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1 Samuel 9

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Introduction of Saul 1–2

1
Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Benjamite, a mighty man of valor. ​
2
And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a young man and a goodly: and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people. ​

The Search for Kish's Asses 3–5

3
And the asses of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son, Take now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses. ​
4
And he passed through the hill-country of Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalishah, but they found them not: then they passed through the land of Shaalim, and there they were not: and he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they found them not.
5
When they were come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant that was with him, Come, and let us return, lest my father leave off caring for the asses, and be anxious for us.

Saul and His Servant Seek the Seer 6–14

6
And he said unto him, Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is a man that is held in honor; all that he saith cometh surely to pass: now let us go thither; peradventure he can tell us concerning our journey whereon we go. ​
7
Then said Saul to his servant, But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God: what have we?
8
And the servant answered Saul again, and said, Behold, I have in my hand the fourth part of a shekel of silver: that will I give to the man of God, to tell us our way. ​
9
(Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, thus he said, Come, and let us go to the seer; for he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer.) ​
10
Then said Saul to his servant, Well said; come, let us go. So they went unto the city where the man of God was.
11
As they went up the ascent to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said unto them, Is the seer here?
12
And they answered them, and said, He is; behold, he is before thee: make haste now, for he is come to-day into the city; for the people have a sacrifice to-day in the high place. ​
13
As soon as ye are come into the city, ye shall straightway find him, before he goeth up to the high place to eat; for the people will not eat until he come, because he doth bless the sacrifice; and afterwards they eat that are bidden. Now therefore get you up; for at this time ye shall find him.
14
And they went up to the city; and as they came within the city, behold, Samuel came out toward them, to go up to the high place.

The Lord Reveals Saul's Coming to Samuel 15–17

15
Now Jehovah had revealed unto Samuel a day before Saul came, saying, ​
16
To-morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be prince over my people Israel; and he shall save my people out of the hand of the Philistines: for I have looked upon my people, because their cry is come unto me. ​
17
And when Samuel saw Saul, Jehovah said unto him, Behold, the man of whom I spake to thee! this same shall have authority over my people.

Saul Meets Samuel 18–24

18
Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer’s house is. ​
19
And Samuel answered Saul, and said, I am the seer; go up before me unto the high place, for ye shall eat with me to-day: and in the morning I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thy heart.
20
And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for thee, and for all thy father’s house? ​
21
And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou to me after this manner? ​
22
And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the guest-chamber, and made them sit in the chiefest place among them that were bidden, who were about thirty persons.
23
And Samuel said unto the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee, Set it by thee.
24
And the cook took up the thigh, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold, that which hath been reserved! set it before thee and eat; because unto the appointed time hath it been kept for thee, for I said, I have invited the people. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day. ​

Saul Is Anointed King Privately 25–27

25
And when they were come down from the high place into the city, he communed with Saul upon the housetop. ​
26
And they arose early: and it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called to Saul on the housetop, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad.
27
As they were going down at the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us (and he passed on), but stand thou still first, that I may cause thee to hear the word of God. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for 1 Samuel 9

Verse 1

a mighty man of power — Gibbor chayil, the phrase of Ruth 2:1 for Boaz, 'a mighty man of wealth': a man of strength and standing, and Kish is named with four generations of ancestors. He is 'a Benjamite', of the tribe that had been reduced to 'six hundred men' (Judg 20:47).

Verse 2

a choice young man, and a goodly — Saul's name is the passive of shaal, 'asked', the verb of 8:10, 'the people that asked of him a king'. His height 'from his shoulders and upward' is repeated at his presentation to the people (10:23). Later the LORD says, 'Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature' (16:7).

Verse 3

one of the servants with thee — The errand is an ordinary one, to look for the lost asses of Kish. The servant whom Saul takes becomes the one who names Samuel (v.6) and who holds the silver for him (v.8), so the way to the prophet is opened by the servant's counsel.

Verse 6

a man of God… an honourable man — 'Honourable' is kabad, the root of 'heavy' and of 'glory' (4:18, 21; 5:6). The servant's reason for trusting Samuel is that 'all that he saith cometh surely to pass', which matches 3:19, where the LORD 'did let none of his words fall to the ground'.

Verse 8

the fourth part of a shekel of silver — A small sum, offered 'to the man of God, to tell us our way'. Bringing a gift to a prophet appears also in 1 Kgs 14:3, where Jeroboam's wife is told to take 'ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey'. 'Our way' (derek) is the road to the lost asses; the answer Saul receives is far larger (vv.19–20).

Verse 9

the seer — The aside explains the title. A 'seer' (ro'eh, from the verb 'to see') was the older name for the one now called a 'Prophet' (navi). Samuel is called both, 'the seer' (vv.11, 18, 19) here and 'a prophet of the LORD' in 3:20, and 1 Chr 29:29 names 'Samuel the seer' beside 'Nathan the prophet'.

Verse 12

a sacrifice of the people to day in the high place — The bamah, 'high place', is where the town sacrifices. 1 Kgs 3:2 gives the reason such places were used: 'there was no house built unto the name of the LORD, until those days'. The people will not eat until Samuel comes, 'because he doth bless the sacrifice' (v.13).

Verse 15

the LORD had told Samuel in his ear — Literally 'had uncovered Samuel's ear' (galah, to uncover, with ozen, ear), the idiom Boaz used when he told the kinsman (Ruth 4:4). The revelation comes 'a day before Saul came', so Samuel is expecting him when he arrives.

Verse 16

to be captain over my people — The LORD's word is nagid, a leader or prince, rather than the people's 'king' (melek, 8:5). The ruler 'may save my people out of the hand of the Philistines', for 'their cry is come unto me', a line that echoes Ex 3:9, 'the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me', at the bondage in Egypt. Samuel anoints him nagid in 10:1.

Verse 18

Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate — Saul asks the seer himself where the seer's house is, without knowing him. The gate is the town's place of judging (Ruth 4:1), and Samuel answers in v.19, 'I am the seer'. Samuel then tells him 'all that is in thine heart' and bids him eat with him.

Verse 20

on whom is all the desire of Israel? — The 'desire' (chemdah) is the king Israel had asked for, as Samuel later says of him, 'the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have desired' (12:13). The found asses are set aside with the words 'set not thy mind on them', and Samuel's question turns to Saul and his father's house.

Verse 21

of the smallest of the tribes of Israel — Benjamin is 'little Benjamin' in Ps 68:27, and it had been reduced to 'six hundred men' (Judg 20:47). Saul adds that his family is 'the least of all', as Gideon said, 'my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house' (Judg 6:15).

Verse 24

the shoulder — Shoq, the leg or thigh, the right portion that the law gives the priest from the peace offerings (Lev 7:32–33). It is set before Saul, 'kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people', so the portion was set aside before he came, as the LORD had told Samuel (v.15).

Verse 25

upon the top of the house — The flat roof of the house, which the law required to have 'a battlement' (Deut 22:8). Samuel 'communed' (dabar, spoke) with Saul there after the meal on the high place. The text does not give what was said, and Samuel calls him up to the same roof at dawn (v.26).

Verse 27

that I may shew thee the word of God — The verb is shama, to hear, in the causing form, so literally 'that I may make thee hear the word of God'. It is the verb of ch. 8, where the people would not 'hear' Samuel's voice (8:19). The servant is sent on ahead so that the word is for Saul alone.