With the establishment of the Law of Moses, for nearly five centuries, Israel had no royal authority. The Lord Himself was King. Prophets, judges, and elders were only executors of His will. This type of government is called theocracy(literally - the power of God). Being the God and Heavenly King of all peoples, the Lord was in relation to His chosen people at the same time and king earthly. From Him proceeded laws and decrees not only religious, but also family, social, state character.

When Samuel grew old, the elders of Israel gathered together and began to ask: put a king over us to judge us like other nations(1 Samuel 8:5). These words did not please Samuel. The great prophet saw them as a threat to the theocracy.

However, the Lord allowed Samuel to satisfy the people's desire, finding that the fulfillment of this may not contradict the form of government established among the Jews, since the earthly king of the theocratic state of the Jews could and should have been nothing more than a zealous executor and conductor in the people entrusted to him of the laws of the King of Heaven .

The first king anointed to the kingdom by the prophet Samuel was Saul, son of Kis. It happened like this. Kish lost his best donkeys, and he sent his son Saul with a servant to find them. After three days of searching, they came to the land of Zuf, the homeland of the great prophet Samuel. The donkeys were not found, the servant advised Saul to ask the famous seer about them. So the Lord brought the future king to the prophet Samuel. God revealed this to Samuel the day before Saul came. The prophet Samuel took a vessel of oil and poured it on Saul's head, kissed him and said: behold, the Lord has anointed you to be the ruler of his inheritance(1 Samuel 10:1). Until now, the Old Testament spoke of anointing only the high priest with holy oil (see: Exodus 30:30).

Kingship places a great responsibility on a person. Through myrrh (or holy oil) Divine spiritual gifts were given for the successful completion of this service.

When Saul was returning, a host of prophets met him, and the Spirit of God fell on him, and he prophesied among them. To prophesy in biblical language does not always mean to predict. In this case, the word prophesied can be understood in the sense that he glorified God and His miracles in enthusiastic laudatory hymns, which suggests a special rise in the spiritual powers of man. For everyone who knew Saul before that, this was extremely unexpected, so the Jews had a proverb: Is Saul also among the prophets?(1 Samuel 10, 11).

In the early years, Saul was quite at the height of his rank. He won several victories over the Philistines and Amalekites, who were at enmity against the chosen people. But gradually the power intoxicated him. He began to act independently disregarding the will of God which the prophet Samuel revealed to him.

Saul's self-will displeased Samuel. Samuel's final break with Saul occurred after the victory over the Amalekites. The Lord demanded that everything obtained in the battle be conjured, that is, complete destruction. But Saul and the people spared the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fattened lambs, and all that was valuable to them. When Samuel reproved him on behalf of the Lord, Saul said that he had kept the booty for an offering to the Lord. Samuel replied that obedience to God is better than any sacrifice, and disobedience is as sinful as magic.

Biographical information

Saul's kingdom included the portions of Yehuda and Ephraim, Galilee, and the region in Transjordan. Apparently, he did not try to extend his power beyond the borders of the territories inhabited by Israelis. He also failed to introduce reforms aimed at replacing the traditional tribal leadership with a centralized administrative apparatus subordinate to the king.

The history of Saul's relationship with Shmuel reflects the difficulties associated with the formation of monarchical power. According to one of the traditions included in the biblical narrative, the friction between Saul and Shmuel began after the king, who had gathered an army in Gilgal to fight the Philistines, himself offered sacrifices to God, without waiting for the arrival of Shmuel (I Sam. 13:8 -14). Apparently, Shmuel saw in this an attempt on the king's priestly prerogatives; he announced to Saul that, as a punishment for his deed, his reign would not last long. The final break occurred when Saul did not follow Shmuel's instructions to completely exterminate the Amalekites (I Sam. 15:14-35; 28:18). Shmuel announced that God was depriving Saul of his royal title and chose David as the new king.

With the advent of David at the royal court, Saul began to realize that the people favored David (I Sam. 18:16), whose victories over the Philistines aroused the envy of Saul, which turned into blind hatred, which at times darkened his mind - in fits of insane anger, he attempted to kill life of his own son Jonathan (I Sam. 20:33), executed 85 priests along with their families in Nova (I Sam. 22:12-19). Saul's suspicion made him see a conspiracy everywhere and prompted him to kill David (I Sam. 18:20-29; 19:1, 4-7, 9-10), even though he was already his son-in-law. He forced David to flee to the enemy in order to obtain refuge there.

All this time, Saul continued to wage war with the Philistines. When the Philistine forces gathered in the depths of Israelite territory, in the Jezreel Valley, Saul opposed them and pitched a camp at the foot of Mount Gilboa, apparently near Ein Harod (I Sam. 28:4; 29:1). According to I Sam. 28, he was insecure before the battle and needed the support of Shmuel, by this time already dead. In violation of a religious prohibition, he used the help of a necromantic sorceress to summon the spirit of Shmuel, but received from him only a prediction of defeat and death. Perhaps this episode is part of the general line of the book against royal power and in defense of the power of priests.

Saul's three sons fell in battle - Jonathan, Aminadab and Malki-Shua. Surrounded by Philistine archers and wounded by their arrows, Saul threw himself on his sword (I Sam. 31:4).

When the next day the Philistines discovered the body of Saul among the fallen Israelites, they cut off his head “and sent him throughout the whole land of the Philistines to proclaim this in the temples of their idols and to the people” (I Sam. 31: 8-9). Saul's weapons were donated to the temple of Astarte, and his body was hung on the wall of Beit She'an. The inhabitants of Javesh-Gil'ad, who remembered how Saul saved them from the Ammonites, removed the body from the wall and buried it in their city (I Sam. 31:10-13), from where later the bones of Saul were transferred to the tomb of his father in the locality of Tselah, apparently near Gibeah (II Sam. 21:14).

The State of Israelite Society in the Time of Saul

Based on Book I Sam. we can conclude that in the time of Saul there was not yet an orderly administrative system. Saul's energy was predominantly directed towards the consolidation of the monarchy. Apparently, a significant part of the nascent administration were members of Saul's family.

So, his son Jonathan stood at the head of one of the contingents of the standing army, Abner ben Ner, also a relative of Saul, was the head of the royal army; most of the military leaders were members of the Benjamin tribe, who received land plots and vineyards from the king. At the time of Saul, the tribal organization had not yet ceased to exist - Saul was considered the head of the tribes of Israel, and monarchical institutions similar to those that existed in other countries of the ancient Near East had not yet formed.

The symbol of Saul's royal power was, apparently, his spear, and also, perhaps, a crown and a bracelet (II Sam. 1:10). Under Saul, a standing army was first created, numbering 3,000 (I Sam. 13:1-2), but at the same time, tribal militias continued to exist, constituting the bulk of the troops mobilized by royal order.

The accession of Saul marked the beginning of centuries of conflict between the power of priests and kings. From the point of view of the priests, the appearance of the king is a rejection of the direct power of God over the people. Shortly before this, when Gideon was offered to become king, he replied that the people have no other king than God. From that moment on, the so-called "prophetic revolution" began - the constant criticism of the decisions of the kings by the prophets. Another consequence was the centralization of the cult, which had not been required before. Since the time of King Solomon, the only legal place where sacrifices can be made has become the Temple in Jerusalem (although other sanctuaries continued to operate for centuries).

