Read 1 Chronicles 7-8 at Bible Gateway.
As I was reading 1 Chr 8, I realized that Benjamin’s genealogy was listed, then Saul’s, followed again by a conclusion for Benjamin (“These were all sons of Benjamin,” 1 Chr 8:40b). Benjamin – Saul – Benjamin. Then I remembered that the genealogy for the sons of Israel opened the same way: 1 Chr 2:1-4:23 is Judah – David – Judah.
Ezra opened the record of Israel’s sons with David, and closed it with Saul, Israel’s first two kings. One of the teaching tools of Scripture is comparison and contrast. Now the question that I have, is if God knew all along that David was going to be the anointed king of Israel, from whom the Messiah would come, why did He have Samuel choose Saul in the first place?
David wasn’t ready, when Israel began clamoring to Samuel for a king. He was still a child, growing up in his father’s house. That he was born, and in preparation, shows that God was making provision for Israel’s king, even before Israel began asking for one. But the time was not yet right.
However, Israel would not be patient, and wanted their king now. God answered them, even though they were impatient and would not wait for God’s best. He gave them the best that was available at the time. Saul, it turns out, was a man after man’s heart, who walked in man’s ways; David was a man after God’s heart who walked in God’s ways.
What do we settle for in our lives, when we will not wait on the LORD patiently, for Him to answer us? When we demand what we want when we want it, we often get second best, but when we wait on the LORD, we get the best of the best. For me, I know I want the LORD’s absolute best, not the best that is available at the time. 🙂
Leave a Reply