The history of Saul shows how far one can go on with God and in favor of His people by an energy which after all is fleshly. The history shows how Saul was put to the test and how God was with him in a certain sense, for He gave him another heart—not conversion, of course—so that he became another man; and yet all that is brought out in result is, how far flesh can go in pursuing the objects of God and where it all ends! It is a very solemn account, but it is what is presented in the history of Saul. It shows how far the flesh can act even under the direction of God, which Saul did until his own will began to act, and then he could despise even Samuel himself.