LESSON 7: SAUL AS THE FIRST KING OF ISRAEL
Lesson 7 – Saul as the First King of Israel
Samuel grew up to become a prophet of Yahweh. One day Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on a man’s head, kissed him, and said, “Is it not because the Lord had anointed you commander over His inheritance?”
Do you know on whose head Samuel poured the oil?

There was a man named Saul, son of Kish from the Benjamin tribe. It was on Saul’s head that Samuel poured the oil and anointed him as the king of Israel. He was the most handsome person among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
Now Saul went in search of his father’s donkeys which were lost. He also took a servant with him. They went to many places but could not find the donkeys. Finally, they reached Zuph, where they came to know about a man of God. They went in search of the seer (prophet) to find their donkeys. They came to Samuel, who was the seer. As soon as Saul approached Samuel, Samuel recognised the man, as the day before God had told Samuel about this man,
“Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him, commander, over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have looked upon My people because their cry has come to Me.”
After being anointed, Saul went to the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is. There was a group of prophets coming down from high places with stringed instruments. Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Saul and he started prophesying. Seeing this, everyone was surprised. When he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart.
Samuel gathered all the Israelites together. They voted to select a new king for them. They selected the name of Saul, son of Kish from the Benjamin tribe. Samuel introduced Saul, the selected one to the crowd. All the people shouted and said, “Long live the king!” This was how Saul was anointed as the first king of Israel.



Note to Teachers:
- The students must realize that God has a plan for our lives and that everything that happens in our lives would be for our best, and that we are safe in His hands.

Fill in the Blanks:
(Benjamin, handsome, Saul, Samuel, another heart)
- ____________________ is the first king of Israel.
- ____________________ appointed Saul as the king.
- God gave Saul ____________________.
- Saul was the most ____________________ person in Israel.
- Saul belonged to ____________________ tribe.
Make a Flowchart:
