Israel needs leadership, and the Lord meets that need through barren Hannah. He gives a son, Samuel, whom she dedicates to the Lord’s service. She praises the Lord for his compassion to the downtrodden and anticipates a divinely empowered king. Samuel serves under Eli and experiences the Lord’s Read More →

The scene now shifts westwards, from the hills towards the coastal plain, which the Philistines had conquered a century earlier. This small but powerful nation had begun to dominate parts of Israel in the time of Samson, and their well-trained army now posed a new threat. It is not surprising, Read More →

The first king was Saul, and he naturally plays a prominent part in the story. But the biblical author never lets us forget Samuel; indeed, in the biblical writer’s view Samuel remained the real leader of Israel, even when he had handed over military and political affairs to the new king. Read More →