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1 Samuel 25:1 When Saul became king, he was a young man. By the time David was anointed, Saul’s son Jonathan was a capable warrior. So, Saul might have been king for fifteen or more years before the incident of disobedience with the Amalekites. In the incident with the Amalekites, Samuel told Saul the Lord was taking the kingdom away from him and giving it to another. And it probably was at least another four years until David was anointed. Soon after he was anointed, David was involved in a battle with a giant. Since David was still considered a boy when he killed Goliath and was a warrior by the time Saul tried to kill him, some scholars suggest that David served in Saul’s favor for more than nine years after he was anointed.  The timing and dates are somewhat tricky. However, the commentaries I consulted suggested that Samuel was 57 when Saul became king and 89 when he died. During the 32 years from the time he anointed Saul until he died, Samuel stayed busy, but he had no co

1 Samuel 16 According to 1 Samuel 15:35, Samuel mourned for Saul, and God regretted that He had made Saul king. It is hard to understand how God, who does not repent or change His mind (Numbers 23:19, 1 Samuel 15:29), can regret something. In other places, Scripture speaks of God ’ s regret. For example, Genesis 6:6 says: Genesis 6:6 (NKJV) And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The rebellion, sin, and wickedness that the human race chose grieved the heart of God. God grieves over His fallen creatures. When God gave the law through Moses, He expressed His desire that His people would choose to follow Him. First, in the preliminaries of giving the law, He says: Deuteronomy 5:29 (NKJV) Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever! Next, at the end of giving the law, God says: Deuteronomy 32:29 (NKJV) Oh

1 Samuel 13:5-14, 15:1-23 We cannot look at the life of Samuel without considering the life of Saul. The coronation of Saul marked a transition in the life of Samuel. Samuel was judge over Israel until Saul became king. With Saul’s ascension to the throne, Samuel’s role changed, but he continued to serve as prophet to the king, speaking God ’ s word so that the king would know the will of the Lord. In this way, Samuel ’ s life and work became closely connected to Saul ’ s.  The ideal man for the job soon revealed that he was unfit for the task. Today, we will look at two incidents in Saul ’ s life that marked the trajectory of his reign as king. The first one is an unlawful sacrifice that he made, and the second one is an occasion of incomplete obedience. Saul made the unlawful sacrifice early in his reign. When he had been king two years, he gathered three thousand men and attacked the Philistines. As a result, both the nation of Israel and the Philistines gathered for battle.

1 Samuel 12 1 Samuel 12:24 (NKJV) Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. When Samuel was old, he made his sons judges over Israel. The elders of the nation then gathered together and came to Samuel and said, 1 Samuel 8:5 (NKJV) Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.   We know that this was not the real reason. God said, 1 Samuel 8:7 (NKJV) Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. They did not want God to rule over them. We see more of the reason behind their demand for a king when Samuel said to them, 1 Samuel 12:12 (NKJV) And when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, ‘ No, but a king shall reign over us. ’ Here we have four reasons they desired a king. Samuel was old. Samuel ’ s sons