To His Surprise Saul Is Treated As The Guest Of Honour At The Festival That Is Taking Place (1 Samuel 9:18-24).
‘ Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, “Tell me, I pray you, where the seer's house is.” '
Meanwhile Saul, unconscious of all this, approaches the unknown man (whom we know as Samuel) in the gateway and asks him where the seer's house is.
‘ And Samuel answered Saul, and said, “I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today, and in the morning I will let you go, and will tell you all that is in your heart.” '
To his pleasant surprise the unknown man reveals himself as Samuel, and he declares that he is the seer and that they must both precede him to the high place, where they will both eat with him that very day. This was possibly because it would be an act of courtesy to Samuel for them to arrive before him, something expected by all the other guests, or it may have been with the aim of emphasising Saul's importance (something that Samuel will certainly do at the feast). Then in the morning he will let Saul go, once he has revealed to him what is in his (Saul's) heart. It is not unlikely that such a powerful young man, son of a well known warrior, would have been dreaming about what he could do against the Philistines if only he got the chance. And it is that which Samuel wishes to speak to him about.
“ And as for your asses which were lost three days ago, do not concern yourself about them for they have been found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you, and for all your father's house?”
Samuel then relieves his mind about his father's asses, informing him that they have been found, thereby revealing to him Samuel's own supernatural knowledge. And then he informs him that ‘all that is desirable in Israel' is for Saul and for his father's house. In other words because of the position that he will shortly hold he will no longer in the future have to worry about a few asses, because everything that is desirable in Israel will be his. He will be able to have his choice of anything. We are not, of course, expected to apply this too literally. Clearly he would be expected to choose sensibly and reveal discretion. It is rather a description of the superabundance that will now be available to him as compared with a few asses.
‘ And Saul answered and said, “Am I not a Benjaminite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? And my family the least of all the families of the sub-tribes of Benjamin? Why then do you speak to me in this way?”
Saul is understandably confused. ‘Why are you saying these things to me?' he asks. ‘I come from the smallest tribe in Israel, and my family is the least of all the tribes in Benjamin.' In the chiasmus this is in parallel to the fact that he was the tallest man in Israel. So this is to be seen as typical Near Eastern modesty. In those days it was polite to deprecate yourself and your background. No one was expected to believe it. It is, of course, true that Benjamin was probably the smallest tribe in Israel after the battering that they had received in Judges 20-21, but they were fierce and experienced warriors. Saul's words, however, are not intended to be taken literally. We can compare them with what Gideon said of himself in Judges 6:15, and in his case his father was a leading elder in the town. What he was modestly saying was that he was not really deserving of what Samuel is suggesting. He felt completely at a loss to understand what Samuel was getting at. And we can appreciate why he might be doubtful about the acceptance by the large tribes of a Benjaminite as war leader. (However, Ephraim would not have accepted a permanent war-leader from Judah, nor would Judah have accepted one from Ephraim. So actually a Benjaminite was a good choice. All recognised the warlike potential of Benjaminites. None were jealous of them).