Saul And His Sons Die
November 7, 2019
Commentary
Unknown to David and his men, while the events of Chapter 30 were taking place, Saul and his sons were involved in a battle with the Philistines that resulted in their death. These events took place on the slopes of Mount Gilboa overlooking the valley of Jezreel. Just as Samuel had prophesied (23:19), the Philistines quickly and easily defeated Israel.
One by one, Saul’s men fell until Saul’s sons were killed and Saul was badly wounded. Realizing the Philistines were about to capture him and fearing that he would be cruelly tortured, he asked his armor-bearer to kill him. When the armor-bearer refused to comply, Saul committed suicide by falling on his own sword.
When the Israelites learned that their king was dead, they abandoned their cities and took to the wilderness. When the Philistines found Saul, they showed their contempt by cutting off his head and parading it through the cities and villages of Philistia. Then they stripped off his armor and displayed it in the temple of the goddess Ashtaroth. They then took he and his sons’ bodies and placed them on the city wall of Bethshan.
In retrospect, we see Saul as a man of great potential whose natural strengths were enhanced by the Spirit of God. Initially he was very successful and stood as an example of what God can do through an individual. At the same time, his life also serves as a warning as we see how he completely turned his back on God and died as a complete failure in life.
Application
Each one of us has certain natural gifts and, when I am indwelt by the Holy Spirit, I have great potential for serving God. However, this will only happen as I remain obedient to the Lord.
1 Samuel 31:1– 13 (NET)
1 Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel. The men of Israel fled from the Philistines and many of them fell dead on Mount Gilboa. 2 The Philistines stayed right on the heels of Saul and his sons. They struck down Saul’s sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malki-Shua. 3 Saul himself was in the thick of the battle; the archers spotted him and wounded him severely.
4 Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and stab me with it! Otherwise these uncircumcised people will come, stab me, and torture me.” But his armor-bearer refused to do it, because he was very afraid. So Saul took his sword and fell on it. 5 When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his own sword and died with him. 6 So Saul, his three sons, his armor-bearer, and all his men died together that day.
7 When the men of Israel who were in the valley and across the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled. The Philistines came and occupied them.
8 The next day, when the Philistines came to strip loot from the corpses, they discovered Saul and his three sons lying dead on Mount Gilboa. 9 They cut off Saul’s head and stripped him of his armor. They sent messengers to announce the news in the temple of their idols and among their people throughout the surrounding land of the Philistines. 10 They placed Saul’s armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths and hung his corpse on the city wall of Beth Shan.
11 When the residents of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all their warriors set out and traveled throughout the night. They took Saul’s corpse and the corpses of his sons from the city wall of Beth Shan and went to Jabesh, where they burned them. 13 They took the bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh; then they fasted for seven days.