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1 SAMUEL 10

PARAGRAPH DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

READING CYCLE THREE (see "Bible Interpretation Seminar")

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT THE PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects. Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

1. First paragraph
2. Second paragraph
3. Etc.

WORD AND PHRASE STUDY

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 10:1-8
  ¹Then Samuel took the flask of oil, poured it on his head, kissed him and said, "Has not the Lord anointed you a ruler over His inheritance? ²When you go from me today, then you will find two men close to Rachel's tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, 'The donkeys which you went to look for have been found. Now behold, your father has ceased to be concerned about the donkeys and is anxious for you, saying, "What shall I do about my son?"' ³Then you will go on further from there, and you will come as far as the oak of Tabor, and there three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a jug of wine; ⁴and they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from their hand. ⁵Afterward 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 before them, and they will be prophesying. ⁶Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you mightily, and you shall prophesy with them and be changed into another man. ⁷It shall be when these signs come to you, do for yourself what the occasion requires, for God is with you. ⁸And you shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice peace offerings. You shall wait seven days until I come to you and show you what you should do."

10:1 Notice the elements of this anointing.

1. a flask of oil (cf. Exod. 30:23-33; 1 Sam. 16:13; 2 Kgs. 9:3,6)
2. poured it on his head (for High Priest in Exod. 29:7; it is a symbol of giving the Spirit, cf. 1 Sam. 16:13; Isa. 44:3)
3. kissed him (i.e., sign of acceptance and affection; see NIDOTTE, vol. 3, pp. 196-197)
4. made pronouncement statement (i.e., in the form of a question that expects a "yes" answer)

SPECIAL TOPIC: "ANOINTING" IN THE BIBLE

▣ "ruler" See note at 1 Sam. 9:16.

▣ "His inheritance" Israel belonged to YHWH. He was the creator of the nation (cf. Deut. 32:9; 1 Kgs. 8:51,53; Ps. 78:71; Jer. 10:16). He created Israel for a purpose and a future (cf. Romans 9-11).

SPECIAL TOPIC: YHWH'S ETERNAL REDEMPTIVE PLAN

10:2-6 These verses describe a series of predictive signs which gave Saul confidence that YHWH had chosen him to be king.

1. two men near Rachel's tomb with a message (v. 2)
2. three men at the oak of Tabor with gifts (vv. 3-4)
3. meets a group of prophets at a specific hill (i.e., Gibeah) and joins them in prophesying (vv. 5-6)

Samuel mentions these signs specifically in vv. 7,9. Saul will know his new role (v. 7b) and he must wait for Samuel to give him guidance (v. 8).

10:2 "is anxious for you" Saul was worried about this very thing in 1 Sam. 9:5.

10:3 "the oak of Tabor" This special tree was located in the tribal allocation of Benjamin and has no geographical connection with Mount Tabor in the allocation of Issachar, Naphtali, Zebulun (cf. Josh. 19:12,22,34).

10:5 "a group of prophets" Originally prophets lived in groups apart from Israeli society.

SPECIAL TOPIC: PROPHECY (OT)

10:6 "the Spirit of the Lord" The NT revelation of three Divine persons is not clearly revealed in the OT. The Spirit is often imagery of YHWH's power being given and equipping someone to do His will.

1. Moses (Num. 11:25)
2. the seventy elders (Num. 11:25,29)
3. Eldad and Medad (Num. 11:26)
4. Balaam (Num. 24:2)
5. Othniel (Jdgs. 3:10)
6. Samson (Jdgs. 14:6)
7. Saul (1 Sam. 10:6,10; 11:6)
8. David (1 Sam. 16:13)

SPECIAL TOPIC: SPIRIT IN THE BIBLE

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE TRINITY

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE PERSONHOOD OF THE SPIRIT

▣ "he changed into another man" This phrase occurs only here.

1. It is a literary way of expressing the unusual event of Saul prophesying.
2. It is parallel to "God changed his heart" in 1 Sam. 10:9.

