1 Samuel 10

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1 Samuel 10 Commentary

by Brad Boyles

Once again, I want to point out the detail that many miss when Saul is anointed king. The terminology described a leader or commander and not a king. Verse 1 opens with this fact.

Then Samuel took the flask of oil, poured it on his head, kissed him and said, “Has not the LORD anointed you a ruler over His inheritance?

1 Samuel 10:1 NASB

Saul was chosen to be a ruler (Hebrew word ‘nagid’) but not necessarily their king (Hebrew word ‘melek’). Oh, the people believed he was their king, and used those words to describe him. But as we will see in the upcoming chapters, there were many issues at hand.

Furthermore, Saul himself did not feel impassioned for this calling. He was scared as he hid behind the luggage! I understand that we don’t always know our calling before others point it out, however, that is something that develops through our relationship with God. He changes our heart through His Spirit. We see this happening at times with Saul, but we also see him falling back to his own reasoning and logic to navigate situations.

This brings a solid point. Do we follow God through those nudges? When God begins to change our heart, are we passive or active? Are we following and drawing closer to Him, or, are we pulling away?