1 Samuel 12
12
Samuel’s Final Speech to Israel
1Samuel spoke to all the Israelites. He said, “I’ve done everything you asked me to do. I’ve placed a king over you. 2Now you have a king as your leader. But I’m old. My hair is gray. My sons are here with you. I’ve been your leader from the time I was young until this day. 3Here I stand. Bring charges against me if you can. The Lord is a witness. And so is his anointed king. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Have I cheated anyone? Have I treated anyone badly? Have I accepted money from anyone who wanted special favors? If I’ve done any of these things, I’ll make it right.”
4“You haven’t cheated us,” they replied. “You haven’t treated us badly. You haven’t taken anything from anyone.”
5Samuel said to them, “The Lord is a witness against you this day. And so is his anointed king. They are witnesses that I haven’t taken anything from any of you.”
“The Lord is a witness,” they said.
6Then Samuel said to the people, “The Lord appointed Moses and Aaron. He brought out of Egypt your people who lived long ago. 7Now then, stand here. I’m going to remind you of all the good things the Lord has done for you and your people. He is a witness.
8“After Jacob’s family entered Egypt, they cried out to the Lord for help. The Lord sent Moses and Aaron. They brought your people out of Egypt. They had them make their homes in this land.
9“But the people forgot the Lord their God. So he put them under the control of Sisera. Sisera was the commander of the army of Hazor. The Lord also put the Israelites under the control of the Philistines and the king of Moab. All those nations fought against Israel. 10So the people cried out to the Lord. They said, ‘We have sinned. We’ve deserted the Lord. We’ve served gods that are named Baal. We’ve served female gods that are named Ashtoreth. But save us now from the power of our enemies. Then we will serve you.’ 11The Lord sent Gideon, Barak, Jephthah and me. He saved you from the power of your enemies who were all around you. So you lived in safety.
12“But then you saw that Nahash, the king of Ammon, was about to attack you. So you said to me, ‘No! We want a king to rule over us.’ You said it even though the Lord your God was your king. 13Now here is the king you have chosen. He’s the one you asked for. The Lord has placed a king over you. 14But you must have respect for the Lord. You must serve him and obey him. You must not say no to his commands. Both you and the king who rules over you must obey the Lord your God. If you do, that’s good. 15But you must not disobey him. You must not say no to his commands. If you do, his power will be against you. That’s what happened to your people who lived before you.
16“So stand still. Watch the great thing the Lord is about to do right here in front of you! 17It’s time to gather in the wheat, isn’t it? I’ll call out to the Lord to send thunder and rain. Then you will realize what an evil thing you did in the sight of the Lord. You shouldn’t have asked for a king.”
18Samuel called out to the Lord. That same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people had great respect for the Lord and for Samuel.
19They said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for us. Pray that we won’t die because we asked for a king. That was an evil thing to do. We added it to all our other sins.”
20“Don’t be afraid,” Samuel replied. “It’s true that you have done all these evil things. But don’t turn away from the Lord. Serve him with all your heart. 21Don’t turn away and worship statues of gods. They are useless. They can’t do you any good. They can’t save you either. They are completely useless. 22But the Lord will be true to his great name. He won’t turn his back on his people. That’s because he was pleased to make you his own people. 23I would never sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. I’ll teach you to live in a way that is good and right. 24But be sure to have respect for the Lord. Serve him faithfully. Do it with all your heart. Think about the great things he has done for you. 25But don’t be stubborn. Don’t continue to do what is evil. If you do, both you and your king will be destroyed.”
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1 Samuel 12: NIrV
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Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
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1 Samuel 12
12
Samuel’s Spotless Leadership
1Then Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to everything you have said to me and appointed a king over you. 2And now, here is the king who will lead you. I am old and gray, but my sons are with you. I have led you from my youth until this day. 3Here I am. Testify against me in front of the Lord and in front of his anointed king. Did I take anyone’s ox? Did I take anyone’s donkey? Did I cheat or oppress anyone? Did I take a bribe from anyone to look the other way? ⌞If so,⌟ I will give it all back.”
4They answered, “You didn’t cheat us, oppress us, or take anything from anyone.”
5Samuel told them, “The Lord is a witness to what you’ve said, and his anointed king is a witness today that you’ve found nothing in my hands.”
“He is a witness,” they answered.
6Samuel told the people, “The Lord appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors out of Egypt. 7Now, stand up while I put you on trial in front of the Lord and cite all the righteous things the Lord did for you and your ancestors. 8When your ancestors went with Jacob to Egypt ⌞and were oppressed⌟, they cried out to the Lord, who sent Moses and Aaron to bring them out of Egypt. The Lord settled them in this place. 9But they forgot the Lord their God. So he handed them over to Sisera, who was the commander of the army of Hazor, to the Philistines, and to the king of Moab. All of them fought against your ancestors. 10Then they cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned. We have abandoned the Lord and served other gods and goddesses—the Baals and the Astartes. But rescue us from our enemies now, and we will serve you.’
11“Then the Lord sent Jerubbaal, Bedan, Jephthah, and Samuel and rescued you from your enemies on every side so that you could live securely. 12But when you saw King Nahash of Ammon coming to attack you, you told me, ‘No, a king should rule over us,’ though the Lord your God was your king.
The New Kingship
13“Now, here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for. See, the Lord has put a king over you. 14If you fear the Lord, serve him, obey him, and don’t rebel against what he says, then you and your king will follow the Lord your God. 15But if you don’t obey the Lord, if you rebel against what he says, then the Lord will be against you as he was against your ancestors. 16Now then, stand still and watch this great thing the Lord is going to do right before your eyes. 17Isn’t the wheat being harvested today? I will call on the Lord, and he’ll send thunder and rain. Then you will realize what a wicked thing you did in the Lord’s presence when you asked for a king.”
18Then Samuel called on the Lord. That day the Lord sent thunder and rain so that all the people feared the Lord and Samuel very much.
19All the people pleaded with Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for us so that we will not die. We have added ⌞another⌟ evil thing to all our other sins by asking for a king.”
20“Don’t be afraid,” Samuel told the people. “You did do all these evil things. But don’t turn away from the Lord. Instead, serve the Lord wholeheartedly. 21Don’t turn away to follow other gods. They can’t help or rescue you, because they don’t exist. 22For the sake of his great name, the Lord will not abandon his people, because the Lord wants to make you his people. 23It would be unthinkable for me to sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. I will go on teaching you the way that is good and right. 24Fear the Lord, and serve him sincerely. Consider the great things he did for you. 25But if you go on doing what is evil, you and your king will be wiped out.”
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