Job - Why Things Go Wrong

Part 5: "The Enemy Attack"

The enemy have two means of attack: Temptation and Testing/Trials. When we succumb to temptation we give the enemy power over us to do us harm. These harmful incidents are known as testing or trials.

When things go wrong most people think that the events are random, coincidences, or just plain bad luck. Job, and other incidents in Scripture show otherwise. If we are willing to learn we can steer quite clear of incidents of sickness, pain, loss, destruction and even death.

Select a topic from the Table of Contents below, or scroll through to begin reading 

The enemy attack is subtle at first - Temptation


The enemy attack on Job began long before chapter 1 verse 13.


The first part of that attack is not described in any detail at all but it mirrors what happened in Genesis 3, where Adam and Eve somehow found themselves in one particular part of the Garden that was best avoided. How did they find themselves next to the tree that was forbidden to eat from?


A subtle suggestion was placed into their minds, into their logical thought processes, to question what God had told them. (Yes, they had both heard, since the woman part removed from that first person to create Eve was still in what the Hebrew writer calls 'the adam" the first person that God created when God spoke the prohibition designed to build their character. Not sure? Check out the Introduction to The Equality of Men and Women, here.)


TEMPT/TEMPTATION: a thought with evil intent that is applied to our mind/thoughts from an external source in such a way as to make it seem like a logical, natural thought that originated in our own consciousness or wisdom. God is not the source, the enemy are, where the word 'enemy' applies to the devil and the fallen angels with him, described in Ephesians 6 as "the spirit forces of wickedness in the Heavenly realm." See also James 1:13-14. Ephesians 6:14 also points out that 'the enemy' are not human in any way. 


Temptation can be very subtle: a distraction, a seeming emergency or something that we suddenly remember that needs to be done, but could actually be better done at a different time. 


Temptation can be something we do habitually without even thinking about it: an extra snack we don't need, but our body seems to crave; an extra few minutes watching something online when we should be getting ready for bed; going to bed later and later until we sleep in the daytime and are awake all night.


Temptation is not unlike Gravity


As we resist the force of gravity by exercising - running, walking, jumping, cycling, climbing -  our physical muscles become stronger and we become healthier, more capable, more likely to resist sickness and even injury (providing our exercise is safe).


As we resist the pull of temptation our emotional and spiritual 'muscles' become stronger. Actually resisting, let's say, the temptation to skip a training session will make us physically stronger as well. For a man, not admiring or spending any time even glancing at an attractive female body reduces the chance that he will go a step further and find her emotionally or lustfully attractive in his thoughts. Even that thought, according to Jesus, is the same as comitting adultery - there might be no obvious penalty now but there will, most definitely, be one on Judgment Day. 


"And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched." Mark 9:47-48. (ESV)


As pointed out in Part 4, Job's Five Mistakes, Job tried to be God for his children. What started out with good intentions (the desire to keep or secure his children in a good relationship with God) ended up with bad results (the loss of everything, including his children). How could things turn out so badly?


In the beginning it was just a simple oversight.


He didn't get around to teaching his children about the things of God. Maybe he was pre-occupied with building his wealth, his holdings. Maybe he had no idea how to go about it. Those thoughts, "I'm too busy," or "I'll do it another day," were not a logical or rational feeling, but a subtle input from the father of lies, who had a good idea what the outcome could be.


When he first thought that his kids might be playing up, he guessed it was probably too late to try to bring them around. That thought, and the following one that maybe he could intervene like God, or maybe as one of his priests that, too, was planted within him by the enemy. He had no evidence, no proof that they were misbehaving, it says so in Job 1:5.


"It might be that they have..." 


Those first seeds of doubt were placed there by the enemy. Job watered and fed those seeds of doubt until they knocked a mighty big hole in the hedge of protection that surrounded his all, including his children.


But in all this there was one important thing Job forgot: 


God is all the time working with everyone on Earth to bring them into a right relationship with Them. We can help the process along by sharing God's goodness with others, but we cannot be God to them.

When temptation succeeds, the enemy come before God in Heaven to accuse us.


It's worth keeping in mind at all times that the enemy are not fighting God, but us.


Their leader comes before God in heaven in order to extract permission to apply a temporal penalty (one that applies in this time space, on Earth). According to the laws of the universe announced by God at Creation, "the soul that sins, it shall die." Ezekiel 18:4 


Or as God told Adam and Eve, "...in the day you eat of it you shall surely die." Genesis 2:17b


Physical death comes to everyone at some stage (although it is safe to assume that Elijah, and possibly Enoch, did not experience physical death). According to 1 Corinthians 15:26 "the last enemy to be overcome is death." Since death is an enemy it must come from the enemy, and not from God. 


