1 SAMUEL 11 COMMENTARY ON SAUL RESCUING JABESH GILEAD

1 SAMUEL 11 COMMENTARY
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Saul Rescues the City of Jabesh
1 Nahash[a] the Ammonite went up and besieged
Jabesh Gilead. And all the men of Jabesh said to
him, “Make a treaty with us, and we will be
subject to you.”
BARNES, "Nahash was king of the children of Ammon, as appears from 1Sa_12:12.
He seems to have been connected with the family of David, since Abigail, David’s sister,
was “the daughter (perhaps granddaughter) of Nahash” 2Sa_17:25; 1Ch_2:16-17; and,
perhaps, in consequence of this connection, he and his family were very friendly to
David 2Sa_17:27.
Jabesh-Gilead must have been re-populated after its destruction (see marginal
reference). The Ammonites and Moabites resented the possession of Gilead by the
Israelites Jdg_10:6-18; 11.
CLARKE, "Nahash the Ammonite - In the Vulgate this chapter begins thus: Et
factum est quasi post mensem, “And it came to pass about a month after.” This addition
appears also in the principal copies of the Septuagint; though it is wanting in the
Complutensian edition, both in the Greek and Latin, and is not acknowledged by any of
the Oriental versions. But it is in Josephus, and probably was inserted from him into
some copies of the Septuagint, and thence into the Vulgate. It appears to be of very little
authority.
We know little about Nahash; there was a king of this name among the Ammonites in
the time of David, 2Sa_10:2, but probably not the same person. Nahash might have been
a common name of the Ammonitish kings.
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Make a covenant with us - They found they were in no condition to risk a war; and
they wish to have peace, and desire to know his conditions.
GILL, "Then Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against
Jabeshgilead,.... A month after, as in the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions, that
is, a month after Saul was chosen king; so Josephus (p): this prince was preparing for
war against Israel before, which they hearing of, requested they might have a king to go
before them in battle, 1Sa_12:12 but now he actually marched from his own country, and
besieged Jabeshgilead, a city in the land of Gilead, from whence it had its name, and lay
in the half tribe of Manasseh, on the other side Jordan, see Jdg_21:8. It lay near to the
Ammonites, and was part of the country they laid claim to in the times of Jephthah,
which they now renewed, and attempted to gain it by force. This Nahash was king of the
Ammonites, as he is called in the Targum, and by Josephus (q), and so in the Arabic
version, see 1Sa_12:12.
and all the men of Jabeshgilead said unto Nahash, make a covenant with us;
they desired to be his allies and confederates, live in peace and friendship with him, and
enjoy their religion and liberties on certain conditions they were willing to come into;
and this was the sense of them all, or at least the greatest part, which showed a mean
and abject spirit in them, to make no defence of themselves, but as soon as besieged to
move for a capitulation. This doubtless arose from a sense of their weakness, not being
able to hold it out long, and from an apprehension that their brethren the Israelites, on
the other side Jordan, could give them no assistance, being in an unsettled condition,
having chosen a king, and he scarcely on the throne, and the Philistines having great
power over them:
and we will serve thee; not as slaves, but as tributaries; they were willing to pay a
yearly tax to him.
HENRY, "The Ammonites were bad neighbours to those tribes of Israel that lay next
them, though descendants from just Lot, and, for that reason, dealt civilly with by Israel.
See Deu_2:19. Jephthah, in his time, had humbled them, but now the sin of Israel had
put them into a capacity to make head again, and avenge that quarrel. The city of
Jabesh-Gilead had been, some ages ago, destroyed by Israel's sword of justice, for not
appearing against the wickedness of Gibeah (Jdg_21:10); and now being replenished
again, probably by the posterity of those that then escaped the sword, it is in danger of
being destroyed by the Ammonites, as if some bad fate attended the place. Nahash, king
of Ammon (1Ch_19:1) laid siege to it. Now here,
I. The besieged beat a parley (1Sa_11:1): “Make a covenant with us, and we will
surrender upon terms, and serve thee.” They had lost the virtue of Israelites, else they
would not have thus lost the valour of Israelites, nor tamely yielded to serve an
Ammonite, without one bold struggle for themselves. Had they not broken their
covenant with God, and forsaken his service, they needed not thus to have courted a
covenant with a Gentile nation, and offered themselves to serve them.
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JAMISON, "1Sa_11:1-4. Nahash offers them of Jabesh-gilead a reproachful
condition.
Then Nahash the Ammonite came up — Nahash (“serpent”); (see Jdg_8:3). The
Ammonites had long claimed the right of original possession in Gilead. Though
repressed by Jephthah (Jdg_11:33), they now, after ninety years, renew their
pretensions; and it was the report of their threatened invasion that hastened the
appointment of a king (1Sa_12:12).
Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee — They saw no prospect of aid
from the western Israelites, who were not only remote, but scarcely able to repel the
incursions of the Philistines from themselves.
K&D, "Saul's Victory over the Ammonites. - Even after the election by lot at Mizpeh,
Saul did not seize upon the reins of government at once, but returned to his father's
house in Gibeah, and to his former agricultural occupation; not, however, merely from
personal humility and want of ambition, but rather from a correct estimate of the
circumstances. The monarchy was something so new in Israel, that the king could not
expect a general and voluntary recognition of his regal dignity and authority, especially
after the conduct of the worthless people mentioned in 1Sa_10:27, until he had answered
their expectations from a king (1Sa_8:6, 1Sa_8:20), and proved himself a deliverer of
Israel from its foes by a victorious campaign. But as Jehovah had chosen him ruler over
his people without any seeking on his part, he would wait for higher instructions to act,
before he entered upon the government. The opportunity was soon given him.
1Sa_11:1-5
Nahash, the king of the Ammonites (cf. 1Sa_12:12; 2Sa_10:2), attacked the tribes on
the east of the Jordan, no doubt with the intention of enforcing the claim to part of
Gilead asserted by his ancestor in the time of Jephthah (Jdg_11:13), and besieged
Jabesh in Gilead,
(Note: The time of this campaign is not mentioned in the Hebrew text. But it is
very evident from 1Sa_12:12, where the Israelites are said to have desired a king,
when they saw that Nahash had come against them, that Nahash had invaded Gilead
before the election of Saul as king. The Septuagint, however, renders the words
‫ישׁ‬ ִ‫ֲר‬‫ח‬ ַ‫מ‬ ְ‫כ‬ ‫י‬ ִ‫ה‬ְ‫ַי‬‫ו‬ (1Sa_10:27) by καὶ ἐγενήθη ὡς μετὰ μῆνα, and therefore the
translators must have read ‫שׁ‬ ֶ‫ֹד‬‫ח‬ ֵ‫מ‬ ְ‫,כּ‬ which Ewald and Thenius would adopt as an
emendation of the Hebrew text. But all the other ancient versions give the Masoretic
text, viz., not only the Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic, but even Jerome, who renders it
ille vero dissimulabat se audire. It is true that in our present Vulgate text these
words are followed by et factum est quasi post mensem; but this addition has no
doubt crept in from the Itala. With the general character of the Septuagint, the
rendering of ‫ישׁ‬ ִ‫ֲר‬‫ח‬ ַ‫מ‬ ְ‫כ‬ by ὡς μετὰ μῆνα is no conclusive proof that the word in their
Hebrew Codex was ‫שׁ‬ ֶ‫ֹד‬‫ח‬ ֵ‫מ‬ ְ‫;כּ‬ it simply shows that this was the interpretation which
they gave to ‫.כמחריש‬ And Josephus (vi. 5, 1), who is also appealed to, simply
establishes the fact that ὡς μετὰ μῆνα stood in the Sept. version of his day, since he
made use of this version and not of the original text. Moreover, we cannot say with
Ewald, that this was the last place in which the time could be overlooked; for it is
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perfectly evident that Nahash commenced the siege of Jabesh shortly after the
election of Saul at Mizpeh, as we may infer from the verb ‫ל‬ַ‫ַע‬‫יּ‬ַ‫ו‬, when taken in
connection with the fact implied in 1Sa_12:12, that he had commenced the war with
the Israelites before this. And lastly, it is much more probable that the lxx changed
‫כמחריש‬ into ‫,כמחדש‬ than that the Hebrew readers of the Old Testament should
have altered ‫כמחדש‬ into ‫,כמחריש‬ without defining the time more precisely by ‫ד‬ ָ‫ח‬ ֶ‫,א‬
or some other number.)
- according to Josephus the metropolis of Gilead, and probably situated by the Wady
Jabes (see at Jdg_21:8); from which we may see that he must have penetrated very far
into the territory of the Israelites. The inhabitants of Jabesh petitioned the Ammonites
in their distress, “Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee;” i.e., grant us
favourable terms, and we will submit.
BENSON, "1 Samuel 11:1. Then — That is, about that time; for that this happened
before, and was the occasion of their desire of a king, may seem from 1 Samuel
12:12; although it is possible that Nahash’s preparation might cause that desire, and
that he did not actually come till their king was chosen. Will serve — The occasion
of this offer was, that they saw no likelihood of relief from their brethren in Canaan.
COFFMAN, "THE THIRD AND FINAL PHASE OF SAUL'S SELECTION AS
GOD'S APPOINTED KING OF ISRAEL
The first phase of Saul's rise to the kingship was his anointing by Samuel (1 Samuel
10:1), which was a secret to the general public and even to members of Saul's
family. The second phase was his choice by the casting of lots at Mizpah, which was
generally known throughout Israel, but not known universally in Israel and not
even accepted by all the people. On this account, Samuel sent everyone to his own
home, and Israel waited for further developments which came almost at once. The
final phase of Saul's ascending the throne of Israel is dramatically presented in this
short chapter.
NAHASH'S ATTACK UPON JABESH-GILEAD
"Then Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead; and all the men
of Jabesh said to Nahash, "Make a treaty with us and we will serve you." But
Nahash the Ammonite said to them, "On this condition I will make a treaty with
you, that I gouge out all your right eyes, and thus put disgrace upon all Israel." The
elders of Jabesh said to him, "Give us seven days respite that we may send
4

messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we
will give ourselves up to you." When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, they
reported the matter in the ears of the people; and all the people wept aloud."
"Nahash the Ammonite" (1 Samuel 11:1). Lockyer identified two Biblical characters
of this name: (1) the evil marauder here and (2) "The father of Shobi (2 Samuel
10:2; 1 Chronicles 19:1,2) who is spoken of as a friend of David at a later time."[1]
The same scholar gave the meaning of Nahash as "serpent," or "oracle."
Payne wrote that, "The narrator here suddenly switches to a new topic,"[2] but to
this writer it seems mandatory to see only one subject throughout 1 Samuel 8-11,
namely, the elevation of Saul to the throne of Israel. Every word of these four
chapters is focused on that one event.
H. P. Smith wrote that the author of this chapter seemed to be totally unaware that
Saul had been chosen as Israel's king at Mizpah;[3] but, as we shall note below, the
sacred text flatly denies such an opinion. In fact, Samuel, by sending every one home
following the events at Mizpah, actually anticipated something very similar to what
is related here (1 Samuel 10:25,26). The failure of Israel unanimously to accept Saul
as their king required that God would providentially bring about some further
event that would effectively achieve his purpose. That event was the invasion of
Nahash, his shameful and insulting treatment of the citizens of Jabesh-gilead, and
Saul's vigorous and successful response to it.
"Jabesh-gilead" (1 Samuel 11:1). This is the town that was destroyed by the
Israelites because of their failure to take part in the war against Benjamin (Judges
21:8-15). "It was located nine or ten miles southeast of the ancient town of
Bethshan, only two miles east of the Jordan river on the Wadi Yabis, a tributary to
the Jordan, and has been identified with the modern Tell Abu Kharaz."[4] Saul's
rescue of this town resulted in their lasting affection for him; and when, at the end
of Saul's reign, the Philistines defeated him and brought about his death, and after
they cut off his head and hung Saul's body on the fortress of Bethshan, the citizens
of Jabesh-gilead recovered Saul's body in a daring night long raid and gave his
remains an honorable burial (1 Samuel 31:8-13).
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"On this condition ... that I gouge out all your right eyes" (1 Samuel 11:2). The
savage nature of the Ammonites is attested in Amos 1:13, where it is recorded that,
"They ripped up the women with child of Gilead." Josephus gave Nahash's purpose
here in the gouging out of their eyes as that of making them incapable of warfare.
The soldiers of that day carried shields which usually covered the left eye, hence, a
man with his right eye blinded would be incapable of fighting.[5] However, our text
here indicates that Nahash on this raid was more interested in bringing disgrace and
shame upon all Israel. He was no doubt interested also in gaining the territory
which the Ammonites had claimed back in the days of Jephthah (Judges 11:4-33).
We reject the emendations which scholars have made to the text here on the basis of
what is written in the LXX. As Keil said, "All the ancient versions give the
Masoretic Text, not only the Chaldee, Syriac and Arabic, but even Jerome ... It is
perfectly evident that Nahash began his siege of Jabesh-gilead shortly after the
election of Saul as king at Mizpah."[6] The only reason for denying this lies in the
efforts of critics to establish their theory of "two sources."
It is surprising that Nahash would have granted the citizens of Jabesh-gilead seven
days in which to seek help from their fellow Israelites; but it seems to have occurred
to Nahash that, after such an effort, his purpose of disgracing all Israel would be
even more effective. Besides, his arrogant over-confidence made him certain that
they would be unable to get any relief.
Note that the citizens of the beleaguered Jabesh-gilead knew nothing of Saul's being
made king. This was absolutely in keeping with the detached location of their city,
that, in all probability, having been the principal reason that they did not respond in
the war against Benjamin. There is nothing abnormal or surprising in their failure
to know that Saul was king of Israel.
ELLICOTT, " (1) Nahash the Ammonite.—Nahash was king of the children of
Ammon (see 1 Samuel 12:12). This royal family was in some way related to David
(see 2 Samuel 17:25; 1 Chronicles 2:16-17). At the time of David’s exile owing to the
rebellion of Absalom, a son of Nahash the Ammonite is specially mentioned as
showing kindness to the fugitive king. Jabesh-gilead was a city situated in Northern
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Gilead, in the territory assigned to Manasseh. Josephus states that it was the capital
of the country of Gilead. The Ammonites were a kindred race to the Moabites, being
descended from the same ancestor, the patriarch Lot. They asserted that a portion
of their territory had been taken from them by Israel, and in the days of the judges
sorely harassed the people. The Judge Jephthah attacked and defeated them with
great slaughter.
It was, no doubt, to avenge the disgrace they had suffered at the hands of Jephthah
that their warlike monarch, Nahash,—deeming the opportunity a favourable one,
owing to the old age of the reigning judge, Samuel,—invaded the Israelitic country
bordering upon his kingdom, and besieged the city of Jabesh-gilead.
Make a covenant with us.—The citizens of Jabesh-gilead, feeling their isolation and
comparative remoteness from the chief centre of the people, were willing to pay a
tribute to the Ammonite king, and made him overtures to this effect.
HAWKER, "This Chapter opens with an account of Israel's distress, by reason Of
the Ammonites' daring encampment against Jabesh-Gilead. The Gileadites are
disposed to submit to the Ammonites, but their terms are both insolent and cruel.
Saul being made acquainted with the circumstances of the case, commands all Israel
to assemble for the relief of the Gileadites. He routs the Ammonites in battle, and
makes a very great slaughter of them. All Israel rejoice, in consequence thereof, and
are full of praises of their new king.
1 Samuel 11:1
(1) ¶ Then Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against Jabeshgilead: and
all the men of Jabesh said unto Nahash, Make a covenant with us, and we will serve
thee.
These Ammonites were relations to Israel, being the descendants of Lot. And if the
Reader will consult Deuteronomy 2:19, he will find how graciously the Lord dealt
with them on that account. This was but a poor requital to Gilead. But when sin
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weakens, every enemy takes advantage.
TRAPP, "1 Samuel 11:1 Then Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped
against Jabeshgilead: and all the men of Jabesh said unto Nahash, Make a covenant
with us, and we will serve thee.
Ver. 1. Then Nahash the Ammonite came up.] After long preparations, [1 Samuel
12:12] and for the old hatred, [Ezekiel 25:15] and upon the old claim, [ 11:13] as also
to revenge the overthrow then given them by Jephthah.
And encamped against Jabeshgilead.] Because it lay near to their country, and had
been much weakened by that cruel slaughter of their men, [ 21:6] and not like to be
relieved, because the Israelites were ill-agreed among themselves about the choice of
their new king. [1 Samuel 10:27]
Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee.] Take us for thy confederates, and
not for thy slaves. This was to make as good terms for themselves as they could; but
they should not have made any with that accursed nation. [Deuteronomy 23:3]
COKE, "1 Samuel 11:1-2. Then Nahash the Ammonite— Saul had not long to wait
for an occasion to shew himself worthy of the kingdom of Israel. Nahash, a king or
general of the Ammonites, came against Israel. This was one of the pretences which
the Israelites made use of for a change of government, ch. 1 Samuel 12:12.; and it
seems that they had sufficient grounds for a fear of this invasion, as Nahash appears
to have been a man of a most cruel and insolent disposition, from the terms which
he proposed to the men of Jabesh, which were no less disgraceful than barbarous.
See Psalmanazar's last Essay.
CONSTABLE, "Verses 1-5
The Ammonite siege of Jabesh-gilead 11:1-5
The Ammonites were Israel's enemies to the east. They were descendants of Lot
whom Jephthah had defeated earlier (Judges 11:12-33). Nahash evidently sought
8

revenge for Jephthah's victory over his nation. Jabesh-gilead lay a few miles east of
the Jordan Valley and about 25 miles south of the Sea of Chinnereth (Galilee).
Chinnereth is the Hebrew word for "lyre." The lake has the shape of a lyre, which
accounts for this name. The men of Jabesh-gilead offered to surrender and serve the
Ammonites provided Nahash would make a covenant with them rather than
slaughtering them.
Nahash's purpose to put out the right eye of his enemies was not uncommon in that
day. This wound made a conquered nation easier to control, and it testified to the
conqueror's superior power. Specifically it made aiming arrows with the right eye
impossible and therefore precluded a military revolt. Perhaps Nahash's decision to
attack Jabesh-gilead was the result of the Israelites breaking a treaty with his
nation.
"In the ancient Near East, the physical mutilation, dismemberment, or death of an
animal or human victim could be expected as the inevitable penalty for treaty
violation." [Note: Youngblood, p. 637.]
Nahash's willingness to let his enemies appeal for help shows that he had no fear
that threatening reinforcements would come. He was sure of his superiority and
may even have viewed the delay as an opportunity to ensure victory. At this time
Israel lacked a central government, national solidarity, and a standing army.
However, Saul was now Israel's king.
The announcement of the messengers from Jabesh-gilead led the people in Saul's
hometown, as well as elsewhere undoubtedly, to weep. They had again forgotten
God's promises to protect them since they were His people. Their reaction was a
result of viewing the situation from the natural perspective only. Contrast the
perspective of Caleb and Joshua earlier.
Why was Saul at home farming now that he was Israel's king? He had not yet
received direction from God or Samuel to do anything else, as far as we know. The
fact that he, the anointed king, was plowing also shows his humility. Estate owners
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never worked the land themselves. [Note: Marvin Chaney, "Systemic Study of the
Israelite Monarchy," Semeia 37 (1986):61.] Furthermore he was willing to work
hard. Thus he was not self-centered at this time (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:5).
LANGE, "I. Saul’s Victory over the Ammonites. 1 Samuel 11:1-15
1Then [And][FN1] Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against[FN2]
Jabesh-Gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said unto [to] Nahash, Make a covenant
with 2 us, and we will serve thee. And Nahash the Ammonite answered [said to]
them, On this condition will I make a covenant[FN3] with you, that I may
thrust[FN4] out 3 all your right eyes, and lay it for a reproach upon all Israel. And
the elders of Jabesh said unto [to] him, Give[FN5] us seven days respite, that we
may send messengers unto all the coasts[FN6] of Israel, and then [om. then] if there
be no man to save 4 us, we will come out to thee. Then came the messengers [And
the messengers came] to Gibeah of Saul,[FN7] and told the tidings[FN8] in the ears
of the people; and all people lifted up their voices and wept.
5And behold, Saul came after the herd [oxen] out of [from] the field. And Saul said,
What aileth the people that they weep? And they told him the tidings of 6 the men of
Jabesh. And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those7[these] tidings,
and his anger was kindled greatly. And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in
pieces[FN9], and sent them[FN10] throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hand of
messengers, saying, Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so
shall it be done unto [to] his oxen. And the fear of the Lord [Jehovah] fell on the
people, and they came out with one consent [as one man].
8And when [om. when] he numbered them in Bezek, [ins. and] the children of 9
Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.[FN11]
And they said unto [to] the messengers that came, Thus shall ye say unto [to] the
men of Jabesh Gilead, To-morrow, by that [the] time the sun be hot,[FN12] ye shall
have help. And the messengers came and showed [announced] it to the men of
Jabesh; and 10 they were glad. Therefore [And] the men of Jabesh said, To-morrow
we will come out unto [to] you, and ye shall do with [to] us all that seemeth good
unto11[to] you. And it was so [came to pass] on the morrow that Saul put the people
in three companies; and they came into the midst of the host in the morning-watch,
and slew the Ammonites until the heat of the day, and it came to pass that they
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which remained were scattered, so that two of them were not left together.
12And the people said unto [to] Samuel, Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over
13 us?[FN13] bring[FN14]the men that we may put them to death. And Saul said,
There shall not a man be put to death this day; for to-day the Lord [Jehovah] hath
wrought 14 salvation in Israel. Then said Samuel [and Samuel said] to the people,
Come, and 15 let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there. And all the people
went to Gilgal, and there they [om. they] made[FN15] Saul king before the Lord
[Jehovah] in Gilgal, and there they [om. there they] sacrificed sacrifices of peace-
offerings [ins. there] before the Lord [Jehovah]; and there Saul[FN16] and all the
men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
1 Samuel 11:1-4. The siege of Jabesh by Nahash, king of the Ammonites.
1 Samuel 11:1. The need of a vigorous single leadership in war against the
surrounding hostile peoples, especially in the first instance for the war threatened
by the Ammonites ( 1 Samuel 12:12), had occasioned the people’s desire for a strong
regal government like that of those nations. God had yielded to their desire, and
through Samuel given them a king. But this king, after having been publicly
presented and greeted as king, had with-drawn into seclusion. For a part of the
people were unwilling to accept the new order of things under Saul’s kingly
authority, not believing that he could rescue the people from the threatening danger.
It was, therefore, all-important that Saul should, by some deed of deliverance, show
himself to be the king, who could lead Israel to victory over their enemies. A waiting
the moment when he could display his strength with the Lord’s help as his
Anointed, he had kept silence before the contempt of his enemies, and had retired to
the quiet of his accustomed rural occupations. And not long after the day of Mizpah
came the peril, in view of which the demand had been made for a king to lead the
people to battle. Nahash, the Ammonite, advanced with an army, and began the war
against Israel with the siege of Jabesh-Gilead. The Sept. inserts at the beginning of
this verse from the preceding ( 1 Samuel 10:27) the words: “and it came to pass after
a month,”[FN17] and is followed by Ew. and Then, though all other ancient
11

