Vers, 19-22. With such a description of the u right of the king" as this, Samuel had pointed out to the elders the dangers connected with a monarchy in so alarming a manner, that they ought to have been brought to reflection, and to have desisted from their demand. " But the people refused to hearken to the voice of Samuel." They repeated their demand, u We will have a king over us, that ive also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and conduct our battles." — Vers. 21, 22. These words of the people were laid by Samuel before the Lord, and the Lord commanded him to give the people a king. With this answer Samuel sent the men of Israel, i.e. the elders, away. This is implied in the words, " Go ye every man unto his city" since we may easily supply from the context, u till I shall call you again, to appoint you the king you desire."
When the Lord had instructed Samuel to appoint a king over the nation, in accordance with its own desire, He very speedily proceeded to show him the man whom He had chosen. Saul the Benjaminite came to Samuel, to consult him- as a seer about his father's she-asses, which had been lost, and for which he had been seeking in all directions in vain (ch. ix. 1-14). And the Lord had already revealed to the prophet the day before, that He would send him the man who had been set apart by Him as the king of Israel; and when Samuel met with Saul, He pointed him out as the man to whom He had referred (vers., 15-17). Accordingly, Samuel invited Saul to be his guest at a sacrificial meal, which he was about to celebrate (vers. 18-24). After the meal he made known to him the purpose of God, anointed him as king (vers. 25-27, ch. x. 1), and sent him away, with an announcement of three signs, which would serve to confirm his election on the part of God (ch. x. 2-16). This occurrence is related very circumstantially, to bring out distinctly the miraculous interposition of God, and to show that Saul did not aspire to the throne; and also that Samuel did not appoint of his own accord the man whom he was afterwards obliged to reject, but that Saul was elected by God to be king over His people, without any interference on the part of either Samuel or himself.1
Ch. ix. 1-10. Saul searches for his father's asses. — Vers. 1, 2. The elaborate genealogy of the Benjaminite Kish, and the minute description of the figure of his son Saul, are in-
1 There is no tenable ground for the assumption of Thenius and others, that (his account was derived from a different source from ch. viii., x. 17-27, and xi. sqq.; for the assertion that ch. x. 17-27 connects itself in the most natural way with ch. viii. is neither well-founded nor correct. In the first place, it was certainly more natural that Samuel, who was to place a king over the nation according \o the appointment of Cod, should be tended to indicate at the very outset the importance to which Saul attained in relation to the people of Israel. Kisli was the son of Abiel: this is in harmony with ch. xiv. 51. But when, on the other hand, it is stated in 1 Chron. viii. 33, ix. 39, that Ner Begat Kish, the difference may be reconciled in the simplest manner, on the assumption that the Ner mentioned there is not the father, but the grandfather, or a still more remote ancestor of Kishj as the intervening members are frequently passed over in the genealogies. The other ancestors of Kish are never mentioned again. TT} "H33 refers to Risk, and signifies not a brave man, but a man of property, as in Ruth ii. 1. This son Saul (i.e. " prayed for:" for this meaning of the word, comp. ch. i. 17, 27) was u young and beautiful" It is true that even at that time Saul had a son grown up (viz. Jonathan), according to ch. xiii. 2; but still, in contrast with his father, he was " a young man," i.e. in the full vigour of youth, probably about forty or forty-five years old. There is no necessity, therefore, to follow the Vulgate rendering electus. No one equalled him in beauty. " From his shoulder upwards he was higher than any of the people" Such a figure as this was well adapted to commend him to the people as their king (cf. ch. x. 24), since size and beauty were highly valued in rulers, as signs of manly strength (see Herod, iii. 20, vii. 187; Aristot. Polit. iv. c. 24). — Vers. 3-5. Having been sent out by his father to search for his she-asses which had strayed, Saul went with his servant through the mountains of Ephraim, which ran southwards into the tribe-territory of Benjamin (see at ch. i. 1), then through the land of Shalishah and the land of Shaalim, and after that through the land of Benjamin, without finding the asses; and at length, when he had reached the land of Zuph, he determined to return, because he was afraid that his father might turn his mind from the asses, and trouble himself about them (the son and servant), p 71 n? to desist from a thing, to give it up or renounce it.
made acquainted with the man whom God had appointed, before the people elected him by lot. And secondly, Saul's behaviour in hiding himself when the lots were cast (ch. x. 21 sqq.), can only be explained on the supposition that Samuel had already informed him that he was the appointed king; whereas, if this had not been the case, it would be altogether incomprehensible.
As Saul started in any case from Gibeah of Benjamin, his own home (ch. x. 10 sqq., 26, xi. 4, xv. 34, xxiii. 19, xxvi. 1), i.e. the present Tided el Phul, which was an hour or an hour and a half to the north of Jerusalem (see at Josh, xviii. 28), and went thence into the mountains of Ephraim, he no doubt took a north-westerly direction, so that he crossed the boundary of Benjamin somewhere between Bireh and Atarah, and passim: through the crest of the mountains of Ephraim, on the west of Gophnah (Jifna), came out into the land of Shalishah. Shalishah is unquestionably the country round (or of) Baal-shalishah (2 Kings iv. 42), which was situated, according to Eusebius (Onom. s.v. BatOaaptadO: Beth-sarisa or Beth-salisd), in regione Thamnitica, fifteen Roman miles to the north of Diospolis (Lydda), and was therefore probably the country to the west of Jiljilia, where three different wadys run into one large wady, called Kurawa; and according to the probable conjecture of Thenius, it was from this fact that the district received the name of Shalishah, or Three-land. They proceeded thence in their search to the land of Shaalim: according to the Onom. (s.v.), " a village seven miles off, in jinibus Eleutheropoleos contra occidentem." But this is hardly correct, and is most likely connected with the mistake made in transposing the town of Samuel to the neighbourhood of Diospolis (see at ch. i. 1). For since they went on from Shaalim into the land of Benjamin, and then still further into the land of Zuph, on the south-west of Benjamin, they probably turned eastwards from Shalishah, into the country where we find Beni Mussah and Beni Salem marked upon Robinson's and v. de Velde's maps, and where we must therefore look for the land of Shaalim, that they might proceed thence to explore the land of Benjamin from the northeast to the south-west. If, on the contrary, they had gone from Shaalim in a southerly or south-westerly direction, to the district of Eleutheropolis, they would only have entered the land of Benjamin at the south-west corner, and would have had to go all the way back again in order to go thence to the land of Zuph. For we may infer with certainty that the land of Zuph was on the south-west of the tribe-territory of Benjamin, from the fact that, according to ch. x. 2, Saul and his companion passed Rachel's tomb on their return thence to their own home, and then came to the border of
Benjamin. On the name Zuph, see at cli. i. 1. — Ver. 6. When Saul proposed to return home from the land of Zuph, his servant said to him, u Behold, in t/iis city (' this,'' referring to the town which stood in front of them upon a hill) is a man of God, much honoured; all that he saith cometh surely to pass: now we will go thither; perhaps he will tell us our way that we have to go" (lit. have gone, and still go, sc. to attain the object of our journey, viz. to find the asses). The name of this town is not mentioned either here or in the further course of this history. Nearly all the commentators suppose it to have been Raman, Samuel's home. But this assumption has no foundation at all in the text, and is irreconcilable with the statements respecting the return in ch. x. 2-5. The servant did not say there dwells in this city, but there is in this city (ver. G; comp. with this ver. 10, " They went into the city where the man of God was," not " dwelt"). It is still more evident, from the answer given by the drawers of water, when Saul asked them, u Is the seer here?" (ver. 11), — viz. u lie came to-day to the city, for the people have a great sacrifice upon the high place" (ver. 12), — that the seer (Samuel) did not live in the town, but had only come thither to a sacrificial festival. Moreover, " every
impartial man will admit, that the fact of Samuel's having honoured Saul as his guest at the sacrificial meal of those who participated in the sacrifice, and of their having slept under the same roof, cannot possibly weaken the impression that Samuel was only there in his peculiar and official capacity. It could not be otherwise than that the presidency should be assigned to him at the feast itself as priest and prophet, and therefore that the appointments mentioned should proceed from him. And it is but natural to assume that he had a house at his command for any repetition of such sacrifices, which we find from 2 Kings iv. to have been the case in the history of Elisha" (Valentiner).
And lastly, the sacrificial festival itself does not point to Eamah; for although Samuel had built an altar to the Lord at Ramah (ch. vii. 17), this was by no means the only place of sacrifice in the nation. If Samuel offered sacrifice at Mizpeh and Gilgal (ch. vii. 9, x. 8, xiii. 8 sqq.), he could also do the same at other places. What the town really was in which Saul met with him, cannot indeed be determined, since all that we can gather from ch. x. 2 is, that it was situated on the south-west of Bethlehem.
— Vers. 7-10. Saul's objection, that they had no present to bring to the man of God, as the bread was gone from their vessels, was met by the servant with the remark, that he had a quarter of a shekel which he would give. — Ver. 9. Before proceeding with the further progress of the affair, the historian introduces a notice, which was required to throw light upon what follows; namely, that beforetime, if any one wished to inquire of God, i.e. to apply to a prophet for counsel from God upon any matter, it was customary in Israel to say, We will go to the seer, because u he that is now called a prophet was beforetime called a seer." After this parenthetical remark, the account is continued in ver. 10. Saul declared himself satisfied with the answer of the servant; and they both went into the town, to ask the man of God about the asses that were lost.
