WINFRED O. NEELY
OUTLINE
Introduction
I. Samuel: The Son of Hannah’s Vows (1:1–7:17)
A. The Lord Grants Hannah’s Request (1:1–2:11)
1. Hannah’s Prayer and Vow (1:1-28)
2. Hannah’s Joyful Prayer of Praise and Celebration (2:1-11)
B. Eli’s Sons and Samuel (2:12-36)
1. The Great Sin of Eli’s Sons (2:12-17)
2. Eli’s Sons in Contrast to Samuel (2:18-36)
C. The Boy Who Became the Prophet (3:1-21)
1. The Lord Called Samuel (3:1-9)
2. The Lord Spoke to Samuel (3:10-14)
3. Samuel Makes Known the Lord’s Word to Eli (3:15-18)
4. The Growth of Samuel (3:19-21)
D. The Danger of Trying to Manipulate God (4:1-22)
1. The Misuse of the Ark in Battle (4:1-4)
2. A Profound Misunderstanding (4:5-9)
3. Loss of the Ark to the Philistines (4:10-11)
4. The Death of Eli (4:12-18)
5. The Departure of Israel’s Glory (4:19-22)
E. God’s Heavy Hand of God on the Philistines (5:1-12)
1. The Ark in the Philistines’ Hands (5:1-5)
2. Tumors, Confusion, and Death (5:6-12)
F. The Philistines Return the Ark to Israel (6:1–7:1)
1. The Philistine Mode of Transporting the Ark (6:1-18)
2. Treating the Ark with Irreverence (6:19–7:1)
G. The Lord Delivers Israel from the Philistines (7:2-17)
1. Twenty Years of Mourning (7:2-4)
2. A Day of Fasting (7:5-6)
3. A Plea for Samuel’s Intercession (7:7-11)
4. Erecting the Ebenezer (7:12-14)
5. A Summary of Samuel’s Ministry (7:15-17)
H. The People Reject the Lord as Their King (8:1-22)
1. The Problem of Samuel’s Sons (8:1-3)
2. The Demand for a King (8:4-9)
3. Warning about a King (8:10-18)
4. The People’s Refusal to Listen (8:19-22)
II. Saul, the People’s King (9:1–15:35)
A. The Secret Anointing of Saul (9:1–10:16)
1. Saul, the Tallest and Most Handsome Man in Israel (9:1-2)
2. The Decision to Consult the Seer (9:3-14)
3. Providential Activity Woven into the Ordinary (9:15-21)
4. Celebration in the Hall and Counsel on the Roof (9:22-27)
5. The Three Signs of Confirmation (10:1-8)
6. The Last Sign and the Return Home (10:9-16)
B. Samuel Recognizes Saul as King in Public at Mizpah (10:17-27)
C. Saul’s Spirit-Empowered Victory over the Ammonites (11:1-15)
1. The Siege of Jabesh-gilead (11:1-4)
2. The Spirit of God Comes Mightily on Saul (11:5-13)
3. The Renewing of the Kingdom (11:14-15)
D. Samuel Addresses the Nation (12:1-25)
1. Samuel’s Moral Authority (12:1-5)
2. The Lord’s Righteous Acts (12:6-18)
3. The People’s Response to the Message (12:19-25)
E. The Divine Rejection of Saul’s Dynasty (13:1-23)
1. Israel Becomes Odious to the Philistines (13:2-7)
2. Saul’s Foolish Sacrifice (13:8-18)
3. Military Advantages and Economic Exploitation (13:19-23)
F. The Lord Saves Israel (14:1-52)
1. The Faith and Godly Courage of Jonathan (14:1-15)
2. Great Confusion among the Philistines (14:16-23)
3. Saul’s Foolish Vow (14:24-35)
4. The Lottery that Identified Jonathan (14:36-46)
5. Summary of the Good Years of Saul’s Reign (14:47-52)
G. The Lord Rejects Saul as King (15:1-35)
1. Saul Disobeys the Word of the Lord (15:1-9)
2. The Lord Regrets that He Made Saul King over Israel (15:10-35)
III. David, a Man after God’s Own Heart (16:1–31:13)
A. David Prospers in Saul’s Court (16:1–20:42)
1. The Divine Choice of David (16:1-23)
a. The Lord Looks at the Heart (16:1-13)
b. David Serves in the Court of Saul (16:14-23)
2. David’s Victory over Goliath (17:1-58)
a. Forty Days of Defiance (17:1-11)
