April
7th 1
Samuel 13
Saul’s first sin
1:
Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,
2:
Saul chose him three thousand men of Israel; whereof two thousand
were with Saul in Michmash and in mount Bethel, and a thousand were
with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin: and the rest of the people he
sent every man to his tent. 3:
And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba,
and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout
all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear. 4:
And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the
Philistines, and that Israel also was had in abomination with the
Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to
Gilgal. 5:
And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight with
Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and
people as the sand which is on the sea shore in multitude: and they
came up, and pitched in Michmash, eastward from Beth-aven. 6:
When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, (for the
people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in
caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high places, and in
pits. 7:
And some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and
Gilead. As for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people
followed him trembling. 8:
And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had
appointed: but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were
scattered from him. 9:
And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace
offerings. And he offered the burnt offering. 10:
And it came to pass, that as soon as he had made an end of offering
the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet
him, that he might salute him. 11:
And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw
that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not
within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered
themselves together at Michmash; 12:
Therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to
Gilgal, and I have not made supplication unto the LORD: I forced
myself therefore, and offered a burnt offering. 13:
And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept
the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now
would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. 14:
But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a
man after his own heart, and the LORD hath commanded him to be
captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the
LORD commanded thee. 15:
And Samuel arose, and gat him up from Gilgal unto Gibeah of Benjamin.
And Saul numbered the people that were present with him, about six
hundred men. 16:
And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that were present with
them, abode in Gibeah of Benjamin: but the Philistines encamped in
Michmash. 17:
And the spoilers came out of the camp of the Philistines in three
companies: one company turned unto the way that leadeth to Ophrah,
unto the land of Shual: 18:
And another company turned the way to Beth-horon: and another company
turned to the way of the border that looketh to the valley of Zeboim
toward the wilderness.
Israel lacks
weapons
19:
Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel: for
the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears:
20:
But all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every
man his share, and his coulter, and his axe, and his mattock. 21:
Yet they had a file for the mattocks, and for the coulters, and for
the forks, and for the axes, and to sharpen the goads. 22:
So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword
nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul
and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there
found. 23:
And the garrison of the Philistines went out to the passage of
Michmash.
1
Samuel 14 Jonathan’s daring attack
1:
Now it came to pass upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said
unto the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over to
the Philistines' garrison, that is on the other side. But he told not
his father. 2:
And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibeah under a pomegranate
tree which is in Migron: and the people that were with him were about
six hundred men; 3:
And Ahiah, the son of Ahitub, I-chabod's brother, the son of
Phinehas, the son of Eli, the LORD's priest in Shiloh, wearing an
ephod. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone. 4:
And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto
the Philistines' garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side and
a sharp rock on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez,
and the name of the other Seneh. 5:
The forefront of the one was situate northward over against Michmash,
and the other southward over against Gibeah. 6:
And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and
let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be
that the LORD will work for us: for there is no restraint to the LORD
to save by many or by few. 7:
And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that is in thine heart:
turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart. 8:
Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over unto these men, and we
will discover ourselves unto them. 9:
If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will
stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them. 10:
But if they say thus, Come up unto us; then we will go up: for the
LORD hath delivered them into our hand: and this shall be a sign unto
us. 11:
And both of them discovered themselves unto the garrison of the
Philistines: and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth
out of the holes where they had hid themselves. 12:
And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armourbearer,
and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan
said unto his armourbearer, Come up after me: for the LORD hath
delivered them into the hand of Israel. 13:
And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his
armourbearer after him: and they fell before Jonathan; and his
armourbearer slew after him. 14:
And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armourbearer made,
was about twenty men, within as it were an half acre of land, which a
yoke of oxen might plow. 15:
And there was trembling in the host, in the field, and among all the
people: the garrison, and the spoilers, they also trembled, and the
earth quaked: so it was a very great trembling.
In today’s Bible
reading we see the beginning of Saul’s reign and of an early
fateful battle in which Saul sins against the Lord. We also realise
that Israel had a significant lack of effective weaponry with which
to defend herself or fight. Then we read of Jonathan Saul faithful
son who made a daring raid on the Philistines. The first year of
Saul’s reign went ok but in the second year he found himself at war
again with the Philistines. Saul had raised a small standing army of
3,000 men, of whom 2,000 were with him, in Michmash about ten miles
north east of Jerusalem and 1,000 with Jonathan at Gibeah which was
about 3 miles north of Jerusalem. Jonathan attacked a company of
Philistines which were south west of Michmash by about 3 miles. When
Saul sounded a trumpet the Whole of Israel gathered to him. And the
Philistines also gathered for war. They had 30,000 chariots, 6,000
cavalry and infantry like the sand on the sea shore. When the
Philistines came to battle the children of Israel hid themselves in
caves and thickets. While Saul waited for Samuel he offered
sacrifices to the Lord. But when Samuel arrived he said to Saul what
have you done? (It was not permitted for kings to offer sacrifice)
Samuel told him flatly that he had forfeited his kingdom because he
had failed to keep the commandments of the LORD. He said the LORD
will find another man who has the same mind as the LORD. Saul
gathered 600 men to fight but the Philistines came in three groups
and took spoil of the Israelites. The Philistines had enacted a
policy of forbidding the Israelites to practise weapon making and the
children of Israel had to go to the Philistines to sharpen their
swords, axes etc. When battle commenced Israel was undefended being
without weapons. One day Jonathan gathered his men, 600 in all and
went to battle without telling his father about it. Jonathan said
lets go to the Philistines maybe the LORD will fight for us – God
is not restrained to save many or few. His faithful armour bearer
said do everything in your heart Look l am with you. Jonathan went
forward and killed 20 men and there was a great earthquake. And so
Jonathan brought about a daring raid on the Philistines. Jonathan was
a very brave man but God was with him.
- What was Sauls first sin?
- Why couldn't Israel sharpen their weapons?
- Was Jonathan brave or foolish?
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