1 Samuel 10:17-27

Saul Acclaimed by the People. 1 Samuel 10:17-27

17 And Samuel called the people together unto the Lord to Mizpeh;

18 And said unto the children of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all kingdoms, and of them that oppressed you:

19 And ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and your tribulations; and ye have said unto him, Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes, and by your thousands.

20 And when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was taken.
21 When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was taken, and Saul the son of Kish was taken: and when they sought him, he could not be found.
22 Therefore they inquired of the Lord further, if the man should yet come thither. And the Lord answered, Behold, he hath hid himself among the stuff.
23 And they ran and fetched him thence: and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward.
24 And Samuel said to all the people, See ye him whom the Lord hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted, and said, God save the king.

25 Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.

26 And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched.
27 But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.

13.

Where was Saul anointed a second time? 1 Samuel 10:17-27

Saul was anointed publicly at Mizpeh. It is quite appropriate that the anointing take place here, because it was at Mizpeh that the Israelites repented and defeated the Philistines. It was here also that the judges had met to make many decisions and to worship. Here at Mizpeh Saul was chosen by lot. First the tribe from among the twelve tribes was selected, then the family from within the selected tribe, the household within the family, and finally the man from within the household. God thus guided them in the selection. When Saul was singled out, he hid from the people because of his modesty. Had he only kept this attitude, his affairs would have had a different ending.

14.

Who was Matri? 1 Samuel 10:21

Matri is a Hebrew name meaning Rainy. He was evidently a Benjaminite and head of the family to which Saul, the king of Israel, belonged. The mention here is the only mention in the Scripture, but this would place him considerably earlier than 1020 B.C. The fact that he was so unimportant has caused his name to drop out of the genealogies. First Chronicles gives evidence that many of the genealogical lines may be incomplete. As has been generally concluded before, the genealogies in the Scriptures list only the important people in most cases.

15.

Why did Saul hide? 1 Samuel 10:22

Saul spoke very humbly of himself when he first met Samuel. He said that he was a member of the tribe of Benjamin, the smallest in all the land. He also said that his family was the least of all the families within this tribe (1 Samuel 9:21). The task of reigning over the people may have seemed overwhelming to him. In his humility he ran and hid. Without accusing Saul of mistrusting God, we can believe that he was not willing to step out and take God at His word. He need not trust in his own strength alone, and this reluctance must have been largely born out of humility.

16.

How could Samuel say that God had chosen Saul? 1 Samuel 10:24

God had told Samuel that He would send a man to him to be anointed king. God indicated that the man was Saul as he came to Samuel seeking information about his lost animals (1 Samuel 9:17). In this way God had chosen Saul and sent him to Samuel. The people were the ones who were anxious to have a king, yet God had chosen the man to fill the office. He met the qualifications given in the Law (Deuteronomy 17:14-20), and in addition he was bigger than any other man in all the land. He made a striking appearance and was a popular choice.

17.

What was the meaning of the shout? 1 Samuel 10:24

In the Authorized Version, the phrase is translated: God save the king. The American Standard Version has this: Long live the king. The literal meaning of the original language is as follows: Let the king live. It is typical English usage to make the phrase to be the equivalent of the idiom, God save the king. It is really a prayer that the king might enjoy long life and prosper as the leader of God's people. By this shout the people acclaim Saul as their ruler and pledge their allegiance to him.

18.

What opposition did Saul have? 1 Samuel 10:27

None seemed to oppose the monarchy on the grounds that it was against God's will. The people had rejected God's will. The people had rejected God, but in His mercy He led them to select and appoint an acceptable ruler. As in every major crowd, there were some who were unwilling to see Saul in the office of king. They are described as worthless fellows, sons of Belial. Satan was at work even in the early days of the monarchy. The fact that these evil men did not bring presents to Saul indicates that the other people did bring tokens of their love and esteem. Some of their presents may have been to support him through the critical years of the infancy of the monarchy.