This section provides an account of how Saul of the tribe of Benjamin was elected to be the first king of Israel, but was then rejected as the one to establish Israel's dynasty of kings. But the central person is Samuel, rather than Saul, and we shall consider the significance of the information provided about his prophetic vocation and its setting.

Saul is introduced as a man in the prime of life-handsome, strong and tall-when he is sent by his father to look for some lost donkeys. He meets Samuel in the following circumstances described in 9: 5-14:

When they came into the region of Zuph, Saul said to his servant, 'let’s go back home, or my father might stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.' The servant answered, 'Wait! In this town there is a holy man who is highly respected because everything he says comes true. Let's go to him, and maybe he can tell us where we can find the donkeys.' 'If we go to him, what can we give him?' Saul asked. 'There is no food left in our packs, and we haven't anything to give him, have we?' The servant answered, 'I have a small silver coin. I can give him that, and then he will tell us where we can ftnd them.' Saul replied, 'A good idea! Let's go.' So they went to the town where the holy man lived. As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some girls who were coming out to draw water. They asked the girls, 'Is the seer in town?' (At that time a prophet was called a seer, and so whenever someone wanted to ask God a question, he would say, 'Let's go to the seer.') 'Yes, he is,' the girls answered. 'In fact, he is just ahead of you. If you hurry, you will catch up with him. As soon as you go into the town, you will find him. He arrived in town today because the people are going to offer a sacrifice on the altar on the hill. The people who are invited won't start eating until he gets there, because he has to bless the sacrifice first. If you go now, you will find him before he goes up the hill to eat.' So Saul and his servant went on to the town, and as they were going in, they saw Samuel coming out towards them on his way to the place of worship.