for it in Scripture, aside from an opinion statement from the apostle Paul, and I really think it has done them more harm than good.

Back to this chapter, though, we see that Israel as a nation is aware of the wickedness of Samuel's sons. They demand to be given a king instead, and in so doing reject God's rule over them and His appointed judge. Even when God (through Samuel) warns them of what burden a king will bring they insist on it.

I've spent a lot of time pondering various forms of government, and given the belief in God a theocracy really would be the best option. I look forward to that someday, but the Israelites actually had it at one point! Granted, there were still humans in positions of authority - but rather than having to revolt against them if they turned evil God would simply remove them as He did Eli's sons earlier in this book. Don't get me wrong, I think our democratic setup here in the US is better than most anything else available today... but I look forward with anticipation to a day when the Lord will once again rule over His kingdom here on Earth.

1 Samuel 7

This is a short and straight-forward chapter. Over the decades following the Ark's return, Israel turns back to worshiping the true God, Samuel serves as their judge, and God delivers the Israelites from the Philistines and gives them peace for a goodly span of time. I have the feeling that the good times won't last, though...

1 Samuel 6

As a reaction to the destruction visited upon the Philistines in the previous chapter, they decide to return the Ark of the Covenant to Israel. Along with it they send golden rats and tumors, as a guilt offering to represent the things that had been terrorizing their people. Rats and tumors, rats and tumors... why does that sound familiar? Could it have been an instance of the Bubonic Plague?

They also devise an interesting way of testing to see if these troubles had indeed been sent by the Israelite God - and of course they are proven right (verses 7-12). When the Ark arrives at a nearby Israelite town, the inhabitants celebrate and offer sacrifices to God. Unfortunately it seems that some of them get a bit too close and personal with the Ark. Note to self: if the Ark is ever found again here on Earth, by all means *do not look inside*!

1 Samuel 5

This is a relatively short chapter, focusing narrowly on the effects that the Ark of the Covenant had upon the Philistines who took it. They initially put it in the temple of one of their gods, only to find the statue of the god toppled over the following day - and broken the next. In addition there was devastation, panic, and outbreaks of tumors in the various cities they attempted to keep the Ark in; quite obviously God's judgement upon them. Eventually they decide to send it back to the Israelites, which I assume will be covered in tomorrow's reading.

We aren't given a death toll here, but I am curious as to how the Philistines' losses compare to those of the Israelites at the battle in chapter 4. I also really like the image of the Philistine idol fallen on the ground and bowing before the Ark.

1 Samuel 4

This chapter doesn't deal with Samuel himself, though he is mentioned briefly in the first verse. Reading over chapter 3 again it actually seems like the first part of that verse belongs more in the context of the end of chapter 3... but that is a good reminder that these chapter and verse distinctions didn't exist in the original documents.

The bulk of this chapter deals with the Israelites going to war, and bringing the Ark of the Covenant with them thinking it would grant them victory. I find it javascript:void(0)interesting that they did that, but we aren't told that they asked God for success in battle. That *almost* makes this border on idolatry in my mind: they thought the presence of God's dwelling among them (the Ark) would ensure victory, when it is God Himself would could do that - whether or not the Ark itself was present.

When they are defeated, despite its presence, the Ark is taken by their enemy - the Philistines. Word of that reaches Eli, who collapses and dies. It is interesting that we are told he had been concerned for the Ark's safety, but no mention is made of his being worried about his sons who were there with it.

From a military perspective, the battle described in this chapter is a pretty serious blow to Israel. The loss of 30,000+ troops in a single engagement is tremendous; to put that in perspective, it is three times the number of casualties the Allies had in the combined D-Day landings - and more losses than either side sustained in the battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. I'm not sure what size the combined Israelite army was at the time, but from the description in the text it was a massive defeat.

Why would God have permitted such devastation to be visited upon His people? I can't answer that in full, but I can say that the coming chapters will see God turning a heavy hand upon the Philistines for taking the Ark, and I'm sure that the judgement prophesied against Eli's sons - who died in the battle - played a part.