1 Samuel: Dating

1 Samuel is part of a great historical work which includes the books of Joshua, Judges, 1 Kings and 2 Kings. This deals with the history of Israel and Judah until around 560 BC. In its present form the book probably dates to the period 550 to 500 BC.

According to the traditional Jewish view, both the books of Samuel would have been written around 1000 BC by the prophets Samuel, Gad and Nathan.

According to most modern scholars the books of Samuel contain a collection of texts, varying in style, origin and age. They were gathered from various earlier sources. Archives were used which were kept up to date in the courts of the kings of Israel and Judah. Some episodes were taken from a collection of more or less legendary stories, and probably reformulated later. Others came from a collection of songs and administrative documents.
The books of Samuel take their present form as part of the great historical work, covering the history of Israel from the entry into Canaan until the Babylonian exile. This was possibly composed in the period 550 to 500 BC.
Research has now shown that later copyists reworked and expanded the text from 300 BC until AD 2.