The Times of the Kings (Part 1)

Well, let me check the clock. I'm going to give us one hour, so check your time. We'll see if we can stick with that. But today's sermon is a continuation. It's more of a Bible study, a continuation of the early history of Israel. As you recall recently, I wrapped up the times of the Judges with Samuel, who was the last full judge of the nation of Israel. And we're going to transition today into the time of the kings. It's been 400 to 450 years since Israel entered the Promised Land and began to take possession of their inheritance. You recall this time period since the death of Joshua has been governed largely by Judges, people who God raised up from time to time to lead Israel spiritually as well as physically to help to bring about a restoration once again. But a judge was not a continual line through the entirety of those 450 years. Judges came and there would be a period of time without them until God would then raise one up once again. But now times are changing. Israel's enemies around them are strengthening once again, opposing them once again. And Samuel has grown old, and the people's desire for a dramatic change in leadership will be made known. So we're going to pick up where we left off in the last Bible study series. The title today is The Times of the Kings, Part 1, The Rise and Fall of Saul. The Rise and Fall of Saul. And we're going to cover at least an overview of 1 Samuel chapter 8 through chapter 15. So let's pick up where we left off. 1 Samuel chapter 8. This is where we concluded the Judges series with Samuel. 1 Samuel chapter 8, beginning in verse 1. And it says, Now it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel. The name of his firstborn was Joel. The name of his second was Abijah. He says they were judges in Beersheba. But his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice. Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Rhema and said to him, said, Look, you're old, and your sons did not walk in your ways. Now please make for us a king to judge us like all the nations. What we see here is Israel's demand for a king. It arose out of really three specific pressing issues, three converging pressures. It's not all listed out in the first few verses here, but it's what's been building in the background, these three pressing issues. Number one was corrupt succession. And we see that listed right off the bat here. Corrupt succession.

Samuel appointed his sons as judges, and yet they proved to be corrupt, to be greedy, to have a number of qualities that weren't desirable. Israel could look at their pattern and say, Well, Samuel, you're old, and when you're gone, what is leadership going to look like in Israel? So they come forward with this because succession really doesn't look like it's a positive thing that's going to take place. Second, converging pressure would be the external military threat. This has been ongoing, again, through the judges, and now here as we come into the kings, external military threat. Israel faces pressure from the Philistines in the west, the Ammonites in the east. The Philistines dominated with iron weapons. And so just to kind of understand a little bit of the background here, this is the dawning of the Iron Age, and the Philistines actually capitalized on that. They were far ahead of the Israelites. Technologically, Israel was still in the Bronze Age. So the Philistines, if you were to read through this in detail, you find they controlled blacksmiths. They wouldn't permit Israel to have blacksmiths. Any iron they had, their plowshares, their axes, they had to bring to a blacksmith of the Philistines to be sharpened. So as you consider what this does militarily as well, Philistines had iron for swords. They had reinforced chariots. Again, Israel was very deficient in that way in terms of technology and in terms of a standing army. Literally, the Philistines outmatched Israel hands down. You know, they, like Mr. Schmidt was talking about in the first message, you know, they had to rely on God in thinking big. And frankly, that was their challenge, really, all along. And that leads to the third converging pressure here, which is spiritual failure. Instead of fasting and seeking God, the people demanded a structural change to their leadership. Again, under the judges, deliverers arose only when God sent them, and authority was decentralized.

There wasn't, you know, a palace where there was a throne where the leader sat. And the tribes up to this point were largely, you know, loosely affiliated. They were part of God's people, but it wasn't like they were drawn together under a centralized government. So what they were asking for is somebody that would actually unify the tribes around that central government, around a throne, and to command an army. But understand, in doing so, they weren't rejecting leadership itself, but they were rejecting God. They were not looking to God as they should have been, as the one who did have complete authority and dominion and control, and was out there for them. The one who was their protector, their provider. They had taken their eyes off of God, and they're looking around and saying, where is the man who take us forward such as we need today?

So those are the three converging pressures that bring forth this request now for a king.

Verse 6, it says, But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, Give us a king to judge us.

So Samuel prayed to the Lord, and the Lord said to him, Heed the voice of the people, and all that they say to you. For they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done, since the day that I brought him up out of Egypt, even to this day, with which they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so they are doing to you also. So the problem here was the people were rejecting God. You know, God was their king. And that's a clear point we need to make.

All the way up from when they first entered the land to now, even prior to that, God was their king, and He was still their king, and He would continue to be their king. So by saying, Give us a king, a physical person we could look to, says, Samuel, they're not rejecting you, they are rejecting me.

You know, God understood well in advance that this day would come, and He laid out guidelines for how a king over his people should function again long before this request ever came. So it's interesting, if you remember back at the times of Abraham and Sarah, it says kings were prophesied to come forth from them.