Vers. 11-17. As they were going up to the high place of the town, they met maidens coming out of the town to draw water; and on asking them whether the seer was there, they received this answer: " Yes; behold, lie is before thee: make haste, now, for he has come into the town to-day; for the people have a sacrifice to-day upon the high place" Bamah (in the singular) does not mean the height or hill generally; but throughout it signifies the high place, as a place of sacrifice or prayer. — Ver. 13. " When ye come into the city, ye iv ill find him directly, before he goes up to the high place to eat." |3 not only introduces the apodosis, but corresponds to 3, as, so: here, however, it is used with reference to time, in the sense of our " immediately." " For the people are not accustomed to eat till he comes, for he blesses the sacrifice" etc. ^2, like evXoyelv, refers to the thanksgiving prayer offered before the sacrificial meal. " Go now for him; ye will meet him even to-day." The first ins is placed at the beginning for the sake of emphasis, and then repeated at the close. S\*n2y "Even to-day." — Ver. 14. AVhen they went into the town, Samuel met them on his way out to go to the high place of sacrifice. Before the meeting itself is described, the statement is introduced in vers. 15-17, that the day before Jehovah had foretold to Samuel that the man was coming to him whom he was to anoint as captain over his people. |TN r6jj to open any ones ear, equivalent to reveal something to him (ch. xx. 12; 2 Sam. vii. 27, etc.). np^S, I will send thee, i.e. u I will so direct his way in my overruling providence, that he shall come to thee" (J. H. Mich.). The words, " that he may save my people out of the hand of the Pliilistiues; for I have looked upon my people, for their cry is come unto me" are not at all at variance with ch. vii. 13. In that passage there is simply the assertion, that there was no more any permanent oppression on the part of the Philistines in the days of Samuel, such as had taken place before; but an attempt to recover their supremacy over Israel is not only not precluded, but is even indirectly affirmed (see the comm. on ch. vii. 13). The words before us simply show that the Philistines had then begun to make a fresh attempt to contend for dominion over the Israelites. " / have looked upon my people:" this is to be explained like the similar passage in Ex. ii. 25, " God looked upon the children of Israel," and Ex. iii. 7, " I have looked upon the misery of my people," God's looking was not a quiet, inactive looking on, but an energetic look, which brought help in trouble. " Their cry is come unto me:" this is word for word the same as in Ex. iii. 9. As the Philistines wanted to tread in the footsteps of the Egyptians, it was necessary that Jehovah should also send His people a deliverer from these new oppressors, by giving them a king. The reason here assigned for the establishment of a monarchy is by no means at variance with the displeasure which God had expressed to Samuel at the desire of the people for a king (ch. viii. 7 sqq.); since this displeasure had reference to the state of heart from which the desire had sprung. — Ver. 1 7. When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord answered him, sc. in reply to the tacit inquiry, ' Is this he?7 " Behold, this is the man of whom I spake to thee." "i^y, coercere imperio. Vers. 18-24. The thread of the narrative, which was broken off in ver. 15, is resumed in ver. 18. Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and asked him for the seer's house. The expression "W$n ^ina is used to define more precisely the general phrase in ver. 14, "Vyn Tpnn D^3; and there is no necessity to alter "IW in ver. 14 into "Wn, as Thenius proposes, for TPH Tj^nn Ni2 does not mean to go (or be) in the middle of the town, as he imagines, but to go into, or enter, the town; and the entrance to the town was through the gate. — Ver. 19. Samuel replied, " / am the seer: go up before me to the high place, and eat with me to-day; and to-morrow I will send thee away, and make known to thee all that is in thy heart." Letting a person go in front was a sign of great esteem. The change from the singular npy to the plural BrP3X may be explained on the ground that, whilst Samuel only spoke to Saul, he intended expressly to invite his servant to the meal as well as himself. " All that is in thine heart" does not mean " all that thou hast upon thy heart," i.e. all that troubles thee, for Samuel relieved him of all anxiety about the asses at once by telling him that they were found; but simply the thoughts of thy heart generally. Samuel would make these known to him, to prove to him that he was a prophet. He then first of all satisfied him respecting the asses (ver. 20): " As for the asses that were lost to thee to-day three days (three days ago), do not set thy heart upon them (i.e. do not trouble thyself about them), for they are found." After this quieting announcement, by which he had convinced Saul of his seer's gift, Samuel directed Saul's thoughts to that higher thing which Jehovah had appointed for him: u And to ichom does all that is worth desiring of Israel belong f is it not to thee, and to all thy father s houseV " The desire of Israel" {optima quo?que Israel, Yulg.; " the best in Israel," Luther) is not all that Israel desires, but all that Israel possesses of what is precious or ivorth desiring (see Hag. ii. 7). "The antithesis here is between the asses and every desirable thing " (Seb. Schmidt). Notwithstanding the indefinite character of the words, they held up such glorious things as in prospect for Saul, that he replied in amazement (ver. 21), "Am not I a Benjaminite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family is the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin ('.33 *B3B> is unquestionably a copyist's error for '32 B31P); and how speakest thou such a word to meV* Samuel made no reply to this, as he simply wanted first of all to awaken the expectation in Saul's mind of things that he had never dreamt of before. — Ver. 22. When they arrived at the high place, he conducted Saul and his servant into the cell (the apartment prepared for the sacrificial meal), and gave them (the servant as well as Saul, according to the simple customs of antiquity, as being also his guest) a place at the upper end among those who had been invited. There were about thirty persons present, no doubt the most distinguished men of the city, whilst the rest of the people probably encamped in the open air. — Vers. 23, 24. He then ordered the cook to bring the piece which he had directed him to set aside, and to place it before Saul, namely the leg and HvVn (the article in the place of the relative; see Ewald, § 331, b); i.e. not what was over it, viz. the broth poured upon it (Dathe and Maurer), but what was attached to it (Luther). The reference, however, is not to the kidney as the choicest portion (Thenius), for the kidneys were burned upon the altar in the case of all the slain sacrifices (Lev. iii. 4), and only the flesh of the animals offered in sacrifice was applied to the sacrificial meal. What was attached to the leg, therefore, can only have been such of the fat upon the flesh as was not intended for the altar. Whether the right or left leg, is not stated: the earlier commentators decide in favour of the left, because the right leg fell to the share of the priests (Lev. vii. 32 sqq.). But as Samuel conducted the whole of the sacrificial ceremony, he may also have offered the sacrifice itself by virtue of his prophetic calling, so that the right leg would fall to his share, and he might have it reserved for his guest. In any case, however, the leg, as the largest and best portion, was to be a piece of honour for Saul (see Gen. xliii. 34). There is no reason to seek for any further symbolical meaning in it. The fact that it was Samuel's intention to distinguish and honour Saul above all his other guests, is evident enough from what he said to Saul when the cook had brought the leg: " Behold, that which is reserved is set before thee (WW is the passive participle, as in Num. xxiv. 21); for unto this time hath it been kept for thee, as I said I have invited the people" ^W®? is either " to the appointed time of thy coming" or possibly, "for the (this) meeting together." Samuel mentions this to give Saul his guest to understand that he had foreseen his coming in a supernatural way. ~fo*?9 saying, i.e. as I said (to the cook).
Vers. 25-27. When the sacrificial meal was over, Samuel and Saul went down from the high place into the town, and he (Samuel) talked with him upon the roof (of the house into which Samuel had entered). The flat roofs of the East were used as places of retirement for private conversation (see at Deut. xxii. 8). This conversation did not refer of course to the call of Samuel to the royal dignity, for that was not made known to him as a word of Jehovah till the following day (ver. 27); but it was intended to prepare him for that announcement: so that O. v. Gerlach's conjecture is probably the correct one, viz. that Samuel " talked with Saul concerning the deep religious and political degradation of the people of God, the oppression of the heathen, the causes of the inability of the Israelites to stand against these foes, the necessity for a conversion of the people, and the want of a leader who was entirely devoted to the Lord." ' — Ver. 26. " And they rose up early in t-'i rw ocj/xxti Kttl bcotfAqihri, u they prepared Saul a bed upon the house, and lie slept,'' from which Clericus conjectured that these translators had read hs'J^ H^Tl (Vt3T1 or VG")sl); and Ewald and Thenius propose to alter the Hebrew text in this way. But although 'ui ID'SltPI (vcr- 26) no doubt presupposes that Saul had slept in Samuel's house, and in fact upon the roof, the remark of Thenius, " that the private conversation upon the roof (ver. 25) comes too early, as Saul did not yet know, and was not to learn till the following day, what was about to take place," does not supply any valid objection to the correctness of the Masoretic text, or any argument in favour of the Septuagint rendering or interpretation, since it rests upon an altogether unfounded and erroneous assumption, viz. that Samuel had talked with Saul about his call to the throne. Moreover, " the strangeness" of the statement in ver. 26, " they rose up early," and then " when the morning dawned, Samuel called," etc., cannot possibly throw any suspicion upon the integrity of the Hebrew text, as this "strangeness" vanishes when we take '"tfl flvJD Th as a more precise definition of }D*3Bkl. The Septuagint translators evidently held the same opinion as their modern defenders. They took offence at Samuel's private conversation with Saul, because he did not make known to him the word of God concerning his call to the throne till the next morning; and, on the other hand, as their rising the next morning is mentioned in ver. 26, they felt the absence of any allusion to their sleeping, and consequently not only interpreted "QT by a conjectural emendation as standing for "H"l\ because D^IDID "H"! is used in Prov. vii. 16 to signify the spreading of mats or carpets for a bed, but also identified 1BDC"1 with *QX"\ and rendered it iKoipviQy). At the same time, they did not reflect that the preparation of the bed and their sleeping during the night were both of them matters of course, and there was consequently no necessity to mention them; whereas Samuel's talking with Saul upon the roof was a matter of importance in relation to the whole affair, and one which could not be passed over in silence. Moreover, the correctness of the Hebrew text is confirmed by all the other ancient versions. Not only do the Chaldee, Syriae, and Arabic follow the Masoretic text, but Jerome does the same in the rendering adopted by him, uEt locutus est cum Saule in solario. Cumque mane surrexissent;" though the words ** stravitque Saul in solario et dormivit" have been interpolated probably from the Itala into the text of the Vulgate which has come down to us.
the morning: namely, when the morning dawn arose, Samuel called to Saul upon the roof (i.e. he called from below within the house up to the roof, where Saul was probably sleeping upon the balcony; cf. 2 Kings iv. 10), Get up, I will conduct thee." As soon as Saul had risen, u they both (both Samuel and Saul) went out (into the street)." And when they had gone down to the extremity of the town, Samuel said to Saul, " Let the servant pass on before us (and he did so), and do thou remain here for the present; I will show thee a word of God."
