Saul, the First King of Israel - 1 Samuel 9-10
Samuel grew up to be a man, and in his older years, he anointed his sons as judges over Israel. His sons, like the sons of Eli, were wicked. They treated people unfairly and took bribes from them.
The Israelites were always experiencing the desire to be like the other nations. They were a special nation because God chose Israel to be His chosen people, but the Israelites thought it more valuable for them to be like the other nations. The other nations had a king. Israel did not need a king because God was the king. But they persisted in their begging for a king.
God had warned Israel what would happen if they had a king. Having a king would bring new problems. The king would take their daughters and use them as servants and the sons would be used in the army. The king would also be able to take the best food crops and keep them for himself! But Israel still wanted that king. They wanted to be like the other nations.
God told the people that He would choose the King. And He did. He chose a man named Saul. During the time when they were looking for the king, Saul was out looking for some lost donkeys. He went to Samuel because he knew Samuel was able to hear from God and maybe he would have known where the donkeys were. It was at that time that Samuel anointed Saul to be king.
Saul was humbled. He thought of himself as unnoticeable and hid himself. The way Samuel announced the king, he went through each tribe, then clan, then family until he would find the right person he was looking for. Finally, Saul was chosen. They found him hiding among the baggage!
This event happened around 1043 B.C.
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