Transcript The Rise and Fall of Saul Maps by David P. Barrett, used by permission.

The Rise and Fall
of Saul
Maps by David P. Barrett, used by permission
1 Samuel 4:1-2
Thus the word of Samuel came to all
Israel. Now Israel went out to meet the
Philistines in battle and camped beside
Ebenezer while the Philistines camped in
Aphek.
And the Philistines drew up in battle
array to meet Israel. When the battle
spread, Israel was defeated before the
Philistines who killed about four thousand
men on the battlefield.
PHILISTINES
1 Samuel 4:3
When the people came into the
camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has
the Lord defeated us today before the
Philistines? Let us take to ourselves from
Shiloh the ark of the covenant of the
Lord, that it may come among us and
deliver us from the power of our
enemies.”
1 Samuel 4:4
So the people sent to Shiloh and
from there they carried the ark of the
covenant of the Lord of hosts who sits
above the cherubim; and the two sons of
Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there
with the ark of the covenant of God.
1 Samuel 4:21-22
And she called the boy Ichabod,
saying, “The glory has departed from
Israel,” because the ark of God was
taken and because of her father-in-law
and her husband.
And she said, “The glory has
departed from Israel, for the ark of
God was taken.”
dAbk'
dAbk'-yai
 Ekron
 Ashdod
 BethShemesh
 Gath
Bethlehem 
 Ashkelon

Hebron
 Gaza
Beersheba

Beth Shemesh
Samuel as Judge
A new call to repentance
1 Samuel 7
Battle at Mizpah
1 Samuel 7:10-11
•
•
•
•
•
Alliance of five kings
Prayer to the Lord
Answer from the skies
Victory
Pursuit of enemy down the
valley
1 Samuel 8:4-5
Then all the elders of Israel
gathered together and came to Samuel
at Ramah; 5 and they said to him,
“Behold, you have grown old, and your
sons do not walk in your ways. Now
appoint a king for us to judge us like all
the nations.”
Israel’s Request for a King
• Initiated because of the ungodly
successors to Samuel
• They sought the Lord to choose their
king
• God had promised they would have a
king (Deuteronomy 17:14-17)
What it means to have a king
 He will draft your sons into his military
(8:11).
 He will conscript people to do his
plowing and harvesting and to
manufacture his weapons of war
(8:12).
 He will take your daughters for
household duties (8:13).
What it means to have a king
 He will take your lands and vineyards
and groves and give them to his
retainers (8:14).
 He will tax the produce of your land
(8:15).
 He will take your servants and animals
(8:16).
• He will take YOU (8:17).
1 Samuel 8:4-6
Then all the elders of Israel
gathered together and came to Samuel
at Ramah; 5 and they said to him,
“Behold, you have grown old, and your
sons do not walk in your ways. Now
appoint a king for us to judge us like all
the nations.” 6 But the thing was
displeasing in the sight of Samuel when
they said, “Give us a king to judge us.”
And Samuel prayed to the LORD.
1 Samuel 8
1 Samuel 9-10
A king requested
A king chosen
Saul comes All Israel
The people come
to Samuel comes to
to Samuel with
about lost
anoint
their request
donkeys
Saul
1 Samuel 9:1
Now there was a man of Benjamin
whose name was Kish the son of Abiel,
the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath,
the son of Aphiah, the son of a
Benjamite, a mighty man of valor.
1 Samuel 9:2
He had a son whose name was
Saul, a choice and handsome man, and
there was not a more handsome person
than he among the sons of Israel; from
his shoulders and up he was taller than
any of the people.
1 Samuel 9:3
Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul's
father, were lost. So Kish said to his son
Saul, “Take now with you one of the
servants, and arise, go search for the
donkeys.”
1 Samuel 9:4
He passed through the hill country
of Ephraim and passed through the land
of Shalishah, but they did not find them.
Then they passed through the land of
Shaalim, but they were not there. Then
he passed through the land of the
Benjamites, but they did not find them.
• A circuitous search
• Seeking a seer
1 Samuel 9:15-16
Now a day before Saul’s coming,
the LORD had revealed this to Samuel
saying, 16 “About this time tomorrow I
will send you a man from the land of
Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to
be prince over My people Israel; and he
will deliver My people from the hand of
the Philistines. For I have regarded My
people, because their cry has come to
Me.”
• A circuitous search
• Seeking a seer
• Samuel anoints
Saul
1 Samuel 10:17-18
Thereafter Samuel called the
people together to the LORD at Mizpah;
18 and he said to the sons of Israel,
“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel,
‘I brought Israel up from Egypt, and I
delivered you from the hand of the
Egyptians and from the power of all the
kingdoms that were oppressing you.’”
1 Samuel 10:19
“But you have today rejected your
God, who delivers you from all your
calamities and your distresses; yet you
have said, ‘No, but set a king over us!’
Now therefore, present yourselves
before the LORD by your tribes and by
your clans.”
1 Samuel 10:20-21
Thus Samuel brought all the tribes
of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin
was taken by lot. 21 Then he brought the
tribe of Benjamin near by its families,
and the Matrite family was taken. And
Saul the son of Kish was taken; but
when they looked for him, he could not
be found.
1 Samuel 10:22-23
Therefore they inquired further of
the LORD, “Has the man come here
yet?” So the LORD said, “Behold, he is
hiding himself by the baggage.” 23 So
they ran and took him from there, and
when he stood among the people, he
was taller than any of the people from
his shoulders upward.
1 Samuel 10:24
Samuel said to all the people, “Do
you see him whom the LORD has
chosen? Surely there is no one like him
among all the people.” So all the people
shouted and said, “Long live the king!”
What images does the
description of “king” evoke?
Now Nahash the
Ammonite came up
and besieged
Jabesh-gilead; and
all the men of Jabesh
said to Nahash,
“Make a covenant
with us and we will
serve you.”
(1 Samuel 11:1).


But Nahash the
Ammonite said to
them, “I will make it
with you on this
condition, that I will
gouge out the right
eye of every one of
you, thus I will make
it a reproach on all
Israel.” (1 Samuel
11:2).


The elders of
Jabesh said to him,
“Let us alone for seven
days, that we may
send messengers
throughout the territory
of Israel. Then, if there
is no one to deliver us,
we will come out to
you.” (1 Samuel 11:3).


1 Samuel 11:5
Now behold, Saul was coming from
the field behind the oxen, and he said,
“What is the matter with the people that
they weep?” So they related to him the
words of the men of Jabesh.
1 Samuel 11:6
Then the Spirit of God came upon
Saul mightily when he heard these
words, and he became very angry.
1 Samuel 11:7
He took a yoke of oxen and cut
them in pieces, and sent them
throughout the territory of Israel by the
hand of messengers, saying, “Whoever
does not come out after Saul and after
Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen.”
Then the dread of the LORD fell on the
people, and they came out as one man.
The next morning
Saul put the people in
three companies; and
they came into the
midst of the camp at
the morning watch and
struck down the
Ammonites until the
heat of the day.
(1 Samuel 11:8a).


Those who survived
were scattered, so that
no two of them were
left together. (1 Samuel
11:8b).


1 Samuel 11:12-13
Then the people said to Samuel,
“Who is he that said, ‘Shall Saul reign
over us?’ Bring the men, that we may
put them to death.” 13 But Saul said, “Not
a man shall be put to death this day, for
today the LORD has accomplished
deliverance in Israel.”
1 Samuel 11:14
Then Samuel said to the people,
“Come and let us go to Gilgal and renew
the kingdom there.”
So all the people
went to Gilgal, and
there they made
Saul king before
the LORD in Gilgal.
(1 Samuel 11:15a).



