Was King Saul a bad king or a good king misrepresented? Read the texts below and come to a conclusion on either side. Also, remember that sometimes the Bible doesn’t comment on everything that might be right or wrong, it just kinda tells the story, so some critical thinking might be in order. When formulating your answers, use specific references to specific texts as that will help the conversation.
So in your comment include these:
1. Is Saul a good or bad king?
2. What evidence do you have to support that claim?
3. Respond to at least one other student.
This will be due by Friday, November 7.
Texts to help your answer: I Samuel chapters 13-15, 18, 28, 31, and 1 Chronicles chapter 10.
27 comments
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November 5, 2008 at 3:07 pm
Jonathan Solwick
I think that Saul may have had good intentions at first when he was trying to be king, but ended up doing the wrong thing. In ch. 13 vs 9-10 Saul makes a burnt offering to the Lord, in order to find out what he should do. His intentions were right in wanting to ask the Lord what to do, but he should not have made a burnt offering because only priest were allowed to do this. In ch 15 vs. 3 God says to attack the Amelekites and completely wipe them out and not to leave any person or animal of theirs left alive. In vs. 7-9 Saul completely wipes out all the people except the king and his best cattle. This is direct disobedience of God’s orders. Then in vs. 12 Saul has set up a monument to himself in one of the cities he conquered. I believe he should have set a monument to God, because the only reason he defeated them was because of God’s strength. I think in vs. 22-23 Samuel sums up how what Saul has done was wrong, even if it seemed right in Saul’s eyes. In ch. 18 Saul becomes very jealous of David, because David is doing everything better than Saul. Saul becomes especially jealous after the women sing the song about David slaying more people than Saul, in vs. 7. Saul even goes so far as to kill David by pinning him to the wall with a spear. He then tries to kill David by saying I’ll let you marry my daughter if you kill 100 Pilistines, which Saul fully expeted David to die when trying to kill the Philistines. In ch. 28 Saul consults a medium, which were completely outlawed by him. Also the Isrealites had a law that if you consulted whiches or mediums you sohuld be put to death. Saul did this to find out if God would help him, but God would not have wanted Saul to do something that was forbidden. In I Chronicles ch. 10:13-14 God says that Saul died becasue he was unfaithful to the Lord and and did not keep the word of the Lord. Saul at first might have ahd the right intentions in his life when he was king, but eventually he desired power to much and did not follow the Lord’s commandments, which made him a bad king.
November 6, 2008 at 6:12 pm
Art Sloan
Overall i think Saul was a bad king, in the beginning, he was good, and followed God’s commands until he makes his own burnt offering in 1 Sam. 13:9-10 from there on, he slides down hill, the next bad thing he did was to curse any man who ate before “he had revenge on his enemies” in 14:24, first off, they weren’t his enemies, they were God’s enemies, and second, he should have valued his troops well being before his own ego. Next he spared the Agag, which was totally against God’s orders, which is when God rejects him in ch 15. after that, of course, David enters the scene, and Saul try’s to kill him and what not. so all in all, a crappy king
November 6, 2008 at 6:17 pm
Art Sloan
@ Jonathan Solwik
I think that Saul was destined to go bad from the start, remember when Samuel tells the Israelites that a king would enslave them and mistreat them. but you may be right, he was trying to be good and then got corrupted by greed, either way, it was all part of God’s plan to bring David into the kingship, and, now that i think about it, Saul’s bad kingship probably made David’s kingship seem that much better to the israelites.
November 6, 2008 at 7:18 pm
Kat Falvey
Well personally I am not sure he is either. At first he was a great kind who followed God but then everything changed. But God has very much mercy and forgives everyone for their sin and every sin is the same. So do you think God would call him an evil king? I do realize that he really did mess things up and he was not a very good king but I’m just wondering WWJD??? I know thats very preschool and sundayschool but its true. And who are we to judge him. We have sinned before and if each sin weighs the same then why would we look at him so terribly if he has just sinned as much as we have. Maybe less, maybe more, who knows. “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” (Ephesians 1:7)
November 6, 2008 at 7:19 pm
Kat Falvey
@Art
Well I agree with you and how he was a bad king but with Gods grace was he really a bad king. But then again did he ever ask for forgiveness? Because anyone who ASKS for forgiveness will be forgiven right?
November 6, 2008 at 7:56 pm
Taylor K Williams
I Think that Saul was really trying to be agood king but it did not work out as planned. Sometimes we do things that are wrong but seem good in our eyes or good at the time but from an outsiders veiw it could look terrible. I fi was King i would def asked people around me what they think oh my ideas and such just to make sure i was doing the right thing. Also i think it is very nessisary to pray and ask God to guide you in your decisions. And if you do choose to do the worng thing God always forgives no matter how big the sin.
@Kat about the whole forginess thing.
I believe that yes saul might not have been a bad king but if would have just asked for forgivness then God would have guided him and he would have made better decision.