The anti-monarchist tendency of the book of Shmuel I and the comparison of Saul's activities with those of his successor, David, gives the impression of a complete failure. But his military achievements were great. Not having completely solved the problem of the conflict with the Philistines, he brought Israel out of their subordination and stopped their advance into the interior of the country. David understood this best of all, who composed a song about him, beginning with the words “your glory, Israel, is slain on your heights! How the mighty have fallen!

Sources

• KEE, volume 7, col. 694-696

Archpriest Nikolai Popov

The reign of Saul: his victories over the Philistines, Amalekites and other nations and disobedience to God

Saul was famous for victories over the enemies of his people, but he was not always obedient to God; for this he rejected him. In the second year of his reign, Saul began a war with the Philistines, gathered an army in Gilgal and waited for Samuel, who, before his arrival and before he offered a sacrifice to God, forbade starting a battle. It was already the seventh day, and Samuel did not come. The army of Saul, fearing the enemies, the flock scatter. Then Saul, without waiting for Samuel, offered a sacrifice to God himself. As soon as he finished the sacrifice, Samuel came and said to him: “You have done badly that you did not fulfill the commandments of the Lord. Now your reign will not stand; The Lord will find for Himself a man after His own heart and command him to be the leader of His people.” However, this time the Lord gave Saul victory over the Philistines.

After that, Saul won new victories over the Philistines, Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites and the kings of the Owl of Syria ().

Kingship of David. The Spirit of God Retreats from Saul

Having announced to Saul that the Lord would take away his kingdom, Samuel mourned for a long time at home. The Lord said to him, “How long will you mourn for Saul? Fill your horn with oil and go to Bethlehem, to Jesse; among his sons I will provide myself a king.”

Samuel came to Bethlehem and invited the elders of the city, along with Jesse and his sons, to offer sacrifice to the Lord. Jesse came with his seven sons and led each of them to Samuel. But Samuel said, "None of these the Lord has chosen," and he asked Jesse, "Are all your children here?" Jesse answered: “There is also a younger son, David; he tends the sheep." Samuel told them to bring him. They brought David. He was blond, with beautiful eyes and a pleasant face. The Lord said to Samuel, "Get up and anoint him; this is he." Samuel took the horn with holy oil and anointed David among his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord rested on him from that day on.

When the Spirit of the Lord rested on David, he departed from Saul, and the evil spirit began to disturb him. The servants suggested to Saul that he look for a man skilled in playing the harp, who would calm him down by playing when the evil spirit disturbed him. One of them pointed to David as a skillful player and a man of courage, warlike and reasonable. David was introduced to Saul, pleased him, and became his armor-bearer. And it happened when the evil spirit revolted Saul, David played the harp, and it was more gratifying, and it became better for Saul, and the evil spirit retreated from him ().

David's victory over Goliath

The Philistines gathered their armies, entered into Judea and stood on one mountain, in the tribe of Judah; the Israelites went out against them and stood on another mountain; there was a valley between them.

From the Philistine camp for forty days, in the morning and in the evening, a giant came out, Goliath, in a copper helmet, in scaly copper armor, in copper knee pads on his legs, with a copper shield and an iron spear, and shouted to the Israelites: “Choose a man from you, and let him fight with me. If he kills me, then we will be your slaves, and if I kill him, then you will be our slaves.” The appearance of Goliath and his words horrified the bravest Israelites.

In the army of Israel were the three elder sons of Jesse, and at that time David was tending his father's sheep. One day Jesse sent David to take food to the brothers. When David came to the brothers, Goliath came out with him and began to speak his speeches. All the Israelites, seeing him, rushed from him in fear. And the Israelites said: “If someone killed him, the king would give him great wealth, and give his daughter to him, and make his father’s house free. David volunteered to fight Goliath. He was introduced to Saul. Saul, seeing David, said to him: "You cannot fight this Philistine: you are still a youth." David answered: "When I was tending my father's sheep, I killed the lion and the bear that attacked the flock, and it will be the same with this Philistine." Then Saul dressed David in his robes, put a bronze helmet on his head, and put armor on him. But David, walking around in such armor, said that he was not used to it, and removed it from himself; then he took his staff, five smooth stones from the stream, a sling, and went out against the Philistine. The Philistine also stepped forward with his armor-bearer. Seeing David, he looked contemptuously at him and said: “Why are you going against me with a stick and stones: am I a dog? Come to me, and I will give your body to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field.” And David answered him: “You go against me with a sword, and a spear, and a shield, but I go in the name of the Lord God of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you reproach.” And so, when Goliath began to approach David, David hurriedly ran towards him, took a stone from the bag and threw it with a sling into Goliath's very forehead. The stone hit Goliath's forehead and he fell face down on the ground. Then David ran up to Goliath, stepped on him, grabbed his sword and cut off his head with it. The Philistines, seeing that their strong man had died, ran. The Israelites drove them out and took possession of their camp. After this victory, Jonathan, the son of Saul, loved David as his soul, and gave him his clothes and weapons; and Saul made him a captain, and all the people liked it ().

Persecution of David by Saul

When the Israelites returned home after the victory of David over Goliath, women came out from all the cities to meet Saul with music and singing and exclaimed: "Saul defeated thousands, and David - tens of thousands." Saul was very upset at this and said: “David was given tens of thousands, but to me thousands; he lacks only the kingdom.” And from that time Saul began to look suspiciously at David, began to look for an opportunity to kill him and attempted it many times. But David, with meekness and patience, endured long-term persecution from him, revering him as God's anointed one.

The very next day after the solemn meeting, an evil spirit attacked Saul, and he raged in his house, while David played the harp in front of him. Saul began to throw his spear to pin David to the wall, but David dodged it twice.

Wanting David to die in battle with enemies, Saul once said to him: "I will give my eldest daughter, Merov, for you, but fight your enemies more bravely." But when the time came to give her to David, Saul gave her to another. Then Saul, learning that his other daughter, Michal, loved David, promised to marry her to him if he killed a hundred Philistines. David killed two hundred of them, and Saul was to marry Michal to him.

Having given his daughter Michal to David, Saul became even more afraid of him and enmity against him. One day he gave an open order to kill him. But Jonathan managed to convince Saul of David's innocence, and Saul swore not to kill him. David's new victory over the Philistines alarmed Saul, and again, in a fit of fury, he wanted to nail David to the wall with a spear, but David jumped back and fled to his house. Saul sent his servants to David's house to guard him and kill him. Michal secretly lowered him from the window, placed a statue on his bed, closed it, and told the servants sent from Saul that David was ill. When Saul ordered David to be brought on the bed, Michal's cunning was revealed; but David had already managed to escape to Samuel in Ramah and began to live in Navath. Saul sent three times to take David, but those who were sent, seeing a host of prophets prophesying under the command of Samuel, began to prophesy themselves. Finally, Saul himself went to Ramah. As he walked, the Spirit of God fell upon him, and he walked and prophesied, and coming to Samuel prophesied before him and prostrated himself in involuntary reverence. After Saul returned home, Jonathan wanted to reconcile him with David by his petition, but Saul almost killed him with a spear. After that, having said goodbye to Jonathan, David fled to Nob to the high priest Ahimelech, begged from him for the road the sacred bread of the offer and the sword of Goliath, and fled from his fatherland.