Ch. x. 1. Samuel then took the oil-flask, poured it upon his (Saul's) head, kissed him, and said, " Hath not Jehovah (equivalent to ' Jehovah assuredly hath') anointed thee to be captain over His inheritance tn ™?n9 as an expression of lively assurance, receives the force of an independent clause through the following *3, "is it not so f " i.e. u yea, it is so, that," etc., just as it does before EN in Gen. iv. 7. ^H^ His (Jehovah's) possession, was the nation of Israel, which Jehovah had acquired as the people of His own possession through their deliverance out of Egypt (Deut. iv. 20, ix. 26, etc.). Anointing with oil was a symbol of endowment with the Spirit of God; as the oil itself, by virtue of the strength which it gives to the vital spirits, was a symbol of the Spirit of God as the principle of divine and spiritual power (see at Lev. viii. 12). Hitherto there had been no other anointing among the people of God than that of the priests and sanctuary (Ex. xxx. 23 sqq.; Lev. viii. 10 sqq.). When Saul, therefore, was consecrated as king by anointing, the monarchy was inaugurated as a divine institution, standing on a par with the priesthood; through which henceforth the Lord would also bestow upon His people the gifts of His Spirit for the building up of His kingdom. As the priests were consecrated by anointing to be the media of the ethical blessings of divine grace for Israel, so the king was consecrated by anointing to be the vehicle and medium of all the blessings of grace which the Lord, as the God-king, would confer upon His people through the institution of a civil government. Through this anointing, which was performed by Samuel under the direction of God, the king was set apart from the rest of the nation as " anointed of the Lord " (cf. ch. xii. 3, 5, etc.), and sanctified as the "TO, i.e. its captain, its leader and commander. Kissing was probably not a sign of homage or reverence towards the anointed of the Lord, so much as u a kiss of affection, with which the grace of God itself was sealed" (Seb. Schmidt).1
Vers. 2—7. To confirm the consecration of Saul as kincr over Israel, which had been effected through the anointing, Samuel gave him three more sijms which would occur on his journey home, and would be a pledge to him that Jehovah would accompany his undertakings with His divine help, and practically accredit him as His anointed. These signs, therefore, stand in the closest relation to the calling conveyed to Saul through his anointing. — Ver. 2. The first sign: " When thou (/vest away from me to-day {i.e. now), thou wilt meet two men at RacheFs sepulchre, on the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they ■will say unto thee, The asses of thy father, which thou wentest to seek, are found. Behold, thy father hath given up nuhxn ''"O'nviK, the words (i.e. talking) about the asses, and troubleth himself about you, saying, What shall I do about my son? " According to Gen. xxxv. 16 sqq., Rachel's sepulchre was on the way from Bethel
1 The LXX. and Vulgate have expanded the second half of this verse by a considerable addition, which reads as follows in the LXX.: ovyji
\'j \u.Z) Kvpiov, xul av ouasig oci/rou Ik yf.ipog i-^&puv ociirov kvk~KoQvj, kxi tovto ooi to v/iusiov on 'ixpia'i at Kvptog lirl KT^npovopixv xvtcv tig oLp-^ovrct. And in the Vulgate: Ecce, unxit te Dominus super hxreditatem suam in principem, et liberabis populum suum de manibus inimicorum ejus, qui in circuitu ejus sunt. Et hoc tibi sif/num, quia unxit te Deus in principem. A comparison of these two texts will show that the LXX. interpolated their addition between l\\p7] and *3, as the last clause, ort 'ixpiv'i at Kvpiog W\ KXyipovo/utoa/ ccv-ou tig &PXOVTX, is a verbal translation of T:^> Srbnrbv nirT1 ^nc;E> *3- In the Vulgate, on the other hand, the first clause, ecce unxit — in principem, corresponds word for word with the Hebrew text, from which we may see that Jerome translated our present Hebrew text; and the addition, et liberabis, etc., was interpolated into the Vulgate from the Itala. The text of the Septuagint is nothing more than a gloss formed from ch. ix. 1G, 17, which the translator thought necessary, ] tartly because he could not clearly see the force of ^3 Si^n, but more especially because he could not explain the faet that Samuel speaks to Saul of signs, without having announeed them to him as such. lint the author of the gloss has overlooked the fact that Samuel does not give Saul a or^uov, but three ar,^ux, and describes the object of them in ver. 7 as being the following, namely, that Saul would learn when they took place what he had to do, for Jehovah was with him, and not that they would prove that the Lord had anointed him to be captain.
to Bethlehem, only a short distance from the latter place, and therefore undoubtedly on the spot which tradition has assigned to it since the time of Jerome, viz. on the site of the Kubbet Rahil, half an hour to the north-west of Bethlehem, on the left of the road to Jerusalem, about an hour and a half from the city (see at Gen. xxxv. 20). This suits the passage before us very well, if we give up the groundless assumption that Saul came to Samuel at Ramah and was anointed by him there, and assume that the place of meeting, which is not more fully defined in ch. ix., was situated to the south-west of Bethlehem.1 The expression "in the border of Benjamin" is not at variance with this. It is true that Kubbet Rahil is about an hour and a quarter from the southern boundary of Benjamin, which ran past the Rogel spring, through the valley of Ben-Hinnom (Josh, xviii. 16); but the expression ^2p Dy must not be so pressed as to be restricted to the actual site of the grave, since otherwise the further definition "at Zelzah" would be superfluous, as Rachel's tomb was unquestionably a well-known locality at that time. If we suppose the place called Zelzah, the situation of which has not yet been discovered,2 to have been about midway between Rachel's tomb and the Rogel spring, Samuel could very well describe the spot where Saul would meet the
1 As the account of Saul's meeting with Samuel, in ch. ix., when properly understood, is not at variance with the tradition concerning the situation of Rachel's tomb, and the passage before us neither requires us on the one hand to understand the Ephratah of Gen. xxxv. 19 and xlviii. 7 as a different place from Bethlehem, and erase " that is Bethlehem'''' from both passages as a gloss that has crept into the text, and then invent an Ephratah in the neighbourhood of Bethel between Benjamin and Ephraim, as Thenius does, nor warrants us on the other hand in transferring Rachel's tomb to the neighbourhood of Bethel, in opposition to the ordinary tradition, as Kurtz proposes 5 so the words of Jer. xxxi. 15, " A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children," etc., furnish no evidence that Rachel's tomb was at Ramah (i.e. er Ram). " For here (in the cycle of prophecy concerning the restoration of all Israel, Jer. xxx.-xxxiii.) Rachel's weeping is occasioned by the fact of the exiles of Benjamin having assembled together in Ramah (Jer. xl. 1), without there being any reason why Rachel's tomb should be sought for in the neighbourhood of this Ramah " (Delitzsch on Gen. xxxv. 20).
2 Ewald (Gesch. iii. p. 29) supposes Zelzah to be unsuitable to the context, if taken as the name of a place, and therefore follows the u^optuovg f&eya'hoc of the LXX., and renders the word " in great haste;" but he has neither given any reason why the name of a place is unsuitable here, nor two men in the way that he has done. This sign, by confirming the information which Samuel had given to Saul with reference to the asses, was to furnish him with a practical proof that what Samuel had said to him with regard to the monarchy would quite as certainly come to pass, and therefore not only to deliver him from all anxiety as to the lost animals of his father, but also to direct his thoughts to the higher destiny to which God had called him through Samuel's anointing.
The second sign (vers. 3, 4): " Then thou shalt go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the terebinth of Tabor; and there shall meet thee there three men going up to God to Bethel, carrying one three kids, one three loaves of bread, and one a bottle of wine. They will ask thee after thy welfare, and give thee two loaves; receive them at their hands." The terebinth of Tabor is not mentioned anywhere else, and nothing further can be determined concerning it, than that it stood by the road leading from Rachel's tomb to Gibeah.1 The fact that the three men were going up to God at Bethel, shows that there was still a place of sacrifice consecrated to the Lord at Bethel, where Abraham and Jacob had erected altars to the Lord who had appeared to them there (Gen. xii. 8, xiii. 3, 4, xxviii. 18, 19, xxxv. 7); for the kids and loaves and wine were sacrificial gifts which they were about to offer. Dw? PNC», to ask after one's welfare, i.e. to greet in a friendly manner (cf. Judg. xviii. 15; Gen. xliii. 27). The meaning of this double sign consisted in the fact that these men gave Saul two loaves from their sacrificial offerings. In this he was to considered that the Septuagint rendering is merely conjectural, and has nothing further to support it than the fact that the translators rendered r6v itpfaotTo, " he sprang upon him," in ver. 6 and ch. xi. C, and took rDPf to be an emphatic form of l"P¥-
1 The opinion expressed by Ewald and Thenius, that Deborah's mourning oak (Gen. xxxv. 8) is intended, and that Tabor is either a different form of Deborah, or that Tabor should be altered into Deborah, has no foundation to rest upon; for the fact that the oak referred to stood below (i.e. to the south of) Bethel, and the three men whom Saul was to meet at the terebinth of Tabor were going to Bethel, by no means establishes the identity of the two, as their going up to Bethel does not prove that they were already in the neighbourhood of Bethel. Moreover, the Deborah oak was on the north of Gibeah, whereas Saul met the three men between Rachel's tomb and Gibeah, i.e. to the south of Gibeah.
discern a homage paid to the anointed of the Lord; and he was therefore to accept the gift in this sense at their hand.
The third sign (vers. 5, 6) Saul was to receive at Gibeah of God, where posts of the Philistines were stationed. Gibeath ha-Elohim is not an appellative, signifying a high place of God, i.e. a high place dedicated to God, but a proper name referring to Gibeah of Benjamin, the native place of Saul, which was called Gibeah of Saul from the time when Saul resided there as king (ver. 16: cf. ch. xi. 4, xv. 34; 2 Sam. xxi. 6; Isa. x. 29). This is very apparent from the fact that, according to vers. 10 sqq., all the people of Gibeah had known Saul of old, and therefore could not comprehend how he had all at once come to be among the prophets. The name Gibeah of God is here given to the town on account of a bamah or sacrificial height which rose within or near the town (ver. 13), and which may possibly have been renowned above other such heights, as the seat of a society of prophets. U*T\vhb "Q^a are not bailiffs of the Philistines, still less columns erected as signs of their supremacy (Thenius), but military posts of the Philistines, as ch. xiii. 3, 4, and 2 Sam. viii. 6, 14, clearly show. The allusion here to the posts of the Philistines at Gibeah is connected with what was about to happen to Saul there. At the place where the Philistines, those severe oppressors of Israel, had set up military posts, the Spirit of God was to come upon Saul, and endow him with the divine power that was required for his regal office. " And it shall come to pass, when thou comest to the town there, thou wilt light upon a company of prophets coming down from the high place (bamah, the sacrificial height), before them lyre and tarnbourin, and flute, and harp, and they prophesying." PSn signifies a rope or cord, then a band or company of men. It does not follow that because this band of prophets was coming down from the high place, the high place at Gibeah must have been the seat of a school of the prophets. They might have been upon a pilgrimage to Gibeah. The fact that they were preceded by musicians playing, seems to indicate a festal procession. Nebel and kinnor are stringed instruments which were used after David's time in connection with the psalmody of divine worship (1 Chron. xiii. 8, xv. 20, 21; Ps. xxxiii. 2, xliii. 4, etc.). The nebel was an instrument resembling a lyre, the kinnor was more like a guitar than a harp. Toph: the tambourin, which was played by Miriam at the Red Sea (Ex. xv. 20). Chalil: the flute; see my Bibl. Archaeology, ii. § 137. By the prophesying of these prophets we are to understand an ecstatic utterance of religious feelings to the praise of God, as in the case of the seventy elders in the time of Moses (Num. xi. 25). Whether it took the form of a song or of an enthusiastic discourse, cannot be determined; in any case it was connected with a very energetic action indicative of the highest state of mental excitement. (For further remarks on these societies of prophets, see at ch. xix. 18 sqq.) — Ver. 6. u And the Spirit of Jehovah will come upon thee, and thou wilt prophesy with them, and be changed into another man" " Ecstatic states," says Tholuck (die Propheten, p. 53), " have something infectious about them. The excitement spreads involuntarily, as in the American revivals and the preaching mania in Sweden, even to persons in whose state of mind there is no affinity with anything of the kind." But in the instance before us there was something more than psychical infection. The Spirit of Jehovah, which manifested itself in the prophesying of the prophets, was to pass over to Saul, so that he would prophesy along with them (rrann formed like a verb rrt for riS3:nn; so again in ver. 13), and was entirely to transform him. This transformation is not to be regarded indeed as regeneration ill the Christian sense, but as a change resembling regeneration, which affected the entire disposition of mind, and by which Saul was lifted out of his former modes of thought and feeling, which were confined within a narrow earthly sphere, into the far higher sphere of his new royal calling, was filled with kingly thoughts in relation to the service of God, and received " another heart" (ver. 9). Heart is used in the ordinary scriptural sense, as the centre of the whole mental and psychical life of will, desire, thought, perception, and feeling (see Delitzsch, Bibl. Psychol, pp. 248 sqq., ed. 2). Through this sign his anointing as kino; was to be inwardlv sealed. — Ver. 7. " When these signs are come unto thee (the Kethibh?U*K3n is to be read "IJ^bljIj as in Ps. xlv. 16 and Esther iv. 4; and the Keri njxnn is a needless emendation), do to thee xchat thy hand findeth, i.e. act according to the circumstances (for this formula, see Judg. ix. 33); for (Jod will be ivith thee." The occurrence of the signs mentioned was to assure him of the certainty that
God would assist him in all that he undertook as king. The first opportunity for action was afforded him by the Ammonite Nahash, who besieged Jabesh-gilead (ch. xi.).
