1 Samuel

What makes 1 Samuel special?

First Samuel is the first half of one long book that was split in two because it was too long to fit on one scroll. (Second Samuel is the second half.) Together they tell of the lives of Samuel, Saul, and David—three people who were chosen by the Lord. But the real story in these books is how all three, in spite of their human flaws, helped to make Israel a strong nation.

Why was 1 Samuel written?

First Samuel tells how God chose the earliest kings in ancient Israel. For two centuries the Israelites had been loosely organized as a group of twelve tribes ruled by temporary leaders, called judges, chosen by God in times of need. (See the Introduction to Judges, JDG 1.0.) Samuel, the last of these leaders, had to deal with God because of Israel's request for a new kind of leader—a king like the ones that ruled other nations (8.5,19-20). But some people saw the request for a human king as going against Israel's ancient belief in God as king (Exod 15.18; Deut 33.5). 1 Samuel presents the views of both sides: 8.1-22 (against); 9.1—10.16 (for); 10.17-27 (against); 11.1-11 (for); 11.12—12.25 (against).

God reluctantly agreed to let Israel have a king. God knew it would bring big changes to the people of Israel, and that not all of the changes would be good ones. After choosing a king, God reminded Israel and its king that they must still keep their solemn promise to obey the Lord (Gen 17.7-9, Exod 24). But Saul did not obey and did not want to be replaced by David, the new king chosen by God. As David himself would later learn, even kings must obey the Lord.

What's the story behind the scene?

The two books of Samuel cover just over a century of Israel's history from 1080 to 970 b.c., from Samuel's birth to David's death. Judges tells how Israel slid into lawless confusion after conquering the promised land. Judges ends by saying “Israel wasn't ruled by a king, and everyone did what they thought was right” (Judg 21.25). Besides internal turmoil, Israel also faced a constant outside military threat from the aggressive Philistines, who lived on the Mediterranean coast just west of Israel.

But this would soon change. 1 Samuel opens with a loosely organized group of twelve tribes trembling before their Philistine enemies. By the end of 2 Samuel, however, David is described as the king of a unified and powerful nation. The story of Israel's religious growth during the same time is also impressive. 1 Samuel describes how the Israelites gathered several times a year to worship and offer sacrifices to the Lord. As 2 Samuel closes, Jerusalem has become the center of worship, and David has built an altar at the place where his son Solomon would later build a magnificent temple. For more about this period in Israel's history, see the article called “From Joshua to the Exile: The People of Israel in the Promised Land,” XXB 7.0.

How is 1 Samuel constructed?

The book can be divided into three major sections, one for each of its main characters—Samuel, Saul, and David: