Hello, this is Father Paul, and I'm glad we're
taking this journey together to read the Bible
in a year. Today's reading is from 1 Samuel chapters
10 through 12. Chapter 10 Then Samuel took a
flask of oil and poured it on his head and kissed
him and said, Is it not because the Lord has
anointed you commander over his inheritance?
When you have departed from me today, you will
find two men by Rachel's tomb in the territory
of Benjamin at Zilzah, and they will say to you,
The donkeys which you went to look for have been
found. And now your father has ceased caring
about the donkeys and is worrying about you,
saying, What shall I do about my son? Then you
shall go on forward from there and come to the
turban's tree of Tabor. There three men, going
up to God at Bethel, will meet you, one carrying
three young goats, another carrying three loaves
of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine.
And they will greet you and give you two loaves
of bread, which you shall receive from their
hands. After that you shall come to the hill
of God, where the Philistine garrison is. And
it will happen, when you have come there to the
city, that you will meet a group of prophets
coming down from the high place with a stringed
instrument, a tambourine, a flute, and a harp
before them, and they will be prophesying. Then
the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and
you will prophesy with them and be turned into
another man. And let it be when these signs come
to you that you do as the occasion demands, for
God is with you. You shall go down before me
to Gilgal, and surely I will come down to you
to offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices
of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait
till I come to you and show you what you should
do. so it was when he had turned his back to
go from samuel that god gave him another heart
and all those signs came to pass that day when
they came there to the hill there was a group
of prophets to meet him then the spirit of god
came upon him and he prophesied among them and
it happened when all who knew him formerly saw
that he indeed prophesied among the prophets
that the people said to one another what is this
that has come upon the son of kish is saul also
among the prophets then a man from there answered
and said but who is their father Therefore it
became a proverb, Is Saul also among the prophets?
And when he had finished prophesying, he went
to the high place. Then Saul's uncle said to
him and his servant, Where did you go? So he
said, To look for the donkeys. When we saw that
they were nowhere to be found, we went to Samuel.
And Saul's uncle said, Tell me, please, what
Samuel said to you. So Saul said to his uncle,
He told us plainly that the donkeys had been
found, but about the matter of the kingdom he
did not tell him what Saul had said. Then Samuel
called the people together to the Lord at Mizpah
and said to the children of Israel, Thus says
the Lord God of Israel, I brought up Israel out
of Egypt and delivered you from the hand of the
Egyptians and from the hand of all kingdoms and
from those who oppressed you. But you have today
rejected your God, who himself saved you from
all your adversities and your tribulations. And
you have said to him, No, set a king over us.
Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord
by your tribes and by your clans. And when Samuel
had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near,
the tribe of Benjamin was chosen. When he had
caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by
their families, the family of Matri was chosen,
and Saul the son of Kish was chosen. But when
they sought him, he could not be found. Therefore
they inquired of the Lord further, Has the man
come here yet? And the Lord answered, There he
is, hidden among the equipment. So they ran and
brought him from there. And when he stood among
the people, he was taller than any of the people
from his shoulders upward. And Samuel said to
all the people, Do you see him? whom the Lord
has chosen, that there is no one like him among
all the people. So all the people shouted and
said, Long live the king. Then Israel explained
to the people the behavior of royalty and wrote
it in a book and laid it up before the Lord.
And Samuel sent all the people away, every man
to his house. And Saul also went home to Gibeah.