10:7 "for God is with you" In this context this phrase refers to the new king of Israel. It is used of

1. Isaac ‒ Gen. 26:3
2. Jacob ‒ Gen. 28:15; 31:3
3. Moses ‒ Exod. 3:12; 33:14
4. Joshua ‒ Deut. 3:6,8; Josh. 1:5; 5:7
5. Gideon ‒ Jdgs. 6:16
6. Saul ‒ 1 Sam. 10:6
7. Rehoboam ‒ 1 Kgs. 11:38

But it is also a universal truth about YHWH's presence and guidance in the lives of all faithful followers (i.e., Pro. 3:5-6).

10:8 "burnt offerings" See SPECIAL TOPIC: BURNT OFFERING.

▣ "peace offerings" See SPECIAL TOPIC: PEACE OFFERING.

▣ "seven" See SPECIAL TOPIC: SYMBOLIC NUMBERS IN SCRIPTURE, #4.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 10:9-13
  ⁹Then it happened when he turned his back to leave Samuel, God changed his heart; and all those signs came about on that day. ¹⁰When they came to the hill there, behold, a group of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him mightily, so that he prophesied among them. ¹¹It came about, when all who knew him previously saw that he prophesied now with the prophets, that the people said to one another, "What has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?" ¹²A man there said, "Now, who is their father?" Therefore it became a proverb: "Is Saul also among the prophets?" ¹³When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place.

10:9 "God changed his heart" Verses like this

1. affirm the life changing event of knowing YHWH personally
2. show how God equips His servants for their assigned tasks
3. illustrate the absolute necessity of the Spirit to bring about a change in fallen mankind (cf. John 6:44,65)
4. show how a new relationship with YHWH affects how one acts/lives (cf. 1 Sam. 10:11)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 10:14-16
  ¹⁴Now Saul's uncle said to him and his servant, "Where did you go?" And he said, "To look for the donkeys. When we saw that they could not be found, we went to Samuel." ¹⁵Saul's uncle said, "Please tell me what Samuel said to you." ¹⁶So Saul said to his uncle, "He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found." But he did not tell him about the matter of the kingdom which Samuel had mentioned.

10:14-16 Josephus (Antiq. 6.4.3) has added to the biblical account by naming the uncle (Abner) and adding, "whom indeed he loved better than the rest of his relations." Josephus also adds that the reason he did not tell Abner everything is because

1. it might cause envy
2. it would not be easily believed

10:16 "He told us plainly" This is an INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE and an IMPERFECT VERB of the same root (BDB 616, KB 665, Hiphil) to show intensity.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 10:17-19
  ¹⁷Thereafter Samuel called the people together to the Lord at Mizpah; ¹⁸and he said to the sons of Israel, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, 'I brought Israel up from Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the power of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.' ¹⁹But you have today rejected your God, who delivers you from all your calamities and your distresses; yet you have said, 'No, but set a king over us!' Now therefore, present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by your clans."

10:18 This verse is referring to both

1. the exodus
2. the conquest

10:19 "But you have today rejected your God" The "rejected" (BDB 549, KB 540, Qal PERFECT) refers to 1 Sam. 8:6,7, where Israel wants a king like the surrounding nations, thereby rejecting YHWH as their King.

The MT has "to him" (לו) but many later Hebrew texts and ancient versions emend it to "no" (לא).

The UBS Text Project, p. 166, gives "to him" a "B" rating (some doubt). Notice how the NKJV puts both options in the text.

The MT has "thousands." This Hebrew term (BDB 48) has several meanings.

SPECIAL TOPIC: THOUSAND (eleph)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 10:20-24
  ²⁰Thus Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. ²¹Then he brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its families, and the Matrite family was taken. And Saul the son of Kish was taken; but when they looked for him, he could not be found. ²²Therefore they inquired further of the Lord, "Has the man come here yet?" So the Lord said, "Behold, he is hiding himself by the baggage." ²³So they ran and took him from there, and when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. ²⁴Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see him whom the Lord has chosen? Surely there is no one like him among all the people." So all the people shouted and said, "Long live the king!"

