1 Samuel

About 1 Samuel

First Samuel tells how Israel got its first kings: the prophet Samuel anoints Saul, Saul's heart drifts from God, and God chooses an unlikely shepherd boy named David instead. It was written to show that the LORD looks at the heart, not outward appearance, and that He raises up and removes leaders. The book moves Israel from the chaos of the judges toward the kingdom God will build through David's line.

Written by

The book is anonymous; it is named for Samuel, who dies partway through, and 1 Chronicles mentions records kept by Samuel, Nathan, and Gad that may lie behind it.

When

It covers roughly 1100 to 1010 BC, from Samuel's birth to the death of King Saul; the book itself was compiled sometime after the events, and scholars differ on exactly when.

Themes

• God looks at the heart
• Obedience over sacrifice
• The rise and fall of leaders
• Waiting on God's timing
• Prayer and God's answer

Key verses

• 1 Samuel 2:2There is no one holy like the LORD. Indeed, there is no one besides You! And there is no Rock like our God.
• 1 Samuel 15:22But Samuel declared: “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obedience to His voice? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams.
• 1 Samuel 16:7But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or height, for I have rejected him; the LORD does not see as man does. For man sees the outward appearance, but the LORD sees the heart.”