After the chaos of Judges, the LORD is ready to move Israel to a new phase of history. They’ve exhausted themselves by “every man doing what was right in his own eyes,” and they seem to recognize it. They need leadership, direction, identity: “Give us a King, so we might be like the other nations!”
Of course, they already have an identity in the Holy One of Israel, but that’s just not immediate enough. You know? It’s too abstract, even though they still have the tabernacle and a priest and well-defined rituals. They still need a person. And maybe we’re not so different, even now: we need a Person to look to and identify with. That Person is coming, but first he will be personified in a succession of kings. And a transitional figure emerges, vital enough to have two books of the Bible named for him . . .
To read more click below for the .pdf with scripture readings, questions, and activities:
(This is a continuation of a series of posts about the “whole story” of the Bible. I plan to run one every week, on Tuesdays, with a printable PDF. The printable includes a brief 2-3 paragraph introduction, Bible passages to read, a key verse, 5-7 thought/discussion questions, and 2-3 activities for the kids. Here’s the Overview of the entire Bible series.)
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Dear Mrs. Cheaney,
In the Bible Study I lead, using these materials, we all agreed that the person of Samuel needed more attention. So, we inserted a lesson. He is the (last) judge, an (intercessory, sacrificing) priest, explicitly identified as a prophet (compare also: “the Lord let none of his words fall to the ground”) and the anointer of kings … in all these roles demonstrating royal leadership himself. Samuel is, it seems to us, the next “larger than life” character after “Moses” who Israel might have mistaken for Moses’ promised “one greater than me” (though we have no biblical evidence of this). Because “all that he said came true”, we suggest that, if you ever redo this series, a lesson just on Samuel as a precursor of Christ would be a worthy addition.
Grace2U,
Ward
Link to Week 19 BRC .pdf is linked to Week 18 … fix link?