Ver. 8. In conclusion, Samuel gave him an important hint with regard to his future attitude: " And goest thou before me down to Gilgal; and, behold, I am coming down to thee, to offer burnt-offerings, and to sacrifice peace-offerings: thou shalt wait seven days, till I come to thee, that I may show thee what thou art to dor The infinitive clause 'til rripyn? is undoubtedly dependent upon the main clause WTVJ, and not upon the circumstantial clause which is introduced as a parenthesis. The thought therefore is the following: If Saul went down to Gilgal to offer sacrifice there, he was to wait till Samuel arrived. The construction of the main clause itself, however, is doubtful, since, grammatically considered, JjTHJ can either be a continuation of the imperative n^y (ver. 7), or can be regarded as independent, and in fact conditional. The latter view, according to which WTTJ supposes his going down as a possible thing that may take place at a future time, is the one required by the circumstantial clause which follows, and which is introduced by nam; for if flTW were intended to be a continuation of the imperative which precedes it, so that Samuel commanded Saul to go down to Gilgal before him, he would have simply announced his coming, that is to say, he wTould either have said WTTJ1 or TiK "^Nl. The circumstantial clause u and behold I am coming down to thee" evidently presupposes Saul's going down as a possible occurrence, in the event of which Samuel prescribes the course he is to pursue. But the conditional interpretation of fj*nj is still more decidedly required by the context. For instance, when Samuel said to Saul that after the occurrence of the three signs he was to do wrhat came to his hand, he could hardly command him immediately afterwards to go to Gilgal, since the performance of what came to his hand might prevent him from going to Gilgal. If, however, Samuel meant that after Saul had finished what came to his hand he was to go down to Gilgal, he would have said, " And after thou hast done this, go down to Gilgal," etc. But as he does not express himself in this manner, he can only have referred to Saul's going to Gilgal as an occurrence which, as he foresaw, would take place at some time or other. And to Saul himself this must not only have presented itself as a possible occurrence, but under the existing circumstances as one that was sure to take place; so that the whole thing was not so obscure to him as it is to us, who are only able to form our conclusions from the brief account which lies before us. If we suppose that in the conversation which Samuel had with Saul upon the roof (cli. ix. 25), he also spoke about the manner in which the Philistines, who had pushed their outposts as far as Gibeah, could be successfully attacked, he might also have mentioned that Gilgal was the most suitable place for gathering an army together, and for making the necessary preparations for a successful engagement with their foes. If we just glance at the events narrated in the following chapters, for the purpose of getting a clear idea of the thing which Samuel had in view; we find that the three signs announced by Samuel took place on Saul's return to Gibeah (vers. 9—16). Samuel then summoned the people to Mizpeh, where Saul was elected king by lot (vers. 17-27); but Saul returned to Gibeah to his own house even after this solemn election, and was engaged in ploughing the field, when messengers came from Jabesh with the account of the siege of that town by the Ammonites. On receiving this intelligence the Spirit of Jehovah came upon him, so that he summoned the whole nation with energy and without delay to come to battle, and proceeded to Jabesh with the assembled army, and smote the Ammonites (ch. xi. 1-11). Thereupon Samuel summoned the people to come to Gilgal and renew the monarchy there (ch. xi. 12—15); and at the same time he renewed his office of supreme judge (ch. xii.), so that now for the first time Saul actually commenced his reign, and began the war against the Philistines (ch. xiii. 1), in which, as soon as the latter advanced to Michmash with a powerful army after Jonathan's victorious engagement, he summoned the people to Gilgal to battle, and after waiting there seven days for Samuel in vain, had the sacrifices offered, on which account as soon as Samuel arrived he announced to him that his rule would not last (ch. xiii. 13 sqq.). Now, it cannot have been the first of these two gatherings at Gilgal that Samuel had in his mind, but must have been the second. The first is precluded by the simple fact that Samuel summoned the people to go to Gilgal for the purpose of renewing the monarchy; and therefore, as the words M come and let us go to Gilgal" (ch. xi. 14) unquestionably imply, he must have gone thither himself along with the people and the king, so that Saul was never in a position to have to wait for Samuel's arrival. The second occurrence at Gilgal, on the other hand, is clearly indicated in the words of ch. xiii. 8, u Saul tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed" in which there is almost an express allusion to the instructions given to Saul in the verse before us. But whilst we cannot but regard this as the only true explanation, we cannot agree with Seb. Schmidt, who looks upon the instructions given to Saul in this verse as " a rule to be observed throughout the whole of Samuel's life," that is to say, who interprets RTF in the sense of u as often as thou goest down to Gilgal." For this view cannot be grammatically sustained, although it is founded upon the correct idea, that Samuel's instructions cannot have been intended as a solitary and arbitrary command, by which Saul was to be kept in a condition of dependence. According to our explanation, however, this is not the case; but there was an inward necessity for them, so far as the government of Saul was concerned. Placed as he was by Jehovah as king over His people, for the purpose of rescuing them out of the power of those who were at that time its most dangerous foes, Saul was not at liberty to enter upon the war against these foes simply by his own will, but was directed to wait till Samuel, the accredited prophet of Jehovah, had completed the consecration through the offering of a solemn sacrifice, and had communicated to him the requisite instructions from God, even though he should have to wait for seven days.1
Vers. 9-16. When Saul went away from Samuel, to return to Gibeah, " God changed to him another heart" — a pregnant expression for " God changed him, and gave him another heart"
1 The difficulty in question has been solved on the whole quite correctly by Brentius. "It is not to be supposed," he says, uthat Samuel was directing Saul to go at once to Gilgal as soon as he should go away from him, and wait there for seven days; but that he was to do this after he had been chosen king by public lot, and having conquered the Ammonites and been confirmed in the kingdom, Was about to prepare to make war upon the Philistines, on whose account chiefly it was that he had been called to the kingdom. For the Lord had already spoken thus to Samuel concerning Saul: ' He will save my people from the hands of the Phili-
(see at ver. 6); and all these signs (the signs mentioned by Samuel) happened on that very day. As he left Samuel early in the morning, Saul could easily reach Gibeah in one day, even if the town where he had met with Samuel was situated to the south-west of Rachel's tomb, as the distance from that tomb to Gibeah was not more than three and a half or four hours. — Ver. 10. The third sign is the only one which is minutely described, because this caused a great sensation at Gibeah, Saul's home. " And they (Saul and his attendant) came thither to Gibeah" " Thither" points back to " thither to the city" in ver. 5, and is defined by the further expression "to Gibeah" (Eng. version, " to the hill:" Tk.). The rendering etcetOev (LXX.) does not warrant us in changing D^ into E^p; for the latter would be quite superfluous, as it was self-evident that they came to Gibeah from the place where they had been in the company of Samuel. — Ver. 11. When those who had known Saul of old saw that he prophesied with the prophets, the people said one to another, " What has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?" This expression presupposes that Saul's previous life was altogether different from that of the disciples of the prophets. — Ver. 12. And one from thence (i.e. from Gibeah, or from the crowd that was gathered round the prophets) answered, " And who is their father?" i.e. not " who is their president?" which would be a very gratuitous question; but, "is their father a prophet then?" i.e., according to the explanation given by Oehler (Herzog's Real. Enc. xii. p. 216), " have they the prophetic spirit by virtue of their birth? " Understood in this way, the retort forms a very appropriate " answer" to the expression of surprise and the inquiry, how it came to pass that Saul was among the prophets. If those prophets had not obtained the gift of prophecy by inheritance, but as a free gift of the Lord, it was equally possible for the Lord to communi- stines, because I have looked upon my people.' This is the meaning therefore of Samuel's command: Thou hast been called to the kingdom chiefly for this purpose, that thou mayest deliver Israel from the tyranny of the Philistines. When therefore thou shalt enter upon this work, go down into Gilgal and wait there seven days, until I shall come to thee: for thou shalt then offer a holocaust, though not before I come to thee, and I will show thee what must be done in order that our enemies the Philistines may be conquered. The account of this is given below in ch. xiii., where we learn that Saul violated this command."
cate the same gift to Saul. On the other hand, the alteration of the text from DrVOK (their father) into OTa* (his father), according to the LXX., Vulg., Syr., and Arab., which is favoured by Ewald, Thenius, and others, must be rejected, for the simple reason that the question, Who is his father? in the mouth of one of the inhabitants of Gibeah, to whom Saul's father was so well known that they called Saul the son of Kish at once, would have no sense whatever. From this the proverb arose, " Is Saul also among the prophets?" — a proverb which was used to express astonishment at the appearance of any man in a sphere of life which had hitherto been altogether strange to him. — Vers. 13 sqq. When Saul had left off prophesying, and came to Bamah, his uncle asked him and his attendant where they had been; and Saul told him, that as they had not found the asses anywhere, they had gone to Samuel, and had learned from him that the asses were found. But he did not relate the words which had been spoken by Samuel concerning the monarchy, from unambitious humility (cf. vers. 22, 23) and not because he was afraid of unbelief and envy, as Thenius follows Josephus in supposing. From the expression " he came to Bamah" (Eng. ver. " to the high place"), we must conclude, that not only Saul's uncle, but his father also, lived in Bamah, as we find Saul immediately afterwards in his own family circle (see vers. 14 sqq.).
Vers. 17-27. Saul's Election by Lot.— After Samuel had secretly anointed Saul king by the command of God, it was his duty to make provision for a recognition of the man whom God had chosen on the part of the people also. To this end he summoned the people to Mizpeh, and there instructed the tribes to choose a king by lot. As the result of the lot was regarded as a divine decision, not only was Saul to be accredited by this act in the sight of the whole nation as the king appointed by the Lord, hut he himself was also to be more fully assured of the certainty of his own election on the part of God.1 — Ver. 17.