Physical death does not separate us from God - it tends to bring us closer into God's presence, since we are no longer restricted, for our own safety, from the actual presence of God in our physical bodies, as Moses found out in Exodus 33:20 when he wanted to see God's glory from the point of view of a human body.


God's response? "No man can see my face and live." Exodus 33:20


Was God afraid of being recognised? Of course not, but just as Adam and Eve were sent from the Garden for their own protection ("lest they eat of the tree of life and live forever..." in their fallen state, and miss out on redemption) there is something that is so magnificent about God's glory that would have destroyed the incomplete physical life of Moses.


Once Temptation succeeds, Testing/Trial follows


Temporal death is the ultimate aim of the enemy at any time, since if we are dead, we can no longer achieve more or all of the "good works" that will help to accrue treasure for us on Judgment Day.


And so we are more concerned at the moment with premature death, which is also executed by "the thief" who "comes to kill, steal and destroy." John 10:10b. This is probably the most extreme form of testing, but not necessarily the most painful or destructive

Here are some examples from Scripture of premature death:


In each case the death is related to doing the wrong thing(s). The enemy manipulated the people through temptations, and once they gave in, the enemy were then able to manipulate the circumstances that brought their death. 


i) Hophni and Phineas, sons of Eli the priest at Shiloh. Served at the tent of meeting, but took the best portions of the sacrifices for themselves, and slept with the young women who served there. Their father warned them that what they were doing was wrong, but they took no notice. A prophet also warned that, because of their offences, and because Eli was not bringing them under control, Hophni and Phinehas "in one day they both shall die." and "all the increase of your house shall die in their best years." The two sons were killed when they took the ark of the covenant into battle without consulting God first. On that same day the wife of Phinehas gave birth to a boy but then she died, also. 1 Samuel 2 to 4


ii) Samson broke his Naziritic vow before his ministry began, by taking honey from the body of a dead lion, yet God still used him to bring judgment upon Israel's enemies. The tempter found it easy to manipulate him, through lack of ethics and the desires of his eyes. He chose his wife from among the enemy, and later a prostitute and then a girlfriend. The book of Judges shows that he had no innate strength but relied on Holy Spirit to come upon him to perform his great feats. He betrayed God's support of him when he told Delilah that his strength lay in his hair. Even though that  wasn't true that was enough for Holy Spirit not to come upon him. After imprisonment and blinding he woke up and asked for Holy Spirit to come upon him once more, at a party to honour his defeat by the Philistines. In death he killed more Philistines than he had ever before. See Judges 13 to 16.


iii) Jonathan was the son of Saul, Israel's first king. He showed he had a strong reliance on the presence and promise of God. 1 Samuel 14. In verse 29 he recognised that his own father could get things wrong and wasn't afraid to say so to the people around him, but when it came to his friendship with David, who was seen as a threat to his father's leadership and prestige, Jonathan kept that a secret. Or so he thought to. Even though he protected David's life from his father's unreasonable anger and hatred, Jonathan still died suddenly in battle, shortly before his father. His mistake? Still siding with his errant father long after he knew that God had chosen David as king to succeed him. Loyalty to God's call takes precedence over any relationship that is actively working against the obvious will of God. 1 Samuel 13 to 31


Beginning in 1 Samuel 9 we see a very elaborate ritual for Saul's selection and then accession to the throne as Israel's first king. Rather than repeat what is there we will highlight aspects which show Saul's character and how he was manipulated by the enemy.
















"When Saul took over the kingdom of Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side...Wherever he turned he made it worse for them. He did valiantly,... and delivered Israel out of the hands of those who plundered them." 1 Samuel 14:47-48




"And Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. Now, I pray you, pardon my sin and go back with me, that I may worship the Lord." 1 Samuel 15:24-25.



"And as Samuel turned to go away, Saul seized the skirt of Samuel's mantle, and it tore." 1 Samuel 15:27.


That wasn't a violent reaction - Saul just did not want to lose his connection with God. Samuel, however, used this opportunity to repeat his attack on Saul, but this time he made it very personal as well.


"And Samuel said to him, The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day, and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you." Verse 28.





We all make mistakes; some we can undo, some we can't.



It can be hard to wait for God's appointed time, especially when things don't look so good, so the tempter subtly slides in a suggestion or two. "What if..." followed by "Maybe I can...?" God generally doesn't need our help (that's a figure of speech called 'litotes', which is understatement for effect!) and so we end up in a mess.


Two hundred years earlier Gideon, from the tribe of Manasseh, had twice offered sacrifices to the Lord, on God's command, so it was not a problem for Saul of not being a Levite.