Act 1
Scene
One
Saul meets
Samuel & is
anointed by
him (9-10)
Success in
Scene battle with the
Two
help of God
(11).
Saul’s failure
Scene with Samuel &
Three Jonathan (1314).
Act 2
Act 3
1 Samuel 15:1
Then Samuel said to Saul, “The
LORD sent me to anoint you as king
over His people, over Israel; now
therefore, listen to the words of the
LORD.”
“Thus says the
LORD of hosts, ‘I
will punish Amalek
for what he did to
Israel, how he set
himself against him
on the way while he
was coming up from
Egypt.’ (1 Samuel
15:2).
“Now go and
strike Amalek and
utterly destroy all that
he has, and do not
spare him; but put to
death both man and
woman, child and
infant, ox and sheep,
camel and donkey.’”
(1 Samuel 15:3).
1 Samuel 15:7-8
So Saul defeated the Amalekites,
from Havilah as you go to Shur, which is
east of Egypt. 8 He captured Agag the
king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly
destroyed all the people with the edge of
the sword.
1 Samuel 15:9
But Saul and the people spared
Agag and the best of the sheep, the
oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that
was good, and were not willing to
destroy them utterly; but everything
despised and worthless, that they utterly
destroyed.
1 Samuel 15:22
Samuel said, “Has the LORD as much
delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
As in obeying the voice of the LORD?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed than the fat of rams.
1 Samuel 15:23
“For rebellion is as the sin of divination,
And insubordination is as iniquity and
idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of
the LORD,
He has also rejected you from being
king.”
1 Samuel 15:27-28
As Samuel turned to go, Saul
seized the edge of his robe, and it tore.
28 So Samuel said to him, “The LORD
has torn the kingdom of Israel from you
today and has given it to your neighbor,
who is better than you.”
Scene
One
Act 1
Act 2
Saul meets
Samuel & is
anointed by
him (9-10)
Saul meets
Samuel & is
condemned by
him (15).
Success in
Scene battle with the
Two
help of God
(11).
Saul’s failure
Scene with Samuel &
Three Jonathan (1314).
Success in
battle with the
help of David
(17-18).
Act 3
1 Samuel 17:1-3
Now the Philistines gathered their
armies for battle; and they were gathered at
Socoh which belongs to Judah, and they
camped between Socoh and Azekah, in
Ephes-dammim.
2 And Saul and the men of Israel were
gathered, and camped in the valley of Elah,
and drew up in battle array to encounter the
Philistines.
3 And the Philistines stood on the
mountain on one side while Israel stood on the
mountain on the other side, with the valley
between them.
1
1 Samuel 17:4
Then a champion came out from
the armies of the Philistines named
Goliath, from Gath, whose height was
six cubits and a span.
Robert Waldo
Died July 15, 1940
8 feet, 11 inches
1 Samuel 17:5-7
And he had a bronze helmet on
his head, and he was clothed with scalearmor which weighed five thousand
shekels of bronze.
6 He also had bronze greaves on
his legs and a bronze javelin slung
between his shoulders.
7 And the shaft of his spear was like
a weaver’s beam, and the head of his
spear weighed six hundred shekels of
iron; his shield-carrier also walked
before him.
5
1 Samuel 17:8-9
And he stood and shouted to the
ranks of Israel, and said to them, “Why
do you come out to draw up in battle
array? Am I not the Philistine and you
servants of Saul? Choose a man for
yourselves and let him come down to
me. 9 If he is able to fight with me and kill
me, then we will become your servants;
but if I prevail against him and kill him,
then you shall become our servants and
serve us.”
8
1 Samuel 17:49
And David put his hand into his bag
and took from it a stone and slung it, and
struck the Philistine on his forehead. And
the stone sank into his forehead, so that
he fell on his face to the ground.
http://militarythroughtheages.com/Graphics/sling.JPG
Ark versus Dagon
David versus Goliath
Ark had been captured by
the Philistines and placed
in the Temple of Dagon
Goliath saw in David what
he thought was an easy
victory
Dagon was found face
down before the Ark
Goliath fell on his face
before David
Dagon was found with
his head removed which
led to an enduring
practice
David cut off Goliath’s head
and kept it as a trophy
Dagon was seen by all to
be a dead idol of stone
The Lord is seen to be the
living God (17:26).
Scene
One
Act 1
Act 2
Saul meets
Samuel & is
anointed by
him (9-10)
Saul meets
Samuel & is
condemned by
him (15).
Success in
Scene battle with the
Two
help of God
(11).
Success in
battle with the
help of David
(17-18).
Saul’s failure
Scene with Samuel &
Three Jonathan (1314).
Saul’s failure
with David &
Jonathan (1927).
Act 3
19:1
20:1
21:10
David flees
from the
presence
of Saul
David
assisted by
Michal
David and
Jonathan
make a
covenant
David flees
to Gath
David
assisted by
the Lord
David is
David is
assisted by assisted by
Abimelech the King of
Moab
22:6
24:1
26:1
Saul Pursues David
1st
2nd
3rd
Pursuit Pursuit Pursuit
Jonathan
helps
David
David
cuts
Saul’s
robe
David
takes
Saul’s
spear/jug
David assisted by
Circumstances, Abigail,
Gath
Now it came about in
those days that the
Philistines gathered
their armed camps
for war, to fight
against Israel.
(1 Samuel 28:1a).

