1 Samuel 8
Israel Asks for a
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And it came to pass, when Samuel was old,
that he made his sons judges over Israel.
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Now the name of his firstborn was Joel;
and the name of his second, Abi'ah: they were judges in
Beer-sheba.
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And his sons walked not in his ways, but
turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted
judgment.
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4 |
Then all the elders of Israel gathered
themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah,
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5 |
and said unto him, Behold, thou art old,
and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us
like all the nations. Deut. 17.14
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But the thing displeased Samuel, when
they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the
LORD.
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7 |
And the LORD said
unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they
say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have
rejected me, that I should not reign over them.
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8 |
According to all the works which they
have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even
unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other
gods, so do they also unto thee.
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Now therefore hearken unto their voice:
howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and show them the manner of
the king that shall reign over them.
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10 |
And Samuel told all the words of the
LORD unto the people that asked of him a
king.
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11 |
And he said, This will be the manner of
the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and
appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his
chariots.
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12 |
And he will appoint him captains over
thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to
ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments
of war, and instruments of his chariots.
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13 |
And he will take your daughters to
be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to be bakers.
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14 |
And he will take your fields, and your
vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.
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15 |
And he will take the tenth of your seed,
and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his
servants.
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And he will take your menservants, and
your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and
put them to his work.
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He will take the tenth of your sheep: and
ye shall be his servants.
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And ye shall cry out in that day because
of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day.
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Nevertheless the people refused to obey
the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king
over us;
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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.
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And Samuel heard all the words of the
people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the LORD.
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22 |
And the LORD said to
Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel
said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man unto his
city.
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