Sha’ul means “asked for” or “prayed for.” Asked for by the people, and prayed for by Samuel.
The last six verses of 1 Samuel 14 give a brief overview of Saul’s reign. Clearly his armies were very busy! The details of his exploits are not given, simply that he “harassed” the surrounding nations: Moab, Ammon, Edom, the kings of Zobah, the Philistines, and the Amalekites (vv 47-48). The region of Zobah (mentioned in the title of Psalm 60) was to the northeast, between Damascus and the Euphrates River. Moab and Ammon, sons of Lot, held territory east of the Dead Sea. Edom, Esau’s land, was to the southeast and south of Israel, and Philistia was along the Mediterranean shore on Israel’s western flank. The Amalekites, who will face their well-deserved doom in the next chapter, were marauding nomads of the desert, living in the southern wilderness between Mount Seir and Egypt. And yet it has become obvious, as we have read through Saul’s life, to see who his greatest enemy was—Saul himself. Ignoring Samuel, hunting David, slaughtering the priests, resisting Jonathan, and defying the Lord, his greatest defeats were not on the battlefield but in his own heart. In verses 49-51, we’re given scant information about his children, his wife, and the commander of his army. But it’s as if the Lord is saying: No need to go into much detail; you can already see why this first king has been disqualified and needs to be replaced. The last line of the chapter is telling. “When Saul saw any strong man or any valiant man, he took him for himself” (v 52). For himself! And still looking for human solutions rather than depending on the Lord. But if you need more evidence, the following chapter adds an apt illustration of Saul’s self-absorption. A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small package.