1 There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bekorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin. 2 Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.
These are two of the key factors in elections: tall and handsome. According to one study the taller candidate wins about two thirds of the time. (https://www.thoughtco.com/does-the-tallest-presidential-candidate-win-3367512) Taller candidates are perceived as being stronger, better leaders. Also research indicates that many voters will vote with their eyes and attractive candidates get more votes (https://www.thoughtco.com/does-the-tallest-presidential-candidate-win-3367512)
3 Now the donkeys belonging to Saul’s father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, “Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys.” 4 So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the area around Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them. 5 When they reached the district of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, “Come, let’s go back, or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.”
Leaders are shepherds. You should be able to look at a person’s resume and determine who the best shepherd is. This is a very brief resume of Saul’s performance as a shepherd. He lost two donkeys, looked around for them and then gave up.
6 But the servant replied, “Look, in this town there is a man of God; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let’s go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take.”
If we really did that then we would choose the servant. But for some reason no one wants to elect servants. Very often a candidate will have an excellent servant (apparently AOC started her career with some really excellent “handlers”). But those people feel they have no real potential as a candidate (too short, too ugly, wrong family).
7 Saul said to his servant, “If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?” 8 The servant answered him again. “Look,” he said, “I have a quarter of a shekel[a] of silver. I will give it to the man of God so that he will tell us what way to take.” 9 (Formerly in Israel, if someone went to inquire of God, they would say, “Come, let us go to the seer,” because the prophet of today used to be called a seer.) 10 “Good,” Saul said to his servant. “Come, let’s go.” So they set out for the town where the man of God was.
At this point in the story Saul represents some of our best candidates. He is tall, handsome, comes from a good family, and has really good servants guiding him.
11 As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some young women coming out to draw water, and they asked them, “Is the seer here?” 12 “He is,” they answered. “He’s ahead of you. Hurry now; he has just come to our town today, for the people have a sacrifice at the high place. 13 As soon as you enter the town, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not begin eating until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat. Go up now; you should find him about this time.”
The next thing you need as a candidate is someone to “bless your sacrifice”. Maybe a newspaper comes out and supports you. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbes...ers-and-why-theyre-important/?sh=58f0c96e4684
14 They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place. 15 Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel: 16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over my people Israel; he will deliver them from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked on my people, for their cry has reached me.”
Again, this is a very strange section of the Bible. In the last chapter the Lord and Samuel condemn the people for asking for a king, in this chapter we learn that God sends Saul to Samuel as an answer to the cry of the people. I think this is something along the lines of the old saying “be careful what you pray for, you just might get it”.
17 When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, “This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people.” 18 Saul approached Samuel in the gateway and asked, “Would you please tell me where the seer’s house is?” 19 “I am the seer,” Samuel replied. “Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will send you on your way and will tell you all that is in your heart. 20 As for the donkeys you lost three days ago, do not worry about them; they have been found. And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and your whole family line?”
This to me is stunning, it portrays Saul, the guy who is going to be king, as being “blind” and clueless. Meanwhile the man of God has the very best intelligence. I don’t mean his IQ, I mean that God has provided him with amazing information. We tend to think that these rulers and leaders are all equipped with amazing classified information from the CIA and NSA. The problem is too much information and people hedging on their bets can make it impossible to decipher. I am reminded of an incredible game where Michael Jordan was extremely sick during game five of the NBA finals against Utah (food poisoning). Everyone watching the game knew this. At the end of the game they asked the Utah coach about it and he had been completely unaware that Jordan was sick. In my own experience I have had times where the Lord spoke to me like this. I was able to see what people were thinking and what they were planning. With the Lord you hear what you need to hear and no more, no confusing information, all of it is actionable intelligence.
21 Saul answered, “But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?”
Sounds humble, but what it really reveals is classism. There are two groups of people in any society, the “elites” and the “unwashed masses”. Likewise in this story we have Saul and his servant. The “elites” think this way. What tribe, what family, and where do they rank. Forbes list of the richest is for their benefit, so they know where they rank.
22 Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the hall and seated them at the head of those who were invited—about thirty in number. 23 Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the piece of meat I gave you, the one I told you to lay aside.” 24 So the cook took up the thigh with what was on it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, “Here is what has been kept for you. Eat, because it was set aside for you for this occasion from the time I said, ‘I have invited guests.’” And Saul dined with Samuel that day.
When you read this story it appears that everyone has been preparing for this except for Saul. It is amazing how big an organization can develop for a political candidate. They just need “the right one”. Obama auditioned for his role at the DNC when he gave a speech. AOC auditioned for her role. This story about Saul is that Samuel chose him, groomed him, and gave him orders throughout his reign. When he didn’t follow Samuel’s orders he was replaced. Often we are amazed that the elected representatives do not represent the people. Why should they? They represent the organization that got them elected. Liz Cheney is currently being asked to resign because 90% of the republicans disagree with her position on the impeachment, and yet her supporters (lobbyists) are still staunchly behind her.
25 After they came down from the high place to the town, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of his house. 26 They rose about daybreak, and Samuel called to Saul on the roof, “Get ready, and I will send you on your way.” When Saul got ready, he and Samuel went outside together. 27 As they were going down to the edge of the town, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us”—and the servant did so—“but you stay here for a while, so that I may give you a message from God.”