From the land of Israel, David fled to the land of the Philistines to Achish, king of Gath. When the Philistines recognized David here and brought him to their king, David presented himself as being deprived of his mind, was released and retired to the cave of Adollam. His relatives and all the oppressed and unfortunate came to him here, about 400 people. David led his parents to the king of Moab, and he himself returned to the land of Judah and stopped in the forest. Saul, learning that David was with the high priest Ahimelech, ordered to kill Ahimelech and 85 priests and destroy Nob. Only Abiathar the son of Ahimelech escaped and fled to David. Upon learning that the Philistines had attacked the city of Keil, David freed it from its enemies. Saul wanted to seize David at Keilah, but he withdrew into the wilderness of Ziph. Saul chased him into the wilderness of Ziph, and then into the wilderness of Maon, but, on the occasion of the attack of the Philistines on the land of Israel, he had to stop the pursuit.

Moving from one place to another, David came to the wilderness of En-Gaddi and began to hide in the caves here. Saul, learning about this, went with the army to look for him. One day he alone went into the very cave in which David and his people were hiding. His people said to David, “Behold, the Lord is delivering you into the hand of your enemy.” But David only quietly cut off the edge of his garment, and then, when Saul came out of the cave, he showed it from a distance to Saul, as proof that he had no evil intention against him. Saul was moved to tears by this, asked David to spare his offspring when he was king, and retired to his house.

About this time Samuel died. The Israelites gathered, mourned him and buried him in Ramah.

David, fearing new persecution, retired to the wilderness of Paran. In the neighborhood, in Mahon, lived a man rich in cattle, Nabal. David, learning that he had a sheep shearing, sent several people to congratulate him and ask him for the preservation of his livestock, what he could find it possible to give. Nabal rudely refused the messengers. David gathered his people and went to destroy the whole house of Nabal. Abigail, the wife of Nabal, having learned about this, secretly took gifts from her husband, went out to meet David and propitiated him. Soon Nabal died, and David married Abigail.

After some time, Saul pursued David again in the wilderness of Ziph. One night Saul was sleeping in his tent, and his soldiers were around him. David with Abishai, his nephew, entered the camp of Saul. Abishai said to David, "Let me nail him to the ground with one blow." But David said to him, “Do not kill the Lord's anointed; only take the spear that is at its head, and the vessel of water.” And taking a spear and a vessel, they retired to the opposite mountain. Hence David loudly began to reproach Abner, Saul's commander, for the fact that he was badly guarding the king. Saul, hearing the voice of David, began to repent of his persecution of him, called him to him, called him his son. But David could not believe him, returned the royal spear and withdrew to the king of Gath, Achish.

Achish gave David the city of Ziklag. From here, David made campaigns against the Amalekites and other enemies of his people, and told Achish that he attacked the Jews. Having gathered to fight with the Israelites, Achish took David with him. But the princes of the Philistines, fearing David, persuaded Achish to let David go home. Returning to Ziklag, David found it plundered by the Amalekites, overtook them, struck them down and sent gifts from the booty to the elders of Judah, his friends ().

The defeat of the Israelites by the Philistines and the death of Saul. Execution of the regicide

When David was living in the land of the Philistines to escape Saul's persecution, the Philistines invaded the land of Israel and camped near the mountains of Gilboa. Saul also gathered the people of Israel and camped on Mount Gilboa. Seeing the Philistine army, Saul was frightened and asked the Lord what to do, but the Lord did not answer him. Then, disguised, he went at night to a sorceress in Endor and asked her to bring him Samuel. And the sorceress Samuel saw and exclaimed loudly. Samuel asked Saul, "Why did you disturb me to come out?" Saul answered: “It is very hard for me: the Philistines are at war with me, but they retreated from me and did not answer me either through the prophets or in a dream, therefore I called you to teach me what to do.” Samuel said: “The Lord will do what He spoke through me: He will take away the kingdom from you and give it to David because you did not obey the Lord, did not destroy Amalek. Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me, and the Lord will deliver the camp of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.” Having heard this, Saul fell to the ground for fear, then, having strengthened himself with food, he returned to his camp.

The next day there was a battle. The Philistines put the Israelites to flight and killed Saul's three sons, including Jonathan. Saul, being very wounded and not wanting to get alive to the enemies, fell on his sword and died. The inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead burned his body and his sons and buried their bones (Chronicles 10).

The news of the defeat of the Israelites and the death of Saul was brought to David by an Amalekite. The Amalekite said, “Saul fell on his spear, and the chariots and horsemen of the enemy overtook him. Then he said to me: kill me; mortal anguish seized me, my soul is still in me. And I killed him." At this, the Amalekite presented David with the crown from Saul's head and the wrist from his hand. David ordered the execution of the Amalekite, as the murderer of the anointed of God, and mourned Saul and Jonathan in a lamentable song ().

David becomes king and executes the regicides (4449 from the creation of the world, 1060 BC)

After the death of Saul, the inhabitants of the tribe of Judah anointed David (aged 30) as king over them in Hebron. Jebosheth the son of Saul reigned over the rest of the tribes of Israel.

Seven and a half years after David's accession to Hebron, the commanders of Jebosheth killed the latter and brought his head to David. David executed them for this. After that, the elders of all the tribes of Israel came to David in Hebron and anointed him as king over all the people of Israel (Par. 11, 12:1-3).

The conquest of Jerusalem (4456 from the creation of the world, 1053 BC) and the transfer of the ark of the covenant there. David's intention to build a temple to the Lord. David's care for the internal improvement of the kingdom

Having reigned over all the people of Israel, David went with an army to Jerusalem. Jerusalem, with its fortress of Zion, which stood on a rocky mountain, was then considered impregnable and was in the power of the Jebusites. David conquered Jerusalem, settled in the fortress of Zion, named it the city of David, and built a palace of cedars for himself there (Chron. 11:4–9; 14:1).

After this, the Philistines attacked David twice, but he defeated them both times (Parl. 11:13-19, 14:8-17).

Having established himself in the new capital, David decided to transfer there the ark of God from Kiriathiarim, from the house of Aminadab. To do this, he gathered his army and people in Kiriathiarim. They put the ark of God on a chariot drawn by oxen and drove off. David and all the Israelites played various musical instruments before him. In one place the oxen bent over him. The son of Aminadab, Uzzah, stretched out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it to hold it, just like an ordinary thing, but the Lord immediately struck him down. David was afraid to take the ark to his city and placed it in the house of Abeddar. Soon, having heard that the Lord blessed the house of Abeddar for the sake of the ark of God, David triumphantly transferred it to his city. This time the priests and the Levites carried the ark on their shoulders. During the procession, the Levites sang and played musical instruments, and David galloped in delight in front of the ark. Having brought the ark to his city, David placed it in the tabernacle he had built, offered sacrifices to God and treated the people.

To glorify God, during the Divine service in the tabernacle, David organized a choir of 4,000 singers and musicians and composed many psalms, i.e. chants.

King David in general, in all the circumstances of his life, loved to pour out his soul before God in psalms. The collection of psalms is called the Psalter. There are many prophecies in the Psalter about Jesus Christ. For example, that He will be God (), the Son of God (), that He will happen according to humanity from the lineage of David (), die in shameful torment (), descend into hell (), rise (), ascend to heaven (), sit at the right hand God the Father ().

