I Chronicles 10
Saul and sons killed by Philistinesverses 1-3
Now the Philistines fought against Israel
and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines
and fell down slain in mount Gilboa
And the Philistines followed hard after Saul – and after his sons
and the Philistines slew Jonathan – Abinadab – Malchi-shua
the sons of Saul
And the battle went sore against Saul – and the archers hit him
and he was wounded of the archers
Armor bearer would not kill wounded Saulverses 4-6
Then said Saul to his armor-bearer
Draw your sword – and thrust me through therewith
lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me
But his armor-bearer would not
for he was sore afraid
So Saul took a sword – and fell upon it
and when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead
he fell likewise on the sword – and died
So Saul died – and his three sons – and all his house died together
Israelites abandon their townsverse 7
And when all the men of Israel that were in the valley saw that they fled
and that Saul and his sons were dead
then they forsook their cities – and fled
and the Philistines came and dwelt in them
Philistines abused body of Saulverses 8-10
And it came to pass on the morrow – when the Philistines came to strip the slain
that they found Saul and his sons fallen in mount Gilboa
And when they had stripped him – they took his head – and his armor
and sent into the land of the Philistines round about
to carry tidings unto their idols – and to the people
And they put his armor in the house of their gods
and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon
Bodies of Saul and his sons recoveredverses 11-12
And when all Jabesh-gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul
they arose – all the valiant men – and took away the body of Saul
and the bodies of his sons – and brought them to Jabesh
and buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh
and fasted seven days
Reason for end of Saul’s reign statedverses 13-14
So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD
even against the word of the LORD – which he KEPT NOT
and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit
to inquire of it
And inquired not of the LORD – therefore HE slew him
and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 4 Then said Saul to his armorbearer, Draw your sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and abuse me. But his armorbearer would not; for he was sore afraid. So Saul took a sword, and fell on it. (5953 “abuse” [‘alal] means to deal severely with, to take harsh action with respect to someone or something, act arbitrarily, or be inflicted)
DEVOTION: Saul had gone on a downward spiral in this time period at the end of his life. He had rejected Samuel’s counsel. He had acted on his own without waiting on the LORD for direction.
He consulted false gods instead of the LORD. When he tried to consult the LORD the witch of Endor was amazed that Samuel came up to talk with them because she was usually dealing with false gods.
Now he was about to die and he didn’t want to be tortured by the Philistines who enjoyed giving their enemies a longer life with their abuse until they were done with their personal fun of abusing their enemies.
Saul was looking for an easy way out of his present situation. We have a tendency at times to look for an easy way out of what would be a hard time in our life. We look for an escape from the consequences of our sins.
That is not what the LORD wants us to do but we sometimes act like Saul and don’t care what the LORD expects of us. It should never be an answer for us if we want to grow in the LORD.
We need to face our consequences realizing that when we have been chastened of the LORD it is because HE loves us and then can deal with us a repentant child.
Saul didn’t want to repent. He wanted to end his life without repentance.
Do we look for the easy way out of our sin? Do we think the LORD should not chasten us because of our sin?
CHALLENGE: The church should be the one who deals with the sins of its people and then the world would respect the message of Christ better. If we don’t discipline our own who will discipline us?
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 7 And when all the men of Israel that were in the valley saw that they fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, then they forsook their cities, and fled: and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. (5800 “forsook” [‘azab] means to leave, to leave behind, let go, give up, abandon, loose, release, or freed)
DEVOTION: Inheritance is important to most people. We all would like to inherit great wealth at times in our life. We would like to have it all. Well, the other side of it is what happened to the men of Israel. They were about to lose it all.
The army had lost the battle. Their king and his sons were dead. They saw the enemy coming to take claim on their inheritance and all they could do is run away. They gave up.
The enemy came and took over the land that they left behind. Their cities became the cities of the Philistines. Instead of places that honored the LORD there were people who worshiped a false god.
