Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
1 Samuel 10:9-13
All The Signs That Samuel Gave Him Are Fulfilled (1 Samuel 10:9).
We now learn that all the signs promised were fulfilled. The only detail given is of the last one, bringing out how important it was.
‘ And it was so, that, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart, and all those signs came about that day.'
What God had promised came about. Each sign was fulfilled ‘that very day', and God gave Saul ‘another heart'. To Israelites the heart was the centre of a man's will, mind and emotions. To be given another heart meant that he was given new resolution and inner strength for the task that lay before him.
‘ And when they came there to the hill, behold, a band of prophets met him, and the Spirit of God came mightily on him, and he prophesied among them.'
As Samuel had told him, when he came to the hill (or ‘to Gibeah'?) the band of prophets met him and ‘the Spirit of God came mightily on him and he prophesied.' Note that where Samuel had spoken of the Spirit of YHWH the writer uses the term Spirit of God. He was emphasising that he was to go forward in heavenly power. The importance of this experience is demonstrated by the fact that the fulfilment is given in more detail and not just included with the other signs.
‘ And it came about that, when all who knew him previously saw that, “behold, he prophesies with the prophets”, then the people said one to another, “What is this that is come to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?” '
We know from what would one day happen to Jesus at Nazareth how important it was that ‘those who knew him previously' should be made aware that Saul had now become important in the purposes of God. And once they had seen him prophesying with the prophets they knew that something unusual had happened to him, and that it was connected with God. This made them ask themselves what it meant. Was Saul now also a Spirit-inspired man?
‘And one of the same place answered and said, “And who is their father?”
One of the wise among them supplied the answer. ‘Consider,' he said, ‘who the father of the prophets is.' He was probably here referring to Samuel. In other words he was saying, ‘this is the doing of the prophet Samuel. Samuel has incorporated Saul among the prophets for some special purpose.' Later events would illuminate them as to what that purpose was. Alternately ‘their father' may refer to God in which case he is saying, ‘This surely means that God has some special purpose for him'. Either way it was marking Saul out as a man of the Spirit. They could not see the enduement of power that had come on him, but they could see its manifestation in prophecy, and thus they now knew that he was set apart from among them.
‘Therefore it became a proverb, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” '
As these things will this eventually produced a proverb. In this case it was ‘ is Saul also among the prophets?' Presumably it came to be used whenever anyone was seen to be acting outside his usual way of life. It is used in a slightly different way in 1 Samuel 19:24.
And it is here that we expect to find some reference to Saul's visit to Gilgal as Samuel had instructed.
‘ And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the high place.'
Once Saul had finished prophesying he came to ‘the high place' (bamah). A high place in Samuel's time was one of the sites used as a Sanctuary. Thus this may be intended to indicate Saul's fulfilment of Samuel's requirement that he go to the Sanctuary at Gilgal once the signs have been fulfilled. Alternately it may simply mean that he continued on to the high place from which the prophets had descended (1 Samuel 10:5). Possibly in view of the vagueness of the statement (why is he seen as going to the high place without explanation?) we are to see both, the idea being that having prophesied he carried his dedication through to the end, both by a visit to the local high place, and then a visit to Gilgal as Samuel had said. For as the signs have been fulfilled we would actually at this stage have expected some reference to his visit to Gilgal to meet Samuel, possibly at one of the regular feasts.