After the transfer of the ark to Jerusalem, Divine services began to be performed at two tabernacles - Moses in Gibeon and David in Jerusalem. David numbered the Levites from 30 years old and above, and their number was 30,000. Of these, he appointed 24,000 to serve at the tabernacle, 6,000 scribes and judges of the people, 4,000 treasure-keepers, 4,000 singers and musicians, and divided them, both priests and Levites , serving at the tabernacle, into 24 turns, which changed every Sabbath (Par. 13, 15, 16, 23:3-32; 24-27).

Not content with building a new tabernacle for the ark of God, David once said to the prophet Nathan: “Behold, I live in a house of cedars, and the ark of God stands under a tent.” Nathan said to the king, "Do whatever is in your heart." But that very night the Lord said to Nathan, “Go and tell my servant David, “You will not build me a house to dwell in, because you have shed much blood. When you rest with your fathers, I will raise your Seed after you. He will build a house for My name, and I will forever establish the throne of His kingdom; I will be His Father, and He will be My Son.” Nathan told the words of the Lord to David. David thanked the Lord with prayer for His mercy to him and his offspring and began to prepare everything necessary for building the temple of the Lord (Par. 17; 1 Chron. 22:8, 28:3).

After the deeds of piety, David was most of all concerned with the internal improvement of his kingdom. In governing the kingdom, he was always guided by the law of God given through Moses. This law was his favorite reading: he studied it day and night. The trial was carried out under his strict supervision and was just and merciful.

David's victories over neighboring nations and the expansion of his kingdom. David's war with the Ammonites, his fall and repentance. Subjugation of the Ammonites

In the midst of peace and prosperity, the thought came to David to find out how many subjects he had. He ordered Joab to go through all the tribes of Israel and count the people. Joab counted the people in all the tribes except Levitin and Benjamin. After that, David himself realized that out of vanity he had taken it into his head to count the people, and began to ask forgiveness from God. But the next day, the prophet Gad comes to him and, on behalf of God, offers him one of three punishments for him to choose from: either three years of famine in his country, or three months of war and flight from enemies, or three days of pestilence. David answered the prophet: "Let me fall into the hands of the Lord, so that I do not fall into the hands of men." And David chose a pestilence for himself. The Lord sent a plague, and 70,000 people died. On the third day of the plague, David saw between heaven and earth, over the threshing floor of Orna the Jebusite, an angel with a sword in his hand, stretched out over Jerusalem. David fell on his face and began to pray to the Lord for his people. Then the prophet Gad came to him, ordered to build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Orna. David bought the threshing floor from Orna, and all the mountain Moriah, on which stood the threshing floor; He built an altar on the threshing floor, laid sacrifices on it, and called on the Lord. The Lord heard him and sent fire from heaven on his victims, and the plague stopped. After that, David offered sacrifices to God several times at this place and appointed him to build the temple (Parl. 21, 22).

Anointing to Solomon's kingdom. Testament and death of David

When David grew old, his son Adonijah decided to proclaim himself king and attracted the high priest Aviathar, Joab and other military leaders to his side. David, learning about this from Bathsheba and Nathan, commanded the high priest Zadok and Nathan to anoint his son Solomon, whom he had chosen to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel. Zadok solemnly, in front of the people, anointed Solomon as king. Upon learning of Solomon's anointing, Adonijah's accomplices fled, and Adonijah himself fled to the tabernacle and grabbed the horns of the altar. Solomon promised not to harm him if he was an honest man.

At the end of his life, David called Solomon and his other sons and leaders of the people, urged them to keep the commandments of the Lord, and bequeathed to Solomon to serve God with all his heart and build a temple for Him. After this instruction, he handed over to Solomon the drawings of the temple, compiled by him at the inspiration of God, and the materials prepared for him; invited everyone to donate to the temple and prayed to God for his people and for Solomon. The next day after this, Solomon was anointed king for the second time.

When the time for David's death approached, he also made Solomon the last testament to fulfill the law of God and protect himself from suspicious people, and died 70 years old (Par. 22, 28, 29).

Beginning of Solomon's reign. His wisdom. (4489 from the creation of the world, 1020 BC)

Solomon began his reign by delivering himself from domestic enemies: he executed Adonijah, who tried to take the kingdom from him; removed Abiathar and executed Joab and Semey; then he secured his kingdom from the outside by marrying the daughter of the pharaoh of Egypt and renewing his alliance with the king of Tyre, Hiram.

When the kingdom was established in the hands of Solomon, he went to Gibeon, where the tabernacle of Moses was, and brought here to God a thousand burnt offerings. appeared to him in a dream at night and said: "Ask what to give you." Solomon answered: “You, Lord, made me king. Give me wisdom to govern the people." This petition was pleasing to the Lord, and he said: “Because you do not ask for a long life or wealth, but ask for wisdom, I will give you wisdom, so that there has never been and will not be like you in wisdom; besides this I will give you riches and glory, so that there will be no one like you among kings all your days. And if you keep my commandments, then I will continue your life.”

Above all, Solomon showed wisdom in judgment. Upon Solomon's return to Jerusalem, two women came to him. And one woman said: “Sire! This woman and I live in the same house. I gave birth to a son; on the third day and she gave birth to a son. And the son of this woman died, because during her sleep she fell asleep on him (lay on him). She got up at night, took my son from me and put him to her, and put her dead son to me. In the morning I saw that I did not have my son.” Then another woman said, “No, my son is alive. and your son is dead." And they argued before the king. Solomon said, "Give me a sword." They brought the sword. The king said, "Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other." Then the mother of the living baby said: “Ah, sir, give her the living child and do not kill him!” And the other said: “Let neither me nor you, cut!” Then the king said: "Give the living child to the one who does not want to be killed: she is his mother." The Israelites heard how the king judged this case, and began to fear him, because they saw that the wisdom of God was in him (Parl. 1:1-13).

The construction of the temple and its consecration (4492 from the creation of the world, 1017 BC)

In the fourth year of his reign, Solomon began to build a temple to the Lord in Jerusalem, on Mount Moriah, and built it for seven and a half years. The temple was built on the model of the tabernacle of Moses, only larger and more magnificent than the tabernacle.

To build the temple, David prepared 108,000 talents of gold, 1,017,000 talents of silver, and many precious stones, copper, iron, marble, and wood (1 Chron. 22:14; 29:4, 7). At the request of Solomon, the king of Tire Hiram sent him the artist Hiram, cedar, cypress and other expensive trees from the mountains of Lebanon to build a temple. The temple was built by 30,000 Jews and 150,000 foreigners.

