Tag Archives: Annoyed

David Made King

99 – David Made King

2 Samuel 3:1 – 5:4 I Chronicles 11:1-3

The kingdom of Ish-bosheth continued to grow weaker. Still, Abner’s influence grew stronger. One day the king said to him, “Why did you sleep with my father’s concubine?”

Abner got angry and said, “How dare you! My loyalty to your father is the only thing that has kept me from handing you over to David. Now you’re accusing me of sinning with this woman. That’s it! I’m going to establish David as king over all of Israel.” Ish-bosheth was speechless.

Abner sent a message to David. “I’m ready to give you the kingdom of Israel. Let’s work out the agreements.” 

David said, “One thing has to happen first before I’ll work out any agreement with you. If you come, you must bring my wife Michal, Saul’s daughter. Don’t come without her.”

Guards went and got Michal, and took her away from her new husband. As they walked down the road, the husband followed behind them, crying as he walked. Finally, Abner turned and yelled, “Go home!” So the man turned and went home.

Abner got the elders of Israel to agree that David was king of Israel. He then went and told David. Together they had a banquet to celebrate the news.

Abner then said, “I’ll go and make the final arrangements for your coronation. Then you’ll be king over the whole nation.” So David sent him away in peace.

Joab had been away while all of this was happening. He returned just after Abner had left. He went to David and said, “Why did you let Abner escape? Don’t you realize that all of this is just a trick to entrap you?”

Then, without the king knowing it, Joab sent a message to Abner. “Please, come back to Hebron.” When Abner got back, Joab asked him to step aside so they could have a private conversation. Once they did, Joab stabbed Abner in the stomach. He fell to the ground and died.

David was devastated when he heard about what had happened. He put a curse on Joab and his descendants. The king knew that Joab had killed Abner to avenge his brother’s death. Still, he made him and his men rip their clothes, put on sackcloth, and mourn Abner. 

David then walked behind the funeral procession, and cried openly at the gravesite. He wouldn’t eat anything for the rest of the day. He said to his soldiers, “A great leader of Israel has died today.”

All of Israel took note of what David did, and they were convinced that he had nothing to do with Abner’s death.

Two men went into the house of Ish-bosheth and killed him while he was in bed taking an afternoon nap. They cut off his head and took it to King David saying, “Your enemy is dead.”

David said, “When I was in Ziklag, a man came and told me he was merciful to King Saul by killing him before the Philistines could torture him. He thought he was bringing me good news, but I had him put to death. Now you come and tell me you killed the king of Israel while he was sleeping in his bed.” David had both men killed. He then had their hands and feet cut off and their bodies were hung near the pool of Hebron.

All the tribes of Israel met in Hebron and made David their king. He was 37 years old.

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Witch of Endor

96 – Witch of Endor

1 Samuel 28:1-25

The Philistines started their massive invasion of Israel. They entered the land and set up camp. Saul gathered his army and made preparations for war. His body shook with fear when he saw how large the Philistine army was.

He asked the Lord for guidance, but God didn’t talk to him. All was silent. There wasn’t a dream, or a priest, or a prophet that gave him a message from the Lord. 

He wanted to talk to Samuel, but he was dead and Saul had removed everyone who claimed to be able to speak to the dead. Still he desperately wanted to talk to Samuel. He said to his servants, “Find a woman who can talk to the spirits of those who have died. I need to find out what’s going to happen.” 

They said, “There is a woman at Endor. She says she can talk to the dead.”

That night Saul put on a disguise, took two servants, and went to the woman’s house. He said to her, “I want you to bring up a spirit for me.”

She said, “Are you setting a trap for me? You know King Saul will kill anyone who does that.”

He said, “Listen to me carefully. As sure as God lives, you’ll not suffer for doing this.”

She said, “Who do you want me to bring up from the dead?”

“Bring back Samuel. I want to talk to him.”

Suddenly the woman saw Samuel. She screamed and then she turned and yelled at the king. “You tricked me! You’re King Saul!”

He said, “Don’t worry about that. Now tell me, what do you see?”

“I see a spirit coming up from the ground.”

“What does he look like?”

“It’s an old man wearing a robe.”

Saul knew it was Samuel so he fell down with his face to the ground. The prophet said, “Why are you disturbing me? What do you want?”

“Oh, I’m in trouble and I don’t know what to do. God won’t talk to me, and the Philistines have invaded the land with a massive army. So I called on you. Please tell me what to do.”

