Saul started off very well only to see his subsequent actions of disobedience derail what could have been a God-honoring star government over the nation of Israel. How could someone so close to God at first lose control and fall out of favor with God? To understand how things got so mixed up in Saul’s life, we need to know something about the man himself. Who was King Saul and what can we learn from his life?
The name “Saul,” from the Hebrew word pronounced shaw-ool, means “asked.” Saul was the son of Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. Saul came from a wealthy family ( 1 Samuel 9:1 ) and was tall, dark, and handsome in appearance. The Scripture says that “there was not among the children of Israel a fairer man than he, being taller than any of the people from his shoulder above” (1 Samuel 9: 2). He was God’s chosen one to lead the scattered nation of Israel, a collection of tribes that had no central leader apart from God and no formal government. In times of trouble, leaders would rise up but never consolidate the power of the twelve tribes into a single nation. Years before Saul’s rule, the prophet Samuel was the religious leader of Israel, but not a king. In fact, Israel was ruled freely by judges who presided over domestic disputes (1 Samuel 8). However, they were not equipped to rule in times of war. It is no exaggeration to say that Samuel and Saul lived through turbulent times. The Philistines were sworn enemies of Israel, and war broke out between the two quite regularly (1 Samuel 4). Because of the constant threat of war and a desire to be like the surrounding nations, the people pressured Samuel to appoint a king to rule over them ( 1 Samuel 8:5 ).
Although the people’s request for a king displeased Samuel, God allowed it. The people had rejected God as king, abandoned him, and served other gods ( 1 Samuel 8:6–8 ). God told Samuel to anoint a king as the people had requested, but also to “warn them and show them the ways of the king who will reign over them” ( 1 Samuel 8:9 ). Therefore, Samuel’s task became to anoint a king from among the people. Saul was secretly anointed as the first king of all the tribes of Israel ( 1 Samuel 10:1 ) before being publicly selected by lot ( 1 Samuel 10:17–24 ).
Saul’s reign over Israel began peacefully around 1050 BC, but the peace did not last. One of the most famous events in Saul’s life was the confrontation with the Philistines in the Valley of Elah. Here Goliath taunted the Israelites for 40 days until he was killed by a shepherd boy named David (1 Samuel 17). Aside from that incident of fear and uncertainty, Saul was a competent military leader. He was good enough that his rule was solidified by his victory at Jabesh-Gilead. As part of his triumph, he was again proclaimed king at Gilgal (1 Samuel 11:1–15). He continued to lead the nation through several more military victories as his popularity reached its zenith. However, a series of very serious mistakes, beginning with an unauthorized sacrificial offering (1 Samuel 13:9–14), began Saul’s downfall from his reign. Saul’s downward spiral continued as he failed to eliminate all the Amalekites and his cattle as God commanded (1 Samuel 15:3). Ignoring a direct order from God, he decided to spare King Agag’s life along with some of the choice cattle. He tried to cover up his transgression by lying to Samuel and, in essence, lying to God (1 Samuel 15). This disobedience was the straw that broke the camel’s back, as God would withdraw His Spirit from Saul ( 1 Samuel 16:14 ). Arguably, the break between God and Saul is one of the saddest events in Scripture.
Although Saul would be allowed to serve the rest of his life as king, he was plagued by an evil spirit that tormented him and caused waves of madness (1 Samuel 16:14–23). Saul’s last years were deeply tragic, as he endured periods of deep manic depression. However, it was a young man brought to the king’s court named David who became the troubled king’s calming influence by playing music that temporarily restored the king’s sanity. The king embraced David as one of his own, but all this changed when David became an excellent military leader in his own right. In fact, a popular song of the time was “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands” (1 Samuel 18:7). When Saul realized that God was with David, the king sought to kill David at every opportunity. David managed to evade countless attempts on his life with the help of the king’s son, Jonathan, and the king’s daughter, Michal.
