1 Samuel 13:1 – 15 “Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-two years. He chose for himself three thousand men of Israel: Two thousand were with Saul at Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. And the rest of the troops he sent away, each to his own home.
Then Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. So Saul blew the ram’s horn throughout the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!”
And all Israel heard the news: “Saul has attacked an outpost of the Philistines, and now Israel has become a stench to the Philistines!” Then the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.
Now the Philistines assembled to fight against Israel with three thousand chariots, six thousand horsemen, and troops as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Michmash, east of Beth-aven.
Seeing that they were in danger because their troops were hard-pressed, the men of Israel hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in cellars and cisterns. Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan into the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul, however, remained at Gilgal, and all his troops were quaking in fear.
And Saul waited seven days for the time appointed by Samuel, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the troops began to desert Saul. So he said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” And he offered up the burnt offering.
Just as he finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him.
“What have you done?” Samuel asked.
And Saul replied, “When I saw that the troops were deserting me, and that you did not come at the appointed time and the Philistines were gathering at Michmash, I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will descend upon me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the favor of the LORD.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”
“You have acted foolishly,” Samuel declared. “You have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you; if you had, the LORD would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now your kingdom will not endure; the LORD has sought a man after His own heart and appointed him ruler over His people, because you have not kept the command of the LORD.”
Then Samuel set out from Gilgal and went up to Gibeah in Benjamin. And Saul numbered the troops who were with him, about six hundred men.”
Saul won a single victory over the Ammonites because of the Lord. But the Ammonites came from the east while the Philistines were right there in Canaan. The Philistines were one of the groups that the Israelites failed to conquer, and now the Israelites were paying for it. How old was Saul at the time of these events? Saul was 30 years old when he became king and reigned until he was 72. Even if Saul was a father as a teenager, his biological son would scarcely be old enough to fight. But what if Jonathan was not Saul’s son, but a nephew? If Saul were a 30 year – old Ghanaian, he could easily refer to a nephew as his son, even if the nephew was nearly as old as he was. The nephew would refer to Saul as his “junior father” and would give him the same respect as a father. If such a relationship prevailed in Israel, it could explain the age question and it could also explain the fact that Samuel was still alive to offer sacrifices.
Saul was NOT a believer and did not know the Lord. Had Saul known the Lord, Saul would have realized that he could pray without offering animal sacrifices; however, Saul’s view of the Lord was very similar to that of the Philistines for their god Dagon. Saul obviously thought there was something magic about sacrifices. When Saul saw his men beginning to desert, he panicked and made the sacrifices himself, even though he was not qualified to do so. Saul made yet another mistake; he failed to give Samuel the full seven days Samuel had advised him to wait. That failure to wait cost Saul and his descendants a kingdom.
What was wrong with what Saul did besides the obvious fact that he failed to wait for Samuel? Nobody was teaching anybody the Law of Moses! In Deuteronomy 17 God described the manner in which kings were to conduct themselves. God ordered that any kings of Israel would personally copy the law for themselves and continue to study that law for their entire reign so that they would fulfill God’s will for their kingship. But the priests were not faithful in their role as teachers, and Saul was a Scriptural illiterate. Without any teaching, it is little wonder that Saul also did not know God’s commands for going to war.
Deuteronomy 20:1 – 8 says, “When you go out to war against your enemies and see horses, chariots, and an army larger than yours, do not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, is with you. When you are about to go into battle, the priest is to come forward and address the army, saying to them, “Hear, O Israel, today you are going into battle with your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not be alarmed or terrified because of them. For the LORD your God is He who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.”
Furthermore, the officers are to address the army, saying, “Has any man built a new house and not dedicated it? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man dedicate it. Has any man planted a vineyard and not begun to enjoy its fruit? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man enjoy its fruit. Has any man become pledged to a woman and not married her? Let him return home, or he may die in battle and another man marry her.” Then the officers shall speak further to the army, saying, “Is any man afraid or fainthearted? Let him return home, so that the hearts of his brothers will not melt like his own.”
Samuel failed to remember that God used Gideon and 300 men to deliver Israel. Gideon began with 32,000 men and when he offered anyone who was fearful the chance to go home, 22,000 of them took off in a cloud of dust. Then God pared that number of 10,000 down to 300 men who were actually prepared to fight. (See Judges 8 for Gideon’s story.) Instead of panicking, Saul should have been happy to see the deserters leave before they could dishearten anyone else, and he should even have asked if there was anybody else who needed to leave.
APPLICATION: “Di aboterE!” (Twi) “Gii sula!” (Likpakpaln) “Exercise patience!” When you work in a country where transportation can be a challenge and events take place whenever people arrive, you must learn to be patient. Saul lost a kingdom because he paid no attention to God’s Word and failed to exercise patience. Notice the phrase “I felt compelled.” So many times, we may feel COMPELLED to do something. Our thinking may be very similar to Saul’s: “If I don’t do it now, EVERYTHING is going to go wrong!” We “awfulize” rather than stepping back and praying to see what God wants us to do. Had Saul given Samuel until sundown on the day Samuel had designated, Samuel would have arrived and would have made the sacrifice properly. Saul’s kingdom would have been secure.
Saul really had two problems; he didn’t know the Law of Moses and he was swayed by popular opinion. Undoubtedly, there were lots of men urging Saul to go ahead and make that sacrifice. Even if there were men quietly advising Saul to wait, their voices were drowned out by the noise of the crowd. The problem with crowds is that they are fickle; they will scream advice until that advice proves disastrous, and then they will suddenly disappear, distancing themselves from the leader whom they have pushed into making a bad decision. They may even criticize that leader. “I KNEW he shouldn’t have done that!”
There is a saying in leadership circles, “If you want to make everyone happy, don’t be a leader – sell ice cream!” Shakespeare told us, “Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.” Saul was used to adulation for his appearance and for his victory over the Ammonites. When the crowd turned ugly, Saul had no spiritual root to keep him in an upright position. The very same thing can happen to any one of us. Will we listen to God and to His Word, or will we listen to the crowds? Listen to God and gain a kingdom. Listen to the crowd and lose a kingdom. The choice is ours.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to whole – heartedly study Your Word so that we will not sin against You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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