Samuel said, “The Lord is now your enemy, so why do you think I’d help you? I’ve already told you what he was going to do. Well, he’s finally doing it. He’s ripping the kingship out of your hands and giving it to your neighbor David. You didn’t obey God. You refused to do what he told you to do. Therefore, tomorrow you and your sons will join me. Israel will be handed over to the Philistines.”

Saul was terrified when he heard this and stayed on the ground. He was weak because he hadn’t eaten anything for over a day. The woman said, “I’ll make some food. You need to regain your strength before you leave.”

At first the king refused, but his servants agreed with the woman. Finally, he got up and sat on the bed while she prepared the meal. She killed a fatted calf, cooked it, and baked some bread. Saul and his servants ate the meal, and then left into the night.

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Hill of Moreh (Site of Endor) from Jezreel, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com
Aerial view from northwest of Hill of Moreh and Nain (site of Endor), from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com

Staying by the Stuff

95 – Staying by the Stuff

1 Samuel 29:1 – 30:31

As the Philistines started making plans to invade Israel, their king said to David, “You’ll march with me. I want you and your men to be my personal bodyguards.”

David said, “Good, now you’ll be able to see what my men and I can do.”

All the military units went to a place where they could present themselves in review as they prepared for war. The Philistine commanders were shocked when they saw David and his men. They said to the king, “You can’t bring those Hebrews to fight with us!”

He said, “David defected from Israel, and has been faithful to me ever since. I have no reason to doubt his loyalty.”

The commanders got mad. “Send him away! He’s the one they sing about. ‘Saul has killed his thousands; David his tens of thousands.’ He might suddenly turn on us in the middle of a battle. That would be a good way for him to regain Saul’s favor.”

The king went to David. “You’re an honorable man, and I personally want you by my side in battle. But the commanders don’t trust you. Therefore I have to send you back to Ziklag.”

David said, “What have I done to deserve this? I’ve been faithful to you from the first day I came here.”

The king said, “I know you have, but my hands are tied. You must leave in the morning.” 

So David and his men left. When they got back to Ziklag, they found that foreign raiders had come and burnt down the town. They hadn’t killed anyone, but simply took all the people with them. This included all the wives, sons, and daughters of David and his men.

The men cried until they could cry no more. Some of the men wanted to stone David, but God stood by him. He prayed to the Lord, “Should I chase after these raiders? Will I catch them?

The Lord said, “Go after them. You’ll catch them and get everything back that was taken from you.”

So David took his 600 men and went after the invaders. At one point, they stopped because 200 of his men were too exhausted to go farther. So the 400 left their supplies with the 200 and continued on.

They came upon a slave who had belonged to the raiders, but had been left behind because he had gotten sick. He hadn’t eaten anything for three days. David’s men gave him food and water and helped revive him. 

David said, “Will you lead us to the raiders?”

He said, “I’ll lead you to them if you swear you won’t kill me, and you won’t give me back to them.” David agreed.

The slave led David’s men directly to the raiders. They were celebrating how much plunder they had gotten from the Philistines and the Israelites. Without warning, David’s men attacked and quickly killed most of them. Only a few got away. David’s men got everything back they had lost, plus all the plunder the raiders had taken from other cities.

When they got back to the 200 men, some of the 400 said, “They didn’t go with us into battle. So they only get their wives and children back. They don’t get any of the extra plunder we took.”

David said, “No! That’s wrong. God gave us a great victory today. We’ll share equally with those who stayed back with our supplies.” So that became the law of Israel from that day on.

David and his men went back to Ziklag. He then sent some of the plunder back to various cities in Israel.

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Sparing God’s Anointed

94 – Sparing God’s Anointed

1 Samuel 26:1 – 27:12

Saul once again took 3,000 of his best warriors and went after David. That night they set up camp beside the road. David heard where they were, so he went there during the night.

Saul was asleep in the middle of the camp with his men circled around him. Next to him was Abner, the commander of the army. The Lord caused a deep sleep to come over all of them.
 
David took Abishai and walked right up to where Saul and Abner were sleeping. Abishai said, “Today God gave you your enemy. Say the word and I’ll thrust him through with this spear and pin him to the ground.”

David said, “No. God anointed him king of Israel. Only God can take that away. He has appointed a time for Saul to die, and we will accept that. I’ll never touch a man anointed by God.”

David took the king’s water jug and the spear that was stuck in the ground next to Saul’s head. They left the camp without anyone waking up. 

When they were at a safe distance on the top of the next hill, David yelled at Saul’s camp. “Abner, listen to me.”

