All these meetings result in marriages; but in this meeting, the girls direct Saul to Samuel, who would anoint Saul as king. The girls knew about the prophet’s arrival, where he was staying, and about the sacrifice. They were heralds who directed Saul to his destination. Similarly, when Joseph sought his brothers, he encountered a man in the field who had seen them and knew their final destination. In both episodes one senses God’s guiding hand, acting behind the scene and directing events. The sages point out that Saul asked the girls a brief question, “Is the seer here?” while the girls replied at length. The Gemara comments: “Because women are talkers, another answer: But Shmuel said: They delayed in order to gaze upon Saul’s handsomeness. As it is written about Saul: from his shoulders up, he was taller than any of the people.”44
Saul did not anticipate the meeting, but Samuel knew about it in advance (9:15–16). God revealed Saul’s arrival to Samuel, and instructed him to anoint Saul. Likewise, in the New Testament, God told John the Baptist that Jesus is the Messiah and he will baptize him (John 1:29–34). Ironically, when Saul met Samuel, and he says “tell me” (haggidah-na), the reader already knows that Samuel has to designate him as nagid/king. Therefore, when Saul says to Samuel “tell me” (haggidah-na li), it might mean “designate me.”
Samuel asked Saul to dine with him, at which time he will tell him everything that is on his mind. The narrator does not tell us that Saul asked about the donkeys per se, but we learn that they have been found. In addition, Samuel told Saul: “And to whom do the riches of Israel belong if not to you and to your father’s house” (9:20). Saul understood it as a reference to kingship. The people of Israel knew that Samuel was looking for a king. Therefore Saul said: “‘Am I not a Benjaminite?,’ i.e., from the smallest tribe of Israel and from the humblest clan of all the tribe of Benjamin? Then why have you spoken to me this way?” Saul claims he is unworthy, a typical response by people called for a mission by God, as did Moses (Exod 3:11) and Gideon (Judg 6:15).45
Saul is God’s anointed; therefore Samuel brought him to a sacrificial meal, placing him at the head of thirty guests. The number thirty is typological, and appears often in Judges and Samuel.46 The LXX and Josephus have seventy guests.47 Seventy is an artificial number identifying the guests with the institution of the “elders of Israel” that the Torah numbers seventy (Exod 24:1; Num 11:16, 24). Additionally, Adonijah held a banquet-sacrifice when he planned to succeed his father David as a king, while Absalom invited two hundred people to a banquet-sacrifice as part of his plan to become king (2 Sam 23:13, 18).
Saul sat at the head of the table as a form of introduction. Saul was introduced to those who would be his subjects. Similarly when Moses introduced Joshua as his successor, it reads: “Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and before the whole community, and commission him in their sight” (Num 27:19). At the meal, Saul received the “thigh of consecration”—that part of the sacrificial animal reserved for the priests and their families.48 He is the only king who received the “thigh of consecration,” and is treated as a priest as he is given the priestly share of the sacrifice (1 Sam 10:4). Leviticus (8:32) states that only Aaron and his sons are allowed to eat from this sacrifice, and what was not eaten had to be destroyed. C. H. Gordon points out that all guests were not equal in rank, which was indicated by the amount and quality of their serving. He terms it a “proportionate feast” with parallels in the Odyssey (8.98; 11.185).49 By giving Saul the “thigh of consecration,” Samuel indicated Saul’s future role.
The encounter between Saul and Samuel contains several motifs found in other prophetic stories. Samuel appears as a prophet; he knows what will happen to Saul on his return journey and whom he will meet (1 Sam 10:2, 3–4, 5–6, 10–11).50 Samuel prophesied that Saul would meet a band of prophets and prophesy along with them (1 Sam 10:5–6). Thus, like prophets, Saul becomes God’s messenger. Another element typical to the prophetic stories that we alluded to was the giving of a suitable gift for his consultation to the prophet (1 Sam 9:7–8; 1 Kgs 14:3; 13:7; 2 Kgs 5:15; 8:8–9).
Saul’s Anointing
Ramah
At the break of day, Samuel secretly anointed Saul. The servant is dispatched. Saul is left alone with Samuel. In the biblical literature, a divine call is depicted as a private experience. Samuel anointed David among his brothers (17:3–5, 13); Jehu was anointed by one of the disciples of the prophet Elisha (2 Kgs 9:10); Ahijah the Shilonite told Jeroboam that he would become the king when they were outside of Jerusalem (1 Kgs 11:29). On the other hand, the Bible reveals that the coronation ceremonies of Solomon (1 Kgs 1:32–39) and Joash of Judah (2 Kgs 11:12, 14) were public. The high priest, dignitaries, and representatives of the people participated. The high priest did the anointing while the people shouted praises.51
When Saul was anointed, he was not termed king (melek), but is given the title nāgîd. This has led some scholars to believe that Samuel and the tribal leaders never intended to elevate Saul to the kingship.52 However, the term nāgîd means a person chosen by God for kingship.
Samuel anointed Saul, which consisted in rubbing or smearing with oil. This act, it was believed, transferred the sanctity of the national god to the king. Anointing symbolized a covenant between God and the king, indicating that God would protect the king, and it bestowed legitimacy.
The sages believed that kings who formed a new dynasty, or renewed an interrupted dynasty, or kings with a disputed coronation, were anointed:
They anoint kings only on account of civil strife. Why did they anoint Solomon? Because of the strife of Adonijah. And Jehu? Because of Joram. And Joash? Because of Athaliah. And Jehoahaz? Because of Jehhoiakim his brother, who was two years older than he. A king requires anointing, [but] a son of a king does not require anointing. A high priest, son of a high priest, even up to the tenth generation, [nonetheless] requires anointing.53
Thus the question arises: why was there a need to hide the anointing of the first king of Israel since he did not usurp the office? According to Elat, the story of Saul’s secret anointing contains no historical truth.54 Its origin lies in a literary motif reflecting the social and political realities of Israel where prophets like Ahijah, Elijah, and Elisha fought against sinful kings. They anointed a person they believed was chosen by God, in place of a sinful king. It was the prophetic circles who, from the time of David and Solomon, acted and continued subsequently in the northern kingdom. This prophetic circle introduced Samuel as the father of their circle, who anointed the first king.55 Yet, we must stress that Saul did not replace a sinful king.
The anointing of Saul was done secretly and privately because there are two stages of the election depicted here. The first stage entailed divine designation before the proper enthronement ritual. Many times, the chosen person was young, weak, and felt unworthy. A private ceremony could encourage him and instill confidence in his ability to carry out his task successfully. The two-stage election is manifest with Jeremiah who says that he was selected from the womb, and later when he was young, was sent on a mission (Jer 1:5–6).56 Parallels exist in Egyptian and Mesopotamian traditions. Thut-Mose III claimed that the god Amon said that he would be upon his throne while he was
