Upon Saul’s having proved that he wasn’t worthy of being anointed by God for the kingship of Israel, he still clung to that position in his unrighteousness. Disobedience to God took Saul down the path of greater disobedience. He did what was right in his own eyes, but little of it was Godly in any…
Posts Tagged: Yahweh
1 Samuel 17:26 – Defying the Armies
While David was yet a youth and Saul was still king, the Philistines were a powerful force that constantly oppressed Israel. In those days, the two armies gathered on opposing mountains that stood above the Elah Valley. For forty days the Philistines taunted Israel with their superior might. During this time of testing their champion,…
1 Samuel 14:12 – Against All Odds
Early in the days of Saul’s kingship, the Philistines gathered a large army to come against Israel. One contingent of this force camped upon a rocky plateau called Michmash, which provided a strategic advantage for the Philistines. Upon seeing how powerful and well equipped this army was, the Israelites trembled in fear and hid themselves….
1 Samuel 8:7 – Rejecting God
The mindset of the people in the Ancient Near East (ANE) was quite different from ours today. This is a major reason that when we read the Bible, we need to do so with the mind of someone in ancient Israel. If we don’t do that; if we read and judge from our modern perspective,…
Judges 20:35 – Destruction of Benjamin
The final events in the book of Judges 19-21 are among the most grievous in Scripture. From a human perspective, it also seems to make little sense how God operated. If you’re like me, perhaps you come away from the narrative scratching your head and wondering what God had in mind the way everything transpired….
Judges 10:16 – God Grew Weary
In the time of their oppression from various foreign powers, Israel stubbornly and foolishly resisted turning to Yahweh for deliverance. Judges 10:6 describes this: The people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Syria, the gods of Sidon, the…