translations agree with the mas. text, only the Vulg. adds to the translation of the
text the words: et factum est quasi post mensem, an addition originating probably in
the Itala, which follows the Sept. The statement of time is evidently an
interpretation of the translation.[FN18] It is the less necessary for the connection by
reason of the looseness of the chronology here. According to 1 Samuel 12:12 the
threatened war with the Ammonites was the immediate occasion of the demand for
a king. Naturally, therefore, Nahash, having before made his preparations, entered
the Israelitish territory soon after the king was chosen and confirmed. If it had been
intended to give this datum of time the word “one” must necessarily have been
inserted.—On Nahash,[FN19] king of the Ammonites, see on 2 Samuel 10:2. We
have here a renewal of the war with the Ammonites, which (according to Judges
10:11) Israel had victoriously carried on under Jephthah. No doubt Nahash made
the same charge against Israel—claiming the territory east of the Jordan which, it
was alleged, Israel had taken from the Ammonites—which was then made by the
king and repelled by Jeph. ( Judges 11:13 sq.). Comp. Joshua 13:25. Jephthah’s
victory had not permanently broken the power of the Ammonites. Jabesh lay in
northern Gilead, and belonged to the half-tribe of Manasseh. According to Joseph.
(Ant6, 5, 1), it was the capital of Gilead; according to the Onom, “six Roman miles
from Pella on the way to Gerasa,” and is conjectured by Robinson (III:319) and van
der Velde (Mem, p323) to be the same with the present ruins of Ed-Deir,[FN20] on
the south side of the Wady Jabis, in which word is not improbably contained the
name of the old Jabesh. Jabesh was the only city ( Judges 21:9) which did not take
part in the war of extermination against Benjamin; its virgins were carried off for
the Benjamites ( Judges 21:6 sq.). For the important connection of Jabesh with
Saul’s end see 1 Samuel 31:11-13 and 2 Samuel4, 5.—The inhabitants of Jabesh are
willing to come to an agreement with Nahash, and submit on reasonable conditions.
This shows their entire defencelessness against the enemy, and characterizes Israel’s
weakness in consequence of the lack of firm and permanent union among its parts.
Instead of accepting their humble proposal, Nahash offers the Jabeshites the
extremest insult by the threat that, unless they surrendered unconditionally,[FN21]
he would put out the right eyes of all of them.[FN22] On cruel conduct towards
conquered enemies see Rüetschi, Herz. R. E. VIII:87 [also Arts. War in Dicts. of
Smith and Fairbairn, and Saalschütz, Archäologie der Hebräer, II:506.—Tr.].
Nahash will lay this as a reproach “on all Israel,” not because they had not courage
to help them (Bunsen), but with the intention of undertaking war against all Israel,
and avenging the insult offered by Jephthah. Josephus’ remark, that he threatened
to do this “in order that, their left eyes being concealed by their shields, they might
be wholly unserviceable,” is correct only on this supposition, that he in fact designed
to conquer first the city and then Gilead.
12

PULPIT, "THE DEFEAT OF THE AMMONITES (1 Samuel 11:1-13).
1 Samuel 11:1, 1 Samuel 11:2.
Nahash the Ammonite. The same name is found in 2 Samuel 10:2 as that of the
father of Hanun, who treated David's ambassadors so shamefully, and probably
they mean the same person. He is there said to have shown kindness to David; and
as we read in 2 Samuel 17:25 that Abigal (so the Hebrew, not Abigail as the A.V
who was David's wife), Amasa's mother, was the daughter of Nahash, and as Abigal
was the sister or half-sister of Zeruiah, David's aunt, there seems to have been some
relationship between them. The Ammonites were old enemies of the Israelites,
alleging that Israel had taken possession of territory east of the Jordan which
rightfully belonged to them ( 11:13); but after their defeat by Jephthah their power
was so broken that they allowed a century to elapse before they ventured again to
assert their claim. Nahash, apparently after other invasions (1 Samuel 12:12), now
attacks Jabesh-Gilead, a city in the half-tribe of Manasseh, which had been cruelly
treated by the Israelites ( 21:10), but apparently had risen again from its ruins. Its
inhabitants were willing humbly to submit to Ammonite rule; but Nahash will grant
them no other terms than that they should let him thrust out—Hebrew, bore
through—all their right eyes, not from any special spite against them, but as an
insult to all Israel. No better proof could be given of the disorganisation of the
nation than that a petty despot should venture to show his contempt for it in so
offensive a way.
BI 1-11, "Then Nahash the Ammonite came up.
The immediate consequences of a national rejection of God
In the opening verses of this chapter we see the result of disobedience. Instead of
happiness for Israel; we fear that the invasion of which we now read, is but too prophetic
of those awful retributions which Samuel declared should come upon their wilful
rejection of the Divine Being. We take these words as illustrative of the consequences of
a national rejection of God.
I. That when a nation rejects God it may very naturally expect to be troubled by enemies.
There appears to have existed an old land quarrel between these two peoples, which had
occasioned the battle just mentioned, and which at this time they strive to revenge and
recoverse In the light of this history we gather that—
1. They were enemies of long standing. It was a deep seated hatred that time had
almost rendered chronic. It is easy to settle the dispute of yesterday, but when years
have passed they make the breach almost impassable. Thus God rendered dark the
13

hops of Israel through enemies of the longest standing and the most dreaded.
(1) Would be bitter enemies.
(2) Would be despotic enemies.
2. They were enemies that had been previously defeated. They had been most
severely routed by Jephthah. The relatives, friends, and companions of these
warriors now threatening Israel with invasion were slain in that conflict. Truly, Israel
had need to fear such a foe.
3. These enemies were most opportune in their attack upon Israel.
(1) As regards the place. It was near to their own country, and was also extremely
weak.
(2) As regards the time of this threatened invasion. Israel was in a most
unsettled condition. The people were in a transition state, just changing an old
form of government for a new one, consequently were very much occupied with
their own affairs. There were new arrangements to make adapted to the changed
condition of things. All the strength, skill, and time that the nation could
command was required to be expended upon itself, to give it permanency, and to
give freedom from civil faction. Hence the Israelites were totally unprepared for
woe, and especially with so powerful a foe.
II. That when a nation rejects God its degradation is certain to follow. Nahash assumes
the weakness of the men of Jabesh-Gilead, and their consequent inability to defend
themselves from his army. He therefore commences at once to propose the most painful
and humiliating condition of peace. A condition indeed which would involve the whole
nation in disgrace.
1. These people are about to degrade the noble achievements of their ancestors. And
this is a true characteristic of a nation that has rejected God. When they have
rejected Him, the next thing to do is to throw away all the sacred memories of the
past, and to nullify their meaning.
2. These people are far more careful about their own comfort than the memories of
their past history. They would a great deal rather undo the achievements of their
ancestors than lose their own eyes.
3. These people were willing to degrade themselves by the breaking of a Divine Law.
They wanted to make a covenant with the Ammonites, which bad been strictly
forbidden by God. This is just what we might have expected. It is only natural that,
after they had dethroned the Divine Being, they should infringe His law.
4. These people are degraded by doubting the bravery of their country. When
citizens lose confidence in their defenders it is a sure sign that elements of weakness
are mining the society prejudicial to its welfare. May we never lose faith in the
heroism of our country!
III. These enemies and this degradation came immediately after the nation had rejected
God in proclaiming the new king.
1. As a reminder. To make the Israelites very careful in their revolution, and to give
them to feel that although they had got a king, he could not remove them from the
touch, nor could he shelter them from the displeasure of God.
14

