1 Samuel - Introduction

INTRODUCTION

The books of 1 and 2 Samuel take their name from the last “judge” of ISRAEL. Samuel was also Israel’s first national PROPHET after MOSES (1 Samuel 9:6–9,19; Acts 3:24). Samuel’s most important achievement, however, was to establish Israel’s monarchy and to lead Israel during the transition between the rule of the judges and the rule of the kings.

The author of the books of 1 and 2 Samuel,¹ like the author of Joshua and Judges, remains unknown—though we know that the true Author was the HOLY SPIRIT. 1 Samuel deals with the history of Israel from the birth of Samuel in about 1100 B.C. to the death of Israel’s first king, Saul, in about 1000 B.C. Both 1 and 2 Samuel were written sometime after the death of King Solomon.

At the time Samuel was born, the nation of Israel had fallen into a very bad state, both politically and spiritually. After the successful conquest of Canaan under the leadership of Joshua, Israel then continued to be ruled by judges for the next three centuries. Repeatedly, however, the ISRAELITES disobeyed God and violated the COVENANT that had been made at Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:1–8), and which was later renewed by Moses on the plains of Moab (Deuteronomy 29:1–29) and by Joshua at Mount Ebal and at Shechem (Joshua 8:30–35; 24:127).

Because of their repeated disobedience, God punished the Israelites by allowing foreign nations to attack them. And by the beginning of 1 Samuel, one of those nations (the Philistines) was on the verge of destroying Israel altogether. The tribes of Israel were disunited and demoralized; anarchy reigned. . . . everyone did as he saw fit (Judges 21:25). Something had to be changed in Israel. And God used Samuel to change it.

The main change that needed to be made was moral and spiritual. Samuel reminded the people that if they were to enjoy God’s covenant blessings in the land He had given them, they would have to obey His covenant commands; otherwise, they would be punished (Leviticus Chapter 26). Israel’s disobedience was the sole reason that the nation had fallen so low.

The second change was one demanded by the Israelites themselves: they wanted a king like other nations had. There was nothing inherently wrong with their wanting a king: it was their reason for wanting a king that was wrong. They wanted a king to lead them and to fight their battles (1 Samuel 8:20). They forgot that the Lord was their true King and that He had been leading them and fighting their battles ever since Israel had become a nation. They simply didn’t believe that the Lord would keep doing this for them—even if they did obey His commands.

Eventually God gave Israel a king, King Saul, and Samuel anointed him. However, God remained the true King of Israel; Saul was to be His servant, His instrument. And Samuel, like Moses before him, was to act as God’s prophet and spokesman, and relay God’s instructions to Saul. In this way, Israel could have a human king and still remain obedient to God’s covenant.

Saul failed to follow God’s instructions and in the end was rejected. The last half of the book of 1 Samuel recounts the choosing of Saul’s successor, DAVID, and his long preparation for the throne. Whereas Saul had displeased God, David would become a man after [God’s] own heart (1 Samuel 13:14) and lead Israel into its greatest days as a nation.