The victory of an ancient king points forward to the greatest victory of all time

The Israelites were weeping because they feared having to surrender to the Ammonites who had besieged their city. King Saul hears about their situation. He comes to fight against the Ammonites and wins a great victory over them which frees the city.

The key to understanding this story is in the last 2 verses. The prophet Samuel takes the people to the city of Gilgal to ‘renew the kingdom’. We are then told that they offered sacrifices to the Lord and rejoiced. This is a reminder of the victory that Jesus has won for His people over the enemy called ‘sin’ ……  the wrong things that we think, say and do. He won this victory for believers through the sacrifice of Himself on the cross, bearing their sins in His body so they can be clothed, by faith, in the spotless garments of His righteousness.