And the next day Saul put the people in three companies. And they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch and struck down the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.
Saul's rescue of the town of Jabesh-gilead is his first act as king, and it looks flawless: fast, bold, and complete. Yet commentators ask more of it — who really won this battle, and were the Ammonites the enemy God sent Saul to fight?
The Night March
One writer works out the timing behind the sudden dawn attack:
Leslie M. GrantIn a very short time an army of 330,000 gathers, and word goes to Jabesh-Gilead that help will come on the third day. Considering a distance of over fifty miles, this was remarkably quick work. The army must have left before evening and marched overnight to arrive there by the time of the morning watch. But the men of Jabesh-Gilead gave the Ammonites no hint that help was coming. Instead they told them they would surrender the next day.
The "morning watch" is not a vague word for early. It names a fixed block of the night:
Morrish Bible DictionaryFrom 2 A.M. till sunrise. 1 Sam. 11:11.
Saul at His Best
One writer finds real skill in how Saul set up the attack:
Samuel RidoutSaul shows skill and wisdom in disposing his army in three companies. He does not rush, which is a good sign. Rising early, before daylight, shows a fixed purpose and care in taking the first step. That always points to victory ahead.
But the same writer warns against reading the Spirit's power on Saul as proof of a changed heart:
Samuel RidoutNotice first that the Spirit of God may come on someone in whom He has never done a saving work. The Old Testament gives examples of this, notably Balaam, who spoke God's whole mind about Israel while he himself was willing to curse them, and later plotted their downfall. So we must not think the Spirit who moved Saul was more than an outward power. The Spirit of God placed it on him because of his official position.
Whose Victory It Was
The writers trace the win past Saul to God. One calls it a public seal on the new king, and notes what the day did not include:
The Bible TreasuryGod puts His seal on Saul by this victory. The Spirit of God had come on him, and the fear of Jehovah fell on the people, so his message took hold: 330,000 men come at his call. But in all this there was no test of obedience. Saul was only clay in the hand of the Potter. On this, as on other occasions when the Spirit came on him, he was turned into another man. Yet this remarkable first victory showed how God would be with him if he were obedient.
Another writer sees this rescue as mercy to people who brought the crisis on themselves:
W. W. FeredayBut God is always merciful to His own, whatever sorrows and complications we may bring on ourselves by our folly... Oh, the goodness of our faithful God, who, whatever the fickleness and evil of His people, never forgets them in their hour of need!
Scattered, Not Two Together
The survivors could not even regroup in pairs. What Saul did next matters as much as the rout:
J. N. DarbyAs yet all goes well with Saul; he does not take vengeance on those who oppose him... Here also Saul acts with prudence and generosity. He refuses to let the people carry out their desire for vengeance. He acknowledges the Lord for the blessing given to the people. In truth God was with them. He gave the flesh every means and help needed for walking with Him, if such a thing had been possible.
The Wrong Enemy
The Ammonites were not the enemy God raised Saul up to fight:
William KellyBut remember: dealing with the Ammonite was not what God had in view, whether by man's king or God's king. The Philistine was not the Ammonite. In fact the law expressly exempted the Ammonite from destruction and spared him. This did not mean the Ammonites could attack God's people and go unpunished. But God's direct plan never included putting Ammon under Israel's rule.
Another writer turns that gap into a warning for us:
F G PattersonWe may do much, and on a large scale, and still not do our first works, or the work God has called us to. Look at Saul. God raised him up to deliver Israel out of the hands of the Philistines (1 Sam. 9:16). He slaughtered Ammon, "so that no two of them were left together" (1 Sam. 11:11); yet he failed at what God had set him to do.
Summary
- God moved. The march, the dawn attack and the rout all trace back to the Spirit coming on Saul. The victory showed how God would stand behind him if he obeyed.
- God gave. Israel's danger came from their own folly. God rescued them anyway, because He never forgets His people in their hour of need.
- God spared. The rout left no two Ammonites together, yet Saul killed none of his critics at home. He used the win with generosity, not revenge.
- God waited. This day tested nothing in Saul. He was clay in the Potter's hand, and the Spirit's power on him came with the office, not with a changed heart.
- God assigned. God raised Saul up against the Philistines, and Saul crushed Ammon instead. Great success in the wrong battle is still failure.