Abner woke up and then yelled back. “How dare you wake up the king? Who are you?”

David said, “Abner, you’re the best soldier in Israel. Yet, you failed to protect the king, God’s anointed. Men came into the camp while you were sleeping. Look around. Where is the king’s spear and water jug? You should be executed.”

Saul yelled back, “My son David, is that your voice I hear?”

“Yes, my king. It’s my voice. What have I done to cause you to hunt me down like a criminal? Whoever turned you against me should be cursed. They’re making me leave the land that is blessed of God.”

Saul said, “Oh, my son David. Once again you had a chance to kill me and you didn’t. It’s now clear to me that I’ve sinned. I’ve been a fool. Come back to me. I won’t hurt you.”

David said, “Yes, it’s true. The Lord gave you to me, but I knew that I wasn’t to touch His anointed king. May God value my life and spare me, just like I value your life. I want him to see that I’m righteous and loyal. Send a young man over here to get your spear.”

Saul said, “My son, you are blessed of God. You will do great things for the Lord.” With that, King Saul went back home.

David said to his men, “Eventually Saul will find me, and when he does he’ll kill me. I must go to a place that is out of his reach. What better place than with the king of the Philistines.”

So David took his 600 men to Gath. All of them took their families with them. David said to the king, “Please give me a small town nearby. I don’t deserve to live in the same town with so great a king.” So he gave David the town of Ziklag. David and his men stayed there for a year and four months. The king of the Philistines learned to trust David as one of his own countrymen.

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Abigail

93 – Abigail

1 Samuel 25:1-44

David and his men lived in the same area as a rich herdsman named Nabal, a descendant of Caleb. He was known to be mean and harsh, but he had a beautiful wife who was much more practical in how she dealt with others. Her name was Abigail.

Having David’s army in the area was a great advantage to Nabal because foreign raiders didn’t come and steal from his herds. Still, Nabal didn’t invite David and his men to his annual sheep-shearing feast. So David sent 10 young men with a message. “Peace to you and yours. I respect you as my own father. Your shepherds will tell you that we have protected your flocks over the entire time we have lived in this area. Instead of us coming to your feast, please send some food and provisions with these young men.” 

Nabal said, “I don’t know David. I’m definitely not his father. Slaves are always running away from their masters. Tell him to go back to where he came from. I’m not going to take food away from my servants and give it to strangers.”

The young men went back and told David everything that was said. David said to his men, “Put on your swords. I protected this man’s goods, and he repays me with insults. Not one man in his camp will be alive in the morning.”

Meanwhile, one of Nabal’s servants went and told Abigail what was said and done. He said, “David’s men were ‘a wall’ to us while we were out in the fields. They protected us night and day. We didn’t lose one animal during this time. Yet, your husband insulted them and refused to help them. You must think of something because your husband has offended an army that can kill all of us.”

Without telling her husband, Abigail gathered provisions for David’s men. She got 200 loaves of bread, 2 wine skins, 5 butchered sheep, a bushel of roasted grain, 100 clusters of raisins, and 200 cakes of pressed figs. She put all of these things on some donkeys and headed down the road.

As she rounded a corner, she saw David’s men coming toward her. She got off the donkey and ran to him. She knelt down with her face to the ground and said, “It’s my fault your men were mistreated. I would have treated them well if I had known they were coming. Forgive my husband. His name means ‘fool,’ and that’s how he acts. Please accept these gifts of food.

“It’s the Lord who’s kept you from getting revenge today. He has always fought your battles for you, and he always will. When he makes you king, you’ll want a clear conscience about this day.”

David said, “It was God who sent you here today. Your wisdom has kept me from shedding blood and taking revenge on a man who offended me. If you hadn’t come, every male in your camp would have died.” He then accepted Abigail’s gifts.

She went back home to find Nabal feasting like a king. She didn’t tell him what happened. He got drunk and fell asleep. 

In the morning, she waited until he was sober, and then told him what she did the day before. He immediately had a heart attack and lay in a coma for 10 days. Then the Lord killed him.

David heard about his death and said, “Praise the Lord! God kept me from doing evil, and he punished Nabal for the evil that he did.”

David then sent a message to Abigail asking if she would become his wife. She agreed and went to him.

Meanwhile, Saul gave his daughter Michal to become the wife of another.

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Goliath

87 – Goliath

1 Samuel 17:1-58

The Philistines once again invaded Israel. Both armies faced one another across a ravine. Suddenly a large Philistine stepped forward. His name was Goliath, and he was 9 feet, 9 inches tall.

