1 Samuel 8:11–20

God, knowing well the sad future for Israel, instructs Samuel to warn them plainly about what they must expect if they get the king they want. Samuel, a true prophet faithful to his Lord, tells the people all the words of the Lord. Their king would take their sons for his own servants. They would be chariot drivers and horsemen, trained for army service as both officers and privates, and set to making weapons of war… If people want such government, they must pay the costs.

"He will take, he will take," Samuel says repeatedly — six times in seven verses. And what did he give them in return? "He will give," Samuel says, not to them, but "to his officers and to his servants."

In brief, they will be slaves to their king. They will no longer be servants of God in that sense. They will no longer be free to work for their own profit. At any time their king may call them out to war, needless or not, just as his whim decides.

This is man's king, and such a king can hardly be anything more. In the nature of things it could not be much different.

How else could the kingdom keep up its dignity and majesty? In the highest days of Israel's prosperity this became intolerable. So we hear them saying to the son of Solomon, "Your father made our yoke heavy" (1 Kings 12:4). The greater the glory of the kingdom, the greater the burden on the people. It had to be so.

We see him now acting in the way Samuel had warned of. He chooses three thousand men of Israel to wait on him and sends the rest home to their tents. He treats them as his property, with the right to do as he pleased with his own. "When Saul saw any strong man, or any valiant man, he took him to himself" — taking their sons and appointing them to himself, as Samuel had said. All his ways have the same tone of self-will, completely opposed to the manner of God's king that Moses laid down in Deuteronomy 17.

It is refreshing to turn from the description of man's king in 1 Samuel 8 to the gracious words of God's king in Psalm 132. Speaking of Zion He says, "I will abundantly bless her provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread." He gave them a taste of this when He fed the hungry crowd in John 6… For ages kings had been greedy and cruel. How good for men to have found One who could be a giver to His people!

A king after man's own heart would use them as tools for his own plans. The yoke would be unbearable, and they could not shake it off. In the same way, the world completely disowns Christians who seek its help. It gives them nothing in return except a sense of their own wretchedness. The world does not grant its help unless one consents to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and the light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

Some prayers have to be granted, but in judgment: so with this prayer for a king. Yet God takes care that even self-deception is almost impossible. They are to hear testimony from the Lord Himself about what everything around them also plainly showed — the manner of this king that they desired. Samuel must declare all this to them, so that they make their decision in the plainest light that can be given.

Their king would take their sons as his own servants. They would drive his chariots and ride as his horsemen. They would be trained for army service, both officers and privates. They would make instruments of war, and so on… If people want such government, they must pay the costs. Of course people will argue that all these things are necessary taxes, whether they like it or not. But the Lord warns them they will not like it. They would cry out for relief later on, but could not expect the Lord to give it.

The people demanded a king, and Samuel gave them the Lord's message in reply. It sets out in vivid terms what man in power is. There is monotony in the six times repeated words "he will take." The army would claim their sons. Their daughters must become his cooks. The king would demand the produce of their fields and their flocks for his own support, and so on. It could hardly be otherwise. How else could a kingdom keep up its dignity and majesty?… The greater the glory of the kingdom, the greater the burden on the people must be.

The testimony is, after all, simple enough. Man being what he is, you cannot give him honour without his debasing himself with it. Put him in a place of service, and he will serve himself first of all. Combine these two, as in the case of a king, and self will shine out in him in the fullest way. This is nothing strange, sadly, but the commonest experience. But here a people with the Lord Himself as King deliberately accepts the yoke of another!

They will no longer be servants of God in that sense, and no longer free to work for their own profit… The tenth part of their increase, the very same that the Lord claimed as His own, must be given to their king. In other words, they would bitterly regret their choice. They would find that they had passed from the perfect freedom of serving God into the bondage of human tyranny… A king does not have to be a tyrant. But human nature being what it is, that is what should be expected. God's thought, after all, is for a king. But it must be the true King, who will reign in righteousness. In all the universe of God there is only One such King. When He comes whose right it is to rule, and the government is upon His shoulders, oppression will cease.

The king who suited man's heart would use them as tools to carry out his plans. That yoke would be unbearable, and they would not be able to shake it off. In the same way, the world completely disowns Christians who seek its help. It gives them nothing in return except a sense of their own misery, with no compensation at all. The world does not grant its help unless one consents to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and the light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

In Egypt the king had a male servant who is called his "chief baker" (Genesis 40:1-22; Genesis 41:10). But in Israel the women of each house did the baking. Abraham called to Sarah to prepare cakes on the hearth (Genesis 18:6). And Samuel said that if the Israelites had a king, he would take their daughters to be bakers (1 Samuel 8:13).

