1 Then Samuel said to all Israel, “Behold, A1 Sam 8:7, 9, 22I have listened to your voice in all that you said to me and I B1 Sam 10:24; 11:14, 15have 1Lit madeappointed a king over you. 2  “Now, A1 Sam 8:20here is the king walking before you, but B1 Sam 8:1, 5I am old and gray, and behold C1 Sam 8:3, 5my sons are with you. And D1 Sam 3:10, 19, 20I have walked before you from my youth even to this day. 3  “Here I am; bear witness against me before the Loʀᴅ and A1 Sam 10:1; 24:6; 2 Sam 1:14His anointed. BEx 20:17; Num 16:15; Acts 20:33Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed, or CEx 23:8; Deut 16:19from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? I will restore it to you.” 4 They said, “You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from any man’s hand.” 5 He said to them, “The Loʀᴅ is witness against you, and His anointed is witness this day that AActs 23:9; 24:20you have found nothing BEx 22:4in my hand.” And they said, “He is witness.”

6 Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Loʀᴅ who 1Lit madeAEx 6:26; Mic 6:4appointed Moses and Aaron and who brought your fathers up from the land of Egypt. 7  “So now, take your stand, AEzek 20:35; Mic 6:1-5that I may plead with you before the Loʀᴅ concerning all the righteous acts of the Loʀᴅ which He did for you and your fathers. 8  “AGen 46:5, 6When Jacob went into Egypt and BEx 2:23-25your fathers cried out to the Loʀᴅ, then CEx 3:10; 4:14-16the Loʀᴅ sent Moses and Aaron 1Lit and they broughtD1 Sam 10:18who brought your fathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place. 9  “But ADeut 32:18; Judg 3:7they forgot the Loʀᴅ their God, so BJudg 4:2He sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the army of Hazor, and CJudg 3:31; 10:7; 13:1into the hand of the Philistines and DJudg 3:12-30into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 10  “AJudg 10:10They cried out to the Loʀᴅ and said, ‘We have sinned because we have forsaken the Loʀᴅ and have served BJudg 2:13; 3:7the Baals and the Ashtaroth; but CJudg 10:15, 16now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve You.’ 11  “Then the Loʀᴅ sent AJudg 6:31, 32; 7:1Jerubbaal and 1Gr and Syr read BarakBJudg 4:6; 11:1Bedan and CJudg 11:29Jephthah and D1 Sam 3:20Samuel, and delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around, so that you lived in security.

12  “When you saw A1 Sam 11:1, 2that Nahash the king of the sons of Ammon came against you, you said to me, ‘B1 Sam 8:6, 19No, but a king shall reign over us,’ CJudg 8:23; 1 Sam 8:7although the Loʀᴅ your God was your king. 13  “Now therefore, A1 Sam 10:24here is the king whom you have chosen, B1 Sam 8:5; 12:17, 19; Hos 13:11whom you have asked for, and behold, the Loʀᴅ has set a king over you. 14  “AJosh 24:14If you will fear the Loʀᴅ and serve Him, and listen to His voice and not rebel against the 1Lit mouthcommand of the Loʀᴅ, then both you and also the king who reigns over you will follow the Loʀᴅ your God. 15  “ALev 26:14, 15; Josh 24:20; Is 1:20If you will not listen to the voice of the Loʀᴅ, but rebel against the 1Lit mouthcommand of the Loʀᴅ, then B1 Sam 5:9the hand of the Loʀᴅ will be against you, C1 Sam 12:9as it was against your fathers. 16  “Even now, AEx 14:13, 31take your stand and see this great thing which the Loʀᴅ will do before your eyes. 17  “AProv 26:1Is it not the wheat harvest today? B1 Sam 7:9, 10; James 5:16ffI will call to the Loʀᴅ, that He may send 1Lit soundsthunder and rain. Then you will know and see that C1 Sam 8:7your wickedness is great which you have done in the sight of the Loʀᴅ by asking for yourselves a king.” 18 So Samuel called to the Loʀᴅ, and the Loʀᴅ sent 1Lit soundsthunder and rain that day; and AEx 14:31all the people greatly feared the Loʀᴅ and Samuel.

19 Then all the people said to Samuel, “AEx 9:28; 1 Sam 12:23; Jer 15:1; 1 John 5:16Pray for your servants to the Loʀᴅ your God, so that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins B1 Sam 12:17, 20this evil by asking for ourselves a king.” 20 Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have committed all this evil, yet ADeut 11:16do not turn aside from following the Loʀᴅ, but serve the Loʀᴅ with all your heart. 21  “You must not turn aside, for then you would go after ADeut 11:16; Is 41:29; Hab 2:18futile things which can not profit or deliver, because they are futile. 22  “For ADeut 31:6; 1 Kin 6:13the Loʀᴅ will not abandon His people BEx 32:12; Num 14:13; Josh 7:9; Ps 106:8; Jer 14:21on account of His great name, because the Loʀᴅ CDeut 7:6-11; 1 Pet 2:9has been pleased to make you a people for Himself. 23  “Moreover, as for me, ARom 1:9; 1 Cor 9:16; Col 1:9; 1 Thess 3:10; 2 Tim 1:3far be it from me that I should sin against the Loʀᴅ by ceasing to pray for you; but B1 Kin 8:36; Ps 34:11; Prov 4:11I will instruct you in the good and right way. 24  “AEccl 12:13Only 1Or reverencefear the Loʀᴅ and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider BDeut 10:21; Is 5:12what great things He has done for you. 25  “AIs 1:20; 3:11But if you still do wickedly, BJosh 24:20both you and your king C1 Sam 31:1-5; Hos 10:3will be swept away.”