I Samuel Chapter 9

Please read:  I Samuel 9 –

The people of Israel wanted to have a king to rule over them like all the other nations.  It wasn’t enough for them that God had said that He was their King.  Of course, God knew this was going to be the desire of the people, but He did not just let the people randomly pick a king, He hand-picked the man He wanted, and He told Samuel who to anoint for the position.  For those who have studied the Bible you know that Saul’s predecessor was also a man hand-picked by God and that was King David.  Typically, the son of the king would assume the position when a king had passed, but in this case, God chose David and not Saul’s son.

God chose an honorable and obedient young man to be the king of Israel.  He was out doing what his father had told him to do when Samuel the prophet found him.  God told Samuel that this was the man that He wanted anointed to be the king.  Imagine Saul’s thoughts as he thought about what he would tell his father when he arrived back home.  He was just an obedient son looking for his father’s lost donkeys when the prophet (or seer) of God told him that he would be the king!

Let's Reflect

1.  Saul’s father’s name was Kish.  What tribe of Israel were they from?

2.  What do the first two verses of the chapter tell us about Saul?

3.  Saul was instructed by his father to go and find his lost donkeys.  Who was he instructed to take with him?

4.  The young men were unsuccessful in finding the donkeys and so his servant came up with the idea that they should go and ask a certain man for help.  What man did they look for to help them learn where the donkeys were?

5.  They had been travelling for a couple of days because they were out of bread and therefore had no gift to offer the man.  What did the servant suggest they give the man as a gift?

6.  Samuel was walking toward Saul and the servant when God told him what?

7.  Samuel took the two young men in for the night and gave them food and a place to sleep.  Samuel told Saul what he had come to hear without even asking him.  Where were the donkeys?

8.  Samuel had the cook set aside a choice portion of meat for the one that God was going to bring before him.  This probably did not seem odd to Saul because he came from a family of wealth.  But the way that Samuel spoke to him seemed odd.  The next morning Samuel walked with Saul and asked him to send his servant on ahead.  What did Samuel say was his reason for detaining Saul?