The Book of Samuel

The Book of Samuel is about Yahweh's "Anointed One," the Messiah, the Christ. The plot of the Hebrew Bible is propelled by the search for the coming seed, the one who will crush the head of the serpent, who will restore Eden (Gen 3:15). The story traces genealogies and comes to screeching halts at crucial characters such as Noah or Abraham who become a type of Christ and provide some sort of picture of salvation. In the time of Noah salvation was offered to those who would be blessed by his obedience, namely, his faithful construction of the ark in accordance to Yahweh's instructions (Gen 6:8,9, 22; 7:5,9). Likewise, God's promise to Abraham is that he will "bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed" (Gen 12:3). Characters such as Lot and Abimelech are thus blessed in their relationship and connection with Abraham (Gen 14:14; 19:29; 20:17).

Samuel picks up on this theme of the Anointed One. Hannah's song at the beginning of the book ends saying, "Yahweh will judge the ends of the earth; he will give strength to his king and exalt the power of his anointed (Messiah/Christ)" (1 Sam 2:11b)

Likewise, Yahweh tells Eli through a man of God "I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in my heart and in my mind. And I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out before my anointed forever" (1 Sam 2:35).

And like Genesis, Samuel plays this theme out by showing the characters' blessing based on their nearness to Yahweh's Messiah.

David refuses to harm Saul because he is Yahweh's Anointed. His men urge him to "do to him as it shall seem good to you" (1 Sam 24). Killing Saul would be a pragmatic way to gain victory, and in a sense David would be justified; according to worldly wisdom this is the most wise thing to do; yet David refuses: "Yahweh forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, Yahweh's Messiah" (1 Sam 24:6). The Messiah is the man which God has elected to bring his salvation through. Man ought not to seek better, more practical ways for salvation:

"There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its end is the way to death." (Prov 14:16)

David is anointed king in place of Saul. The book shows many characters (mostly gentiles) who are faithful to David:

"... everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became captain over them" (1 Sam 22:1-2).

2 Sam 15:32 (and chapter 16) shows the faithfulness of "Hushai the Archite" towards David.

In 2 Sam 17:27-29, "Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the Ammonites and Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim, brought beds, basins, and earth vessels, etc., for David and the people with him to eat..."

In contrast, the "worthless man" Sheba the Benjaminite blows the trumpet and says "We have no portion in David, and we have no inheritance in the son of Jesse; every man to his tents, O Israel! So all the men of Israel withdrew from David and followed Sheba the son of Bichri. But the men of Judah followed their king steadfastly from the Jordan to Jerusalem" (2 Sam 20:1-2).

While many Gentiles are faithful to follow David, Yahweh's Messiah, "all the men of Israel withdrew from David." Nationality does not determine Yahweh's blessing; rather, Yahweh's blessing is through Yahweh's Messiah, being king David in the Book of Samuel, "the Messiah of the God of Jacob, the sweet psalmist of Israel" (2 Sam 23:1).

"You delivered me from strife with the people;

you kept me as the head of the nations;

people whom I had not known served me.

Foreigners came cringing to me;

as soon as they heard of me, they obeyed me.

Foreigners lost heart

and came trembling out of their fortresses" (2 Sam 22:44-46).

Samuel does not leave the reader to assume that Samuel is merely a story about David:

2 Sam 7:12-16

^"12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. ¹³ He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. ¹⁴ I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, ¹⁵ but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. ¹⁶ And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’”

Texts like these (similar to texts such as Deut 18:15 in the Pentateuch) are crucial for showing that these stories of David (or Abraham/Moses in the Pentateuch) point ahead to a coming character; Abraham, Moses, and David are important in the biblical text because they create meaningful pictures of the coming Messiah, the coming seed. These texts are crucial because they make the coming Messiah (Jesus) the subject matter of these OT characters and stories.