Sha’ul and the Lost Donkeys
First Samuel 9: 1-14
Sha’ul and the lost donkeys DIG: What are some of the traits we see in Sha’ul from this early picture of his life? What characteristics did Sha’ul possess that made him a good choice for king in the people’s eyes? How did these differ from God’s standards of what made a good king? In what ways does Sha’ul show us that he was not a spiritual leader? What distinguished the “man of God?”
REFLECT: If some seer were reading all that was in your heart and telling you where your lost items were, would you have reacted as Sha’ul did? Why or why not? What insight did Samuel give you into Yeshua’s prophetic ability to know what was in the heart of man. What difference was Sha’ul’s search for the lost donkeys, and Messiah’s compassion in seeking to save the lost sheep, coin, son?
While Sha’ul was physically impressive, he was not a spiritual leader.
The first thing we learn about Sha’ul is his genealogy: There was a Benjamite, whose name was Kish the son of Avi’el, the son of Tz’ror, the son of B’khorat, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite. He was a mighty man of power and brave as well (9:1). This was not a distinguished family tree – none of these names hold any distinction in the Bible – although Sha’ul’s father possessed a degree of prominence and wealth. Moreover, Benjamin was the smallest of Isra’el’s tribes, being the last of Jacob’s twelve sons. However, from a political standpoint, Benjamin was not a bad choice to provide a king, since a member of that tribe could mediate between the powerful tribes of Judah to the south and Ephraim to the north.
Kish had a son named Sha’ul. The name Sha’ul means asked for. This corresponds to the elders’ request for a king. Sha’ul was, in fact, exactly what Isra’el had asked for, the kind of man admired according to worldly standards. The world admires someone who looks and acts like a leader, and Sha’ul was young and handsome. Indeed, among the people of Isra’el there was no one better-looking than he. The word translated handsome is simply the word good (Hebrew: tov). The point is that Sha’ul made a very good impression. The people would have voted him “Mr. Isra’el” if there had been a contest. Moreover, in a world that values physical stature, Sha’ul was something of a giant: he stood head and shoulders above anyone else in Isra’el (9:2). The fact that Sha’ul is the only Israelite identified in the Bible for his great height – physical stature always being a mark of Isra’el’s enemies (Numbers 13:33; Deuteronomy 1:28, 2:10, 9:2, First Samuel 17:4) – strengthens the impression that Sha’ul is precisely the kind of king who would be chosen by all the nations.206. However, another Sha’ul, also a Benjamite, though physically unimpressive (Second Corinthians 10:10), possessed the internal, spiritual qualities that would make him one of the greatest men who ever lived.207
The story begins with a common event in that agricultural world. Now some of the donkeys belonging to Sha’ul’s father Kish got lost. Kish said to his son Sha’ul, “Please take one of the servants with you, go out, and look for the donkeys.” He went through the hills of Ephraim and the territory of Shalishah, but they didn’t find them. Then they went through the territory of Sha‘alim, but they weren’t there. They went through the territory of Benjamin but didn’t find them there either (9:3-4). Sha’ul and his servant took a circular tour, returning close to Ramah, though neither Samuel or the city are named here. Sha’ul’s home was in Gibeah, which was only five miles from Ramah, and yet he didn’t even know what all of Isra’el knew (3:20), that a man of God named Samuel lived in Ramah. Sha’ul’s complete ignorance of Isra’el’s chief prophet and judge is confirmed later when he meets Samuel and asks: Please tell me where the seer’s house is (9:18), only to learn that the person he was looking for was standing right in front of him. Sha’ul’s spiritual blindness would play a significant role in events to come, especially as he misjudges the motives of his godly son Jonathan and sees faithful David as a threat.208
How could Sha’ul live so close to Isra’el’s spiritual leader and not know about him is a bit of a mystery, but suggests that Sha’ul simply lived and farmed with his family at Gibeah and minded his own business. Apparently, he didn’t attend the annual feasts (see the commentary on Exodus, to see link click Eh – Three Times a Year Celebrate a Festival to Me) and wasn’t greatly concerned about spiritual matters. Like many people today, he wasn’t against “religion,” but he didn’t make knowing ADONAI a vital part of his life.209
Finally, we observe that while Sha’ul was supposedly in charge, it was actually his servant who led while Sha’ul was following. It was the servant, not Sha’ul, who insisted that they inquire of God’s prophet. Sha’ul said to his servant, “Come, let’s go back; otherwise my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.” But his servant, who saw Ramah in the distance, replied, “Here now, there’s a man of God in this city, a man who is highly respected as a judge and a prophet. Everything he says comes true. Let’s go to him; maybe he can tell us something about where we should go to find the donkeys” (9:5-6). It’s a good thing the servant knew about Samuel and that Sha’ul listened to his advice! Later, when he became king, Sha’ul would frequently be influenced by the counsel of others rather than making up his own mind.