November 6, 2008 at 8:51 pm
Susan B :]
im not sure on this topic because at first he was an ok king and then towards the end he became a bad king. I know that God apointed Saul to that roll and that is what God wanted but why would God appoint a bad king to rule his people.
November 6, 2008 at 9:13 pm
Kyle Hardin
In my opinion, Saul is a bad, sinful king. In I Samuel 13:12-14, Saul makes an offering to the Lord even though he is unauthorized. In I Samuel 18, Saul becomes extremely envious to the point of killing him. In 18:11, Saul attempts to spear David twice, but David eludes. He tries this once again in 19:1. Saul even sends his army out to destroy David because he did not want him taking his throne. This proves how much of an evil, selfish king Saul is. He even tried to kill Jonathan, his own son, with a spear. Based on this evidence, Saul is not a holy figure, or a good king at all for that matter. His intentions seemed pure at first, but then he wanted all the power for himself, disregarding God, David, and Jonathan.
November 6, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Kyle Hardin
@ Jonny Solwick
I totally agree with all the points Jonny made. He’s found several pieces of evidence (nice job jonny :J) proving that Saul is NOT a good king. Saul has tried numerous times to kill David or anyone opposing him for that matter. I especially like your comment about “Saul said, if you kill 100 Philistines, you can have my daughter” because i didnt catch that. Saul is abusing his power and displeasing the Lord.
November 6, 2008 at 9:23 pm
Kyle Hardin
I forgot to mention, in 18:20, Saul sends David out as the commander of 1,000 men, hoping he gets killed. And also, when he was told he would get Saul’s daughter, Michal, if he killed 100 Philistines. But he killed 200! This proves David was relying on God and God was blessing him.
November 6, 2008 at 9:29 pm
Kaitlyn O'Brien :D
I think that Saul really is a good person, but is misinterpreted. Saul was a good person and kin,but he just got jealous or tempted. In 1 Samuel 18:10 it says that an evil spirit from God came on him. I think that Satan is just trying to bring Saul farther away from God, so that he could use his power as a king. But in 1 Samuel 18, it talks about how Saul is trying to bring Samuel back so that he can help him, because Saul thinks that God has left him. So even though Satan had tempted him Saul is still trying to be a good person.
November 6, 2008 at 9:34 pm
Tarik Haskell
i believe Saul was an immoral king. He was bad because he stood for everything God was against. Murders,mediums, and disrespecting God’s apointed authority. 1 Chronicles 10:13 said the Lord allowed Saul to die because he was unfaithful to the Lord. So Saul was an immoral king.
November 6, 2008 at 9:36 pm
Kaitlyn O'Brien :D
@Taylor K
I agree with you. I think that Saul really was trying to be a good king. I also think that you should definitely pray and ask God to guide you decisions, because He is the person that should really matter in your decisions. I also think that you should ask God for forgiveness if you were to make a mistake or do something wrong.
November 6, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Tarik Haskell
@ Susan
God apointed Saul because the people desired to have a king. he warned them it was not in their best interests. God will sometimes apoint his chosen to make the way for his plan.
November 6, 2008 at 9:44 pm
Anna Gosnell :)
I think that Saul started out being good and wanting to do God’s will, but then he was corrupted by the power. In 1 Samuel 13:9, it talks about Saul offering a burnt sacrifice to the Lord. This shows he started out being a good, godly man. Also, in chapter 15:1-9, he spares the life of Agag and everything that was “pure and clean”. However, in chapter 28, he consults a medium for help, rather than asking God for help. I think when he died, he was tachnically a bad king, but he had the potential to become a good king again.
November 6, 2008 at 9:48 pm
Anna Gosnell :)
@Jonny
I totally agree. There are alot of Biblical references for his evilness (not sure if that’s a word, but…..lol), and it’s obvious that Saul fell away from God in his life.
November 6, 2008 at 10:59 pm
Jonathan Solwick
@ Articus
I agree with Articus that in the beginning Saul was a good king and followed the Lord. Then however he started going downhill and directly disobeying God. He starts trying to take matters into his own hands when he should be doing what God told him to do, which makes him a bad king.
P.S.
(thx for spelling my name right ARTICUS)
November 6, 2008 at 11:21 pm
Jason Mills
I think that Saul was trying to be a good King, but because “…he was unfaithful to the LORD” and “…did not keep the word of the LORD…” ( 1 Chr 10:13) he was indeed a bad king. Yes he tried to be a good king but that was not to honor the LORD, it was to prove himself to God and give himself glory. In 1 Sam. chapter 15, God tell Soul to attack the Amalekites and kill everything but Soul spares the King and the best cattle. Now in the same chapter Samuel rebukes Soul for not killing all the cattle, but Soul said that he was going to sacrifice all of the animals to God. Soul did not follow Gods orders because he thought he could please Him with his own actions, but “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD?” as Samuel says in 1 Sam 15:22 You can also find evidence for Soul being a bad king is in 1 Sam. 14 where Soul doesn’t allow the men of his army to eat anything, but his son, Jonathon, did not hear it and ate. When Soul found out that Jonathan disobeyed him, he commanded that Jonathan be put to death, but Souls captains would not allow Soul to remove a hair from Jonathon’s head, for he was a great man, winning in many battles. Obviously Souls captains did not fully respect him because they would allow Soul to fulfill his orders.