When we give up territory to the enemy he is willing to take over and use it for his own purposes. The false god in the case of the Philistines was Dagon. They took the bodies of Saul and his sons to their temple and hang up the heads of their enemies.
They thought that their false god had defeated Jehovah. That is not what had happened. Jehovah was still on the throne in heaven but HE was judging HIS people for their lack of faith in HIM.
Losing battles is part of what happens in the life of a follower of the LORD when there is sin in their life. Victory comes through repentance and walking in the right direction with the LORD. Obedience is the key to winning battles.
If we have a genuine relationship with the LORD we have won the war but have to still face our daily battles with HIS strength available to those who are obedient in their daily fight with the enemy.
CHALLENGE: Are we running away from our inheritance or repenting and asking the LORD to give us victory?
: 10 And they put his armor in the house of their gods, and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon. (8628 “fastened” [taqa] means pitch, thrust, to cause to be firmly attached or secured, to drive in, hang, or attach an object to a usually larger frame or wall)
DEVOTION: There were many false gods since the beginning of the creation of man. Each group had their own customs regarding how to prove that they were strong in battle. Here we have a custom of taking the head of the enemy and putting it on a wall in the temple of their false god. It was to show that their god was superior to their enemy’s god. So we see here that once the Philistines had defeated Saul they wanted to take his head to their god to show that he was stronger than the God of Israel.
This was not the case. We realize from reading the Bible that God allowed the children of Israel to be defeated in battle because they were not honoring HIM in their daily life. HE gave them many chances to repent of their sin but if they didn’t HE would allow an enemy to defeat them.
So here we have the Philistines thinking that the God of Israel was not strong. They found out many times that HE was but that HE punished HIS people for their sins. HE used other humans at times.
Today we find that the LORD is still on the throne but even believers in our day and age don’t repent of their sins and the LORD has to cause them to understand that HE will judge HIS people with those who are not believers at times.
We need to honor the LORD in our daily life and keep short accounts with HIM if we don’t want to face HIS judgment in our world. HE will just believers at the Judgment Seat of Christ in the future regarding their rewards for their service to HIM.
The Bible says that some will be saved “yet so as by fire” because most if not all of their works will be burned because they didn’t honor the LORD after they made a commitment to HIM.
Some people think they have made a commitment to HIM but have never genuinely followed HIM. They said a prayer or went to church but they never made the genuine commitment to follow HIM. It was only fake service or prayer.
Realize that the LORD is not please with us if we are not willing to genuinely follow HIM. HE will send judgment to genuine believers but others will find out at the end of their lives that they never made a genuine commitment – they just said words that didn’t come from the heart.
CHALLENGE: Make sure your commitment is genuine!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 12 They arose, all the valiant men, and took away the body of Saul, and the bodies of his sons, and brought them to Jabesh, and buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh, and fasted seven days. (6684 “fasted” [tsuwm] means abstain from food, act of mourning, or to cover over the mouth)
DEVOTION: There are many different times when the children of Israel were too fast and pray. On the Day of Atonement they were to practice fasting to show there mourning over sin in their life and in the life of the nation.
Here we have the men of Jabesh abstaining from food for seven days to honor the memory of Saul and his sons. They had taken their bodies away from the temple of a false god and wanted to honor them in front of the one true God of the Bible.
Even though Saul had committed many sins against the LORD during the end of his reign they still wanted to honor him for what he had done right for the LORD.
Today we are told to fast and pray when we have something special we want to receive from the LORD. It is a time period of concentration on what the LORD expects of us not so much what we expect from HIM. HE wants us to make sure that we are in tune with HIM regarding our personal lives before HE can bless us with spiritual blessings so that we can serve HIM better.
If Saul had repented and turned to the LORD he would have acted differently at the end of his life. This didn’t happen but it can happen in our life if we are willing to get alone with the LORD and ask HIM to show us how we can serve HIM better.
