Pengajaran Kitab Sejarah Deuteronomistis

1. FIGUR SAMUEL DAN SAUL, SERTA PERANNYA DALAM
LAHIRNYA MONARKI DI ISRAEL
SESI 8
ALBERTUS PURNOMO, OFM (SSL)

2. SAMUEL

3. INFORMASI UMUM
 Samuel, Hebrew Shmuʾel, (flourished 11th century BC, Israel), religious
hero in the history of Israel, represented in the Old Testament in every
role of leadership open to a Jewish man of his day—seer, priest, judge,
prophet, and military leader. His greatest distinction was his role in the
establishment of the monarchy in Israel.
 Bible References: Samuel is mentioned in 1 Samuel 1-28; Psalm [Mazmur]
99:6; Jeremiah [Yeremia] 15:1; Acts [Kisah PR] 3:24, 13:20; and Hebrews
[Ibrani] 11:32.

4. INFORMASI UMUM
 Samuel, the son of Elkanah (of Ephraim) and Hannah, was born in
answer to the prayer of his previously childless mother. In gratitude
she dedicated him to the service of the chief sanctuary of Shiloh, in
the charge of the priest Eli. As a boy Samuel received a divine oracle
in which the fall of the house of Eli was predicted (1 Samuel 1–3).
 https://www.britannica.com/biography/Samuel-Hebrew-prophet

5. Kisah tentang Samuel, kelahiran
dan masa kanak-kanak dapat
dibaca dalam 1 Samuel 1:1-7:15

6. MONARKI DI DUNIA KUNO
KINGSHIP INTHE ANCIENT NEAR EASTBY STEVEN L. MCKENZIE
STEVEN L. MCKENZIE, "KINGSHIP INTHE ANCIENT NEAR EAST", N.P. [CITED 30 MAY 2021]. ONLINE:
HTTPS://WWW.BIBLEODYSSEY.ORG:443/PEOPLE/RELATED-ARTICLES/KINGSHIP-IN-THE-ANE

7. Kingship (rule by a single, male monarch) was the nearly
exclusive form of government in the ancient Near East.
Female monarchs, such as Hatshepsut in Egypt and Athaliah in
Judah (2Kgs 11:1-3), were by far the exception, as illustrated by
Hatshepsut: she adopted the costume of Egyptian kings,
including the false beard and bare chest.

8. Monarchy in the ancient Near East was by definition hereditary
and dynastic.
We see such expectations and traditions in the Hebrew Bible,
especially in the books of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles.
A king was expected to be succeeded by his oldest son, that son
by his oldest son, and so on.

9. If a king was sonless, the closest male relative would succeed
him, continuing the dynasty.
Usurpation—succession by someone who as not an heir—was
relatively common and was not peaceful.
It typically entailed a violent overthrow by a military rival of
the king or dynasty or both and slaughter of supporters and
family members of the former king or dynasty.

10. The domains of ancient Near Eastern kings varied in
size.
Some ruled over city-states; others claimed vast empires.
There was, therefore, a hierarchy among kings.
Conquering kings subjugated those monarchs whom
they conquered.

11. Conquered kings could still be "kings," but they had
obligations to the conqueror: usually annual payment of
tribute, specified in quantities of gold, silver, and goods.
Kings who were equals also drafted treaties between
themselves agreeing to mutual recognition and the
avoidance of hostilities.

12. Monarchs were considered to be the owners of the lands in their realms
with final authority over their subjects and subject property. At the same
time, they had certain responsibilities.
Above all, they were expected to ensure order in their kingdoms and justice
for all subject citizens. (The famous Code of Hammurabi is a good
example.)
Kings were also understood to be the defenders of their domains and hence
the leaders of their armies.

13. Kings had a special relationship with the national gods. In Egypt, the
monarch, or pharaoh (meaning “great house”), was even considered
divine.
An important part of the monarch’s task of maintaining order was
the appeasement of the gods. Kings were also expected to build and
maintain temples to the gods, and they had a special role in the
worship of the head god.

14. In fact, the understanding of the gods and language referring to
them was drawn from the political system of kingship and is
reflected in biblical references to God as king.
In the ancient Near East, this meant that the national god
(Israel's was Yahweh) was considered the king of the gods.
Other, lesser deities served as members of his court or counsel,
just as the human king had a group of advisors or a cabinet.

15. Trappings (ornament) of kingship included the royal residence or
palace, crown, throne, scepter, and (in Egypt) the flail (cambuk).
These things together with statuary, reliefs, inscriptions, and other
documents (including biblical texts) were useful propaganda,
exalting the king’s accomplishments and illustrating his election and
favor by the gods—particularly important if he was a usurper.

17. SAUL

18. DESKRIPSI SAUL
 Ada seorang dari daerah Benyamin, namanya Kish bin Abiel, bin
Zeror, bin Bekhorat, bin Afiah, seorang suku Benyamin, seorang
yang berada. Orang ini ada anaknya laki-laki, namanya Saul, seorang
muda yang elok rupanya; tidak ada seorangpun dari antara orang
Israel yang lebih elok dari padanya: dari bahu ke atas ia lebih tinggi
dari pada setiap orang sebangsanya (1 Sam. 9:1-2 ITB)

19. PERTEMUAN SAMUEL DENGAN SAUL
 Awal: hilangnya keledai
 Because Kish had lost some donkeys, Saul was sent in search of them.
Unsuccessful in his search, he went to the seer-prophet Samuel at Ramah.
 The day before Saul went to Ramah, Samuel the seer (ro’e), who was
depicted by the Deuteronomic historian as a prophet (navi’ ), received
notice from Yahweh that Saul was the man chosen to reign over Israel.