There is a dull sameness in the words "he will take," repeated six times. The army would claim their sons. Their daughters must become his cooks. The king would demand the produce of their fields and their flocks to support himself, and so on. It could hardly be any other way. How else could the Kingdom keep up its dignity and majesty? … The greater the glory of the Kingdom, the greater the burden on the people must be.

The testimony is, after all, simple enough. Man being what he is, give him honour and he will debase himself with it. Put him in a place of service, he will serve himself first of all. Combine these two, as in the case of a king, self will shine out in him in the fullest way. This is nothing strange, alas, but the commonest experience. But here a people with Jehovah Himself as King deliberately accepts the yoke of another!

And what did he give them in return? "He will give," Samuel says — not to them, but "to his officers and to his servants." Their part was to pay, and to hand over to his royal demands their finest young men and their daughters: Zion's fair daughters, set to slave in his kitchens as cooks and bakers.

The tenth of their increase, the very part that Jehovah claimed as His own, must now go to their king. In other words, they would bitterly regret their choice. They would find that they had passed from the perfect freedom of serving God into the bondage of human tyranny.

Some prayers have to be granted, but in judgment. So it is with this prayer for a king. God takes care that even self-deception shall be barely possible. They are to hear from the Lord Himself what everything around them showed plainly as well — the manner of this king that they desired. Samuel must declare all this to them, so that they choose in the plainest light that can be given.

The king that man's heart wanted would make them tools to carry out his plans. That yoke would be unbearable, and they would not be able to shake it off. In the same way, the world completely disowns Christians who seek its help. It gives them nothing in exchange except a sense of their own wretchedness, and no compensation at all. The world does not grant its help unless one consents to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and the light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

It is refreshing to turn from the description of man's king in 1 Samuel 8 to the gracious words of God's king in Psalm 132. Speaking of Zion He says, "I will abundantly bless her provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread." In the day of John 6 He gave them a taste of this. He saw the starving crowds around Him and opened His generous hand. With five barley loaves and two small fish He met the need of five thousand men, besides women and children — and twelve baskets of fragments were left over. Do we wonder that the people sought to take Him by force and make Him King? How delightful for men, after ages of royal greed and oppression, to have found One who could be a giver to His people!

In answer to the people's demand for a king, Samuel gave them Jehovah's message, which sets out in vivid terms what man in power is. The words "he will take" come six times over, with a dull sameness. Their sons would have to serve in the army. Their daughters must become his cooks. The king would demand the produce of their fields and flocks for his support, and so on. It could hardly be any different. How else could the Kingdom keep up its dignity and majesty? In the highest days of Israel's prosperity this became unbearable.

"He will take, he will take," Samuel says repeatedly — six times in seven verses. And what did he give them in return? "He will give," Samuel says, not to them, but "to his officers and to his servants."

Their property will not be safe from his aggression. Their lands can be taken away. They must hand their king the tenth part of their increase — the very tenth that Jehovah claimed as His own. In other words, they would deeply regret their choice. They would find that they had passed from the perfect freedom of serving God into the bondage of human tyranny. How fully this was verified in later years, a glance at their history will show.

Ahab well knew that an Israelite could not sell the inheritance of his fathers. But what of that? Was not Ahab "king of Samaria"? Why should an old divine law keep him from what he wanted?

There are prayers that have to be granted, but in judgment: so with this prayer for a king. But care is taken that even self-deception shall be almost impossible. They are to hear testimony from the Lord Himself about what everything around them also showed plainly — the kind of king they wanted. Samuel must declare all this to them, so that they may decide in the plainest light that can be given.

The king after man's own heart would use them as tools to carry out his plans. That yoke would be unbearable, yet they would not be able to shake it off. In the same way, the world completely disowns Christians who seek its help. It gives them nothing in exchange except a sense of their own misery, with nothing at all to make up for it. The world does not grant its help unless one consents to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and the light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

How very different this King is to Saul! Saul means "asked," and the people "asked" for him. Samuel means "asked of God." Saul would "take" (see 1 Samuel 8:10-18); this King will "give."

How delightful for men, after ages of kingly greed and oppression, to have found One Who could be a giver to His people!