1 Thenius follows De Wette, and adduces the incompatibility of ch. viii. and ch. x. 17-27 with ch. ix. 1-10, 1G, as a proof that in vers. 17-27 we
Eyn is the nation in its heads and representatives. Samuel selected Mizpeh for this purpose, because it was there that he had once before obtained for the people, by prayer, a great victory over the Philistines (ch. vii. 5 sqq.). — Vers. 18, 10. " But before proceeding to the election itself, Samuel once more charged the people with their sin in rejecting God, who had brought them out of Egypt, and delivered them out of the hand of all their oppressors, by their demand for a king, that he might show them how dangerous was the way which they were taking now, and how bitterly they would perhaps repent of what they had now desired" (O. v. Gerlach; see the commentary on ch. viii.). The masculine O^rpn is construed ad sensum with rriSPEftn. In v nptfWI the early translators have taken ft for fcO, which is the actual reading in some of the Codices. But although this reading is decidedly favoured by the parallel passages, ch. viii. 19, xii. 12, it is not necessary; since ^ is used to introduce a direct statement, even in a declaration of the opposite, in the sense of our " no but" (e.g. in Ruth i. 10, where ^7 precedes). There is, therefore, no reason for exchanging)b for &6. — Vers. 20, 21. After this warning, Samuel directed the assembled Israelites to come before Jehovah (i.e. before the altar of Jehovah which stood at Mizpeh, according to ch. vii. 9) according to their tribes and families (alaphim: see at Num. i. 16); " and there was taken (by lot) the tribe of Benjamin."
have a different account of the manner in which Saul became king from that given in ch. ix. 1-10, 16, and one which continues the account in ch. viii. 22. "It is thoroughly inconceivable," he says, " that Samuel should have first of all anointed Saul king by the instigation of God, and then have caused the lot to be cast, as it were, for the sake of further confirmation; for in that case either the prophet would have tempted God, or he would have made Him chargeable before the nation with an unworthy act of jugglery." Such an argument as this could only be used by critics who deny not only the inspiration of the prophets, but all influence on the part of the living God upon the free action of men, and cannot therefore render the truth of the biblical history at all doubtful. Even Ewald sees no discrepancy here, and observes in his history (Gesch. iii. p. 32): " If we bear in mind the ordinary use made of the sacred lot at that time, we shall find that there is nothing but the simple truth in the whole course of the narrative. The secret meeting of the seer with Saul was not sufficient to secure a complete and satisfactory recognition of him as king; it was also necessary that the Spirit of Jehovah should single him out publicly in a solemn assembly of the nation, and point him out as the man of Jehovah."
12?^ lit. to be snatched out by Jehovah, namely, through the lot (see Josh. vii. 14, 16). He then directed the tribe of Benjamin to draw near according to its families, i.e. he directed the heads of the families of this tribe to come before the altar of the Lord and draw lots; and the family of Matri was taken. Lastly, when the heads of the households in this family came, and after that the different individuals in the household which had been taken, the lot fell upon Saul the son of Kish. In the words, "Saul the son of Kish was taken" the historian proceeds at once to the final result of the casting of the lots, without describing the intermediate steps any further.1 When the lot fell upon Saul, they sought him, and he could not be found. — Ver. 22. Then they inquired of Jehovah, " Is any one else come hither f" and Jehovah replied, "Behold, he (whom ye are seeking) is hidden among the things." The inquiry was made through the high priest, by means of the Urim and Thummim, for which nJiT3 7Kt£> was the technical expression, according to Num. xxvii. 21 (see Judg. xx. 27, 28, i. 1, etc.). There can be no doubt, that in a gathering of the people for so important a purpose as the election of a king, the high priest would also be present, even though this is not expressly stated. Samuel presided over the meeting as the prophet of the Lord. The answer given by God, " Behold, he is hidden" etc., appears to have no relation to the question, " Is any one else come f" The Sept. and Vulg. have therefore altered the question into el en ep^erai 6 avijp, utrumnam venturus esset; and Thenius would adopt this
1 It is true the Septuagint introduces the words x.xl npoaayovai vhv (pvhYiu Mxrrxpl eig oivlpou; before 1D?S1, and this clause is also found in a very recent Hebrew MS. (viz. 451 in Kennicott's dissert, gener. p. 491). But it is very evident that these words did not form an integral part of the original text, as Thenius supposes, but were nothing more than an interpolation of the Sept. translators, from the simple fact that they do not fill up the supposed gap at all completely, but only in a very partial, and in fact a very mistaken manner; for the family of Matri could not come to the lot tig frjlpxg (man by man), but only xxr oi'x,ovg (by households: Josh. vii. 14). Before the household (beth-aboth, father's house) of Saul could be taken, it was necessary that the D'HSa (xu^psg), i.e. the dif- ferent heads of households, should be brought; and it was not till then that Kish, or his son Saul, could be singled out as the appointed of the Lord. Neither the author of the gloss in the LXX., nor the modern defender of the gloss, has thought of this.
as an emendation. But he is wrong in doing so; for there was no necessity to ask whether Saul would still come: they might at once have sent to fetch him. What they asked was rather, whether any one else had come besides those who were present, as Saul was not to be found among them, that they might know where they were to look for Saul, whether at home or anywhere else. And to this question God gave the answer, " He is present, only hidden among the things." By Dy3 (the tilings or vessels, Eng. ver. the stuff) we are to understand the travelling baggage of the people who had assembled at Mizpeh. Saul could neither have wished to avoid accepting the monarchy, nor have imagined that the lot would not fall upon him if he hid himself. For he knew that God had chosen him; and Samuel had anointed him already. He did it therefore simply from humility and modesty. " In order that he might not appear to have either the hope or desire for anything of the kind, he preferred to be absent when the lots were cast" (Seb. Schmidt). — Vers. 23, 24. He was speedily fetched, and brought into the midst of the (assembled) people; and when he came, he was a head taller than all the people (see ch. ix. 2). And Samuel said to all the people, " Behold ye whom the Lord hath chosen! for there is none like him in all the nation." Then all the people shouted aloud, and cried, " Let the king live!" Saul's bodily stature won the favour of the people (see the remarks on ch. ix. 2).
Samuel then communicated to the people the right of the monarchy, and laid it down before Jehovah. " The right of the monarchy" (meluchah) is not to be identified with the right of the king (melech), which is described in ch. viii. 11 and sets forth the right or prerogative which a despotic king would assume over the people; but it is the right which regulated the attitude of the earthly monarchy in the theocracy, and determined the duties and rights of the human king in relation to Jehovah the divine King on the one hand, and to the nation on the other. This right could only be laid down by a prophet like Samuel, to raise a wholesome barrier at the very outset against all excesses on the part of the king. Samuel therefore wrote it in a document which was laid down before Jehovah, i.e. in the sanctuary of Jehovah; though certainly not in the sanctuary at Bainah in Gibeah, as Thenius supposes, for nothing is known respecting any such sanctuary. It was no doubt placed in the tabernacle, where the law of Moses was also deposited, by the side of the fundamental law of the divine state in Israel. When the business was all completed, Samuel sent the people away to their own home. — Ver. 26. Saul also returned to his house at Gibeah, and there went with him the crowd of the men whose hearts God had touched, sc. to give him a royal escort, and show their readiness to serve him. ^nn is not to be altered into?\nn ^3, according to the free rendering of the LXX., but is used as in Ex. xiv. 28; with this difference, however, that here it does not signify a large military force, but a crowd of brave men, who formed Saul's escort of honour. — Ver. 27. But as it generally happens that, where a person is suddenly lifted up to exalted honours or office, there are sure to be envious people found, so was it here: there were sVyl ^2, worthless people, even among the assembled Israelites, who spoke disparagingly of Saul, saying, " How will this man help us f " and who brought him no present. Minchah: the present which from time immemorial every one has been expected to bring when entering the presence of the king; so that the refusal to bring a present was almost equivalent to rebellion. But Saul was " as being deaf" i.e. he acted as if he had not heard. The objection which Thenius brings against this view, viz. that in that case it would read 'D3 IT!! Nirn? exhibits a want of acquaintance with the Hebrew construction of a sentence. There is no more reason for touching W than O/J in ver. 26. I,n both cases the apodosis is attached to the protasis, which precedes it in the form of a circumstantial clause, by the imperfect, with vav consec. According to the genius of our language, these protases would be expressed by the conjunction when, viz.: 66 when Saul also went home,... there went with him," etc.; and " when loose (or idle) people said, etc., he was as deaf."
Ch. xi. Saul's Victory over the Ammonites. — Even after the election by lot at Mizpeh, Saul did not seize upon the reins of government at once, but returned to his fathers house in Gibeah, and to his former agricultural occupation; not, however, merely from personal humility and want of ambition, but rather from a correct estimate of the circumstances. The monarchy was something so new in Israel, that the king could not expect a general and voluntary recognition of his regal dignity and authority, especially after the conduct of the worthless people mentioned in ch. x. 27, until he had answered their expectations from a king (ch. viii/6, 20), and proved himself a deliverer of Israel from its foes by a victorious campaign. But as Jehovah had chosen him ruler over his people without any seeking on his part, he would wait for higher instructions to act, before he entered upon the government. The opportunity wras soon given him.
