Samuel
Born in answer to his mother Hannah’s vow and raised at Shiloh, Samuel led Israel as prophet and judge after the loss of the ark. He anointed both Saul and David as king.
Samuel was the son of Elkanah and Hannah. He was promised to the Lord before his birth and brought up by the priest Eli at Shiloh (1 Samuel 1:11, 20–28). He was called as a boy and came to be known as a prophet throughout Israel (1 Samuel 3:10, 19–20). After the Philistines captured the ark he led the people in repentance at Mizpah, and he judged Israel on a yearly circuit from his home at Ramah (1 Samuel 7:3–6, 15–17).
When the elders asked for a king he warned them and then anointed Saul (1 Samuel 8:4–9) (1 Samuel 10:1). He later told Saul that the Lord had rejected him, and he anointed David at Bethlehem (1 Samuel 15:26–28) (1 Samuel 16:13). He died while Saul was still king and was buried at Ramah (1 Samuel 25:1). Jeremiah names him beside Moses as an intercessor (Jeremiah 15:1). In Acts, Peter counts the prophets “from Samuel”, and Paul ends the time of the judges with “Samuel the prophet” (Acts 3:24) (Acts 13:20).
In the timeline
- about 1070 BC, traditional dateSamuel and the Loss of the Ark
Samuel is called as a boy at the shrine of Shiloh. The Philistines defeat Israel, capture the ark of the covenant and kill the sons of the priest Eli, then send the ark back after seven months. Samuel leads Israel as prophet and judge.
- about 1050 BC, traditional dateSaul Becomes Israel’s First King
Israel’s elders ask the aged Samuel for a king “like all the nations”. Samuel warns them, then anoints Saul of Benjamin, who is chosen by lot at Mizpah and made king at Gilgal. Saul is later rejected for disobedience.
- about 1025 BC, traditional dateDavid and Goliath
Samuel anoints David, the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem. In the valley of Elah the young shepherd kills the Philistine champion Goliath with a sling and a stone, and his fame turns King Saul against him.