Study Desk

Then Saul said to his servant, "But look, if we go, what shall we bring the man? For the bread is gone from our sacks and there is no gift to bring to the man of God. What do we have?"

"About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him as ruler over My people Israel; and he will save My people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have considered My people, because their outcry has come to Me."

When Samuel saw Saul, the LORD said to him, "Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! This one shall rule over My people."

And Samuel answered Saul and said, "I am the seer. Go up ahead of me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and in the morning I will let you go, and will tell you everything that is on your mind.

"Afterward you will come to the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is; and it shall be as soon as you have come there to the city, that you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and a lyre in front of them, and they will be prophesying.

"And it shall be when these signs come to you, do for yourself what the occasion requires, because God is with you.

"And you shall go down ahead of me to Gilgal; and behold, I will be coming down to you to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice peace offerings. You shall wait seven days until I come to you and inform you of what you should do."

He then took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout the territory of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying, "Whoever does not come out after Saul and after Samuel, the same shall be done to his oxen." Then the dread of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out as one person.

They said to the messengers who had come, "This is what you shall say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: 'Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you will be saved.'" So the messengers went and told the men of Jabesh; and they rejoiced.

Then the people said to Samuel, "Who is he that said, 'Shall Saul reign over us?' Bring the men, so that we may put them to death!"

But Saul said, "Not a single person shall be put to death this day, for today the LORD has brought about victory in Israel."

"But when you saw that Nahash the king of the sons of Ammon was coming against you, you said to me, 'No, but a king shall reign over us!' Yet the LORD your God was your king.

"But now your kingdom shall not endure. The LORD has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the LORD has appointed him ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the LORD commanded you."

"But if they say, 'Come up to us,' then we will go up, for the LORD has handed them over to us; and this shall be the sign to us."

So Saul inquired of God: "Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You hand them over to Israel?" But He did not answer him on that day.

"For as the LORD lives, who saves Israel, even if it is in my son Jonathan, he shall assuredly die!" But not one of all the people answered him.

Then he said to all Israel, "You shall be on one side, and I and my son Jonathan will be on the other side." And the people said to Saul, "Do what seems good to you."

And Saul said, "May God do the same to me and more also, for you shall certainly die, Jonathan!"

But the people said to Saul, "Must Jonathan die, he who has brought about this great victory in Israel? Far from it! As the LORD lives, not even a hair of his head shall fall to the ground, because he has worked with God this day." So the people rescued Jonathan and he did not die.

But Samuel said, "As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women." And Samuel cut Agag to pieces before the LORD at Gilgal.