All this shows taht Soul, who tried to be a good King, was only trying to make him self glorified, and make him self great.
November 6, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Jason Mills
@ Susan
God gave Israel a bad King, because He wanted them to learn for them selves that God was their true king and that no man could replace Him. Even when David is King, God is the one in control, David looked to God for guidance and direction to lead Israel. When David didn’t bad things happened to again show that God was King and in charge.
@ Kaitlyn
Im not sure if I agree. Yes I think he was trying to be a good King, but to glorify himself, to show God he was worthy to be King and as we all know we can never do anything to be worthy of Gods love and grace. Matt 7:16 says “By their fruit you will recognize them.” Souls fruit was not good and because of that, Satan was able to over take him and size him, for “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” (Matt. 7:19)
November 7, 2008 at 12:29 am
Abby Black
Saul may have started out as a good king, however, he became prideful and arrogant and did not obey the LORD. In I Samuel 13, Saul made an unlawful sacrifice because he became impatient and didn’t want to wait for Samuel. Samuel told him in I Samuel 15:17, ” When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel?” But Saul began to think of himself too highly. Samuel told Saul ” the LORD has rejected you from being king over Israel. I Samuel 15:23 says that “the LORD regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel,” therefore, God himself implies that Saul was not a good king.
November 7, 2008 at 12:34 am
Abby Black
@Jason
I agree with Jason. Almost everything Saul did looked like he was trying to “please God,” however, he was really just trying to benefit himself. A good leader would put God first, and others next, and would not try to take advantage of their position.
November 10, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Adam Tindel
sorry this is so late, i was camping all weekend so i did not get a chance to complete this.
But i believe that Saul is a bad king, because there are so many examples that shows that he disobeyed God. One of them is 1 Samuel 13:13. In this verse, Samuel calls Saul foolish, because he did not obey what God had told him to do. Another example is 1 Samuel 15:3-11. God told Saul to eliminate the Amalekites, and everything they owned. However, Sual captured the Amalekite king, and stole their good cattle and good sheep. God was once again upset with Saul for his direct disobedience. If Saul cannot rule God’s people without disobeying God, then he is not a good king, and he is not worthy to rule God’s people.
November 10, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Adam Tindel
@ Tarik
I agree with Tarik because if 1 Chronicles 10:13 says that the Lord allowed Saul to die because he was unfaithful to the Lord, then Saul clearly was not a good king.
@ Jason
What you said makes sense about Saul trying to be a good king. Saul began to do what God asked of him almost every time, but he still did not do exactly of what he was asked. So he did not fully disobey, but disobedience is disobedience no matter how big or how small it is.
November 10, 2008 at 11:32 pm
liz Laughridge
I am so so sorry this is so late! We ( the girls basketball team ) were on a retreat all weekend.
I think Saul started out as a good king. He had good motives, and wanted to strive for the best. However, he had a turn for the worst. In many places, in references that Saul was basically doing the opposite of what God told him to do. Saul would try to take matter into his own hands, rather than through God. ( 1 Samuel 13:9-12 ) Also, God states many times that Saul is going down the wrong path. ( 1 Samuel 18:9 ) He also did not kill all of the Amalekites, which God commanded him to do. It also flat out says that he died because of his unfaithfulness. ( I Chronicles ch. 10:13-14 )
@ I like how you worded what Saul was trying to do. That he was trying to please God, but eventually disobeyed him.
November 12, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Katrina Faith Nolette
Ok so I already submitted this once and it didn’t show up. SO I’m doing it again *sigh*
Ok, so Saul had the potential to be a good king, all he had to do was obey God. But he failed to do so and tried to do things his own way, as shown in 1 Samuel 13:9-12. And the bible says in Proverbs 3:7 “Do not be wise in your own eyes” End of story, he disobeyed God, and I don’t believe he tried to fix it, therefor making him a bad king.
@Art
I agree completely because in the bible in Romans 12:19 it says not to take revenge into your own hands because that is God’s job. =]
November 12, 2008 at 6:31 pm
kyle brandon
pretty much, Saul was a good king in the beginning but as he goes on he begins to do bad things such as, making a burnt offering for himself and sparing Agag, which God gave orders to Saul to kill, which he disobeyed.
So overall Saul was bad king, but in the beginning he was good.
November 12, 2008 at 6:32 pm
kyle brandon
@ art
lol i agree with you saying that Saul was a crappy king.