The Bible Book

114 THE PROPHET SAMUEL

the Israelites (1 Samuel 3:19–21).

After the capture of the Ark of the

Covenant , the people come to

Samuel in great distress as they

look for a solution. Samuel tells the

people to get rid of the idols they

are worshipping and return to

the true worship of God. The people

listen to Samuel, and the next time

the Israelites face the Philistines in

battle, the Israelites are victorious.

Samuel is hailed as Israel’s new

“judge,” to whom the people look

for leadership. However, while

Samuel is recognized as a prophet

and a judge, his sons, Joel and

Abijah, just like the sons of Eli,

prove to be impious and unsuitable

to lead God’s chosen people.

Samuel the kingmaker

As Samuel grows older, the tribal

leaders of Israel come to him and

ask him to appoint a king to lead

them, rather than passing the

mantle of leadership to his sons,

whom they see as weak. Samuel

is displeased with the request.

However, when he speaks with

God, He tells Samuel to listen to

the people, saying “it is not you

they have rejected, but they have

rejected me as their king” (8:7).

If the Israelites want to be just like

Samuel anoints Saul as the first

king of Israel by pouring oil over

Saul’s head in this undated engraving.

The ritual, described in 1 Samuel 10:1,

marked Saul’s receipt of God’s spirit.

all the other nations, He is willing

to let them try. Samuel relays God’s

response to the people, solemnly

warning them that a king is no

substitute for following God, but

they are adamant.

Samuel anoints Saul as Israel’s

first king, but Saul’s period of good

favor is short-lived. No sooner has

Samuel handed over the leadership

of Israel to King Saul, than Saul

fails to keep God’s commands,

and Samuel comes to him with

a rebuke: just like Eli and Samuel

himself, Saul’s own son would

not become ruler after his death.

Samuel’s last and greatest act

as prophet of God is to anoint a

new king, a “man after God’s own

heart” (1 Samuel 13:14). This new

king is David, the youngest son

of a sheep farmer.

“Does the Lord delight

in burnt offerings and

sacrifices as much as in

obeying the Lord?” To obey

is better than sacrifice.

1 Samuel 15:22

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THE HISTORICAL BOOKS 115

The Israelites

suffered

in Egypt.

The Israelites

asked for a king,

although God was

their true king.

God sent the

Israelites an

anointed king.

God sent Moses

and Aaron to lead

them out of Egypt.

The Israelites abandoned God to serve

the Baals and the Ashtoreths. They were

punished by being sold into the hands

of Sisera and the Philistines.

God sent Gideon, Barak, Jephthah,

and Samuel to deliver the

Israelites from their enemies.

The Israelites prayed to God for guidance and

forgiveness. Each time He answered their prayers.

Samuel is a central character

throughout this transitional time

for the Israelites. He has the unique

position of being the last of the

judges of Israel and the first of

Israel’s prophets. As a prophet of

God, he is first and foremost a

spiritual leader, and throughout his

ministry he repeatedly has to call

the Israelites back to the true

worship of God.

God’s mouthpiece

The role of the prophet will become

more important in the Israelites’

history, now that they have a royal

line. As Samuel himself has done,

the prophets will speak for God

directly to the people, and at times

even bring messages of judgment

on the kings. Although the

Israelites were now “like the other

nations” with a royal line, prophets

remind the people that they are

still different from these other

nations: they are the treasured

possession of God, who had rescued

them from slavery in Egypt and

led them to the Promised Land.

Samuel is God’s mouthpiece.

However, from his birth and early

years, he also demonstrates the

importance of listening for and

recognizing God’s voice. In the

Bible, God’s voice is often ignored,

or misheard, and the Israelites’

inability to stay faithful to the

laws given to Moses on Mount

Sinai is a constant theme. When

this happens, they inevitably pass

through difficult times. When God’s

words are recognized and obeyed,

God blesses the people.

Bringing the words of God to

Israel will never be an easy task,

since God often asks His people to

change the direction of their lives.

Samuel establishes the role of the

prophet as someone who listens

for God and who speaks what

they hear, regardless of the

consequences to themselves. ■

Theocracy to

monarchy

At the beginning of Samuel’s

story, Israel could be properly

called a “theocracy,” which

means it was a family of

tribes ruled (cratos) by God

(theos). God had taken the

Israelites out of Egypt and

given them laws to live by.

Whenever they needed His

intervention, God would raise

up an authoritative figure, or

“judge,” to unite them. In

theory, this meant the people

still viewed God as their king.

By the time of Samuel,

many Israelites wanted a more

stable leadership, and they

asked for a king to lead them.

However, they still faced

problems under a monarchy—

some kings led them well (like

David) while others led them

astray (like Ahab).

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