1 Samuel 12 Footnotes

12:17-18 How could a harvest-time thunderstorm convince the Israelites that they had done a great evil? The land of Israel has two seasons in its year, the rainy season (October–March) and the dry season (April–September). Wheat harvest occurred during the dry season at a time when clouds, to say nothing of rain, were absent from the sky. Interruptions in the normal weather pattern, especially those that could seriously damage the nation’s food supply, were taken as signs of divine anger (Lv 26:20; Dt 28:18).