Breaking Faith

“So Saul died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the LORD in that he did not keep the command of the LORD, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. He did not seek guidance from the LORD. Therefore the LORD put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.”
 —1 Chronicles 10:13-14

The story of King Saul is one of the most heartbreaking in Scripture. Chosen from obscurity, Saul is anointed by Samuel to be Israel’s first king—an answer to a faulty request for a king by the nation of Israel. Up until Saul, God was considered to be the King and ruler of Israel, but the people rejected that concept in favor of an earthly fleshly king that the surrounding nations had (1 Samuel 8:4-9). Saul looked the part of a king, stately and tall (1 Samuel 10:23-24) beginning his reign following God, empowered by His Spirit (1 Samuel 11:6), achieving great victory over the enemies of God (1 Samuel 11:11), and fully realizing it came from God’s hand (1 Samuel 11:13). But Saul was presumptuous and lacked an abiding faith. Unlike David after him, when circumstances became difficult, Saul’s faith wavered (1 Samuel 13:12) while David’s remained steadfast (1 Samuel 30:6).

Early in Saul’s reign, he faced the Philistine’s in battle and lost (1 Samuel 13:5-7). Waiting for the judge and prophet Samuel at Gilgal, fearful at what the future held, he carelessly offered a sacrifice before Samuel arrived—thus violating the commandment of the Lord (1 Samuel 13:13). Because of this act of faithlessness, God commanded that his kingdom would not endure, but He would tear it away from Saul and give it to someone after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14), which would come to fruition in King David.

Saul’s life was one characterized by breaking faith with God or acting impetuously. He not only offered a sacrifice against God’s command, but made a rash vow that made his men violate God’s dietary laws and, if followed, would have required the death of his son Jonathan (1 Samuel 14:24-46) who had just achieved great victory over the Philistines (1 Samuel 14:1-15). Saul committed sins of commission by doing what God had spoken against and a sin of omission when he failed to obey God (1 Samuel 15:1-35). He was rash, arrogant, indulgent, deceptive, and sometimes, cowardice. He offered David his oldest daughter in marriage, only to give her to another man (1 Samuel 18:17-19). He set up David to get killed by the Philistines (1 Samuel 18:25). He tried to kill David numerous times, even though he was his son’s best friend, his son-in-law, and one of his most trusted servants (1 Samuel 18:11, 25; 19:10, 11-15, 20; 20:31; 23:15, 26:2). Saul hated David so much that he gave his daughter, Michal (after she had already married David), to another man as his wife (1 Samuel 25:44) because she had helped David escape her father’s assassination plot. (1 Samuel 19:11-17).

Saul’s final breach of faith came after Samuel had died on the eve of battle against the Philistines. He consulted the Lord, but received no answer, so rather than trust in God’s silence, he took matters into his own hands by donning a disguise and sought out a witch for guidance. Saul persuaded her to call up the spirit of Samuel from Sheol (1 Samuel 28) so that he might find out what he was to do. To her astonishment, Samuel showed up, and reiterated God’s judgment on Saul for his breach of faith. Decimated at Samuel’s prophecy, Saul collapsed in fear because he knew that tomorrow he was going to die. The next day, he did die. He fell on his own sword when the pressure mounted, a final example of his failure to trust in God when times were tough. Even after collapsing on his own sword, with his life lingering Saul requested to be stricken by one of his soldiers, preventing capture at the hands of the Philistines. His life ended as he had lived it—in faithlessness and fear.

Many of us have at one time or another been like Saul. We have trusted in the Lord, but when circumstances got tough, we turned away and consulted friends, family, or even the stars. We might have made irrational promises, ill pledges, and impetuous and foolish decisions failing to trust in the Lord and taking matters into our own hands.

We must make every effort to seek and trust in the Lord and in Him alone. We go to God first when seeking direction by reading His Word and through prayer. We also seek the council of other godly men and women. We don’t foolishly consult horoscopes, or fortunetellers. Horoscopes can’t save, neither can they guide. The stars that astrologists consult are simply heavenly lights set in place by God. We must be careful not to follow in Saul’s footsteps of fear. Rather we must learn to wait on God, entrusting ourselves to His benevolent and protective hand. He will never lead us where we cannot follow and He will answer us when we call. May we seek to live our lives as the Proverb says,

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths”—Proverbs 3:5-6. 

Amen.