Remember Adam and Eve? We tend to think that after they ate the fruit the tempter left, but he stayed right there, pressing shame, regret and fear into their souls, encouraging them to pass the blame. By not taking responsibility for their actions they also passed rejection and a sense of rejection onto their oldest son, Cain.



"Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you mightily and you will show yourself a prophet with them; and you will be turned into another man. When these signs meet you, do whatever you find to be done, for God is with you." 1 Samuel 10:6-7


Was God only going to be with him while he was in the presence of those prophets? Or was this a promise, an instruction, for the future after that time, as well?



To urge his vastly outnumbered men into battle Saul invoked a curse of death upon them if anyone stopped to eat. After all, he had seen Samuel do something similar at his (Saul's) inauguration - surely the Man of God (Old Testament terminology, we are all men and women of God in the New Covenant) knew what he was doing?


To see this in God's context, click here. Read items h. to j.



"But the people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan, who has wrought this great deliverance to Israel, die? God forbid!...So the people rescued Jonathan, and he did not die." 1 Samuel 14:45



"Then Saul ceased pursuing the Philistines."



When Samuel arrived to deal with this situation Saul said to him, "Blessed be you of the Lord. I have performed what the Lord ordered." 1 Samuel 15:13. Well, that wasn't true, and Saul knew it. So did Samuel.


"And Samuel said, What then means this bleating of sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?"  Verse 14


"Saul said...the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God..." Verse 15b


That seems like a manufactured reason,


Samuel said, "Why did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but swooped down upon the plunder...?" Verse 19


"Saul said, Yes, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and have gone the way which the Lord sent me...but the people took of the spoil...the chief of the things to be utterly destroyed...to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal." Verse 20


The text in bold type triggers something in me every time I read it, perhaps because I have used a false narrative like that before, but probably because I have had people who have clearly done what was wrong insist in that same way that they were, in fact, doing the right thing.


From whence came the temptation to modify God's strict instructions?


We know that temptation comes from the enemy, but what triggered this successful attack on Saul?


It was most probably the same source as the reason he stopped pursuing the Philistines in chapter 14, after Jonathan was rescued from death at his father's hands: he let opposition trigger a giving-up attitude. How could he stop all those people from doing the wrong thing, especially after he did the wrong thing himself in keeping king Agag alive?


Saul had not really thought it through to where he realised that you cannot fool God, or His appointed servants, in this case the prophet Samuel. Saul was determined to win this one, no matter what.


"Samuel said, Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifice, as in obeying the voice of the Lord?...Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has rejected you from being king." 1 Samuel 15:22a, 23b



"And Samuel said to him, The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day..." Verse 28a


That word and the word 'torn' contained within it do not seem to have come from God - it just did not come to pass like that. There was no "tearing" of the kingdom in Saul's time. He actually increased Israel's control over the surrounding tribes. David, his successor, did nothing at all to tear the kingdom from Saul, even though he had several opportunities. David rightly believed that it was not up to him to remove someone God had appointed and anointed to a role.


But Samuel's next words definitely have no purpose except to wound. Unresolved and unrepented anger leaves us open to serious infiltration from the enemy. Sometimes it's subtle - "He needs to know how serious this is," or "He needs to know what I think of him" - and sometimes it rises up with a thought, "The only way to solve this is to kill him." Samuel didn't go that far.


"...and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you." Verse 28b 


That doesn't seem like a message from God, but someone who is bitter and angry. Mind you, that part of the word did come to pass, but why destabilise the man who would still be king for several decades?


The enemy were using Samuel to sow some serious seeds of doubt and uncertainty in Saul. That doubt would later lead to strong feelings of fear, anger, hatred and murder.

What About Samuel's Role in Saul's Decline?


Over the years several things about Samuel and his involvement with Saul have bothered me - as I prepared these points things suddenly seemed to fit into place.


a) Samuel grew up in the household, under the guidance, of Eli, who exercised no control over his wayward sons. Consequently, he did not have a good role model for training his own boys. That won't be a good enough reason on Judgment Day, because he certainly had the ability to hear from God, and since the beginning it has ultimately been the parents' role to "train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it."  Proverbs 22:6


This verse, then, is cause for some concern:


"When Samuel was old, he made his sons judges over Israel...His sons did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after gain, took bribes, and perverted justice." 1 Samuel 8:1,3


b) There was a strong reaction from the people:


"All the elders of Israel assembled and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, Behold, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint us a king to rule over us like all the other nations." 1 Samuel 8:4-5


c) There was a strong reaction from Samuel:


"But it displeased Samuel when they said, Give us a king to govern us. And Samuel prayed to the Lord."


