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simply in four directional words, as the chart shows: in, out, up, down. The ‘in’ and ‘out’ refer to his changing favour with King Saul, the ‘up’ refers to his move towards the pinnacle of his power as king, and ‘down’ refers to his journey into the depths of despair.

      Content

      1. Samuel – last judge

      (I) HANNAH – ANXIOUS WIFE

      The book begins with the story of Samuel’s mother, Hannah. Her husband, Elkanah, has two wives and Hannah, who is childless, has to bear the taunts of the other wife, Peninnah, who does have children. Years pass and Hannah’s grief at her childlessness deepens. She visits the temple at Shiloh (where Israel kept the ark of the covenant) and prays that if God will at last grant her a son she will dedicate him to God’s service. Eli the priest notices that she is muttering aloud and suspects that she is drunk. Hannah explains that she is deeply troubled and Eli sends her away with God’s blessing. Later Hannah conceives and gives birth to a son, whom she names Samuel.

      In gratitude she fufills her vow to the Lord and presents Samuel to Eli to serve at the temple. Hannah prays again, reflecting her confidence and joy in God. This prayer is clearly recalled by Mary 1,000 years later, when the angel tells her she is to give birth to Jesus. Her joy and praise in what is now called ‘The Magnificat’ contains echoes of Hannah’s.

      (II) ELI – AILING PRIEST

      Samuel ministers under the priest, Eli. One night he hears a voice and runs to Eli, assuming that he is calling him, but Eli says he is not. This happens three times before the priest realizes that it is God who wants to speak to Samuel. It is a significant moment, since the prophetic revelation, both verbal and visual, was rare in those days.

      Thus Samuel, aged 12, is given the responsibility of telling Eli that God will act in judgement upon his family because his two boys are misbehaving badly and Eli has been turning a blind eye. The sons have been abusing their positions of responsibility, eating consecrated meat and sleeping with some of the women who bring offerings. From then on, God says, no one in Eli’s line will see old age.

      This encounter was the start of Samuel’s prophetic ministry, and it was not the last time that the word he gave would be hard to receive.

      (III) ISRAEL – ARROGANT ARMY

      The next story concerns Israel’s defeat at the hands of the Philistines, the warring nation living on the west coast. The Israelites assume that they lost the battle because they left the ark of the covenant in the temple. Next time, therefore, they take it with them into battle, but are again heavily defeated, with 30,000 foot soldiers killed, including Eli’s sons (thus fulfilling the prophecy concerning their early deaths). The ark is captured by the Philistines and taken to the temple of Dagon, the Philistines’ god.

      On hearing this news, Eli – an old, frail man by this time – falls backwards off his chair and breaks his neck. The ark, however, spells trouble for the Philistines. God sends terrible illnesses upon them and they finally send it back to the Israelites on a cart pulled by two cows. The Philistines follow the cart to see where it goes, and they see it heading uphill in the direction of Jerusalem.

      Samuel gathers the Israelites at Mizpah and tells them that the previous defeats have nothing to do with the ark and everything to do with the pagan gods they are worshipping. Israel burns the idols, and this time is victorious in the fight against the Philistines. This demonstrates a principle described in Judges: whenever the Israelites disobey God an enemy comes to defeat them, but whenever they repent and put things right they defeat their enemies.

      Samuel’s fame grows from this time onwards, and his work as a judge and a prophet becomes greatly valued.

      (IV) SAUL – ANOINTED KING

      The last public thing that Samuel does as a prophet is to anoint Saul as king. The people ask Samuel whether they can have a king like the nations around them. They know that God is their king, but they want a king who is visible. At first Samuel is offended by their request, until God reminds him that he has no right to take offence, for it is God they have rejected.

      God tells Samuel that if the nation has a king, they need to be prepared for the consequences. A king will want a palace and an army, so taxation and conscription will swiftly follow the coronation. In spite of these warnings, the Israelites still insist they want a king and they choose Saul, a man who is taller and more handsome than anybody else.

      2. Saul – first king

      Saul’s selection is unusual. God tells Samuel that the one to be anointed as king will be a man searching for donkeys! So when Saul comes to his home asking for help Samuel knows what to do. Saul is given the gift of prophecy as a sign that he is the heir – though we have few details about what form this took. The people confirm Saul as king, aged 30, and Samuel, the last judge, hands over the leadership.

      Saul makes a good start. The people are pleased with his appointment and he experiences early success in defeating the Ammonites. But it is with respect to his relationships that things soon start to go wrong.

      (I) JONATHAN – ADVENTUROUS SON

      Saul’s son Jonathan is instrumental in defeating the Philistines and Saul is initially very proud of him. Jonathan, however, makes the mistake of going into the next battle without telling his father. He wins, but Saul is jealous of his success and his relationship with Jonathan comes under strain.

      In the next story, they are in battle again and Saul makes the rash vow that anyone found eating that day, before he has avenged himself on his enemy, will be put to death. Jonathan, ignorant of the vow, eats some honey. Thus we have the bizarre situation of Saul threatening to kill his own son for disobeying some instructions he did not hear. If the men under his command had not intervened, Jonathan would have lost his life.

      (II) SAMUEL – ANGRY PROPHET

      Saul’s relationship with Samuel also deteriorates. As prophet, Samuel’s job is to pass on to Saul the words God gives him. On one occasion Saul is instructed to await Samuel’s arrival before offering the post-battle sacrifice. When Samuel is late arriving at the battlefield, Saul conducts the sacrifice himself. Enraged at this arrogant action, Samuel tells him his kingdom is about to be handed to someone else.

      Saul’s second major error also concerns disobedience to God’s word. This time he is commanded to wipe out the Amalekites and their livestock, but Saul spares the king, Agag, and the best of the livestock. Once again Samuel arrives on the scene and finds that Saul has failed to obey all that God has said. Samuel becomes very angry, executes Agag before the altar of the Lord, and tells Saul that to obey is better than to sacrifice. Samuel further tells Saul that because he has rejected the word of the Lord, God has rejected him as king. From that day until Samuel’s death, Saul would never hear from Samuel again. The story is a salutary reminder that ritual is no substitute for righteousness. It certainly marked the beginning of the end for the first king of Israel.

      Deprived of Samuel’s counsel, Saul has no way of finding out the Lord’s will and so has no idea whether Israel’s battles will be successful or not. Although he pleased God at the beginning of his reign by banning every medium from the land of Israel, at the very end of his reign, some time after Samuel’s death, he manages to find one at Endor who is still in business. Saul goes to her and calls up Samuel’s spirit for a final conversation. He is told that the imminent battle with the Philistines will be his last.

      (III) DAVID – APPARENT RIVAL

      Saul’s story slips into the background with the arrival of David. The young David enters Saul’s service, and we are told that Saul likes him very much, but after a good start Saul’s relationship with David goes the way of Jonathan’s and Samuel’s.

      IN

      (a) Simple shepherd

      David’s arrival on the scene comes after God’s rejection of Saul as king – although Saul is to remain king for some time. Samuel is sent to David’s family home to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king, but finds that none receive God’s approval. Only when the eighth and youngest son is called from the field

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