He yelled, “Why are you preparing for battle? Let two of us settle this. Send someone out and we’ll fight. If your man kills me, we’ll be your slaves. But if I kill your man, you’ll be our slaves. Come on, send someone out and let’s fight.”

No one accepted his challenge, so he came out and yelled at Israel every morning and evening. This went on for forty days. Saul offered a reward to anyone who could defeat this giant. He said, “I’ll make him wealthy and he can marry my daughter.”

While this was happening, Jesse said to David, “Go visit your brothers and take them some food. Bring back word of how the battle is going.”

So David got up early and went to the battle site. He saw the men lined up in battle formations. He gave the food to the quartermaster and ran to see what was going on.

Suddenly, Goliath started shouting his challenge. “Come on. Send someone out here and let’s fight—man to man. Winner takes all.” Everyone backed away.

David was shocked. He said, “Who does this ungodly Philistine think he is? He’s defying the armies of the living God.” 

David’s oldest brother got angry. “Why are you here? Go back to your sheep. War is for men.”

David answered him. “I didn’t do anything wrong. I just asked a question.” He turned and asked the question again. “Who does this ungodly Philistine think he is?”

Saul heard about David’s question and sent for him. David said, “Don’t worry about this Philistine. I’ll fight him.”

The king said, “He’s a warrior—a seasoned fighter. You’re young, with no experience.”

David said, “I watch my father’s sheep. Every time a bear or a lion has come and tried to take a lamb, I grabbed the beast and killed it. The Lord was always with me and gave me victory. This ungodly Philistine is just another lion or bear. The Lord will give him to me.”

Saul said, “Go, and the Lord be with you.” 

He then gave David his suit of armor, but he couldn’t walk because it was too heavy. He said, “I can’t wear these. They’ll hold me back.”

David got his shepherd’s staff and a sling. He went down to the brook and selected five smooth rocks and put them in his shepherd’s bag. Then he started walking toward the giant.

Goliath saw David coming. He yelled, “Am I a dog that you come to me with sticks? Come, and I will give your flesh to the birds.”

David yelled back, “You come to me with a sword and a spear, but I come to you in the name of the Lord. You’ve insulted him. Therefore I’m going to cut off your head and give your body to the birds. This battle is the Lord’s, and he has given you to me.”

Goliath started walking toward David, but David ran toward the giant. He reached into his shepherd’s bag and put a rock into his sling. With deadly accuracy, the rock hit Goliath and sank into his forehead. He fell to the ground face forward. David ran up, pulled out Goliath’s sword, and cut off the giant’s head.

Both armies were shocked when they saw this. The Philistines turned and ran. The Israelites shouted a victory cry and chased after them. Many Philistines died that day.

Saul asked Abner, his general, “Who is that young man?”

“I don’t know.”

Saul sent for David. He came and stood before the king with the giant’s head still in his hands. Saul said, “Who are you? Who is your father?”

David said, “I am the son of Jesse of Bethlehem.”

Saul didn’t let David go back home, but made him a commander in the army. David was successful in everything Saul had him do.

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Elah brook with students picking smooth stones, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com

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Elah Valley aerial from the west, from the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands, a valuable teaching resource produced by BiblePlaces.com

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Saul’s Disobedience

85 – Saul’s Disobedience

1 Samuel 14:47 – 15:35

One day Samuel went to Saul with instructions from God. “The Amalekites attacked my people when I brought them out of Egypt. Therefore, go to battle with them and destroy everything. Kill all the people and all of their livestock. Don’t leave anything alive.”

So Saul took his army and attacked the Amalekites. He defeated them, but didn’t kill everything. Saul’s men kept the best of the livestock for themselves. They also captured king Agag and didn’t kill him. 

The Lord said to Samuel, “I regret that I made Saul king over Israel. He doesn’t follow me and he doesn’t do as I say.”

Samuel grieved in his spirit, and prayed all night. The next morning, he went and found Saul. As the prophet walked up, the king said, “The Lord bless you. I’ve done what God asked me to do.”

Samuel looked at him. “Then why do I hear the sounds of sheep and cattle?”

“Oh, the men saved the best livestock so we could sacrifice them to the Lord. But we destroyed the rest.”

Samuel said, “Stop talking! I’ll tell you what God thinks of what you’ve done. When you were humble, God made you the leader over his people. He then gave you a job to do. He said, ‘Go kill this extremely sinful people. Don’t let any person or animal live.’ Why did you make him angry by not doing what he said?”