In answer to the people's demand for a king, Samuel gave them Jehovah's message. It sets out in vivid terms what man in power is. There is a monotony in the six times repeated words "he will take." He would take their sons for the army. Their daughters must become his cooks. He would demand the produce of their fields and of their flocks for his own support, and so on. It could hardly be otherwise. How else could the Kingdom keep up its dignity and majesty? … The greater the glory of the Kingdom, the greater the burden on the people, of necessity.

Their property will not be safe from his aggression either. He can take their lands away. The tenth part of their increase — the very same that Jehovah claimed as His own — must go to their king. In other words, they would bitterly regret their choice. They would find that they had passed from the perfect freedom of serving God into the bondage of human tyranny.

He would demand a tenth of all they produced to support all this pomp and empty show. … "He will take, he will take," Samuel says repeatedly — six times in seven verses. And what did he give them in return? "He will give," Samuel says — not to them, but "to his officers and to his servants." Their part was to pay. They handed over to his kingly demands their "goodliest young men" and their "daughters."

There are prayers God has to grant, but in judgment: so with this prayer for a king. Yet He takes care that even self-deception shall be hardly possible. The Lord Himself gives them His testimony about the manner of this king that they desired — the same thing everything around them showed plainly. He instructs Samuel to declare all this to them, so that they may decide in the plainest light that can be given.

Samuel bears the solemn witness, the people repeat their desire, and then — solemn thought — they are left to their choice. They shall have their request, even though it brings leanness to their own souls. Our blessed God often permits us to have our own way, so that He may show us the folly of it.

The king according to man's heart would make them his instruments to carry out his plans. That yoke would be unbearable, but they would be unable to shake it off. In the same way, the world entirely disowns Christians who seek its help. It gives them nothing in exchange except a sense of their own wretchedness, with no compensation at all. The world does not grant its help unless one consents to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and the light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

It is refreshing to turn from the description of man's king in 1 Samuel 8 to the gracious words of God's king in Psalm 132. Speaking of Zion He says, "I will abundantly bless her provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread." In the day of John 6 He gave them a taste of this. He saw the starving crowds around Him and opened His generous hand. With five barley loaves and two small fish He fed five thousand men, besides women and children. Twelve baskets of pieces were left over. How delightful for men, after ages of kingly greed and oppression, to have found One who could be a giver to His people!

In answer to the people's demand for a king, Samuel gave them Jehovah's message. It sets out in vivid terms what man in power is. There is a monotony in the six times repeated words "he will take." He would need their sons for the army. Their daughters must become his cooks. The produce of their fields and their flocks would go to the king's support, and so on. It could scarcely be otherwise. How else could the king keep up the dignity and majesty of his kingdom? In Israel's most prosperous days this became unbearable. So we hear the people say to Solomon's son, "Your father made our yoke heavy" (1 Kings 12:4). The greater the glory of the Kingdom, the greater the burden upon the people of necessity.

This was not God's ideal of what a king should be. It was the manner of the king of their own choice, given to them as a punishment for their deliberate rejection of God's rule through Samuel. Without faith in God, he would be a pronounced militarist, taking the choicest of their young men to fill the ranks of his standing army. And what did he give them in return? "He will give," Samuel says, not to them, but to his officers and to his servants. Their part was to pay, and to hand over their best young men and their daughters to his kingly demands. The Philistines slaughtered the boys, through Saul's mismanagement.

The testimony is, after all, simple enough. Man being what he is, honour cannot be given him without his debasing himself with it. Put him in a place of service, and he will serve himself first of all. Combine these two, as in the case of a king, and self will shine out in him in the fullest way. This is nothing strange, sadly, but the commonest experience. But here a people with Jehovah Himself as King deliberately accepts the yoke of another!

There are prayers that have to be granted, but in judgment: so with this prayer for a king. But care is taken that even self-deception shall be hardly possible. The Lord Himself testifies about the kind of king they wanted — the very thing everything around them already showed plainly. Samuel must declare all this to them, so they decide in the plainest light possible.

The tenth part of their increase, the very same that Jehovah claimed as His own, must be given to their king. In other words, they would deeply regret their choice. They had left the perfect freedom of serving God, and passed into the bondage of human tyranny.

The world completely disowns Christians who seek its help. It gives them nothing in return but a sense of their own wretchedness, and no compensation at all. The world does not grant its help unless one agrees to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and the light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

It is refreshing to turn from the description of man's king in 1 Samuel 8 to the gracious words of God's king in Psalm 132. Speaking of Zion He says, "I will abundantly bless her provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread." In John 6 He gave them a taste of this. He saw the starving crowds around Him and opened His generous hand. With five barley loaves and two small fish He satisfied the need of five thousand men. After ages of greed and oppression from kings, how delightful for men to find One who could be a giver to His people!

