This week we
will finish the study of the Book of 1 Samuel and begin the Book of 2 Samuel in the Old Testament.
(1) Last time, we were asking whether David would respond to Saul’s offer to “come back” (26:21) and obviously David did not:
a. What reason did he give in v. 1?
b. Where did he decide to go?
c. Would it not go against the advice of the prophet in 22:5?
(2) Now he decided to go and stay with Achish, king of Gath for the second time:
a. What might be the difference between this time and the last time in 21:10-15?
b. Did Saul continue to pursue him? Why or why not? (27:4)
(3) Why did David ask not to live within the royal city with the king?
(4) The king granted him Ziklag, a Judean city that he occupied and presumably left empty after looting:
a. What did David choose to do in a city quite a bit away from the royal city, closer to the southern part of Judah? (27:8)
b. Why did David lie to the king of Gath about his raids of Geshurites, Girzites and Amalekites (who constantly raided the cities of Judah)?
c. By so doing, what was David able to convince the king of Gath of?
(5) And, how did the people of Judah look upon David even though he resided within the territory of the Philistines?
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) What dilemma did David face when the Philistines gathered their forces to fight against Israel? What do you think David must have done?
(2) As much as Saul had not been obedient to the Lord in exterminating the Amalekites (28:18), what did his expulsion of the mediums and spiritists from the land say about him? (See Lev. 19:31; 20:27 and Deut. 18:10-13)
(3) Why didn’t the Lord answer Saul’s enquiry?
(4) Did it then justify him consulting a medium? What was his purpose of consulting a medium? (28:15)
(5) Did Saul have any alternatives now that he was afraid and that the Lord was no longer with him?
(6) The Bible says, “When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out at the top of her voice” (28:12). Why was she so surprised?
a. What did she expect to see or happen normally?
b. Why was it so different this time?
(7) There are many interpretations about what actually happened with the appearance of Samuel. It is important that we do not interject any preconceived notion we might have and simply read the Scripture as it is written and presented to us:
a. While Saul perceived the spirit was Samuel's, for v. 14 says, “Then Saul knew it was Samuel”, who was the one speaking to Saul according to v. 15?
b. If the spirit was not Samuel's, what would the Biblical author have said or written?
(8) Saul was hoping that Samuel would tell him what to do (28:15). What was Samuel’s reply?
a. Who was God now to Saul? (v. 16)
b. Whom did the kingdom of Israel now belong to? (v. 17)
c. What was the reason for his demise? (v. 18)
d. What would be the outcome of the battle? (v. 19)
(9) How did Saul respond to the words of Samuel?
(10) What should Saul’s response be in your opinion?
(11) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(1) In those days, it was not uncommon
to have people from another ethnicity join the rank of soldiers and take part in
a battle like mercenaries. Why would the
Philistine rulers take exception with the Hebrews? Consider these aspects:
a. In terms of the nature of the battle
b. The history of David
c. His present status as a fugitive from Saul
(2) Do you think David really wanted to fight with the Philistines against Saul when he himself would not even lay his hand on him, the God’s anointed king?
(3) The rejection by the other Philistine rulers should be a golden opportunity for him to back out, but why did he appear to be insistent on joining? (29:8)
(4) If David had been praying about this present dilemma (and I believe he must have been), how did he feel about being sent back to Ziklag?
(5) As it turns out, their possessions in Ziklag along with their wives and children were seized by the Amalekites while they were following the army of the Philistines (chapter 30). What did this rejection by the rulers of the Philistines mean to David and his men?
(6) How does this incident help us understand what the Apostle Paul says in Romans 8:28?
(7) Can you recall an incident in your life that proves to you the faithfulness of God?
(8) What is the main message to you today and how can you apply it to your life?
(1) Whose fault was it that David and his men had to suffer such a calamity in the hands of the Amalekites? (28:18; 15:20)?
(2) As much as their city was burnt, and their possessions, their wives and children were taken captive, how had God put a limit to the harm they suffered? (30:2)
(3) Why did the men of David wish to turn on him?
(4) What is meant by the statement “But David found strength in the Lord his God”? (30:6)
(5) Pursuing the Amalekites to rescue your wives and children should be the only option. Why then did David still have to enquire of the Lord first? (30:7-8)
(6) Why were two hundred of his men “too exhausted”, while the other four hundred continued the pursuit? Should the four hundred men look down on the two hundred who had their wives and children taken captive too (30:22)? Why or why not?
(7) What was the result of the rescue effort? How special was it? (30:17-20)
(8) When they returned, some of the 400 men did not consider the 200 men deserving of their loot, only the return of their wives and children:
a. Was it not a fair proposal? Why or why not?
b. Did they deserve to be labeled by the Bible as “evil men and troublemakers”? Why or why not?
(9) How did David address these “evil men” in v. 23?
(10) What reason did David give for the equal sharing of plunder?
(11) Do you agree with his reason? Why or why not?
(12) Why did David even share his plunder with basically all the cities and towns that he and his men had wandered through or stayed in the past?
(13) How would you describe the character of David because of this?
(14) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
(2) The tragedy of this battle began with the killing of the three sons of Saul, including Jonathan. How do you feel about the death of Jonathan, being one who remained faithful to the one truly anointed by the Lord till the end? Should he have died for the sin of his father?
(3) Saul eventually had to face his destiny which was known to him and against which he fought till the very end. Let’s spend some time to reflect on his life:
a. He was introduced to us as a son who cared about his father (9:5) and yet turned into someone who had no regard for his people, forcing them to fight on in spite of their extreme fatigue (14:24). What had happened?
b. He also began as a humble person, feeling unworthy to be chosen as king by the Lord (9:21), and yet turned into someone who would do everything to maintain his power, even pursuing the life of David whom he knew was appointed by God to replace him (24:20). What had happened?
c. His pride grew from the offering of sacrifice on his own (13:9), to sparing the Amalekites against God’s clear instruction (15:9), to the annihilation of God’s high priest and his family (22:17-19). What had happened?
d. If you were to write the epitaph for Saul, what would you say?
(4) Compare the death of Saul as recorded in 31:6, 9, to the death of Eli as recorded in 4:17-18:
a. In what ways did the two men resemble each other?
b. Which one led a more pitiful life? Why?
c. What lessons might you learn from their deaths?
(5) Of all the people in Israel, why would the people of Jabesh Gilead risk their lives to retrieve the body of Saul, give him a proper burial and even fast for him for seven days? (See chapter 11)
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?