Scripture Daily

Context No. 2472 of 4322 · 1 Samuel

Context · Reflection

1 Samuel 10:8-13: in context

8“Go down ahead of me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings. Wait seven days, until I come to you and show you what you are to do.” 9It was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart; and all those signs happened that day. 10When they came there to the hill, behold, a band of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came mightily on him, and he prophesied among them. 11When all who knew him before saw that, behold, he prophesied with the prophets, then the people said to one another, “What is this that has come to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?” 12One from the same place answered, “Who is their father?” Therefore it became a proverb, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” 13When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place.

Samuel has just anointed Saul, and as Saul turns to leave, the text says God gave him another heart, and the signs Samuel promised all came to pass. A band of prophets meets him, the Spirit of God comes on him, and Saul prophesies among them. The people who had known him are astonished: what has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets? It became a proverb.

God gave him another heart. At the start, the change in Saul is real and visible, so striking that his old neighbors cannot square it with the man they knew. This is grace: God can transform a person past recognition. But Saul's later story casts a sober light back on this moment. A changed heart at the beginning is a gift, not a guarantee; it must be lived into and kept, not treated as a trophy from the past. The Spirit came on Saul, and Saul still had to walk faithfully afterward, and did not.

Has God given me a new heart that I am still living into, or am I trading on a past change while drifting in the present?

Sources