READ: 1 Sam. 12:1-5: Now Samuel said to all Israel: Indeed I have heeded your voice … and have made a king over you. … The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed is witness …, that you have not found anything in my hand. And they answered, He is witness.
Years of peace ensue. Samuel is almost 70 years old when the people come up with a surprising proposal: they want a king! The arguments seem plausible. Samuel is old, and his sons are unfit. But Samuel discerns the unbelief behind this proposal. They want a king like other nations have, with power and prestige! That would improve their worldly position.
Samuel now feels rejected by the people as a servant of the LORD. But God says in 1 Samuel 8:7, “they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.” Still, the LORD grants the people their wish.
Saul is anointed and appointed as king. He begins by defeating Nahash and his Ammonite warriors. Samuel believes it is time to step down as a judge, which he does during a gathering in Gilgal. The people acclaim King Saul as their great hero and unanimously support him.
In his farewell speech, Samuel reminds the people of their willful choice for a king according to their desires. He has addressed this issue extensively twice before (Chapter 8 and 10). Now he speaks to their hearts. Have they forgotten the good times under his ministry? Have they not noticed God’s good and faithful covenant care during that time? Did he act wrongly?
Why is Samuel defending himself? First, Samuel wants to show that he has the right to speak, even when he points out their sin later on. Second, Samuel wants to demonstrate that, through the office’s work, they lacked nothing from the LORD. In fact, they are pushing the LORD Himself aside (cf. Micah 6:3). Third, the people must realize they should have left Samuel’s succession in God’s hands.
In this way, the LORD condemns their choice through Samuel. They should have asked themselves: Is this from God or from men?
How do we honor God and Christ as King?
Singing: Ps.99:1,2,6