1 Samuel - Introduction

Introduction

1 and 2 Samuel cover the transition from the chaos of the Judges era to the era of the kings. It starts with the coming of Samuel the prophet, then the demand for a king. Saul initially seems like a good king, but very quickly turns bad. The most important point is the anointing of David as king, and then the conflict between Saul and David. David is in many ways a type of Christ, i.e. he exhibits some of the aspects of Christ, and one of the titles of the Messiah is Son of David. However, 2 Samuel in particular makes it all too clear that David is not the Messiah. His failings and sinfulness are brought to the fore.

The two books were originally a single volume in the Hebrew volume, and are part of the “former prophets”. The exact date of the composition of the books is not known. Some date them rather soon after David’s death. At the other extreme, others see them as put together after the exile and forming part of what is known as “Deuteronomic history”. They are almost certainly based on various sources, some of which would be more or less contemporaneous with the events described.

Samuel himself was a “judge” and  a prophet. He was mentored by Eli, Eli’s sons were disobedient, and Samuel’s own sons failed to follow their father’s ways (1 Sam 8:3). David had his own problems with his sons. The Son, of course, followed His Father perfectly.

I am working through 

Crossway Expository Commentary Volume 3: 1 Samuel-2 Chronicles (2019)

The commentary on 1 & 2 Samuel is by John L Mackay