1 Samuel 9:24 Komentář

Samuel had promised Israel, from God, that they should have a king; it is strange that the next news is not of candidates setting up for the government, making an interest in the people, or recommending themselves to Samuel, and, by him, to God, to be put in nomination. Why does not the prince of the tribe of Judah, whoever he is, look about him now, remembering Jacob's entail of the sceptre on that tribe? Is there never a bold aspiring man in Israel, to say, "I will be king, if God will choose me?" No, none appears, whether it is owing to a culpable mean-spiritedness or a laudable humility I know not; but surely it is what can scarcely be paralleled in the history of any kingdom; a crown, such a crown, set up, and nobody bids for it. Most governments began in the ambition of the prince to rule, but Israel's in the ambition of the people to be ruled. Had any of those elders who petitioned for a king afterwards petitioned to be king, I should have suspected that person's ambition to have been at the bottom of the motion; but now (let them have the praise of what was good in them) it was not so. God having, in the law, undertaken to choose their king (Deu 17:15), they all sit still, till they hear from heaven, and that they do in this chapter, which begins the story of Saul, their first king, and, by strange steps of Providence, brings him to Samuel to be anointed privately, and so to be prepared for an election by lot, and a public commendation to the people, which follows in the next chapter. Here is, I. A short account of Saul's parentage and person (Sa1 9:1, Sa1 9:2). II. A large and particular account of the bringing of him to Samuel, to whom he had been before altogether a stranger. 1. God, by revelation, had told Samuel to expect him (Sa1 9:15, Sa1 9:16). 2. God, by providence, led him to Samuel. (1.) Being sent to seek his father's asses, he was at a loss (Sa1 9:3-5). (2.) By the advice of his servant, he determined to consult Samuel (Sa1 9:6-10). (3.) By the direction of the young maidens, he found him out (Sa1 9:11-14). (4.) Samuel, being informed of God concerning him (Sa1 9:17), treated him with respect in the gate (Sa1 9:18-21), in the dining-room (Sa1 9:22-24), and at length in private, where he prepared him to hear the surprising news that he must be king (Sa1 9:25-27). And these beginnings would have been very hopeful and promising if it had not been that the sin of the people was the spring of this great affair.

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 9 This chapter gives an account of Saul, the person the Lord had appointed to be king of Israel; it relates his descent, and describes his person, Sa1 9:1 and how seeking his father's asses, which were lost, he providentially came to the place where Samuel dwelt, Sa1 9:3 and being advised by his servant, and approving of his advice, he concluded to go to him, and inquire the way he should go, Sa1 9:6 and being directed by some young maidens, they found him presently in the street going to a feast, Sa1 9:11 and Samuel having some previous notice from the Lord of such a person's coming to him that day, when he met him invited him to dine with him, and obliged him to stay with him that day, Sa1 9:15 satisfied him about his asses, and gave him a hint of the grandeur he was to be raised to, to which Saul made a modest reply, Sa1 9:20 and Samuel treated him at the feast in a very respectable manner, Sa1 9:22 and privately communed with him of things preparatory to what he was about to make known unto him, Sa1 9:25.

And the cook took up the shoulder, and that which was upon it,.... Meaning either, as some think, some sauce that was poured on it, or garnish about it; or the thigh, as the Targum, and so Jarchi, Kimchi, and others; or rather the breast, as a more ancient Jew (o); since this joined to the shoulder before separated, and in sacrifices went along with it; though most think this was the left shoulder and breast, because the right shoulder and breast of the peace offerings were given to the priest, to be eaten by him and his sons, Lev 7:34 but in those unsettled times, with respect to sacrifices, many things were dispensed with; and Samuel, though a Levite, might officiate as a priest, and so the right shoulder and breast belonged to him as such; and this best accounts for his having the disposal of it; and upon this extraordinary occasion, Saul, though not the son of a priest, might be admitted to eat of it, it being the choicest part, and fit to be set before one designed to be king; and to show that he was to live in friendship with the priests of the Lord, and to take care of and protect the ministerial function: and set it before Saul; by the direction of Samuel no doubt, as a token of honour and respect unto him; it being usual in other countries to commend the best dishes, or best pieces of flesh, to the more excellent and worthy persons at table (p); and this was, as Josephus (q) calls it, a royal portion: the arm or shoulder, especially the right arm, being a symbol of strength, may denote that strength which was necessary for him to bear the burden of government, to protect his people, and fight in defence of them; and the breast being the seat of wisdom and prudence, of affection and love, may signify how necessary such qualities were for kingly government, to know how to go in and out before the people, and be heartily concerned for their good: and Samuel said: behold that which is left; not by the guests, and what they could not eat; for till Samuel came they did not begin to eat; and as for this part, it was but just brought in, and was never set before the guests, but it was left by Samuel in the hands of the cook, and reserved for the use of Saul: set it before thee, and eat; it was already set before him, but he would have him keep it by him, and eat of it, and make his meal of it, it being the best dish at the table: for unto this time hath it been kept for thee; by which he gave him to understand that he knew of his coming before hand, and therefore had made this provision for him; and which might serve to persuade him of the truth and certainty of what he had hinted to him: since I said I have invited the people; not the thirty persons before mentioned, for it does not appear that they were invited by Samuel, but rather by those who brought the peace offerings, who had a right to invite any of their friends they thought fit; but by "the people" are meant Saul and his servant; for in the eastern languages two or three persons, and even one, are called a people; and this Samuel had said to his cook, when he bid him set by the shoulder, and what was on it, because he had invited some, for whom he had designed it: so Saul did eat with Samuel that day: they dined together. (o) R. Eliezer in T. Bab. Avodah Zara, fol. 25. 1. (p) Vid. Diodor. Sicul. l. 5. p. 306. (q) Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 6. c. 4. sect. 1.)

