1 Samuel 11:1 - Meaning and Application

The Ammonites were bad neighbors to the Israelite tribes near them, even though they were descendants of Lot. For that reason, Israel had been to them as fair and gentle as possible (Deuteronomy 2:19). Jephthah had humbled them in his day, but now Israel’s own sin had given them room to rise again and take revenge.

Jabesh-Gilead had once been destroyed by Israel’s sword of justice because it did not join in opposing the evil at Gibeah (Judges 21:10). Now it had been rebuilt, likely by descendants of those who had escaped that earlier destruction, and it was again in danger, this time from the Ammonites. It seemed as if trouble kept returning to that place. Nahash, the king of Ammon (1 Chronicles 19:1), laid siege to it.

The people under siege asked for terms of peace (1 Samuel 11:1). They said, “Make a covenant with us, and we will surrender and serve you.” They had lost the spirit of true Israelites, or else they would not have lost their courage so easily. If they had not broken their covenant with God and turned from His service, they would not have needed to beg a pagan nation for protection and offer themselves as servants.

The besiegers answered with cruel and shameful terms. They would spare the people’s lives and take them as servants, but only if each man allowed his right eye to be put out (1 Samuel 11:2). The men of Gilead were ready to give up their freedom and property just to save their lives, and if the Ammonites had accepted that, the matter would have ended there. But their humble offer only made the Ammonites more arrogant.

The demand to remove the right eye served three cruel purposes. First, it would cause severe pain. Second, it would disable the men for war, though not for ordinary labor, since that would still benefit their masters. In battle, soldiers used shields in the left hand, which covered the left eye, so a man without his right eye would be badly blinded. Third, it would shame all Israel by showing weakness and cowardice, because they would let one of their chief cities be abused without rescue.

The people of Jabesh-Gilead asked for seven days to think about the offer, and they got it (1 Samuel 11:3). If Nahash had refused, they may have become desperate and chosen to die fighting rather than yield to such merciless enemies. But he thought no help could come in so short a time. He was so sure of himself that he granted the delay, hoping the shame on Israel would be even greater and his own victory more impressive. In God’s providence, his confidence would become the means of his downfall.

News of the siege was sent to Gibeah. The messengers had said they would go through all the towns of Israel, which made Nahash feel even safer, since he thought that would take time and that no one would act without a leader. Perhaps he had not yet heard of Saul, the newly chosen king. But the messengers went straight to Gibeah instead. When they found Saul was not there, they told the people, and everyone wept when they heard the news (1 Samuel 11:4). They were quicker to mourn their brothers’ danger than to help them. They shed tears for them, but not blood. They wept because they felt helpless, and because they feared that if Jabesh-Gilead fell, the enemy would push farther into the heart of their land.