Stories of the Saints Digging Deeper

Saul (and Samuel)

Introduction
As we move out of the time of Judges, we move into the time of kings. The nation of Israel is seeking a king, just like all the other nations have. Over the next weeks we will be looking at the stories of the kings of Israel, but we need to start at the beginning with how the whole concept of kings and kingdoms comes into being for Gods people. what God told them to speak. True, in the Old Testament, much of that did involve the future. But strictly speaking, prophecy is simply proclaiming Gods Word.2 Many of the Biblical prophets are familiar: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Samuel, etc. And we will look more closely into prophets and the concept of prophecy, both biblical and contemporary, in coming weeks.

Why an Earthly King?

The simple answer is, because thats what the people wanted. On the surface, it seems like a reasonable thing. But as we unpack this story, we will see much more going on here than we first might imagine. The movement towards a king begins in 1 Samuel 8, where we see that Samuels sons are not walking in Godly ways. (The logical thought here is that if Samuels sons had been Godly, they would have been appointed as leaders as well.) So the people come to Samuel and ask for a king. And 8:5 is telling: the people ask for the king because Samuel is old, his sons are not good candidates to follow, and everyone else has one (OK, thats not a direct translation, but thats the point Israel wanted to be like the surrounding nations which had kings leading them.)

Prophets and Kings

The story actually begins with Samuel, who was not the king but a prophet of God. Though he is not numbered among the judges of Israel, he serves in the same way as they did: as leader (1 Sam. 7:6). The first chapters of the book of 1 Samuel detail his growing up in the house of God alongside the priest Eli, and pave the way for chapters 8 and following, where the first king is named. Samuel is the one whom God uses to proclaim the first two earthly kings of Israel; Saul and David. The prophet in this account is an interesting role: though Samuel is at one point the leader of Israel, he is not to be king. God chooses someone else for that role, though the prophets role is a truly important one. Without it, there would be no king.1 In general, the prophet hears the Word of God and speaks it to the people. He also speaks particularly to the king. And in this account, Samuel the prophet is the one who anoints the future king, Saul.

Why is This a Bad Thing?

Again, on the surface, perhaps a leader/king is not unreasonable. But for the chosen people of God, it is significant, and not in a good way. We see why in 1 Samuel 8:7-8: God is the true King, and for His people to want an earthly king means they have rejected God as their King. And it is here that we get to the root of the problem. Just like Samsons root problem was not loving the wrong woman but breaking his covenant relationship with God, now the real issue is not wanting a leader, but rejecting the covenant relationship with God, that He is their King and they are His subjects.

A Brief Word about Prophecy and Prophets

There can be much understanding about prophets, especially as we think about applying this to today. The popular understanding is that to prophesy is to tell the future. Biblically speaking, however, to prophesy is to speak the Word of God to people. Prophets in the Bible simply spoke
1

This is a good illustration of how the Bible always describes Gods people: different gifts, different roles, but all for the same purposes giving God glory and building one another up. Different roles arent ranked, as we might think of ranking them, but are simply different. For some New Testament examples, see Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12-14.

Deuteronomy 18:15-20

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Stories of the Saints Digging Deeper

The interesting thing is that God allows this to happen. And though we might think this is a merciful act on Gods part, it really is more of an act of judgment. Through Samuel, God tells the people what the consequences of their action will be (8:10-22). And remember, the action is rejecting God. So, in essence, Gods act of judgment is to allow the people, in their sin and folly, to have exactly what they want. (We must stop in the story to apply this very important point: we tend to think of judgment as active punishment, bringing on unwanted consequences. But more often than not, Gods judgment is the opposite: removing His actions of mercy and grace and letting sinful actions play out to their logical conclusions. Ultimately, this is really the definition of hell: that place and/or state of being, where God does not exert His Divine influence, and sin reigns.) we do have obligations to earthly rulers as well.3 The people os Israel began to experience this tension as soon as an earthly king started to rule over them, and we still feel it today. As well, the concept of the kingdom of God looks different than it did in those times. Then it was a geo-political nation of Israel. Since the work of Jesus on the cross, there is no more geo-political nation of God. The kingdom of God on earth is simply the church. All Christians are part of the Kingdom, with God as King as we as His subjects.4 And the work of the people in any kingdom is to honour the king and serve him faithfully. The same is true of the Kingdom of God.

Of Kings and Kingdoms

So the people get what they want: an earthly king. But the point is still to be made: the fact that God grants them an earthly king does not remove His position as true King. We see this in the language that God and Samuel use to describe the king Saul they use the word prince (90:16, 10:1, ESV). There is the sense that, though this person (interestingly, still chosen by God and set apart by the prophet, Gods mouthpiece) will be chief person on earth, God is still true King. And even today, though many of us dont have a good concept of earthly kings, the same concept is true: there are earthly leaders, and there is God, who is King over all. And kingship implies two things: one who is a king, whose rule is absolute, and those who are his subjects, those who listen and obey the word of the king. For us as Christians today, even if we dont live in a geo-political monarchy (granted, we in Canada live in a constitutional monarchy, though not a functional one), we experience this tension. When kingdoms collide when the rule of the world clashes with the rule of God to whom are we to pay allegiance? Ultimately, it is to God, though

For examples of this, see Romans 13:1-10, and especially Matthew 22:15-22. This gets into the subject of two kingdoms theology, which we cannot approach here. 4 Another important point: often we will hear language in the church similar to this: you need to make Jesus your Lord and Saviour. That really misses the point. We cannot make Jesus anything. He is Lord ruler, king and He is Saviour. The only question is, does a person acknowledge that to be true? Through the gift of faith, those that do acknowledge this fact are called Christians.

2009-2010 Concordia Lutheran Church. Used by permission. For more information, visit www.concordialive.ca