And valiant men went with him, whose heart God
had touched. But some rebels said, How can this
man save us? So they despised him and brought
him no presents, but he held his peace. Chapter
11 Then Nahash the Ammonite came up and encamped
against Jabesh Gilead. And all the men of Jabesh
said to Nahash, Make a covenant with us, and
we will serve you. And Nahash the Ammonite answered
them, On this condition I will make a covenant
with you, that I may put out all your right eyes
and bring reproach on all Israel. Then the elders
of Jabesh said to him, Hold off for seven days,
that we may send messengers to all the territory
of Israel. And then, if there is no one to save
us, we will come out to you. So the messengers
came out to Gibeah of Saul and told the news
in the hearing of the people. And all the people
lifted up their voices and wept. Now there was
Saul coming behind the herd from the field. And
Saul said, What troubles the people that they
weep? And they told him the words of the men
of Jabesh. Then the Spirit of God came upon Saul
when he heard this news, and his anger was greatly
aroused. So he took a yoke of oxen and cut them
in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory
of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying,
Whoever does not go out with Saul and Samuel
to battle, so it shall be done to his oxen. And
the fear of the Lord fell on the people, and
they came out with one consent. When he numbered
them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three
hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty
thousand. And they said to the messengers who
came, Thus you shall say to the men of Jabesh,
Gilead, Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot,
you shall have help. Then the messengers came
and reported it to the men of Jabesh, and they
were glad. Therefore the men of Jabesh said,
Tomorrow, we will come out to you and you may
do with us whatever seems good to you so it was
on the next day that Saul put the people in three
companies and they came into the midst of the
camp in the morning watch and killed Ammonites
until the heat of the day and it happened that
those who survived were scattered so that no
two of them were left together then the people
said to Samuel who is he who said shall Saul
reign over us bring the men that we may put them
to death But Saul said, Not a man shall be put
to death this day, for today the Lord has accomplished
salvation in Israel. Then Samuel said to the
people, Come, 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. There they made sacrifices of peace
offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and
all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly. Now Samuel
said to all Israel, Indeed I have heeded your
voice in all that you said to me. and have made
a king over you. And now here is the king, walking
before you. And I am old and gray -headed, and
look, my sons are with you. I have walked before
you from my childhood to this day. Here I am.
Witness against me before the Lord and before
his anointed. Whose ox have I taken, or whose
donkey have I taken, or whom have I cheated?
Whom have I oppressed, or from whom have I received
any bribe, with which to blind my eyes? I will
restore it to you. And they said, You have not
cheated us or oppressed us, nor have taken anything
from any man's hand. Then he said to them, The
Lord is witness against you, and his anointed
is witness this day, that you have not found
anything in my hand. And they answered, He is
witness. Then Samuel said to the people, It is
the Lord who raised up Moses and Aaron, and who
brought your fathers up from the land of Egypt.
Now therefore stand still, that I may reason
with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous
acts of the Lord which he did to you and your
fathers. When Jacob had gone into Egypt, and
your fathers cried out to the Lord, then the
Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your fathers
out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place.
And when they forgot the Lord their God, he sold
them into the hands of Sisera, commander of the
army of Hazor, into the hand of the Philistines,
and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they
fought against them. Then they cried out to the
Lord and said, We have sinned because we have
forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and Ashtaroth,
but now deliver us from the hand of our enemies,
and we will serve you. And the Lord sent Jeroboam,
Badan, Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you
out of the hand of your enemies on every side,
and you dwelt in safety. And when you saw that
Nahash king of the Ammonites came against you,
you said to me, No, but a king shall reign over
us, when the Lord your God was your king. Now
therefore he is the king whom you have chosen
and whom you have desired. And take note, the
Lord has set a king over you. if you fear the
lord and serve him and obey his voice and do
not rebel against the commandment of the lord
then both you and the king who reigns over you
will continue following the lord your god however
if you do not obey the voice of the lord but
rebel against the commandment of the lord then
the hand of the lord will be against you as it
was against your fathers now therefore stand
and see this great thing which the lord will
do before your eyes is today not the wheat harvest
I will call to the Lord, and he will send thunder
and rain, that you may perceive and see that
your wickedness is great, which you have done
in the sight of the Lord in asking a king for
yourselves. So Samuel called to the Lord, and
the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, and
all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.
And all the people said to Samuel, Pray for your
servants to the Lord your God, that we may not
die, for we have added to all our sins the evil
of asking a king for ourselves. Then Samuel said
to the people, Do not fear, you have done all
this wickedness, yet do not turn aside from following
the Lord. But serve the Lord with all your heart,
and do not turn aside, for then you would go
after empty things which cannot profit or deliver,
for they are nothing. For the Lord will not forsake
his people. for his great name's sake, because
it has pleased the Lord to make you his people.
Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I
should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray
for you, but I will teach you the good and the
right way. Only fear the Lord, and serve him
in truth with all your heart, for consider what
great things he has done for you. But if you
still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both
you and your king. I hope you enjoyed today's
reading as much as I did and I look forward to
seeing you again tomorrow to continue on our
journey. God bless you and have a great day.