The Lord Shows Israel that Saul Will Be King

¹⁷ Samuel sent messengers to tell the Israelites to come to Mizpah and meet with the Lord. ¹⁸ When everyone had arrived, Samuel said:

The Lord God of Israel told me to remind you that he had rescued you from the Egyptians and from the other nations that abused you.

¹⁹ God has rescued you from your troubles and hard times. But you have rejected your God and have asked for a king. Now each tribe and clan must come near the place of worship so the Lord can choose a king.

²⁰ Samuel brought each tribe, one after the other, to the altar, and the Lord chose the Benjamin tribe. ²¹ Next, Samuel brought each clan of Benjamin there, and the Lord chose the Matri clan. Finally, Saul the son of Kish was chosen. But when they looked for him, he was nowhere to be found.

²² The people prayed, “Our Lord, is Saul here?”

“Yes,” the Lord answered, “he is hiding behind the baggage.”

²³ The people ran and got Saul and brought him into the middle of the crowd. He was more than a head taller than anyone else. ²⁴ “Look closely at the man the Lord has chosen!” Samuel told the crowd. “There is no one like him!”

The crowd shouted, “Long live the king!”

²⁶ “No!” Samuel replied, “You disobeyed the Lord, and I won't go back with you. Now the Lord has said that you can't be king of Israel any longer.”