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Spiritual Gifts, Volume 4a
opinion, his excessive self-love, led him to justify himself in his wrong
course, in defiance of the reproof of Samuel, and the word of the Lord
by the mouth of his prophet. Such obstinacy in a known transgression,
separated him forever from God.
He knew that he had gone contrary to God’s express command,
yet when reproved by God through Samuel, he would not humbly
acknowledge his sin, but in a determined manner uttered a falsehood in
self-justification. If he had humbly repented, and received the reproof,
the Lord would have had mercy, and forgiven Saul of his great sin.
But the Lord left Saul for his stubbornly refusing to be corrected, and
uttering falsehoods to Samuel, his messenger. Samuel told Saul that,
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as he had rejected the word of the Lord, God had rejected him from
being king.
This last startling denunciation from Samuel gave Saul a sense of
his true condition, and, through fear, he acknowledged that he had
sinned, and had transgressed the commandment of the Lord, which
he had before firmly denied. He entreated Samuel to pardon his sin,
and to worship with him before the Lord. Samuel refused, and told
Saul that God had rent the kingdom from him, and, lest he should be
deceived, he told him that the Strength of Israel would not lie, and be
as changeable as he was.
Again, Saul earnestly entreated that Samuel would honor him with
his presence once more before the elders of Israel and all the people.
Samuel yielded to his request, and called for the cruel king Agag, and
he came to him very politely. “And Samuel said, As thy sword hath
made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women.
And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.”
And the Lord no more communicated with Saul, or instructed
him through Samuel. He had chosen to follow his own will, and had
rejected the word of the Lord. God left him to be guided by his own
judgment, which he had chosen to follow rather than to obey God.
Saul had no true repentance. He had been exalted because he was
made king. He manifested greater anxiety to be honored by Samuel
before the people than to obtain forgiveness and the favor of God.
Samuel came no more to Saul with directions from God. The Lord
could not employ him to carry out his purposes. But he sent Samuel to
the house of Jesse, to anoint David, whom he had selected to be ruler
in the place of Saul, whom he had rejected.