Saul Case Study

1 Samuel 15

Situation: We are reminded at the beginning of this narrative that Saul was chosen by God and anointed king over Gods’ people (1). Samuel the prophet comes to Saul and commands the king to “heed the words of the LORD” (1); Saul is told to avenge the people of the LORD by attacking the Amalekites and utterly destroying all the people and the domesticated animals (3).

Bad Fruit: Saul turns his back on God (11), is disobedient (19) and unwilling to destroy all of Amalek as God commanded (9). Instead, he spares King Agag and the choicest animals (9). When confronted with his sin, Saul lies to Samuel saying he “performed the commandment of the LORD” (13; 20). Furthermore, he shifts the blame for his disobedience to the people and tries to justify his sin by saying they took the animals in order to make a sacrifice to God (15, 21). Through this, Saul remains unrepentant by not taking ownership of his sin (15, 20-21, 24-25, 30).

Bad Root: Samuel rebukes Saul for his pride, reminding him of a time when he was “little in [his] own eyes” (17). There is also evidence of the fear of man and lust for power: he tries to save his image in front of the people by still making the sacrifice (30). Samuel accuses him of being rebellious, stubborn, and idolatrous (23). Furthermore, his self-righteousness is shown in his attempts to atone for himself by worshipping God through the sacrifice of the animals from Amalek. Moreover, he never once acknowledges the LORD as his God (15, 21, 30).

Consequences: Saul is graciously rebuked by God through Samuel numerous times (14, 16-19, 22-23, 26, 28-29), but because of his hard-heartedness Saul is rejected by God as king (26), has the kingdom taken from him and given to another (28), is given over to the blindness of his own heart (still makes the sacrifice) (31), and, finally, is no longer visited by God through Samuel (35). In addition, Saul still did not kill Agag.

Cross: God reminds Saul that He anointed him and therefore He is his God (17). God graciously speaks to Saul through Samuel, giving him a time to repent (10, 17ff), confronting him directly with his sins (11), reminding him of the true nature of his sin, and dealing with his heart (22-3). Although He rejects Saul from being king (26), God continues to show mercy and would have allowed him to continue his rule, but finally seals Saul’s fate by tearing the kingdom from him (28). In the end, the LORD still shows mercy by not slaughtering him as Samuel did to Agag (33).

Good Root: In humble ownership of and repentance of his sin, Saul could acknowledge God as his Sovereign, accept the punishment for his sins, but plead on his LORD`s goodness and mercy to follow God`s leading from this point on, as he is still king.

Good Fruit: Living in humble subservience before God would allow for Saul to work on restoring Israel to true submissive worship of God from the heart, as well as a peaceable transition for the new king.

Consequence: In this way, Saul would lead people in the true ways of the LORD while demonstrating godly sorrow and exalting God`s justice, goodness, and grace.