Young's Literal Translation puts it like this: "And the thing is evil in the eyes of Samuel..."


That was a good decision to seek wisdom from God. He didn't always do that. But why was he displeased? 


About 550 years prior to this God had spoken to Moses about this very situation, anticipating this moment. In Deuteronomy 17:14-15.


"When you come to the land which the Lord your God gives you, and you possess it and live there, and then say, I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are about me; You shall surely set over you him whom the Lord your God will choose; one from among your brethren you shall set as king over you;"


There was no reason for Samuel to be upset, because God had planned for this moment. However, because he had failed his sons and the people he allowed the tempter to sell him the idea that this desire of the people for a better system was a personal failure. This feeling stayed with him and caused a serious problem or two soon after.


d) God appears to mollify Samuel:


"And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken to the voice of the people in all they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not be king over them." 1 Samuel 8:7


Actually, the people had rejected Samuel's sons, and in that sense they were rejecting Samuel's plan for succession, which would have been a failure with his sons in place, anyway. Instead of seeking a Godly solution (another prophet, perhaps?), they wanted to copy their ungodly neighbours. Ultimately, I think that Samuel also felt that rejecting God was still rejecting Samuel.


e) Samuel calls the people to Mizpah to announce the kingdom


Samuel accurately conveys the words of God given to him at Ramah to the people gathered at Mizpah (1 Samuel 10:17), some time later. Neither when God spoke to him at Ramah, nor when Samuel spoke to they people at Mizpah, was there any suggestion that their request was outrageous, unreasonable or inappropriate. It was treated as 'a matter of fact' and approved by God.


It's not unusual for people who are being used by the enemy to operate in an ebb and flow of goodness or Godliness. Here Samuel was performing as God's major prophet in the way he was intended to. Sometimes this ebb and flow makes it hard for observers to realise or respond appropriately when they are being manipulated. Samuel himself would have possibly had little idea that at other times he was acting in a manipulative manner, because he had been fed and then had consumed  justifying and validating feelings by the enemy.


f) Samuel appeals to his good name


At the beginning of Samuel's speech for the king's inauguration he made an unnecessary appeal to the people regarding his honesty and integrity. They had never questioned that, but he was preparing the way for something worse to come.


"...I am old and gray, and behold, my sons are with you...here I am; testify against me before the Lord and Saul His anointed. Whose ox or donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded or oppressed? ...And they said, You have not defrauded, or oppressed us." 1 Samuel 12:2-4


g) Samuel distorts the timing behind their request for a king


In 1 Samuel 8 we saw that the people requested a king because Samuel was old, and his sons did not follow in his ways. During his inauguration speech (see 1 Samuel 12:12) he turned this around and claimed that they clamoured for a king at a much later time, when Nahash king of the Ammonites came against them.


Saul had already been anointed king at the time of the Ammonite challenge, and called the people together to successfully defeat Nahash after "the Spirit of God came mightily upon (him)." 1 Samuel 11:6.


Samuel was definitely pursuing a different agenda, one that minimised his failure to ensure familial succession. His reactionary behaviour is typical of someone dealing with disappointment and unresolved issues. If we don't deal with the temptation thoughts as they enter, if we allow them to settle, if we feed them with what we think is more evidence of wrong-doing, then we end up making bad decisions which lead to bad actions which are destructive. Once the enemy gain an entrance it's a simple matter to keep feeding in the negative thoughts until they prevail.


h) Then  Samuel calls down destruction on their harvest as if God is responsible


After recounting historical examples of God's blessing followed by a falling away of the Israelites (1 Samuel 12:8-14) Samuel said:


"But if you will not hearken to the Lord's voice...then the hand of the Lord will be against you. So stand still and see this great thing the Lord will do before your eyes now." 1 Samuel 12:15-16


Just because Samuel claimed that God was involved in what he was about to do does not make it so. We have to look at what happened, and what the Scriptures, especially the New Testament, tell us about God's character and nature.


"Is it not [the beginning of the] wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord and He will send thunder and rain; then you will know [without any doubt], and see that your evil which you have done is great in the sight of the Lord by asking for yourselves a king.” 1 Samuel 12:17


Wait a minute - that's destructive, isn't it?


i) Where did the destructive storm come from?


I know the Old Testament is full of stories like this, where God destroys things and kills people, but is this what Jesus taught? Well, not at all, actually.


"The thief comes to kill, steal and destroy..." John 10:10


"This is the message which we have heard from Him and now announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all." 1 John 1:5


Maybe things changed when Jesus came?


"For I am the Lord, I do not change." Malachi 3:6


But that's right at the end of the Old Testament, just 300 or so years before Jesus - what about before that time,? 