The temple was 60 cubits long, 20 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high. The walls of the temple were built of huge hewn stones, on the outside they were lined with white marble, and on the inside - with cedar boards, which were decorated with carved images of cherubs, palm trees and blooming flowers and covered with gold. It was built of cypress wood and covered with gold. The interior of the temple was divided into two parts: the Holy of Holies and the Sanctuary, which were separated by a cypress wall, decorated with carvings and overlaid with gold. The doors to the Holy of Holies were made of olive wood and were covered with a veil of precious material with images of cherubs, and the doors to the temple - of cypress wood - were decorated with carvings and overlaid with gold. In the Holy of Holies were placed two images of cherubs made of olive wood, overlaid with gold. The wings of the cherubim were outstretched, and the wing of one touched one wall, and the wing of the other touched another wall; their other wings met wing to wing among the Holy of Holies. Before the Holy of Holies was placed an altar overlaid with gold. On the right side of the Sanctuary were placed five tables overlaid with gold and five golden lampstands, and on the left side the same number of tables and lampstands. On the eastern side of the temple, a vestibule (porch) was arranged, inside lined with gold. The porch was four times higher than the Sanctuary. Two copper pillars were placed in front of the narthex. The vestibule was appointed for the priests, and the steps leading to it were for the singers. On the other three sides, three-storey buildings were added to the temple, in which rooms were arranged. Near the temple building stretched the courtyard of the priests, surrounded by a low stone wall. In this court were placed: a copper altar of burnt offering, a copper sea on twelve copper oxen, ten copper washbasins and a royal place, in the form of an ambo. Near the courtyard of the priests, somewhat below it, stretched the courtyard Great for the people, surrounded by a strong wall. This courtyard, stretching 500 steps in length and width, had a marble colonnade that went around it. Buildings for priests were built in it, and later galleries where the prophets preached the word of God to the people, and cells where students gathered around the teachers.

When the building of the temple was completed, Solomon gathered the elders of Israel and the people, and with singing and music he transferred from the tabernacle of David to the temple the ark of the Lord, the tabernacle and sacred things. When the ark was placed in the Holy of Holies under the wings of the cherubim, the glory of the Lord in the form of a cloud overshadowed and filled the temple. Then Solomon fell on his knees in his royal place, raised his hands to heaven and said a prayer to God, in which he asked the Lord to fulfill the petitions of not only the Israelites who would pray to him in the temple or turning to the temple, but also foreigners who would pray at the temple. When Solomon finished praying, fire descended from heaven on the prepared sacrifices. The people fell to the ground and glorified God. Since then, many sacrifices have been made. He gave an answer to Solomon's prayer, appearing to him at night, in a dream; The Lord told Solomon that He heard his prayer, and promised to establish his kingdom if he would fulfill the commands of God. “But if,” God said, “you depart from Me, then I will destroy you from the face of the earth, and I will reject this temple” (Par. 2-7).

The glory of the reign of Solomon: wealth, power, wisdom, the glory of Solomon and the prosperity of the people under him

Having built the temple of the Lord, Solomon built himself several magnificent palaces. Especially magnificent was the palace, called the house of the Lebanese tree, in which various rarities were collected, and among other things 500 golden shields, in which all utensils and all vessels were made of pure gold, because silver in the days of Solomon was considered nothing. In Solomon's judgment chamber stood an ivory throne overlaid with gold. Solomon received his wealth mainly from maritime trade, for which he started a merchant fleet in Ezion-geber, on the Red Sea.

For the safety of his kingdom from enemies, Solomon built several fortified cities, in which he kept many riders, horses and war chariots (Solomon dominated all the kings from the Euphrates to Egypt).

But most of all, Solomon became famous for his wisdom: he spoke three thousand parables and composed one thousand and five songs, knew plants from cedar to hyssop and all animals. The wisdom of Solomon came to hear from the most remote lands and brought him gifts. So, the queen of the Saveevs (Sava) came to him with rich gifts, tested his wisdom, examined everything that was noteworthy with him and said: “I did not believe what they told me about you. Now I confess that I was not told half of what I found.

Under the wise rule of Solomon, the Israelites lived in peace, each under his own vineyard and under his own fig tree, eating, drinking and having fun (Par. 8, 9).

Solomon's weaknesses, God's judgment on him and his repentance

Solomon's wives included foreign idolaters. To please them, Solomon built temples for idols, and in his old age he even began to participate with his wives in idolatry. For this, the Lord announced to him that most of his kingdom would be taken away from his family and given to another. Indeed, even during his lifetime, people began to appear who disturbed the tranquility of his kingdom.

Ader, a descendant of the kings of Edom, who was hiding in Egypt, returned to Idumea and established himself in it. Razon, the former commander of Adraazar, the king of Suva, then the leader of a gang of robbers, took possession of Damascus Syria.

The most dangerous enemy of Solomon was a certain Jeroboam of Ephraim. He was a laborer with other Ephraimites in building the walls of Jerusalem. As a man capable of deeds, Solomon made him an overseer of works. The Ephraimites were dissatisfied with these works. One day Jeroboam met the prophet Ahijah, an Ephraimite, in a field. Ahijah tore his new clothes into 12 pieces, gave him ten pieces of it and said: “Thus says the Lord: I will take the kingdom from the hands of the son of Solomon; I will give you 10 tribes, and I will leave him one tribe, for the sake of David. If you keep my commandments like David, then I will be with you and make your house strong like the house of David.” So Solomon wanted to kill Jeroboam, but he fled to Egypt.

At the end of his life, Solomon turned to God with repentance. The book of Ecclesiastes he wrote, in which he teaches that all temporary blessings are vanity, that the true good of a person is in the study and fulfillment of the law of God, remained a monument to his repentance. Solomon reigned for 40 years ().

The division of the kingdom of the Jews into two kingdoms: Judah and Israel (4529 from the creation of the world, 980 BC)

After Solomon's death, the Israelites gathered in Shechem and called there Solomon's son, Rehoboam, to rule over him. Jeroboam also came there and, standing with the people before Rehoboam, said: “Your father has put a heavy yoke on us; lighten us and we will serve you.” Rehoboam despised the advice of the elders who served under his father, and who advised him to please the people, to grant their request and to speak kindly to them, but he listened to his young advisers and severely answered the people: “The Father has put a heavy yoke on you, I will make this yoke still heavier; he punished you with whips, I will punish you with scorpions (scourges with needles). The people were offended by this answer, and the ten tribes chose Jeroboam the Ephraimite as their king. Only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin recognized Rehoboam as their king. Thus, the Jewish people were divided into two kingdoms: Judah and Israel (Par. 10, 11:1-4).

The callers of the dead were deceivers, ventriloquists who imitated the voice of the dead and spoke for them. When the sorceress undertook to lead Samuel out, she did not think that she would lead him out, but wanted to deceive Saul, as she deceived other superstitious people. But by the will of God, Samuel really appeared (.), And the woman, who did not expect this, herself was horrified

The burning of the bodies of the dead, the Israelis did only in extreme cases, when they wanted to protect them from desecration, or when there were a lot of them during a war or pestilence, and when an infection could occur from them

It may be that when Saul fell on his sword, the armor prevented him from killing himself, and the Amalekite actually killed him; but maybe the Amalekite lied, thinking to curry favor with David

This shows that the first king of the people of God was crowned with a crown. Bracelets were worn not only by women, but also by noble rich men.

There was no royal power in the tradition of the Jewish people. They led a nomadic lifestyle and from time immemorial were ruled by patriarchs, elders, judges... Since the time of Moses, a theocratic system of government has been built in Judea: people - elders - judges - high priest (sometimes a prophet next to him) - God. And it justified itself in those conditions. However, the transition to a settled life, the experience of communicating with neighboring peoples (Canaanites, Philistines ...), self-interest and the inability of the ruling elite to protect the people from the external expansion of the same neighbors led to the fact that the people demanded a king for themselves, turning to demand the appointment of a king to the highest authority of that time, the prophet Samuel.

