Gospel Reflections #1024: To Follow Him Despite the Suffering

1 Samuel 31:6 ‘On that very day, Saul and his three sons, his servants, and all his men fell.’

This scripture records the tragic moment when the reign of Saul, the first king of Israel, came to a complete end. 

Saul was originally chosen by God to be king, but he gradually began to disregard God’s commands and instead followed his own pride and his fear of what others thought of him (his desire for approval).

In his later years, he lost God’s favour and had fallen so low that he resorted to consulting a medium, which was forbidden.

The ‘total annihilation of Saul and his army’ described in verse 6 symbolises the ‘tragic end point of a man who turned away from God and lived relying on his own strength’. 

The most heart-rending aspect of this verse is that even his son Jonathan, a man of deep faith and righteousness, ‘died with him’ in a battle that could be seen as the consequence of his father Saul’s sin.

The Bible often teaches us the harsh reality that the disobedience and poor judgement of leaders or parents have a serious knock-on effect (impact) not only on themselves but also on the innocent people around them and on future generations. 

Although the downfall of the house of Saul is a great tragedy from a human perspective, within God’s history of salvation (His plan of salvation), it marks a crucial turning point: ‘the end of the old era and the dawn of the new era of King David’.

Even when it appears that a nation has collapsed due to human failure or sin, it is shown thereafter that God’s plan for His kingdom continues unbroken, moving on to the next stage.

1 Samuel 31:6 is a passage that strongly warns us of ‘the importance of humbling ourselves before God, not following our own ego or pride, but heeding and obeying His Word’.

This does not mean that those who faithfully follow God will be spared from disaster or suffering; rather, it means that God guides us so that we may choose to follow Him, even at the cost of our lives, as Jonathan did.

We should strive to focus our eyes on God’s plan behind the events unfolding before us.

AUTHOR'S BIO: This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San, who resides in Hiroshima, Japan. Masae is a dedicated student of the Bible with a deep passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on Gospel perspectives to reach out to others and spread the message of God's true love through a Christ-centered approach. We are sharing her insights here so that you, too, can experience the joy that comes from knowing and understanding the true Gospel and the love of God through Jesus Christ.