"He will take, he will take," Samuel says repeatedly — six times in seven verses. And what did he give them in return? "He will give," Samuel says, not to them, but "to his officers and to his servants." Their part was to pay, and to hand over their best young men and their daughters to meet the king's demands.

Then, too, their property will not be safe from his aggression. Their lands can be taken away. The tenth part of their increase, the very same that Jehovah claimed as His own, must be given to their king. In other words, they would bitterly regret their choice. They would find that they had passed out of the perfect freedom of serving God into the bondage of human tyranny.

The king chosen after man's own heart would use them as tools to carry out his plans. That was an unbearable yoke, and one they could not shake off. In the same way, the world completely disowns Christians who look to it for help. It gives them nothing in return except a sense of their own misery. The world does not grant its help unless one consents to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and the light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

Man being what he is, you cannot give him honour without his debasing himself with it. Put him in a place of service, and he will serve himself first of all. Combine the two, as in a king, and self shows itself in him to the full. Sadly, this is nothing strange; it is the commonest experience of all. Yet here is a people with Jehovah Himself as King, and they deliberately accept the yoke of another!

If people want such government, they must pay the costs. Of course people will easily argue that all these things are necessary taxes, whether the people like it or not. But the Lord warns them that they will not like it. In the end they would cry out for relief, and could not expect the Lord to give it. They would have to learn deeply the results of their own wilfulness.

How fully this was proved in later years, a glance at their history will show. Even David, in his terrible sin, showed how arbitrary a king's power is — a royal murderer, against whom no hand could be lifted in vengeance! Solomon's oppression, and the open robbery and murder by Ahab, are only illustrations of what was, no doubt, all too common among the kings of Israel.

It is refreshing to turn from the description of man's king in 1 Samuel 8 to the gracious words of God's king in Psalm 132. Speaking of Zion He says, "I will abundantly bless her provision; I will satisfy her poor with bread." In John 6 He gave them a taste of this. He saw the starving crowds around Him. He opened His generous hand, and with five barley loaves and two small fish He met the need of five thousand men. After ages of greedy and oppressive kings, what a delight for men to find One who could be a giver to His people!

Israel's rebellious will was to have, as they said, "our" king. They would not wait for the King Jehovah purposed, whom He will set in His own time on His holy hill of Zion. They refused both protest and warning, so God gave them their king in His anger. Yet He gave one "on whom was all the desire of Israel" — the people's choice indeed, not the one after God's own heart.

"He will take, he will take," Samuel says — six times in seven verses. And what did he give them in return? "He will give," Samuel says, not to them, but "to his officers and to his servants." Their part was to pay, and to hand over their finest young men and their daughters to meet the king's demands.

Through Samuel He had told them in the plainest terms what would come (8:18). When they groaned under the oppression of their self-chosen king, they would cry out in their distress, and He would not hear them. Yet here He says, "their cry has come to Me." The first was in government, and they reap a bitter harvest from what they sowed by their own will. This is in grace, and He looks on His people's misery and purposes to deliver them. Their sufferings under His government came from a scourge within — from Saul their king. The groaning that drew out the compassion of His grace came from outside, from the Philistines, and He is quick to hear and ready to relieve. Let the grace encourage us; let the government warn us and put us on our guard.

But in His usual grace, the Lord here gives His people space to repent of this evil choice before they reaped its bitter fruit. He had done the same at Mount Sinai, where Moses passed back and forth between the people and the Lord, to give them room to turn and still trust the grace that had redeemed them from Egypt. And so here, I believe, Samuel passes again and again between the Lord and the people with the same intent. But as they listened at Sinai to their own heart in its confidence and self-sufficiency, so here they will have a king despite all God's gracious warning. They take their own way again.

The king according to man's heart would make them his instruments to carry out his plans. That was an unbearable yoke, but one they could not shake off (vv. 10-18). In the same way, the world completely disowns Christians who seek its help. It gives them nothing in exchange but a sense of their own wretchedness, and no compensation at all. The world does not grant its help unless you agree to serve it. This is not the easy yoke and light burden of the bondservant of Christ, but the anguish of cruel slavery.

It is refreshing to turn from the description of man's king in 1 Samuel 8 to the gracious words of God's king in Psalm 132. Speaking of Zion He says, "I will abundantly bless her provisions; I will satisfy her poor with bread."... How delightful for men, after ages of greed and oppression under kings, to have found One who could be a giver to His people! But the Christ of God would not receive the Kingdom from men or from Satan. He will take it from the hand of God alone.