We recognize Sha’ul, do we not? Sha’ul is among us today as the executive who runs the company into the ground while demanding a lavish bonus, or the politician who masters the art of public speaking but never really tells the truth. The Sha’ul’s of the world have little competence for the actual job at hand, but only the carefully cultivated impression of superiority. The Sha’ul’s have few convictions but many ambitions. They are led by the winds of changing fashion. This was the kind of king the Israelites demanded, and in a corrupt world like ours, Sha’ul is the kind of man who often comes to fame and power.
While Sha’ul was physically impressive, he was not a spiritual leader. This is the major point made throughout Chapters 9 and 10. His spiritual aptitude was tainted by his inability to find his father’s lost donkeys. Most of Isra’el’s famous leaders had been shepherds – Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses – so Sha’ul’s incompetence at tracking down even such large animals (who eventually found their own way home) is not flattering, to say the least. One of the most important qualifications of a spiritual leader is faithfulness in watching over God’s flock (First Peter 5:2-3), but Sha’ul gave up and wanted to go home.210
Sha’ul said to his servant, “If we go to the man, what can we bring him? We’ve used up all the bread in our packs, and there’s nothing for us to give the man of God – what do we have left?” In those days, it was common to offer a gift to a prophet if one were asking for guidance. The gift expressed gratitude and thankfulness for the service of the man of God. In this we see that Sha’ul was concerned with outward appearances and doing the socially correct thing, but not so concerned with doing what was right in God’s eyes. He was careful to obey social etiquette in offering a gift, but later, would not be so careful to obey what the prophet commanded him.211 But, the servant just “happened” to have a silver quarter-shekel [one-tenth of an ounce] in his hand. He said: I will give it to the man of God to tell us which way to go.” (In Isra’el, before Samuel was written, when someone went to consult God, he would say, “Come, let’s go to the seer,” or one who has eyes to see what is hidden from ordinary people, both in the present – like the lost donkeys – and in the future, because a person now called a prophet used to be called a seer.) Sha’ul said to his servant, “Good, come on, let’s go” (9:7-10a). It is noticeable that Sha’ul didn’t even provide his own gift for Samuel though he was a wealthy man, but instead, relied on his servant’s generosity. Even from his earliest appearances, we find Sha’ul was not a strong leader; he followed the leadership of his servant.
It was evening when the two men arrived at the gates of Ramah. So they went to the city where the man of God was. As they were going up a hill to the town, they met some girls coming down to draw water, and asked them, “Is the seer here” (9:10b-11)? The girls gave them a long, detailed answer. Possibly prompted by the Spirit of God, they said: He’s here, he’s right ahead of you. Hurry now, he just came into the city today, because the people are sacrificing today at the high place. Find him as soon as you enter the city, before he goes up to the high place to eat; because the people won’t eat the sacrificial meal until he comes and blesses the sacrifice. Afterwards, the ones invited will eat. So go on up, you should find him about this time (9:12-13). Sha’ul’s haste here led to success; but later would lead to disaster when he didn’t wait for the prophet (see Ck – God Rejects Sha’ul).