2. As a prognostication. That notwithstanding their rejoicing at the public
recognition of the new king, the future history of the nation could not be altogether
smooth and glad. It was the calm before the tempest, and the invasion by the
Ammonites was the first peal of thunder announcing the nearing storm. Lessons—
(1) For a nation to reject God is for it, truly to forsake its best welfare—political,
social, and moral.
(2) That a nation rejecting God is sure to meet with numerous difficulties.
(3) That a nation by rejecting God introduces into its history the true element of
its ruin.
(4) This national destruction or sorrow may be delayed, but it is certain. (Joseph
S. Exell, M. A.)
The relic of Jabesh-Gilead
Primitive though the state of society was in those days in Israel, we are hardly prepared
to find Saul following the herd in the field after his election as king of Israel. We are
compelled to conclude that the opposition to him was far from contemptible in number
and in influence, and that he found it expedient in the meantime to make no
demonstration of royalty, but continue his old way of life. Human life was of so little
value in those Eastern countries, and the crime of destroying it was so little thought of,
that if Saul had in any way provoked hostility, he would have been almost certain to fall
by some assassin’s hand. It was therefore wise of him to continue for a time his old way
of living, and wait for some opportunity which should arise providentially, to vindicate
his title to the sceptre of Israel. Apparently he bad not to wait long—according to
Josephus, only a month. The opportunity arose in a somewhat out-of-the-way part of the
country, where disturbance had been brewing previous to his election (1Sa_12:12). Very
probably the Ammonites had never forgotten the humiliation inflicted on them by
Jepthah, when he smote them “from Aroer, even till thou come to Minnith, even twenty
cities, and till thou come to the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter.”
Naturally the Ammonites would be desirous both to avenge these defeats and to regain
their cities, or at least to get other cities in lieu of what they had lost. The history of the
Israelites in time of danger commonly presents one or other of two extremes: either
pusillanimous submission, or daring defiance to the hostile power. In this case it was
pusillanimous submission, as indeed it commonly was when the people followed the
motions of their own hearts, and were not electrified into opposition by some great hero,
full of faith in God. But it was not mere cowardice they displayed in offering to become
the servants of the Ammonites; there was impiety in it likewise. For of their relation to
God they made no account whateverse By covenant with their fathers, ratified from
generation to generation, they were God’s servants, and they had no right voluntarily to
transfer to another master the allegiance which was due to God alone. And it was not a
case of necessity. Instead of humbling themselves before God and confessing the sins
that had brought them into trouble, they put God altogether aside, and basely offered to
become the servants of the Ammonites. How often do men virtually say to the devil,
“Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee”! Men and women, with strong
proclivities to sin, may for a time resist, but they get tired of the battle; they long for an
easier life, and they say in their hearts, “We will resist no longer; we will become your
servants.” They are willing to make peace with the Ammonites, because they are wearied
15

of fighting. “Anything for a quiet life!” They surrender to the enemy, they are willing to
serve sin, because they will not surrender the ease and the pleasures of sin. But sin is a
bad master; his wages are terrible to think of. The terms which Nahash offered to the
men of Jabesh-Gilead combined insult to injury. “On this condition will I make a
covenant with thee: that I, may thrust out all your right eyes, and lay it for a reproach
unto all Israel.” “The tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” But Nahash was
comparatively merciful. He was willing to let the men of Jabesh off with the loss of one
eye only. But as if to compensate for this forbearance, be declared that he would regard
the transaction as a reproach upon all Israel. “All the people lifted up their voices and
wept.” It was just the way in which their forefathers had acted at the Red Sea; and again,
it was the way in which they spent that night in the wilderness after the spies brought
back their report of the land. But, as in the two earlier cases, there was a man of faith to
roll back the wave of panic. As we are thinking how well Saul has acted on this occasion,
we perceive that an old friend has come on the scene who helps us materially to
understand the situation. Yes, he is all the better of Samuel’s guidance and prayers. The
good old prophet has no jealousy of the man who took his place at the bead of the
nation. But knowing well the fickleness of the people, he is anxious to turn the occasion
to account for confirming their feelings and their sins. Seeing how the king has
acknowledged God as the Author of the victory, he desires to strike while the iron is hot.
“Come,” he says, “let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there.” (W. G. Blaikie, D.
D.)
Practical royalty
1. It is often true in life that circumstances drive us to make approaches which are
not congenial. Men are driven by stress of health or poverty, or some form of
perplexity not easily to be named in words, to offer to nut themselves into relations
with people whom under other circumstances they would never treat with. Such facts
in life we are bound to recognise. And it would betoken a poor quality of nature on
our part to associate with such recognitions too severe a moral condemnation. Our
common proverb is to the effect that “adversity has strange bedfellows.” The men of
Jabesh-Gilead, therefore, must be regarded as persons who are under oppressive
circumstances, and who are willing to make the best of conditions which are very
galling and humiliating.
2. No language is too severe to condemn the barbarous cruelty of Nahash; at the
same time he only shows what we might be under circumstances of equal temptation
and pressure. When we see how man can treat man, we are enabled to reason
upwards, and to see how possible it is for man to treat God profanely and
blasphemously. When man loves God he loves his neighbour also; but when man
ceases to love his neighbour, and then passes from mere displeasure to positive and
cruel hatred, it is easy for him to carry the spirit of hostility further and to include in
its base action even all that is heavenly and Divine. The moment we can treat a man
unjustly and cruelly we have disqualified ourselves for true prayer and real
communion with Heaven. Let there be no mistake about this matter. We cannot give
up our philanthropy and retain our Christianity.
3. Saul was engaged in his usual pursuits. The King of Israel was actually discharging
offices with the herd in the field, attending to the wants of his cattle, and otherwise
going about his business soberly and quietly. No intimation of unusual
16

circumstances seems to have reached him. How unconscious we sometimes are of
the circumstances which are nearest to us—unconscious, that is to say, of their real
import and deepest meaning! When we think all is proceeding as usual we may be
within touch of some occurrence that will determine all the remaining actions of our
life The commonplace and the marvellous often lie closely together. The picture,
then, is that of a great man attending to simple daily duties, and it will be a sad day
for any people who imagine that simple daily duties are not worthy of the dignity
even of the greatest man. Society has a right to expect great things from great men.
No greater tribute could be paid to Saul than that; threatened and despairing men
should appeal to him in the time of their agony. The men who shouted, “God save the
king,” did not pay Saul so fine a tribute as the men who came to him in their
extremity and asked for his sympathy and assistance. No sooner had Saul heard the
condition proposed by the King of Ammon than he burned with anger. We can best
describe a certain quality of anger by tracing it to the direct action of the Spirit of
God. Truly, there is a holy indignation. The sublime enthusiasm of Saul kindled the
faith of the people. A modern commentary, referring to this passage, has the
following illustrative remarks:—“It was owing to some influence of a similar nature
that, with scanty numbers, ill-armed, and ill-trained, the Swiss won for their land
centuries of freedom on memorable fields like Laupen and Morat, though the
proudest chivalry of Europe was arrayed against them. It was the same spirit which
impelled the peace-loving traders of the marshes of Holland to rise as one man, and
to drive out forever from their loved strip of Fenland the hitherto invincible armies
of Spain. No oppressor, though backed by the wealth and power of an empire, has
over been able to resist the smallest people in whose heart has burned the flame of
the Divine fire of the fear of the Lord “All these circumstances would be of little or no
concern to us if they did not point to a great spiritual reality. Tremendous foes
besiege us on every side. What is our defence in such time of assault? It is the fear of
the Lord, the Spirit of God, the Divine energy. God delights in humbling the boastful
and vainglorious “He that exalteth himself shall be abased.” Presumption is always
self-defeating; it is so in business, in war, in statesmanship, and in every act and
department of rational life.
4. Notice that this was not entered upon without preparation. There was no rush or
haste in the matter. Sometimes we proceed most swiftly when we seem to advance
most slowly. There should be a time for gathering strength together, measuring the
situation in all its dimensions, consulting Divine decrees, and putting the soul into
right relations with God. After such preparation everything will go rapidly. Every
stroke will be a victory.
5. A fit ending to a tragical process Gilgal was a sanctuary. After great doings on the
field of battle we must return to the house of prayer, we must, indeed, return to the
place where we began. We should enter upon no conflict until after we have been in
the sanctuary, and having completed the conflict we should return to the altar. Enter
upon nothing that cannot be sanctified at holy places and by holy names. There is
nothing too insignificant to be associated with the most solemn acts of worship; or if
we are conscious of such insignificance, we should not undertake the affairs which
admit of its application. Learn the useful lesson that Saul did not thrust himself into
prominence, and that even after he was appointed king of Israel he went about his
usual avocations until there was something worthy of kingliness to be publicly done.
Let us be rebuked in so far as we have supposed that we were released from duty
until some great and critical occasion arose. Having obtained our literary prize, let us
17

go home and take up the business of life in a quiet way. Do not think that anything
which nature or society requires at us is below our dignity because we have achieved
this or that popular success. (J. Parker, D. D.)
2 But Nahash the Ammonite replied, “I will make
a treaty with you only on the condition that I
gouge out the right eye of every one of you and so
bring disgrace on all Israel.”
CLARKE, "I may thrust out all your right eves - This cruel condition would serve
at once as a badge of their slavery, and a means of incapacitating them from being
effective warriors. Theodoret observes, “He who opposes his shield to the enemy with
his left hand, thereby hides his left eye, and looks at his enemy with his right eye; he
therefore who plucks out that right eye makes men useless in war.” Josephus gives the
same reason.
GILL, "And Nahash the Ammonite answered them,.... In a very haughty and
scornful manner:
on this condition will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all
your right eyes; some Jewish writers go into a mystical and allegorical sense of these
words, as that Nahash ordered the book of the law to be brought, which was their right
eye, that he might erase out of it these words:
an Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord;
others understand it of the sanhedrim, which were the eyes of Israel; and others, which
come a little nearer to the sense, of the slingers and archers, the desire of the eyes of
Israel; and who, by having their right eyes thrust out, would be in a great measure
spoiled for taking aim; for the words are to be understood literally; the intention of
Nahash was to disable them for war, and that they might become quite unfit for it, as
Josephus observes (r); the left eye being under the shield, as it usually was in war, and
the right eye plucked out, they would be as blind men: he did not choose to have both
their eyes thrust out, for then they could have been of no use and service to him as slaves
18

