God's People: Saul

There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish son of Abiel son of Zeror son of Becorath son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite, a man of wealth. He had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he; he stood head and shoulders above everyone else.

 Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed to Samuel: “Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be ruler over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have seen the suffering of my people, because their outcry has come to me.” When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, “Here is the man of whom I spoke to you. He it is who shall rule over my people.” Then Saul approached Samuel inside the gate, and said, “Tell me, please, where is the house of the seer?” Samuel answered Saul, “I am the seer; go up before me to the shrine, for today you shall eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and will tell you all that is on your mind. ~ I Samuel 9:1-2;15-19
Enter the best villain in the Bible (in my humble opinion).

 Saul.

 Villain in a "love to hate him because he's so complex and tragic" kind of way. Not in a James Bond villain kind of way.

 He's more MacBeth and Darth Vader than Goldfinger.

 When we meet Saul today he is the hope of the future. The Israelites are finally going to have a king, and he seems just so perfect for the role. He's young, handsome, obedient. The prince charming all the maidens in fairy tales would want to marry. (or going back to my Star Wars comparison: Anakin Skywalker before the Emperor got a hold of him!)

 And all that promise is what makes his fall so difficult to see. It's what makes Saul's story so very tragic.

 Saul will lose his way. All that promise will disappear in a puff of smoke.

 He will forget who put him where he is.

 For all his failings, however, Saul remains for me a tragic figure worthy of compassion. He will lose his way, and yet we know the way is still being paved. We know that while we might sometimes forget God, God does not forget us.

 And I don't think God forgot Saul.
Prayer: God of mercy, sometimes I lose my way. I forget your promises and try to seek my own path. When I stray, bring me back again so that I remember again your boundless compassion. Amen.

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