Vers. 1-5. Nahash, the king of the Ammonites (cf. ch. xii. 12; 2 Sam. x. 2), attacked the tribes on the east of the Jordan, no doubt with the intention of enforcing the claim to a part of Gilead asserted by his ancestor in the time of Jephthah (Judg. xi. 13), and besieged Jabesh in Gilead,1 — according to Josephus the metropolis of Gilead, and probably situated by the Wady Jabes (see at Judg. xxi. 8); from which we may
1 The time of this campaign is not mentioned in the Hebrew text. But it is very evident from ch. xii. 12, where the Israelites are said to have desired a king, when they saw that Nahash had come against them, that Nahash had invaded Gilead before the election of Saul as king. The Septuagint, however, renders the words £>nnEO TV) (ch. x. 27) by xxi lytv^h u; /atToc fiYjvoi, and therefore the translators must have read t^lhDlD, which Ewald and Thenius would adopt as an emendation of the Hebrew text. But all the other ancient versions give the Masoretic text, viz. not only the Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic, but even Jerome, who renders it ille vero dissimulabat se audi re. It is true that in our present Vulgate text these words are followed by et factum est quasi post mensem; but this addition has no doubt crept in from the Itala. With the general character of the Septuagint, the rendering of C'nn03 by u; ptrcc uiji/x is no conclusive proof that the word in their Hebrew Codex was l^*"lh03; it simply shows that this was the interpretation which they gave to COPIED. And Josephus (vi. 5, 1), who is also appealed to, simply establishes the fact that us uztoL ^voc stood in the Sept. version of his day, since he made use of this version and not of the original text. Moreover, we cannot say with Ewald, that this was the last place in which the time could be overlooked; for it is perfectly evident that Nahash commenced the siege of Jabesh shortly after the election of Saul at Mizpeh, as we may infer from the verb pj^i when taken in connection with the fact implied in eh. xii. 12, that he had commenced the war with the Israelites before this. And lastly, it is much more probable that the LXX. changed C-"nns:j into CHriES, than that the Hebrew readers of the Old Testament should have altered cnriED into tynriDS, without defining the time more precisely by "inx, or some other number.
see that he must have penetrated very far into the territory of the Israelites. The inhabitants of Jabesh petitioned the Ammonites in their distress, " Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee;" i.e. grant us favourable terms, and we will submit. — Yer. 2. But Nahash replied, u On this condition (DND, lit. at this price, 2 pretii) will I make a covenant with you, that I may put out all your right eyes, and so bring a reproach upon all Israel." From the fact that the infinitive *^P3 is continued with W^!, it is evident that the subject to "lip? is Nahash, and not the Israelites, as the Syriac, Arabic, and others have rendered it. The suffix to ^p'^ is neuter, and refers to the previous clause: " it," i.e. the putting out of the right eye. This answer on the part of Nahash shows unmistakeably that he sought to avenge upon the people of Israel the shame of the defeat which Jephthah had inflicted upon the Ammonites. — Ver. 3. The elders of Jabesh replied: "Leave us seven days, that we may send messengers into all the territory of Israel; and if there is no one who saves us, we will come out to thee," i.e. will surrender to thee. This request was granted by Nahash, because he was not in a condition to take the town at once by storm, and also probably because, in the state of internal dissolution into which Israel had fallen at that time, he had no expectation that any vigorous help would come to the inhabitants of Jabesh. From the fact that the messengers were to be sent into all the territory of Israel, we may conclude that the Israelites had no central government at that time, and that neither Nahash nor the Jabeshites had heard anything of the election that had taken place; and this is still more apparent from the fact that, according to ver. 4, their messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, and laid their business before the people generally, without applying at once to Saul. — Ver. 5. Saul indeed did not hear of the matter till he came (returned home) from the field behind the oxen, and found the people weeping and lamenting at these mournful tidings, "Behind the oxen," i.e., judging from the expression "yoke of oxen " in ver. 7, the pair of oxen with which he had been ploughing.
Vers. 6-11. When the report of the messengers had been communicated to him, " the Spirit of Jehovah came upon him, and his anger was kindled greatly," sc. at the shame which the
Ammonites had resolved to bring upon all Israel. — Ver. 7. He took a yoke of oxen, cut them in pieces, and sent (the pieces) into every possession of Israel by messengers, and said, " Whoever cometh not forth after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done unto his oxen? The introduction of Samuel's name after that of Saul, is a proof that Saul even as king still recognised the authority which Samuel possessed in Israel as the prophet of Jehovah. This symbolical act, like the cutting up of the woman in Judg. xix. 29, made a deep impression. " The fear of Jehovah fell upon the people, so that they went out as one man" By " the fear of Jehovah " we are not to understand Setfia Travucov (Thenius and Bottcher), for Jehovah is not equivalent to Elohim, nor the fear of Jehovah in the sense of fear of His punishment, but a fear inspired by Jehovah. In Saul's energetic appeal the people discerned the power of Jehovah, which inspired them with fear, and impelled them to immediate obedience. — Ver. 8. Saul held a muster of the people of war, who had gathered together at (or near) Bezek, a place which was situated, according to the Onom. (s. v. Bezeh), about seven hours to the north of Nabulus towards Beisan (see at Judg. i. 4). The number assembled were 300,000 men of Israel, and 30,000 of Judah. These numbers will not appear too large, if we bear in mind that the allusion is not to a regular army, but that Saul had summoned all the people to a general levy. In the distinction drawn between the children of Judah and the children of Israel we may already discern a trace of that separation of Judah from the rest of the tribes, which eventually led to a formal secession on the part of the latter.— Ver. 9. The messengers from Jabesh, who had been waiting to see the result of Saul's appeal, were now despatched with this message to their fellow-citizens: u To-morrow vou will have help, when the sun shines hot" i.e. about noon. — Ver. 10. After receiving these joyful news, the Jabeshites announced to the Ammonites: u To-morrow we will come out to you, and ye may do to us wliat seemeth good, to you," — an untruth by which they hoped to assure the besiegers, so that they might be fallen upon unexpectedly by the advancing army of Saul, and thoroughly n. — Ver. 11. The next day Saul arranged the people in three divisions (E^'N"), as in Judg. vii. 16), who forced their way into the camp of the foe from three different sides, in the morning watch (between three and six o'clock in the morning), smote the Ammonites " till the heat of the day" and routed them so completely, that those who remained were all scattered, and there were not two men left together.
Vers. 12-15. Renewal of the Monarchy. — Saul had so thoroughly acted the part of a king in gaining this victory, and the people were so enthusiastic in his favour, that they said to Samuel, viz. after their return from the battle, " Who is he that said, Saul should reign over us! " The clause ttvj ^p\ ^KB> contains a question, though it is indicated simply by the tone, and there is no necessity to alter T^W into 7iN£>n. These words refer to the exclamation of the worthless people in ch. x. 27. " Bring the men (who spoke in this manner), that ice may put them to death." But Saul said, " There shall not a man be put to death this day; for to-day Jehovah hath wrought salvation in Israel;" and proved thereby not only his magnanimity, but also his genuine piety.1 — Yer. 14. Samuel turned this victory to account, by calling upon the people to go with him to Gilgal, and there renew the monarchy. In what the renewal consisted is not clearly stated; but it is simply recorded in ver. 15 that " they (the whole people) made Saul king there before the Lord in Gilgal," Many commentators have supposed that he was anointed afresh, and appeal to David's second anointing (2 Sam. ii. 4 and v. 3). But David's example merely proves, as Seb. Schmidt has correctly observed, that the anointing could be repeated under certain circumstances; but it does not prove that it was repeated, or must have been repeated, in the case of Saul. If the ceremony of anointing had been performed, it would no doubt have been mentioned, just as it is in 2 Sam. ii. 4 and v. 3. But wDJ does not mean " they anointed," although the LXX. have rendered it e^pcae Xaixovrj\ according to their own subjective interpretation. The renewal of the monarchy may very well have consisted in nothing more than
1 " Not only signifying that the public rejoicing should not be interrupted, but reminding them of the clemency of God, and urging that since Jehovah had shown such clemency upon that day, that He had overlooked their sins, and given them a glorious victory, it was only right that they should follow His example, and forgive their neighbours' sins without bloodshed." — Scb. Schmidt.
a solemn confirmation of the election that had taken place at Mizpeh, in which Samuel once more laid before both king and people the right of the monarchy, receiving from both parties in the presence of the Lord the promise to observe this right, and sealing the vow by a solemn sacrifice. The only sacrifices mentioned are zebachim sJielamim, i.e. peace-offerings. These were thank-offerings, which were always connected with a sacrificial meal, and when presented on joyous occasions, formed a feast of rejoicing for those who took part, since the sacrificial meal shadowed forth a living and peaceful fellowship with the Lord. Gilgal is in all probability the place where Samuel judged the people every year (ch. vii. 16). But whether it was the Gilgal in the plain of the Jordan, or Jiljilia on higher ground to the south-west of Shiloh, it is by no means easy to determine. The latter is favoured, apart from the fact that Samuel did not say " Let us go down," but simply " Let us go " (cf. ch. x. 8), by the circumstance that the solemn ceremony took place after the return from the war at Jabesh; since it is hardly likely that the people would have gone down into the valley of the Jordan to Gilgal, whereas Jiljilia was close by the road from Jabesh to Gibeah and Kamah.
Samuel's address at the renewal of the monarchy. —
Samuel closed this solemn confirmation of Saul as king with an address to all Israel, in which he handed over the office of judge, which he had hitherto filled, to the king, who had been appointed by God and joyfully recognised by the people. The good, however, which Israel expected from the king depended entirely upon both the people and their king maintaining that proper attitude towards the Lord with which the prosperity of Israel was ever connected. This truth the prophet felt impelled to impress most earnestly upon the hearts of all the people on this occasion. To this end he reminded them, that neither he himself, in the administration of his office, nor the Lord in His guidance of Israel thus far, had given the people any reason for asking a king when the Ammonites invaded the land (vers. 1-12). Nevertheless the Lord had given them a king, and would not withdraw His hand from them, if they would only fear Him and confess their sin (vers. 13-15). This address was then confirmed by the Lord at SamuePs desire, through a miraculous sign (vers. 16-18); whereupon Samuel gave to the people, who were terrified by the miracle and acknowledged their sin, the comforting promise that the Lord would not forsake His people for His great name's sake, and then closed his address with the assurance of his continued intercession, and a renewed appeal to them to serve the Lord with faithfulness (vers. 19-25). With this address Samuel laid down his office as judge, but without therefore ceasing as prophet to represent the people before God, and to maintain the rights of God in relation to the king. In this capacity he continued to support the king with his advice, until he was compelled to announce his rejection on account of his repeated rebellion against the commands of the Lord, and to anoint David as his successor.