or tributaries:
and lay it for a reproach upon all Israel; that they did not come up to the relief of
their brethren, and defend them, and signifying that they must all expect the same
treatment from him.
HENRY, "II. The besiegers offer them base and barbarous conditions; they will spare
their lives, and take them to be their servants, upon condition that they shall put out
their right eyes, 1Sa_11:2. The Gileadites were content to part with their liberty and
estates for the ransom of their blood; and, had the Ammonites taken them at their word,
the matter would have been so settled immediately, and the Gileadites would not have
sent out for relief. But their abject concessions make the Ammonites more insolent in
their demands, and they cannot be content to have them for their servants, but, 1. They
must torment them, and put them to pain, exquisite pain, for so the thrusting out of an
eye would do. 2. They must disable them for war, and render them incapable, though not
of labour (that would have been a loss to their lords), yet of bearing arms; for in those
times they fought with shields in their left hands, which covered their left eye, so that a
soldier without his right eye was in effect blind. 3. They must put a reproach upon all
Israel, as weak and cowardly, that would suffer the inhabitants of one of their chief cities
to be thus miserably used, and not offer to rescue them.
III. The besieged desire, and obtain, seven days' time to consider of this proposal,
1Sa_11:3. If Nahash had not granted them this respite, we may suppose the horror of the
proposal would have made them desperate, and they would rather have died with their
swords in their hands than have surrendered to such merciless enemies: therefore
Nahash, not imagining it possible that, in so short a time, they should have relief, and
being very secure of the advantages he thought he had against them, in a bravado gave
them seven days, that the reproach upon Israel, for not rescuing them, might be the
greater, and his triumphs the more illustrious. But there was a providence in it, that his
security might be his infatuation and ruin.
JAMISON, "thrust out all your right eyes — literally, “scoop” or “hollow out” the
ball. This barbarous mutilation is the usual punishment of usurpers in the East, inflicted
on chiefs; sometimes, also, even in modern history, on the whole male population of a
town. Nahash meant to keep the Jabeshites useful as tributaries, whence he did not wish
to render them wholly blind, but only to deprive them of their right eye, which would
disqualify them for war. Besides, his object was, through the people of Jabesh-gilead, to
insult the Israelitish nation.
BENSON, "1 Samuel 11:2. And lay it for a reproach upon all Israel — That is,
disgrace the whole Hebrew nation, by serving some of their people in this
opprobrious manner; for it must necessarily have reflected great dishonour upon
the whole state, that they should suffer any of their people to be served so. He
19

probably meant also to disable them for war, in which the right eye was of most use,
their shields, which they carried in their left hands, in a great measure covering
their left eyes. He proposes, however, to leave them one eye, that they might be fit to
serve in any mean and base office.
ELLICOTT, " (2) On this condition.—The horrible cruelty of this scornful proposal
gives us an insight into the barbarous customs of this imperfectly civilised age.
Indeed, many of the crimes we read of in these books—crimes which, to modern
ears, justly sound shocking and scarcely credible—are referable to the fact that
civilisation and its humanizing influences had made but little way as yet among the
nations of the world.
The object of Nahash’s cruelty was to incapacitate the inhabitants of Jabesh from
ever further assisting his enemies in war; they would henceforth be blinded in the
right eye, while the left eye would be concealed by the shield which fighting-men
were in the habit of holding before them.
HAWKER, "(2) And Nahash the Ammonite answered them, On this condition will I
make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all your right eyes, and lay it for a
reproach upon all Israel.
Observe, what fear must have taken possession of the minds of Israel, when the
people are ready to submit to the yoke of Gentile nations, and to be tributaries to
them. But reader, depend upon it, the same is in every instance. Guilt breeds fear.
TRAPP, "1 Samuel 11:2 And Nahash the Ammonite answered them, On this
[condition] will I make [a covenant] with you, that I may thrust out all your right
eyes, and lay it [for] a reproach upon all Israel.
Ver. 2. On this condition will I make a covenant.] Slaves he would make them, and
perpetually so, - stigmatical slaves, utterly disabled to deliver themselves out of his
hands.
That I may thrust out all your right eyes.] This was most inhuman and insolent. The
devil - as another Nahash, which signifieth a serpent - would likewise put out the
right eye of faith, and leave us only the left eye of reason; look to him narrowly.
Those that would deprive the people of the Scriptures, and muzzle them in
ignorance, do the like.
20

And lay it for a reproach upon all Israel.] For a base people that would live upon
any terms; that boasted also of an almighty God, but durst not confide in him.
LANGE, "1 Samuel 11:3. Nahash grants the desired seven days, in which they are to
send messengers into every part of Israel; in this time he thought to finish his
preparations for the conquest of the city, in order, in the existing division of the
Israelitish tribes and forces, the more surely to attain his end. The Jabeshites
promised to yield themselves, if no one came to their rescue. The assumption of this
as possible, and the fact that they sent to every region of Israel shows that in this
transition-period from the Judges to the kingdom, in spite of what Samuel had done
towards securing unity of action, the old division of powers in tribal isolation and
the consequent weakness against enemies still continued. That the messengers ( 1
Samuel 11:4) go nevertheless not separately to the various tribes, but all together
first[FN23] to Gibeah of Saul, is doubtless according to instructions given them. And
the reason could be only that this was the residence of the elected king, and the
centre of the whole people. We are not to conclude (with Then.), from the fact of
their going not to Saul, but to the people, that they knew nothing of his election as
king; they presented their case before the people, and not Saul, because (as appears
from what follows) he was not in Gibeah, and did not return from his ordinary
occupation till after their statement was made.—The weeping of the people points to
the greatness of the danger and the painful consciousness of helplessness. Perhaps
Saul was held in least esteem in his native city.
3 The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven
days so we can send messengers throughout
Israel; if no one comes to rescue us, we will
surrender to you.”
21

BARNES, "The elders - Observe the universal form of civil government among the
Israelites, by elders (Jdg_8:14, Jdg_8:16, etc.).
CLARKE, "Give us seven days respite - Such promises are frequently made by
besieged places: “We will surrender if not relieved in so many days;” and such conditions
are generally received by the besiegers.
GILL, "And the elders of Jabesh said,.... The magistrates and principal men of the
city:
give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers to all the coasts of
Israel; that is, cease from besieging them, from throwing in darts into the city, or any
other missive weapons, and from attempting to break open the gates, or break down the
walls of it, and storm it; such a space of time they desire, which was as little as could be
granted, to go and return in, and without this it would not be a reproach to all Israel, if
they were ill used by them, since they had no knowledge of their case, nor time to come
up for their assistance:
and then, if there be no man to save us, we will come out to thee; and submit
to be used at thy pleasure. And it seems that this was granted by Nahash out of a
bravado, and to reproach and insult all Israel, and bid them defiance; with whom he
sought to quarrel, having a design upon their land, and knowing very well their
condition, being awed by the Philistines; and having just chosen a king, and he an
inexperienced man in the affairs of war, and had no army; nor was it likely that one
could be assembled in so short a time, and come to the relief of this people, and
therefore he thought himself safe enough in granting their request.
HENRY 3-4, "IV. Notice is sent of this to Gibeah. They said they would send
messengers to all the coasts of Israel (1Sa_11:3), which made Nahash the more secure,
for that, he thought, would be a work of time, and none would be forward to appear if
they had not one common head; and perhaps Nahash had not yet heard of the new-
elected king. But the messengers, either of their own accord or by order from their
masters, went straight to Gibeah, and, not finding Saul within, told their news to the
people, who fell a weeping upon hearing it, 1Sa_11:4. They would sooner lament their
brethren's misery and danger than think of helping them, shed their tears for them than
shed their blood. They wept, as despairing to help the men of Jabesh-Gilead, and fearing
lest, if that frontier-city should be lost, the enemy would penetrate into the very bowels
of their country, which now appeared in great hazard.
22

JAMISON, "send messengers unto all the coasts of Israel — a curious proof of
the general dissatisfaction that prevailed as to the appointment of Saul. Those Gileadites
deemed him capable neither of advising nor succoring them; and even in his own town
the appeal was made to the people - not to the prince.
BENSON, "1 Samuel 11:3. Give us seven days respite — It may seem strange, either
that they should propose to submit so soon to such base conditions, if they did not
receive help, or that Nahash should grant them so much respite when he saw them
so abject and inclined to yield to him. But the reason of both is evident; for the
elders of Jabesh thought Saul was not able to help them, having not yet taken upon
him the government, but living privately, 1 Samuel 11:5; and Nahash, it is probable,
was loath to drive them to desperation by denying them this short space wherein to
expect relief, which he thought they could not possibly obtain in the time, even if
Saul should endeavour to levy an army and come to their aid, for that, he would
naturally suppose, could not be done in so few days.
ELLICOTT, "(3) Give us seven days’ respite.—This kind of proposal has always in
time of war been a common one; such a request from a beleaguered fortress we meet
with constantly, especially in mediæval chronicles. It was, no doubt, made by the
citizens in the hope that Saul the Benjamite, in whose election as king they had
recently taken a part, would devise some means for their rescue. Between Benjamin
and the city of Jabesh-gilead there had long existed the closest ties of friendship.
How far back this strange link between the southern tribe and the distant frontier
town dated, we know not. When Israel was summoned “as one man” (Judges 21),
probably under the direction of Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, to avenge on
Benjamin the crime committed by the men of Gibeah, Jabesh-gilead alone, among
the cities of Israel—no doubt, out of its friendship for the sinning tribe—declined to
obey the imperious summons, and for this act of disobedience was rased to the
ground, and its inhabitants put to the sword. The tribes, however, subsequently
regretted their remorseless cruelty in their punishment of Benjamin, and feared lest
their brother’s name might perish out of the land; mindful, then, of the old loving
feeling which existed between the city of Jabesh-gilead and the tribe of Benjamin,
they gave the maidens of the ruined city spared in the judicial massacre perpetrated
on the citizens, to the fighting remnant of Benjamin, still defending themselves on
the impregnable Rock of the Pomegranate, “Rimmon,” and did what was in their
power to restore the ruined and broken tribe. Jabesh-gilead seems to have risen
again from its ashes, and Benjamin once more held up its head among the tribes of
Israel, and just now had given the first king to the people. No wonder, then, that the
city in the hour of its sore need and deadly peril should send for succour to Gibeah
in Benjamin, and to Saul, the Benjamite king. Neither the tribe nor the king failed
23

