1 Samuel 8
8
Israel Asks for a King
1When Samuel became old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders. 2The name of his oldest son was Joel. The name of his second son was Abijah. They served as judges at Beersheba. 3But his sons didn’t live as he did. They were only interested in making money. They accepted money from people who wanted special favors. They made things that were wrong appear to be right.
4So all the elders of Israel gathered together. They came to Samuel at Ramah. 5They said to him, “You are old. Your sons don’t live as you do. So appoint a king to lead us. We want a king just like the kings all the other nations have.”
6Samuel wasn’t pleased when they said, “Give us a king to lead us.” So he prayed to the Lord. 7The Lord told him, “Listen to everything the people are saying to you. You are not the one they have turned their backs on. I am the one they do not want as their king. 8They are doing just as they have always done. They have deserted me and served other gods. They have done that from the time I brought them up out of Egypt until this day. Now they are deserting you too. 9Let them have what they want. But give them a strong warning. Let them know what the king who rules over them will expect to be done for him.”
10Samuel told the people who were asking him for a king everything the Lord had said. 11Samuel told them, “Here’s what the king who rules over you will expect to be done for him. He will take your sons. He’ll make them serve with his chariots and horses. They will run in front of his chariots. 12He’ll choose some of your sons to be commanders of thousands of men. Some will be commanders of fifties. Others will have to plow his fields and gather his crops. Still others will have to make weapons of war and parts for his chariots. 13He’ll also take your daughters. Some will have to make perfume. Others will be forced to cook and bake. 14He will take away your best fields and vineyards and olive groves. He’ll give them to his attendants. 15He will take a tenth of your grain and a tenth of your grapes. He’ll give it to his officials and attendants. 16He will also take your male and female servants. He’ll take your best cattle and donkeys. He’ll use all of them any way he wants to. 17He will take a tenth of your sheep and goats. You yourselves will become his slaves. 18When that time comes, you will cry out for help because of the king you have chosen. But the Lord won’t answer you at that time.”
19In spite of what Samuel said, the people refused to listen to him. “No!” they said. “We want a king to rule over us. 20Then we’ll be like all the other nations. We’ll have a king to lead us. He’ll go out at the head of our armies and fight our battles.”
21Samuel heard everything the people said. He told the Lord about it. 22The Lord answered, “Listen to them. Give them a king.”
Then Samuel said to the Israelites, “Each of you go back to your own town.”
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1 Samuel 8: NIrV
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Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
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1 Samuel 8
8
1When Samuel grew old, he made his sons leaders#8:1. Again the word used is “judges,” but in this period of Israel's history before they had kings the judges did not only settle legal cases but acted as rulers. over Israel. 2His first son was named Joel, and his second son was named Abijah. They were rulers in Beersheba. 3However, his sons did not follow his ways. They were corrupt, making money by accepting bribes and perverting justice.
4So the elders of Israel all joined together and came to meet Samuel at Ramah. 5“Look here,” they told him, “you are old, and your sons do not follow your ways. Choose a king to rule over us like all the other nations.”
6Samuel thought this was a bad idea when they said, “Give us a king to rule over us,” so he prayed to the Lord about it. 7“Do what the people tell you,” the Lord said to Samuel, “because it's not you they're rejecting, but me as their king. 8They're doing just as they have always done since I led them out of Egypt right up to now. They have abandoned me and worshiped other gods, and they're doing just the same to you. 9So do what they want, but give them a solemn warning—explain to them what a king will do when he rules over them.”
10Samuel repeated all that the Lord had said to the people asking him to give them a king. 11“This is what a king will do when he rules over you,” he told them. “He will take your sons and make them serve as charioteers and horsemen, and to run as a guard in front of his chariot. 12Some of them he will make commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some will have to plow his fields and reap his harvest. Some will be assigned to making weapons of war and chariot equipment. 13He will take your daughters and have them work as perfume-makers, cooks, and bakers. 14He will take your best fields, vineyards, and olive groves and give them to his officials. 15He will take a tenth of your grain harvest and the produce of your vineyards and allocate it to his chief officers and officials. 16He will take your male servants and your female servants, and your best young men and your donkeys, and make them work for him. 17He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will be his slaves. 18On that day you will plead to be rescued from the king you have chosen, but the Lord won't answer you then.”
19But the people refused to listen to what Samuel said. “No!” they insisted. “We want our own king! 20That way we can be like all the other nations. Our king will rule us, and will lead us when we go out to fight our battles.”
21Samuel listened to everything the people said and repeated it to the Lord. 22The Lord told Samuel, “Do what they say and give them a king.” Then Samuel told the Israelites, “Go back to your homes.”
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com