Samuel, realizing that the new type of government threatened the future power of his sons, resisted this decision, but in the end he nevertheless made a choice in favor of the young man Saul, the son of Kish from a noble family with a good name from the small tribe of Benjamin. At first, Samuel secretly anointed him for the kingdom, and then after a while the lot fell on the anointed one before the people. This is how Flavius ​​Josephus tells the story of the election of Saul.

Saul ruled for about 20 years, and for the first time of his reign he acted according to the will of God, showing himself to be a worthy ruler. By many victories over his enemies, he won the love of the people. At first, he refused honors and in peacetime he himself plowed his field (1 Sam. 11:4). Over time, Saul stopped doing God's commands, becoming presumptuous, and the Spirit of God forsook him. Realizing this, he fell into a depression, and nothing pleased him. Samuel secretly anointed king David, close to the king, dispersing the king's blues with skillful playing on the harp.

Three sons of Saul fell in the battle of Gilboa. Surrounded by enemy archers and wounded by their arrows, Saul threw himself on his sword (1 Samuel 31:4).

David plays the harp in front of Saul.
Alexander Andreevich Ivanov. 1831 Paper pasted on paper and cardboard, oil. 8.5 x 13.5.
On a biblical story. Sketch of an unrealized painting.
Acquired in 1926 from the Rumyantsev Museum (donated by S. A. Ivanov in 1877). Inv. No. 7990.
State Tretyakov Gallery
http://www.tez-rus.net/ViewGood18360.html

The Witch of Endor summons the shadow of the prophet Samuel.
Dmitry Nikiforovich Martynov (1826-1889). 1857
Ulyanovsk Art Museum

The story of the sorceress of Endor is found in the First Book of Kings (chapter 28). It tells how, after the death of the prophet Samuel, the armies of the Philistines gathered to fight against Israel. The king of Israel, Saul, tried to ask God about the outcome of the battle, "but the Lord did not answer him either in a dream, or through the Urim, or through the prophets" (1 Sam. 28:6). Then he ordered the servants - "Find me a woman sorceress, and I will go to her and ask her." The servants found a sorceress at Endor, and Saul changed his royal clothes into simple ones, took two people with him and went to her at night.

“And [Saul] said to her, I beg you, turn me around and show me who I will tell you about. But the woman answered him: you know what Saul did, how he drove magicians and fortune-tellers out of the country; Why are you laying a net for my soul to destroy me? And Saul swore to her by the Lord, saying, As the Lord lives! you will not be in trouble for this matter. Then the woman asked: whom will you bring out? And he answered: Bring me Samuel. And the woman saw Samuel and cried out loudly; And the woman turned to Saul, saying, Why did you deceive me? you are Saul. And the king said to her: Do not be afraid; what do you see? And the woman answered: I see, as it were, a god coming out of the earth. What kind is he? [Saul] asked her. She said: an elderly man comes out of the earth, dressed in long clothes. Then Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he fell on his face to the ground and bowed down. (1 Sam. 28:8-14)"

Saul asked Samuel about what to do in the war with the Philistines, to which he received the answer - “why do you ask me when the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? The Lord will do what He spoke through me; The Lord will take the kingdom from your hands and give it to your neighbor David.” (1 Sam. 28:16-17). Samuel further prophesied that “tomorrow you and your sons [will] be with me.” Saul got scared and fell to the ground. The sorceress approached him, offered him bread, after persuasion the king agreed and the woman slaughtered his calf and baked unleavened bread. After eating, Saul left.

The next day, in the battle, the sons of Saul - Jonathan, Aminadab and Malchisua were killed, and the king himself committed suicide (1 Sam. 31:15). The first book of Chronicles reports that "Saul died because of his iniquity, which he did before the Lord, because he did not keep the word of the Lord and turned to the sorceress with a question" (1 Chronicles 10:13).

The sorceress of Endor summons the shadow of Samuel (Saul in the sorceress of Endor).
Nikolai Nikolaevich Ge. 1856 Oil on canvas. 288×341.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow

King David

David is the second king of Israel, the youngest son of Jesse. He reigned for 40 years (c. 1005 - 965 BC, according to traditional Jewish chronology c. 876 - 836 BC: seven years and six months was the king of Judea (with the capital in Hebron), then 33 years - the king united kingdom of Israel and Judea (with its capital in Jerusalem).The image of David is the image of an ideal ruler, from whose clan (on the male line), according to the Jewish biblical prophecies, the Messiah will come out, which has already come true, according to the Christian New Testament, which describes in detail the origin of the Messiah - Jesus Christ from King David The historicity of King David is a subject of debate among historians and archaeologists.

Tree of Jesse.
Mark Shagal. 1975 Oil on canvas. 130×81 cm.
Private collection

David and Goliath.
I. E. Repin. 1915 Paper on cardboard, watercolor, bronze powder. 22x35.
Tver Regional Art Gallery

Called to King Saul, David played the kinnor to drive away the evil spirit that tormented the king for his apostasy from God. After David, who came to the Israeli army to visit his brothers, accepted the challenge of the Philistine giant Goliath and slew him with a sling, thereby ensuring the victory of the Israelites, Saul finally took him to the court (1 Sam. 16:14 - 18:2).

Bathsheba.
Karl Pavlovich Bryullov. 1832 Unfinished painting. Canvas, oil. 173x125.5.
Acquired in 1925 from the Rumyantsev Museum (collection of K. T. Soldatenkov). Inv. No. 5052.
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow
http://www.tanais.info/art/brulloff6more.html

Bathsheba.
K.P. Bryullov. 1830s (?). Canvas, oil. 87.5 x 61.5.
Variant of the painting of the same name 1832 from the collection of the State Tretyakov Gallery
2 Samuel 11:2-4
On the left, on the crane, the signature: K. P. Brullo.
Received in 1907 from A. A. Kozlova (St. Petersburg). Inv. No. Zh-5083.

http://www.tez-rus.net/ViewGood36729.html

Around 1832, Karl Bryullov created a canvas that was a kind of result of his many years of creative searches in mythological and genre painting. Having conceived the painting "Bathsheba", he selflessly begins to work on it for four years. The author was overwhelmed with the desire to depict a naked human body in the rays of the setting sun. The subtle play of light and shadow penetrating the picture, the airiness of the environment surrounding the figure, did not prevent the author from giving the silhouette clarity and sculptural volume. In the painting “Bathsheba”, Bryullov skillfully depicts sensual erotica, frankly admiring every wrinkle on a slender body and every strand of fluffy thick hair like a man. In order to enhance the impression, the master applied a spectacular color contrast. We see how the whiteness of Bathsheba's matte skin is set off by the swarthy dark skin of an Ethiopian maid who gently clung to her mistress.