them in their distress.
HAWKER, "Verse 3-4
(3) And the elders of Jabesh said unto him, Give us seven days' respite, that we may
send messengers unto all the coasts of Israel: and then, if there be no man to save us,
we will come out to thee. (4) Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul, and told
the tidings in the ears of the people: and all the people lifted up their voices, and
wept.
We do not hear of prayer, or supplication to the Lord, put up. No fast. No day of
public humiliation. The people lifted up their voices, and wept indeed, but it is not
said, that they cried unto the Lord. Oh! how sweet is it to recollect, in the distresses
of the soul, that the Lord waits to be gracious. See those promises; Isaiah 30:18; Isa_
65:24.
TRAPP, "1 Samuel 11:3 And the elders of Jabesh said unto him, Give us seven days’
respite, that we may send messengers unto all the coasts of Israel: and then, if [there be]
no man to save us, we will come out to thee.
Ver. 3. Give us seven days’ respite.] This the tyrant yielded unto, non ex pietate, sed ex
animositate, which proved to be his ruin. Pride goeth before destruction. Meanwhile the
men of Jabeshgilead tempted God in setting him a time; but he helped them nevertheless,
and made way thereby for Saul’s settlement in his kingdom.
PULPIT, "The elders who govern the town know nothing of a king having been
appointed, nor do they send to Samuel to ask him, as the judge, to protect them; but
they request a seven days' respite, that they may send messengers unto all the coasts
of Israel, and Nahash, feeling sure that no combined action would be the result,
grants their request, that so Israel far and wide might know of his triumph.
4 When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul
and reported these terms to the people, they all
24

wept aloud.
BARNES, "They came to Gibeah on account of the connection between the
Benjamites and the people of Jabesh Judg. 21.
In the ears of the people - They did not even inquire for Saul, so little was he
looked upon as king. 1Sa_11:5 shows how completely he was still in a private and
humble station.
CLARKE, "Then came the messengers to Gibeah - It does not appear that the
people of Jabesh-gilead knew any thing of Saul’s appointment to the kingdom, for the
message is not directed to him but to the people.
The people lifted up their voices and wept - They saw no hope of deliverance,
and they expected that their reproach would be laid on all Israel.
GILL, "Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul,.... Where he was born, and
brought up, and now dwelt; and he being elected king, it brought an honour to the place;
and from hence had this name, to distinguish it from the others, and this is the first time
it was so called. Now the messengers from Jabesh came hither directly, because they
knew that Saul, the chosen king, dwelt here, and the Benjaminites, of all the tribes, had
great reason to show regard to them, since it was from thence they had four hundred
wives, when they were reduced to six hundred men only, in order to raise up their tribe:
and told the tidings in the ears of the people; Saul being not at home in the city,
but in the fields, they reported to them the hardships their city was under, being
besieged by the Ammonites, and threatened that if not relieved in such a time, all their
right eyes would be plucked out:
and all the people lifted up their voices, and wept; moved with sympathy to their
brethren, and who by their intermarriage with them were nearly related to them; and
who might fear they would not stop there, but having taken that place would march
forward, and come to them, and use them in like manner; the thought of which was very
distressing to them.
HENRY, "They would sooner lament their brethren's misery and danger than think
of helping them, shed their tears for them than shed their blood. They wept, as
despairing to help the men of Jabesh-Gilead, and fearing lest, if that frontier-city should
25

be lost, the enemy would penetrate into the very bowels of their country, which now
appeared in great hazard.
BENSON, "1 Samuel 11:4-5. To Gibeah of Saul — So called, because it was the
place where Saul was born and brought up, and where he had hitherto dwelt.
Behold Saul came after the herd — For, being only anointed king, and not publicly
inaugurated, nor having yet had opportunity of doing any thing worthy of his place,
he thought fit to forbear all royal state, and to retire to his former private life,
which, howsoever despised in these latter ages, was anciently in great esteem. Saul
said, What aileth the people that they weep? — Let me know, that if it be a
grievance that can be redressed, I may endeavour to help them. “Good magistrates,”
says Henry, “are in pain if their subjects be in tears.”
ELLICOTT, " (4) Then came the messengers to Gibeah.—In the preceding verse we
read that it was resolved by the beleaguered city to send messengers to all the coasts
of Israel, but we only hear of the action taken by Saul in Gibeah. It therefore may be
assumed that this was the first city they sent to, not only on account of their ancient
friendship with Benjamin, but because Gibeah was the residence of the newly-
elected sovereign, Saul.
And all the people lifted up their voices, and wept.—This is exactly what might have
been expected from Benjamites hearing of the terrible straits into which the city
they all loved so well, and which was united to them by such close bonds of
friendship and alliance, was reduced; but though they grieved so deeply, they do not
seem of themselves to have been able to devise any plan for its relief, until their
great fellow-citizen took the matter in hand.
TRAPP, "1 Samuel 11:4 Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul, and told the
tidings in the ears of the people: and all the people lifted up their voices, and wept.
Ver. 4. And all the people lifted up their voices, and wept.] This was to "weep with
those that weep." [Romans 12:15] And if in addition they "turned again unto the
Lord, that their" distressed "brethren might" the sooner "find compassion," as 2
Chronicles 30:9, they did best of all. God, in such a case, "will restore comforts unto
his mourners." [Isaiah 57:18]
PULPIT. "Among other places the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, where they
make no appeal to him, but tell their sad tidings in the ears of all the people.
Powerless to help, they can only weep; but in the midst of their lamentation Saul
came after the herd (Hebrew, following the oxen) out of the field. Saul was not
driving a herd of cattle home, but had been ploughing, and, labour being over, was
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returning with the team of oxen.
5 Just then Saul was returning from the fields,
behind his oxen, and he asked, “What is wrong
with everyone? Why are they weeping?” Then
they repeated to him what the men of Jabesh had
said.
CLARKE, "Saul came after the herd - He had been bred up to an agricultural life,
and after his consecration he returned to it, waiting for a call of Divine providence,
which he considered he had now received in the message from Jabesh-gilead.
It has often been remarked, that mighty kings and accomplished generals have been
chosen from among those who were engaged in agricultural concerns. In these
observations one fact is lost sight of, viz., that in ancient times agriculture was the only
employment. Trade and commerce were scarcely known; therefore all descriptions of
official dignities must be chosen out of this class, there being no other to choose them
from. We need not wonder at these words of the poet: -
Jura dabat populis posito modo consul aratro; Pascebatque suas ipse
senator oves.
“The consul, having now laid aside his plough, gives laws to the people;
And the senator himself feeds his own sheep.”
Ovid, Fast. lib. i., v. 204-207.
GILL, "And, behold, Saul came after the herd out the field,.... Where he had
been to look after the and take care of them, and see what condition they were in, and
followed them on their return home; for though he was elected king, he was not
27

inaugurated, and did not take upon him any state; and being despised by some, and no
provision as yet made for his support and maintenance as a king, and no business as
such for him to do, Samuel still acting in his office, he returned to his father's house, and
employed himself in rustic affairs, as he used to do: though some think this was casual,
that he had been in the field to recreate himself, or to meditate on the affairs of
government, and happened to return just as the herd came out of the field, and so
followed them; thus Jarchi interprets it not of his coming after the herd, but of his
coming after the fixed and usual time of the herd's coming out of the field; but Josephus
(r) is clear for it, that he had been about some rustic business, some part of husbandry in
the field, and returned to the city; nor has it been unusual for emperors and kings, and
persons in high offices among Greeks and Romans, and other nations, in times of peace,
to employ themselves in husbandry; so did the judges of Israel, as Shamgar, and Gideon,
and Boaz, Jdg_3:31 so Quinctius Cincinnatus being taken from the plough and made
dictator, after he had conquered his enemies, returned to his husbandry (s):
and Saul said, what aileth the people, that they weep? he supposed some evil
had befallen them, and desired to know what it was, that, if it lay in his power to help
them, he might:
and they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh; the message they brought,
and the account they gave of the distressed case of their city.
HENRY, "What is here related turns very much to the honour of Saul, and shows the
happy fruits of that other spirit with which he was endued. Observe here,
I. His humility. Though he was anointed king, and accepted by his people, yet he did
not think it below him to know the state of his own flocks, but went himself to see them,
and came in the evening, with his servants, after the herd out of the field, 1Sa_11:5. This
was an evidence that he was not puffed up with his advancement, as those are most apt
to be that are raised from a mean estate. Providence had not yet found him business as a
king; he left all to Samuel; and therefore, rather than be idle, he would, for the present,
apply himself to his country business again. Though the sons of Belial would, perhaps,
despise him the more for it, such as were virtuous and wise, and loved business
themselves, would think never the worse of him. He had no revenues settled upon him
for the support of his dignity, and he was desirous not to be burdensome to the people,
for which reason, like Paul, he worked with his hands; for, if he neglect his domestic
affairs, how must he maintain himself and his family? Solomon gives it as a reason why
men should look well to their herds because the crown doth not endure to every
generation, Pro_27:23, Pro_27:24. Saul's did not; he must therefore provide something
surer.
II. His concern for his neighbours. When he perceived them in tears, he asked, “What
ails the people that they weep? Let me know, that, if it be a grievance which can be
redressed, I may help them, and that, if not, I may weep with them.” Good magistrates
are in pain if their subjects are in tears.
JAMISON, "1Sa_11:5-11. They send to Saul, and are delivered.
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COFFMAN, "Verse 5
SAUL'S REACTION TO THE THREAT OF NAHASH
"Now Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen; and Saul said, "What ails
the people, that they are weeping"? So they told him the tidings of the men of
Jabesh. And the Spirit of God came mightily upon Saul when he heard these words,
and his anger was greatly kindled. He took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces
and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of messengers,
saying, "Whosoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to
his oxen."
The words of these three verses confirm in the most vigorous manner the prior
existence of both phase (1) and phase (2) of Saul's being made king of Israel.
"Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen" (1 Samuel 11:5). He had obeyed
Samuel's command for everyone to go home, and he was coming in from the field
where he had been plowing.
"And the Spirit of God came mightily upon Saul" (1 Samuel 11:6). This is a
confirmation of phase (1), his anointing by Samuel. This could not have happened
otherwise.
"He sent throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of messengers" (1 Samuel
11:7). How could Saul have done this, unless he had been selected king by the
casting of lots at Mizpah? No critic has ever dared to answer that question. This
could have happened only after Saul had been formally appointed king of Israel at
Mizpah. Who were these messengers? They were most certainly from that group
mentioned in the previous chapter, "Saul went to his home in Gibeah, and with him
went men of valor whose hearts the Lord had touched." (1 Samuel 10:26).
"Whosoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel" (1 Samuel 11:7a). In these
29

