We saw no humbling, no sorrow, on Saul's part because of his disobedience; just a confession, hoping to escape punishment. and as he learned that that could not be, he pleaded with Samuel to honor him before the people. Samuel left him, to meet him no more before his death, but mourning over him.
Saul, however was rejected by God, and Samuel must cease mourning about him; instead, he was to seek out the man after God's own heart (chapter 13:14). Among the sons of Jesse was this one to be found. Is it not a principle of the Word of God, that the natural man shall first be tried and when he has failed, the man of faith is brought in? There are many such instances found in the Scriptures, and of them all, the greatest example is that of the Lord Jesus, the One from heaven, the last Adam.
It is interesting to note that Bethlehem where Jesus lived was only about six miles south of Jerusalem; it was where Rachel was buried (Gen. 35:1919And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. (Genesis 35:19)); where Boaz lived (Ruth 2:4,4And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers, The Lord be with you. And they answered him, The Lord bless thee. (Ruth 2:4) etc.), who was David's great-grandfather; and here eleven hundred years later, Jesus was born (Matt. 2:11Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, (Matthew 2:1) ) .
Faithful, God-honoring Samuel was mistaken in attempting to decide which son of Jesse was the Lord's anointed. Neither the position of Eliab as the eldest son, nor his "countenance," nor "the height of his stature" were concerned in God's choice; it was a question of his heart, that which God alone sees and estimates aright. Jesse and Samuel then may have supposed that the second son, Abinadab, must be the chosen one, but it was not he nor any of the rest of the seven whom Jesse had brought to meet Samuel.
There remained one son, so little in his father's thoughts as the one chosen of God, that he had not troubled to bring him in from shepherding the sheep. But as the stone which the builders refused was to be made the head stone of the corner (Psa. 117:22), referring to Christ, so, foreshadowing that, even the one little thought of—David—was to be the king of Israel.
And David must suffer before he reigns; another likeness to Christ. The Holy Spirit who had come upon Saul when he was made king, now left him, and came upon David. (This is not the indwelling of the Spirit, which never took place until Christ was crucified, raised and glorified). And an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. That the evil spirits are subject to God, is shown by the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments (see Job. 1; 1 Kings 22:2323Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee. (1 Kings 22:23); Matt. 8:1616When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: (Matthew 8:16); Mark 1:3131And he came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them. (Mark 1:31)).
The unhappy king of Israel had set a course for himself; "rebellion" and "stubbornness", and the rejection of the "word of the Lord" (chapter 15:23) marked him, and God had given him up in consequence to Satan. May we not believe this condition to be true in our own day with those to whom much has been given, and who have deliberately turned away from God, though professing His name?
Saul's servants suggested that someone be brought to play the harp before him, and this led to the future king's being as a servant in the house of Saul. This was not exactly like Moses in the court of Pharaoh, but of the same school of God for His children. It must have been humbling to David, but he had more and deeper training before him, ere he took his seat on the throne.