These are two of the key factors in elections: tall and handsome. According to one study the taller candidate wins about two thirds of the time. (https://www.thoughtco.com/does-the-tallest-presidential-candidate-win-3367512) Taller candidates are perceived as being stronger, better leaders. Also research indicates that many voters will vote with their eyes and attractive candidates get more votes (https://www.thoughtco.com/does-the-tallest-presidential-candidate-win-3367512)
3 Now the donkeys belonging to Saul’s father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, “Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys.” 4 So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the area around Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them. 5 When they reached the district of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, “Come, let’s go back, or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.”
Leaders are shepherds. You should be able to look at a person’s resume and determine who the best shepherd is. This is a very brief resume of Saul’s performance as a shepherd. He lost two donkeys, looked around for them and then gave up.
6 But the servant replied, “Look, in this town there is a man of God; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let’s go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take.”
If we really did that then we would choose the servant. But for some reason no one wants to elect servants. Very often a candidate will have an excellent servant (apparently AOC started her career with some really excellent “handlers”). But those people feel they have no real potential as a candidate (too short, too ugly, wrong family).
7 Saul said to his servant, “If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?” 8 The servant answered him again. “Look,” he said, “I have a quarter of a shekel[a] of silver. I will give it to the man of God so that he will tell us what way to take.” 9 (Formerly in Israel, if someone went to inquire of God, they would say, “Come, let us go to the seer,” because the prophet of today used to be called a seer.) 10 “Good,” Saul said to his servant. “Come, let’s go.” So they set out for the town where the man of God was.
At this point in the story Saul represents some of our best candidates. He is tall, handsome, comes from a good family, and has really good servants guiding him.
11 As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some young women coming out to draw water, and they asked them, “Is the seer here?” 12 “He is,” they answered. “He’s ahead of you. Hurry now; he has just come to our town today, for the people have a sacrifice at the high place. 13 As soon as you enter the town, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not begin eating until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat. Go up now; you should find him about this time.”
The next thing you need as a candidate is someone to “bless your sacrifice”. Maybe a newspaper comes out and supports you. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbes...ers-and-why-theyre-important/?sh=58f0c96e4684
14 They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place. 15 Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel: 16 “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over my people Israel; he will deliver them from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked on my people, for their cry has reached me.”
Again, this is a very strange section of the Bible. In the last chapter the Lord and Samuel condemn the people for asking for a king, in this chapter we learn that God sends Saul to Samuel as an answer to the cry of the people. I think this is something along the lines of the old saying “be careful what you pray for, you just might get it”.
17 When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, “This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people.” 18 Saul approached Samuel in the gateway and asked, “Would you please tell me where the seer’s house is?” 19 “I am the seer,” Samuel replied. “Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will send you on your way and will tell you all that is in your heart. 20 As for the donkeys you lost three days ago, do not worry about them; they have been found. And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and your whole family line?”
This to me is stunning, it portrays Saul, the guy who is going to be king, as being “blind” and clueless. Meanwhile the man of God has the very best intelligence. I don’t mean his IQ, I mean that God has provided him with amazing information. We tend to think that these rulers and leaders are all equipped with amazing classified information from the CIA and NSA. The problem is too much information and people hedging on their bets can make it impossible to decipher. I am reminded of an incredible game where Michael Jordan was extremely sick during game five of the NBA finals against Utah (food poisoning). Everyone watching the game knew this. At the end of the game they asked the Utah coach about it and he had been completely unaware that Jordan was sick. In my own experience I have had times where the Lord spoke to me like this. I was able to see what people were thinking and what they were planning. With the Lord you hear what you need to hear and no more, no confusing information, all of it is actionable intelligence.
21 Saul answered, “But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?”
Sounds humble, but what it really reveals is classism. There are two groups of people in any society, the “elites” and the “unwashed masses”. Likewise in this story we have Saul and his servant. The “elites” think this way. What tribe, what family, and where do they rank. Forbes list of the richest is for their benefit, so they know where they rank.
22 Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the hall and seated them at the head of those who were invited—about thirty in number. 23 Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the piece of meat I gave you, the one I told you to lay aside.” 24 So the cook took up the thigh with what was on it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, “Here is what has been kept for you. Eat, because it was set aside for you for this occasion from the time I said, ‘I have invited guests.’” And Saul dined with Samuel that day.
When you read this story it appears that everyone has been preparing for this except for Saul. It is amazing how big an organization can develop for a political candidate. They just need “the right one”. Obama auditioned for his role at the DNC when he gave a speech. AOC auditioned for her role. This story about Saul is that Samuel chose him, groomed him, and gave him orders throughout his reign. When he didn’t follow Samuel’s orders he was replaced. Often we are amazed that the elected representatives do not represent the people. Why should they? They represent the organization that got them elected. Liz Cheney is currently being asked to resign because 90% of the republicans disagree with her position on the impeachment, and yet her supporters (lobbyists) are still staunchly behind her.
25 After they came down from the high place to the town, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of his house. 26 They rose about daybreak, and Samuel called to Saul on the roof, “Get ready, and I will send you on your way.” When Saul got ready, he and Samuel went outside together. 27 As they were going down to the edge of the town, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us”—and the servant did so—“but you stay here for a while, so that I may give you a message from God.”