Handout 22: Saul, Kish, Melech, Philistines, Saul as king, Thirty?thousand chariots, unrighteous dominion, share, melech, coulter, axe, mattock, goad, Valley of Elah, Amalekites, slings Emunah, anointed June 2014

Saul (Heb. Sha’ul = asked or prayed for). First king of a united Kingdom of Israel. Annointed by Samuel. (1079-1079 b.c. Died with 3 of his sons at Mt. Gilboa in battle against Philistines. His son-in-law became king.

Son of Kish, a Benjamite (bow, power) lived in Gibeah, a hilly area of Jerusalem. Tribe of Benjamin lived there.
Samuel’s sons not trustworthy. Samuel asked to appoint a king. Saul was caring for his father’s animals. Samuel received a vision that Saul was to be the king(1 Sam 9:16). There was a popular movement to establish a centralised military leader and monarchy. Samuel therefore assembled the people at Mizpah in Benjamin, and despite having strong reservations, which he made no attempt to hide, allowed the appointment of a king.

Melech = (מלך) means king or high counselor in Semitic culture.

The Philistines were menace to his power. Heavy fighting resulted in Saul’s victory. He fought against Moab, Ammon, Edom, kings of Zobah and Amalekites, where he was finally vanquished and took his life rather than surrender. The Ammonites, led by Nahash, laid siege to Jabesh-Gilead, which was forced to surrender. Terms of surrender: occupants forced into slavery, their right eyes removed as a sign. The city’s occupants sent out word of this to the other tribes of Israel, and the tribes west of the Jordan assembled an army under the leadership of Saul. Saul led army to victory against Ammonites. People congregated at Gilgal, and acclaimed Saul as king (11:15)

(1 Samuel 8:5;10:19). This may be indicative of the tension between what a certain faction of the people wanted, and a definite reluctance of certain leaders (e.g., the prophet Samuel) to break with the old tribal order. But Saul was finally crowned as “king” (melech) in Gilgal. (1 Samuel 11:14-12:2)

Even though Saul had been officially appointed king, the tribes seem still to have remained in their independent and self-governed state. Some even seem to have rejected Saul as king (1 Sam 11-12). At this critical time Saul was at his finest. He slew his oxen and sent the pieces thereof to every tribe to dramatize that this crisis called for a united Israel ( v. 7). He joined his authority with that of Samuel in the message. Under this leadership, the armies of Israel dealt a stunning defeat to the Ammonites, and Saul gave all credit to the Lord (v.13).

The victory provided the catalyst for uniting the tribes into one nation for the first time. So strong was the support for Saul that some suggested that those who had earlier questioned his right to rule be put to death. The Israelite people generally used the term “king,” because they wanted to be like the other nations. Samuel reminded the people that the Lord had always been just in His dealings with them and told them that they should likewise deal justly with one another. He then recalled the times when Israel had forgotten the Lord and experienced great calamity. He urged them to serve the Lord lest an even greater calamity overtake them.

Bible says that there were thirty thousand chariots, but this is likely an error in transcription. Likely correct figure is three thousand. Translation problems and exaggeration of later scribes who took it upon themselves to add to the record, thinking that they were adding to the glory of Israel.

The Prophet Joseph Smith said, “We have learned by sad experience that it is the nature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little authority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise unrighteous dominion” (D&C 121:39). It is true that this was a time of great crisis. The Philistines were amassed in great strength and the people were deserting from Saul’s army (see1 Samuel 13:6). When Samuel was late in coming, Saul took things into his own hands and offered the sacrifices. This action was a great sin.

Israelites did not know how to work with iron. The Philistines guarded the secret carefully to maintain superiority in weapons over the softer brass weapons of the Israelites. As a result, the Israelites did not have the superior chariots of iron, nor could they manufacture swords and spears of iron. The other instruments mentioned, “share,” “coulter,” “axe,” “mattock,” and “goad,” had to be taken to the Philistines for sharpening. A share was a metal instrument used to plough the ground, and a coulter was a small garden hoe used to loosen the earth and weed the soil. A mattock was an Egyptian hoe or grubbing axe, and a goad was a sharp rod about eight feet long used to prod stubborn animals.

The Amalekites were old Israelite enemies, and their punishment had long been foretold (see Exodus 17:8–16; Deuteronomy 25:17–19). Saul’s failure to carry out the word of God with exactness and honor caused the Lord to reject him as the king of Israel (see vv. 11, 26). (Note: The references to the Lord’s repenting [vv. 11, 35] were corrected by the Prophet Joseph Smith; see JST, 1 Samuel 15:29.) Saul’s excuse that he had saved the best to sacrifice was simply not acceptable, even if it were true. As Samuel said, “To obey is better than sacrifice. … For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry” (2 Samuel 15:22–23). The root of Saul’s problem is here revealed (see v. 17). Saul had been called because of his humility (“thou wast little in thine own sight”; v. 17); now he trusted in his own wisdom and did not look to God.