20. SAUL DIURAPI
 At the sacrificial meal, Saul, a tall young man, was given the
seat of honour, and the next day Samuel anointed him prince
(nagid ) of Israel in a secret ceremony.
 Before returning home, Saul joined a band of roving ecstatic
prophets and prophesied under the influence of the spirit of
Yahweh.

21. SAUL MENJADI RAJA DENGAN UNDIAN
Sam 10, 17–27, generally accepted as part of the later source,
the Deuteronomic historian’s views are depicted—Saul was
chosen by lot at Mizpah.

22. PEMBUKTIAN SAUL SEBAGAI RAJA
The early source picks up the story of Saul in chapter
11, which illustrates Saul’s military leadership abilities
and describes his acclamation as king at Gilgal.
Saul was vindicated as king by his leadership of Israel in
a campaign against the Ammonites (chapter 11);

23. PERPISAHAN SAMUEL
 Samuel retired from the leadership of Israel (chapter 12).
 Samuel’s farewell address, a Deuteronomic reworking of the later
source, recapitulates the history of the Israelite tribes from the time of
the patriarch Jacob through the period of the judges and forcefully
presents the conservative view that the request for a monarchy will
bring about adversity to Israel.

24. PEMERINTAHAN SAUL
 The early reign of Saul and his confrontations with Samuel until the last
judge’s death is the subject of chapters 13–15.
 (Chapter 13) Saul’s early acts as king centred about battles with the
Philistines. Because his son Jonathan had defeated one of their garrisons
at Geba, the Philistines mustered an army to counterattack near Beth-
aven (probably another name for Bethel).
 Saul issued a request for volunteers, who gathered together for battle but
awaited the performance of the sacrifice before the battle by Samuel.

25.  Because Samuel did not come for seven days, Saul, acting on his own, presided at
the sacrifice.
 Immediately after the burnt offering had been completed, Samuel appeared
(perhaps waiting for such an opportunity to reassert his leading position)
and castigated Saul for overstepping the boundaries of his princely prerogatives—
even though Saul had been more than patient.
 Samuel warned him that this type of act (which Saul, in the early source, and later
David and Solomon also often performed) would cost Saul his kingdom.

26.  In spite of Samuel’s apparent animosity [kebencian], Saul continued to
defend the interests of the newly formed kingdom.
 The tragedy of Saul was that he was a transitional figure who had to bear
the burden of being the man who was of an old order and at the same time
of a new way of life among a people composed of disparate
[berbeda] elements and leading figures.
 Both Samuel, the last judge of Israel, and David, the future builder of the
small Israelite empire, opposed him.

27.  Saul was more a judge—a charismatic leader—than a monarch.
 Unlike most kings of his time and area, he levied no taxes,
depended on a volunteer army, and had no harem.
 He did not construct a court bureaucracy but relied rather on the
trust of the people in his charismatic leadership and thus did not
alter the political boundaries or structure of the tribal confederacy.

28.  The issue between Saul and Samuel came to a head in the events
described in chapter 15 (a section from the later source).
 Samuel requested Saul to avenge the attacks by the Amalekites on
the Israelite tribes during their wanderings in the wilderness after
the Exodus from Egypt about 200 years earlier.

29.  Saul defeated the Amalekites in a holy war but did not devote everything to
destruction as was required by the ban (ḥerem).
 Because Saul had not killed Agag, the Amalekite king, and had saved sheep and
cattle for a sacrifice, Samuel informed Saul that he had disobeyed Yahweh and was
thus rejected by God, for “to obey is better than to sacrifice.”
 Samuel then asked that Agag be brought to him, and he hacked the Amalekite
king to pieces. After that, Saul and Samuel saw each other no more.

30.  He reappeared, however, to announce the oracle of Yahweh rejecting
Saul as king, once for arrogating to himself the right of sacrifice
(chapter 13)
 and a second time for failing to carry out the law of the ban—a
primitive institution by which persons or objects were devoted to the
deity, normally by destruction—against the Amalekites (chapter 15).

31.  By the oracle of Yahweh, Samuel secretly anointed David as king
(chapter 16).
 He then faded into the background, appearing at the sanctuary of
Naioth (chapter 19).
 He died, and his ghost was evoked by a necromancer, or sorceress, at
the request of Saul; he then announced a third time the rejection of
Saul (chapter 28).

32. LEGACY OF SAUL (WARISAN DARI SAUL)
 Best described as a tragic hero, Saul displayed a strength in battle and an
ability to inspire his followers that place him high in the ranks of the
military great.
 If unable finally to solve the Philistine problem, he nevertheless prevented
their complete subjugation of the land. So enduring was the devotion of
the men of Jabesh-Gilead that they risked their lives to remove Saul’s
exposed body from the Philistine fortress at Beth-shan and give it proper
burial (I Samuel 31:11–13).

33.  The finest tribute paid the fallen leader is found in the
immortal words of David’s magnificent elegy in II Samuel 1,
which begins, “Thy glory, O Israel, is slain upon thy high
places! How are the mighty fallen!”
 https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saul-king-of-Israel