1 Then Samuel took a bottle of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head and kissed him, saying, “Has not the LORD anointed you ruler over his inheritance? 2 When you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel’s tomb, at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will say to you, ‘The donkeys you set out to look for have been found. And now your father has stopped thinking about them and is worried about you. He is asking, “What shall I do about my son?”’
3 “Then you will go on from there until you reach the great tree of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there. One will be carrying three young goats, another three loaves of bread, and another a skin of wine. 4 They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from them.
5 “After that you will go to Gibeah of God, where there is a Philistine outpost. As you approach the town, you will meet a procession of prophets coming down from the high place with lyres, timbrels, pipes and harps being played before them, and they will be prophesying. 6 The Spirit of the LORD will come on you in power, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. 7 Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.
8 “Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do.”
Questions to consider:
- What does Samuel do to Saul?
- What directions does Samuel give?
- What do you think "whatever your hand finds to do" means?
- How long does Saul have to wait?
Possibilities for prayer:
One of the things that struck me about this passage was the way in which part of the process for Saul to become the leader of Israel is for him to become filled with the Spirit of God, and to prophesy. We may not be looking to become kings and queens of our nation, but we are hopefully looking to become leaders and examples within our community. If we look to this example of Saul, we see that being filled with the Spirit is an essential part of that leadership process! Let's ask God to be filling us with His Spirit so that we might become even better equipped to lead God's people in whatever way God sees fit!
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