1 Samuel 11:5-7 - The Spirit of God came powerfully upon him

11:5

Saul arrived, oblivious to what was happening. Indeed, this seems to be a rather common state of affairs for Saul. Saul asked the people what was going on, and they relayed the message to them that had come from Jabesh-gilead.

11:6

On hearing the news “the Spirit of God suddenly took control of him, and his anger burned furiously”. Anger is not necessarily a bad emotion, but it is a potentially dangerous one. It is right to be angry at injustice, or when your people are in great danger. However, what starts out as righteous anger can very easily morph into unrighteous rage. So we have to be very careful. However, we see here that in this case it was the anger of the Lord that was manifesting in Saul.

11:7

In response Saul took a team of oxen and cut them up into pieces. These pieces were then sent throughout Israel to the various tribes. This action was reminiscent of the Levite and his concubine. The pieces of oxen were sent along with a message calling the people to arms to fight against the Ammonites, and a warning of what would happen if they failed to answer the call. Saul also sent the message in the name of “Saul and Samuel”, perhaps indicating a lack of confidence. The terror of the Lord fell upon the people, and they all responded.

1 Corinthians 4:10-13 - We are fools for Christ

4:10

Paul then goes back to sarcasm mode, contrasting himself (and Apollos) with how the Corinthians seemed to view themselves. Paul was thought of as a fool for Christ, while the Corinthians were seeking to be thought wise by the world. Paul was often weak, but the Corinthians thought of themselves as strong. Paul was dishonoured, but the Corinthians were honoured by the world.

4:11-13

There were times when Paul went hungry and thirsty. Sometimes he lived in rags, he had no permanent home, and was often treated brutally. Being an apostle was no bed of roses.Paul then points out that he works with his own hands. Paul worked as a tentmaker. The travelling speakers and philosophers of the day may have thought themselves above manual work.

Paul has pointed out some of the hardships he has endured, but how does he respond? When he is cursed, he blesses those who curse. When they are persecuted they bless. When slandered they answer kindly. Think how hard it is to do this? How easily our flesh wants to answer back. So far from being kings, the apostles have become the “scum of the earth, the garbage of the world”. If you want the world’s honour then being an apostle is the worst way to go about it.

1 Samuel 11:3,4 - Give us seven days

11:3

The people of Jabesh-gilead are, unsurprisingly, not too happy about this. So they ask to be allowed seven days, and then if no help arrives they will surrender. Somewhat surprisingly, Nahash agrees to this. However, we must remember that actually trying to take town, even with superior forces, is always a costly business. Again, we can look at the Gaza situation. Israel has vastly superior forces, but taking Gaza is no easy matter. So any way of avoiding a battle is desirable.

11:4

Saul was in Gibeah, and the messengers arrived there. Up to that point he was unaware of what was happening. Again, this should give us more eof an idea of what things were like. There was no centralised government such as we are used to today. The messengers told them what was happening in Jabesh-Gilead, and the threat they were under. On hearing this all the people wept aloud.

1 Corinthians 4:7-9 - Already you have all you want!

4:7

The Corinthians may also have considered themselves better than other cities or nations, but they were not. They were the same as everyone else, as are we. We have all sinned. The good things we have, we have received from God, we did not earn it. When we boast, we act as if the gift was earned.

4:8

Paul now writes sarcastically. The Corinthians thought they had it all, one might even say they were “living their best life now”! Paul mocks their hubris. Now one day we will reign with Christ, but only after He returns (you can replace this with a post-mil equivalent if you wish). Today we still struggle with sin, and we are in the day of salvation. This means that we share in Christ’s sufferings. Yes, we do receive blessings as well, but we also work with Christ.

4:9

Paul then describes what life is like as an Apostle. Now we must note that Paul is writing polemically or rhetorically here, so what he is saying is not the whole story, but it is an important part of it. Apostles were at the “top of the tree”, yet it seems as if God has placed them at the end of the procession. Paul is using the image of a successful general leading his captors in procession. Elsewhere Paul will use this analogy in terms of Christ’s victory, but here it seems as if he is one of the captives. It seems as if everyone is mocking them and that they are destined for death.

