1 Samuel 8
English Standard Version
Israel Demands a King
8 When Samuel became old, (A)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 (B)but turned aside after gain. (C)They took bribes and perverted justice.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at (D)Ramah 5 and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. (E)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, (F)for they have not rejected you, (G)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 (H)and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”
Samuel's Warning Against Kings
10 So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking for a king from him. 11 He said, (I)“These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: (J)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 (K)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 (L)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[a] 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, (M)but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”
The Lord Grants Israel's Request
19 But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us, 20 (N)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, (O)“Obey their voice and make them a king.” Samuel then said to the men of Israel, “Go every man to his city.”
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 8:16 Septuagint cattle
1 Samuel 8
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Israel’s Demand for a King
8 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges over Israel.(A) 2 His firstborn son’s name was Joel and his second was Abijah. They were judges in Beer-sheba.(B) 3 However, his sons did not walk in his ways—they turned toward dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice.(C)
4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and went to Samuel at Ramah.(D) 5 They said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not follow your example. Therefore, appoint a king to judge us the same as all the other nations have.”(E)
6 When they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” Samuel considered their demand sinful, so he prayed to the Lord. 7 But the Lord told him, “Listen to the people and everything they say to you. They have not rejected you; they have rejected Me as their king.(F) 8 They are doing the same thing to you that they have done to Me,[a] since the day I brought them out of Egypt until this day, abandoning Me and worshiping other gods. 9 Listen to them, but you must solemnly warn them(G) and tell them about the rights of the king who will rule over them.”
10 Samuel told all the Lord’s words to the people who were asking him for a king. 11 He said, “These are the rights of the king who will rule over you: He will take your sons and put them to his use in his chariots, on his horses, or running in front of his chariots. 12 He can appoint them for his use as commanders of thousands or commanders of fifties,(H) to plow his ground or reap his harvest, or to make his weapons of war or the equipment for his chariots. 13 He can take your daughters to become perfumers, cooks, and bakers. 14 He can take your best fields, vineyards, and olive orchards and give them to his servants.(I) 15 He can take a tenth of your grain and your vineyards and give them to his officials and servants. 16 He can take your male servants, your female servants, your best young men,[b] and your donkeys and use them for his work. 17 He can take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves can become his servants. 18 When that day comes, you will cry out because of the king you’ve chosen for yourselves,(J) but the Lord won’t answer you on that day.”(K)
19 The people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We must have a king over us. 20 Then we’ll be like all the other nations: our king will judge us, go out before us,(L) and fight our battles.”
21 Samuel listened to all the people’s words and then repeated them to the Lord.[c] 22 “Listen to them,” the Lord told Samuel. “Appoint a king for them.”(M)
Then Samuel told the men of Israel, “Each of you, go back to your city.”
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 8:8 LXX; MT omits to Me
- 1 Samuel 8:16 LXX reads best cattle
- 1 Samuel 8:21 Lit them in the Lord’s ears
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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