Abstract
Since studies of the Saul narratives in 1 Samuel 9–31 tend to focus on the three main protagonists—Samuel, Saul, and David—characters who play only a minor role have not received much attention. To provide one of these ‘minority perspectives’, this article offers a re-reading of the narrative with a focus on Saul's servants. Although these figures are the only ones who are involved in all of the major scenes of the king's career, their role in the narrative has not been examined. Drawing from six servant passages (1 Sam. 9.1–10.16; 16.14–23; 17–18; 21–22; 28; 31), an attempt is made to show that Saul's servants bear heavily on the development of the plot and that they function as an important, indirect means of the characterization of Saul. The narrative role of these allegedly minor figures therefore has important ramifications for recent efforts to rehabilitate the image of Israel's first king.
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