You know, God knew what would come and what would be in place, and ultimately He made provision for that. But notice the instructions and the guidelines for a king. Keep your finger here. Let's go back to Deuteronomy chapter 17. Just kind of lay the background for what God would expect from anyone that would serve in this position as king of His people. Deuteronomy chapter 17 here, Moses is addressing that next generation of Israelites. This is after the 40 years of wandering, and now this young generation that has grown up is now preparing to enter into the Promised Land.

And there's some instructions from God through Moses. Chapter 17 of Deuteronomy in verse 14, it says, When you come up to the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and possess it, and dwell in it, and say, I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me, you shall surely set a king over you whom the Lord your God chooses.

Okay, so understand, God would make a choice. He would choose a king for them. One from among your brethren you shall set as king over you. You may not set a foreigner over you who is not your brother. So a king would always, by God's directive, be an Israelite, and God would be the one to choose, either choosing the individual or choosing the house in the dynasty then that would reign over his people.

Verse 16, But this king, he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the Lord has said, You shall not return that way again. Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away, nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself.

Okay, this emphasis on it's not to be for himself, this position. A man that was put as a king in Israel was to recognize he was a servant of God and his people. And this wasn't a position to enrich yourself on the back of the people. You are a servant. And so for himself is, is, you know, highlighted predominantly here in the focus. Verse 18, Also it shall be that when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the priest and the Levites.

And it shall be with him, and he shall read from it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, and to be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted up above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he and his children, in the midst of Israel.

And so one who was to be a king was to know God's word. Said he was to write out, hand write out, a copy of the law. So, you know, the Bible, as we might would call it their day, was Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. And you know how long it takes you to read through that, right? If you're reading through in a progression, imagine sitting down and handwriting that out. Well, that's what every king was supposed to do. They were supposed to write that out from the scroll that was before the priesthood of Levite, because, you know, he didn't have the printing press, you didn't have an app on your phone.

This is how they kept God's word close. And they came to understand through studying it what it meant to be a righteous king and to lead people in obedience. The challenge is, as we go through the kings, you'll see that was rarely done. In fact, there were times where people went through and let's, well, let's clean out the temple. Let's fall in disrepair.

It's full of, you know, junk. It's a storage unit. Let's clear out the temple. And they're cleaning it up, and they come across the law, and they bring it to the king. And it's like, oh, look at this.

So, you know, this was the standard nonetheless for someone who was the judge and to lead God's people as a king. So back to 1 Samuel, then, chapter 8.

Samuel chapter 8 will stay in this book for the remainder of the message today.

Verse 8, verse 9, God to Samuel says, Now therefore heed their voice, however you shall solemnly forewarn them, and show them the behavior of the king who will reign over them. So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who asked him for a king. Samuel says, okay, you want a king? Here's the cost. Here's what's going to be involved with such a thing, because if there's going to be a throne, if there's going to be an empire, that comes at a cost to you as a people. And so the following verses, then Samuel lines out the fact that there would be conscription of their sons, there would be forced service of their daughters in the household of the king, there would be confiscation of the land and the produce, there would be taxation, there would be servitude, there would be loss of freedom. All these things would be connected to the fact that now you have a physical dynasty ruling over you, and it's going to have to be supported in some manner. But it didn't seem to bother the people in the moment. Dropping down to verse 19, 1 Samuel chapter 8 and verse 19, nevertheless, the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, no, but we will have a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles. And Samuel heard all the words of the people and repeated them in the hearing of the Lord. So the Lord said to Samuel, heed their voice, make them a king. And Samuel said to the men of Israel, every man go to his city. So the decision is made, and God would permit them a king. But in doing so, let's understand what God expected to be the position of a physical king in relationship to him. Okay, because God was their king. I want to quote to you from the United Church of God Bible commentary on 1 Samuel chapter 8. It says, quote, it's interesting to note, as we will see in the next chapters, that unlike other ancient rulers, the king of Israel was not to be an absolute despot. God will have Samuel anoint Saul commander or captain over his people. The Hebrew word used here could be rendered in the English as viceroy or governor general, the stand-in for the real monarch. In fact, the very act of anointing a ruler in the ancient world implied a vassal relationship. It is later explained that Israel's king sat on the throne of the Lord, reigning as king for him. So that's an important thing to recognize and never forget in all of this is that God was king, and when a physical king in Israel was appointed, they literally sat on the throne of the Lord. They sat on Yahweh's throne and reign over his people. I'll give you a couple of references for this because it's important.

1 Chronicles chapter 29 verse 23, and also 2 Chronicles chapter 9 verse 6 through 8. They both show that the physical king of Israel sat on the throne of Yahweh, and they sat in place as the physical ruler, but God was still king, and it was still his throne. Continuing reading, it says also quite differently than in other nations was the fact that the king was not also the priest of the national religion. You know, most think of the Romans at the time of Paul, and their rulers were gods in their own eyes, self-proclaimed gods. So this is, again, the distinction. Furthermore, in other countries kings made laws and were above those laws, but in Israel, God's prophets will explain the rights and duties of kingship. The ruler is subject to the law, especially the Almighty set up a constitutional, limited monarchy in which he would send a prophet as his representative to the king to give him his report card.

