1-Samuel 31

[1-Samuel 31:1] NOW THE PHILISTINES FOUGHT AGAINST ISRAEL: AND THE MEN
OF ISRAEL FLED FROM  BEFORE THE PHILISTINES,  AND FELL DOWN SLAIN IN MOUNT
GILBOA.
While David was pursuing and fighting the Amalekites the rest of Israel
under the leadership of Saul were warring against the Philistines. On
the one hand David was victorious, on the other Saul was not.

[1-Samuel 31:2] AND THE PHILISTINES FOLLOWED HARD UPON SAUL AND UPON
HIS SONS; AND THE PHILISTINES SLEW JONATHAN, AND ABINADAB, AND MELCHISHUA,
SAUL'S SONS.
We explained above [1-Samuel 14:49] that the sons of Saul were:
Jonanathan,  ISHUI (pronounceable as : "Yishvi" or "Yiswi". He was also
known as "ABINADAB" 1-Samuel 31:2), MELCHISHUA, and Ish-Boshet
(2-Samuel 2:8) who was also known as Ish-Baaal (1-Chronicles 8:33). In addition
Saul had at least two other sons by a concubine (2-Samuel 21:8).  It was not
unusual in Biblical times for a person to have more than one name as we
will see quite frequently.

[1-Samuel 31:3] AND THE BATTLE WENT SORE AGAINST SAUL, AND THE ARCHERS
HIT HIM; AND HE WAS SORE WOUNDED OF THE ARCHERS.

[1-Samuel 31:4] THEN SAID SAUL UNTO HIS ARMOURBEARER, DRAW THY SWORD,
AND THRUST ME  THROUGH THEREWITH; LEST THESE UNCIRCUMCISED COME AND THRUST
ME THROUGH, AND ABUSE    ME. BUT HIS ARMOURBEARER WOULD NOT; FOR HE WAS
SORE AFRAID. THEREFORE SAUL TOOK A SWORD, AND FELL UPON IT.
Saul was wounded. Saul had been a warrior for most of his life and
before that a farmer who worked with life stock.  He was also learned. He
would have understood something about physiology. Samuel had prophesied to
him that he would die in this battle and now he had been wounded. The wound
was a mortal one that rendered him unable to continue fighting but would
have left him alive long enough to be captured and be physically abused by
the Philistines.  In Ancient Times there was a cultic aspect about killing
the monarch and also degrading and sexually abusing him. This apparently
was what Saul was afraid of. It would mean not only his debasement but a
lasting shame upon all Israel which is precisely what his abusers would
hope for.
Normally suicide is strictly forbidden even in extreme circumstances.
This however was an exception.

On a slightly different point, just to "lighten" the mood,   Craig
White's "Origin of Nations" e-mail discussion group just published an article
about George-V of Great Britain from the following URL
  http://www.twbookmark.com/books/94/0446605786/chapter_excerpt372.html

I found the following extract of interest:

<<Critically ill for days, George V died on Monday, January 20, 1936,
at 11:55 P.M. His end was hastened by Lord Dawson, who gave him a lethal
injection of cocaine and morphine. The courtier wanted the King to die
before midnight so that his death could be announced in the morning
Times rather than in the less prestigious afternoon newspapers. The King, who
had renamed the royal family, now lost his life to meet a newspaper
deadline.
Such was the legacy of the House of Windsor, which would eventually
rise and fall as a puppet show for the media.>>
  [1-Samuel 31:5] AND WHEN HIS ARMOURBEARER SAW THAT SAUL WAS DEAD, HE
FELL LIKEWISE  UPON HIS SWORD, AND DIED WITH HIM.
Saul killed himself and his armor bearer did the same. Later (as we
shall see) an Amalekite would claim before David that Saul had only injured
himself and he had finished the job at the request of Saul (2-Samuel 1:8-10).

