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Saul’s suicide

1 Chronicles 10:1-14

1 Chronicles 10:1 The Philistines fought against Israel, and Israel’s men fled from them. Many were killed on Mount Gilboa.
1 Chronicles 10:2 The Philistines pursued Saul and his sons and killed his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua.
1 Chronicles 10:3 When the battle intensified against Saul, the archers spotted him and severely wounded him.
1 Chronicles 10:4 Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through with it, or these uncircumcised men will come and torture me.” But his armor-bearer would not do it because he was terrified. Then Saul took his sword and fell on it.
1 Chronicles 10:5 When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his own sword and died.
1 Chronicles 10:6 So Saul and his three sons died — his whole family died together.
1 Chronicles 10:7 When all the men of Israel in the valley saw that the army had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled. So, the Philistines came and settled in them.
1 Chronicles 10:8 The next day when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his sons dead on Mount Gilboa.
1 Chronicles 10:9 They stripped Saul, cut off his head, took his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to spread the good news to their idols and the people.
1 Chronicles 10:10 Then they put his armor in the temple of their gods and hung his skull in the temple of Dagon.
1 Chronicles 10:11 When all Jabesh-gilead heard of everything the Philistines had done to Saul,
1 Chronicles 10:12 all their brave men set out and retrieved the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons and brought them to Jabesh. They buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh and fasted for seven days.
1 Chronicles 10:13 Saul died for his unfaithfulness to the Lord because he did not keep Yahveh’s word. He even consulted a medium for guidance,
1 Chronicles 10:14 but he did not inquire of the Lord. So, the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse.

Saul’s suicide

Saul’s suicide brought shame to Israel and gave the Philistines a reason to gloat. What was the root cause of such a tragedy in a kingdom that God promised to bless? Perhaps knowing the answer to that question will keep the leaders who follow the LORD today from taking the wrong step — a step that could end in personal failure, and shame for the movement. Saul died for his breach of faith. Saul’s breach of faith is found in his disobedience to the command of the LORD, and in the fact that he failed to seek guidance from the LORD through prayer (13-14).

LORD, on this special day when we remember the birth of Christ, help us to keep the faith by obeying your words and seeking your guidance.