b. David’s Visit to the Battlefront (17:12-19)
c. David Answers Goliath’s Challenge (17:20-30)
d. David Kills Goliath (17:31-58)
3. Responses to David’s Godly Success (18:1-30)
a. Godly Covenant Friendship and Love (18:1-5)
b. Saul’s Murderous Envy and Suspicion (18:6-9)
c. Demonic Influence on Saul (18:10-11)
d. Fear and Manipulation (18:12-19)
e. A Grisly Dowry (18:20-30)
4. Four Examples of David’s Divine Protection (19:1-24)
a. The Lord Uses Jonathan to Protect David (19:1-7)
b. The Lord Uses Saul’s Miss to Protect David (19:8-10)
c. The Lord Uses Michal to Protect David (19:11-17)
d. The Lord Uses His Own Spirit to Protect David (19:18-24)
5. Covenant Friendship Put to the Test (20:1-42)
a. One Step between Life and Death (20:1-11)
b. The Covenant in the Field (20:12-17)
c. The Coded Message in the Arrows (20:18-23)
d. Missed at the King’s Table (20:24-29)
e. The Unveiling of True Intentions (20:30-34)
f. The Parting of Friends (20:35-42)
B. David, a Fugitive from Saul’s Court (21:1–31:13)
1. A Hungry, Weaponless, and Scared Fugitive (21:1-15)
a. Eating the Consecrated Bread (21:1-7)
b. David Receives Goliath’s Sword (21:8-9)
c. David’s Convincing Performance (21:10-15)
2. The Cave of Adullam and the Priests of Nob (22:1-23)
a. Joining David at the Cave of Adullam (22:1-2)
b. Protection for David’s Parents in Mizpah of Moab (22:3-4)
c. Leaving the Stronghold for the Forest of Hereth (22:5)
d. Saul’s Complaints under the Tamarisk Tree (22:6-10)
e. Saul’s Revenge on the Priests of the Lord (22:11-23)
3. The Faithful God and Unfaithful People (23:1-28)
a. David’s Deliverance of Keilah (23:1-5)
b. The Unfaithful People of Keilah (23:6-14)
c. Encouragement from a Friend (23:15-18)
d. The Rock of Escape (23:19-28)
4. David Compassionately Spares Saul (23:29–24:22)
a. David Cuts off a Corner of Saul’s Garment (23:29–24:7)
b. David Presents Evidence of Compassion (24:8-15)
c. Saul Responds to David’s Mercy (24:16-22)
5. Listening to the Wisdom of a Wise Woman (25:1-44)
a. Samuel Dies (25:1)
b. The Introduction of Nabal and Abigail (25:2-3)
c. Nabal Shows Contempt for David and His Men (25:4-13)
d. Abigail Wisely Intervenes (25:14-35)
e. The Lord Strikes Nabal (25:36-38)
f. David Marries Abigail (25:39-44)
6. David Spares Saul Again (26:1-25)
a. Saul Pursues David Again (26:1-5)
b. David Finds Saul Sound Asleep (26:6-12)
c. David Calls to the King’s Men (26:13-16)
d. David Addresses Saul (26:17-20)
e. David Displays the King’s Spear (26:21-25)
7. David Takes Refuge among the Philistines (27:1-12)
a. David Crosses over to Achish Again (27:1-4)
b. David Spends 16 Months in Gath (27:5-7)
c. David Undertakes Covert Operations (27:8-12)
8. Saul and the Medium of En-dor (28:1-25)
a. David’s Dilemma (28:1-2)
b. Saul’s Dilemma (28:3)
c. A New Low in Saul’s Life (28:4-25)
9. The Providential Philistine Rescue of David (29:1-11)
a. The Philistines’ Mistrust of David (29:1-5)
b. An Honorable Discharge (29:6-11)
10. David Strengthens Himself in the Lord (30:1-31)
a. The Amalekites Raid Ziklag (30:1-10)
b. An Unexpected Source of Information (30:11-15)
c. David Recovers All that Was Taken (30:16-20)
d. David Shares the Spoils (30:21-31)
11. Saul and His Sons are Slain (31:1-13)
a. Saul Commits Suicide (31:1-7)
b. The Philistines Find Saul and His Sons (31:8-10)
c. The Men of Jabesh-gilead Show Courage and Gratitude (31:11-13)