Albert Barnes Commentary 1 Samuel 14:47

"Now when Saul had taken the kingdom over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines: and whithersoever he turned himself, he put [them] to the worse." — 1 Samuel 14:47 (ASV)

The preceding narrative shows that before this time, Saul had been king in name only, as his country was occupied by the Philistines. He could only muster 600 men, who were just half-armed and confined to a narrow stronghold (compare to 2 Samuel 8:15). However, after the Philistines were expelled from his country and the Israelites returned from their servitude and from their hiding places (1 Samuel 14:21–22), Saul became king in deed as well as in name. He fulfilled the role of a king for the rest of his reign by defending his people against their surrounding enemies.

A comprehensive list of these enemies is given in 1 Samuel 14:47–48, including the Ammonite war already described (1 Samuel 11:1–15) and the Amalekite war that follows (1 Samuel 15). The text gives no indication whether this “taking the kingdom” occurred soon after Saul’s anointing at Gilgal or many years later. Therefore, some scholars would place the passage in 1 Samuel 14:47–52 immediately after 1 Samuel 11:1–15 or 1 Samuel 12, treating it as a summary of Saul’s reign. The details of the reign—namely, the Philistine war in 1 Samuel 13 and 1 Samuel 14, the Amalekite war in 1 Samuel 15, and the other events through the end of 1 Samuel 31:1–13—would then follow. This sequence, preceded by the introductory formula in 1 Samuel 13:1, would be in accordance with the common method of Hebrew historical narrative.

Zobah – This was one of the small Aramean kingdoms flourishing at this time (see the title of Psalm 60). It seems to have been located between Damascus and the Euphrates.