Saul Annointed King: For Ages 8 – 13 Years Old

1 Samuel 9 and 10

 ^1-2 There was a man from the tribe of Benjamin named Kish. He was the son of Abiel, grandson of Zeror, great-grandson of Becorath, great-great-grandson of Aphiah—a Benjaminite of stalwart character. He had a son, Saul, a most handsome young man. There was none finer—he literally stood head and shoulders above the crowd!

 ^3-4 Some of Kish’s donkeys got lost. Kish said to his son, “Saul, take one of the servants with you and go look for the donkeys.” Saul took one of the servants and went to find the donkeys. They went into the hill country of Ephraim around Shalisha, but didn’t find them. Then they went over to Shaalim—no luck. Then to Jabin, and still nothing.

…………………………………………………………..

 ^15-16 The very day before, God had confided in Samuel, “This time tomorrow, I’m sending a man from the land of Benjamin to meet you. You’re to anoint him as prince over my people Israel. He will free my people from Philistine oppression. Yes, I know all about their hard circumstances. I’ve heard their cries for help.”

 ¹⁷ The moment Samuel laid eyes on Saul, God said, “He’s the one, the man I told you about. This is the one who will keep my people in check.”

………………………………………………………..

^19-20 “I’m the Seer,” said Samuel. “Accompany me to the shrine and eat with me. In the morning I’ll tell you all about what’s on your mind, and send you on your way. And by the way, your lost donkeys—the ones you’ve been hunting for the last three days—have been found, so don’t worry about them. At this moment, Israel’s future is in your hands.”

……………………………………………..

 ²⁷ As they approached the outskirts of town, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell your servant to go on ahead of us. You stay with me for a bit. I have a word of God to give you.”

………………………………………………………

 ^1-2 Then Samuel took a flask of oil, poured it on Saul’s head, and kissed him. He said, “Do you see what this means? God has anointed you prince over his people.

    “This sign will confirm God’s anointing of you as prince over his inheritance: After you leave me today, as you get closer to your home country of Benjamin, you’ll meet two men near Rachel’s Tomb. They’ll say, ‘The donkeys you went to look for are found. Your father has forgotten about the donkeys and is worried about you, wringing his hands—quite beside himself!’

 ^3-4 “Leaving there, you’ll arrive at the Oak of Tabor. There you’ll meet three men going up to worship God at Bethel. One will be carrying three young goats, another carrying three sacks of bread, and the third a jug of wine. They’ll say, ‘Hello, how are you?’ and offer you two loaves of bread, which you will accept.

 ^5-6 “Next, you’ll come to Gibeah of God, where there’s a Philistine garrison. As you approach the town, you’ll run into a bunch of prophets coming down from the shrine, playing harps and tambourines, flutes and drums. And they’ll be prophesying. Before you know it, the Spirit of God will come on you and you’ll be prophesying right along with them. And you’ll be transformed. You’ll be a new person!

 ⁷ “When these confirming signs are accomplished, you’ll know that you’re ready: Whatever job you’re given to do, do it. God is with you!

……………………………………………….

 ⁹ Saul turned and left Samuel. At that very moment God transformed him—made him a new person! And all the confirming signs took place the same day.

……………………………………………

 ^20-21 After Samuel got all the tribes of Israel lined up, the Benjamin tribe was picked. Then he lined up the Benjamin tribe in family groups, and the family of Matri was picked. The family of Matri took its place in the lineup, and the name Saul, son of Kish, was picked. But when they went looking for him, he was nowhere to be found.

 ²² Samuel went back to God: “Is he anywhere around?”

    God said, “Yes, he’s right over there—hidden in that pile of baggage.”

 ²³ They ran and got him. He took his place before everyone, standing tall —head and shoulders above them.

 ²⁴ Samuel then addressed the people, “Take a good look at whom God has chosen: the best! No one like him in the whole country!”

    Then a great shout went up from the people: “Long live the king!”

 ²⁵ Samuel went on to instruct the people in the rules and regulations involved in a kingdom, wrote it all down in a book, and placed it before God. Then Samuel sent everyone home.

 ^26-27 Saul also went home to Gibeah, and with him some true and brave men whom God moved to join him. But the riffraff went off muttering, “Deliverer? Don’t make me laugh!” They held him in contempt and refused to congratulate him. But Saul paid them no mind.

• Do you know that God has a special plan for your life, just like he did for Saul? Maybe not to be a king, but that doesn’t make it any less important.

• Have you ever felt like you are too young or not good/smart/important enough to do what God has asked you to do?

Discuss Jeremiah 1: 5-8  

⁵“Before I shaped you in the womb,
   I knew all about you.
Before you saw the light of day,
   I had holy plans for you:
A prophet to the nations—
   that’s what I had in mind for you.”

 ⁶But I said, “Hold it, Master God! Look at me.
   I don’t know anything. I’m only a boy!”

 ^7-8God told me, “Don’t say, ‘I’m only a boy.’
   I’ll tell you where to go and you’ll go there.
I’ll tell you what to say and you’ll say it.
   Don’t be afraid of a soul.
I’ll be right there, looking after you.”

• Have you ever wanted to hide, like Saul did?

• Is it really important what people think, or is doing what will please God more important to you?

Activity

Print out a gameboard for each child. Give them either tokens or markers to mark off squares for the questions they get right. The first child to get two connected rows of five wins. The rows can be in any direction- sideways,  up and down, or diagonal.

(To print the gameboard and directions, click on the images below to make them larger, then right-click and select either “Save as” or “Print Picture”.)