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Word in the Wild is a one year Bible adventure with friends. Join from anywhere and enjoy a fun, rewarding, and doable 12-month journey through the Bible where you read it from cover to cover and understand it. It’s not a devotional or recap. It’s a guide by your side through God’s Word. With support from a weekly podcast and an online community of fellow travelers, this is the year when you finally explore the Bible in its own words and on its own terms for yourself.
This is Word and the Wild...a one year Bible adventure with friends. My name is Owen. I'm your host and your guide, and together we are on a 12-month journey as a podcast plus community...where we read the Bible for ourselves, but not by ourselves.
We are here in WEEK 17... This week... Why we are seeing double as we move through the story this week and what Saul's tragic story tells us about what God really wants from us as people
So... hello and welcome we're rolling though this journey together. It's not a recap where we feed you bite-sized bits of the Bible... No this is free-wheeling walk where we watch the story the Bible unfold like the epic movie it is... So, subscribe here on your favorite podcast platform and share with a friend.
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Why are we reading a lot of things twice?
We are well on our way here in this epic adventure. You're a seasoned veteran of the trail. But, you may have encountered something here in the past week or so that makes you wonder...
Am I seeing double?
No, you're eyes aren't playing tricks on you. It's true. There are many times in our reading right now where the stories are repeated twice. What's up with that?
It's just our chronological Bible doing its job. In a traditional Bible, these stories about the kings of Israel and Judah get repeated in two sets of books. Both in 1 & 2 Samuel and in 1 & 2 Chronicles. Our chrono Bibles are taking us through the Bible from cover to cover in story order. So, it bundles the stories from 1 & 2 Samuel together with the same stories from 1 & 2 Chronicles and puts both accounts back-to-back.
What's the point of doubling up on these stories? Well, 1 & 2 Samuel are a running account of the events of Samuel, Saul, and David's life, recorded close to when the events originally took place.
After 2 Samuel, the books of 1 & 2 Kings will pick up the historical record and move the story forward.
1 & 2 Chronicles has a different purpose. They were most likely written a little later in the history of God's people. A time when the Israelites have lost their grip on the Promised Land and are in exile. 1 & 2 Chronicals serve as a recap of the Israelite's relationship with God and are kind of of a post-mortem of how things went wrong. They are a look back at history with 20/20 hindsight on how the decisions of the people in the story pan out.
Can I give you an example? Let's take one from the life of Saul. Or, more tragically... from the death of Saul. Such a tragic figure. His death on Mount Gilboa and the events surrounding feel like something right out of Shakespeare.
The writer of 1 Samuel gives this grim and stripped down account of Saul's final moments in chapter 31:
“Saul groaned to his armor bearer, “Take your sword and kill me before these pagan Philistines come to run me through and taunt and torture me.” But his armor bearer was afraid and would not do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it. When his armor bearer realized that Saul was dead, he fell on his own sword and died beside the king."
Then, 1 Samuel summarizes the aftermath of the the action in the next verse:
"So Saul, his three sons, his armor bearer, and his troops all died together that same day.”
(1 Samuel 31:4–6 NLT-SE)
Now, listen to that same story through the lens of 1 Chronicles 10. See if you can catch the added detail:
“Saul groaned to his armor bearer, “Take your sword and kill me before these pagan Philistines come to taunt and torture me.”
But his armor bearer was afraid and would not do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it. When his armor bearer realized that Saul was dead, he fell on his own sword and died.
So Saul and his three sons died there together, bringing his dynasty to an end.” (1 Chronicles 10:4–6)
Did you spot the difference? Same story, but 1 Chronicles has the added perspective of history. It wasn't just a tragic day for Saul and his sons. It was a fateful day in the history of God's people. The results of the battle on Mt. Gilboa is not just the end of Saul's life. It's the end of his royal dynasty, as well.
Chronicles often adds this extra layer of perspective to the stories we encounter. This view looking back from the future can help us understand the point of the story.