The painting is based on a plot from the Old Testament. In the Bible, "Bathsheba" is described as a woman of rare beauty. Walking on the roof of his palace, King David saw a girl below, who was naked and was ready to enter the waters of the marble pool. Struck by the unique beauty of Bathsheba, King David experienced passion. Bathsheba's husband at that time was away from home, serving in the army of King David. Not trying to seduce the king, Bathsheba nevertheless appeared at his order at the palace, and after their relationship, Bathsheba became pregnant. King David gave the commander of the army an order in which he ordered her husband to be sent to the hottest place where he would be killed. As a result, this happened, after which King David married Bathsheba. When they were born, their first child lived only a few days. David grieved for a long time and repented of his deed. Despite her high position and the status of David's most beloved wife, Bathsheba behaved very modestly and with dignity. Meanwhile, the Bible says that she had a great influence on the king, this is also proved by the fact that she convinced the ruler to appoint her eldest son Solomon as king. After a fierce struggle between his sons began for the throne of King David, she in every possible way contributed to the exposure of the fourth son of David, Adonijah, who sought to remove his father from the throne. Bathsheba had two sons, Solomon and Nathan. All her life she loved and was devoted to King David, becoming a wonderful wife and a good mother. art-on-web.ru

David and Bathsheba.
Mark Shagal. Paris, 1960. Lithograph, paper. 35.8×26.5

Song of Songs
Mark Shagal
Marc Chagall Museum, Nice

King David.
Mark Shagal. 1962–63 Oil on canvas. 179.8×98.
Private collection

King David.
V.L. Borovikovsky. 1785 Oil on canvas. 63.5 x 49.5.
At the bottom left is the date and signature: 1785 was written by Vladimir Borovikovsky.
Received: 1951 from the collection of R.S. Belenkaya. Inv. No. Zh-5864
State Russian Museum
http://www.tez-rus.net:8888/ViewGood34367.html

King Solomon

Solomon - the third Jewish king, the legendary ruler of the united kingdom of Israel in 965-928 BC. e., during its heyday. The son of King David and Bathsheba (Bat Sheva), his co-ruler in 967-965 BC. e. During the reign of Solomon in Jerusalem, the Jerusalem Temple was built - the main shrine of Judaism, later destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar. Traditionally considered the author of the Book of Ecclesiastes, the book Song of Solomon, the Book of Proverbs of Solomon, as well as some psalms. During the life of Solomon, uprisings of the conquered peoples (Edomites, Arameans) began; immediately after his death, an uprising broke out, as a result of which a single state broke up into two kingdoms (Israel and Judah). For the later periods of Jewish history, the reign of Solomon represented a kind of "golden age". The "sunlike" king was credited with all the blessings of the world - wealth, women, remarkable mind.

Judgment of King Solomon.
N.N. Ge. 1854 Oil on canvas. 147x185.
Kiev State Museum of Russian Art

The student program work "The Judgment of King Solomon" was made according to all academic canons, in a somewhat constrained and restrained manner.

Then two harlot women came to the king and stood before him. And one woman said: Oh, my lord! I and this woman live in the same house; and I gave birth with her in this house; on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth; and we were together, and there was no stranger with us in the house; only we two were in the house; and the woman's son died in the night, for she slept him; and she arose in the night, and took my son from me, while I, your servant, was sleeping, and laid him on her bosom, and laid her dead son on my bosom; I got up in the morning to feed my son, and behold, he was dead; and when I looked at him in the morning, it was not my son whom I gave birth to. And the other woman said: No, my son is alive, and your son is dead. And she told her: no, your son is dead, but mine is alive. And they spoke thus before the king.

And the king said, This one says, My son is alive, and your son is dead; and she says: no, your son is dead, and my son is alive. And the king said, Give me a sword. And they brought the sword to the king. And the king said, Cut the living child in two, and give half to one and half to the other. And that woman, whose son was alive, answered the king, for her whole inwardness was agitated from pity for her son: O my lord! give her this child alive and do not kill him. And the other said: let it not be either for me or for you, cut it down. And the king answered and said, Give this living child, and do not kill him: she is his mother. 1 Kings 3:16-27

Ecclesiastes or Vanity of Vanities (Vanity of Vanities and all Vanity).
Isaak Lvovich Asknazy. 1899 or 1900
Research Museum of the Russian Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg

The largest, most serious and last work of the artist was painted in 1900 - the painting "Ecclesiastes" or "Vanity of Vanities". She was exhibited even at the Paris Exhibition of 1900.
The painting depicts King Solomon of Jerusalem, sitting on the throne, his thoughts are gloomy, his lips whisper: "Vanity of vanities, all is vanity." The artist depicts the king as lonely, long abandoned by children. Only two faithful servants - a bodyguard and a secretary - remained with him. The servants are watching the movement of his lips with close attention, and the secretary writes down the sayings of the wise king on the board.

A well-balanced composition, a beautiful drawing, knowledge of the style of the depicted era - all indicate that the picture was made by the hand of a master. The oriental luxury of the decoration of the interior of the palace and the clothes of King Solomon sitting on the throne only emphasize the main idea of ​​the work: external splendor is all vanity. The work, to which Asknazy devoted six years of his life, was included in the exposition of the Russian Department at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1900. The author dreamed that the painting was purchased by the Academy of Arts for the Russian Museum of Emperor Alexander III. However, the painting, although bought for five thousand rubles, did not end up in the new museum, remaining in the academic collection. Numerous sketches and sketches for it were first shown at the "Posthumous Exhibition of Works by Academician I.L. Asknaziya", which opened in academic halls in 1903, which featured 110 paintings and more than 150 sketches and sketches. It was a personal exhibition of works by Isaac Asknazia. Parashutov

King Solomon.
Nesterov Mikhail Vasilyevich (1862 - 1942). 1902
Fragment of the painting of the drum of the dome of the church in the name of the Right-Believing Prince Alexander Nevsky
http://www.art-catalog.ru/picture.php?id_picture=15191

When the people of Israel settled in Canaan, God entrusted them with more freedom, the Israelites began to arrange their own lives. But, like teenagers, they went from one trouble to another. Then God intervened, calling from among the Israelites "judges" - leaders who helped them get out. But the time has come when the people decided to choose their own destiny and establish their own state.

Before this happened, the people were under the care of the last judge - Samuel. Interestingly, his power was completely informal: he was neither a king nor a high priest, although from early childhood he grew up at the Tabernacle (before the construction of the Jerusalem Temple, it was she who was the center of the Old Testament religion). All his authority rested on personal qualities, more precisely, on the will of God, which he revealed to the people. But when Samuel grew old, it turned out that he had no successor. His sons, as often happens, did not adopt their father's piety. Who will lead the people after his death?

And then the Israelis wanted stability, a firm hand, continuity of power. "Put a king over us to rule over us!" they demanded.

Samuel did not like this demand, and neither did God. Until now, only He could be called the King of Israel - the people that He saved from Egypt, literally created from a crowd of slaves, as He created Adam from the dust of the earth. But He allowed His people to do as they saw fit. "Listen to them," He said to Samuel, "for they rejected not you, but Me, so that I would not reign over them."

And Samuel said to the people: “The king who will reign over you will take your sons and put them in his chariots, and they will till his fields, reap his bread, make him weapons of war; and he will take your daughters to cook food and bake bread... and you yourselves will be his servants; and then you will groan at your king, but the Lord will not answer you then.”

The people were not bothered by this warning. It must be said that in ancient times, the monarchy was usually seen as not just another possible form of government. The absoluteness of royal power required some kind of justification, and it was easiest to say that the gods themselves ordered it to be established. And the king, accordingly, played the role of an intermediary between the world of the gods and the world of people. It is no coincidence that in the vast majority of ancient societies, kings were also high priests. Mesopotamian kings often declared themselves as the chosen ones and even children of various deities, and the Egyptian pharaoh was considered one of the main gods of Egypt.