1 Samuel 11:1,2 - Make a treaty with us

11:1

We now have a third declaration of Saul as the king of Israel. First of all we had Samuel's private anointing of Saul. Then we had the public declaration following the casting of lots. Now Saul will be declared king on the basis of a military victory. The threat comes from Nahash the Ammonite. It may be significant that this is an Ammonite, not a Canaanite. The promise over Saul was that he would deliver them from the Canaanites. Nahash mean serpent, and some see an allusion to Gen 3:15. Anyway Nahash lays siege against Jabesh-gilead, and the people of this town are all too ready to surrender and serve the Ammonites.

11:2

We now see what a violent man Nahash was, and the nature of the times in which they lived. He agreed to make a treaty with them, but only on condition that they let him gouge out everyone's right eye, and so humiliate Israel. This was not only barbaric, but when we read of Israel defeating various peoples, we are not reading of them defeating nice quaint villages. To put this in a modern context, we may rightly be appalled at the death and destruction in Gaza, but we must also put in the context of what a barbarous mob Hamas and other Palestinian terrorists are.

1 Corinthians 4:5,6 - Judge nothing before the appointed time

4:5

“Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time”. It is only when Christ returns that we will know the true worth and effectiveness of anyone’s ministry. Christ will also “expose the motives of the heart”. This is a frightening thing! I doubt there are any of us who always have perfect motives. So what should we do? We serve in humility, constantly laying ourselves open before God, allowing Him to correct us where necessary. “At that time each will receive their praise from God”. Ultimately it is only the praise of God, not the praise of man, that is of any value. This does not mean we should not honour one another, indeed we are commanded to respect and honour our leaders who serve the Lord, but we desperately need a right perspective.

4:6

Although Paul has explained things in terms of Apollos and himself, he has done so as an exemplar, so that the Corinthians can see the general principles. Paul wants to ensure that they “do not go beyond what is written”. No one is absolutely sure what precisely Paul is referring to. Perhaps the most likely meaning is that it is referring to the OT Scriptures. They are to look at things in the light of what God has revealed through the Bible, they are not to add human measurements of glory on top of this. For when someone says they follow Paul or Apollos, they become proud, puffed up. How so? Because they are pleased with themselves for having made the “right choice”.

1 Samuel 10:20-27 - Long live the king!

10:20-22

So the process of choosing the king by lot is now embarked upon. First the tribe of Benjamin was chosen, then the clan of Marti was chosen, finally Saul was chosen. We should note again that the process of casting lots is being used. There are some who argue that God would not use random processes, or as Einstein said “God does not play dice”. These sort of arguments  are both unbiblical and naive, they display a distinct lack of understanding. Part of the Biblical argument that God may well use a “random process” is what is going on in this chapter. But mathematically algorithms involving random processes can be used to reach specific outcomes. 

However, while Saul was chosen, he was nowhere to be found. In response to this they inquired of the Lord, and He tells them that Saul is hiding among the baggage! Why did Saul do this? Was he afraid of taking on the responsibility? There has certainly been evidence of a number of character flaws in Saul.

10:23,24

So the people ran to find Saul and dragged him out. When they got him and he stopped hiding and stood up he was a head taller than everyone else. Samuel reaffirms that Saul is the one chosen by the Lord, and the people acclaim him as king saying “long live the King!”.

10:25-27

Samuel then explained to the people (including Saul) the rights and duties of the king. This was probably based largely on Deut 17:14-20. These requirements were then written down on a scroll. So both the king and the people knew how a king was supposed to act. The people then all went home. Saul also went home to Gibeah, joined by “valiant men whose hearts God had touched”. There were also “scoundrels” who despised the king. Saul, however, “kept silent”.