Commentary - 1 Samuel 31:8-13

Bird's-eye view

In these closing verses of 1 Samuel, we are confronted with the grim and grisly aftermath of Israel's defeat on Mount Gilboa. This is not just the end of a battle; it is the end of an era. The death of Saul, the Lord's first anointed king over Israel, is here displayed with maximum shame and pagan glee. The Philistines, in their moment of triumph, engage in a ritualistic desecration of Saul's body, proclaiming their victory as a gospel for their false gods. This is the nadir of Israel's fortunes and the final, bitter fruit of Saul's disobedience.

But in the midst of this profound darkness, a flicker of light appears from an unexpected quarter. The men of Jabesh-gilead, remembering a kindness Saul had shown them at the very beginning of his reign, undertake a daring and valiant mission to rescue the bodies of Saul and his sons from public shame. Their actions are a testament to covenant loyalty, gratitude, and courage in a time of national cowardice and collapse. They provide an honorable end for a dishonorable king, and in doing so, point us to the nature of true faithfulness, a faithfulness that remembers and acts, even at great personal risk. This entire episode serves as a stark backdrop for the rise of David, and ultimately, for the coming of a greater King whose body, though shamed on a cross, would be honorably buried and gloriously resurrected, conquering death and shame forever.

Outline

Context In 1 Samuel

This passage is the culmination of the entire tragic arc of King Saul. His story began with such promise, a humble man chosen by God and anointed by Samuel. His first great military victory, tellingly, was the rescue of Jabesh-gilead (1 Samuel 11). But his reign was quickly marred by a series of disobedient acts: the unlawful sacrifice (1 Sam. 13), the rash oath (1 Sam. 14), and the climactic failure to utterly destroy the Amalekites as God commanded (1 Sam. 15). This last act led to God's rejection of him as king.

The rest of Saul's story is a downward spiral of paranoia, jealousy toward David, and spiritual decay, culminating in his desperate consultation with the witch of Endor (1 Sam. 28), where Samuel's spirit foretold this very doom. The events on Mount Gilboa are therefore not a random tragedy, but the righteous and prophesied judgment of God upon a covenant-breaking king. The shame inflicted by the Philistines is the external manifestation of the spiritual state of Saul and the nation under his failed leadership.

Key Issues

Verse by Verse Commentary

v. 8 Now it happened on the next day, that the Philistines came to strip the slain, and they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.

The battle is over. The noise has faded, and the next day dawns on a field of carnage. The Philistines come to do what victors do, which is to collect the spoils. This is business as usual, stripping armor, weapons, and anything of value from the dead. But in the course of this grim work, they stumble upon the ultimate prize. They find the bodies of Saul and his three sons. This was not an accident. God, in His sovereignty, ensured that the king's body would be found. The judgment on Saul was not to be a private affair. His fall had to be as public as his anointing. This is the final, undeniable evidence that God has removed His hand from the house of Saul.

v. 9 Then they cut off his head and stripped off his weapons and sent them all around the land of the Philistines, to proclaim the good news to the house of their idols and to the people.

Here the Philistine victory moves from the military to the theological. This is not simply about disrespecting a corpse; it is a calculated act of religious and political propaganda. By cutting off Saul's head, they are symbolically decapitating the nation of Israel. The head represents the authority, the leadership, the identity of the king. This is the same thing David did to Goliath, but now the tables are turned. The stripping of his weapons is the stripping of his power and glory.

And what do they do with these trophies? They "proclaim the good news." The Greek Septuagint uses the word from which we get "evangelize." The Philistines have their own gospel, their own good news. And what is it? That Dagon and Ashtaroth are greater than Yahweh. They send the news first to the "house of their idols" and then to the people. They understand, in a way that modern secularists do not, that all warfare is ultimately spiritual. They are giving glory to their demons for this victory. This is a demonic parody of the Great Commission.

v. 10 And they placed his weapons in the house of Ashtaroth and fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.

The propaganda tour continues. Saul's armor, the very symbol of his royal might, is offered as a tribute in the temple of Ashtaroth, their goddess of war. This is a public declaration that Yahweh's anointed has been defeated by their deities. The ultimate act of humiliation is fastening his headless body, and those of his sons, to the city wall of Beth-shan. This was a major city in a public place. The goal was to demoralize Israel completely, to make an example of their king. It is a picture of the curse found in Deuteronomy: "his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day, for he who is hanged is accursed of God" (Deut. 21:23). Saul, the covenant-breaking king, ends his life under a visible curse, displayed for all to see.

v. 11 Then the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,

While the rest of Israel is cowering in fear, abandoning their towns (v. 7), the news of this ultimate dishonor reaches a particular group of people across the Jordan. And they don't just hear it; it registers with them. Why them? Because they had a history with Saul. At the very beginning of his reign, when the Ammonites threatened to gouge out their right eyes and make them a reproach to all Israel, it was Saul who rallied the nation and delivered them (1 Samuel 11). They remembered. Gratitude is a long memory.

v. 12 so all the valiant men arose and walked all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and they came to Jabesh and burned them there.

Memory leads to action. Notice the description: "all the valiant men." These are men of courage and substance. While others fled, they arose. They undertook a perilous mission, traveling all night through enemy-controlled territory to the very city where the enemy was celebrating its triumph. This was no small thing. They risked their lives, not for a living king who could reward them, but for a dead and disgraced king to whom they owed a debt of honor. They did this to rescue the Lord's anointed from shame. This is covenant loyalty in its purest form.

They take the bodies down and bring them back to Jabesh. The act of burning the bodies was unusual for Israelites, who practiced burial. The most likely reason is that the bodies were in a state of advanced decay and mutilation, and burning was the only practical way to prevent further dishonor and prepare the remains for a proper burial. It was an act of reverent necessity.

v. 13 And they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.

After the burning, they gather the bones for a proper burial. They are not treating the king's remains lightly. They bury them under a tamarisk tree, which is significant. Saul had held court under a tamarisk tree in Gibeah (1 Sam. 22:6). This act brings his tragic story full circle, providing a quiet resting place in the land of those who remembered his initial goodness. And they "fasted seven days." This was a formal, public act of deep mourning. They were not just cleaning up a mess. They were grieving the fall of their king. In a nation defined by apostasy and cowardice, the men of Jabesh-gilead are a portrait of faithfulness.

Application

The end of Saul is a sobering picture of the consequences of disobedience. When a leader, or a nation, turns from God's commands, the end is ruin and shame. The world will always have its own "gospel" to proclaim when the people of God fall, and it is a gospel that gives glory to idols and demons. We must not be surprised when the enemies of God celebrate our failures with glee. The wages of sin is death, and sometimes that death is played out on the public stage.

But the central application here comes from the men of Jabesh-gilead. They teach us the profound virtue of gratitude and loyalty. They remembered one great act of deliverance from forty years before, and it compelled them to risk everything. How often do we forget the past kindnesses of others, or more importantly, the foundational deliverance God has given us in Christ? Our loyalty to Christ and His Church should be no less valiant. It should compel us to act with courage, to defend the honor of His name, and to serve His people, even when it is costly or unpopular.

Finally, Saul's shameful end cries out for a better King. It points us to David, who would recover Israel's honor. But ultimately, it points us to Jesus Christ. He too was stripped, shamed, and fastened to a "wall," the cross, bearing the curse for us. But unlike Saul, His enemies did not have the last word. His body was rescued, not by valiant men, but by the power of God. He was honorably buried, and on the third day, He rose from the dead, victorious over sin, shame, and the grave. Saul's story shows us the depth of our need, and Christ's story shows us the height of God's provision. The failed king makes us long for the eternal King.