OT: The First Book of Samuel, Chapter 12

1 Samuel 12:1-25

12:1 Samuel addresses the children of Israel on the day of Saul's Coronation. The children of Israel asked the prophet Samuel for a king and they are now gathered to crown one.

12:2 Samuel devoted his entire life to the service of God; he points out to the crowd that he began as a child and is now grey-haired, standing before his own grown sons. Surely this is a bittersweet moment for Samuel, he lived faithfully and dutifully for God from conception and will until death. Yet as he passes the "job" to Saul, he witnesses the children of Israel cut ties with God. Their insistence on a man-king is a rejection of God as King.

12:3 Throughout the years of his life of service, Samuel has been kind, honest and just to each of God's children. But Samuel wishes for the children of Israel to speak their own opinion of him; he promises to restore any wrong-doing he might have caused them. Samuel knows that he has been fair but a good and safe leader never invents his own truth. Samuel knows that his behavior and leadership will speak the truth. 

12:4 The children of Israel agree that Samuel never cheated, oppressed or stole from them. Samuel does not rely on others to define him or judge his works but because of his lifelong sincerity and compassion, both he and the people around him know exactly who he is. Not all ill-word can be said about him, and he is trustworthy because he lived every day with righteous intention. 

12:5 With Samuel and the children of Israel both acknowledging the truth of his honesty, he is now cleared to speak frankly with them. They can trust that everything he will say will be delivered as he has always delivered to them: honest, true and fair. Moreover, Samuel represented, and highlighted, that he was entirely different than a king would be. As prophet of God, he lived as a humble servant; selfish motivation was absent from his interactions with others.

12:6-8 With a bit of their history, Samuel recounts Israel's journey with God. (Remember that Israel are the members of the 12 tribes, named after the 12 sons of Jacob). Rather than a nation or plot of land, these were people God had taken under His wing because of their need of Him and their commitment to justice.

God had raised up Moses and Aaron to rescue the children of Israel from the Egyptians, whom they served under as slaves. 

12:9-10 And though God rescued time and again, the children of Israel forgot Him. Throughout the Old Testament we read of the fickle nature of God's children. We plead for His compassion when we are in distress but often forget Him when He delivers us.  The children of Israel began to move away from living His philosophy of compassion and closer toward the way of the corruption around them.

12:11 Once again, the children of Israel trade him for the way of the world. They have requested a man-king, even though God has warned them that it will cause them strife. Samuel explains that God was their king, they were never king-less under His authority. Yet they desired the appeal of a physical king, to show off to and fit in with the nations around them.

God wants us to learn that showing off and fitting in is counter-productive. The only time we have any lasting or meaningful impact, it is because we served righteousness rather than ourselves or anything else.

Matthew 23:11-12

But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

The children of Israel, by requesting and gathering at this inauguration of a man-king, have served themselves rather than God. They have asked for something they want, even though it is not good for them. This is easily translatable to our own day and desires: we often yearn for things we think will look good or make us look good when God has told us those things are not good. Every time we act in arrogance, anger, hypocrisy, lust or any other selfishness, we choose something He had already uncovered as noxious.

God has taught every lesson we need to hear, but have we learned? As students of His, we should be rapt. We should cling to Him, Deuteronomy 10:20, for He alone has so adeptly devoted Himself to our well-being.

12:12 The children of Israel choose to replace God. Remember that the events of the Old Testament served as examples for our own time, 1 Corinthians 10:11. Perhaps we believe that we would never consciously reject God or place something over Him - and perhaps we would not. But subconsciously we might. When we act on our anger or desire, on our impatience or selfishness, we do choose to place something above Him.

God, creator of the universe, is able to intricately align galaxies. He knows how to create life from atoms we cannot even see. He is capable of placing the same perfect order over our lives. He could reign over us without our permission but He generously chooses to give us a choice. The children of Israel reject Him repeatedly and subsequently suffer. But the suffering is unnecessary, because our True King dominates over our fears and enemies. 

12:13 This somewhat awkward moment (primarily for Saul) acknowledges that God relinquishes a portion His authority to their new, much less qualified, king. 

12:14 And yet God remains invested in their (our) well-being. The children of Israel may have rejected them but God chooses to remain present over their lives. As long as they serve His philosophy of righteousness, they will have Him.

12:15 However, if the people and the king serve unrighteousness instead, they will lose Him. Many corrupt kings have risen since this point in time, many corrupt kings reign as we speak. Their influence is detrimental to the world. And more than just a man can be our king. Whatever desire or behavior we serve is our symbolic king. Vanity, money, power... each of those things can be "kings" over our lives. Our best choice is to swipe everything off of that throne except God.

God is not teaching us to be lawless citizens, He is teaching us to build our laws like His. He is teaching us to place justice, humility, and righteousness in the power seats of every aspect of our lives. 

12:16-18 The children of Israel have requested a fresh start, a new lifestyle. Samuel calls upon God to continue giving them away they want: thunder and rain pound their wheat harvest. They shall not ride on the fruits of the Lord, that which He has produced for them, because they rejected Him.

12:19 The situation becomes real to the children of Israel; they now face exactly what they have asked for. As God, promised, it is not as wonderful as they thought. The rain is so fierce they begin to worry about their lives; the rain causes the children of Israel to react the way the should be reacting to cutting ties with God.

12:20 Samuel placates them; they will not die as long as they live righteously. For the true King is the God of life. Righteousness propels us into eternal, spiritual life and invulnerability. 

12:21 This verse is one of the most instructively wise verses of the Bible:

And do not turn aside; for then you would go after empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for they are nothing.

If we are not chasing God, clinging to His word and will, we leave ourselves open to the temptation of empty things. When we give God our full attention, with it, He equips us for purpose, fulfillment and joy. When we give God permission to do with us what He will, His will tailors us for and positions us toward love, truth, meaning and life. 

But when our attention is unfocused, we are easily derailed. We becomes slaves to others and desires. We live trying to fill needs we do not even understand with things that are not good for us. God built these bodies, He constructed our souls: He alone knows how to provide adequately for them, Jeremiah 29:11. God emphatically, passionately creates in our lives the things we may not even know to ask for, Romans 8:26; by Him, blessings burst into our lives and take over our own measly plans.

12:22 Why? Because He loves us: For the Lord will not forsake His people, for His great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you His people.

12:23 Samuel will continue to pray for the children of Israel; in fact, he considers it a sin not to pray for their well-being. Prayer is the most powerful weapon in our arsenal. We have to ability and the duty to use it for the benefit of others. Samuel will continue to lead and teach, in hope and effort to lead the children of Israel back toward God.

12:24:25 Samuel's advice for them, and us: Only fear (revere, in the original language) the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king.”