In this episode, we dive into the dramatic narrative of 1 Samuel Chapter 9, where Saul embarks on a mundane quest to find his father’s lost donkeys, only to end up being anointed by Samuel as the first king of Israel. Through a series of divinely orchestrated events, we explore how God works behind the scenes in our lives, aligning our paths with His grand purposes. This Bible story speaks volumes about divine appointments and the intricate ways God moves among His people.
Welcome to Add Bible, an audio daily devotion from the Ezra Project. We join Alan J. Huth as he shares Bible passages and comments from over 30 years of his personal Bible reading journals.
SPEAKER 01 :
Today we are in 1 Samuel chapter 9 and we will listen to the recording from Faith Comes by Hearing of the 27 verses of 1 Samuel 9.
SPEAKER 04 :
1 Samuel 9 There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish, the son of Abel, son of Zerah, son of Bekorath, son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite, a man of wealth. And he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people. Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. So Kish said to Saul his son, Take one of the young men with you and arise. Go and look for the donkeys. And he passed through the hill country of Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalisha. But they did not find them. And they passed through the land of Shalim, but they were not there. Then they passed through the land of Benjamin, but did not find them. When they came to the land of Zaph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, Come, let us go back, lest my father cease to care about the donkeys and become anxious about us. But he said to him, Behold, there is a man of God in this city, and he is a man who is held in honor. All that he says comes true. So now let us go there. Perhaps he can tell us the way we should go. Then Saul said to his servant, But if we go, what can we bring the man? For the bread in our sacks is gone, and there is no present to bring to the man of God. What do we have? The servant answered Saul again, Here, I have with me a quarter of a shekel of silver, and I will give it to the man of God to tell us our way. Formerly in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he said, Come, let us go to the seer, for today’s prophet was formerly called a seer. And Saul said to his servant, Well said. Come, let us go. So they went to the city where the man of God was. As they went up the hill to the city, they met young women coming out to draw water and said to them, ”Is the seer here?” They answered, ”He is.
SPEAKER 06 :
Behold, he is just ahead of you. Hurry, he has come just now to the city because the people have a sacrifice today on the high place. As soon as you enter the city, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat.” For the people will not eat till he comes, since he must bless the sacrifice.
SPEAKER 05 :
Afterward those who are invited will eat. Now go up, for you will meet him immediately.
SPEAKER 04 :
So they went up to the city. As they were entering the city, they saw Samuel coming out toward them on his way up to the high place.
SPEAKER 02 :
Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed to Samuel, Tomorrow, about this time, I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines, for I have seen my people, because their cry has come to me. When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, Here is the man of whom I spoke to you. He it is who shall restrain my people.
SPEAKER 04 :
Then Saul approached Samuel in the gate and said, Tell me, where is the house of the seer?
SPEAKER 03 :
Samuel answered Saul, I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place. For today you shall eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and will tell you all that is on your mind. As for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not set your mind on them, for they have been found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you and for all your father’s house?
SPEAKER 04 :
Saul answered, Am I not a Benjaminite from the least of the tribes of Israel? And is not my clan the humblest of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then have you spoken to me in this way? Then Samuel took Saul and his young man and brought them into the hall and gave them a place at the head of those who had been invited, who were about thirty persons. And Samuel said to the cook,
SPEAKER 03 :
Bring the portion I gave you, of which I said to you, Put it aside.
SPEAKER 04 :
So the cook took up the leg and what was on it and set them before Saul.
SPEAKER 03 :
And Samuel said, See, what was kept is set before you. Eat, because it was kept for you until the hour appointed that you might eat with the guests.
SPEAKER 04 :
So Saul ate with Samuel that day. And when they came down from the high place into the city, a bed was spread for Saul on the roof, and he lay down to sleep. Then at the break of dawn, Samuel called to Saul on the roof, Up, that I may send you on your way. So Saul arose, and both he and Samuel went out into the street.
SPEAKER 03 :
As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Tell the servant to pass on before us, and when he has passed on, stop here yourself for a while, that I may make known to you the word of God.