So he had the king, who was not absolute. He answered to God. You had the prophet, whom was God's messenger, whom he set to the king to deliver messages to essentially help steer and guide the king. When do you think of King David following his sin with Bathsheba and against Uriah? Right? He is ignoring these things, and God sends the prophet Nathan to him to help him acknowledge, confront, and eventually repent of his sin. He says, you know, you're king, but you don't get to do just any old thing you choose. He said to David, you have sinned, ultimately, as David wrote in Psalm 51, against God. So this is how this kingship would work.

Quoting from the Expositor's Bible Dictionary on 1 Samuel 8, it says, from the earliest days, it was recognized that ultimately God himself was king. He alone possessed absolute power and authority. Any king of Israel would have to appreciate from the onset that he was to rule over Israel under God. Only on the basis of this fundamental theology and this theological premise can the narratives of the advent of a monarchy in Israel be properly understood. So again, why would God allow physical kings in Israel? Again, it's understood through the realization that God himself continued as king, but this was a physical representative of his. And so that we can see that what so often happened was that a king either rose or fell, dependent upon his recognition of this reality. Some realized it, some did not, but the reality always was God is king. Let's look at Israel's first physical king, 1 Samuel chapter 9 and verse 1. It says, There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of, the son of, the son of, the son of, okay, we get the genealogies coming down, right, a benjamite, mighty man of power, and he had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul. There was none more handsome a person than he among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward, he was taller than any of the people. So apparently Saul was just what the people imagined a king ought to be. You know, great in stature, probably pretty handsome. He stood out in a crowd. When he walked in the door, people probably would have thought, you know, this guy, I mean, that's what a king looks like. That's what they were expecting, to come and to lead them in such a profitable way.

Verse 3, it says, Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul's father, were lost. And Kish said to his son, Saul, Please take one of the servants with you, arise, and go look for the donkeys.

As the story unfolds, Saul and the servant go out and search for days through a large portion of Israel. Eventually they reach the region of Zuf and the city where Samuel is offering sacrifice. And the conversation ensues, well, maybe the seer will know where these animals are. You know, Samuel was called a seer. It was kind of a term for a prophet before a prophet was widely used. So they come into this place to inquire about from the seer. Verse 14, So they went up to the city. As they were coming into the city, there was Samuel coming out toward them on his way up to the high place. Now the Lord had told Samuel in his ear the day before Saul came, saying, Tomorrow, about this time, I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and shall anoint him commander over my people Israel, that he may save my people from the hand of the Philistines, for I have looked upon my people because their cry has come to me.

Verse 17, So when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him, There he is, the man of whom I have spoke to you, this one shall reign over my people. And Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate and said, Please tell me, where is the seer's house? Samuel answered Saul, saying, I am the seer, go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today, and tomorrow I will let you go, and will tell you all that is in your heart. Verse 20, But as for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not be anxious about them, for they have been found, and on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on you, and all your father's house? I have an interesting comment, you know, to consider. Verse 21, Saul answered and said, Am I not a Benjamite of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? And my family is the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin.

Why then do you speak to me like this? And Saul's like, Who am I? I'm nobody. I'm just a farmer from a small family, from a small tribe. Why are you even bringing this up in this way? Here with Saul, we see, at least up front, there is no hint of political ambition, no expectation. He's just out searching for the lost livestock, and he's greeted with these words. As the evening goes on, Saul dines with Samuel as his honored guest. He stays the night in Samuel's house, dropping down to verse 26. He says, And they rose early, and it was about the dawning of the day that Samuel called to Saul on the top of the house, saying, Get up, that I may send you on your way. And Saul arose, both of them went out, and he and Samuel, and they were about going, as they were about going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Tell the servant to go ahead of us. And he went on, But you stand here a while, that I may announce to you the word of God.

And Samuel took a flask of oil, chapter 10, verse 1, poured it on his head, and kissed him, and said, Is it not because the Lord has anointed you, commander, over his inheritance? No doubt this would have been a big surprise to Saul. You know, he's just, he's minding his business. He's going about his life. He's out looking for the lost livestock, and he suddenly finds himself anointed king. I mean, what a week! What happened to you today? Oh, it was an anointed king! You know, quite a surprising thing to happen. He didn't go seeking it. He didn't ask for it. I have to admit, I kind of feel a little sorry for Paul or Saul, right, this day. Suddenly, this weight that is pressed upon this man, whether he really realizes it or not, yet this anointing, it comes through Samuel. It must be legit. Here is the next king, or the first king, of Israel. Verse 2, it says, when you've departed from me, you will find two men by Rachel's tomb. He goes on to explain who Saul's going to meet, certain things that are going to take place. He says eventually you're going to go up, and you're going to meet these prophets who are coming down, these individuals prophesying, and you're going to join them. You're going to prophesy with them.

