Ⅱ
We need to see the Divine Trinity as it is revealed in 1 and 2 Samuel:
A
God's purpose for His chosen people was not merely to defeat the enemies and take full possession of the good land but for them to set up a kingdom in the land:
１
In order for God to fulfill His intention to have an expression, He needs to have a kingdom, a sphere in which He is expressed—1 Sam. 10:25; Matt. 6:10; Luke 1:33.
２
The children of Israel were brought out of Egypt and through the wilderness, where they built the tabernacle for God; then they entered into the good land, and every tribe was allotted a portion of the land so that God might have a kingdom on earth—Josh. 13:1—22:34.
３
First and 2 Samuel are crucial for the bringing in of the kingdom—1 Sam. 8:4-22; 10:25; 13:14; 15:28; 16:1-3, 13.
B
Because of the miserable situation in the book of Judges, there was an urgent and desperate need for one like Samuel—1 Sam. 2:35; 3:21:
１
Samuel was a Nazarite, a priest, a prophet, and a judge; this fourfold status qualified Samuel to be the one who could bring in the king and set up the kingdom.
２
For Samuel to be a priest, a prophet, and a judge was not God's goal; God's intention was to set up a kingdom with a king—8:7; 13:14.
C
First and 2 Samuel reveal that the bringing in of the king and the setting up of the kingdom depended on the involvement of the Divine Trinity with His people:
１
In order for such a one as Samuel to be raised up and carry out his commission, there was a need of the Divine Trinity—1 Sam. 1:10-11, 20; 10:1, 6; 16:1-3.
２
For this reason, in 1 and 2 Samuel there is a detailed, fine revelation of the Divine Trinity; the crucial point in the history recorded in 1 and 2 Samuel is that there was the need of the Divine Trinity—2 Sam. 22:1-3; 23:1-3; 24:25.
Morning Nourishment
1 Sam. 10:25 Then Samuel told the people the practice of the kingdom, and he wrote it in a book and laid it before Jehovah. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.Matt. 6:10 Your kingdom come; Your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth.
Samuel initiated a new age. He turned the age from the age of the priests to the age of the kings. Priests can serve God, but they cannot bring in God’s kingdom and God’s authority. When God’s kingdom is established, His authority can be exercised, and then His glory can be expressed. The prayer in Matthew 6:13 says, “Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” First, there is the kingdom and the exercise of authority, and then there is the expression of glory. (CWWL, 1954, vol. 4, p. 527)
Today’s Reading
In order for God’s chosen people to be His house, His expression, the Trinity was needed. The children of Israel entered into the good land, but the good land was filled with enemies. The book of Judges reveals the Trinity because the Trinity was needed to defeat the enemies. However, God’s purpose for His people was not merely to defeat the enemies and take full possession of the land but for them to set up a kingdom. Because this purpose had not been fulfilled, the conclusion of Judges says…[that] the children of Israel did whatever was right in their own eyes because there was no king or kingdom [21:25]. What was needed at that time was for a kingdom to be set up.Samuel was one who brought in the kingdom. First and 2 Samuel are crucial for the bringing in of the kingdom. In order for God to fulfill His intention to have an expression, He needed to have a kingdom. The kingdom of God is a sphere in which God is expressed. When the Lord taught His disciples how to pray, He began, “Our Father who is in the heavens, Your name be sanctified; Your kingdom come” (Matt. 6:9-10). The New Testament opens with the Gospel of Matthew, which is the Gospel of the kingdom. In Matthew 3:2 John the Baptist declared, “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near.” Many Christians today preach the gospel of a heavenly mansion, but the New Testament preaches the gospel of the kingdom (cf. Matt. 4:23; 9:35; 24:14).
God needs a kingdom so that He may have an expression. The children of Israel were brought out of Egypt and through the wilderness, where they built the tabernacle for God. Then they entered into the good land, and every tribe was allotted a portion of the land. In Judges the enemies were defeated to some extent so that the children of Israel could enjoy the good land. Nevertheless, there was no expression of God in Judges because there was no king. Everyone acted according to what was right in his own eyes.
In Judges God used Deborah. In 1 and 2 Samuel the first person God used to bring in His kingdom was another female, Samuel’s mother, Hannah. She bore Samuel, who brought in the king with the kingdom…. David was brought in and initiated into his position and function through Samuel, who was the issue of the desperate prayer of a female seeker of God.
Because of the miserable situation in Judges, there was an urgent and desperate need for one like Samuel…. Samuel was a Nazarite, a priest, a prophet, and a judge. This fourfold status qualified Samuel to be the one who could bring in the king and set up the kingdom. In order for such a one to be raised up and carry out his commission, there was a crucial need of the Divine Trinity. Only the Trinity could work this out. For this reason, in 1 and 2 Samuel there is a detailed, fine revelation of the Divine Trinity. What happened in Judges is somewhat rough, but in Samuel the application of the Divine Trinity is very fine. (CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word,” pp. 289-291)
Further Reading: CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word,” chs. 1, 3, 8-10