1 Samuel 10:5-22
The next place Saul came to was the hill of God, where was the garrison of the Philistines, and there at the city, a company of prophets met him with musical instruments. The Spirit of the Lord then came upon him and he prophesied with them. Samuel said, “And let it be, when these signs are come to thee, that thou do as occasion serve thee; for God is with thee.” To see the hill of God in the hands of the Philistines, the enemies of God’s people in the land, ought to have spoken to the heart of Saul. He was now chosen to be king over Israel to deliver God’s people from their enemies, and God was with him. Would he lay hold of this, or be carried away with the music and excitement? Alas, we find poor Saul, often victorious over other enemies, was utterly unable to overcome the Philistines. Indeed in the end he was overcome by them himself, and slain on the mountains of Gilboa. Is this not a lesson for us? We may be able to overcome enemies from without, but it requires a walk with God, self-judgment, and much patience, to overcome the enemy’s power within the assembly. These things were lacking with Saul, as we shall soon see. How often we fail in the same way; and act as natural men.
After prophesying with the others, Saul was to go to Gilgal and wait there for Samuel to come. There he was to offer sacrifices and Samuel would tell him what to do. Samuel was the link between God and the people, and in this he typifies to us the Lord, for whom we ought to wait in every circumstance. Gilgal, as we have noticed before, was the place of self-judgment, a painful work for the flesh, from which we naturally draw back. To wait there for seven days, (perfect patience, James 1:4) was too much for Saul as, alas, it often is for us, but the whole course of blessing to him depended on it. We cannot walk in communion with God apart from self-judgment.
Samuel then called all the people tether unto the Lord to Mizpeh. He reminded them of God’s faithfulness in bringing them up from the land of Egypt, and delivering them over and over again from the oppression of their enemies. He had never failed them when they had turned to Him, but now they had rejected Him and wanted a king to be like the nations about them. One fears we have often done this too. We do not like to be different for the Lord’s sake, and so we reject His Word, speaking plainly to us, to be like others about us. What a warning this ought to be to us! It is a solemn thing to notice here that when the people were stubborn and refused God’s warnings, He allowed them to have their own way. If we refuse His voice speaking to us, He may allow us to reap the fruit of our own ways and be filled with our own devices (Prov. 1:31). Many dear children of God have done this, as Israel did, and are still reaping today for their folly. Let us seek grace to always bring our wills into subjection to the Word of God. We cannot be wiser than He.
When all the tribes of Israel came to Samuel, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. Then all the families of Benjamin came, and Saul was chosen, but he had hidden himself among the stuff. He had been marked out before, but here he displayed a false humility, pretending he did not want the place of king. This sort of thing is usually seen in those who are most proud, but how empty it is before God. True humility will not make us unwilling to serve when the Lord calls.
ML 06/27/1954