1 Sam
8:19-22 (ESV) 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."
NOTE: In this
passage, God does not say that the request is wrong. Earlier, verse 8:7 God
says, "… for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from
being king over them." But that is not exactly saying the request is
wrong. The people have rejected God as king, but that occurred all through the
book of Judges. The people did well while a God-appoint judge lived. When he
died, they failed, and in increasing measure. The concept of a king establishes
a constant ruler. They could be admitting their failure and their need for some
continual representative, i.e., a king. So, I'm not sure that what they are
asking for is wrong. The wrong has already been done and exemplified in the
book of Judges. This is the fix, a person with the authority to be king. There
are some dangers inherent as God tells Samuel to remind them. But at this
point, I think the people believe that anything is better than what we have
been experiencing.
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