But it should be noted that the cook placed the shoulder before Saul, and yet Samuel instructed Saul to place it before himself. What does this mean? A steward usually places a dish on the table before those reclining; and when the one reclining draws it toward himself, he places closer before himself what was a little farther away. The cook, therefore, places the shoulder before Saul; Samuel instructs Saul to place it before himself: because what is enjoined upon a new preacher concerning the strength of good work, he ought to draw closer to himself, as it were, through the zeal of contemplation. And after he has drawn it to himself, he eats it: because what he has long contemplated, he resolves to carry out. Indeed, to eat the shoulder is to store away inwardly through purpose of mind what is outwardly commanded concerning strong action. For it was as if urging every chosen one to place the shoulder before himself and eat it, he who said: "If you sit down at the table of a mighty man, wisely consider what is set before you, for you must prepare similar things" (Prov. 23:1). At the table of the mighty one, he indicated the strength of the shoulder. And when he said, "Wisely consider what is set before you," he taught the one to whom he spoke to place the shoulder before himself. But he suggested that he ought to eat it, because he said, "You must prepare similar things." For by preparing similar things, we eat; because when we resolve to perform the mighty deeds we hear, we store away the food of life, as it were eating, in the stomach of the heart. But the vessel of election commands even the highest teachers under the instruction of a single disciple, saying: "Lay hands hastily on no one" (1 Tim. 5:22). For since those who are to be raised to the heights must be chosen with great deliberation of counsel, what follows is fittingly added: "Because it was kept for you by design, when I called the people." As if to say: Place before yourself what, before it was set out, I placed before myself; consider what I considered. For the portion of the shoulder is kept by design, because the strongest action of a preacher is rightly entrusted to the one who is judged worthy of so great a ministry by the highest men with great consideration. This portion was kept by design when the people are called, because when faithful subjects come to undertake the ministry of preaching, what is enjoined upon good preachers is not weak things upon the weak, but strong things upon the strong. But those who progress well strive above all to maintain the good of obedience in their lofty way of life. Therefore what follows is fittingly added: "And Saul ate with Samuel on that day." As I have already said, for a teacher being advanced, to eat is to prepare himself to do what is commanded him concerning virtue. And he is rightly said to have eaten with Samuel, because when those who newly arrive resolve to do great things, the highest men become more fervent in the strength of good work. In this eating can also be signified that of which he promised above, saying: "Go up before me, that you may eat with me today." Saul therefore eats with Samuel, because when the preacher inwardly hears the heavenly sweetness of the word of God, what the subjects outwardly hear as he speaks, they are both assuredly satisfied from the divine refreshment.

And Samuel said: "Behold what remains, I place it before you," etc. John spoke to Christ, proclaiming the marvels of His divine power: "All those whom I could call to faith and repentance, I persuaded to give effort to virtue. But because we are conceived in iniquity and brought forth in offenses, although striving greatly, we cannot fully be free from sin and grasp the pinnacle of virtue; You, who became the Word made flesh (John 1), perfect in all ways of winning and teaching, partake of the banquets, which our frailty cannot comprehend. About which banquet the Savior indeed said: 'My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work' (John 4)." Then John was speaking such words to the Lord, and, recalling His sublimity and the frailty of human condition, said: "He who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth; He who comes from heaven is above all" (John 3).

And Saul ate with Samuel that day, etc. And the Lord preached with John in the city shining with grace, until John was sent into prison, saying of the people who would believe in him: "I have food to eat that you do not know about" (John 4). And not only by ascending to the heights of virtues for the perfect, but by condescending to the lowest, they delivered the common commandments of living, saying to these people: "Sell what you have and give alms" (Luke 12); and to those: "You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery" (Matthew 19).

Saul's lineage and description; he is sent by his father to seek some lost asses, Sa1 9:1-5. Not finding them, he purposes to go and consult Samuel concerning the proper method of proceeding, Sa1 9:6-14. The Lord informs Samuel that he should anoint Saul king, Sa1 9:15, Sa1 9:16. Samuel invites Saul to dine with him, and informs him that the asses are found; and gives him an intimation that he is to be king, Sa1 9:17-21. Saul dines with Samuel, and afterwards he is taken to the house-top, where both commune together, Sa1 9:22-27.

The shoulder, and that which was upon it - Probably the shoulder was covered with a part of the caul, that it might be the better roasted. The Targum has it the shoulder and its thigh; not only the shoulder merely, but the fore-leg bone to the knee; perhaps the whole fore-quarter. Why was the shoulder set before Saul? Not because it was the best part, but because it was an emblem of the government to which he was now called. See Isa 9:6 : And the government shall be upon his Shoulder.

SAUL, DESPAIRING TO FIND HIS FATHER'S ASSES, COMES TO SAMUEL. (Sa1 9:1-14) a mighty man of power--that is, of great wealth and substance. The family was of high consideration in the tribe of Benjamin, and therefore Saul's words must be set down among the common forms of affected humility, which Oriental people are wont to use.

the cook took up the shoulder . . . and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold that which is left; set it before thee, and eat--that is, reserved (see on Gen 18:7; Gen 43:34). This was, most probably, the right shoulder; which, as the perquisite of the sacrifice, belonged to Samuel, and which he had set aside for his expected guest. In the sculptures of the Egyptian shambles, also, the first joint taken off was always the right shoulder for the priest. The meaning of those distinguished attentions must have been understood by the other guests.