Saul’s repentance (see vv. 24–25) was too late and very short-lived. This second violation was essentially the same sin of disobedience he had been guilty of before (see 1 Samuel 13:8–14). Had Saul’s repentance been deep and sincere, the second incident would never have happened. As the Lord warned in modern times, “But unto that soul who sinneth [after the Lord has forgiven him] shall the former sins return” (D&C 82:7).

Evil spirits are not sent by God, nor does God give revelations through the evil spirits which sometimes trouble men. He cast these evil spirits out of heaven long ago for their rebellion against Him. The Joseph SmithTranslation corrects this passage to say, “An evil spirit which was not of the Lord troubled him” (JST, 1 Samuel 16:14). Recorded here are the first effects of Saul’s rejection of the Lord. More and more Saul failed to find peace with himself until at last he became a miserable, guilt-ridden man.

Descending from the hill country of Judah toward the Mediterranean Sea are numerous valleys or wadis. One of these is the Valley of Elah, in which David’s battle with Goliath occurred near Azekah in the Shephelah or low-lying hills (see 1 Samuel 17:1) almost directly west and a little south of Jerusalem.

In ancient times it was not unusual for opposing armies, which were generally quite small, to select one representative from each side to fight a personal contest. The outcome of that contest determined the winner of the battle. Compare this verse with 2 Samuel 2:12–17, in which is recorded a similar choosing of representatives to battle for each side.

According to 1 Sam 17:4-11, Goliath’s height was six cubits and a span. A cubit is about eighteen inches-the distance from the elbow to the tip of the extended middle finger. A span is said to be one-half the distance from the thumb to the end of the little finger when the fingers are spread as wide as possible. These measurements would make the height of Goliath approximately nine feet, nine inches! It is not too surprising that the Philistines would have picked such a champion or that no man in Israel wanted to be Saul’s champion. The ephah was a dry measure roughly equivalent to three fifths of a United States bushel, or about 22 liters.

It is commonly believed there were men in ancient times whose height far exceeded seven feet. There are references in the scriptures to giants in the earlier periods of history: in the time of Enoch (Moses 7:15), in the days of Noah (Moses 8:18; Genesis 6:4), and in the time of the Israelites (see Numbers 13:33; Deuteronomy 2:10–11; Joshua 15:8). Called Anakim (“long-necked” or “tall” in Hebrew) by the Israelites, this race of giants seems to have been virtually destroyed in the conquest of Canaan under Joshua (Joshua 11:21). In fact, it is recorded that none of the Anakim were left except in Gaza, Ashdod, and Gath (see Joshua 11:22), which was Goliath’s hometown (see 1 Samuel 17:4).

Slings were made from various materials commonly leather. Hair, wool, animal sinews, or rushes were used to make the pouch that held the stones. The pouch had strings attached on each side and was whirled until a certain speed was reached. When one string was released, the stone was hurled from the pouch toward its mark. Any variation from perfect roundness affected the accuracy of a stone. Uniform weight and size of the stones were also important. Anciently, slingers, particularly shepherds with time on their hands, developed great accuracy and skill in slinging stones. When not in use, the slings were carried by shepherds around their foreheads or waists.

Prayers and benedictions are prepared – to be followed, rather than be spoken from the heart. However, some of these benedictions still carry an admonition to go beyond the “do” to embrace “faith” (Emunah) in God. “They advise man not to put his trust in earthly rulers, but rather to have faith
in God.

After Saul, kingship was to become a spiritual exercise rather than using human comprehension. It resulted in finding, in obscurity, as a child and a shepherd, a king of the Lord’s choosing with the Lord’s spirit (who turned out to be the finest king Israel would ever have). That principle is still not really recognized in popular Judaism.

The term anointed is the word ‘Messiah’ in Hebrew. The Messiah would come from the Davidic line. David, being chosen by spirit rather than by man’s qualifications, is a model of recognizing the Messiah. However, the spiritual aspect is missing in Jewish expectation. “In traditional Judaism, the Messiah will be a human being — albeit a perfect one — who will come and bring harmony to the world. He will not have a divine aspect other than having been chosen by God for his task . . . The coming of the Messiah therefore has come to mean the redemption of the Jewish people and an end to its suffering and tribulations.”

Davidic Descendant: “Nathan prophesied that the dynasty of the House of David would last forever, and indeed, Jews today believe that the Messiah will be a direct descendant of David. One of the blessings which follows the reading of the Haftarah on the Sabbath and festivals proclaims: “Gladden us, O Lord our God . . . with the kingdom of the House of David thine anointed. Soon may he come and rejoice our hearts.”

David, who eventually became the finest and most revered king Israel had, was ordained a king in obscurity and kept his obvious God-given calling quiet until the proper time. His descendant, Jesus of Nazareth also came from obscurity and kept his holy calling unspoken until the proper time.

Read Marlena’s original stories on her new blog: https://levenesworld.blogspot.com

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