ESV 1 Samuel

by Anonymous

45 pages, Unknown Binding

About the author

Books can be attributed to "Anonymous" for several reasons:

* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author

Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.

See also: Anonymous

Reviews

[Andy Zach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hoo boy! This book is packed with drama. The three main characters in time order are Samuel, Saul, and David. The book doesn't merely tell their lives, but also how they interact with each other.

Samuel was dedicated to God at birth, to be a judge, just like Samson was. But Samuel lived up to his dedication and was the best judge Israel ever had. Still, he was rejected because Israel wanted a king. God reassured him, "It's not you they have rejected, but Me. Give them a king."

That leads to Saul: tall, handsome, and humble. He doesn't tell anyone about his anointing to be king until forced to do so. He hides during his public coronation. But he leads Israel to several victories.

Sadly, he ignores God's commands repeatedly and disobeys because he fears the opinion of the people he rules. God rejects him, which causes Samuel to mourn, for he was his pupil or disciple.

That brings in David, the teenaged king. The youngest of eight boys, he was the one assigned to watch sheep while the family entertained Samuel--until Samuel called for him and anointed him to be king in front of his whole family.

David's first public appearance was his victory over Goliath, who'd defied God and Israel for 40 days before David killed him with a sling and a stone. Victory led to victory, until Saul became jealous of David. Even after he married Saul's daughter Michal, Saul sought to kill him. But his daughter saved David's life.

The rest of the book is mostly David fleeing from Saul and barely escaping. Twice David could have killed him and he spared Saul's life. At the end of the book Saul dies and David becomes king.

[Joan Haughton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Samuel a mighty prophet of God, not one of his words fall to the ground meaning everything he spoke came to pass. Samuel was also the last Judge over Israel, the people asked for a King to rule over them and fight for them like the other people when God was their King. Samuel anointed Saul the Benjamite to be the first King over Israel. Saul was disobedient and the kingdom was torn from him and David was anointed to be King. Saul was jealous of David when he killed Goliath and the women sang that Saul killed his thousands but David tens of thousands. David spend most of 1 Samuel running and hiding from Saul. On two occasions David had the chance to kill Saul but he did not because he would not touch the Lord's anointed. Although David was anointed he went through diverse trials and had to wait until the appointed time for him to be King, he was a mighty warrior who always inquired of the Lord before he went to battle.

Bless the name of Jesus!

[Mary Nassali]

First Samuel chronicles the beginning of Israel’s monarchy, following the lives of the prophet Samuel, the ill-fated King Saul, and God’s ultimate choice of David as king. Several themes feature prominently.