How do you interpret some of the OT timelines?

[RonJohnSilver]

In my daily reading, I'm reading in 1 Samuel 9-12, the anointing of Saul. In the passage, the people of Jabesh, in the face of an enemy attack, send messengers throughout all Israel. Short version is that Saul gathers an army and responds, defeating the enemy. Here's my question... The people ask the enemy for a truce of 7 days and in that time, they 1. send messengers throughout the nation, 2. Saul gets the message, slaughters an animal, then send the parts to the rest of the country, 3. the nation responds and an army is gathered. All of that in 7 days. I usually think literally about Bible things but either the words don't mean what they seem to or the timeline is misleading. Because, the messages had to be delivered on foot, maybe donkey but regardless, not quickly. And all Israel would certainly mean a couple hundred miles, so walking all day (25 miles?), wouldn't get the message to everyone in time. Add to that the time it takes to get everyone together, walk/march back to Jabesh and you are well past the 7 day period. So, how can this passage be understood?

 

[AV1611VET]

In my daily reading, I'm reading in 1 Samuel 9-12, the anointing of Saul. In the passage, the people of Jabesh, in the face of an enemy attack, send messengers throughout all Israel. Short version is that Saul gathers an army and responds, defeating the enemy. Here's my question... The people ask the enemy for a truce of 7 days and in that time, they 1. send messengers throughout the nation, 2. Saul gets the message, slaughters an animal, then send the parts to the rest of the country, 3. the nation responds and an army is gathered. All of that in 7 days. I usually think literally about Bible things but either the words don't mean what they seem to or the timeline is misleading. Because, the messages had to be delivered on foot, maybe donkey but regardless, not quickly. And all Israel would certainly mean a couple hundred miles, so walking all day (25 miles?), wouldn't get the message to everyone in time. Add to that the time it takes to get everyone together, walk/march back to Jabesh and you are well past the 7 day period. So, how can this passage be understood?

There were different ways to send messages.

On foot, by boat, trumpet blasts, and even line-of-sight between mountains.

 

[RonJohnSilver]

There were different ways to send messages.

On foot, by boat, trumpet blasts, and even line-of-sight between mountains.

The text says that Saul cut up an animal and sent it to all parts of the nation. So, it had to be ground transportation, at least in large measure.

 

[Richard T]

In my daily reading, I'm reading in 1 Samuel 9-12, the anointing of Saul. In the passage, the people of Jabesh, in the face of an enemy attack, send messengers throughout all Israel. Short version is that Saul gathers an army and responds, defeating the enemy. Here's my question... The people ask the enemy for a truce of 7 days and in that time, they 1. send messengers throughout the nation, 2. Saul gets the message, slaughters an animal, then send the parts to the rest of the country, 3. the nation responds and an army is gathered. All of that in 7 days. I usually think literally about Bible things but either the words don't mean what they seem to or the timeline is misleading. Because, the messages had to be delivered on foot, maybe donkey but regardless, not quickly. And all Israel would certainly mean a couple hundred miles, so walking all day (25 miles?), wouldn't get the message to everyone in time. Add to that the time it takes to get everyone together, walk/march back to Jabesh and you are well past the 7 day period. So, how can this passage be understood?

Check the geography. The part King Saul ruled over was not all of Israel.

In my daily reading, I'm reading in 1 Samuel 9-12, the anointing of Saul. In the passage, the people of Jabesh, in the face of an enemy attack, send messengers throughout all Israel. Short version is that Saul gathers an army and responds, defeating the enemy. Here's my question... The people ask the enemy for a truce of 7 days and in that time, they 1. send messengers throughout the nation, 2. Saul gets the message, slaughters an animal, then send the parts to the rest of the country, 3. the nation responds and an army is gathered. All of that in 7 days. I usually think literally about Bible things but either the words don't mean what they seem to or the timeline is misleading. Because, the messages had to be delivered on foot, maybe donkey but regardless, not quickly. And all Israel would certainly mean a couple hundred miles, so walking all day (25 miles?), wouldn't get the message to everyone in time. Add to that the time it takes to get everyone together, walk/march back to Jabesh and you are well past the 7 day period. So, how can this passage be understood?

 

[Richard T]

In my daily reading, I'm reading in 1 Samuel 9-12, the anointing of Saul. In the passage, the people of Jabesh, in the face of an enemy attack, send messengers throughout all Israel. Short version is that Saul gathers an army and responds, defeating the enemy. Here's my question... The people ask the enemy for a truce of 7 days and in that time, they 1. send messengers throughout the nation, 2. Saul gets the message, slaughters an animal, then send the parts to the rest of the country, 3. the nation responds and an army is gathered. All of that in 7 days. I usually think literally about Bible things but either the words don't mean what they seem to or the timeline is misleading. Because, the messages had to be delivered on foot, maybe donkey but regardless, not quickly. And all Israel would certainly mean a couple hundred miles, so walking all day (25 miles?), wouldn't get the message to everyone in time. Add to that the time it takes to get everyone together, walk/march back to Jabesh and you are well past the 7 day period. So, how can this passage be understood?

Knauf suggests Saul’s reign included the areas of Benjamin and Ephraim through his interpretation of II Sam. 2:8. However, Knauf does not account for Saul’s influence from earlier passages such as: 1 Samuel 11:7, “And he took a yoke of oxen hewed them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel …”[1] Knauf further notes that Saul’s geographical territory, and influence over all of Israel is less than most would expect.[2]

A quote from what i am working on. Sorry the Knauf link is dead unless you have Ebsco-host access.

The harder timeline is that King Saul reigned two years as the KJV has it. There is a missing number in the manuscript, some say 20 to 40 years. One researcher calculated exactly how long it took for all those battles etc. it definitely was more than two.

[1] Knauf, Ernst Axel. “Saul, David, and the Philistines: From Geography to History.” Biblische Notizen 109 (2001): 15, EBSCOhost Login.

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[1] Ibid., 15.
[2] Ibid., 16-17.