Meaning of the Name Saul
Saul comes from the Hebrew form "Sha'ul" and means "asked for," "requested," or "desired." Its root is tied to the idea of asking or petitioning. The etymology is generally clear.
Origin
The name Saul is of Hebrew origin.
Who is Saul in the Bible?
Saul is the first king of Israel in 1 Samuel. Though he first appears as a promising ruler, his disobedience prevents his kingship from enduring. Other people bear the name in Scripture, but the best-known Saul is the Benjaminite king who ruled the kingdom of Israel.
The story of Saul in the Bible
Saul was the son of Kish, a Benjaminite; he enters the story searching for his father's lost donkeys, a young man a head taller than everyone else. When the people demanded a king, the LORD pointed Samuel to Saul; Samuel poured oil on his head and declared that the LORD had anointed him leader over his people. Saul secured his kingship with a victory over the Ammonites. Yet his reign was shadowed by disobedience: once he could not wait for Samuel and offered the sacrifice himself, and in the war against the Amalekites he spared King Agag and the best of the animals against God's command. Samuel told him that because he had rejected the word of the LORD, the LORD had rejected him as king. His later years were marked by inner torment and jealousy of David, who defeated Goliath and whom Saul pursued relentlessly. His end came on Mount Gilboa: his sons fell against the Philistines, and the wounded Saul fell on his own sword. As Israel's first king, his story remains a bright beginning darkened by disobedience.
Is Saul mentioned in the Quran?
The name Saul does not appear in the Quran under this name; Islamic tradition generally identifies Talut, the ruler mentioned in the Quran, with Saul. In the Bible, Saul appears in 1 Samuel as Israel's first king.
Verses where Saul appears
- 1 Samuel 9:2 —
He had a son, whose name was Saul, an impressive young man; and there was not among the children of Israel a better person than he. From his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people.
- 1 Samuel 10:1 —
Then Samuel took the vial of oil, and poured it on his head, and kissed him, and said, “Isn’t it that Yahweh has anointed you to be prince over his inheritance?
- 1 Samuel 15:26 —
Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you; for you have rejected Yahweh’s word, and Yahweh has rejected you from being king over Israel.”