February Believers Magazine

The Service and Testimonies of Saul, David
and Jonathan (1)
Introduction
The first book of Samuel relates to the period from
the end of the time of the Judges through to the
accession of David to the throne of Israel. Samuel
was God’s prophet at that time but the book is
mainly taken up with accounts of the lives of
three men - Saul, David and Jonathan. This study
examines something of the relationship between
them, their service for the Lord, and the relevance
of this to believers today.
Scripture carefully outlines principles of
service for God.
The time when the judges ruled was a dark period
in the nation’s history, as is seen in Judges, Ruth,
and 1 Samuel 1-7. There were fifteen judges and
they ruled for about 300 years. It is stated on two
occasions (Judg 17.6 and 21.25) that “In those
days there was no king in Israel, but every man did
that which was right in his own eyes”. The judges
were never national leaders but men, and one
woman, prepared and raised up by God to meet
local emergencies. “Nevertheless the Lord raised
up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of
those that spoiled them” (Judg 2.16). The judges
were evidence of God’s continuing love and care for
His people.
Israel emerged from the period of rule by the
judges completely dominated and humiliated by the
Philistines. The Philistines were masters in the use
of iron and the Israelites were dependent upon them
for the supply and even the maintenance of tools
used for cultivation. The Israelites had no swords;
their only weapons in battle were their agricultural
implements (1 Sam 13.19-20).
Despite the faithful testimony and labour of Samuel
February 2014
C Cann, Glastonbury
there lingered from the days of the judges that
which displeased the Lord. The sons of Eli the High
Priest robbed the people and committed adultery
in the precincts of the tabernacle (1 Sam 2.12-17).
Of Samuel’s sons we read, “It came to pass, when
Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges
over Israel…And his sons walked not in his ways,
but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and
perverted judgment” (1 Sam 8.1-3).
The people were aware of these things and this,
together with their desire to be like the nations around
them, resulted in their demand for a king to lead
them. This distressed Samuel but God encouraged
him with the words: “Hearken unto the voice of the
people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not
rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should
not reign over them” (1 Sam 8.7). After outlining the
consequences of being ruled by an earthly king (1
Sam 8.11-18), God chose Saul. The “manner of the
kingdom” was recorded in a book which was “laid…
up before the Lord” (1 Sam 10.25).
The kings of Israel, like the kings around them, had
high status and wielded considerable authority over
the people; but primarily they were (as indeed were
the people) servants of the Lord. Their success or
failure was evaluated on this basis. It is recorded
that they “DID” that which was right or evil in the
sight of the Lord (e.g. 2 Chr 28.1; 36.5). Scripture
carefully outlines principles of service for God, and
for the purpose of our study we need to consider
just four. They are principles that apply beyond 1
Samuel so are considered in the wider context of
Scripture. They are:
God always equips for service
Paul wrote about this to believers at Corinth. He
defended his position as an apostle and asserted
THE SERVICE AND TESTIMONIES (1)
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