What happened to Saul? Why did the Lord slay him? What were his transgressions? What lessons can we learn from Saul? 512 - 3 - 1

As often happens as one gains great power, pride raises its ugly. King Saul seemed to believe he was above obeying God's word. Not only did he become irreverent, he became presumptuous and impatient with waiting for the dictates of God as interpreted by the prophet Samuel.

1 Samuel 19 tells of King Saul’s fall from grace in part for failing to follow God’s instructions spoken through Samuel. Not only did Saul not wait for God’s guidance, he failed to fulfill God directions; 1 Samuel 15:3, “Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.” Saul disobeyed God so we read in 1 Samuel 19:35, “And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul: and the Lord repented that he had made Saul king over Israel. “

Later when Saul was in need of the deceased Samuel’s guidance he broke another of God’s directives, Leviticus 19:32, “Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God.”
In 1 Samuel 28 we read that King Saul called on the witch of Endor and asked her to conjure the spirit of Samuel. The witch knew of the God of Saul and His prohibition concerning the practice of necromancers, however, Saul ignored the witch’s warning. Samuel appeared to the witch but Saul only heard his voice in fulfillment of 1 Samuel 19:35. 1 Samuel 28:19, “Moreover the Lord will also deliver Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines: and tomorrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me: the Lord also shall deliver the host of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.”

1 Chronicles 10:13-14, “So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord, even against the word of the Lord, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to enquire of it; And enquired not of the Lord: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.”

The lessons learned from King Saul are many including:

1. To again quote CM, “God says what he means and means what he says.”

2. We are not to seek after guidance from mediums, fortune tellers and their ilk.

3. We are to seek after the council of God, not of man

4. We are to know and obey the scriptures