[1-Samuel 31:6] SO SAUL DIED, AND HIS THREE SONS, AND HIS ARMOURBEARER,
AND ALL HIS MEN, THAT SAME DAY TOGETHER.
Saul in his own way was a great king. People obeyed Saul and followed
after him as we see from the case of his armour bearer.  He fought the
battles of Israel on behalf of Israel and died fighting for Israel.
Saul was from the Tribe of Benjamin but in some ways he represents
Joseph as we have noted already, see our Commentary to 1-Samuel 13:13,  15:3.

[1-Samuel 31:7] AND WHEN THE MEN OF ISRAEL THAT WERE ON THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE VALLEY,  AND THEY THAT WERE ON THE OTHER SIDE JORDAN, SAW THAT THE
MEN OF ISRAEL FLED, AND THAT SAUL AND HIS SONS WERE DEAD, THEY FORSOOK THE
CITIES, AND FLED; AND THE PHILISTINES CAME  AND DWELT IN THEM.

[1-Samuel 31:8] AND IT CAME TO PASS ON THE MORROW, WHEN THE PHILISTINES
CAME TO STRIP THE SLAIN, THAT THEY FOUND SAUL AND HIS THREE SONS FALLEN
IN MOUNT GILBOA.

[1-Samuel 31:9] AND THEY CUT OFF HIS HEAD, AND STRIPPED OFF HIS ARMOUR,
AND SENT INTO THE  LAND OF THE PHILISTINES ROUND ABOUT, TO PUBLISH IT IN
THE HOUSE OF THEIR IDOLS, AND AMONG  THE PEOPLE.

[1-Samuel 31:10] AND THEY PUT HIS ARMOUR IN THE HOUSE OF ASHTAROTH: AND
THEY FASTENED   HIS BODY TO THE WALL OF BETHSHAN.
    <<ASHTAROTH>>:  This was a female idol that the Israelites also
worshipped. Bede records the Anglo-Saxons worshipping "Eostre".   
ASHTAROTH was the cosrot of Baal who in Scandianvia was known as "Balder". She
was also known in the Middle East as Innana and later in Scandinavia as
"Nanna".
   <<BETHSHAN>>: "Bayt-Shean": This is described in the Bible as a
Philistine center. Archaeology has revealed some possible Philistine
remains in the Beth-Shean area such as anthropoid (made out of stone
carved in human shape) coffins but on the whole the culture is Egyptian and
imitation of the Egyptian.
Egyptian records frequently menion Egypt rule or claim  to rule over
the Land of Canaan yet in Scripture and the archaeological record there is
little indication of this. Apart from the fact that Egyptian records
are not known for reliability the answer could also lie in the probability
that in Egyptian eyes the Philistines were Egyptian agents?
This would solve everything and there is nothing Egyptian records to
negate such a possibility.
http://www.jewishmag.com/39mag/shean/shean.htm

<<As mentioned Beit Shean was controlled by the Egyptians, from the
time when Pharaoh Tutmose III (15th Century BCE) made it an Egyptian
administrative center. The city is mentioned in several Egyptian texts,
one of them a list of cities that the Egyptians conquered in Israel under
the pharaoh Shishak (he is also mentioned in the Bible). The Egyptian
occupation lasted for 3 centuries. During this time a temple crowned
the top of the Tel.>>

The so-called "Egyptian occupation" actually means Philistine control.
The Bible refers to the Philistines as of the Egyptian family.
<< AND MIZRAIM [Egypt] BEGAT LUDIM, AND ANAMIM, AND LEHABIM, AND
NAPHTUHIM,
<<AND PATHRUSIM, AND CASLUHIM, (OUT OF WHOM CAME PHILISTIM {The
Philistines],) AND CAPHTORIM [Genesis 10:13-14].
For much of its history Beth-Shean was under foreign rule except for a
brief period in the reign of King Josiah the son of Amon of Judah.  A
stone stella with an inscription of King Josiah has been found in Beth-Shean
acknowledging his rulership. This was the period in which a  group
of  Israelites from the Ten Tribes were attempting to re-settle in the
Land of Israel. They were known to foreigners as Scytrhians and from that
time onward Beth-Shean was also known as 'Scythopolis". At all events the
attempt was not successful and the Scythian-Israelites returned to
their places of Exile as described in our work "The Tribes"