Moses knew it:


"God is not a man that He should lie, nor the son of a man that He should change His mind." Numbers 23:19  


(Note that the original translation uses the word 'repent' where I have substituted the words 'change His mind', since that is the literal meaning of the word 'repent'.)


Just as in the New, so also in the Old: God has nothing to do with accidents, loss, destruction or death, even when called in by a prophet. They are the work of he whom Jesus called "the thief."


Elisha made a similar mistake, in 2 Kings 3:23-24, just after he took over from Elijah. A large group of youths mocked him, so he "called a curse down on them in the name of the Lord. And two she-bears came out of the wood, and ripped up forty two  of the boys."


While it is true for mankind that "out of the same mouth come forth blessing and cursing," (James 3:10a) that is not true for God. What is true is that when prophets (anyone can do it, actually) are given authority from God to change situations with their words, we have to be extremely careful to make sure that our words are a blessing, and never a curse. Balaam found that out in Numbers 23. 


where blessing refers to words or actions which are positive, beneficial and creatively good.  Anyone can invoke a blessing upon a person, object or situation with their words or attitude - you do not need to be ordained, or a pastor or bishop or any other category of leader to bless. Anyone can do it.


where curses are words or actions  which are negative, harmful and/or destructive. Anyone can curse a person, object or situation by their words or attitude - you do not need to be a witch, witch doctor, medicine man or any other category of evil leader in order to curse. Anyone can do it, but there is a penalty for doing it!


Note Proverbs 26:2 which says, "The causeless curse shall not alight." In other words, without a valid reason (due to something we have done wrong) a curse cannot settle on us.


j) What is this "great evil in the sight of the Lord" Samuel accuses the people of doing?


Nowhere, neither in Deuteronomy nor 1 Samuel or anywhere else, for that matter, does God say that asking for a king is evil. It certainly is not a 'great evil'. God was actually neutral about it at the very least, or positive at best. Samuel has embarked on a path of self-justification and self-aggrandisement. His pride has been hurt, and so the enemy are able to feed off that. Samuel has found something to make the people feel guilty.


(To return to previous link, click here.)


k) Samuel's self-serving action had the result he wanted


"So Samuel called to the Lord, and He sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel." 1 Samuel 12:18


When we ask God to do something bad God isn't going to do it; all that happens is that we empower the enemy to bring that evil to pass. Unfortunately, it's often easier to get evil to come to pass than it is to get good. Now that Samuel is going down this path of serving himself rather than God it is only a matter of time before something even more serious goes wrong.


This fear of God that Samuel set up in the people is not the sort of thing that makes people want a close relationship of love. Destruction of the harvest doesn't come from a God of love, but someone to be feared: the enemy. Certainly God is not looking for that sort of fear from Their people.


l) The people call on Samuel to help them be right with God


"And all said to Samuel, Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for us a king. And Samuel said to the people, Fear not, you have indeed done all this evil; yet turn not aside from following the Lord...The Lord will not forsake His people, for His great name's sake...far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and right way." 1 Samuel 12:19-23


These days we would call that manipulation: the end result is spiritual abuse. There was no evil in asking for a king, except in Samuel's eyes, as he submitted some of his thoughts to the enemy.


Samuel should have known The Law. He probably did, but for his own gratification he needed to set up a need-for-Samuel system among the people, just like many pastors do today. In truth, we have Ephesians 4, which says that every believer has received at least one of the five ministry gifts, and our job, as leaders, is to raise up the body to do the work of the ministry (verses 8 to 16). But that is a threat to the status quo, the system that makes church people reliant on ministry leaders for everything. And when the leaders fail, the followers fall away.


Can we trust Samuel to always instruct the people "in the good and right way"?


m) Just like with us today, God told Samuel certain things but left the rest up to him


We tend to think, as we read Scripture, that everything those great men and women did was directly from God, that God spoke to them about everything, and then they followed. That isn't the case.


I realised this for myself just a couple of years ago as I was asking God to show or give me answers about some big questions I had. I was shocked at what came back.


"We can't tell you everything. Some things you have to work out for yourself."


That's not to say that God does not lead us in paths of righteousness - it just means that we have to make lots of decisions about our pathways. Some will be good, some not so good, and some could go bad. It's more a case of knowing God's ways (see Psalm 103.7) than it is of hearing from God. It's easy to let hardship or mistakes lead us down a self-pity path, or a sadness path, or even a path of revenge or antagonism. Of course, those paths are curated by the enemy. They seem like our own, logical, brain-reasoned deductions, but unless they are designed to have a Godly, positive, self-sacrificing and generous outcome, they are evil temptation at work.


n) When Samuel found that Saul had made offerings to God, he was furious


"And Samuel said to Saul, You have done foolishly! You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you." 1 Samuel 13:13a


We don't know anything about those commands. Perhaps they were never given as Samuel implied, since when God gives commands the Scriptures normally record them as such.


