Ever wonder why the Bible talks so much about King David and relatively little about King Saul? Saul made some mistakes along the way that led to his rejection by God from the kingship.
I Samuel 13 shows that his first major error was a kind of spiritual presumption. With the threat of a difficult battle looming, and his men starting to desert, Saul took it upon himself to offer up a sacrifice to the Lord rather than wait longer for Samuel, who was running late. But it was not for Saul to take that kind of liberty!
As soon as the sacrifice is made, Samuel arrives, aghast that Saul has taken for himself roles of both king and priest. Though Saul tries to pass it off as something good that he has done (an unsuccessful trick he will try again later), and says that he had to "force himself" to do it, Samuel is unmoved. For his presumption, Samuel prophesies that the kingdom will be taken from Saul and given to another, a man "after God's own heart" (vs. 14).
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