And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day.

Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us;

That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.

And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the LORD.

And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man

unto his city.

COMMENT.-Samuel may have been about sixty years old when he placed his sons in charge at Beersheba to watch over the south, whilst he ruled at Ramah. But they fell into that universal Eastern vice of accepting presents and turning aside their judgment in favour of the givers, and the people came to Samuel demanding of him to make them a king like the other nations. Samuel was displeased-not selfishly, at the ingratitude to himself after his restoration of the almost ruined nation, and long peaceful government; but he felt, as Gideon had done before, that it was the peculiar glory of Israel to have the Lord for their king, and that this glory, in their foolish desire to be like other nations, they were throwing away. It was true that there were laws in Deuteronomy for the future king to govern by, but it was the duty of Israel to have waited for God's appointment, certainly not to come clamouring, imperatively requiring of Samuel to make them a king. Yet still they showed some dutifulness in trusting the choice to their Judge instead of making it for themselves, though the Lord spake to Samuel, saying that this was a rejection of His divine authority, of a piece with all their former conduct. In fact, it was the old craving for a visible leader to trust in, the same feeling that had induced them to make the calf to lead them instead of Moses, and take the Ark to battle; yet Samuel was bidden not to refuse them, but rather set before them the inconveniences that they would feel from having a king "like the nations," as they said. So he described the ways of an Eastern king, who used his power for his own pleasure, and not his people's good-the great household of wives and slaves, the violent calling away the choicest youths to form a body-guard, the claims upon labour and upon produce, such

as these free people had never known. Not even the very best of the kings of Israel seem altogether to have avoided all such abuses of power, and the worst fell into them continually. Samuel warned the people of all this, and when in their vanity and self-will they repeated their demand, Samuel was commanded to grant it, but he dismissed them to their homes until God should direct them to the intended king.

LESSON LII.

THE APPOINTMENT OF SAUL.

B.C. 1095.-1 SAM. ix. 1—25.

Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of power.

And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people.

And the asses of Kish Saul's father were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son, Take now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses.

And he passed through mount Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalisha, but they found them not: then they passed through the land of Shalim, and there they were not: and he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they found them not.

And when they were come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant that was with him, Come, and let us return; lest my father leave caring for the asses, and take thought for us.

And he said unto him, Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is an honourable man; all that he saith cometh surely to pass now let us go thither; peradventure he can shew us our way that we should go.

Then said Saul to his servant, But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God: what have we?

And the servant answered Saul again, and said, Behold, I have here at hand the fourth part of a shekel of silver: that will I give to the man of God, to tell us our way.

(Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to enquire of God, thus he spake, Come, and let us go to the seer: for he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer.)

Then said Saul to his servant, Well said; come, let us go. So they went unto the city where the man of God was.

And as they went up the hill to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said unto them, Is the seer here?

And they answered them, and said, He is; behold, he is before you : make haste now, for he came to day to the city; for there is a sacrifice of the people to day in the high place. *

As soon as ye be come into the city, ye shall straightway find him, before he go up to the high place to eat for the people will not eat until he come, because he doth bless the sacrifice; and afterwards they eat that be bidden. Now therefore get ye up; for about this time ye shall find him.

And they went up into the city and when they were come into the city, behold, Samuel came out against them, for to go up to the high place. Now the LORD had told Samuel in his ear a day before Saul came, saying,

To morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be captain over my people Israel, that he may save my people out of the hand of the Philistines: for I have looked upon my people, because their cry is come unto me.

And when Samuel saw Saul, the LORD said unto him, Behold the man whom I spake to thee of! this same shall reign over my people.

Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer's house is.

And Samuel answered Saul, and said, I am the seer: go up before me into the high place; for ye shall eat with me to day, and to morrow I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thine heart.

And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? is it

not on thee, and on all thy father's house?

And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou so to me?

And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the parlour, and made them sit in the chiefest place among them that were bidden, which were about thirty persons.

And Samuel said unto the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee, Set it by thee.

And the cook rook up the shoulder, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold that which is left! set it before thee, and eat for unto this time hath it been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day.

And when they were come down from the high place into the city, Samuel communed with Saul upon the top of the house.

COMMENT.-The people had returned home to wait, and meantime the king they desired was chosen. He was a Benjamite of that valiant little tribe which had never yet been entirely conquered,

and which was never addicted to idolatry. He was the son of a prosperous man, named Kish, owning large herds of cattle, and was himself of lofty height and noble countenance, in looks all that could be desired of a king, bold, high-spirited, and affectionate, with all that could make him loveable. By the strange course of providence by which God leads people up to the tasks He has appointed for them, Saul, who had set out from home merely to seek the stray herd of asses belonging to his father, found himself at a city of the land of Zuph, to the south-west of Benjamin, just when Samuel on his circuit was come thither to hold a festival with and judge the people. Perhaps we here see the beginning of the flaw in Saul's character, that he should be bold enough to come with a fee in his hand to ask the great inspired Judge of Israel which way his asses were gone. However, he is not condemned in Scripture, and it is never safe to think that anything is too trifling to come to God about, so it may be that in all their domestic duties the Israelites freely asked Samuel's inspired aid. The two words seer and prophet denote two offices. The older one of the seer seems to have been to answer by inspiration inquiries put to him, while the prophet was filled by God with a message to deliver; and the great body of prophets, who began with Samuel, were, when the book was written, so much more before the eyes of the people that it had become necessary to explain what seers were. Meantime God had revealed to Samuel that the future king was on his way, and he had prepared for it. Probably the festival had begun by Samuel's offering a sacrifice. Then, after the sacrificial portions had been burnt, he left the rest to be prepared, bidding the cook set aside the shoulderhis own portion, as acting as priest-for a guest yet to come. Then he went and sat in the city gateway, to act as judge and ruler, and while he was there, and as he rose to join the feast, Saul drew near among the rest, with his borrowed quarter-shekel, to ask about his asses. The secret voice of God declared that this grand-looking wayworn traveller was the man; and after setting his mind at rest about the asses, the prophet told him that he was the "desire of all Israel"—the man to whom all looked! Entirely unprepared, Saul humbly spoke of his own tribe as the least, sprung

from the youngest son, and mown down by the great slaughter of Gibeah, and his own family as obscure; but he could not resist the grand old prophet, the first man in Israel, who took him up the sacred hill, outside the gates where the sacrifice had been offered. Close by was one of the great empty Eastern caravanserais or halting-places for travellers, and here the special feast was spread for Samuel and about thirty invited guests, the chief personages at the place. Above all these did Samuel place the wondering Saul, with the shoulder, the prime portion, before him; and after the meal was over, Samuel took him to the house where he himself slept, and according to the custom in the heats of Palestine, his bed was spread on the top of the house.

LESSON LIII.

THE ANOINTING OF SAUL.

B.C. 1095.-I SAM. ix. 26, 27; x. 1—16.

And they arose early and it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called Saul to the top of the house, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad.

And as they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us, (and he passed on,) but stand thou still a while, that I may shew thee the word of God.

Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said, Is it not because the LORD hath anointed thee to be captain over his inheritance?

When thou art departed from me to day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulchre in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say unto thee, The asses which thou wentest to seek are found: and, lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and sorroweth for you, saying, What shall I do for my son?

Then shalt thou go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tabor, and there shall meet thee three men going up to God to Beth-el, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine :

And they will salute thee, and give thee two loaves of bread; which thou shalt receive of their hands.

After that thou shalt come to the hill* of God, where is the garrison +

* Gibeah.

A fort with soldiers in it.