Samuel (Σαμουήλ)
Samuel is named in the roll of the OT heroes who lived and died in faith (Hebrews 11:32). His unique position in the history of Israel is indicated by two phrases in Acts-‘all the prophets from Samuel’ (3:24), and God ‘gave them judges until Samuel the prophet’ (13:20). He is regarded as the last of the Judges and the first of the Prophets. In one stratum-the earliest-of the two books which bear his name he is the ‘seer’ of a small town; in another he is the ‘judge’ who rules over the whole people; in a third he is the ‘prophet’ who speaks like an Amos or a Hosea. but the difficult critical problems raised by the composite story of his life and achievements (See artt. [Note: rtt. articles.] ‘Samuel’ in HDB [Note: DB Hastings’ Dict. of the Bible (5 vols.).] and EBi [Note: Bi EncyclopAEdia Biblica.]) have no bearing upon the NT passages in which he is mentioned. That he played a highly important rôle, religious and political, as representative of Jahweh and as king-maker, at a turning-point in Hebrew history is a fact which criticism leaves unshaken.
James Strahan.