The Fellowship Residency Program has introduced me to the idea of reading commentaries alongside scripture. By next August, I will have read through the entire Bible as well as The King in His Beauty, our selected commentary. As I am reading, I am writing a little bit about each of the books of the Bible so you and I can have a more thorough understanding of the scriptures. I invite you to follow along with me as we learn the Bible in its entirety from Genesis to Revelation. This summary does NOT encompass the entire book, but it is a good place to start. I encourage you to read for yourself and begin your own Biblical journal along the way. To read any of my other Residency related posts, click here.
Introduction – The placement of Samuel is significant as the sovereign rule of God will be made clear through the anointed king of Israel, the mediator from the blood line of David. Ultimately it will be Jesus, but for now God will follow through on His promise of an earthly king. The book of Samuel opens up with Hannah’s barrenness representing the emptiness of Israel and anticipating that the fulfillment of God’s promise to His people will come through a child. In Hannah’s song, the Lord will protect and serve justice for the righteous and destroy the wicked. In Samuel, we see that Saul begins as a humble king, becomes perverse with evil, and is cast down by God. David on the other hand is exalted for the man that he is in spite of the fact that he too is full of sin. David cries to God for deliverance, and his song closely matches that of Hannah’s song. David made God his refuge, and therefore God’s favor rested on him and allowed David to be known as a great king. Even so, it is clear that a better king than David is necessary to lead the people of Israel. Israel must still look forward to await the perfect king.
Samuel– We are introduced to Samuel who represents the godly and the poor who have faith in God. On the other hand, Hophni and Phinehas, Eli the judge’s sons, represent the wicked who will be destroyed. Samuel was a lifelong judge, but was not given the power until after Eli warns his sons of the punishment for lacking faith in Yahweh. His sons continue to disobey and are killed by the Philistines. When Eli hears the news, he too is killed, and the family lineage is immediately destroyed. Before the Lord can rise up Israel, he must first destroy those who are wicked. The ark of Yahweh is taken by the Philistines, and their gods are humiliated by the power of the Lord. Finally, they recognize the power of Israel’s God and return the ark. They had faced the wrath of the Lord as a result of their evil and idolatry. As Samuel is made judge, he leads the people again through a renewal of the covenant. Samuel attempts to keep the judge lineage going, but his sons were not worthy of the call just as Eli’s sons were not worthy. Israel continued to demand a king despite God and Samuel’s disapproval. Their demand rejects the kingship of Yahweh over the nation and highlights their lack of faith in Him. Ultimately, Saul is anointed as king and initially appears to be a promising choice. He is picked for the fact that he “looks” like a good king, but we are later reminded that though men see the outer appearance, the Lord sees the heart. Nevertheless, the Lord strengthened up Saul for the job. Israel thinks they need a king, but, just as like before, they simply must obey God’s commands and serve their Lord God. Almost immediately, they go back on their word and disobey. Samuel then reminds them that God will not leave or forsake them despite their choices and someday an obedient king will arise. Until then, disobedient kings and rebellious Israelites will be judged appropriately and not saved.
Saul – Saul immediately goes against Samuel’s instructions and rather than repenting as David will later do, Saul makes excuses and reveals his wickedness. He is quickly exposed as a fool, particularly when compared against his son Jonathan. Saul continues to lead poorly, and God reveals to Samuel that he regretted appointing Saul as king. Samuel confronts Saul, and though Saul spends a great deal of time making excuses he eventually opens up. He reveals that he was more fearful of upsetting people than upsetting the Lord. His honesty was too late, God had already granted the kingdom to another king who would better care for the nation. Though David is thought of as a man after God’s own heart, Saul is continued to be viewed as rebellious against the Lord even under David’s rule. Samuel set out to find a new king and surprises everyone by choosing Jesse’s youngest son, because he had the right heart. At that time, David is anointed, and the Spirit departs from Saul. David emerges a hero after his defeat of Goliath by his faith in God. This initiates a constant battle by Saul to kill and dethrone David. But David time and time again was protected as he had God’s favor resting over him and was humbly exalted. Even Johnathan, the rightful heir to the throne, makes a covenant with David and protects him from the wrath of his own father. Though David was protected by Yahweh, he continued to act accordingly by taking the necessary precautions. Ultimately, David must become a fugitive on the run to avoid his own death.
Though Saul persisted over and over again to kill David, he would not over power the Lord. David is given a chance to kill Saul, but he refuses to kill the anointed king of Israel. For a small moment, Saul concedes that David is righteous, and he himself is full of evil. David is tempted to seek vengeance, but is reminded of the promise of God and displayed his goodness by being open to correction. Again, David is given the opportunity to kill Saul, but does not decide to stoop to unrighteousness to advance himself as king. Saul, as well as his son Jonathan, are ultimately slain in battle with the Philistines. Chapters 29 & 30 describe how the Lord had ordained it such that David could not come to Saul’s rescue and justice would be served. Throughout David’s rule, he is remarkably obedient but not yet perfect.
David – Upon Saul’s death, David did not rejoice as one might expect but mourned the loss. He desired unity above all, and even though there were great fights over who shall become king, David did not choose to murder or pursue evil to achieve the throne. Eventually, the Lord exalted him, and the entire nation chose him as their king. David began to prosper, because he was submissive to the authority of God. Based on his choice of dress, sacrifices offered, and blessings he performed, many believed he was functioning as a priest-king. David’s wife was Saul’s daughter and was humbled by God by never bearing children. Additionally, God promises that David’s son will someday rule as King and build a temple with a never-ending kingdom. He makes a new covenant with David that though individual kings will be disciplined, the nation’s covenant promises will not be affected. Up to this point, David had rested in God’s favor until he does not go out to war. He has sex with another man’s wife, gets her pregnant, and formulates a plan to kill her husband so he may marry her himself. The Lord is displeased with David’s actions, rebukes him, and David responds in humble repentance. His home would then be filled with sin. His son, Absalom, came after him for the throne similar to Saul’s attacks. David fled and was on the run for a great deal of time. Ultimately, David prays that Absalom’s counsel would be foolish, and God heard his servant. Absalom was slain by Joab and his men, the kingdom was again in the hands of David, and unity was restored. Though 2 Samuel ends with David back in his rightful spot as king, he falls into sin again. He quickly realizes his mistake in trusting in his own army’s numbers over the Lord and requests for the punishment of the nation to fall on him and him alone. As a broken man, David cannot atone for the sins, and therefore the need for Jesus is once again highlighted. Samuel 1 & 2 transitions from a place of worship in a tabernacle to a temple, from Shiloh to Jerusalem, and from judges to kings.
Conclusion – Saul represents Adam and the nation of Israel with his fall into sin and wickedness. In response, God exalts and anoints a king, David, after his own heart. Through him, the third promise of blessing the whole world would be fulfilled but not yet recognized. Just as David was persecuted and righteous in the midst of mistreatment, so will Jesus. However, Jesus is capable of forgiveness of the nation’s sins, because he will be the perfect one and a blessing to the whole world as a descendant of David.
Themes: God judges the wicked who hate Him and saves the righteous who put their faith in Him. No one can take the role of leadership and do it successfully. Humans would always fall. Israel needed a perfect and righteous king to take over.