seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 Samuel 13:1 Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-two years.
2 Saul chose three thousand men from Israel; two thousand were with him at Mikmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent back to their homes.
3 Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the trumpet blown throughout the land and said, “Let the Hebrews hear!” 4 So all Israel heard the news: “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel has become obnoxious to the Philistines.” And the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.
5 The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Mikmash, east of Beth Aven. 6 When the Israelites saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and cisterns. 7 Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.
Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. 8 He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. 9 So he said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” And Saul offered up the burnt offering. 10 Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him.
11 “What have you done?” asked Samuel.
Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash, 12 I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”
13 “You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. 14 But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.”
15 Then Samuel left Gilgal and went up to Gibeah in Benjamin, and Saul counted the men who were with him. They numbered about six hundred.
Here's the link to thecommentary I use.Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel: This was the first “regular” army for Israel. Previously Israel only had a militia that assembled in times of national threat. Now for the first time Israel had a professional army.
A thousand were with Jonathan: This is the first mention of Saul’s son Jonathan. He will be a prominent and wonderful part of 1 Samuel.
Jonathan attacked the garrison of the Philistines: Jonathan was a remarkable military leader. He repeatedly demonstrated the ability to lead a successful attack. Yet this attack merely wakened the Philistines. Israel had enjoyed the “peace” of subjected people: everything will be fine as long as you take your place of subjugation. Through this attack Jonathan proclaimed, “We won’t meekly surrender to the Philistines any longer.”
Thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude: The Philistines, angered by the Israelites, gathered a huge army to crush Israel.
He waited seven days: Saul was in Gilgal for many months. In the press of the current crisis, every day now seemed much more important. He knew the Philistines were assembling a huge army against him, and that once they were organized they would be much harder to beat. Saul probably felt that a quick response gave them the best chance to win the battle.
According to the time set by Samuel: Samuel told Saul to wait for him at Gilgal. Then Samuel would preside over sacrifices and Israel would be spiritually ready for battle.
And he offered the burnt offering: This was plainly sinful. First, Saul plainly disobeyed Samuel. Second, Saul was a king, not a priest, and only priests were to offer sacrifices. Saul had no business doing what only a priest should do.
As soon as he finished offering the burnt offering: Saul decided to perform the sacrifice not more than an hour before Samuel arrived. If he trusted God and waited one more hour, how different things could have been! The last moments of waiting are usually the most difficult and they powerfully tempt us to take matters into our own hands.
You have done foolishly: This is a stronger phrase than we might think. Samuel did not mean Saul was unintelligent or silly. The Bible speaks of the fool as someone morally and spiritually lacking.
Yep... I skipped a few verses again. Saul was anointed king in front of the Israelites. Samuel made a big speech. Samuel warned the people that having a king was not God's idea. If they wanted this experiment in government to work, they would have to respect God's wishes. Saul would have to show he could be patient and do as he was told.
Saul had been given the gift of prophecy. That was when he first met Samuel. Now all Pretty-Boy Saul had to do was wait until God spoke to him and do as he was told.
BUT... SAUL'S SON JONATHAN ATTACKED A PHILISTINE OUTPOST.
Saul was king and his son must have had a lot of faith in his dad. After all, his dad was going to hand the kingdom over to him someday. That's how it works with kings... They pass their kingdom on to their sons.
The Philistines had the latest weapons.
If this were today, the reports would say the Philistines had nukes ready for the Philistines to "push the button".
Saul's army didn't sign up for facing armed chariots with a sling shot.
Saul's army wasn't used to just sitting around while the enemy sharpened their weapons.
Saul wasn't a very patient man.
He was supposed to wait for Samuel, THE PRIEST, to offer a burnt offering and a prayer.
Instead, he figured he could do as well as any priest. After all he'd been watching the priests offer sacrifices his whole life.
Saul was king after all!
Saul knew how to barbeque an ox.
The king should have waited on the priest.
Now Saul only has 600 soldiers still ready to go.
Pretty-Boy Saul had to barbecue an ox. The men were leaving.
Anyone can barbecue an ox... right?
