1 Samuel 8:9, commentary and pictures

God told Samuel to grant the people's demand for a king, yet to protest solemnly and warn them beforehand of the manner of rule and suffering their choice would bring. Monarchy was not His will nor the right and best way, but He yielded to the desire of their unsanctified hearts for what they thought would bring them the most glory as a nation. Their demand rejected God as their divine ruler and special leader, seeking to be like all the nations by depending on visible human power to judge and fight for them instead of the power that had guided and delivered them. The warning was that unlike the judges, kings would exalt themselves and oppress the people, taking their sons and demanding heavy tribute, until they would cry out because of their chosen king and not be heard. The Lord still has a controversy with His people when they leave their first love in that same spirit, laying worldly plans and putting themselves under human judgment and control instead of trusting God with humility, prayer, and dependence.

Request and Divine Permission

The elders pointed to the failures of Samuel's sons, but that complaint was only a pretext for a change they had long desired, and their demand sprang from discontent and pride rather than any genuine grievance against his own administration. Samuel was distressed and displeased by the demand and took it to the Lord in prayer. In answer God explained that the people had not rejected Samuel but had rejected divine rule itself, continuing the same rebellion they had shown since the Exodus from Egypt in forsaking God and serving other gods.

God permitted Israel to have the king they demanded, even though monarchy was not according to His will. It was not the right way and the best way, yet He granted them the desire of their unsanctified hearts, which in their own mind and judgment would bring the most glory to themselves as a nation. He allowed them to have their own way after plainly telling them through Samuel that it was not right and best.

He directed Samuel to hearken to the people's voice and let their voice decide whether as a people they would discard Samuel before God had released him and choose to be ruled by a king. He was to yield to them and grant their request, yet at the same time to protest solemnly unto them. That solemn protest was to warn them plainly of His disapproval and of the sin and its consequences, and to show them the manner of the king that would reign over them and what his rule would mean.

Warning About the King

The solemn warning spelled out beforehand what the requested kingship would cost, that the king would take their sons for his chariots and horsemen, and that the day would come when they would cry out because of the king they had chosen and the Lord would not hear them. That protest, if heeded, would have spared them the distress that afterward followed leaving God's merciful guidance for the rule of men confident in their own way and judgment. Unlike the judges who had guided the people in the Lord's ways, the kings would exalt themselves, require royal honors and heavy tribute, and oppress the people. When Israel then cried out in distress, God would not answer that cry nor deliver them with mighty power as He had delivered them from Egypt.

A human king could draw the people away from God, grow proud and treat his own judgment as right, and without continual trust in God and wisdom from Him he could cause the innocent to suffer and lift up the unworthy. The demand itself showed lack of faith in God's care and rejection of God as their special leader. The choice to resemble other nations and lean on visible human power instead of the divine power that had guided and delivered them brought weakness, and in time it led to the destruction of Jerusalem and the dispersion of the nation. Israel afterward recognized that wanting a king in order to be like the other nations had been a mistake, and the example of Saul helped spread irreligion and godlessness.

Choosing Human Rule Today

Israel asked for a king in order to be like all the nations around them, to be recognized by the world, to be esteemed great and make display before surrounding nations. They wanted a king to judge them and to fight for them, choosing dependence on visible human power instead of the divine power that had guided and delivered them. In their own mind and judgment this course would bring the most glory to themselves as a nation.

To insist on visible human authority in place of God as divine ruler and special leader was to renounce the divine theocracy. It rejected God, who had been guiding and delivering His people in ways that made clear the power and glory belonged to Him, and it showed lack of faith in His care. The solemn protest, if heeded, would have saved them from the distress that afterward came from leaving God's merciful guidance and accepting the rule of men secure in their own way and judgment. But their minds were bent on their own judgment and they were weary of God's will and ways, so they refused to obey and still insisted on having their own way after being plainly told it was not the right and best way.

The verse means the Lord has a controversy with His people when they leave their first love and follow that same spirit. That is laying plans that have not entered God's mind, bringing in a new order of things after worldly policy and unsanctified human judgment, and separating themselves from God's management, rule, jurisdiction, leading and control in all their ways, which will react upon themselves. The folly of turning from the Lord God of Israel as Ruler to lean on men and their own judgment will be repeated among God's people today unless there is greater humility, less confidence in self, and more trust in God. Safety requires trust in God joined with meekness, caution, prayer and dependence, with divine power combined with human effort for the work to abide the test; those who make God their trust instead of men will pray much and talk little, showing meekness of spirit, caution in plans and movements, and the mind of Christ.

The same spirit is seen when, after blessing, a worker takes himself out of the hands of God and puts himself under worldly, fashionable influence. He tries to keep up appearances for outward show and thinks to raise himself by looking at things from a worldly standpoint instead of letting God be his helper and sufficiency.