1 When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn son was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. 3 Yet his sons did not walk in his ways but turned aside after gain. They took bribes and perverted justice.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah 5 and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” 6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. 8 According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. 9 Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”
10 So Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking for a king from him. 11 He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. 12 And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. 15 He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. 16 He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work. 17 He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. 18 And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the LORD will not answer you in that day.”
19 But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us, 20 that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” 21 And when Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the ears of the LORD. 22 And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey their voice and make them a king.” Samuel then said to the men of Israel, “Go every man to his city.”
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
As Samuel advanced in age, he made his sons, Joel and Abijah, judges over Israel. This was an attempt to return Israel to a system of hierocracy (led by priests) led by the Levites (Deu 17:8-13). But Samuel’s sons didn’t judge as he did. They were driven by selfish gain, took bribes, and perverted justice. It’s interesting that while Samuel didn’t turn out like Eli’s sons, Phinehas and Hophni, his sons did. Both Eli and Samuel failed to raise godly sons.
The elders of Israel gathered and came to Samuel. They were not happy to be led by his corrupt sons. They had their own idea. They wanted a king over them just like all the other nations. Samuel was upset over their request. Israel was not supposed to be like the nations (Lev 20:26; Num 23:9) and God, who had redeemed His people from Egypt, was their King. Before Samuel responded to the elders, he prayed.
God responded that the people weren’t rejecting Samuel, but they were rejecting Him. God highlighted how Israel had continually rejected Him in their actions from the day He brought them out of Egypt until that day. God would allow them to have a king but they would live to regret their impulsive decision. Israel’s request for a king was not wrong in itself. God had originally promised Abraham and Jacob that Israel would have kings (Gen 17:6,16; 35:11). God had also given instructions for how a king should rule in Deu 17:14-20. While God had intended for Israel to have a king like the other nations, Israel’s sin was their desire and motivation to be like other nations and to have a king fight their battles for them. Their other sin was impatience. God had always intended to send a true king, Jesus Christ, but the people wanted an earthly king and they wanted one now. Instead of putting their trust in God, they put their trust in a fallible, human leader.
So Samuel took God’s answer to the people. They would have a king to rule over them but he would be a demanding dictator who would enrich himself at the people’s expense. He would take their sons to grow his army and run his administration. He would take their daughters to serve in his palace. He would take their land for his own use. He would tax them to fund all his exploits. The establishment of a monarchy would result in all Israel feeling like slaves. When that happened Israel would cry out for relief from their king, which they had chosen for themselves, but God would not answer them when that happened.
Despite the warning and the forthcoming consequences, Israel insisted on having a king appointed over them. They reiterated their desire to be like the other nations and have their king fight their battles for them instead of God who had fought for them (Deu 1:30). Samuel repeated their demands to God who told him to obey their request and appoint a king over them. Samuel then dismissed the people back to their homes. The establishment of a monarchy over Israel had been set in motion.
How often do you push to have something sooner than God is ready to give it to you? The danger in impatience is that when we demand something, what we get is devoid of His blessing. But what about when we’ve been warned of the consequences of our choices and we choose them anyway? God told Israel they would cry to him for release from their wrong choice and He would not answer them. Do you want to be in that position?
Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan
The Rich Young Ruler: Matthew 19-20