LESSON 10
THE BOOK OF I SAMUEL
1. The Book:
A. I Samuel describes the transition of leadership in Israel from Judges to
Kings. There are three main
characters in the book; Samuel, the last Judge and first Prophet, Saul, the
first King of Israel, and David, the
anointed successor.
B. In the Hebrew manuscripts, I & II Samuel form one book, as do I & II Kings
and I & II Chronicles. The first
book of Samuel covers a distinct period of time from the birth of Samuel to the
death of Saul, approximately 94 years.
C. The author is anonymous but it is traditionally excepted that Samuel
wrote most of it.
I Chronicles
29:29________________________________________________________________
D. The theme for I Samuel is: God rules in the lives of men and nations. All
through these books there is an
interweaving of the lives of men and nations.
E. Samuel is a type of Christ in that he is a Prophet, Priest and Judge. David
is one of the primary Old
Testament types of Christ. NOTE - David is born in Bethlehem, works as a
shepherd and rules as King of
Israel. Romans 1:3 "Seed of David according to the flesh." Rev. 22:16 "The root
and the offspring of David."
F. Our key word for I Samuel is "Transition". This critical transition in Israel
is from the rule of God
through Judges to his ruling Israel through the Kings.
2. Survey of I Samuel
I Samuel is built around three key men:
- Samuel: The last of the Judges Chapter 1 - 8
- Saul: The first of the Kings Chapter 8 - 31
- David: The Anointed Successor Chapter 16 - 31
The three personalities overlap, but it is obvious as to who is the prominent
character.
Samuel
1. The first transition of National Leadership Chapter 1 - The birth of the New
Leader (Note Hannah's request).
Chapter 2 - The need of a new Leader.
Chapter 3 - The transition begins. Samuel receives the
Recognition as Leader in Israel. ver.20____________________
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This is where we read of God ordaining a Prophet for this soon to come
transition. Samuel is not only the last Judge,
but scripturally speaking, the Prophetic order begins with Samuel.
Acts 3:24___________________________________________
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Acts 13:30__________________________________________________
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Hebrews 11:32________________________________________________
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2. Chapters 4 - 8 The Judgeship of Samuel Chapters 4 - 6 The Ark of the
Lord is featured in these
Chapters, showing again the need of Samuel's Leadership.
Read the Death of Eli. 4:18____________________________
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Read again of the Sin of Eli 3:13
The Ark of the Lord is taken by the Philistines and they pay dearly.
5:9________________________________________
Chapter 7 Israel is victorious under Samuel's Leadership. The Ark is
returned but mishandled by
Israel. 7:6_____________________________________________
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Chapter 8 Israel rejects Samuel's sons as leaders due to their perverted
judgment. They also desire a King to
rule over them, thus rejecting God as their King.
8:7___________________________________________________________
Chapters 8 - 12 The second transition of leadership from Samuel the Judge, to
Saul the King, bringing us to part 2.
Saul: The First King
Early in Saul's reign as King he experienced some success (Chapter 13:1-4), but
later fails Israel and God which
brings about his decline.
Saul's Sinful Sacrifices 13:12-13__________________________
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Saul fails to completely obey God's command 15:9___________
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Compare ver. 3_____________________________________________
See 16:14 - "The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul".
See 18:7-11 - Saul tried to kill David because of jealousy
ver. 9____________________________________________________
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See Chapter 28:7-20 Saul's final downward plunge is "witchcraft" and in Chapter
31, suicide.
David
This is the third transition of National Leadership: Saul - David.
Chapter 16 David was chosen by the Lord through Samuel, to be the successor to
Saul 16:12-13__________________________
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David was not enthroned until the death of Saul. We will then study his reign as
King in II Samuel.
Chapter 17 - David defeats Goliath 17:45___________________
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Chapter 18 -Jonathan, Saul's son, loved David. Israel elevates David over Saul,
and David was hated by Saul
through the rest of I Samuel. ver 9________________________
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Chapters 18 - 20 - Saul attempts to slay David:
- By throwing a javelin at David.
- By tricking David to fight the Philistines.
- By commanding his servants to kill David.
- By sending his messengers to kill David.
- By coming to kill David at Samuel's house.
- By commanding Jonathan to bring David to be killed.
David continues to escape from the hand of Saul, and on two occasions spares
Saul's life when he has the opportunity to
take it. (24 & 26) David joins with the Philistines 27:1
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Chapters 21 - 27 - The rise of David while in exile 21:10__
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David builds an army in the wilderness. 22:1-2_____________
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Chapter 29 - David is spared from fighting Israel. NOTE: In
Chapter 30 God answering David. ver. 8_____________________
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ver. 18____________________________________________________
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This was a time of testing and preparation for David. Read Psalms 56.
QUESTIONS
1. Name the three personalities of this book.
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2. Who was Samuel?
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3. What is the central message of this book?
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4. What part of man does God look upon? (Give chapter &
verse)
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5. Was David enthroned in I Samuel?
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For Next Week:
Read II Samuel and review notes.