Saul said, “I did obey him. I killed everyone except Agag, their king. And then I killed all the animals except these few. We kept the best for a sacrifice.”

Samuel said, “Do you think the Lord wants sacrifice more than obedience? No! To obey is better than a sacrifice. Rebellion is like the sin of witchcraft. Stubbornness is as bad as worshiping idols. You rejected God’s command. Therefore, he’s rejected you as king over Israel.”

Saul said, “I’ve sinned! I can now see clearly that I ignored the Lord’s command and didn’t listen to you. I was afraid of the people, and obeyed them rather than God. Please forgive my sin. Come. Let’s worship the Lord together.”

Samuel turned away, “No, I won’t go with you. You rejected the Lord. Now he’s rejecting you as king.”

Saul grabbed Samuel’s robe and it tore as he turned away. Samuel stopped and looked at the rip. He said, “The Lord has ripped the kingdom of Israel away from you today. He’s given it to your neighbor, who’s better than you. God isn’t like men. He won’t change his mind.”

Saul yelled, “I’ve sinned! All I ask is that you honor me in front of the people. Come, worship with me.” 

So Samuel went with him and allowed him to bow down before the Lord. The prophet then said, “Bring me Agag, king of the Amalekites.”

Agag came before Samuel, not knowing what to expect. Samuel took a sword and said, “You’ve made many women childless. Now your mother will be childless.” The prophet then killed Agag and cut him into pieces.

Then Samuel returned to his home. He never again visited Saul as long as he lived. Still, he grieved over him constantly.

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Jonathan’s Victory

84 – Jonathan’s Victory

1 Samuel 13-14

Continued from the previous story

Jonathan looked at the Philistines’ camp on the other side of the pass. He said to his armor bearer, “Let’s go over there and kill a few Philistines. The Lord just might help us. He’s not limited by how many of us there are.”
 
The man said, “If you go, I’ll go with you.”

Jonathan said, “Here’s my plan. We’ll go across to the rear of the Philistine camp. We’ll let them see us at the bottom of their cliffs. If they tell us to stop, we’ll come back here. But if they tell us to come up, we’ll consider that a sign from God. We’ll know that the Lord will give us victory.”

They decided not to tell the king where they were going. When they got to the cliffs, the Philistines saw them. They said, “Look, the Hebrews are coming out of their hiding places!” They yelled down to Jonathan. “Come on up, and we’ll teach you a lesson!”

Jonathan laughed, “Follow me. The Lord has given them to us.” The two men climbed up the cliffs and killed twenty Philistines.

News quickly spread through the rest of the Philistine camp. This caused panic. They said, “The Israelites have attacked us from behind.” Suddenly the earth shook, and their panic turned to terror. They ran in every direction.

Men in Saul’s camp saw this and told the king. He looked around. “Call the roll and find out who’s missing.” They found that Jonathan and his armor bearer were gone.

As Saul assembled his troops, the panic in the Philistine camp intensified. When Saul’s army marched into battle, he found that the Philistines were fighting each other. 

The Israelites that had joined the Philistines now rallied around Saul. Those who hid among rocks and caves came out and joined the battle.

 Saul wanted his men to completely focus on winning the battle, so he shouted, “I put a curse on anyone who eats food before we win this victory.” His men obeyed, but soon they became hungry and tired.

Jonathan didn’t know what his father had said. He found some honey in the forest and ate it. Others immediately told him about the king’s order. He said, “The king shouldn’t have said that. Look at me. I ate some honey, now I’m ready to fight again. Our men should eat all of this food that the Philistines have left behind. Then they would fight harder.”

Saul finally realized his army was famished! He had a meal prepared and allowed his men to eat. The king then wanted to go back into battle, but suddenly realized something was wrong. He called everyone together and said, “Something is wrong, and I’m going to find out who’s behind it. Once I know who it is, he’ll be put to death, even if he’s my own son.”

He then drew lots, and it fell on Jonathan. The king asked him, “What did you do?”

“I ate some honey. If I’m to die for that, then I’m ready to die.”

Saul said to his son, “I took an oath, therefore you must die.”

The people shouted, “Jonathan won’t die! God used him to give us victory today. As the Lord God lives, not one hair of his head will fall to the ground.

So the people saved Jonathan’s life. With that, the battle was over and the Philistines returned to their own territory.

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Failing the Test

83 – Failing the Test

1 Samuel 13:1-22

When Saul became king of Israel, the people had to go to the Philistines to buy iron farm tools. When these tools became dull, the people had to go back to the Philistines to have them sharpened since they weren’t allowed to have blacksmiths. But the Philistines wouldn’t sell weapons of war to the people of Israel. The only ones to have modern swords and spears were Saul and his son Jonathan.

