God’s Choice for King

15 Now a day before Saul’s coming, (A)the Lord had [a]revealed this to Samuel, saying, 16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and (B)you shall anoint him as ruler over My people Israel; and he will save My people from the hand of the Philistines. For (C)I have considered My people, because their outcry has come to Me.” 17 When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord [b]said to him, “(D)Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! This one shall rule over My people.”

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 9:15 Lit opened Samuel’s ear
  2. 1 Samuel 9:17 Lit answered

15 Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel: 16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint(A) him ruler(B) over my people Israel; he will deliver(C) them from the hand of the Philistines.(D) I have looked on my people, for their cry(E) has reached me.”

17 When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, “This(F) is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people.”

Read full chapter

Saul among the Prophets

10 Then (A)Samuel took the flask of oil, poured it on [a]Saul’s head, (B)kissed him, and said, “Has (C)the Lord not anointed you as ruler over (D)His inheritance? When you leave me today, then you will find two men close to (E)Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, ‘(F)The donkeys which you went to look for have been found. Now behold, your father has stopped talking about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, “What am I to do about my son?”’ Then you will go on further from there, and you will come as far as the [b](G)oak of Tabor, and there three men going up (H)to God at Bethel will meet you: one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a jug of wine. And they will [c]greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from their hand. Afterward you will come to [d](I)the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is; and it shall be as soon as you have come there to the city, that you will meet (J)a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and a lyre in front of them, and (K)they will be prophesying. Then (L)the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and (M)you will prophesy with them and be changed into a different man. And it shall be when these signs come to you, (N)do for yourself what [e]the occasion requires, because (O)God is with you. And (P)you shall go down ahead of me to Gilgal; and behold, I will be coming down to you to offer burnt offerings and (Q)sacrifice peace offerings. (R)You shall wait seven days until I come to you and inform you of what you should do.”

Then it happened, when he turned his back to leave Samuel, that God (S)changed [f]his heart; and all those signs came about on that day. 10 (T)When they came there to [g]the hill, behold, a group of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, so that he prophesied among them.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 10:1 Lit his
  2. 1 Samuel 10:3 Or terebinth
  3. 1 Samuel 10:4 Lit inquire of your welfare
  4. 1 Samuel 10:5 Or Gibeath-haelohim
  5. 1 Samuel 10:7 Lit your hand finds
  6. 1 Samuel 10:9 Lit for him another heart
  7. 1 Samuel 10:10 Or Gibeath

10 Then Samuel took a flask(A) of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head and kissed him, saying, “Has not the Lord anointed(B) you ruler over his inheritance?[a](C) When you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel’s tomb,(D) at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will say to you, ‘The donkeys(E) you set out to look for have been found. And now your father has stopped thinking about them and is worried(F) about you. He is asking, “What shall I do about my son?”’

“Then you will go on from there until you reach the great tree of Tabor. Three men going up to worship God at Bethel(G) will meet you there. One will be carrying three young goats, another three loaves of bread, and another a skin of wine. They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread,(H) which you will accept from them.

“After that you will go to Gibeah(I) of God, where there is a Philistine outpost.(J) As you approach the town, you will meet a procession of prophets(K) coming down from the high place(L) with lyres, timbrels,(M) pipes(N) and harps(O) being played before them, and they will be prophesying.(P) The Spirit(Q) of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed(R) into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever(S) your hand(T) finds to do, for God is with(U) you.

“Go down ahead of me to Gilgal.(V) I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven(W) days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do.”

Saul Made King

As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed(X) Saul’s heart, and all these signs(Y) were fulfilled(Z) that day. 10 When he and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a procession of prophets met him; the Spirit(AA) of God came powerfully upon him, and he joined in their prophesying.(AB)

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 10:1 Hebrew; Septuagint and Vulgate over his people Israel? You will reign over the Lord’s people and save them from the power of their enemies round about. And this will be a sign to you that the Lord has anointed you ruler over his inheritance: