The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1915-04-02
by the Lord.

\ II
been the beginning
of Saurs rejection Slaughter of the
by the Lord.
Although the Lord, through the
Prophet Samuel, announced King
Sauls rejection, the prediction was evil
IDENTIFY not fulfilled for several years
afterward. Quite possibly the king
was properly exercised by his rejec-
ton and became more attentive to the
Divine will; and David, who was prob
ably anointed about this time, was not
yet sufficiently developed to be the
Lords representative in SauIs stead.
King Saul's next severe trial was in
connection with the Amalekites,
fierce nomadic people who had on sew
eral occasions done injury to Israel.
In sending the message TO the king.
the Lord gave special instructions that
the Amalekites should be utterly de-
stroyed. He also specified thatthe de-
struction was on account of Amalek's
opposition to Israel in the way when
the Israelites came out of Egypt, sew
eral centuries before.
Was Their Condemnation Just?
This narrative is seized upon by
skeptics to prove that If God should
| thus command the Wholesale slaughter
| Of human creatures and dumb animals,
He must be lacking in justice, pity,
sympathy and love. There is but one
answer to this matter, and it should
be satisfactory to all who understand
| 1T. 1t is this:
The slaughter Of the Amalekites did
not mean, as usually inferred, that they
went forthwith to eternal torture. To
them, death had the same meaning that
it had to their cattle-a termination of
whatever was desirable in the present
life. Slaughtered by the sword, the
Amalekites suffered far less than IL
they had died Of Hunger or disease.
All went down to the great prison-house
of death-Sheol, Hades, the tomb.
God had already arranged a great
redemption, not only for the Amale-
kites, but for all mankind. That re-
demption. secured by the great sacrifice
Of Christ centuries after their death.
will by and by secure to them release
from their imprisonment-an awaken
ing from the death sleep. They will be
amongst those mentioned by our Lord,
saying, "All that are in their graves
shall hear the voice Of the Son Of God
and shall come forth" They will come
forth under much more favorable con-
ditions, to learn OF Divine grace in
Christ and to be amongst the families
Of the earth to he blessed by the Seed
Of Abraham-Spiritua Israel
King Sauls Wilful Disobedience.
In this trial King Saurs error was
his failure to carry out the Lords com,
mands explicitly. He slew oil the
Amalekites except the king, whom he
kept alive, possibly thinking to exhibit
him in triumphal display. As for the
fioclSs and herds, he consented with his
people to spare all that were good and
desirable. At this juncture the Prophet
Samuel arrived. and the colloquy OF
our lesson ensued.
The Prophets Indignation and the
Lords positive statement clearly 1ndl
cate that King Saul had not misunder
stood his instructions. but had deliber
ately violated them. Consequently his
words to the Prophet must have beer
to great extent hypocritical. The
Prophet stopped the King in his ex
PLANTATION, and told him I'm the Lords
words Of the night preceding-in Jew
ish reckoning this night" becaus.
their day begins In the evening.
King Saul sought to defend hi
course and to lay the responsibility
upon the hosts of Israel. The Proph
cts answer is the pith of tOday'l