For all the similarity of details, we do not see anything like this in the history of Israel. The people themselves choose a monarchical form of government, there is not even a hint of some kind of divinity in it. Moreover, from the very beginning, a boundary is drawn between the king and the priest: the king does not have to perform any rituals, he is the same person as everyone else. On the other hand, it is he who represents his people before God, therefore the Lord personally chooses him, helps him, but also asks him especially strictly. In fact, the earthly king of the chosen people is the vicar of the Lord as the true King.

The divine choice fell on a handsome young man named Saul (translated from Hebrew - "begged") from the tribe of Benjamin. In search of his father's missing donkeys, he turned to the prophet Samuel, who recognized him as the chosen one of the Lord. In those times, as today, people were often interested in prophets and priests in order to settle their earthly affairs. But at Samuel Saul found not donkeys, but royal dignity. The Prophet gave him a solemn dinner, left him to spend the night in his house, and in the morning he took him outside the city and poured a vessel of olive oil on his head - the anointing symbolized initiation into royal or priestly dignity. And only then, at a large solemn meeting of representatives of all the people, Saul was proclaimed king, when the lot indicated him. Such duality tells us: in fact, the Lord elects this or that person as ruler, and all public ceremonies only serve as a manifestation of His will.

As we can see, this system is completely different from modern republican elections, or medieval monarchies with the transfer of the country by inheritance, as if it were the private property of the sovereign. In the Bible, God retains sovereignty over Israel and simply appoints an earthly king as his vicar, whom he can remove if necessary, as later happened with Saul.

So, Saul ascended the throne and began to wage fairly successful wars with the surrounding nations. It would seem that the Israelites got what they were looking for: a king who led his people from victory to victory. But the dangerous aspects of tsarist power were revealed very soon.

Before a campaign or battle, the Israelites prayed to God and offered sacrifices to Him. The prophet Samuel led these sacrifices. Once he was delayed, the army was tired of inaction, people began to disperse, so Saul decided to take the initiative in his own hands and performed the ceremony on his own. Like the kings of the pagan nations, he behaved not only as a king, but also as a priest. From Samuel he had to listen to a severe reproach: he appropriated to himself a right that did not belong to him!

The next time Saul attacked the Amalekites, whom the Lord commanded to be completely exterminated, not even leaving military booty. The question of why the Lord gave such harsh commands is very complicated, and we will not fully analyze it here, we can only say very briefly: in those days, the wholesale extermination of civilians was a completely normal way of fighting. The preaching of peace and the signing of the Geneva Convention were absolutely impossible in that world. And the Lord gradually led the Israelites to an ethics closer to us, limiting their destructive anger only to those groups of people who really threatened Israel with complete extermination, physical or spiritual (that is, the dissolution of faith in the One in primitive and cruel paganism). Mahatma Gandhi in those days, unfortunately, could not be on earth.

But Saul and his army acted differently: the king of the Amalekites was left alive, and only the low value of the booty was destroyed. The warriors preferred to keep good livestock and expensive things for themselves - note that they were driven not by any humanism, but by elementary greed, the desire to arrange their fate according to their own whims. And then Samuel said to Saul: “Are burnt offerings and sacrifices as pleasing to the Lord as obedience? Obedience is better than sacrifice, and obedience is better than the fat of rams; for disobedience is as sinful as sorcery, and rebellion as much as idolatry; because you rejected the word of the Lord, and He rejected you so that you would not be a king.”

Saul remained on the throne for a long time. But now it was no longer his son who was destined to ascend the throne after him, and Saul's life itself was deprived of patronage from above. As the Bible describes it, "the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit troubled him." To appease their master, the courtiers found him a skilled musician, a young man named David. His story is a completely separate conversation, and we will return to it, but for now we are talking about Saul.

David became the armor-bearer and favorite musician of the king, who already knew that he was rejected by God, but did not yet realize that the handsome young man was his successor. Samuel secretly from everyone had already anointed David for the kingdom, but neither the will of God, nor even the rite of anointing, yet meant that David would immediately begin to rule. Often a promised gift from above comes to a person only after considerable effort. So it was with David.

In the meantime, the Israelites went to war with their constant enemies - the Philistines. As often happened in antiquity, they offered to hold a duel between two heroes and put up their fighter named Goliath. This fighter was about three meters tall, as the Bible describes (perhaps not without exaggeration), and his weapons and armor were unparalleled.

King Saul should have answered the challenge. After all, the Israelites asked for a king to lead the people in the war. But the king, who turned out to be unworthy of his calling before God, could not fulfill his obligations to the people in the same way. And then young David, the new king of Israel, whom no one knew then, volunteered to fight. He went into battle with the usual weapon of the shepherds - a sling - and hit his opponent with a well-aimed shot before he approached him. So Goliath forever became the image of a powerful, clumsy giant who is defeated by a lightly armed but flexible opponent. Or maybe it’s not just about fighting qualities, but also about what David said before the battle: “You go against me with a sword and a spear and a shield, and I go against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel.” The shepherd boy, who previously protected his flock from predators, became an instrument of God protecting His flock - the people of Israel.

After the victory, Saul needed to reward the young man, and the king married his daughter Michal to him. But he realized that from now on David is his rival, because the people, celebrating the victory, sang: "Saul defeated thousands, and David - tens of thousands!" Saul even tried to kill David himself, but his own children did not let him do it. First, David was warned about the danger by his wife Michal, and then by his best friend, Saul's son Jonathan.

Twice more Saul spoke to David, whom he, together with his army, unsuccessfully hunted through the mountains and deserts. Once Saul went to relieve himself in the cave where David's band was hiding. He hardly kept his soldiers from immediate reprisals and, sneaking up, cut off a piece of Saul's clothes. And then from afar he showed Saul this rag: he could have killed the worthless king, but he did not raise his hand against the anointed of God. The logic of palace coups was alien to him - the Lord elevates kings to the throne, even if the Lord brings them down.

Saul repented and asked for forgiveness from David, but he did not remain in this mood for long. Envy and malice have their own logic, and if a person succumbs to them, it is very difficult for him to get rid of their power later - soon Saul's detachment was again chasing David on his heels.

After some time, Saul went to another war with the Philistines. He felt how precarious his position was; before, the prophet Samuel had given him advice, but he had long since died. If only one could summon him from the grave! Why, there are always fortune-tellers and wizards who do such things ...

The Israelites were strictly forbidden to engage in occult practices. To be faithful to the One God means, first of all, not to resort to the help of all kinds of gods and spirits, how to be faithful to a spouse means not to start fleeting romances on the side. Once Saul expelled all the fortune-tellers from his kingdom, but now he himself turned to such a woman to summon the spirit of Samuel. He even had to pretend that it was not him, the formidable King Saul, but an ordinary person. The king finally lost his royal dignity. The sorceress agreed to "bring out" Samuel. The answer of the prophet to the desperate questions of the king sounded like this: “Why do you ask me when the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? The Lord will do what He spoke through me; The Lord will take the kingdom from your hands and give it to your neighbor David.”

Was it really Samuel? It is unlikely that the spirits of the dead come to us as servants at the first call. It could very well be the same evil spirit that previously found on Saul. But in any case, the spirit did not deceive him: in the battle that took place the next day, both Saul himself and his sons died. Turning to a fortune teller, Saul got what he was looking for - but it did not help him in any way.

And David, the founder of the eternal dynasty of Israeli kings, began to reign - but that's another story.