All major decisions should be accompanied by a time of fasting and prayer. This will show the LORD that we are serious about our relationship with HIM and our willingness to wait on HIM for an answer to the present situation we find ourselves in.
It takes courage to wait on the LORD for our relationship to be right with HIM and with those who are part of our life. These men from Jabesh-gilead had that type of courage. Do we????
CHALLENGE: Ask the LORD to give you the type of courage you need to wait on HIM through prayer and fasting.
: 14 And inquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse. (1875 “inquired” [darash] means to frequent, to follow, to seek, to ask, ask diligently, make inquisition, search or question.)
DEVOTION: Prayer has always been important in the human relationship with God. The LORD wanted HIS people to be totally dependent on HIM. One of the signs fo their dependence was them coming to HIM with their sacrifices and prayers.
The LORD wanted HIS people to come daily into HIS presence. HE wanted them to know that HE cared about every detail of their lives. HE gave them instructions in what was proper behavior and what was not proper. Moses wrote these instructions down in the first five books of the BIBLE.
There was no doubt as to what the LORD expected and when the people were disobedient or rebellious. Saul was rebellious. He didn’t seek the LORD’S guidance. He chose to offer sacrifices instead of waiting for Samuel. He chose to go to the witch of Endor to seek instructions from the dead prophet Samuel. He made some poor choices. It cost him the kingdom and his family.
We have a choice on a daily basis regarding our calling on the LORD for help. Too often we are too independent of the LORD. We think we can do it on our own.
Saul thought he could do it without the LORD. He thought he could be a priest without a calling to that office. He offered a sacrifice without waiting for Samuel to come. Samuel told him that he should have waited. Then he went to the witch at Endor for advice regarding the battle with the Philistines. He did this because the LORD wasn’t answering him the way he wanted.
We are told other places in Scripture that he did ask God for help. He told Samuel that God was not answering him. Here we see a verse that states that he didn’t ask diligently or long enough. Saul just didn’t want to follow God. He was asking but only to hear what he wanted to hear and not obey what the LORD told him.
Do we sometimes come to the LORD with what we want HIM to do and not listen to what HE tells us to do? We need to ask according to HIS will and listen.
God does answer our prayers. Some challenges require that we come to HIM in prayer and fasting. The large decisions require prayer and fasting. When was the last time we took time to fast and ask the LORD for HIS help?
CHALLENGE: Our prayer life has to be important to us. Our walk with the LORD depends on it. Our prayers should be ones that glorify the LORD and not us. Enter your prayer closet with thanksgiving for what the LORD is doing in your life. Then ask HIM how you can serve HIM better.)
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Men of Jabesh-gilead fasted seven daysverse 12
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Inquiring of the LORDverse 14
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal)verses 13, 14
Word of the LORDverse 13
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Philistinesverses 1-11
Dwelt in the cities of the Israelites
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Uncircumcisedverse 4
Abuseverse 4
Worship of idolsverse 9
House of godsverse 10
Temple of Dagonverse 10
Transgressionsverse 13
Not keeping word of the LORDverse 13
Asking counsel of familiar spiritverse 13
Not inquiring of the LORDverse 14
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Valiantverse 12
Fastedverse 12
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Israelverse 1
Fell down slain before Philistines
Israel ran before the Philistines
Forsook their cities
Saulverses 2-13
Wounded by archers
His three sons died as well
Head and armor taking to land of Philistines
Put his head in temple of Dagon
Counsel of familiar spirits – false gods
Armor bearerverse 5
Jabesh-gilead menverse 11
Valiant men
Took away the bodies of Saul and his sons from the Philistines
Davidverse 13
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
13–14 Saul’s unfaithfulness consisted of disobeying God’s words through Samuel (1 Sam 13:8–9; 15:2–3) and of consulting the spiritist at Endor (28:7–13) instead of persevering—he had made some inquiry of him (v.6)—in prayer for divine grace. (Payne, J. B. (1988). 1, 2 Chronicles. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job (Vol. 4, pp. 369–370). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
