[One-Verse Meditation]

1 Samuel 9:21 (NIV) “Saul answered, ‘But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?'”

[Meditation]

Saul, wandering in search of his father’s donkeys, finally meets the prophet Samuel. And he hears the shocking words, “And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and your whole family?” Saul’s reply to this is today’s verse. On the surface, his response appears to be a very humble attitude, lowering himself. After all, despite his handsome appearance and prominent family background, he calls himself small.

However, this was a ‘God-less humility,’ that is, a humanistic humility. This is because the standard for his self-perception of ‘I am nothing’ was based on people, not God. His standard was ‘other tribes’ and ‘other clans.’ Humility that comes from such comparisons is nothing more than an inferiority complex or self-pity that can turn into pride at any moment when circumstances improve. We witness this fact precisely through Saul’s later actions of constantly being conscious of people and then collapsing.

The true ‘humility’ the Bible speaks of is ‘self-awareness’ before God. It is the attitude and faith of realizing that before His infinite holiness, one is always a sinner, and therefore relying only on His grace. It is just as Isaiah confessed when he saw the glory of God, “Woe to me! … I am ruined” (Isa. 6:5). This is ‘Coram Deo.’ This Latin term, meaning ‘before God,’ shows us the place of faith where we ought to be.

Saul’s humility that we read today makes us reflect on our own humility. It makes us ask, ‘Before whom’ is my lowliness? And this question places us in a position to experience His God-ness and my own self-ness. This is the grace of a saint. And the response to that grace is always worship—that is, ‘rejoicing in God just as I am.’

[Prayer]

Lord, You hold me fast in the place ‘before God.’ You do not leave me as I am, living with the world as my standard. To stand before You, see myself, and see You before me—this is grace. Let this be a new day of enjoying this grace of Coram Deo. Amen.
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[Daily Meditation]

1 Samuel 9:10-21