1 Samuel 12
12
Samuel Addresses Israel
1Then Samuel said to all Israel, “Behold, I have listened to your voice in everything that you have said to me and have appointed a king over you. 2And now, here is the king walking before you. As for me, I am old and gray, and here are my sons with you. I have walked before you from my childhood to this day. 3Here I am; testify against me before the Lord and [Saul] His anointed [if I have done someone wrong]. Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I exploited? Whom have I oppressed or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes [to the truth]? [Tell me and] I will restore it to you.” 4They said, “You have not exploited us or oppressed us or taken anything at all from a man’s hand.” 5Samuel said to them, “The Lord is a witness against you, and [Saul] His anointed is a witness this day that you have not found anything in my hand.” And they answered, “He is a witness.”
6Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers (ancestors) up from the land of Egypt. 7Now then, take your stand, so that I may plead and contend with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous acts of the Lord which He did for you and for your fathers. 8When Jacob [and his sons] had come into Egypt [and later when the Egyptians oppressed them] and your #I.e. the descendants of Jacob (Israel) and his twelve sons.fathers cried out to the Lord, then the Lord sent Moses and Aaron who brought your fathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place. 9But when they forgot the Lord their God, He sold them into the hand of #These may be representatives of Israel’s enemies during the time of the Judges: Sisera of Hazor to the north, the Philistines to the west, and Moab to the south and west.Sisera, commander of Hazor’s army, and into the hand of the Philistines and of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 10They cried out to the Lord, saying, ‘We have sinned because we have abandoned (rejected) the Lord and have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth; but now rescue us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve You.’ 11Then the Lord sent Jerubbaal (Gideon) and #Greek and Syriac read Barak.Bedan and Jephthah and Samuel, and He rescued you from the hand of your enemies on every side, and you lived in security.
The King Confirmed
12But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites had come against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us’—although the Lord your God was your King. 13Now therefore, here is [Saul] the king whom you have chosen, and for whom you asked; behold, the Lord has set a king over you. 14If you will fear the Lord [with awe and profound reverence] and serve Him and listen to His voice and not rebel against His commandment, then both you and your king will follow the Lord your God [and it will be well]. 15But if you do not listen to the Lord’s voice, but rebel against His #Lit mouth.command, then the hand of the Lord will be against you [to punish you], as it was against your fathers. 16So now, take your stand and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes. 17Is it not [the beginning of the] wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord and He will send thunder and rain; then you will know [without any doubt], and see that your evil which you have done is great in the sight of the Lord by asking for yourselves a king.” 18So Samuel called to the Lord [in prayer], and He sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.
19Then all the people said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants, #The fifty days between the beginning of the barley harvest (Passover) and the end of the wheat harvest (Pentecost) are called the “days of trepidation.” During these fifty days, the farmers pray that it will not rain because all the major crops of the land (the seven varieties of Deut 8:7-10) come to fruition during this time. The rain destroys crops in the field and any produce that has been harvested and covered. The resulting famine from the crop failure would result in many deaths.so that we will not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil—to ask for a king for ourselves.” 20Samuel said to the people, “Do not be afraid. You have [indeed] done all this evil; yet do not turn away from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21You must not turn away, for then you would go after futile things which cannot profit or rescue, because they are futile. 22The Lord will not abandon His people for His great name’s sake, because the Lord has been pleased to make you a people for Himself. 23Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and right way. 24Only fear the Lord [with awe and profound reverence] and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. 25But if you still do evil, both you and your king will be swept away [to destruction].”
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1 Samuel 12
12
Samuel’s Farewell Speech
1Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. 2Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these things, I will make it right.”
4“You have not cheated or oppressed us,” they replied. “You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”
5Samuel said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”
“He is witness,” they said.
6Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors up out of Egypt. 7Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the Lord as to all the righteous acts performed by the Lord for you and your ancestors.
8“After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the Lord for help, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.
9“But they forgot the Lord their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. 10They cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned; we have forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.’ 11Then the Lord sent Jerub-Baal,#12:11 Also called Gideon Barak,#12:11 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac; Hebrew Bedan Jephthah and Samuel,#12:11 Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac Samson and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around you, so that you lived in safety.
12“But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we want a king to rule over us’—even though the Lord your God was your king. 13Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the Lord has set a king over you. 14If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God—good! 15But if you do not obey the Lord, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your ancestors.
16“Now then, stand still and see this great thing the Lord is about to do before your eyes! 17Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the Lord to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king.”
18Then Samuel called on the Lord, and that same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel.
19The people all said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.”
20“Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22For the sake of his great name the Lord will not reject his people, because the Lord was pleased to make you his own. 23As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 25Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will perish.”
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