1 Samuel 11 Devotional
by Pastor Lawrence
Oh, what could have been! Reading this short snippet at the beginning of Saul’s tenure as king, we are inspired by his bravery, clemency and zeal for the Lord. It seems as if the people were right after all in wanting a king of their own, for Saul steps up to the challenge and defends the tribes of Israel from enemies foreign and domestic.
Following in the same pattern as the book of Judges, a foreign enemy has arisen to oppress a portion of Israel, but this time, instead of the Lord raising up a new judge, Israel’s king handles the matter with strength and grace. Nahash, the king of the Ammonites has attacked one particular town, Jabesh-Gilead, east of the Jordan River and is set to destroy its inhabitants, but they offer to make a treaty with the king instead, which was forbidden according to God’s law. The king is willing to consider the treaty but only if they allow the king to gouge out their right eyes, which would render them useless in battle and effectively make them his slaves. They ask for time for seven days to think about it and to call for help from the tribes west of the Jordan, but if no help arrives they are willing to agree to his offer.
Jabesh-Gilead was located in the territory of the half-tribe of Manasseh east of the Jordan, but it was closely tied to the tribe of Benjamin through intermarriage. Back in Judges 21, when the Israelites were fighting against the Benjamites, the only town in Israel that did not come to the aid of Israel was the town of Jabesh-Gilead, so when Israel had taken pity upon the defeated Benjamites, they slaughtered all the male inhabitants of the city of Jabeh-Gilead but spared 400 virgin women to give to the Benjamites in marriage in order that their tribe might not be blotted out.
Fast forward a few years and Saul of the tribe of Benjamin is made king in Israel. About a month after his appointment, Nahash threatens the men of Jabesh-Gilead and when Saul heard about it, the Spirit of God rushed upon him and his anger was greatly kindled. But unlike Sampson, Saul does not merely go to Jabesh-Gilead himself and slay their oppressors. Instead, like a statesmen, he rallies all the tribes of Israel west of the Jordan to come to their defense, which is no easy task to do given the fact that the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead did not come to their defense. Similar to Benjamin Franklin’s famous woodcut of the divided timber rattlesnake depicting the separate American colonies need to “Join or Die,” the newly kinged Saul chops up his oxen in twelve parts and sends the pieces to all the tribes saying essentially the same thing if they don’t join up with him and with Samuel.
Apparently, God blessed this rallying cry of the new king when the dread of the Lord fell upon all the people and they came out as one man to defend this tiny little town with a force of 330,000 men who promised to deliver the town by noon on the following day. Then that next morning, Saul himself divided their troops into three companies, led them into battle and demolished the strength of the enemy within just a few hours.
After this great display of unity and force under the leadership of Saul, some had remembered those men who had made disparaging remarks earlier concerning Saul’s ability to lead as a king, and they approached Samuel with the petition to put them to death. But Saul himself intervened dissuading them from any more bloodshed in order that they might celebrate the victory that the Lord had granted to them. Then Samuel wisely decided to confirm Saul’s kingship while the fire was still hot with enthusiasm and to celebrate his victory over the enemies of Israel.
If only it always worked out that way with the king leading with strength, zeal and integrity, and the people willingly and eagerly following his commands; Israel would be unstoppable as a nation. But, as we will soon see, this success and inspiration is short-lived, for neither the people nor the king himself continue to fear the Lord, but choose to do what is right in their own eyes instead. Thus the reader is left wanting and waiting for the true king of Israel to be revealed, and for the Spirit of the Lord to fill the hearts of men with a willingness to follow him as Lord.