See also:.
http://ohr.edu/tw/weinbach/loveland/lland057.htm
"If the Garden of Eden is in Eretz Yisrael then its gate is at Beit
Shean." Talmud


  [1-Samuel 31:11] AND WHEN THE INHABITANTS OF JABESHGILEAD HEARD OF
THAT WHICH THE  PHILISTINES HAD DONE TO SAUL;

[1-Samuel 31:12] ALL THE VALIANT MEN AROSE, AND WENT ALL NIGHT, AND
TOOK THE BODY OF SAUL  AND THE BODIES OF HIS SONS FROM THE WALL OF BETHSHAN,
AND CAME TO JABESH, AND BURNT  THEM THERE.
Cremation was not an Israelite custom but it was a Philistine one.
Apart from that though Cremation was against the Law it may have been an
accepted custom regarding monarchs (Yehonatan, Jeremiah 34:5 2-Chronicles 16:14
2-Chronicles 21:19) or another explanation may be valid.

[1-Samuel 31:13] AND THEY TOOK THEIR BONES, AND BURIED THEM UNDER A
TREE AT JABESH,  AND FASTED SEVEN DAYS.
Saul had begun his period of greatness (1-Samuel chapter 11) by saving
the people of Jabesh-Gilead from the Ammonites.  It was this deed that had
confirmed Saul as monarch over all Israel.  The story of Saul concludes
with the people of Jabesh-Gilead demonstrating their gratitude.

<<SO SAUL DIED FOR HIS TRANSGRESSION WHICH HE COMMITTED AGAINST THE
LORD, EVEN AGAINST THE WORD OF THE LORD, WHICH HE KEPT NOT, AND ALSO FOR
ASKING COUNSEL OF ONE THAT HAD A FAMILIAR SPIRIT, TO ENQUIRE OF IT;
<< AND ENQUIRED NOT OF THE LORD: THEREFORE HE SLEW HIM, AND TURNED THE
KINGDOM UNTO DAVID THE SON OF JESSE>> [1-Chronicles 10:13-14]
The Sages (VaYikra Raba 26:7) said that Saul died for five major sins:
"SO SAUL DIED FOR HIS TRANSGRESSION WHICH HE COMMITTED AGAINST THE
LORD":
He wiped out the city of Priest, Nob;
"EVEN AGAINST THE WORD OF THE LORD, WHICH HE KEPT NOT": He made a
public sacrifice (1-Samuel-1:8) without waiting for the arrival of Samuel as
he had been told to do;
  "AND ALSO FOR ASKING COUNSEL OF ONE THAT HAD A FAMILIAR SPIRIT, TO
ENQUIRE OF IT": He went to the spiritualist for advice;
"AND ENQUIRED NOT OF THE LORD": He began to make inquiry through the
Urim when Jonathan and his armorbearer had caused the Philsitines to run
away in panic (1-Samuel 14:19) but then he ordered the Priest to stop  and  on
the spot he ordered the people to pursue the Philistines.  The Sages say
that since Saul had already begun to ask of the Almighty for an answer he
should have continued to do so  until his answer was received.
Later when he needed an answer from the Urim he could not get one and
in desperation went to visit the witch.
THEREFORE HE SLEW HIM, AND TURNED THE KINGDOM UNTO DAVID THE SON OF
JESSE>>

The name "Shaul" in Hebrew means "borrowed" and the Sages pointed out
that Shaul had only really "borrowed" the rulership which had been destined
from the beginning for David and his descendants.

David was also to sin but in a more private realm. The rulership was
not to be taken from David but a kind of curse was laid over his descendants
that in nearly every generation some member of their household would be a
victim of extreme violence or forced to use violence.
"NOW THEREFORE THE SWORD SHALL NEVER DEPART FROM THINE HOUSE; BECAUSE
THOU HAST DESPISED ME, AND HAST TAKEN THE WIFE OF URIAH THE HITTITE TO BE
THY WIFE" [2-Samuel 12:10].
The rectification of the House of David lies in (more even than anyone
else) lies in acting contrary to the listed causations: Honoring the Almighty;  and Sexual Probity.

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