Context No. 3197 of 4322 · 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 8:1-6: in context

1When Samuel was old, he made his sons judges over Israel. 2Now the name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah. They were judges in Beersheba. 3His sons didn’t walk in his ways, but turned away after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice. 4Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together and came to Samuel to Ramah. 5They said to him, “Behold, you are old, and your sons don’t walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.” 6But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” Samuel prayed to the LORD.

Samuel has grown old, and the sons he made judges do not walk in his ways; they take bribes and pervert justice. So the elders come to him with a request: you are old, and your sons are not like you; give us a king to judge us, like all the nations. The request displeases Samuel, and he prays to the LORD.

Two failures meet here. Samuel's sons, like Eli's before them, do not follow their father's ways; godly leadership does not automatically pass to the next generation. And the people, using this as their reason, ask for a king like all the nations, wanting to be like everyone else rather than distinctly God's own. God will grant it, but it is a step away from his direct kingship over them. The desire to be like all the nations, to blend in rather than stand as God's distinct people, is an old and recurring temptation. And Samuel's response is right: he takes his grief straight to God in prayer.

Do I ever want to be "like all the nations," conforming to the world rather than embracing my distinct calling as God's, and do I bring such matters to God in prayer?

Sources

1 Samuel 8:5: "Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations."
1 Samuel 8:7: "They have not rejected you, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king over them."
Romans 12:2: "Don't be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."