words, Saul wisely invoked the authority of the great prophet Samuel in his
summons to all Israel. Critics, of course, love to do their act of rewriting the Bible on
a verse like this. H. P. Smith rejected the words and after Samuel, "as a later
insertion."[7] Bennett also called the words, "An addition; Samuel does not appear
in this episode."[8] This writer is not willing to allow unbelieving critics the honor of
re-writing the Bible to suit their theories. Of course, Samuel does appear in this
narrative as the authority behind all that Saul was able to do in this episode.
"So shall it be done to his oxen" (1 Samuel 11:7). These are the words of a king, not
those of some country bumpkin, who, for the first time, suddenly decided to rescue
Israel. Thus, we have a triple confirmation here of both the preceding phases of
Saul's designation as King of Israel. Nothing is any more unreasonable or
unintelligent than the critical nonsense about the `early and late sources.' Again, in
the words of Ewald, what we have here is nothing but the simple truth throughout
these four chapters, with every single statement in them fitting exactly as in a jig-
saw puzzle.
ELLICOTT, "(5) And, behold, Saul came after the herd out of the field.—Saul was
still busied with his old pursuits. At first this would seem strange, but it must be
remembered that the regal authority was something quite new in republican Israel,
and that the new king’s duties and privileges at first were vague, and but little
understood; besides which, jealousies, such as have already been noticed (1 Samuel
10:27), no doubt induced Saul and his advisers to keep the royalty in the
background till some opportunity for bringing it to the front should present itself. It
is, therefore, quite to be understood that the newly-elected king should be spending
at least a portion of his time in pursuits which hitherto had occupied his whole life.
He was not the first hero summoned from agricultural labours to assume, in a
national emergency, the command of an army. Gideon, we read, was called from the
threshing-floor to do his great deeds; and to quote from profane history, one of the
noblest of the sons of Rome, like Saul, was ploughing when the Senate fetched him
to be the dictator and the general of their armies; and to the plough we know that
that great man returned when his work was successfully accomplished and his
country saved.
HAWKER, "Verses 5-7
(5) ¶ And, behold, Saul came after the herd out of the field; and Saul said, What
aileth the people that they weep? And they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh.
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(6) And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his
anger was kindled greatly. (7) And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in
pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of messengers,
saying, Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done
unto his oxen. And the fear of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out with
one consent.
We here see the effect of what was said in a former chapter, concerning Saul, that he
should be turned into another man. Though he had retired, after his election to be
king, to his father's house, yet he only waited an opportunity to testify that he was
changed. But I beg the reader to observe, both what is said of Saul in these verses,
and what is said of the people, that the whole is ascribed to the Lord. It was the
Spirit of the Lord that stirred him up; and it was from the same source, that put his
fear in the people. Precious in all instances, to trace our mercies to the fountain
head!
LANGE, " 1 Samuel 11:5-7. Saul’s first royal deed. He gathers the people together,
so that they rise as one man against the Ammonites, and the hitherto-existing
disunion is at an end.
1 Samuel 11:5. When the messengers arrive, Saul is in the field engaged in
agricultural labors. He is called from the plough, as Gideon from the threshing-floor
( Judges 6:11 sq.), to do great deeds for his people. “After the oxen” refers to his
walking behind the oxen, with which he had ploughed, and which are called in 1
Samuel 11:7 “a yoke of oxen.”
6 When Saul heard their words, the Spirit of God
came powerfully upon him, and he burned with
anger.
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BARNES, "This time the Spirit of God came upon him, as upon the Judges before
him, as a Spirit of supernatural energy and power.
CLARKE, "The Spirit of God came upon Saul - He felt himself strongly excited
to attempt the relief of his brethren.
And his anger was kindled greatly - I believe this means no more than that his
courage was greatly excited, he felt himself strong for fight, and confident of success.
GILL, "And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those
tidings,.... And filled him with pity and compassion to the inhabitants of Jabesh, and
with wisdom and prudence, and set his thoughts at work to contrive ways and means for
their relief, and with fortitude, courage, and resolution, to attempt their deliverance; so
the Targum,"the spirit of fortitude from the Lord dwelt on Saul:''and his anger was
kindled greatly; against Nahash the Ammonite for insulting Israel, and threatening to
use the inhabitants of Jabesh in such a cruel manner.
HENRY, "III. His zeal for the safety and honour of Israel. When he heard of the
insolence of the Ammonites, and the distress of a city, a mother in Israel, the Spirit of
God came upon him, and put great thoughts into his mind, and his anger was kindled
greatly, 1Sa_11:6. He was angry at the insolence of the Ammonites, angry at the mean
and sneaking spirit of the men of Jabesh-Gilead, angry that they had not sent him notice
sooner of the Ammonites' descent and the extremity they were likely to be reduced to.
He was angry to see his neighbours weeping, when it was fitter for them to be preparing
for war. It was a brave and generous fire that was now kindled in the breast of Saul, and
such as became his high station.
JAMISON, "
ELLICOTT, " (6) And the Spirit of God came upon Saul.—Nothing, perhaps, could
have moved Saul so deeply as this news respecting the distress of Jabesh-gilead; he
was affected not merely by the disgrace to Israel over which the Eternal had so
lately directed him to be anointed king, but by the sore peril which menaced the
ancient friend and ally of his tribe. On Saul’s heart, thus prepared for action, the
Holy Spirit fell, and endued him with extraordinary wisdom, valour, and power for
32

the great and difficult work which lay before him.
We read of the Spirit of the Lord coming upon men like Othniel (Judges 3:10) and
the other great Israelitic judges, who were raised up to be in their day the deliverers
of the people; and the immediate result of the Spirit of the Lord coming upon them
was to impart new and unusual power to their spirit, power which enabled them
successfully to surmount every danger and difficulty which barred the progress of
the great work they were specially called upon to do.
TRAPP, "1 Samuel 11:6 And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those
tidings, and his anger was kindled greatly.
Ver. 6. And the Spirit of God came upon Saul.] That is, The spirit of fortitude, saith
the Chaldee Paraphrast; not that "spirit of love, of power, and of a sound mind." [2
Timothy 1:7]
And his anger was kindled greatly.] Anger is cos fortitudinis, saith Aristotle, the
whetstone of courage (a) And Saul, though cold in his own cause when slighted and
rejected, [1 Samuel 10:27] is all alight, on fire, exarsit nasus eius, when God is
dishonoured, and his people so reproached.
CONSTABLE, "Verses 6-11
Saul's deliverance of Jabesh-gilead 11:6-11
God's Spirit came on Saul in the sense that He stirred up his human spirit (cf. 1
Samuel 10:6; 1 Samuel 10:10). Saul's response to the messengers' news was
appropriate indignation since non-Israelites were attacking God's covenant people
(Genesis 12:3). Saul may have had a personal interest in Jabesh-gilead since some of
his ancestors evidently came from there (cf. 1 Samuel 31:11-13). Following the civil
war in Israel, during which many Benjamites had died, many of those who
remained alive took wives from the women of Jabesh-gilead and the women of
Shiloh (Judges 21).
33

Saul did something drastic to impress the gravity of the Ammonite siege on his
fellow Israelites. He followed the example of the Levite whose concubine had died in
Saul's hometown (Judges 19:29-30). Later another plowman, Elisha, would
slaughter a pair of oxen and host a meal for his friends as he began his ministry as a
prophet (1 Kings 19:21).
"Saul's slaughter and dissection of his oxen is reminiscent of the Levite's treatment
of his murdered concubine and clearly is designed to connect the commencement of
his reign with the historical event which accounts for his Jabesh-Gilead maternal
roots." [Note: Eugene H. Merrill, "The Book of Ruth: Narration and Shared
Themes," Bibliotheca Sacra 142:566 (April-June 1985):140, n. 13.]
Saul linked himself with Samuel because Samuel was the recognized spiritual leader
of the nation. The Israelites probably dreaded both Saul's threatened reprisals for
not responding to his summons and the Ammonite threat.
"In Saul's energetic appeal the people discerned the power of Jehovah, which
inspired them with fear, and impelled them to immediate obedience." [Note: Keil
and Delitzsch, p. 112.]
The response of the Israelites constituted the greatest show of military strength since
Joshua's day (assuming eleph means "thousand" here). Bezek stood about 16 miles
west of Jabesh-gilead on the River Jordan's western side (cf. Judges 1:4-5). The
division of the soldiers into Israelites and Judahites probably reflects the division of
the nation that existed when the writer wrote this book. There is no evidence that
such a division existed when the event recorded here happened.
The messengers returned to Jabesh-gilead with the promise that their town would
be free by noon the next day. The leaders of Jabesh-gilead played with words as
they cleverly led the Ammonites into self-confidence, thinking that they would win.
The Ammonites had threatened to put out the right eyes of the men of Jabesh-gilead
(1 Samuel 11:2). The Jabesh-gileadites now told the Ammonites to do whatever
34

seemed good literally "in their eyes" (cf. 1 Samuel 14:36).
Saul wisely divided his troops into three companies. He attacked the besieging
Ammonites early in the morning. The morning watch was the last of three night
watches, and it lasted from about 2:00 to 6:00 a.m. These three watches had their
origin in Mesopotamia, but all the western Asian nations observed them before the
Christian era (cf. Lamentations 2:19; Judges 7:19). The only other place in the Old
Testament where this phrase "at the morning watch" occurs in Hebrew is Exodus
14:24. Then God slew the Egyptian soldiers as they pursued the fleeing Israelites
through the Red Sea. Perhaps the writer wanted his readers to view this victory as
another miraculous deliverance at the beginning of a new phase of Israel's existence.
The Ammonites did not expect the other Israelites to show so much support for the
Jabesh-gileadites. Saul thoroughly surprised and defeated them. [Note: For another
interpretation of 11:1-11 that views it as an artificially constructed story, see Diana
Edelman, "Saul's Rescue of Jabesh-Gilead (1 Samuel 11:1-11): Sorting Story from
History," Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 96:2 (1984):195-209.]
NISBET, "COURAGE AND FORBEARANCE
‘The Spirit of God came upon Saul.’
1 Samuel 11:6
Amid a weeping people the tidings of the fate of Jabesh were told to Saul, who was
returning with the oxen from the field. Saul felt the sorrow of it all as much as
anybody, but Saul also felt it was no time to weep. The Spirit of the Lord came on
him mightily, and roused him to immediate action. Inspired by the courage of their
new-found king, the Israelites scattered the Ammonites like leaves before the wind.
And the scene closes with a national gathering at Gilgal, where once again the
kingship of Saul was ratified, and where with every token of national joy, peace
offerings were offered to the Lord.
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I. One of the first lessons we should learn here is the way in which our opportunities
may reach us.—We read in Roman history that Cato was busy ploughing when he
was fetched by the Senate to assume the dictatorship. So here Saul was returning
from the field when the tidings of Jabesh-Gilead reached his ear. That was his first
great opportunity as king—the hour that was to be determinative of his future—and
it met him on one ordinary evening as he was returning from his day’s work in the
field. He had not to roam abroad to seek this hour, nor to leave the ordinary routine
of duty for it; in the midst of his daily and familiar tasks he was faced by this first
crisis of his kingship. It is in the common life of ordinary days that God sends us our
most glorious opportunities. It was when Nathanael was under the fig tree that
Christ spied him. It was when Matthew was sitting at his desk that Jesus called him.
It was when James and John were busy with their nets that they were summoned to
be fishers of men. And so it is at home, and in the school, and in the office, or in the
field, that we can show that we are kingly—that is, can show that we are Christ’s.
II. Another lesson we are to learn here is that God means us to do at once what must
be done.—That was the effect of God’s Spirit upon Saul—he acted whole-heartedly
and instantly. The people of Benjamin wept when they heard the tidings, but Saul
was roused into immediate action, and there can be no question that this immediate
action was the cause of Israel’s magnificent success. The three most important
letters in the alphabet, said Sir Walter Scott, are the letters N, O, W. There are few
habits more evil than the habit of dawdling and trifling and putting off the time. For
not only does that make the task seem harder, till the grasshopper becomes a
burden, but there is no joy or zest at all when the thing comes to be done at last. One
of the great words in St. Mark’s Gospel is immediately. When there was anything to
do, immediately Christ did it, unless He was prompted to delay by love. And no
better word than that which St. Mark so used could be found as a motto. The Holy
Ghost is saying, ‘To-day.’ Pleasant things are done with a double blessing when they
are done without procrastination. Unpleasant things are robbed of half their weight
when they are carried through without delay. Delays are dangerous, the proverb
says, and dangerous not only to the task, but to the soul of him who shirks the task.
III. Then lastly, we learn here the importance of using our victories rightly.—It is a
noble trait in the character of Saul that he was so forgiving in the hour of victory.
The people, mightily moved by their great triumph, were for putting to death those
36

