Lighthouse scribes

1 Samuel 8 & Deuteronomy 17
The pattern of leadership appointment for Israel had always been consistent: the people would cry out to God from their pain, and He would raise a leader to deliver them and lead them right. It started in Egypt; groaning under the hardship Pharaoh had subjected them to, they cried out to God, and God raised Moses to lead them (Exodus 2:23–3:10). From Joshua through the era of the judges, and up until Samuel, the people simply lamented their sufferings to God, and God, in turn, raised the right helper for them.

“As Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons to be judges over Israel.” The Bible doesn’t tell us whether this succession plan was God’s instruction, but it does tell us those sons were corrupt judges. The response of the elders of Israel was to reject them (a good idea) and to request a king like the other nations (a terrible idea). Decisions driven by external factors—extrinsic motivation, social approval, or conformity—will always be disastrous. Have you ever been in a situation where, in an attempt to correct or reject something wrong, you proffered a solution that only made things worse?

“Give Us a King”
In Deuteronomy 17, Moses prophesied that the Israelites would eventually request a king like the nations around them. None of our actions are a surprise to God; when they happen, they are simply a revelation of ourselves to us. Moses went on to give instructions that the king must keep concerning succession, military might, marriage, personal wealth, and the study of Scripture.
These are the critical areas we will dwell on throughout this study of the kings, comparing how each king lived in relation to the model established in Deuteronomy 17. I have broken them down to understand what God truly required:
Succession: “…be sure to select as king the man the Lord your God chooses.” God’s instruction was that for anyone to be crowned king, they had to be chosen by Him and be a fellow Israelite. We know this was not a rule for the first king alone, but for every king thereafter. When Saul deviated from God, succession did not simply pass to his good son, Jonathan; instead, God chose a new king entirely.
Military Might: Throughout generations, God had led Israel. Every battle they won, He won for them. Sometimes they had no military skills and did absolutely nothing (Egypt); other times, their small army defeated enemies with hundreds of thousands of skilled soldiers. Horses were the symbol of military might at the time, and it was normal for a kingdom to find security in its cavalry—but not God’s people. God wanted them to be secure in His strength alone.
Marriage and Physical Pleasure: “The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will turn his heart away from the Lord.” No man can be wiser than God. In the beginning, God instituted marriage between one man and one woman. Every time man devises a system to increase physical pleasure at the expense of obedience, he creates a gap between himself and God. A man with many wives has a heart divided and pulled away from his Creator.
Personal Wealth: “…nor shall he acquire great amounts of silver and gold.” The king is the most influential and powerful person in a nation, yet God commanded that he must intentionally avoid accumulating excessive wealth—for the same reason he was not to have many wives. There is a point where material wealth becomes our confidence rather than God.
Study and Adherence to Scripture: A king was instructed to keep a copy of the Scriptures and study it every day of his life. The Word of God would teach him to revere the Lord and transform his mind. This daily study would keep him walking in righteous paths and ensure a lasting rulership for him and his descendants.
Returning to 1 Samuel 8, God warned the Israelites about what to expect from a human king. Their response was telling:
1 Samuel 8:19–20 (NLT)
“But the people refused to listen to Samuel’s warning. ‘Even so, we still want a king,’ they said. ‘We want to be like the nations around us. Our king will judge us and lead us into battle.’”
There is a way to run ahead of God, and this chapter clearly shows it. I do not doubt that it was God’s will to give the Israelites rulers after His own heart—perhaps they would have been kings, or judges, or another title—but God would have established them in His way and in His time.
The children of Israel, however, were impatient. Like people facing an identity crisis, they constantly wanted to be like “the others.” Being God’s unique, set-apart people wasn’t enough validation for them. Instead of being godly models themselves, they sought to follow the patterns of the world.
Humans have not changed, even among us Christians. This is why the Bible tells us to renew our minds; it is the secret to non-conformity. I do not feel anger or pity for the Israelites; instead, I am overwhelmed with sobriety and the understanding that unless I am totally surrendered to God, my own heart is just as fickle and easily led astray.
As we commence this study, my greatest prayer is that our eyes will be opened, our ears will hear, and our hearts will be transformed by the Word of God.
Amen.

Love,

Osi