10:20 "by lot" One wonders if this refers to the Urim and Thummim or another form of lots. It was a physical way to know YHWH's will. YHWH's will was known by

1. personal encounters (i.e., visions, dreams, physical events)
2. the High Priest's Urim and Thummim
3. later the word of a prophet

SPECIAL TOPIC: URIM AND THUMMIM

10:21 "Matrite" This family (BDB 565) appears no where else in the lineage of Saul or the clans of Benjamin. Its uniqueness speaks to its genuineness!

SPECIAL TOPIC: TEXTUAL CRITICISM

10:22 This could be interpreted in several ways.

1. Saul's humility (Josephus, Antiq. 6.4.5)
2. Saul's fear at YHWH's call

The MT has a NOUN (BDB 479) with a wide semantic field (article, utensil, vessel, weapon, musical instrument, furniture, pitcher). Josephus does not mention where Saul was hiding.

10:23-24 "he was taller" Israel wanted a large, powerful, handsome man to be king (cf. 1 Sam. 9:2 and 2 Sam. 14:25-26 for Absalom).

10:24 "the Lord has chosen" The VERB (BDB 103, KB 119, Qal PERFECT) denotes YHWH's will be expressed in human actions. In Scripture God's will is in a covenant relationship with His people's choices. Covenant links God's sovereignty and human free will.

SPECIAL TOPIC: HE CHOSE US

SPECIAL TOPIC: COVENANT

SPECIAL TOPIC: PREDESTINATION VS. HUMAN FREE WILL

SPECIAL TOPIC: ELECTION/PREDESTINATION AND THE NEED FOR A THEOLOGICAL BALANCE

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 10:25-27
  ²⁵Then Samuel told the people the ordinances of the kingdom, and wrote them in the book and placed it before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his house. ²⁶Saul also went to his house at Gibeah; and the valiant men whose hearts God had touched went with him. ²⁷But certain worthless men said, "How can this one deliver us?" And they despised him and did not bring him any present. But he kept silent.

10:25 "the ordinances of the kingdom" Some scholars think it refers specifically to the warnings and restrictions of Israel's king (cf. Deut. 17:14-20; 1 Sam. 8:11-18), but I think it may refer to some, if not all, of the revelations to Moses (cf. 1 Sam. 9:27).

The term "ordinances" (BDB 1048) means "judgments" and is used often in the Pentateuch.

SPECIAL TOPIC: TERMS FOR GOD'S REVELATIONS, #VI.

▣ "and wrote them in a book" A book that has been very helpful to me as I try to understand how oral cultures pass on their traditions is John Walton and D. Brent Sandy, The Lost World of Scripture.

▣ "and placed it before the Lord" This is also where Moses' writings were put (cf. Deut. 31:26). It shows their revelatory nature.

SPECIAL TOPIC: THE BIBLE (it's uniqueness and inspiration)

10:26-27 Notice the contrast between those who accept YHWH's revelation and those who do not.

1. "the valiant men whose hearts God touched"
   1. for "valiant" see note at 1 Sam. 9:1 (BDB 298)
   2. God had impacted them by Samuel's prophetic word
2. "certain worthless men" see note at 1 Sam. 2:12 (BDB 116). Josephus (Antiq. 6.4.6.) says the majority of the crowd was in the second group. See full note at 2 Sam. 20:1.

10:27 "But he kept silent" This could refer to

1. Saul
2. Samuel

The DSS and LXX connect this phrase with chapter 11.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.

1. Are there two accounts of Saul's anointing?
2. Why did Samuel give Saul so many signs?
3. What does the OT imagery of "the Spirit of the Lord coming upon someone" mean?
4. Does "Spirit" refer to the Third Person of the Trinity?
5. What does it mean, "YHWH changed his heart" (v. 9) and how is it related to "be changed into another man" (v. 6)?
6. Why was it so shocking for Saul to be among the prophets?
7. What does 1 Sam. 10:19 refer to?
8. What does "ordinances of the kingdom" in v. 25 refer to?

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