who had flouted Saul; but Saul said, ‘There shall not a man be put to death this
day.’ That was a wise as well as a generous use of victory. It prepared the way for a
future of peace and union. Had Saul taken swift vengeance on his despisers, it would
have led to bitter feuds and bloodshed. But he used his first victory with
consummate wisdom, and so has taught us how we should act in ours. For there are
perils in victories no less than in defeats, and there are men who have lost because
they won. We are all apt, in the first flush of triumphs, to forget ourselves and the
things so hardly learned. Therefore is it necessary to cling close to God in the hours
when the trees of the forest clap their hands not less than in the seasons when we cry
with Jacob, ‘All these things are against me.’
Illustrations
(1) ‘It was a glorious victory, the first one that Saul won, but that act of clemency
was its noblest crown. His first exercise of power is to rescue Israel from threatened
bondage, and his first opportunity of vengeance he turns into an opportunity of
forgiveness. Such is Saul as he first takes into his hands the Jewish sceptre. His after
history presents one gathering, thickening mass of error, remorse, jealousy, anger,
melancholy, madness, ending all in mournful suicide. But never let us forget how
that dark history began, that it is the same Saul that was so dutiful and tender to his
father, so modest among his fellows, so generous to his enemies, whose career we are
about to trace. Looking at his life in its dark close, we see before us a moral wreck;
but it was a noble vessel that went to pieces. But why was the history of that wreck
written by the pen of inspiration? And why does that shattered vessel still lie there
before us? Why but that He who knows how dangerous an ocean it is that we have
to traverse, and how treacherous the coasts along which the voyage lies, would not
leave us without all kinds of warning given. And we shall be all the better prepared
to take home to our hearts those moral and spiritual warnings that that wreck gives
forth, if we carry with us the remembrance of what a goodly, kindly, generous, and
noble nature it was of which the shattered relics remain.’
(2) ‘Contemptuous criticism is a challenge to everything that is contemptible in a
man. Many a man who can stand fire cannot stand laughter or abuse. But Saul was
bigger and more generous. He would not stain the memory of that day with the
blood of his countrymen, however little they deserved his clemency. In this he was
surely as wise as he was right. When the day was over and the hot passion of
37

revenge had died down, how much greater must their king have seemed to them
than if he had yielded to their suggestion.’
PULPIT, "And the Spirit of God came upon Saul. Rather, descended mightily upon
Saul (see 1 Samuel 10:6). No miraculous influence is here meant; far more full of
meaning and piety is the lesson so constantly taught in the Book of Judges, that all
mighty and noble acts are from God ( 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 13:25; 14:6; 15:14, etc.).
Even the heathen saw in enthusiasm something Divine, for it means the having God
within. The energy with which Saul acted was strictly natural, but yet as truly
Divine; and it is a sign of the irreligion of modern days that it can see and hear of
great and heroic achievements and assign no part in them to God. In the days of
Samuel and the judges the whole glory of such acts was ascribed to God. But equally
now, whenever men are moved to noble acts, it is "the breath of God" that descends
upon them and inspires them.
7 He took a pair of oxen, cut them into pieces, and
sent the pieces by messengers throughout Israel,
proclaiming, “This is what will be done to the
oxen of anyone who does not follow Saul and
Samuel.” Then the terror of the Lord fell on the
people, and they came out together as one.
BARNES, "Though not expressly stated, it is doubtless implied that he sent the
portions by the messengers to the twelve tribes, after the analogy, and probably in
imitation, of Jdg_19:29. He made use of the revered name of Samuel to strengthen his
own weak authority. Samuel accompanied Saul in the expedition 1Sa_11:12.
38

CLARKE, "He took a yoke of open - The sending the pieces of the oxen was an act
similar to that of the Levite, Jdg_19:29 (note), where see the note. And both customs are
similar to the sending about of the bloody cross, to call the clans to battle, practiced by
the ancient Highlanders of Scotland. See at the end of this chapter, 1Sa_11:15 (note).
GILL, "And he took a yoke of oxen,.... Of his own or his father's, which he had just
followed out of the field, and for which chiefly that circumstance is mentioned:
and hewed them in pieces; as the Levite did his concubine, Jdg_19:29
and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of
messengers; some carrying a piece one way, and some another, throughout all the
tribes; for to them all the government of Saul extended, and which by this he let them
know it did:
saying, whosoever cometh not after Saul and after Samuel; he names both,
because he himself, though chosen king, was not inaugurated into his office, nor was
Samuel put out of his; and because he knew he was despised by some, who would not
object to and refuse the authority of Samuel, and therefore if they would not follow him,
they would follow Samuel; and he mentions himself first, because of his superior dignity:
so shall it be done unto his oxen; be cut to pieces as these were; he does not
threaten to cut them in pieces, but their oxen, lest he should seem to exercise too much
severity at his first coming to the throne:
and the fear of the Lord fell on the people; they feared, should they be
disobedient, the Lord would cut them to pieces, or in some way destroy them, as well as
Saul would cut their oxen to pieces; for their minds were impressed with a sense of this
affair being of the Lord:
and they came out with one consent; or "as one man" (t), as if they had consulted
together; being under a divine impulse, they set out from different parts about much the
same time, and met at a place of rendezvous next mentioned.
HENRY, "IV. The authority and power he exerted upon this important occasion. He
soon let Israel know that, though he had retired to his privacy, he had a care for the
public, and knew how to command men into the field, as well as how to drive cattle out
of the field, 1Sa_11:5, 1Sa_11:7. He sent a summons to all the coasts of Israel, to show the
extent of his power beyond his own tribe, even to all the tribes, and ordered all the
military men forthwith to appear in arms at a general rendezvous in Bezek. Observe, 1.
His modesty, in joining Samuel in commission with himself. He would not execute the
office of a king without a due regard to that of a prophet. 2. His mildness in the penalty
threatened against those that should disobey his orders. He hews a yoke of oxen in
39

pieces, and sends the pieces to the several cities of Israel, threatening, with respect to
him who should decline the public service, not, “Thus shall it be done to him,” but,
“Thus shall it be done to his oxen.” God had threatened it as a great judgment (Deu_
28:31), Thy ox shall be slain before thy eyes, and thou shalt not eat thereof. It was
necessary that the command should be enforced with some penalty, but this was not
nearly so severe as that which was affixed to a similar order by the whole congregation,
Jdg_21:5. Saul wished to show that his government was more gentle than that which
they had been under. The effect of this summons was that the militia, or trained bands,
of the nation, came out as one man, and the reason given is, because the fear of the Lord
fell upon them. Saul did not affect to make them fear him, but they were influenced to
observe his orders by the fear of God and a regard to him who had made Saul their king
and them members one of another. Note, Religion and the fear of God will make men
good subjects, good soldiers, and good friends to the public interests of the country.
Those that fear God will make conscience of their duty to all men, particularly to their
rulers.
JAMISON, "he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in pieces — (see Jdg_
19:29). This particular form of war-summons was suited to the character and habits of
an agricultural and pastoral people. Solemn in itself, the denunciation that accompanied
it carried a terrible threat to those that neglected to obey it. Saul conjoins the name of
Samuel with his own, to lend the greater influence to the measure, and to strike greater
terror unto all contemners of the order. The small contingent furnished by Judah
suggests that the disaffection to Saul was strongest in that tribe.
BENSON, "1 Samuel 11:7. Sent them throughout all the coasts — Wisely
considering that the sight of men’s eyes does much more affect their hearts than
what they only hear with their ears. After Saul and after Samuel — He joins Samuel
with himself, both because he was present with him, and that hereby he might gain
the more authority. The fear of the Lord fell on the people — A fear was sent upon
them by God, so that they did not dare to deny their help. The fear of God will make
men good subjects, good soldiers and good friends to their country. They that fear
God will make conscience of their duty to all men, particularly to their rulers. They
will honour the king, and all that are in authority under him. They came out with
one consent — God, who put courage into Saul, and now induced him to assert his
royal authority over the people, influenced them with a fear of offending him, so
that they readily came and joined him at his call.
COFFMAN, "Verse 7
ALL ISRAEL RALLIES AROUND SAUL
"Then the dread of the Lord fell upon the people, and they came out as one man.
When he mustered them at Bezek, the men of Israel were three hundred thousand,
40

1 SAMUEL 11 COMMENTARY ON SAUL RESCUING JABESH GILEAD

1 SAMUEL 11 COMMENTARY ON SAUL RESCUING JABESH GILEAD

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1 SAMUEL 11 COMMENTARY ON SAUL RESCUING JABESH GILEAD