Israel, but by the end of 2 Samuel David had eliminated the Philistine threat and established a settled dynasty that would endure for several centuries. Second, 1–2 Samuel records a movement from rule by judges to rule by kings. Eli was a judge, and Samuel was the last of that breed. Though anointed king, Saul was something of a transitional figure, who remained at home plowing when he was not fighting Ammonites (1 Sam. 11). With David, however, Israel came fully into the monarchical period. Within