Verse 6 says, in the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them, and be turned into another man. All these things that are going to be taking place in very short order in Saul's life. Verse 7, and let it be that when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands, for God is with you. You shall go down before me to Gilgal, and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait till I come to you and show you what you should do. Okay, so this is an instruction in the moment, but this is actually prophetic to something that will take place later in Saul's kingship.

Samuel says, wait for me there, I'll come after seven days. Verse 10, and when they came there, to the hill, there was a group of prophets, as it had been prophesied, to meet him. Then the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them. Okay, so Saul receives God's Spirit, at least temporarily. You know, this isn't conversion, as we would think of the concept necessarily. This isn't a complete change in the nature of Saul, and you actually see that as you move forward. But it is God's Spirit that comes upon him to enable him in his service. You know, you can think about various times in Israel's history where that has taken place. Samson, as we went through the Judges, right, the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he did certain things. If you back up to Israel, when they came out of Egypt, and the collection is taken for the building of the tabernacle, it said there were artisans within the people of Israel, people with skill, but they were reinforced by a measure of God's Spirit to do the exceptional job that was required for the assembly of the house of God. So there's times when God called people into his service, and he gave them a measure of his Spirit, empowering them in that service, because it was in his service. But it's not, understand, always necessarily the same as a conversion of the mind and the heart in the way that you and I think of it today.

Begin, he gives this to him. If we drop down to verse 17, we find Saul's public appointment for Samuel 10 verse 17. And Samuel called the people together to the Lord at Mispa.

And he said to the children of Israel, thus says the Lord God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt and delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms and from those who oppressed you. But you have today rejected your God, whomself saved you from all your adversities and tribulations. And you have said to him, No, but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by your clans. Verse 20, when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. And when he caused the tribe of Benjamin to come nearby their families, the family of Matry was chosen. And Saul, the son of Kish, was chosen, but they sought him and could not find him. So people are brought together and there's this public choosing. It doesn't exactly say much in the details, but it appears it was likely through the casting of lots and very likely through the urem and the thummon that then the distinctions were made of the tribe, of the family, and of the person. And the distinction now was placed upon Saul. But he's hiding, right?

Saul cannot be found. Verse 22, therefore they inquired of the Lord further.

Has the man come here yet? And the Lord answered, there he is, hidden among the equipment.

You know, he's in the baggage, in the luggage. The tribes are assembled together and you've got, I don't know, whatever you travel with, and Saul's hiding out from the people there. He's been called out and I would say called out by name and they're like, where is the guy? And he's hiding.

And there's a couple ways you could look at this. You might consider the fact, well, maybe Saul here is humble, you know, he's not putting himself forward. He's not up in front of people, you know, looking for recognition. And that's a possibility and even perhaps a shade of that, of that humility. But it could also be an early indicator of the insecurity that would plague Saul all throughout his kingship. Again, he's hiding, he's withdrawing. Maybe he's afraid, maybe he's overwhelmed, but whatever the case, he doesn't seem to have a real confidence in what God is doing in him.

But God had shown him. He'd done signs. He'd fulfilled prophecies. He'd given him his spirit and fulfilled things through him by which Saul would know this anointing is real, yet he seemed to have lacked the confidence to even stand up and stand forward in this calling. Understand, Saul had everything he would need to succeed because God was setting him up to succeed.

You know, in my mind, I've sort of always processed it a little bit like, well, you know, Saul was kind of the people's choice and God, you know, it wasn't really what God wanted and what Saul was out of the way. Now here's David, the man after his heart. But understand, Saul was God's choice. Now he gave the people who it was they thought they wanted, but he was God's choice and God's desire was for Saul to succeed. He gave him the tools and the means to succeed, but it would depend upon the man as well. The kingdom was prophesied through the line of Judah, not through the line of Benjamin, but again, that could have been worked out through the intermarriage of Saul's family into the line of Judah. But just understand what God originally, bringing him here as a choice, this is the king. And the intent was if he would be faithful, his family would sit on the throne through the generations. So God's rooting for him here.

Samuel's rooting for him. But Saul would have to personally believe and rely on that help as well. Again, I appreciated the first message today because it's if you're going to understand God's leadership and what God can do in your life, you have to think big. And it can't be just what you see with the eyes. It has to be in faith of the one we worship. So verse 23.

So they ran and brought him from there where he was hiding. And when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upwards. And Samuel said to all the people, do you see him whom the Lord has chosen, that there was no one like him among all the people. So all the people shouted and said, long live the king. You know, God gave the people who it was that they thought they wanted. But again, the desire was for his success. Verse 25. Then Samuel explained to the people the behavior of royalty and wrote it in a book and laid it up before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. And Saul also went home to Gibeah. And valent men went with him, like bodyguards or people to protect now the king.

