1 Samuel 8: Earthly Kings Take

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.”
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, “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.”
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 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.”
 
 
Meditation
Rejoice, the Lord is King! God’s grace invites you to move from ruin to restoration by experiencing the generosity of His rule and reign.
 
A void of spiritual leadership will be filled with ungodly, unbiblical, and unhelpful alternatives. Samuel was passing and his progeny were perverting justice (1-3). The people’s desire for a leader was manifest in a request to have a king “like other nations” (5, 20). The request rejected God as king (7) by twisting His provision with their felt needs.
 
God had redeemed Israel (8) and now Israel rejected God as king. God had provided a pattern for a king (Deuteronomy 17:14-20), a leader who was a faithful follower of the Lord. Israel wanted a ruler like other nations. God gave a warning. Israel refused to heed God’s gracious caution. Hard hearts reject God, His word, and His provision.
 
The rule of earthly kings leads to ruin, taking from people to enhance their own treasure. “Take” is repeated six times to emphasize the self-centered nature of human rulers (11-17). Earthly kings exploit power to the extent that their subjects actually become slaves.
 
In contrast, The Lord stepped out of power to give Himself for our sins by dying in our place (Philippians 2:6-8). The gracious rule of King Jesus restores because Jesus is a generous king. Jesus is the ideal King and is worshipped as King of Kings (Revelation 17:14; 19:16). The grace of Jesus invites you to come to Him, turning from earthly kings to find restoration under His rule and reign.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you from Israel’s request for a king like other nations and God’s warning of the exploitation that will result?
 
-Where do you identify, rejecting God as king to receive the rule of “kings” in our culture?
 
-The grace of Jesus invites us to return to His rule to be restored by His gracious reign. Take a moment to pray, asking The Holy Spirit to identify ways you are rejecting God as king and asking for strength to return to the rule of Jesus.
 
Key Verse
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.”