In the reflection on Saul’s death, vv. 13 and 14, a double transgression against the Lord on Saul’s part is mentioned: first, the מַעַל (on the meaning of this word, vide on Lev. 5:15) of not observing the word of Jahve, which refers to the transgression of the divine command made known to him by the prophet Samuel, 1 Sam. 13:8ff. (cf. with 10:8), and 15:2, 3, 11, cf. 28:18; and second, his inquiring of the אֹוב, the summoner of the dead (vide on Lev. 19:31), לִדְרֹושׁ, i.e., to receive an oracle (cf. in reference to both word and thing, 1 Sam. 28:7). (Keil, C. F., & Delitzsch, F. (1996). Commentary on the Old Testament (Vol. 3, p. 485). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson)
Quite naturally, the Philistines rejoice at the deaths of their enemies. They plunder the corpses and send the happy news to all their cities. Even here, in Chronicles’ negative treatment of Saul, a hint of his achievements appears when the people of Jabesh-gilead, grateful for the time Saul saved them from disaster, give Saul and his sons an honorable burial. (Bowling, A. C. (1995). 1-2 Chronicles. In Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (Vol. 3, p. 271). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House)
Ver. 13. So Saul died for his transgression, &c.] A violent and dishonourable death, which was suffered on account of the sins he was guilty of: one was, which he committed against the Lord, even against the word of the Lord, which he kept not; both in not staying for Samuel the time appointed, and by sparing the Amalekites, whom he was bid to destroy, 1 Sam. 13:13, 14 and 15:3, 9. and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it; what he should do with respect to engaging in battle with the Philistines, 1 Sam. 28:8, 15. which to do was contrary to an express command of God, Lev. 19:31. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 3, p. 22). London: Mathews and Leigh)
13–14. Observe, Reader! the melancholy close of Saul’s history; and mark what an awful lesson he holds forth to great sinners. Alas! that any man should leave God to consult with the workers of darkness! The Philistines make war upon me, said Saul. That would have been nothing: But when he added, and God is departed from me! this gave the finishing stroke to human misery! Reader! think of what vast importance that prayer, Oh, Lord, take not thine Holy Spirit from me, 1 Sam. 28:15; Psalm 51:11. (Hawker, R. (2013). Poor Man’s Old Testament Commentary: 1 Kings–Esther (Vol. 3, p. 345). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
Fasting is depriving the body of nourishment as a sign that one is experiencing great sorrow. Mourning is further expressed in weeping and lamentation and in putting on sackcloth and ashes (Est 4:3). He who fasts claims to afflict himself or his soul, i.e. his inner person. One could fast in behalf of another, e.g., the Psalmist for his enemies during their illness (Ps 35:13). The fast most often lasted from sunrise until sunset (cf. II Sam 1:12), and it could be total or partial abstinence (Ps 35:13; Dan 10:3). Fasting accompanied mourning for the dead, and for severe grief it lasted seven days (I Sam 31:13). One also fasted to gain the attention of God on behalf of his suffering in sickness. David’s illegitimate son by Bathsheba was critically ill; therefore David fasted and mourned many days (II Sam 12:16ff.). On the seventh day David learned that the child had died; then he arose, washed, anointed himself and changed his clothing, for he perceived that he could accomplish nothing now that the child was dead (II Sam 12:20–23).
Another occasion for fasting was making a critical decision or following an ominous course of action. Esther, intending to seek the king’s favor in reversing the decree of Haman, placed herself under the king’s mercy and possible wrath which could end in her death. Therefore she requested that all the Jews fast and entreat God for her mission (Est 4:16). Nehemiah fasted upon learning of the sorrowful condition of Jerusalem (Neh 1:4), and then proceeded to work to correct the situation. Apparently before a person was stoned for blasphemy, the people mourned the sin and coming execution with fasting. Jezebel proclaimed such a fast for Naboth (I Kgs 21:9, 12). Also upon learning of one’s sin, fasting is in order. When Elijah condemned Ahab for Naboth’s death, he mourned in sackcloth and fasted. God had mercy on him and delayed the punishment on his house (I Kgs 21:27ff.).
