1 Samuel 9:1 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. 2 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.

Saul would be the very first king of Israel. We’re told in verse 2 that he was tall and handsome and came from a rich family – like a “king” from central casting. He would indeed serve as king of Israel for a time, but it didn’t go well. Despite his strong outward appearance Saul was weak on the inside. In the end he was not a good ruler and was replaced by a young man named David.

The question that emerges for me this morning is why God chose Saul in the first place if Saul didn’t have the inner fortitude to do a good job. People like Abraham and Moses were much better leaders, but only because God made them so. Saul received the Spirit of God, as we shall see in chapter 10, but it wasn’t enough. There was something fundamentally flawed in Saul from the get-go.

The writers of scripture will lay blame at Saul’s feet but I’m not sure that’s correct.