Was Samuel referring to the provision in the Law that only a Levite could make a sacrifice to the Lord? Perhaps, although Gideon and David, neither of whom were Levites, offered up sacrifices to God without problems.


Was he referring to the time, more than two years prior, when at Saul's anointing he had said, "You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down to you and offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. You shall wait seven days, until I come to you and show you what you shall do." 1 Samuel 10:8  


It's quite possible that Samuel was speaking that far into the future, just for this special time of attack, even though they had been to Gilgal in the meantime to renew the kingdom and sacrifice peace offerings. That's how prophecy sometimes works.


Or perhaps chapter 10 verse 8 was misplaced at some time in the past and was really meant to be chapter 13 verse 8? It would make more sense there.


The crucial thing that is missing, though, is a command or comment from God about this situation, and about what Samuel said next. It really looks like he was being manipulated into an "I told you so" punishment routine because he was still seething over his seeming demotion. The enemy also were keen to dismantle this new kingship idea as quickly as possible.


o) Samuel's punishment for Saul was swift and severe


"...for the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever." 1 Samuel 13:13b


It's hard to say if that had any effect on Saul. Most of us are just interested in the here and now, and not the hereafter. The next part, though, would have had an effect:


"But now your kingdom shall not continue." 1 Samuel 13:14a


That is certainly ambiguous - does Samuel mean "after death" or is he saying, "from this point on?" His next sentence implies that this discontinuation is going to apply now, from this point on!


"The Lord has sought out a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over his people." 1 Samuel 13:14b


There it is. When Samuel was anointing Saul's head with oil he said, "Has not the Lord anointed you to be prince over His heritage, Israel?" 1 Samuel 10:1b 


Don't be fooled by Samuel turning this fact into a question - it's a rhetorical question, a figure of speech to emphasise the absolute fact of what was taking place. Back in the present this now looks like a move to replace Saul at this time because he hasn't met Samuel (and God's?) standards.


p) Saul's kingship lasted another 40 years, because God had established it


From Samuel's point of view Saul needed to be replaced, and as a prophet he had immense authority to set the wheels in motion, with or without God's participation.


But there is a problem - from God's point of view, Saul cannot be replaced as easily as that. In fact, even though he subsequently died in battle, it was as an old man who had ruled Israel for 40 years after this! Samuel spoke in haste, in an attempt to demoralise Saul, perhaps even to get him to quit his difficult job. He was trying to use his authority to maintain some semblance of control. Once again, this is a typical example of spiritual abuse.


This is not to say that Samuel was a bad man - far from it. Instead, when we look carefully at what happened we can see the way the enemy used his unresolved pain to nearly take out the king who would never lack a man on the throne, Saul's successor, David.


How do we know that God did not want Saul removed at that time? Or at any time?


David knew it. He refused to take Saul's life when it was in his hands to do so.


Isaiah expressed it like this: "And yet He is wise...and does not take back His words." Isaiah 31:2


Samuel must have been familiar with the story of Balaam, and these words from Numbers 23:19a.


"God is not a man that He should lie, neither the son of man that He should show repentance (change His mind)." (Note that I have added the words (change His mind) in brackets, since that is what repentance means. 


Yet, in various places in the Old Testament we find words to the effect that "God regretted that He had..." What sort of figure of speech is at work there?


In Genesis 6:6 we read, in connection with the immense wickedness on the face of the Earth, "And the Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth, and he was grieved at heart."


Since God also "knows the end from the beginning," (Isaiah 46:10) and everything in between, God knew what would happen back in that day; it was not a surprise to Them. Since God is not a (hu)man, to help understand God and Their response to situations, the writers of Scripture applied human characteristics to the Divine Being. We call this anthropopatheia, or a figure of Condescension. (ref. E.W. Bullinger, The Companion Bible.)


The correct way to describe what was meant to be conveyed in Genesis 6:6 is that this is not what God ever intended to happen, although they obviously knew it would. It was a result of mankind's free choice.


q) When Saul did not totally destroy the Amalekites and their livestock as God ordered, Samuel was angry.


The instruction God gave to Samuel to give to Saul is in 1 Samuel 15:2-3.


When Saul did not follow the instructions to the letter, we read:


"Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying, I regret making Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed My commands." 1 Samuel 15:10-11a



"And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night."


Why was Samuel angry, of all things? 


Anger is probably the most misunderstood emotion, especially among Christians. I heard a preacher I greatly admire say recently, "Well, God created anger."


What?? They certainly did not, any more than They created hatred, or lust, or greed, or idolatry. We just need to read Galatians 5, Ephesians 4 and Colossians 3 to see that anger and its various forms are described as "the old nature," "falsity," a way to "grieve the Holy Spirit," and "works of the flesh."


Each of those negative emotions mentioned above is the enemy's perversion of a Godly characteristic. They always produce destruction of one sort or another:



And so on. James 1:20 has an excellent point of wisdom:


"For man's anger does not promote the righteousness of God." In other words, anger works the plans of the enemy. While Samuel could not receive wisdom from the New Testament, he certainly had enough to go on from Genesis 4. 


"And the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry?...if you do not do well, sin crouches at your door, and you must master it." Verses 6-7


Not only sin, but sin via temptation - that was what God was attempting to teach Cain, Samuel and us. When we don't resist temptation there are always consequences, sometimes also called repercussions.


Here is a progression of evil we can learn from Cain's story:


Wrong-doing leads to

Rejection, leads to

Resentment, leads to

Anger, leads to

Hatred, leads to

Murder.


We will find that repeated throughout Scripture. To learn more about Anger and how to deal with it, click here.


And so Samuel's anger was entirely misplaced. Was he upset for God's sake, or for his own sake? Or was he upset that Israel's first foray into human regency looked to be failing? It's hard to say, and in the end doesn't matter, since whatever lay behind his anger, it was not justified in God.


r) Did Samuel turn God's word "regret" into "reject"?


1 Samuel 15:11a records God's words like this:


"I regret making Saul king, for he he has turned back from following Me, and has not performed my commands."


We know that when God says, "I regret" something, that does not indicate a change of mind, but rather an expression of sympathy. We know that the second part of verse 11 says that Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night. There is no indication that God said anything further to Samuel about the matter, in spite of his much crying. That lines up with my own experience of God's response when I don't agree with something!


Samuel went to meet Saul and found him at Gilgal. He also found a lot of animals there that he did not expect, taken as plunder by Saul's large army, against God's command. 


"Then Samuel said to Saul, Stop! I will tell you what the Lord said to me tonight. Saul said to him, Say on." 1 Samuel 15:16


Samuel actually recounted some previous messages that God had given him for Saul. It's always good to start with something familiar. He finished with this damning statement:


"Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king." Verse 23b


Saul responded positively. He readily admitted his mistake and asked Samuel to pardon him.


That seemed fair enough, a good idea, but Samuel wasn't having any of it. I can almost see myself having the same self-righteous attitude as Samuel then showed towards Saul the sinner. Don't we become a part of the problem if we worship alongside someone who has made such a dreadful mistake? No, I think we might become a part of the solution if we do that!


"And Samuel said to Saul, I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel." Verse 26


There it is again, but this time there is a total rejection of Saul, not only as king, but as a worshipper of Yahweh. Devastating for Saul? I think so, we know so. The following chain of disastrous events shows so. 


s) Samuel uses his words to attack Saul once more


Samuel turned to go, and as Saul seized the skirt of Samuel's mantle it tore. 


"And Samuel said to him, The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day, and has given it to a neighbour of yours who is better than you." Verse 28


Ouch! That hurts. When people take offence they tend to lash out. Once the enemy get even a slight grip of our thinking, our words can so easily become offensive and wound, and our actions then even more so. Samuel went on:


"And also the Strength of Israel will not lie or (change His mind) repent, for He is not a man that He should (change His mind) repent." 1 Samuel 15:29


There is that powerful truth again - so Samuel did know it!


Here he is saying that God is not going to change His mind about this - Saul is out of the kingship.


But there is a problem - that truth is retroactive for all time - it was first stated hundreds of years earlier, and is a foundational characteristic of what we know about God. Those words also mean that Saul, established as king by God Himself, is king forever, as long as he lives, anyway. No one, no man can change what God has established. Nor will God...


As we will see, Saul's kingship lasted another thirty or thirty five years. He wasn't going away, nor was God sending him away. Not even Samuel's prophetic words could change that.


t) Samuel turned back to worship God with Saul


Once more Saul admitted his mistake and asked Samuel to return with him to worship the Lord. Samuel did so, and also hacked Agag, the Amalekite king that
Saul had spared, into pieces. (Verses 30-33.)


u) Samuel was still upset, and turned his back on Saul


"Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah...And Samuel came no more to see Saul to the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul." 1 Samuel 15:35


I can't help thinking that a different attitude, a different response from Samuel, would have been a great help to Saul as he navigated the difficulties of his kingship. I cannot see any instruction from God that Samuel was meant to abandon Saul like this. Who wanted Saul to be abandoned? The enemy, of course.


v) The last part of the last verse in 1 Samuel 15 says that God changed His mind...