Valient men went with him and whose hearts God had touched. But some rebels said, how can this man save us? So they despised him and brought him no presence, but he held his peace. So Saul here is again appointed and anointed as king. And he returns home, back to the fields, back to farming.

Understand he's the first king of Israel. There is no throne. There is no royal residence. There is no centralized government yet. So he's ordained, in that sense, king. And he returns home.

Chapter 11 then introduces us to Saul's first big military campaign and victory for Samuel chapter 11 verse 1. The Nahash, the Ammonite, came up in a camp against Jabesh Gilead. And all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, make a covenant with us and we will serve you. Okay, they're coming in to oppress this region of Israel. And as other historical commentations shows, they've done this on the other side of the Jordan as well. And now they're coming here. And there was actually a signature mark of their oppression. Verse 2, and Nahash, the Ammonite, answered, On this condition I will make a covenant with you, that I may put out all your right eyes and bring reproach on all Israel. Okay, they've done this before as they come in. And now they're in this place. And the elders of Jabesh said to them, Hold off for seven days that we may send messengers to all the territory of Israel. And then if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you. So messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the news and the hearing of the people. And all the people lifted up their voices and wept. Now there was Saul coming behind the herd from the field. He's out working. He's doing what it is. He's always done yet. He is king.

And Saul said, What troubles the people that they weep? And they told him the words of the men of Jabesh. Then the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard this news, and his anger was greatly aroused. So he took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hands of the messengers, saying, Whoever does not go out with Saul and Samuel to battle, so it shall be done to his oxen. And the fear of the Lord fell on the people and they came out with one consent. Verse 8 says, When he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were 300,000 and the men of Judah 30,000. So a 330,000-man army then Saul is able to gather together at his call. It's a confirmation of his legitimacy in the eyes of the people. This is the first time the king has sent out the call and the people have assembled. Now they have this standing army of Israel. Verse 9, And they said to the messengers who came, Thus ye shall say to the men of Jabesh Gilead, Tomorrow by the time the sun is hot, ye shall have help. Then the messengers came and reported to the men of Jabesh, and they were glad. Therefore the men of Jabesh said, now to their oppressors, Therefore tomorrow we will come out to you. They may do with us whatever seems good to you.

And so it was on the next day that Saul put the people in three companies, and they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch, and they killed the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And it happened that those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together. Then the people said to Samuel, Who is he who said, Shall Saul reign over us? Bring the men that we may put them to death. But Saul said, Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has accomplished salvation in Israel. Then Samuel said to the people, Come, let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there. So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they made sacrifices of peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

He's off to a good start, by and large. Comes out boldly, guided by the Spirit of God, brings the people together, leads them to victory. People are celebrating. They're excited. This is what they were looking for in their king, and they come together now once again and have this public appointment. And so what we see is that Saul's rise to kingship took place in really three distinct stages. The first he was appointed by Samuel privately. Second time, then he was chosen by a lot publicly in the presence of the tribes of Israel. And now thirdly, he is confirmed by public acclamation. You know, this is our king, and we back him. And again, the nation themselves were riding on a high. Following this decisive victory over the Ammonites, Saul is now staged to carry forward as a successful king. After all, God is with him. God's Spirit is with him. The people are with him. And the fear of Israel and the king of Israel has been in the hearts now of at least one of their enemies. Israel said, we want to be like the nations around us. You know, if you're kind of loosely confederated with no strong leader apparent, they didn't feel like they were really legitimate among the nations. But now they have a king, a representative, a name, a figure that in their mind at least places them as legitimate among the nations. And what was accomplished here was encouraging to all. Chapter 12 contains Samuel's address to Israel, and I'm not going to read it. You can do that in your own free time, but in there he reminds them that obedience to God, not a monarchy, would ultimately be the determining factor in their future and in their success.

Ultimately, the message was, don't look to the man, look to God. And it is God, if the man looks to God, that will guide and direct the future of this nation. Chapter 13, 1 Samuel chapter 13 in verse 1, says, Saul reigned one year, and when he had reigned two years of Israel, Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel. Two thousand were with Saul in Micmash and the mountains of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan, Saul's son, and Gibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the people he sent away, every man to his tent. You know, it's like he had this 330,000 man army, but if you're not at war, send the people home, but then go back to their families and their farms, let them produce, and then call them when you need them again, and when they return, they will be an effective force in your service.

Verse 3, and Jonathan attacked the garrison of the Philistines that was in Gibeah, and the Philistines heard it. Then Saul blew the trumpet through all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear.

