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The Rise of the Israelite Monarchy

In spite of the apparent confusion of the chapters dealing with SauTs accession to the throne, it is possible to delineate a structure which reveals that in the last analysis a unifying plan and theme bind the separate parts together. This unity has been described clearly by D. J. McCarthy, who has observed that I Sam 8—12, the section which is of concern here, is separated from what precedes by the formulae at the end of I Sam 7 which are used to mark the end of the story of a judge, and from what follows by I Sam 131 which is the formula used for beginning the report of a king's reign. These five chapters from a formal point of view consist of an alternation of reports and stories in which a pattern of contrasts between an attitude critical of the monarchy and an attitude favourable to the monarchy is built up. Criticism of the monarchy is found in Samuel's Speeches, contained in the reports, while the stories remain positive and favourable. The tension between these two attitudes, which exists from the beginning of the section, is finally resolved in the last chapter, I Sam 12, where the new Institution of the monarchy is integrated into Israel's covenant relationship with Yahweh, so that the rupture of that relationship, which the Institution of the monarchy at first threatened, does not in the end come to pass. This is a valuable contribution to our understanding not only of the structure of these chapters dealing with the rise of the monarchy, but also of the attitude of the Compiler, whom we identify äs the deuteronomist, to the monarchy äs an Institution. On the other hand, however, it is doubtful it it can teil us very much of the backgiound of the material contained in these chapters or of the process of growth of the traditions which have found their deposit there. We are left, rather, with a picture of the deuteronomist äs a very skilful Organizer of a variety of materials available to him. There are two reasons for this. In the first place, the connecting links between the different elements of the total presentation are too