II. GOD’S ANOINTING
Saul became king through God’s anointing. God’s purpose in anointing Saul to be king was to use him as a "whip" to discipline Israel.
A. Through the Loss of His Father’s Donkeys
under God’s Sovereignty
Saul’s becoming king took place through the loss of his father’s donkeys under God’s sovereignty (vv. 3-10). I believe that the loss of these donkeys was arranged by God for His purpose in making Saul the king of Israel. Surely this was the only time in history that a person became king through the loss of donkeys.
1. His Father Asking Him to Search for the Donkeys
When Kish, Saul’s father, learned that his donkeys were lost, he asked his son to take one of the servants and go to search for the donkeys (v. 3). It was a difficult task to find the donkeys, for no one knew where they went, and it is likely that there was no way to trace them.
2. Saul Not Finding the Donkeys,
and the Servant Proposing That They See
a Man of God (Samuel) for Their Journey
Saul and his servant passed through the hill country of Ephraim, the land of Shalishah, the land of Shaalim, and the land of Benjamin, but they did not find the donkeys. When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul told the servant that they should return; otherwise, his father would stop worrying about the donkeys and start worrying about them (vv. 4-5). But the servant said to him, "There is a man of God [Samuel] here in this city, and he is a man held in honor; all that he says happens without fail. Let us now go there; perhaps he will tell us about our journey that we have set out on" (v. 6). I believe that this proposal, which exactly fit the need, was inspired by God. Eventually, Saul accepted the servant’s proposal, and they went to the city where Samuel, the man of God, was (v. 10).
(Life-Study of 1 & 2 Samuel, Chapter 8, by Witness Lee)