For example, if we keep reading the aftermath of Saul's death, Chronicles gives us the bottomline of Saul's plot line. While 1 Samuel ends this episode of the story with Saul and his sons' burial... Chronicles is able to add this epitaph:
“So Saul died because he was unfaithful to the LORD. He failed to obey the LORD’s command, and he even consulted a medium instead of asking the LORD for guidance. So the LORD killed him and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse.”
(1 Chronicles 10:13–14)
It's a handy segue from Saul's reign to David's. It's also a stark summary of Saul's life and exactly what went wrong.
So, when you feel like you're seeing double on the trail in the weeks ahead, look for the bonus content that Chronicles often provides. More context means more clarity. Just like seeing with both your right and left eyes gives you better perspective.
Lessons from Saul....Friendship with God
Speaking of perspective, Saul really pulls some big ideas about God into focus, doesn't he?
We zoomed through about 300 years of history in the book of Judges in just a week's time. Now, we've slowed down to soak in multiple weeks on the lives of Saul and David.
That's because Saul and David's stories serve up key insights into the Bible's main plot: How does a person establish and maintain a relationship with God.
We will see more on this from David this week. But, for now, it's worth a look into what we learn about what it's like to relate to God from Saul. Sometimes we learn from an example of what to do. Other times, we learn from examples of what NOT to do. Saul is definitely in the "what not to do" category.
We might feel like we are far from pulling some of the stunts Saul pulls. We don't command armies, make political alliances, or hold court in a palace.
But, like Saul, we have a relationship with God. And, like Saul, we may make the mistake of substituting religious activity for a living breathing relationship with him.
That was Saul's hang up.
Remember when God told Saul to destroy the Amalekites and all their livestock? Saul didn't do it. He decided to keep the best and offer God the rest.
After this willful blunder, God profound statement through his prophet, Samuel. God explains what he's after when it comes to a relationship with Saul. Take a listen:
““What is more pleasing to the LORD: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice?
Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.
Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft, and stubbornness as bad as worshiping idols. So because you have rejected the command of the LORD, he has rejected you as king.””
(1 Samuel 15:22–23)
True friendship is God's heart. And loyalty is foundational to friendship. God speaks. He wants Saul to listen and then speak back to him.
But Saul keeps God at arms length. He keeps God in the realm of ritual and religion. He sees God as a bargaining partner, not a walking partner.
Saul wants God to be an ally. God wants to be Saul's friend.
It's a common pattern for God's people. In fact, statements like the one Samuel made to Saul become a drumbeat repeateded frequently in the Old Testament. As we get further into the story, we will hear statements like these from God to his people:
““I hate all your show and pretense— the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies.
I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings. I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings.
Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps.
Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living.” (Amos 5:21–24)
Religious people will make an elaborate show of costly offerings to God. Big gifts. Big productions.
Religious people will give God anything... other than what God wants. Loyal, honest, authentic friendship from the heart.
God's house and David's house
Now, as we look ahead this week, we're going to see some conversation about David's house and God's house. And there's a double meaning in there. House -- meaning a place to live. And, "house" meaning a royal dynasty that is carried on by their descendants.
Meanwhile, we saw some cracks in David's approach to his home and family life last week. This week, those cracks widen into canyons. BUT.... even though David's "house" becomes a mess, we learn the secret to maintaining a sustaining relationship with God. And, God promises to establish David's "house" forever.
OUTRO
And that's our launch point this week. It's been a real pleasure to be with you. I'm grateful for the opportunity. If you love it... share it with someone you know... throw a little something in the tip jar... and make sure you've subscribed.
All you Word and the Wild PLUS community members, special thanks to you for your financial support of this non-profit endeavor. You guys are real gems. I'll be seeing you in THE WILD... our private online community space.... this week.
Word and the Wild is a LineHouse Community. It's part of the LineHouse Community Network, a nonprofit organization with a mission to bring neighbors together to promote awareness, appreciation, and understanding of the Bible.
Because friendship and God's Word change lives and change cities.
And... presented by the LumaVoz podcast network.
And with that, we're out. I'm Owen, I'm your host and your guide. Until next time, I'll see you out there on the trail in the Word and the Wild.