1 Samuel 8

¹ And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel.

² Now the name of his first-born was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah. They were judges in Beersheba.

³ And his sons did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after dishonest gain, and took bribes, and perverted justice.

⁴ Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel to Ramah.

⁵ And they said to him, Behold, thou are old, and thy sons do not walk in thy ways. Now make for us a king to judge us like all the nations.

⁶ But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed to LORD.

⁷ And LORD said to Samuel, Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to thee, for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king over them.

⁸ According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, in that they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also to thee.

⁹ Now therefore hearken to their voice. However thou shall protest solemnly to them, and shall show them the manner of the king who shall reign over them.

¹⁰ And Samuel told all the words of LORD to the people who asked of him a king.

¹¹ And he said, This will be the manner of the king who shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them to him for his chariots, and to be his horsemen, and they shall run before his chariots.

¹² And he will appoint them to him for captains of thousands, and captains of fifties. And [he will set some] to plow his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and the instruments of his chariots.

¹³ And he will take your daughters to be perfumers, and to be cooks, and to be bakers.

¹⁴ And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.

¹⁵ And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants.

¹⁶ And he will take your men-servants, and your maid-servants, and your finest young men, and your donkeys, and put them to his work.

¹⁷ He will take the tenth of your flocks. And ye shall be his servants.

¹⁸ And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king whom ye shall have chosen you, and LORD will not answer you in that day.

¹⁹ But the people refused to hearken to the voice of Samuel. And they said, No, but we will have a king over us

²⁰ that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.

²¹ And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he repeated them in the ears of LORD.

²² And LORD said to Samuel, Hearken to their voice, and make for them a king. And Samuel said to the men of Israel, Go ye every man to his city.