"...and the Lord repented that He had made Saul king over Israel." (Verse 35.)


Is that possible, can or does God ever change His mind?


Even Psalm 89:34 categorically denies the possibility of this ever happening. Jesus declared that out of the mouth of two or three witnesses (Scripture verses are witnesses in this sense) will everything be confirmed:


"My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of My lips."


Here is another witness, from Isaiah 31:2.


"Yet he too is wise...he does not take back his words." (NIV online via Bible Hub)


So what is happening here, where God supposedly "changes His mind" about making Saul king? Once again God is stating categorically that they never intended Saul's actions to take this not-totally-obedient path.


Please note: My intention has not been to cast an innocent Samuel in a bad light, but to show the forces at play behind the harmful things that play out every day, including in church situations, under the subtle influence and attacks of "the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly realm." They were also at work in the lives of Job, his family, and his friends.

27. 


In the Old Testament there was no indwelling Holy Spirit for all believers. Or any believers. With leaders like Samson, Gideon and Saul "the Spirit of the Lord" would come upon them and they would perform great feats. Once Samuel anointed a teenage David to be king, "the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward." 1 Samuel 16:13b


In the following verse we read: "But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul..." That's understandable, since anyone carrying "the Spirit of the Lord" should also be performing according to the word of the Lord, and Saul was not. 


I have no doubt that, as he realised what he had lost, Saul became disturbed, morose and depressed. Those feelings come and go, become lighter and heavier, but harder and harder to shift if we don't praise and worship God frequently. The enemy input these seemingly innocent but seemingly accurate ideas, even to Christians with an indwelling Holy Spirit, that "it's all God's fault," or "why did God let it happen to me," or "what if I try this?" Maybe I can go it alone," or "I think I'm just going to give up." Eventually they come to "Life isn't worth living like this," or if there is another person somehow connected to our misery, sooner or later there is a 'random' thought that killing them is the only answer. The thoughts enter our consciousness as if they were our own, discrete, logical deductions or observations. The enemy attack is subtle and, if we don't resist it, it becomes relentless in the end. That's what happened to Saul.


28.


1 Samuel 16:14 contains a trap that a lot of people (most people?) miss completely.


"But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him."


That last part simply is not possible - evil spirits DO NOT come from God, ever. God administers Holy Spirit, also known in the Old Testament as the 'Spirit of the Lord' or the 'Spirit of God'.


The adversary, the devil, the leader of "the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly realm" as Paul describes the enemy in Ephesians 6:12c, administers the evil spirits who torment people and cause great mischief and evil all over the world.





Even the wayward Pharisees recognised that demons (just another name for 'evil spirits') are under the control of the prince of demons (another name to represent the adversary), when they challenged Jesus deliverance ministry in Matthew 12:22ff. 


"This man casts out demons only by...the prince of demons."


Jesus replied, in verse 25:


"And if the adversary (Gk = ho satanas = the adversary, nominative case, usually incorrectly translated as a name, Satan) casts out the adversary (Gk = ton Satanan = the adversary, accusative case, usually incorrectly translated as a name, Satan) he is divided against himself..." 


Even without teaching from Jesus the Pharisees and scribes knew that God did not send demons or evil spirits to harass people. This particular story is important because it also shows that 'ordinary' but serious physical conditions can have a spiritual origin. That, of course, is the whole message of the first two chapters of Job.


"Then a blind and dumb man, under the power of a demon, was brought to Jesus, and He cured him, so that the blind and dumb man both spoke and saw." Verse 22  According to verse 24 it was easily recognised by everyone there that the physical healing came with the removal of the spiritual oppressor.


29. 

It wasn't the removal of Holy Spirit from Saul that led to his decline,

 





Saul was not coerced or tricked. He made the poor decisions which led to his downfall, but at any time he could have resisted the temptations that he faced.


Have you had negative words spoken over you?

Have you spoken negatively over yourself?



The second part of Job 1:10 continues like this:


"You have conferred prosperity upon him in the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land."


The first part of verse 10 - "You have placed a hedge of protection around him and all that he has on every side" - was partly true. It's true that God planted the seeds of protection for Job, and for us, and everyone else who has ever lived, but it is up to us to maintain and trim and fertilise and water that hedge of faith.


The second part of verse 10 is completely true - Job's prosperity and our prosperity comes from God. They are always preparing ways to bring abundance into our lives, ways to abundance that we sometimes miss.