There is a saying that you could read the Bible over and over again, and from time to time you’ll come across a detail in Scripture that you missed and find to be insightful and convicting. 1 Samuel 14:52 is one of those verses for me recently. It states:

There was hard fighting against the Philistines all the days of Saul. And when Saul saw any strong man, or any valiant man, he attached him to himself.

As I get older, I’ve begun to identify and recognize that the people you see in Scripture are not that different from me. Saul had plenty of things to do as the first king of Israel. Organizing his kingdom. Establishing his rule. Defeating their surrounding enemies who constantly tested Israel’s borders. The list could go on and on.

Saul draws sympathy from me as he begins his rule. He starts off well in 1 Samuel 11 by operating properly and obediently as the king. But after that, there’s a sharp turning away from obeying the ways of God and turning to his own methods and devices.

1 Samuel 13 was a major turning point in Saul’s tenure as king, but for the wrong reasons. Here’s a brief summary of what took place:

  • Saul celebrates a victory over the Philistines and then calls for more people to come join him in his next battle (1 Samuel 13:1-7)
  • After waiting seven days for Samuel to come and offer a burnt offering, Saul violates his kingly duties and offers a burnt offering on his own. (1 Samuel 13:8-10).
  • Samuel arrives. Saul blames the people scattering and Samuel coming late as the reasons for his sacrifice (1 Samuel 13:11-12)
  • Samuel declares Saul’s act as foolish and states that Saul’s line will not continue on Israel’s throne (1 Samuel 13:13-15).

Given the overall lack of trust in God, we can see that the pressure and stress of the war, seeing his soldiers leave, and the possible shame upon his tenure as king also factored into this act of sin. Even though Israel pulls out the upset victory in 1 Samuel 14, Saul’s decision-making continues on a downward spiral. This poor decision-making concludes with 1 Samuel 14:52 and shows Saul gathering all the strong or valiant men with him.

In seeing Saul’s example, I can sympathize with his desire to attach himself with strong and valiant men. He just experienced a stressful situation where people abandoned him. He wants to learn from his mistake and wants to be better prepared for what will lie ahead. Doesn’t seem all that bad and maybe something we would even commend.

But as we’ve seen from 1 Samuel 13-14, Saul’s desire to build a stronger base of strong and valiant men was not from God’s wisdom, but from his own. It was man-centered. It stems from a lack of trust in God and an understanding that He is in control.

When I reflect, I can see my own decisions being made as a response to past experiences. And while on the surface it looks good and reasonable, the root of these decisions is based on worldly wisdom and thoughts. I’m constantly seeing a lack of trust in the Lord and His plans. Whether it is doubts about the current path I’m on or battling my fleshly desires, there is this inherent cry for help. And each time there is this cry for help, I have two choices: I can run to God or run to the world.

My prayer is that there will be more choices to trust in the Lord and not in the ways of man. Though I may grow older, I desire to know and to believe that the wisdom that comes from above is far greater than anything I can create. Though I can sympathize with Saul, I pray that I won’t follow that same path of reasoning and decision-making.