It was in vain. "But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, 'No! But there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations.'" Their heart was getting further and further away from God. Every word they uttered, though they little suspected it, condemned themselves the more. It was self-will at work against God. Worse still, they were deliberately throwing away their own highest privilege.

The fact was that they asked for a king through unbelief. The first motive they put forward was that Samuel was old and his sons did not walk in his ways. That was not the real reason they were anxious to have a king... In self-will and unbelief they cried out for a king: "There shall be a king over us, 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." Their words showed that they did not trust the Lord's care for them, or His interest in them.

They have no answer for the warning. They simply reply to Samuel, "No! But there shall be a king over us." They say it for two reasons. First, they want to be like the nations, just as many Christians today want to be like the world. Second, they expect a king to fight their battles for them. In both of these things they lose sight of God. How can they represent God before the nations if they choose to be like the nations? That would take away any real testimony to the difference God had made in them because of His love.

They began with a request: "Make us a king." They finish by declaring their determination: "No! But there shall be a king over us!" "That our king may fight our battles!" They spoke as if a king with his crown among them would guarantee them victory! Had they forgotten their great victory over the Philistine armies? "The LORD thundered with a mighty sound that day against the Philistines and threw them into confusion, and they were routed before Israel." Was "the LORD of hosts" no longer enough for them? They could not see Him, but a king, dressed in purple and gold and riding in a chariot, would be a fine sight for them to look at.

So God allows it. It is not only a concession to Israel's folly. He lets them have their way so that painful experience will teach them the results of that folly. Later God tells Israel, "I gave you a king in my anger, and I took him away in my wrath" (Hosea 13:11). Saul's beginning as king seemed promising, but his end was pitifully sad.

The lesson was not for that generation only. Otherwise it would matter little. In all this testing of Israel... the test falls on man as man, and it uncovers the depths of his heart. The people's choice here is the same choice they made at a later day, when they cried, "Not this man, but Barabbas!" "They have rejected Me," says the LORD.

They have no answer for the warning, but reply to Samuel, "No; but we will have a king over us." Why? First, they want to be like the nations, just as many Christians today want to be like the world. Second, they expect a king to fight their battles for them. In both of these things they lose sight of God. How can they represent God before the nations if they choose to be like the nations? This would destroy any real witness to the difference God had made in them because He loved them. And in the past, who fought their battles for them when they won? See Exodus 14:13-14.

Israel, as the people of Jehovah's gracious choice, was meant to be different in every respect from all others, and to be Jehovah's witness to them. Balaam, in his first speech, said, "Look, this is a people that will live alone, and will not be counted among the nations" (Num. 23:9). So it was a terrible thing when the people demanded of Samuel, "Make us a king to judge us like all the nations" (1 Sam. 8:5).

They asked for a king through unbelief… Far worse than the personal slight to Samuel was the rejection of the Lord as their King. The immediate cause of their demand was the invasion of Israel's territory east of Jordan by Nahash, king of the children of Ammon (1 Sam. 12:12). Their words showed plainly that they did not trust the Lord's care for them, or His interest in them.

They began with a request: "Make us a king." They end with a demand: "No, but we will have a king!" "That our king may fight our battles!" — as if a king with a crown among them would guarantee them victory! "O foolish people, and unwise" — had they forgotten their great victory over the Philistine armies? The Lord "thundered with a great thunder upon them and threw them into confusion, and they were defeated before Israel." Was "the Lord of hosts" no longer enough for them? Him they could not see. But a king dressed in purple and gold lace, riding in a chariot, would be a grand sight to them.

Their desire for a king was, in reality, giving up the Lord. It denied His direct rule through the judges. But their worst sin was asking for a king like the nations. Was it not God's counsel to give them a king according to His own heart, an Anointed whom He would have chosen for them Himself (1 Sam. 2:35; 1 Sam. 13:14)? Wanting a king like all the nations gave up their title as God's people and meant becoming like the world… Christendom, on its path of falling away, has acted the same way. Instead of humbling itself and mourning, it has looked to the world for support to keep itself going.

When they did get a king, according to their hearts' desire, what did he do for them? "All the people followed him trembling."… His whole reign was a sad failure. The prophet Hosea sums it up in two striking sentences: "I gave you a king in my anger, and took him away in my wrath." In short, he was the answer to the unbelief and self-will of the people. So all their bright hopes about him ended in bitter disappointment. He failed to answer the mind of God, and so he failed to meet the people's need.