As king, Saul organized an army of 3,000 men. He personally oversaw 2,000 of them, and gave 1,000 to his son. Jonathan took his men and attacked a Philistine outpost. Saul knew that this was an act of war, so he quickly tried to build his forces in preparation. 

The Philistines reacted to this attack with force. They marched into Israel with 3,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and a massive number of troops.

The men of Israel were terrified when they saw this huge army come into their land. Most of the men in Saul’s army ran for their lives. They hid wherever they could. They hid in caves, among rocks, and down in wells. Some even left the country. Others actually joined the Philistine army! 

Samuel told the king not to go into battle until they had sacrificed to the Lord. He told Saul to go to a particular place and wait for him. The king went to that place, but Samuel wasn’t there. He waited three day—four days. Still Samuel didn’t come. He waited five day—six days. Samuel didn’t come.

 Saul watched as his men continue to desert the army. Finally, on the seventh day, he felt he couldn’t wait any longer. He got the things needed for the burnt sacrifice, and offered it up.

Just as he finished, Samuel arrived. Saul went out to greet him. The prophet said, “What have you done?”

Saul said, “The Philistines are about to attack, and my army is leaving me. I didn’t know if I would have the Lord’s help. I waited for you, but you didn’t come. I had no other choice, so I decided to act on my own. I offered the burnt offering to the Lord.”

Samuel said, “Oh, you have acted like a fool! Didn’t you realize this was a test? You failed it! If you had trusted God, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. Now your kingdom won’t last long.  The Lord has already found a man after his own heart. He’ll become king and God will establish his kingdom for ever.”

Samuel then turned and left the king. Saul counted his men and found he only had 600 soldiers. The Philistines had camped on the top of a cliff so they could control the important pass that was below. So Saul took his small army and camped on top of the cliffs on the opposite side of the pass.

Continued in the next story

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Ebenezer

80 – Ebenezer

1 Samuel 7:1 – 8:22

The people of Israel slowly turned back to God. This was a process that took twenty years. Finally Samuel said, “If it’s true you want to serve God, get rid of all your idols. Dedicate yourself to the Lord and serve him only. Do this, and he’ll give you victory over the Philistines.”

The people did what Samuel said and got rid of their idols. So he told them to come together for a dedication service. He said, “Come, and I’ll pray for you.” The people came together and dedicated themselves to God. From then on, Samuel was their judge.

The Philistines heard that the Israelites had gathered in one place. They thought this was an act of war, so they marched into the land and prepared to attack Israel. The people were afraid when they saw the massive Philistine army.

Samuel said, “Don’t look at your enemy. Instead, focus on God and pray to him. The Lord will save us from the Philistines.” He then presented a sacrifice to God, and asked for help.

The Lord answered Samuel’s prayer. Suddenly loud thunder was heard throughout the Philistine camp. They became confused and started to run. The men of Israel chased after them and killed many of them.

Samuel set up a large stone as a monument of what happened that day. He called it Ebenezer, which means “Rock of Help.” He said, “The Lord has helped us up to this point.”

The Lord fought against the Philistines as long as Samuel lived. Every year the prophet went on a circuit so he could better judge the people. The rest of the time, he judged them from his hometown.

 When he was old, he appointed his sons to become judges. Unfortunately, they didn’t have his integrity.  They accepted bribes and judged accordingly.

The people went to Samuel and said, “Your sons are not just. Therefore, we want to be like all the other nations and have a king. Select one for us before you die.”

Samuel was shocked. He couldn’t understand why they would want such a thing. He prayed to God, but the Lord said, “Don’t be offended. They haven’t rejected you. They’ve rejected me. Do what they say, but first tell them what it will be like to have a king.”

Samuel stood before the people and described in detail how a king would abuse them and take advantage of them. He said, “A king will take your sons away from you and they’ll work for him instead of you. They’ll serve in his military, or work for him personally. He’ll take your daughters and put them to work. He’ll take your best fields, vineyards, and orchards. He’ll tax you so he can live in luxury. You’ll become his servants, and you’ll work to fulfill his every whim. When that happens, you’ll complain to the Lord, but he won’t help you.”

The people refused to take this warning. They insisted, “We still want a king! He’ll judge us and fight our battles for us.”

The Lord said, “Do as they ask. Give them a king.”

So Samuel told them to go home, and he would find them a king.

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