Study Desk

The people of Ekron called all the Philistine rulers together and said to the rulers, "Send the Box of the God of Israel back home before it kills us and our people!" The people of Ekron were deathly afraid because God severely punished them there.

The priests and magicians answered, "If you send back the Holy Box of the God of Israel, don't send it away empty. You must offer gifts to the God of Israel. Then you will be healed. You must do this so that God will stop punishing you."

The Philistines asked, "What kind of gifts should we send for Israel's God to forgive us?" The priests and magicians answered, "There are five Philistine leaders, one leader for each city. All of you and your leaders had the same problems. So you must make five gold models to look like five tumors. And you must make five gold models to look like five mice.

So make models of the tumors and models of the mice that are ruining the country. Give these gold models to the God of Israel as payment. Then maybe the God of Israel will stop punishing you, your gods, and your land.

Don't be stubborn like Pharaoh and the Egyptians. God punished the Egyptians. That is why the Egyptians let the Israelites leave Egypt.

Put the Lord 's Holy Box on the wagon. You must put the golden models in the bag beside the Box. They are your gifts for God to forgive your sins. Send the wagon straight on its way.

Watch the wagon. If the wagon goes toward Beth Shemesh in Israel's own land, then it is their God who has given us this great sickness. But if the cows don't go straight to Beth Shemesh, we will know it was not their God who brought this sickness to us. It was just one of those things that sometimes happen."

and said to Samuel, "Don't stop praying to the Lord our God for us. Ask him to save us from the Philistines."

After this Samuel set up a special stone to help people remember what God did. Samuel put the stone between Mizpah and Shen and named the stone "Stone of Help." Samuel said, "The Lord helped us all the way to this place."

But the servant answered, "A man of God is in this town. People respect him. Everything he says comes true, so let's go into town. Maybe the man of God will tell us where we should go next."

Saul said to his servant, "Sure, we can go into town, but what can we give to him? We have no gift to give the man of God. Even the food in our bags is gone. What can we give him?"

Again the servant answered Saul. "Look, I have a little bit of money. Let's give it to the man of God. Then he will tell us where we should go."

Saul said to his servant, "That is a good idea. Let's go." So they went to the town where the man of God was. Saul and the servant were walking up the hill toward town when they met some young women on the road. The young women were coming out to get water. Saul and the servant asked the young women, "Is the seer here?" (In the past, people in Israel called a prophet a "seer." So if they wanted to ask something from God, they would say, "Let's go to the seer.")

Saul, his servant, and Samuel were walking together near the edge of town. Samuel said to Saul, "Tell your servant to go on ahead of us. I have a message for you from God." So the servant walked ahead of them.

Samuel said, "Then you will go until you come to the large oak tree at Tabor. Three men will meet you there. They will be on their way to worship God at Bethel. One man will be carrying three young goats. The second man will be carrying three loaves of bread. And the third man will have a leather bag full of wine.

After that happens, you can do whatever you choose to do, because God will be with you.

Just as Saul turned to leave Samuel, God turned Saul's life around. All these things happened that day.

Samuel told the Israelites, "The Lord , the God of Israel says, ‘I led Israel out of Egypt. I saved you from Egypt's control and from the other kingdoms that tried to hurt you.'

But today you have rejected your God. Your God saves you from all your troubles and problems. But you said, ‘No, we want a king to rule us.' Now come, stand before the Lord in your family groups and tribes."

Saul also went to his home in Gibeah. God touched the hearts of brave men who then began to follow Saul.