1 Samuel 31:8 - Meaning and Application

The Bible says nothing here about what became of Saul and his sons after death. Secret things belong to God, and we are only told what happened to their bodies.

The day after the battle, when the Philistines had rested, they came to strip the dead. Among the bodies they found Saul and his three sons (1 Samuel 31:8). Saul’s armor-bearer may have meant to honor his master by copying his suicide, and to prove his loyalty. But if he had listened to reason instead of his emotions, he would have spared himself that foolish act, and he might also have served Saul better afterward by hiding and burying the bodies.

People often have strange ideas about what counts as honor. Saul himself may also have been able to escape the fatal wound, since the pursuers he feared did not reach him until the next day. But when God plans to destroy someone, he leaves that person trapped by terror and confusion (Job 18:5). The Philistines found Saul’s body, and because it stood out by its size, they aimed their shameful revenge at it. They meant to insult the king who had once made them afraid.

First, they cut off his head. If they had wanted revenge for Goliath’s death, they would have been better off striking at David, who had done the killing and later lived among them for a time. Their purpose was to dishonor Israel in general, since Israel had hoped that a crowned and anointed king would save them from the Philistines. It was also a special insult to Saul, who was taller than other men and may have prided himself on that.

Second, they stripped off his armor and sent it away as a trophy of victory, placing it in the temple of Ashtaroth, their goddess (1 Samuel 31:9-10). First Chronicles adds that they fastened his head in the temple of Dagon (1 Chronicles 10:10). In this way, they gave credit for their success to false gods instead of to the true God, who alone rules over events. Ashtaroth, the idol Israel had often chased after, now stood over them in triumph.

Third, they sent messengers through their land and announced the victory in the houses of their gods, so that public celebrations and thanks could be offered to those false gods (1 Samuel 31:9). David later grieved deeply over this dishonor, saying, “Tell it not in Gath” (2 Samuel 1:20).

Fourth, they fastened Saul’s body and the bodies of his sons to the wall of Beth Shan, a city near the Jordan River (1 Samuel 31:12). There they left the bodies hanging in chains, exposed to birds of prey. Saul had killed himself to avoid being abused by the Philistines, yet his body was abused more than he could have imagined. Anyone who tries to save honor by sin will surely lose it.

The Philistines were proud and cruel at this point, just before David rose to power and completely defeated them. They thought that, after killing Saul and his sons, Israel was theirs forever. But they were mistaken. When God has used one people to carry out his work, he can also turn against them in judgment (Isaiah 10:6-7).

The bodies were rescued in a brave night mission by the men of Jabesh-Gilead. Only the Jordan River separated Beth Shan from their city, and the river could be crossed at its fords. So these courageous men crossed over in the night, took down the bodies, and gave them a proper burial (1 Samuel 31:11, 13).

They acted from a concern for the honor of Israel, because the land should not be left defiled by exposed bodies, especially the body of Israel’s king, shamed by the uncircumcised Philistines. They also acted out of gratitude to Saul, who had earlier rescued them from the Ammonites when he first became king (1 Samuel 11:1-15). It is a mark of a generous spirit to remember kindness and return it in a time of need. They would have served Saul even better if they had supported him earlier against the Philistines, but his appointed time to fall had come. Now this was all they could do for him, to honor his memory.

There was no great national mourning for Saul, as there had been for Samuel (1 Samuel 25:1). Still, the men of Jabesh-Gilead showed respect at his death. They made a burning for the bodies, perhaps by burning spices over them to honor them, as people sometimes did for important men. Second Chronicles 16:14 mentions a very great burning for Asa. Some think they burned the flesh because it had begun to decay.

After that, they buried the bodies, or the bones and ashes if they had been burned, under a tree that served as a marker and memorial. Then they fasted for seven days, meaning they fasted each day until evening. In this way they mourned Saul’s death and the troubled state of Israel. They may also have prayed for the recovery of the nation. Even though there is joy when the wicked are removed, because a better state may follow, basic human decency still calls for respect toward dead bodies, especially the bodies of princes.

This book begins with the birth of Samuel, and it ends with the burial of Saul. Put those two scenes side by side, and you learn to value the honor that comes from God above every honor the world can offer.