Now all Israel heard it, and said that Saul had attacked the garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel had also become an abomination to the Philistines, and the people were called together to Saul at Gilgal. So again, the army is reassembled. We're going out to fight the Philistines. Verse 5, the Philistines gathered together to fight with Israel. 30,000 chariots If your Bible's like mine, there's a notational footnote there that, you know, it says 30,000 chariots. It could mean 3,000. There's a little bit of a discussion about what is actually the right interpretation of the words, but it says 30,000. It very well, in my opinion, could be 3,000, which is big, but a more realistic number, especially since it carries on. It says, in 6,000 horsemen, you know, that would make more sense for 3,000 chariots over 30, but nonetheless, 6,000 horsemen and people as the sand, which is on the seashore, in multitude, a very massive army. And they came up and encamped in Micmash, the east of Beth-Avon.

Verse 6, and when the men of Israel saw that they were in danger, for the people were distressed, then the people hid in caves and thickets and rocks and holes and in pits. They just scattered.

Some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan, the land of Gad and Gilead. You know, they just said, we're leaving Dodge. We're out of here altogether. As for Saul, he was still in Gilgal and all the people who followed him trembling. And when he waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. So Saul said, Saul said, bring a burnt offering and the peace offering here to me. And he offered the burnt offering. So here we see the beginnings of Saul's great failure emerging. And it tells us a lot about his character and his character throughout. First of all, insecurity. The people are looking to him and he should be looking to God and the people should be gaining strength themselves by looking to him, looking to God. But there's a challenge here. He's looking at the army. He's afraid. He's insecure. The people are scattering. And now he's not thinking, oh, the seven days. He's thinking my scattering army. And so he's got to now grab hold and take action in his own hands.

Saul did partially obey. You know, he waited the full seven days just as Samuel had instructed. Again, 1 Samuel 10 verse 8. On the surface, he seems compliant, but obedience is not only measured by maybe a passage of time and waiting on God. It's also measured, though, by faith and trust.

And this waiting revealed Saul's inner insecurity. The fact that the very moment came and he did not look to God in faith and trust. In his moment of, you know, the critical moment, Saul made the wrong decision. He commands the sacrifice to be brought to him. He doesn't seek Samuel or cry out to God for deliverance. Instead, he takes matters into his own hands, matters that were not his and that he was not even qualified to assume control of. And he offers the burnt offering. Again, he's the king.

He's not the priest. He's not Samuel. He's not the judge. He's not someone who's given to officiate in these matters, yet he takes it into his own hand. And understand, brethren, this was not a minor misjudgment. It was a direct violation of God's ordained order. This was not his place.

And yet the army scattering and these people are opposing him. And Saul, again, in his security, says, I will take matters into my own hands and work this out for myself. He assumed that God would accept unauthorized worship if the situation was urgent enough. And the moment marks the beginning of his spiritual slide as king, because it's a shift away from trusting God's presence to relying on his own reasoning. And what we see from Saul from this point forward is actually the soundness of mind beginning to slip, because he took what God had given him and he did not use it to his its potential. Partial obedience is not obedience at all. Verse 10, now it happened as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering that Samuel came. And Saul went out to greet him that he might, you know, meet him, that he might greet him. And Samuel said, what have you done? Saul said, well, when I saw that the people were scattering from me and that you did not come within today's appointed and that the Philistines gathered together at Micmash, then I said, the Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal. And I have not made supplication to the Lord. Therefore I felt compelled and I offered the burnt offering. And Samuel said to Saul, you have done foolishly. You've not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which he commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But now your kingdom shall not continue and the Lord has sought for himself a man after his own heart and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over his people because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.

This is a major turning point in Saul's reign. And he remains king by title, but let's just understand again it's the dynasty that is being rejected from him. Your children, your children's children, will not sit on the throne because you have not obeyed me. And because out of fear, out of control and self-reliance, he did not depend on God. This would be his downfall, ultimately.

For lack of time, I'll summarize the rest of chapters 13 and 14. After Saul's premature sacrifice, the Philistines' massive army divided into three camps. They spread out for the cover more of Israel, and the nation is terrified, showing that Saul is relying on his own strength rather than pointing the people to God. Again, they're trembling. They said, give us a man. When they looked at the man, he's not much. Now they're fearful, rather than looking to God. By contrast, though, Jonathan, the son of Saul, steps out in bold faith and trusts God. He tells his armor bearer, nothing restrains the Lord from saving by many or by few. First Samuel chapter 14 and verse 6.

As you know the story, Jonathan and his armor bearer go out, and Jonathan attacks a garrison of the Philistines with remarkable success. God is with him, demonstrating that courage and obedience will bring victory. But again, Saul is rash. Saul's judgments now, because he has not followed God, are beginning to deteriorate, and he puts the army under a strict oath, forbidding them from eating until the battle is over. So if you're in Saul's army, and you're facing the Philistines, and you're fearful anyway, and your commander says, I tell you what, you know, this is this is great courage. We shall not eat until victory is ours. Well, what does that do to an army? Very demoralizing in many ways. And frankly, as the hours pass, the army begins to weaken, and Jonathan unknowingly breaks the oath by eating a small amount of honey.