Vers. 1-G. The time and place of the following address are not given. But it is evident from the connection with the preceding chapter implied in the expression nD&f*1j and still more from the introduction (vers. 1, 2) and the entire contents of the address, that it was delivered on the renewal of the monarchy at Gilgal. — Vers. 1, 2. Samuel starts with the fact, that he had given the people a king in accordance with their own desire, who would now walk before them, nan with the participle expresses what is happening, and will happen still. "SB? ^L11?"? must not be restricted to going at the head in war, but signifies the general direction and government of the nation, which had been in the hands of Samuel as judge before the election of Saul as king. u And I have grown old and grey (^?&? from 3^); and my so?is, behold, they are with you" With this allusion to his sons, Samuel simply intended to confirm what he had said about his own age. By the further remark, u and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day" he prepares the way for the following appeal to the people to bear witness concerning his conduct in office. — Ver. 3. " Bear ivitness against me before the Lord" i.e. looking up to the Lord, the omnipotent and righteous God-king, " and before His anointed" the visible administrator of His divine government, whether I have committed any injustice in my office of judge, by appropriating another's property, or by oppression and violence (fTJ> to pound or crush in pieces, when used to denote an act of violence, is stronger than p'^V, with which it is connected here and in many other passages, e.g. Dent, xxviii. 33; Amos iv. 1), or by taking atonement money C1??^ redemption or atonement money, is used, as in Ex. xxi. 30 and Num. xxxv. 31, to denote a payment made by a man to redeem himself from capital punishment), " so that I had covered my eyes with it" viz. to exempt from punishment a man who was worthy of death. The to, which is construed with ByJJn, is the 2 instrument^ and refers to IBS; consequently it is not to be confounded with |p, "to hide from," which would be quite unsuitable here. The thought is not that the judge covers his eyes from the copher, that he may not see the bribe, but that he covers his eyes with the money offered him as a bribe, so as not to see and not to punish the crime committed. — Ver. 4. The people answered Samuel, that he had not done them any kind of injustice. — Ver. 5. To confirm this declaration on the part of the people, he then called Jehovah and His anointed as witnesses against the people, and they accepted these witnesses.?S"H^"?3 is the subject to ">pNsl; and the Keri ^SX'l, though more simple, is by no means necessary. Samuel said, " Jehovah be witness against you" because with the declaration which the people had made concerning Samuel's judicial labours they had condemned themselves, inasmuch as they had thereby acknowledged on oath that there was no ground for their dissatisfaction with Samuel's administration, and consequently no well-founded reason for their request for a king. — Ver. 6. But in order to bring the people to a still more thorough acknowledgment of their sin, Samuel strengthened still more their assent to his solemn appeal to God, as expressed in the words "He is witness" by saying, " Jehovah (i.e. yea, the witness is Jehovah), who made Moses and Aaron, and brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt." The context itself is sufficient to show that the expression " is witness " is understood; and there is no reason, therefore, to assume that the word has dropped out of the text through a copyist's error. ntMy? to make, in a moral and historical sense, i.e. to make a person what he is to be; it has no connection, therefore, with his physical birth, but simply relates to his introduction upon the stage of history, like irotelv, Ileb. iii. 2. But if Jehovah, who redeemed Israel out of Egypt by the hands of Moses ami Aaron, and exalted it into His own nation, was witness of the unselfishness and impartiality of Samuel's conduct in his office of judge, then Israel had grievously sinned by demanding a king. In the person of Samuel they had rejected Jehovah their God, who had given them their rulers (see ch. viii. 7). Samuel proves this still further to the people from the following history.
Vers. 7-12. u And now come hither, and I will reason with you before the Lord with regard to all the righteous acts which He has shown to you and your fathers." nip*lV? righteous acts, is the expression used to denote the benefits which Jehovah had conferred upon His people, as being the results of His covenant fidelity, or as acts which attested the righteousness of the Lord in the fulfilment of the covenant grace which He had promised to His people. — Yer. 8. The first proof of this was furnished by the deliverance of the children of Israel out of Egypt, and their safe guidance into Canaan (" this place " is the land of Canaan). The second was to be found in the deliverance of the people out of the power of their foes, to whom the Lord had been obliged to give them up on account of their apostasy from Him, through the judges whom He had raised up for them, as often as they turned to Him with penitence and cried to Him for help. Of the hostile oppressions which overtook the Israelites during this period of the judges, the following are singled out in ver. 9: (1) that by Sisera, the commander-in-chief of Hazor, i.e. that of the Canaanitish king Jabin of Hazor (Judg. iv. 2 sqq.); (2) that of the Philistines, by which we are to understand not so much the hostilities of that nation described in Judg. iii. 31, as the forty years' oppression mentioned in Judg. x. 2 and xiii. 1; and (3) the Moabitish oppression under Eglon (Judg. iii. 12 sqq.). The first half of ver. 10 agrees almost word for word with Judg. x. 10, except that, according to Judg. x. 6, the Ashtaroth are added to the Baalim (see at ch. vii. 4 and Judg. ii. 13). Of the judges whom God sent to the people as deliverers, the following are named, viz. Jerubbaal (see at Judg. vi. 32), i.e. Gideon (Judg. viv), and Bedan, and Jephthah (see Judg. xi.), and Samuel. There is no judge named Bedan mentioned either in the book of Judges or anywhere else. The name Bedan only occurs again in 1 Chron. vii. 17, among the descendants of Machir the Manassite: consequently some of the commentators suppose Jair of Gilead to be the judge intended. But such a supposition is perfectly arbitrary, as it is not rendered probable by any identity in the two names, and Jair is not described as having delivered Israel from any hostile oppression. Moreover, it is extremely improbable that Samuel should have mentioned a judge here, who had been passed over in the book of Judges on account of his comparative insignificance. There is also just as little ground for rendering Bedan as an appellative, e.g. the Danite (ben-Dan), as Kimchi suggests, or corpulentus as Bottcher maintains, and so connecting the name with Samson. There is no other course left, therefore, than to regard Bedan as an old copyist's error for Barak (Judg. iv.), as the LXX., Syriac, and Arabic have done, — a conclusion which is favoured by the circumstance that Barak was one of the most celebrated of the judges, and is placed by the side of Gideon and Jephthah in Heb. xi. 32. The Syriac, Arabic, and one Greek MS. (see Kennicott in the Addenda to his Dissert. Gener.), have the name of Samson instead of Samuel. But as the LXX., Chald., and Vulg. all agree with the Hebrew text, there is no critical ground for rejecting Samuel, the more especially as the objection raised to it, viz. that Samuel would not have mentioned himself, is far too trivial to overthrow the reading supported by the most ancient versions; and the assertion made by Thenius, that Samuel does not come down to his own times until the following verse, is altogether unfounded. Samuel could very well class himself with the deliverers of Israel, for the simple reason that it was by him that the people were delivered from the forty years' tyranny of the Philistines, whilst Samson merely commenced their deliverance and did not bring it to completion. Samuel appears to have deliberately mentioned his own name along with those of the other judges who were sent by God, that he might show the people in the most striking manner (ver. 12) that they had no reason whatever for saying to him, u Nay, but a king shall reign over us," as soon as the Ammonites invaded Gilead. " As Jehovah your God is your King," i.e. has ever proved himself to be your King by sending judges to deliver you.
Vers. 13-1 8a. After the prophet had thus held up before the people their sin against the Lord, he bade them still further consider, that the king would only procure for them the anticipated deliverance if they would fear the Lord, ami give up their rebellion against God. — Ver. 13. " But now behold the king whom ye have chosen, whom ye have asked for! behold, Jehovah hath set a king over you." By the second n$*})9 the thought is brought out still more strongly, that Jehovah had fulfilled the desire of the people. Although the request of the people had been an act of hostility to God, yet Jehovah had fulfilled it. The word Q^D^, relating to the choice by lot (ch. x. 17 sqq.), is placed before Efi?N^ "IBW, to show that the demand was the strongest act that the people could perform. They had not only chosen the king with the consent or by the direction of Samuel; they had even demanded a king of their own selfwill. — Yer. 14. Still, since the Lord had given them a king, the further welfare of the nation would depend upon whether they would follow the Lord from that time forward, or whether they would rebel against Him again. " If ye will only fear the Lord, and serve Him,... and ye as ivell as the king who rules over you will be after Jehovah your God." Dtf, in th3 sense of modo, if only, does not require any apodosis, as it is virtually equivalent to the wish, u 0 that ye would only!" for which DX with the imperfect is commonly used (vid. 2 Kings xx. 19; Prov. xxiv. 11, etc.; and Ewald, § 329, b). There is also nothing to be supplied to Hjn; "in«... DJVffl, since inK Wii, to be after or behind a person, is good Hebrew, and is frequently met with, particularly in the sense of attaching one's self to the king, or holding to him (vid. 2 Sam. ii. 10; 1 Kings xii. 20, xvi. 21, 22). This meaning is also at the foundation of the present passage, as Jehovah was the God-king of Israel. — Ver. 15. u But if ye do not hearken to the voice of Jehovah, and strive against His commandment, the hand of Jehovah will be heavy upon you, as upon your fathers." 1 in the sense of as, i.e. used in a comparative sense, is most frequently placed before whole sentences (see Ewald, § 340, b); and the use of it here may be explained, on the ground that MV}hK3 contains the force of an entire sentence: " as it was upon your fathers" The allusion to the fathers is very suitable here, because the people were looking to the king for the removal of all the calamities, which had fallen upon them from time immemorial. The paraphrase of this word, which is adopted in the Septuagint, eVt tov ftacrCk&a v/jlcov, is a very unhappy conjecture, although Thenius proposes to alter the text to suit it. — Ver. 16. In order to give still greater emphasis to his words, and to secure their lasting, salutary effect upon the people, Samuel added still further: Even now ye may see that ye have acted very wickedly in the sight of Jehovah, in demanding a king. This chain of thought is very clearly indicated by the words iTOJTDJj " yea, even now." u Even now come hither, and see this great thing which Jehovah does before your eyes." The words nny"D3, which are placed first, belong, so far as the sense is concerned, to '^"J"*^ HH; and ^'^n ("place yourselves" i.e. make yourselves ready) is merely inserted between, to fix the attention of the people more closely upon the following miracle, as an event of great importance, and one which they ought to lay to heart. 61 Is it not now wheat harvest f I ivill call to Jehovah, that He may give thunder (Dv'p, as in Ex. ix. 23, etc.) and rain. Then perceive and see, that the evil is great which ye have done in the eyes of Jehovah, to demand a king." The wheat harvest occurs in Palestine between the middle of May and the middle of June (see my Bibl. Arch. i. § 118). And during this time it scarcely ever rains. Thus Jerome affirms (ad Am. c. 4): " Nunquam in fine mensis Junii aut in Julio in his provinciis maximeque in Judo?a pluvias vidimus" And Robinson also says in his Palestine (ii. p. 98): " In ordinary seasons, from the cessation of the showers in spring until their commencement in October and November, rain never falls, and the sky is usually serene" (see my Arch. i. § 10). So that when God sent thunder and rain on that day in answer to Samuel's appeal to him, this was a miracle of divine omnipotence, intended to show to the people that the judgments of God might fall upon the sinners at any time. Thunderings, as " the voices of God" (Ex. ix. 28), are harbingers of judgment.
