(14) And enquired not of the Lord.--Saul had, in fact, enquired of Jehovah before resorting to the witch of En-dor, "but the Lord answered him not, neither by the dreams, nor by the Urim, nor by the prophets" (1Samuel 28:6). We shall not be reading a meaning of our own into the text if we say that Saul's natural impatience (1Samuel 13:13) on this occasion betrayed him again; he at once despaired of help from his God, instead of seeking it with self-humiliation and penitence. His character is consistently drawn throughout the history. The sin that ruined the first king was essentially that which led to the final ruin of the nation, viz., unfaithfulness to the covenant-God. The same word characterises both. (Comp. 1Chronicles 10:13 with 1Chronicles 5:25; 1Chronicles 9:1.)

Therefore he slew him.--God acts through the instrumentality of His creatures. In this case He employed the Philistines, and the suicidal hand of Saul himself; just as He employed the Assyrian conquerors of a later age to be the scourge of guilty peoples (Isaiah 10:5-15), and raised up Cyrus to be His servant, who should fulfil all His pleasure (Isaiah 44:28; Isaiah 45:1-13).

Turned the kingdom unto David.--By means of the warriors of Israel (1Chronicles 12:23). This sentence shows that 1 Chronicles 10 is transitional to the history of David as king.

Verse 14. - And inquired not of the Lord. Saul seems to have, in point of fact, inquired in some sense (1 Samuel 14:37; 1 Samuel 28:5, 6, 15). But the probable meaning is that he did not inquire in the first instance (see vers. 3, 4); and when he did inquire, he did not await the reply solely and exclusively of Jehovah. Therefore he slew him (so see 1 Chronicles 2:3). David the son of Jesse. The compiler, having heretofore given so scrupulously whatever of genealogical fact he could, is now careful to use it. And he identifies the future chief hero of his history as him who had already been instanced (1 Chronicles 2:15), "son of Jesse."

10:1-14 The death of Saul. - The design chiefly in view in these books of the Chronicles, appears to be to preserve the records of the house of David. Therefore the writer repeats not the history of Saul's reign, but only of his death, by which a way was made for David to the throne. And from the ruin of Saul, we may learn, 1. That the sin of sinners will certainly find them out, sooner or later; Saul died for his transgression. 2. That no man's greatness can exempt him from the judgments of God. 3. Disobedience is a killing thing. Saul died for not keeping the word of the Lord. May be delivered from unbelief, impatience, and despair. By waiting on the Lord we shall obtain a kingdom that cannot be moved.And inquired not of the Lord,.... For though he did inquire in some sense in an external, careless, and hypocritical manner, yet not done seriously, sincerely, and heartily, nor with constancy; it was accounted as if he inquired not at all, 1 Samuel 28:6 the Targum adds another reason of his death, because he killed the priests of Nob; but that is not in the text:

therefore he slew him; or suffered him to be slain:

and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse; translated the kingdom of Israel out of Saul's family, upon his death, into Jesse's, even unto David; for the sake of which observation this short account is given of the last end of Saul.