Jonathan didn't hear the oath. He didn't know the oath. He was actually out getting after business. When Saul had committed the troops to this thing. When Saul seeks God's counsel again, God does not answer. Saul concludes that someone must have sinned. So he's casting lots now, and he's trying to discover who among us has sinned, that God will not answer. And he discovers that Jonathan has broken his decree by eating honey, and immediately he condemns Jonathan to death. This is the decline very quickly then that begins to take place as he's turned his obedience and his faith away from God. We won't go through all of it today, but understand as it goes out from this point to the end of his life, he deteriorates significantly. God's spirit departs, and a troubling spirit comes. Saul spends much of the remainder of his kingship hunting David, thinking, David is the enemy. I've got to kill David. That is his mindset. And ultimately, even after the death of Samuel, Saul goes and consults a medium. So understand the decline that is taking place here. He has become arrogant, defiant, self-willed, and his thinking has become corrupt and bizarre. And even though he himself disobeyed God, he seeks to punish his own son by death for breaking one of his silly decrees. Okay, this is the mind of this man, and this is where he's going. Now, ultimately, the people stand up and oppose Saul. Jonathan is upright. Jonathan boldly trusted God, and they said, you will not kill this man. And they essentially rescue him from Saul's condemnation. And as chapter 14 concludes, then, you have some summary verses.

1 Samuel 14, verses 47 through 52. Some summary verses that basically cover 25 years or so of Saul's reign, which basically say that God gave him victory against his enemies about him, showing that God can work even through a flawed leader. You know, God was still king of Israel. God still wanted to accomplish various things for that nation. So he expanded Saul's kingdom, and he gave him military victories. But the underlying problem of Saul's insecurities and partial obedience to God still remain. Ultimately, at the end, it would be his undoing. 1 Samuel chapter 15, verse 1. 1 Samuel 15, verse 1.

Samuel also said to Saul, The Lord sent me to anoint you, king, over his people, over Israel. Now therefore he said, Heed the voice of the words of the Lord.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he ambushed him on the way when he came up out of Egypt. You recall shortly after Israel crossed the Red Sea that the Amalekites attacked, and it wasn't a frontal assault. They swung around the back, and they attacked the rear of the group, which was the tired, the stragglers, the weak.

And this was something that was very detestable in the eyes of God. He says, This is going to be the time of my vengeance. Verse 3, Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. So Saul gathered the people together and numbered them in Temalim, two hundred thousand foot soldiers, ten thousand men of Judah. And Saul came to the city of Amalek and lay in wait in the valley. Then he said to the Canites, Go depart, get down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them. For you showed kindness to all the children of Israel when they came up out of Egypt. So the Canites departed from among the Amalekites.

Verse 7, And Saul attacked the Amalekites from Havola all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. He also took Agag, king of the Amalekites, alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the people spared Agag the best of the sheep and the oxen, the fatlings and the lambs, and all that was good, and all that were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, you know, the junk, that they utterly destroyed.

So once again, it's Saul's repeating pattern, unwilling to obey God fully, unwilling to reconcile with what it is that God had given him. God said, destroy everything, but Saul prioritizes his own will, and he sets the desires of the people above the will of God. And this time it's going to cost him. Verse 10, Now the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying, I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king. For he's turned back from following me, and has not performed my commandments, and it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the Lord all night. You know, Samuel really wanted the success of this man. God wanted the success of this man, but Saul would have his part to play as well. Verse 12, So when Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul went to Carmel, and indeed set up a monument for himself. So again, we see where this focus of this man is leading, for himself, and he's gone on around, passed by, and gone down to Gilgal.

Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him, Blessed are you of the Lord, I have performed the commandment of the Lord, you know, just confidently, boldly. There's a disconnect here, very serious disconnect in the mind of Saul regarding his disobedience. You know, he can't even see it. He says, I have done the will of the Lord. Verse 14, But Samuel said, What then is the bleeding of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen, which I hear? Pretty hard to hide it. And Saul said, They, right, the people, they brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God. Not the Lord my God, but the Lord your God, and the rest we have utterly destroyed. And Samuel said to Saul, Be quiet. Stop making excuses. He said, And I will tell you what the Lord said to me last night. And he said to him, Speak on. So Samuel said, When you were little in your own eyes, were you not the head of the tribes of Israel? And did not the Lord anoint you king over Israel?

