[1] Now when Samuel was old, he made his sons judges over Israel. [2] The
name of his first son was Joel and the name of his second Abijah: they were
judges in Beer-sheba. [3] And his sons did not go in his ways, but moved by
the love of money took rewards, and were not upright in judging. [4] Then
all the responsible men of Israel got together and went to Samuel at Ramah,
[5] And said to him, See now, you are old, and your sons do not go in your
ways: give us a king now to be our judge, so that we may be like the other
nations. [6] But Samuel was not pleased when they said to him, Give us a
king to be our judge. And Samuel made prayer to the Lord. [7] And the Lord
said to Samuel, Give ear to the voice of the people and what they say to
you: they have not been turned away from you, but they have been turned
away from me, not desiring me to be king over them. [8] As they have done
from the first, from the day when I took them out of Egypt till this day,
turning away from me and worshipping other gods, so now they are acting in
the same way to you. [9] Give ear now to their voice: but make a serious
protest to them, and give them a picture of the sort of king who will be
their ruler. [10] And Samuel said all these words of the Lord to the people
who were desiring a king. [11] And he said, This is the sort of king who
will be your ruler: he will take your sons and make them his servants, his
horsemen, and drivers of his war-carriages, and they will go running before
his war-carriages; [12] And he will make them captains of thousands and of
fifties; some he will put to work ploughing and cutting his grain and
making his instruments of war and building his war-carriages. [13] Your
daughters he will take to be makers of perfumes and cooks and bread-makers.
[14] He will take your fields and your vine-gardens and your olive-gardens,
all the best of them, and give them to his servants. [15] He will take a
tenth of your seed and of the fruit of your vines and give it to his
servants. [16] He will take your men-servants and your servant-girls, and
the best of your oxen and your asses and put them to his work. [17] He will
take a tenth of your sheep: and you will be his servants. [18] Then you
will be crying out because of your king whom you have taken for yourselves;
but the Lord will not give you an answer in that day. [19] But the people
gave no attention to the voice of Samuel; and they said, No, but we will
have a king over us, [20] So that we may be like the other nations, and so
that our king may be our judge and go out before us to war. [21] Then
Samuel, after hearing all the people had to say, went and gave an account
of it to the Lord. [22] And the Lord said to Samuel, Give ear to their
voice and make a king for them. Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, Let
every man go back to his town.
