1 Chronicles

1 Chronicles 10: Saul's unfaithfulness ends his reign

Begin in prayer

Before we hear how Saul's reign ended, let us pray together. Ask the LORD to show us that He judges unfaithfulness, and to lead us to Jesus, the faithful King.

Your righteousness is like the mountains of God. Your judgments are like a great deep. Yahweh, you preserve man and animal.

Psalm 36:6

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us that You judge unfaithfulness, and show us Jesus, the faithful King. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

Chapter 10 tells how the Philistines fought Israel on Mount Gilboa, and the men of Israel fled (verses 1 and 2). The Philistines killed Saul's three sons, and Saul died there too (verses 2 to 6). They stripped Saul and put his armor in the house of their gods (verses 9 and 10). Brave men of Jabesh Gilead took the bodies of Saul and his sons and buried their bones (verses 11 and 12). Then the writer says why Saul died. Saul trespassed against the LORD, he did not keep the LORD's word, and he asked counsel of a medium (verse 13).

As you read 1 Chronicles 10, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

God judged Saul for his unfaithfulness and turned the kingdom to David.

Saul was Israel's first king, and Chronicles tells his death in a few verses (verses 1 to 12). The writer then gives the reason, and the reason is the LORD's judgment (verses 13 and 14). Saul trespassed against the LORD, did not keep His word, and asked counsel of a medium (verse 13). A medium was someone who claimed to speak with the dead, and the LORD had forbidden it (Leviticus 19 verse 31). The LORD who gave Saul the throne then turned the kingdom over to David (verse 14). This matters, because a king's power does not protect him from the LORD, and the LORD's word must be kept. It shows God as holy and just, and as the One who gives and takes kingdoms. Jesus is the faithful King, who said that He always does what pleases His Father (John 8 verse 29). The Father will give Him the throne of David, and His kingdom will have no end (Luke 1 verses 32 and 33).

How does 1 Chronicles 10 show us that God judged Saul for his unfaithfulness and turned the kingdom to David?

Saul and his sons died on Mount Gilboa.

The Philistines fought Israel, and the men of Israel fled (verse 1). They killed Saul's three sons (verse 2). Saul died that day, and all his house died together (verse 6). Faithful men of Jabesh Gilead later buried their bones (verses 11 and 12).

Saul died because he was unfaithful to the LORD.

Saul trespassed against the LORD (verse 13). He did not keep the LORD's word, and he asked a medium for counsel instead of inquiring of the LORD (verse 13). So the LORD turned the kingdom over to David (verse 14).

Jesus is the faithful King whose kingdom never ends.

Saul did not keep the LORD's word, but Jesus always did what pleased His Father (John 8 verse 29). He was obedient even to death on a cross (Philippians 2 verse 8). The angel said His kingdom would have no end (Luke 1 verses 32 and 33).

Memorise

So Saul died for his trespass which he committed against Yahweh, because of Yahweh’s word, which he didn’t keep

1 Chronicles 10:13

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, have I kept God's word, and do I need Jesus, who always obeyed Him?

Saul “didn’t keep” the word of the LORD, and the kingdom was turned over to David. Jesus is the King who always did what pleased His Father (John 8 verse 29). He obeyed Him all the way to death on a cross.

We have all broken God's word, as Saul did, and sin brings judgment. Jesus took that judgment for His people. On the cross He bore the punishment for their sin, and His death paid the debt in full. Three days later He rose from the dead, and His kingdom has no end.

The faithful King calls you to leave your own way. Turn from your sin and trust Jesus. All who trust Him are forgiven, and they follow a King who will never be removed.

Parent's note

Tell your children that God judged Saul for his unfaithfulness, and that Jesus is the faithful King. Parents, please explain verses 4 and 5, and verses 9 and 10, gently in your own words. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God that He is the righteous Judge, and that Jesus is the faithful King, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

A shoot will come out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots will bear fruit. Yahweh’s Spirit will rest on him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Yahweh.

Isaiah 11:1-2

Lord God, You judged Saul for his unfaithfulness, and You gave the kingdom to David. Please turn each of us from sin to trust Jesus, the faithful King. Help us to listen to Your word this week. Amen.