1 Samuel 31 - 2 Samuel 1

The last chapter of 1 Samuel and first chapter of 2 Samuel tell the same story from two perspectives. The narration of 1 Samuel 31 provides the historical record of King Saul's final act of rejection of God. He is not willing to seek God's protection in his final battle. He seeks to end his life rather than trust God. In 2 Samuel an Amalekite recounts his encounter with Saul. He assessed the situation. The King was wounded and would not recover. The humiliation the King faced would be too awful. So this Amalekite chose to honor Israel's fallen king rather than Israel's God. He euthanasized Saul. But what he intended as a way to honor and earthly king David understood to be an affront to God. There is never room to take God's place and intentionally become an instrument of death. The Amalekite had many choices; flee and protect himself, stand and defend Saul, attempt to transport the king to a shelter, or comply with the King's selfish intent. He chose the path that he defined as honorable. It rejected God's standards of the value life.
Stuart