So the Philistines gathered together
and came and camped in Shunem
(1 Samuel 28:4a).
…and Saul
gathered
all Israel
together
and they
camped in
Gilboa.
(1 Samuel
28:4b).

1 Samuel 28:5-7
When Saul saw the camp of the
Philistines, he was afraid and his heart
trembled greatly. 6 When Saul inquired
of the LORD, the LORD did not answer
him, either by dreams or by Urim or by
prophets. 7 Then Saul said to his
servants, “Seek for me a woman who is
a medium, that I may go to her and
inquire of her.” And his servants said to
him, “Behold, there is a woman who is a
medium at En-dor.”
Then Saul
disguised
himself by
putting on
other clothes,
and went, he
and two men
with him, and
they came to
the woman by
night
(1 Samuel
28:8)
1 Samuel 28:11-12
Then the woman said, “Whom shall
I bring up for you?” And he said, “Bring
up Samuel for me.” 12 When the woman
saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud
voice; and the woman spoke to Saul,
saying, “Why have you deceived me?
For you are Saul.”
Possible Interpretations
• This was Samuel speaking from the
grave: “The woman saw Samuel”
(28:12).
• A Demonic Manifestation
• A Trick of the Woman
1 Samuel 28:13
The king said to her, “Do not be
afraid; but what do you see?” And the
woman said to Saul, “I see a divine
being coming up out of the earth.”
1 Samuel 28:14
He said to her, “What is his form?”
And she said, “An old man is coming up,
and he is wrapped with a robe.” And
Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he
bowed with his face to the ground and
did homage.
Now the Philistines were fighting against
Israel, and the men of Israel fled from
before the Philistines and fell slain on
Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 31:1).
Act 1
Act 2
Act 3
Saul meets
Samuel & is
anointed by
him (9-10)
Saul meets
Samuel & is
condemned by
him (15).
Saul meets
Samuel and
his death is
foretold (28).
Success in
Scene battle with the
Two
help of God
(11).
Success in
battle with the
help of David
(17-18).
Failure in
battle and
suicide (31).
Saul’s failure
Scene with Samuel &
Three Jonathan (1314).
Saul’s failure
with David &
Jonathan (1927).
Scene
One
1 Samuel 31:8-9
It came about on the next day
when the Philistines came to strip the
slain, that they found Saul and his three
sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. 9 They cut
off his head and stripped off his
weapons, and sent them throughout the
land of the Philistines, to carry the good
news to the house of their idols and to
the people.
They put his weapons in the temple of
Ashtaroth, and they fastened his body to
the wall of Beth-shan (1 Samuel 31:10).
Now when the
inhabitants of
Jabesh-gilead heard
what the Philistines
had done to Saul…
(1 Samuel 31:11).

…all the valiant men
rose and walked all
night, and took the
body of Saul and the
bodies of his sons
from the wall of Bethshan, and they came
to Jabesh and
burned them there.
(1 Samuel 31:12).

