Scripture: Acts 26:16-18, 1 Sam 1:27-28, etc.
As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me (Acts 9:3-4)?”
The name Saul is sha’ul in Hebrew, meaning “sought one,” which is also connected with the name Samuel, who was born as a result of Hannah’s request to God. When Samuel was weaned and brought to the priest Eli, Hannah said:
I prayed for this child, and the LORD has gave me my petition (she’alti) that I asked (sha’alti) of him. So now I lent him (hish’altihu) to the LORD. For all the days of his life, he is a sought one (sha’ul) to the Lord (1 Sam 1:27-28 trans. mine).
Hannah repeated the verb sha’al (meaning to ask or request) many times to emphasize that this child was dedicated to God and demanded by him. Upon hearing Hannah’s words, Eli agreed that Samuel (shemu’el) would stay with him. The name Samuel is a variant of the name Saul with the middle u in sha’ul changed to mu, and this also means “one sought by God.”
So in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the LORD for him (1:20).”
