Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer’s house is.
This meeting belongs to the time when all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and told him he was old and his sons did not walk in his ways and asked him to make them a king to judge them like all the nations. They used the injustice of the judges as a pretext for a change long secretly desired, while their real motive was discontent and pride and a deliberate and determined purpose to set Samuel aside. He felt it as a censure upon himself, even though no complaint had been made against him and all acknowledged the integrity and wisdom of his administration. The evil course of his sons had never been brought to him, and he would have removed them without delay had he known it, yet he uttered no reproach but carried the matter to the Lord in prayer and sought counsel from Him alone.
Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate and asked him where the seer's house was. God had revealed to Samuel beforehand that Saul would come and that he would reign over Israel. Samuel identified himself as the seer, told Saul that the lost animals had been found, and invited him to remain for the feast. He also told Saul that his father was now anxious about him rather than about the animals.
Samuel's words to Saul gave a hint of the great future and great destiny before him. Saul answered with modest self-deprecation, pointing to the smallness of his tribe and his family.
This meeting belongs to the time when all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and told him he was old and his sons did not walk in his ways and asked him to make them a king to judge them like all the nations. They used the injustice of the judges as a pretext for a change long secretly desired, while their real motive was discontent and pride and a deliberate and determined purpose to set Samuel aside. He felt it as a censure upon himself, even though no complaint had been made against him and all acknowledged the integrity and wisdom of his administration. The evil course of his sons had never been brought to him, and he would have removed them without delay had he known it, yet he uttered no reproach but carried the matter to the Lord in prayer and sought counsel from Him alone.
Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate and asked him where the seer's house was. God had revealed to Samuel beforehand that Saul would come and that he would reign over Israel. Samuel identified himself as the seer, told Saul that the lost animals had been found, and invited him to remain for the feast. He also told Saul that his father was now anxious about him rather than about the animals.
Samuel's words to Saul gave a hint of the great future and great destiny before him. Saul answered with modest self-deprecation, pointing to the smallness of his tribe and his family.