Now the Lord sent you on a mission. And he said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, in a fight against them until they are consumed. Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the spoil and do evil in the sight of the Lord? And Saul said to Samuel, But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I have gone on the mission which the Lord sent me, and brought back Agag king of the Amalekites. I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. Verse 21, But the people, those people, took of the plunder of the sheep and the oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal. The people, he said. You know, Saul, the king of Israel, the commander in chief of the army, says, It's the people. The people did this. I relinquish to the people. Again, his fear, his insecurity, his unwillingness to look to God and follow God fully, his partial obedience, but stopping short. Again, his self-justification. He refused to accept his own responsibility in the matter. And brethren, this is the absolute danger of self-justification. You know, Saul is justifying himself. He's making excuses for himself. And when you self-justify, you don't see the sin in your own eyes. And if you don't see the sin in your own eyes, you refuse to repent. And indeed, for you and I, this is a major lesson today, self-justification seeks to say, I'm okay. It makes an end run around the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, because you say, I don't need it. I am just fine. Thank you very much.

And this is the point where Saul was at justifying all these things in his own eyes anyway. Again, this is not what God wanted in a king. Verse 22, so Samuel said, Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as of the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because it has rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you from being king.

This is the second time that God told Saul he was being rejected as king. The first time was the rejection of his dynasty, and God says, you know, I've found somebody after my own heart who will fulfill my will. This time he says, you know what, you've rejected the word of the Lord, and so now you are being rejected personally by God. Verse 24, Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandments of the Lord in your words, because I feared the people, and I obeyed their voice. Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord. But Samuel said to Saul, I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel. And as Samuel turned around to go away, Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it tore.

And Samuel said to him, the Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you. And also the strength of Israel will not lie nor relent, for he is not a man that he should relent. Then he said, I have sinned, yet honor me now, please, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord your God. You know, for Saul, he's still not getting it. It's still about his image, still about how he looks before the people. Samuel, return and worship with me before the people, that they may see me and you together. And essentially, it glorifies me. That's what he's saying. Again, his insecurities of people and their opinions, they never got out of the way and allowed him to look to God in faith. Verse 31. So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord. Then Samuel said, Bring Agag, the king of the Amalekites, here to me. So Agag came to him cautiously. Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past. But Samuel said, As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women. And Samuel hacked Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.

Then Samuel went to Rhema, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. And Samuel went no more to see Saul until the day of his death. Nevertheless, Samuel mourned for Saul, and the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel. It's a very sad story, brethren. Very, very sad indeed. This was the first king of Israel. God desired for him to succeed. God gave him everything he needed to succeed. And yet in the end, his own pride, his own insecurities, his own disobedience and fear of men would not get out of the way enough to let God truly lead in his life. And he just said, I can't even use you. I found a man after my own heart who would do all of my will. Saul would remain king for some time yet, but as fate was already sealed, already God had found another man. As for Saul, this story shows us some important lessons regarding our own relationship with God. And I'd ask for you to take some time this week and ponder these things. I'm just going to give you five bullet points very quickly. You'll have to write fast, but important lessons that we can take from the reign of Saul. Point number one, partial obedience is still disobedience. Saul was willing to follow God to a point, but he came up short. And as we saw in the end evaluation of things, Saul says, I have done the will of God. Samuel says, you have not.

Partial obedience is still disobedience. Point number two, fear of people and circumstances lead us often to trust ourselves instead of God. Fear of people, fear of opposition, fear of the circumstances that are against us can lead us to trust ourselves instead of God. You know, let me take matters into my own hands. Let me deal with it as I see fit. Point number three, knowing God's will means very little if we refuse to follow it God's way. Knowing God's will means very little.

If we refuse to follow it God's way. God has specific instructions and what we do is called faith and obedience. And indeed, we will not fulfill what he's given us to fulfill unless we walk in that path. Point number four, pride and self-justification push God aside and harden our heart against repentance. Pride and self-justification push God aside and harden our heart against repentance. If we will not even acknowledge our sin, we will not come into repentance before God. It is God who justifies. So to self-justify, to make excuses, to cover it over is a very dangerous position to be in. And again, for you and I, it seeks to make an end run around Jesus Christ and say, I am all right as I am. Thank you very much. Pride and self-justification have taken down many in service to God. Point number five, good intentions do not exercise, excuse me, do not excuse, good intentions do not excuse ignoring God's clear commands. God says, I am spirit, right? That's what Jesus said. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and truth. We've just come through a whole season of what I would call, by and large, good intentions, at least in the hearts of most. But it is not what God commanded to be done. And certainly, many of those things are in opposition specifically to that. God said he is to be worshipped. Good intentions do not excuse ignoring God's clear commands. Saul's life teaches us that being chosen by God is not enough. Saul was chosen by God. He was given an element in a portion of God's spirit. He was set into a position to serve by God, but being chosen, brethren, is not enough. Saul had his part to play. He was given a portion of God's spirit. Saul had his part to play. You and I have been called by God today. We've been given his spirit. We've been called to walk in the paths of Jesus Christ. But chosen is where we start.

Chosen is where we start, where each of us individually go from here. It depends on you, and it depends on me. But remaining faithful to God to the very end is how we must finish. And if we do, then we will be called among the called, the chosen, and the faithful.