SPEAKER 01 :
In 1983, in that first journal I ever wrote, I got one of those great one-liners again on this chapter. Saul appears to Samuel as prophesied by God to Samuel. That’s referring to verse 15 and 16. Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed to Samuel, Tomorrow, about this time, I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. Isn’t that awesome? Look how specific God is in speaking to Samuel. Tomorrow. So he gives him the time. I will send you a man from. He gives him the tribe. The land of Benjamin. And you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. So Samuel knows exactly what’s going to happen. But if there was any confusion, just look at verse 17. When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, Here is the man of whom I spoke to you. There is much clarity when we hear the voice of God. Now this is one of my favorite stories in Scripture. So let me flip to my journal in 2007 when I wrote it kind of that way. I wrote, I love the stories in Scripture. Here Saul is innocently introduced. The son of Kish, out looking for lost donkeys. God, once again, behind the scenes is orchestrating the events that lead Saul and Samuel to meet. Saul was looking for lost donkeys. Samuel is looking for a king of Israel. Thanks for being behind the scenes of my own life. Saul, the son of Kish, according to the scriptures here, was a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward, he was taller than any of the people. So let’s look at the scene here. Here’s a handsome, tall guy walking around looking for lost donkeys. He has no idea what’s coming next in his life, does he? He has no idea that he is chosen by God as the first king of Israel. He is led directly by God right into the path of Samuel the prophet. And God has already told Samuel that he’s going to reveal this king to him the next day. Now there’s probably no question when he sees Saul, this tall, handsome guy, that this is the guy he’s looking for. Does God only orchestrate someone’s life like Saul? Or does he also work behind the scenes in your life? What’s going on in your life right now? Are you wandering around like Saul looking for lost donkeys? Maybe thinking your life doesn’t really have a whole lot of purpose? Watch out. You never know what God has right around the corner. In 2002, I wrote, He answers the cry of the people apparently against his own will. He did not want Israel to have a king, but they wanted one. So he answers their prayers and he anoints a king. I suppose it is so in our lives. Sometimes God answers our prayers even when they are not in our best interest. We should be careful to seek his will, not ask him to rubber stamp our own plans. And this too is such an important part of the story. Remember, God really didn’t want Israel to have a king. They wanted one so they could be like other people. He knew that that was a rejection of himself as their king, as their leader, but he grants the request anyway. I relate this passage directly to the elections in the United States. Most Christians think that every president, every leader has been anointed by God. And I would agree that no one can serve in a leadership position in a nation in the world without God’s approval. But just because you get elected doesn’t mean that you are God’s person for the job. Again, God did not want Israel to even have a king, but he gave into their own desires. And he gives them a king, and let’s see in these next few chapters how that works out for the nation of Israel. So just because someone is president of our country doesn’t mean that’s what God wanted. Sometimes He just gives us what we want, just like in this chapter. Now let me turn for a moment to my journal entry on this day concerning the things going on in my life, my parents. In 2002, I wrote, I was here last night, which means I was in Colorado Springs. Again, we live in the Denver area and I was in Colorado Springs on this day. And I wrote here last night and this morning to see mom and dad in the hospital. And we are to attend a doctor briefing at 9 a.m. today on mom. So once again, I must be in the intensive care unit reading the Bible placed by the Gideons in that hospital room for my quiet time. So let’s just revisit a couple of takeaways from 1 Samuel 9. First, like in Saul’s life, God can be orchestrating the events of your own life this very moment. Look forward to what God might have next for you. And secondly, let’s be careful about what we think about leaders of our nations and whether they are of God or not of God. Sometimes God just gives us people what we want, even if it’s not what he wants. Father, as we conclude our study in 1 Samuel 9, we thank you that you can be orchestrating the events in our own lives behind the scenes. We may not even know what you’re doing, but you’re at work in our hearts and in our lives. Our prayer is like Samuel’s as he concludes this chapter when he said, that I may make known to you the word of God. And that’s what we want in our lives, Lord. We want you to make known to us your word in our lives. Reveal yourself to us. Reveal your purpose for us. We ask it humbly. In Jesus’ name, amen. Thanks for listening to Ad Bible today. 2025 is an amazing year on Ad Bible as we cover 44 books of the Bible. That’s two-thirds of the 66 books of the Bible in just one year. If you’ve never read all the books of the Bible, 2025 is an exciting year for you. We are covering Old and New Testament books going back and forth throughout the year. On January 1, we started with the writings of the Old Testament historical books. And we started in the book of Job in January. Then we are going on to Ruth. Then we will look at the journey through 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and conclude with 1 and 2 Chronicles. You won’t want to miss any of these dramatic historical writings in the first quarter of 2025. In the second quarter of 2025, we jump into the New Testament with the writings of Mark, Peter, James, Jude, and Hebrews. This summer, we go back to the Old Testament, diving into the writings of all 13 of the minor prophets, like Daniel, Hosea, Joel, and some of the most obscure minor prophets, like Obadiah, Nahum, and Zephaniah. It will be easy to keep up with these short, powerful books in the busy summer months. In the fall and winter, we will cover all the New Testament writings of Paul, Romans, Galatians, Ephesians, and his personal letters to Timothy and Titus. You will get all of Paul at the end of 2025. 44 books on AdBible in 2025. To order the day-by-day through the Bible books we are using in 2025, visit azraproject.net and find the 2025 plan. All four books are sold separately would come up to about $85, but the set is on sale for only $59. That’s a savings of 30% plus free shipping. Go to EzraProject.net today and order your set so you can get more out of your Bible reading in 2025. I know you’re going to enjoy it.
In this episode, we dive into the dramatic narrative of 1 Samuel Chapter 9, where Saul embarks on a mundane quest to find his father’s lost donkeys, only to end up being anointed by Samuel as the first king of Israel. Through a series of divinely orchestrated events, we explore how God works behind the scenes in our lives, aligning our paths with His grand purposes. This Bible story speaks volumes about divine appointments and the intricate ways God moves among His people.