Vers. 186-25. This miracle therefore inspired the people with a salutary terror. u All the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel" and entreated the prophet, " Pray for thy servants to the Lord thy God, that we die not, because ice have added to all our sins the evil thing, to ask us a king." — Vers. 20, 21. Samuel thereupon announced to them first of all, that the Lord would not forsake His people for His great name's sake, if they would only serve Him with uprightness. In order, however, to give no encouragement to any false trust in the covenant faithfulness of the Lord, after the comforting words, " Fear not" he told them again very decidedly that they had done wrong, but that now they were not to turn away from the Lord, but to serve Him with all their heart, and not go after vain idols. To strengthen this admonition, he repeats the mDn N7 in ver. 21, with the explanation, that in turning from the Lord they would fall away to idols, which could not bring them either help or deliverance. To the *3 after WiDri the same verb must be supplied from the context: " Do not turn aside (from the Lord), for (ye turn aside) after that which is vain" iinhn? the vain, worthless thing, signifies the false gods. This will explain the construction with a plural: " which do not profit and do not save, because they are emptiness" (tohu), i.e. worthless beings (elilim, Lev. xix. 4; cf. Isa. xliv. 9 and Jer. xvi. 19). — Ver. 22. " For (*3 gives the reason for the main thought of the previous verse, ' Fear not, but serve the Lord,' etc.) the Lord will not forsake His people for His great name's sake; for it hath pleased the Lord (for T'fctin, see at Deut. i. 5) to make you His people" The emphasis lies upon His. This the Israelites could only be, when they proved themselves to be the people of God, by serving Jehovah with all their heart. " For His great names sake" i.e. for the great name which He had acquired in the sight of all the nations, by the marvellous guidance of Israel thus far, to preserve it against misapprehension and blasphemy (see at Josh. vii. 9). — Ver. 23. Samuel then promised the people his constant intercession: " Far be it from me to sin against the Lord, that I should cease to pray for you, and to instruct you in the good and right way" i.e. to work as prophet for your good. " In this he sets a glorious example to all rulers, showing them that they should not be led astray by the ingratitude of their subordinates or subjects, and give up on that account all interest in their welfare, but should rather persevere all the more in their anxiety for them" (Berleb. Bible). — Vers. 24, 25. Lastly, he repeats once more his admonition, that they would continue stedfast in the fear of God, threatening at the same time the destruction of both king and people if they should do wrong (on ver. 24a, see ch. vii. 3 and Josh. xxiv. 14, where the form *SO* is also found). " For see what great things He has done for you" (shown to you), not by causing it to thunder and rain at Samuel's prayer, but by giving them a king. DJ> t*W> as in Gen. xix. 19.
saul's reign, and his unseasonable sacrifice in the war against the philistines. — chap. xiii.
The history of the reign of Saul commences with this chapter;l and according to the standing custom in the history of the kings, it opens with a statement of the age of the king when he began to reign, and the number of years that his reign lasted. If, for example, we compare the form and contents of this verse with 2 Sam. ii. 10, v. 4, 1 Kings xiv. 21,
1 The connection of vers. 8-11 of this chapter with ch. x. 8 is adduced in support of the hypothesis that ch. xiii. forms a direct continuation of the account that was broken off in ch. x. 16. This connection must be admitted; but it by no means follows that in the source from which the books before us were derived, ch. xiii. was directly attached to ch. viii. 16, and that Samuel intended to introduce Saul publicly as king here in Gilgal immediately before the attack upon the Philistines, to consecrate him by the solemn presentation of sacrifices, and to connect with this the religious consecration of the approaching campaign. For there is not a word about any such intention in the chapter before us or in ch. x. 8, nor even the slightest hint at it. Thenius has founded this view of his upon his erroneous interpretation of rHT in ch. x. 8 as an imperative, as if Samuel intended to command Saul to go to Gilgal immediately after the occurrence of the signs mentioned in ch. x. 2 sqq.: a view which is at variance with the instructions given to him, to do what his hand should find after the occurrence of those signs (see p. 101). To this we may also add the following objections: How is it conceivable that Saul, who concealed his anointing even from his own family after his return from Samuel to Gibeah (ch. x. 16), should have immediately after chosen 3000 men of Israel to begin the war against the Philistines? How did Saul attain to any such distinction, that at his summons all Israel gathered round him as their king, even before he had been publicly proclaimed king in the presence of the people, and before he had secured the confidence of the people by any kingly heroic deed? The fact of his having met witli a band of prophets, and even prophesied in his native town of Gibeah after his departure from Samuel, and that this had become a proverb, is by no means enough to explain the enterprises described in ch. xiii. 1-7, which so absolutely demand the incidents that occurred in the meantime as recorded in ch. x. 17-xii. 25 even to make them intelligible, that any writing in which ch. xiii. 2 sqq. followed directly upon ch. x. 16 would necessarily be regarded as utterly faulty. This fact, which I have already adduced in my examination of the hypothesis defended by Thenius in my Introduction to the Old Testament (p. 168), retains its force undiminished, even though, after a renewed investigation of the question, I have given up the supposed connection between ch. x. 8 and the proclamation mentioned in ch. xi. 14 sqq., which I defended there.
xxii. 42, 2 Kings viii. 26, and other' passages, where the age is given at which Ishbosheth, David, and many of the kings of Judah began to reign, and also the number of years that their reign lasted, there can be no doubt that our verse was also intended to give the same account concerning Saul, and therefore that every attempt to connect this verse with the one which follows is opposed to the uniform historical usage. Moreover, even if, as a matter of necessity, the second clause of ver. 1 could be combined with ver. 2 in the following manner: He was two years king over Israel, then Saul chose 3000 men, etc.; the first half of the verse would give no reasonable sense, according to the Masoretic text that has come down to us. w£2?)$& •"U^n? cannot possibly be rendered "jam per annum regnaverat Saul" " Saul had been king for a year," or " Saul reigned one year," but can only mean " Saul was a year old when he became king" This is the way in which the words have been correctly rendered by the Sept. and Jerome; and so also in the Chaldee paraphrase (" Saul was an innocent child when he began to reign ") this is the way in which the text has been understood. It is true that this statement as to his age is obviously false; but all that follows from that is, that there is an error in the text, namely, that between |2 and Hit? the age has fallen out, — a thing which could easily take place, as there are many traces to show that originally the numbers were not written in words, but only in letters that were used as numerals. This gap in the text is older than the Septuagint version, as our present text is given there. There is, it is true, an anonymus in the hexapla, in which we find the reading vlb? rpiaKovra iroiv 2aov\; but this is certainly not according to ancient mss., but simply according to a private conjecture, and that an incorrect one. For since Saul already had a son, Jonathan, who commanded a division of the army in the very first years of his reign, and therefore must have been at least twenty years of age, if not older, Saul himself cannot have been less than forty years old when he began to reign. Moreover, in the second half of the verse also, the number given is evidently a wrong one, and the text therefore equally corrupt; for the rendering "when he had reigned two years over Israel" is opposed both by the parallel passages already quoted, and also by the introduction of the name Saul as the subject in ver. 2a, which shows very clearly that ver. 2 commences a fresh sentence, and is not merely the apodosis to ver. lb. But Saul's reign must have lasted longer than two years, even if, in opposition to all analogies to be found elsewhere, wre should understand the two years as merely denoting the length of his reign up to the time of his rejection (ch. xv.), and not till the time of his death. Even then he reigned longer than that; for he could not possibly have carried on all the wars mentioned in ch. xiv. 47, with Moab, Ammon, Edom, the kings of Zobah and the Philistines, in the space of two years. Consequently a numeral, say D, twenty, must also have dropped out before D*3t5> >r\v (two years); since there are cogent reasons for assuming that his reign lasted as long as twenty or twenty-two years, reckoning to the time of his death. We have given the reasons themselves in connection with the chronology of the period of the judges (vol. iv. pp. 283-4).1
Vers. 2-7. The war with the Philistines (ch. xiii. xiv.) certainly falls, at least so far as the commencement is concerned, in the very earliest part of Saul's reign. This wre must infer partly from the fact, that at the very time when Saul was seeking for his father's asses, there was a military post of the Philistines at Gibeah (ch. x. 5), and therefore the Philistines had already occupied certain places in the land; and partly also from the fact, that according to this chapter Saul selected an army of 3000 men out of the whole nation, took up his post at Michmash with 2000 of them, placing the other thousand at Gibeah under his son Jonathan, and sent the rest of the people home (ver. 2), because his first intention wTas simply to check the further advance of the Philistines. The dismission of the rest of the people to their own homes presupposes that the whole of the fighting men of the nation were assembled together. But as no other summoning together of the people has been
1 The traditional account that Saul reigned forty years (Acts xiii. 24, and Josephus, Ant. vi. 14, 9) is supposed to have arisen, according to the conjecture of Thenius (on 2 Sam. ii. 10), from the fact that his son Ishbosheth was forty years old when he began to reign, and the notion that as he is not mentioned among the sons of Saul in 1 Sam. xiv. 49, he must have been born after the commeucement of Saul's own reign. This conjecture is certainly a probable one; but it is much more natural to assume that as David and Solomon reigned forty years, it arose from the desire to make Saul's reign equal to theirs.
mentioned before, except to the war upon the Ammonites at Jabesh (ch. xi. 6, 7), where all Israel gathered together, and at the close of which Samuel had called the people and their king to Gilgal (ch. xi. 14), the assumption is a very probable one, that it was there at Gilgal, after the renewal of the monarchy, that Saul formed the resolution at once to make war upon the Philistines, and selected 3000 fighting men for the purpose out of the whole number that were collected together, and then dismissed the remainder to their homes. In all probability Saul did not consider that either he or the Israelites were sufficiently prepared as yet to undertake a war upon the Philistines generally, and therefore resolved, in the first place, only to attack the outpost of the Philistines, which was advanced as far as Gibeah, with a small number of picked soldiers. According to this simple view of affairs, the war here described took place at the very commencement of Saul's reign; and the chapter before us is closely connected with the preceding one. — Ver. 2. Saul posted himself at Michmash and on the mount of Bethel with his two thousand men. Michmash, the present Mukhmas, a village in ruins upon the northern ridge of the Wady Suweinit, according to the Onom. (s. v. Machmas), was only nine Roman miles to the north of Jerusalem, whereas it took Robinson three hours and a half to go from one to the other (Pal. ii. p. 117). Bethel (Beitin; see at Josh. vii. 2) is to the north-west of this, at a distance of two hours' journey, if you take the road past Deir-Diwan. The mountain pn) of Bethel cannot be precisely determined. Bethel itself was situated upon very high ground; and the ruins of Beitin are completely surrounded by heights (Rob. ii. p. 126; and v. Raumer, Pal. pp. 178-9). Jonathan stationed himself with his thousand men at (by) Gibeah of Benjamin, the native place and capital of Saul, which was situated upon Tell el Phul (see at Josh, xviii. 28), about an hour and a half from Michmas. — Yer. 3. "And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was at Geba" probably the military post mentioned in ch. x. 5, which had been advanced in the meantime as far as Geba. For Geba is not to be confounded with Gibeah, from which it is clearly distinguished in ver. 16 as compared with ver. 15, but is the modern Jeba, between the Wady Suiueinit and Wady Fara, to the north-west of Ramah (er-Ram; see at Josh, xviii. 24). " The Philistines heard this. And Saul had the trumpet blown throughout the whole land, and proclamation made: let the Hebrews hear it." ibS7 after iEi$3 ypn points out the proclamation that was made after the alarm given by the shophar (see 2 Sam. xx. 1; 1 Kings i. 34, 39, etc.). The object to " let them hear" may be easily supplied from the context, viz. Jonathan's feat of arms. Saul had this trumpeted in the whole land, not only as a joyful message for the Hebrews, but also as an indirect summons to the whole nation to rise and make war upon the Philistines. In the word VVV (hear), there is often involved the idea of observing, laying to heart that which is heard. If we understand typt^ in this sense here, and the next verse decidedly hints at it, there is no ground whatever for the objection which Thenius, who follows the LXX., has raised to D^inyn WDB*.