As we read the history recorded in 1 and 2 Samuel, we need to realize that, no matter what was happening, God was behind the scene directing everything. We see this in a particular way in the history concerning Saul.
Saul, who was very tall and handsome, matched Israel's human concept of a king, and they immediately recognized him as the king. But God sees through all things from beginning to end and knew what was within Saul's heart. In the sight of God, Saul was useful at a certain juncture for carrying out God's temporary purpose. He was needed by God to discipline and train Israel. Israel needed an education under a king who was apparently good but who actually was very selfish. On the one hand, Saul was qualified and capable and had the capacity, humanly speaking, to rule Israel. On the other hand, he was evil in the sight of God and also a pretender who could put on many different masks. At the time of his inauguration, Saul put on a mask of humility, but near the end of his life, he was exposed as actually being an evil person before God.
After Saul's forty years of reigning, Israel surely learned not to follow the nations in a human way. As a peculiar people, a particular possession belonging to God, their way should be according to God's heart. This is the kind of person Samuel was. He was absolutely according to the heart of God, not according to the customs of the nations. Although Israel had been delivered from tyranny in Egypt and had been brought into the promised land to be a particular treasure in the sight of God, they were not willing to be such a treasure but instead followed the customs of the nations. Therefore, God used Saul to discipline them.
Because Samuel, a Nazarite, was fully in submission to God as the Head, he was willing to do whatever God wanted him to do, without expressing his opinion. For this reason, when God told Samuel to anoint Saul to be the king over Israel, Samuel was obedient.
With this in mind, let us now go on to consider the history concerning Saul in chapters eleven and twelve.