High places were open-air-sanctuaries, sometimes with shrines or other buildings (9:22), where worship was conducted. The LORD was occasionally worshipped there (First Kings 3:2 and 4-5), but their habitual use for idolatry and other pagan practices (First Kings 12:31-32) brought them under divine judgement (First Kings 13:1-2). The kings of the divided monarchy were often judged by whether they had destroyed the high places (Second Kings 12:1-3, 14:1-4, 18:1-4, 23:4-15). The association of high places with idolatry had contributed to the divine rejection of Shiloh and the capture of the Ark (Psalm 78:58-61).212
The time of Sha’ul’s arrival at Ramah was providential, for Samuel appeared just as Sha’ul and his servant entered the city. They went up to Ramah; and as they entered it, there was Samuel coming toward them on his way up to the high place where he would offer a sacrifice to YHVH (9:14). Since the Ark of the covenant was at the house of Abinadab (see Bl – The Ark at Abinadab’s House), and the Tabernacle was moved to Nov (see the commentary on the Life of David Av – David at Nov), the people brought their sacrifices to a shrine at Ramah that was dedicated to ADONAI and located on a hill near the city.
As Richard Phillips relates in his commentary on 1 Samuel, the final point made in the opening section of Chapter 9 is God’s providential control over the small affairs of our lives, according to His sovereign will. Yes, Sha’ul was chasing donkeys, yet, it was the LORD’s sovereignty that directed the paths of both Sha’ul and Samuel that was completely unexpected by both men. It is obvious from the text that YHVH had ordained every detail of this journey, even having Sha’ul and his servant arrive at the town gates at precisely the moment Samuel walked through them (9:14). Here, we are reminded of ADONAI’s utter sovereignty over even the smallest details of life that do not conflict with our free will. It is an antimony, two things that seem to be mutually exclusive, but both are true. We can ask God to explain all of this when we get to heaven.
The LORD had promised to provide Isra’el a king like the other nations, and by His appointed time and means that promise would be fulfilled. Furthermore, this event would work toward God’s own sovereign plan for His people, foreknown and ordained from all eternity past.213 ADONAI used some wandering donkeys to lead Sha’ul to Samuel in order to anoint him as king. Each step along the way could be viewed as a simple coincidence, but there are no coincidences in God’s eyes.214 Therefore, we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (see the commentary on Romans Cl – Our Bodies and Redemption). In this respect, Sha’ul’s selection as Isra’el’s king reminds us of ADONAI’s provision for His Son, Yeshua, to reign as the Savior of His people. Whereas the religious leaders in Jerusalem thought they were merely betraying some rebellious rabbi in handing Yeshua over to the Romans, Peter declared to the Jews (see the commentary on Acts Al – The Ruach Ha’Kodesh Comes at Shavu’ot) that Yeshua, whom they had him arrested in accordance with God’s predetermined plan and foreknowledge had Him nailed up on a stake and killed by men not bound by the Torah (Acts 2:23).215
Dear heavenly Father, praise You for being such a terrific Father! There is nothing in You that anyone could ever want to be changed for You are perfect in love (First John 4:8c), and perfect in holiness. The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes all around and within. They do not rest day or night, chanting, “Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh of Hosts, who was and who is and who is to come!” (Revelation 4:8). My heart is filled with overwhelming joy and peace for how wonderful You are! You ransomed people of every tribe, language and nation, from sin’s clutches of death by the blood of the Lamb of God, Messiah Yeshua. And they are singing a new song, saying, “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals. For You were slain, and by Your blood You redeemed for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation (Revelation 5:9).
Ransomed is great, but it gets even better because You have promised to live within those who love You. Yeshua answered and said to him: If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our dwelling with him (John 14:23). It is so fantastic that Messiah Yeshua promises to prepare a future eternal home in heaven for those who love Him. Do not let your heart be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me. In My Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to Myself, so that where I am you may also be (John 14:1-3). Words cannot express the praise that wells up in my heart for Your mercy and grace, a Father who ransoms me, prepares an eternal home in heaven for me to live in. I delight in following and praising You! In Messiah Yeshua’s holy Name and power of His Resurrection. Amen
Leave A Comment