We just finished Judges last week, and four times between Judges 17 and 21 we’re told “in those days Israel had no king.” It’s apparently a big problem in Judges.
And now in 1 Samuel 8 the people want a king, and God almost sounds disappointed. Samuel definitely is. So what’s the deal?
A king provides organization, arbitration in disputes, and leadership in battle. As God tells Samuel, the problem seems to be less that the people want a king, but that they don’t want God as their king.
Authority, as difficult as it is to submit to, is easier to person than to God. Don’t you think?
Fiftyeight 