The last years of King Saul’s life brought a general decline in his service to the nation and in his personal fortune. He spent much time, energy, and expense trying to kill David instead of consolidating the gains from his earlier victories, and because of this, the Philistines felt that an opportunity was opening up for a great victory over Israel. After Samuel’s death, the Philistine army rallied against Israel. Saul was terrified and tried to consult the Lord, but received no answer through the Urim and the prophets. Although he had banished mediums and spiritists from the land, Saul disguised himself and consulted a medium at Endor. He asked her to contact Samuel. It seems that God intervened and caused Samuel to appear to Saul. Samuel reminded Saul of the earlier prophecy that the kingdom would be taken from him (1 Samuel 28). The Philistines, in fact, defeated Israel and killed Saul’s sons, including Jonathan. Saul was seriously wounded and asked his armor bearer to kill him so that the Philistines would not torture him. Out of fear, Saul’s armor bearer refused, so Saul fell on his own sword, followed by his armor bearer, who did the same.
There are three lessons we can learn from the life of King Saul. First, obey the Lord and seek to do his will. From the very beginning of his reign, Saul had the perfect opportunity to be the benchmark by which all future kings could be measured. All he had to do was seek the Lord with all his heart, obey God’s commandments, and align his will with God’s, and his rule would have honored God. However, like so many others, Saul chose a different path and turned away from God. We find a perfect example of his disobedience in the incident where God commanded him to kill all the Amalekites, but Saul kept the king and some of the spoils of war. Haman the Agagite, who would later seek to kill the Jews (see the book of Esther), was a descendant of the king whose life Saul spared. Saul compounded his problems by lying to Samuel about the incident. He claimed that the soldiers had saved the best of the animals to sacrifice to God (1 Samuel 15). This act, along with many others over the course of his rule, emphasized the fact that he could not be trusted as an instrument of God’s will.
The second lesson we learn is not to abuse the power that we have been given. There is no doubt that King Saul abused the power that God had entrusted to him. Pride often creeps into our hearts when people serve and honor us. Over time, receiving “star treatment” can make us believe that we really are something special and praiseworthy. When this happens, we forget that God is the one who is really in control and that only He rules over everything. God could have chosen Saul because he was humble, but over time that humility was replaced by selfish and destructive pride that destroyed his rule.
Another lesson for us is to lead the way God wants us to. First Peter 5:2–10 is the ultimate guide to leading the people God has placed in our charge: “Be shepherds of the flock of God that is under your care, serving as overseers, not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not having dominion over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Prince of Shepherds appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade. Young men, in the same way submit to the elders. Dress each other with humility, because ‘God opposes the proud, but he gives grace to the humble’. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in his due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares about you. He is self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that his brothers all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, he himself will restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast.” How differently Saul’s life would have turned out if he had obeyed these principles. King Saul would have had no shortage of wise counsel at his disposal. By ignoring God and his wise counsel, Saul allowed the spiritual health of his people to deteriorate further, alienating them from God. because you know that your brothers all over the world are going through the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, he himself will restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast.” How differently Saul’s life would have turned out if he had obeyed these principles. King Saul would have had no shortage of wise counsel at his disposal. By ignoring God and his wise counsel, Saul allowed the spiritual health of his people to deteriorate further, alienating them from God. because you know that your brothers all over the world are going through the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, he himself will restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast.” How differently Saul’s life would have turned out if he had obeyed these principles. King Saul would have had no shortage of wise counsel at his disposal. By ignoring God and his wise counsel, Saul allowed the spiritual health of his people to deteriorate further, alienating them from God. How differently Saul’s life would have turned out if he had obeyed these principles. King Saul would have had no shortage of wise counsel at his disposal. By ignoring God and his wise counsel, Saul allowed the spiritual health of his people to deteriorate further, alienating them from God. How differently Saul’s life would have turned out if he had obeyed these principles. King Saul would have had no shortage of wise advice to his…