History · Old Testament
1 Samuel
c. 1105–1010 BC
- Section
- History · Old Testament
- Events span
- c. 1105–1010 BC
- Written
- c. 1000 BC critical view: Part of the Deuteronomistic History, c. 6th century BC
- Author
- Samuel, Nathan, and Gad (by tradition) critical view: The Deuteronomistic historians
1 Samuel spans Israel's shift from judges to kings: Samuel the prophet anoints the first king, Saul, whose disobedience costs him the throne. God then chooses the shepherd David, who kills Goliath and endures Saul's murderous jealousy.
Key themes
- From judges to monarchy
- Obedience over sacrifice
- God looks at the heart
- The rise of David
- Rejecting God as king
Key events
Samuel the Prophet (1 Samuel 1–7)
- Hannah prays for a son and dedicates Samuel to the LORD
- God calls the boy Samuel in the night at Shiloh
- The Philistines capture the ark, but it brings them plague and is returned
- Samuel leads Israel to victory over the Philistines and judges the nation
Saul, the First King (1 Samuel 8–15)
- Israel demands a king; Samuel warns them but anoints Saul
- Saul defeats the Ammonites and is confirmed as king
- Saul offers an unlawful sacrifice; Samuel says his kingdom will not endure
- Saul spares Agag and the best plunder, and God rejects him as king
The Rise of David (1 Samuel 16–31)
- Samuel secretly anoints the shepherd boy David as the next king
- David kills the Philistine giant Goliath with a sling and a stone
- Jealous of David, Saul tries to kill him; Jonathan befriends and protects him
- David flees as a fugitive and spares Saul's life twice in the wilderness
- Saul consults the witch of Endor on the eve of his final battle
- Saul and his sons die fighting the Philistines on Mount Gilboa
“for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”