An individual could intercede in supplication and fasting for an entire nation. Daniel confessed his sin and his people’s sins that had led them into captivity (Dan 9:3–19). Gabriel answered his prayer, assured him of the ending of the captivity and promised the establishing of a new covenant (Dan 9:22–27).
National fasting was called during times of extreme crisis, such as a plague, a military threat or the death of a king. Jehoshaphat proclaimed a fast because the kings of Moab and Ammon were planning a campaign against Judah. The people assembled at Jerusalem. Jehoshaphat led the assembly in prayer. Then Jahaziel, a Levite, under the inspiration of the Lord’s Spirit, proclaimed an assurance of salvation. Prayer and enthusiastic praising followed. Afterwards Jehoshaphat led the army to war, but Yahweh had already discomfited the enemies; the army had only to collect the spoil (II Chr 20:1–29). In 604 when the Babylonian army was camped against Ashkelon, about a three day march from Jerusalem, King Jehoiakim proclaimed a fast. Jer used this occasion to have Baruch read his prophecies from a scroll before the people near the New Gate of the temple (Jer 36:1–10). Jer wanted the people to move from an outward show of contrition to true repentance. On another occasion, Joel forsaw the coming of the Day of Yahweh; therefore he exhorted the people to sanctify a fast and call a solemn assembly (Joel 1:14; 2:15). He proclaimed that if the people would truly repent in mourning and fasting, then God would be gracious and postpone the day of judgment (Joel 2:12–14). The case of Nineveh shows God’s desire to extend mercy and not judgment. On hearing the proclamation of judgment by Jonah, the Ninevites proclaimed a fast and repented. Thereby they averted for a time the day of judgment (Jon 3:5–10).
Certain days in the calendar were for national fasting, the most prominent being the Day of Atonement (Lev 16:29, 31; 23:27–32; fasting is indicated in the phrase “afflict oneself,” ʿnhnpš). The number of these days appears to have grown in the post-exilic period. Zech 8:19 lists four fast days during the year. A fast day precedes the celebration of Purim (Est 9:31). By the time of the nt the pious fasted on Monday and Thursday of every week (cf. Lk 18:12).
Fasting in itself did not cause Yahweh to turn to his people. He did not succumb merely to the afflictions of the body. A true fast had to indicate that the people were intent on seeking righteousness, which included taking care of the poor and needy (Isa 58; cf. Jer 14:12; Zech 7:5). However, when the Lord brings final salvation to his people, the months of fast will be turned into feasts of joy and gladness (Zech 8:19). (Hartley, J. E. (1999). 1890 צוּם. (R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke, Eds.)Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Chicago: Moody Press)
On Being A PASTOR by Derek J. Prime & Alistair Begg
We will do well to be asking ourselves at something like six-month intervals, “ Are there gifts God is giving to members of our church fellowship that we need to recognize and encourage?” It takes discipline to ensure that an important subject like this is not forced to the bottom of the agenda by the pressure of other business or even by being considered unimportant. If we are to teach God’s people to be prepared for works of service, then we must make sure that those works of service are recognized, begun, and completed. (p. 58)
Our goal is to equip God’s people to be fishers of men and women. This was a priority purpose of our Lord Jesus Christ for His disciples. As potential apostles their special call was to evangelism. But that call is given to all member of the body of Christ. (p. 58)
Rather than forever rebuking Christians for their failure to evangelize, we need to equip them for it. We may recommend a new evangelistic book that has been published, or a biography describing someone’s conversion, which they could profitably read themselves and then pass on to someone for whose conversion they are praying. We may encourage them by the testimony of those who have been converted through the influence of ordinary people who have showed by their lives the power of Christ. (p. 59)
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