God couldn’t have a king who went from seeking divine wisdom to seeking dinner with a witch!
Although it may not seem so to us, we’ve come to a very sensitive place in the book, especially for its first readers. As the returned expatriates sought to reestablish themselves in the land, the monarchy had to be reinstituted. But from where should the king be selected? The northern tribes had a line of pretender kings, but they had no legal claim. Alternately, two kings had been chosen by God, Saul and David. Saul being first, didn’t his line have a more legitimate claim (1 Chron 9:35-44)? Saul’s history answers that in the next section of the book (10:1-14). We may have found nine chapters of names laborious, but they’re actually a very hurried panning of thousands of years of history. Imagine if instead we had a detailed recounting of Adam’s 930 years! And then Seth’s 912 years, and so on. Interesting, no doubt, but the finished book would have been impossible to carry! The author’s purpose was accomplished simply by showing the links between Adam, Abraham, and David, leading on eventually to the crucial genealogy in Matthew. The point? A kinsman sold us into slavery; a Kinsman must buy us out. But having fast-forwarded thus far, the camera now begins to roll in real time. What first event will it highlight? Any relief we may feel—that the story has finally begun after the credits have been rolling for nine chapters —quickly dissipates. It tells the tale of Saul’s suicide. No, the Amalekite was lying (2 Sam 1:10); Saul dispatched himself. The bottom line? Saul may have wielded the sword, but his death was a judgment of God. “So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the Lord…therefore He killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse” (1 Chron 10:13-14).