1 Samuel 12

1 Then Samuel said to all of Israel: “Behold, I have listened to your voice, according to all that you have said to me, and I have appointed a king over you.

And Samuel said to all Israel, You see that I have given ear to everything you said to me, and have made a king over you.

2 And now the king advances before you. But I am old and have gray hair. Moreover, my sons are with you. And so, having conversed before you from my youth, even until this day, behold, I am here.

And now, see, the king is before you: and I am old and grey-headed, and my sons are with you: I have been living before your eyes from my early days till now.

3 Speak about me before the Lord, and before his Christ, as to whether I have taken anyone’s ox or donkey, or whether I have falsely accused anyone, or whether I have oppressed anyone, or whether I have accepted a bribe from the hand of anyone, and I will repudiate the same, this day, and I will restore it to you.”

Here I am: give witness against me before the Lord and before the man on whom he has put the holy oil: whose ox or ass have I taken? to whom have I been untrue? who has been crushed down by me? from whose hand have I taken a price for the blinding of my eyes? I will give it all back to you.

4 And they said, “You have not falsely accused us, nor oppressed us, nor have you taken anything from the hand of anyone.”

And they said, You have never been untrue to us or cruel to us; you have taken nothing from any man.

5 And he said to them, “The Lord is a witness against you, and his Christ is a witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.” And they said, “He is the witness.”

Then he said, The Lord is witness against you, and the man on whom he has put the holy oil is witness this day that you have seen no wrong in me. And they said, He is witness.

6 And Samuel said to the people: “It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron, and who led our fathers away from the land of Egypt.

And Samuel said to the people, The Lord is witness, who gave authority to Moses and Aaron, and who took your fathers up out of the land of Egypt.

7 Now therefore, stand, so that I may contend in judgment against you before the Lord, about all the mercies of the Lord, which he has given to you and to your fathers:

Keep your places now, while I take up the argument with you before the Lord, and give you the story of the righteousness of the Lord, which he has made clear by his acts to you and to your fathers.

8 How Jacob entered into Egypt, and your fathers cried out to the Lord. And the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, and he led your fathers away from Egypt, and he transferred them to this place.

When Jacob and his sons had come into Egypt, and were crushed by the Egyptians, the prayers of your fathers came up to the Lord, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who took your fathers out of Egypt, and he put them into this place.

9 But they forgot the Lord their God, and so he delivered them into the hand of Sisera, master of the army of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against them.

But they were false to the Lord their God, and he gave them up into the hands of Sisera, captain of the army of Jabin, king of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the king of Moab, who made war against them.

10 But afterward, they cried out to the Lord, and they said: ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord, and we have served the Baals and Ashtaroth. Now therefore, rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you.’

Then crying out to the Lord, they said, We have done evil, because we have been turned away from the Lord, worshipping the Baals and the Astartes: but now, make us safe from those who are against us and we will be your servants.

11 And the Lord sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and he rescued you from the hand of your enemies all around, and you lived in confidence.

So the Lord sent Jerubbaal and Barak and Jephthah and Samuel and took you out of the power of those who were fighting against you on every side, and made you safe.

12 Then, seeing that Nahash, the king of the sons of Ammon, had arrived against you, you said to me, ‘By no means! Instead, a king shall reign over us,’ even though the Lord your God was reigning over you.

And when you saw that Nahash, the king of the Ammonites, was coming against you, you said to me, No more of this; we will have a king for our ruler: when the Lord your God was your king.

13 Now therefore, your king is present, whom you chose and requested. Behold, the Lord has given you a king.

Here, then, is the king marked out by you: the Lord has put a king over you.

14 If you will fear the Lord, and serve him, and listen to his voice, and not provoke the mouth of the Lord, then both you, and the king who rules over you, will be following the Lord your God.

If in the fear of the Lord you are his servants, hearing his voice and not going against the orders of the Lord, but being true to the Lord your God, you and the king ruling over you, then all will be well:

15 But if you will not listen to the voice of the Lord, but instead you provoke his words, then the hand of the Lord will be over you and over your fathers.

But if you do not give ear to the voice of the Lord, but go against his orders, then the hand of the Lord will be against you and against your king for your destruction, as it was against your fathers.

16 Therefore, stand now, and see this great thing, which the Lord will accomplish in your sight.

Now keep where you are and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes.

17 Is it not the harvest of the wheat today? I will call upon the Lord, and he will send thunder and rain. And you will know and see that you have done a great evil in the sight of the Lord, by petitioning for a king over you.”

Is it not now the time of the grain cutting? My cry will go up to the Lord and he will send thunder and rain: so that you may see and be conscious of your great sin which you have done in the eyes of the Lord in desiring a king for yourselves.

18 And Samuel cried out to the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain on that day.

So Samuel made prayer to the Lord; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people were in fear of the Lord and of Samuel.

19 And all the people feared the Lord and Samuel exceedingly. And all the people said to Samuel: “Pray, on behalf of your servants, to the Lord your God, so that we may not die. For we have added to all our sins this evil, that we would petition for a king.”

And all the people said to Samuel, Make prayer for us to the Lord your God so that death may not overtake us: for in addition to all our sins we have done this evil, in desiring a king.

20 Then Samuel said to the people: “Do not be afraid. You have done all this evil. Yet truly, do not choose to withdraw from the back of the Lord. Instead, serve the Lord with all your heart.

Then Samuel said to the people, Have no fear: truly you have done evil, but do not be turned away from the Lord; be his servants with all your heart;

21 And do not choose to turn aside after vanities, which will never benefit you, nor rescue you, since they are empty.

And do not go from the right way turning to those false gods in which there is no profit and no salvation, for they are false.

22 And the Lord will not abandon his people, because of his great name. For the Lord has sworn to make you his people.

For the Lord will not give his people up, because of the honour of his name; for it was the Lord's pleasure to make of you a people for himself.

23 So then, far be it from me, this sin against the Lord, that I would cease to pray for you. And so, I will teach you the good and upright way.

And as for me, never will I go against the orders of the Lord by giving up my prayers for you: but I will go on teaching you the good and right way.

24 Therefore, fear the Lord, and serve him in truth and from your whole heart. For you have seen the great works that he has done among you.

Only go in the fear of the Lord, and be his true servants with all your heart, keeping in mind what great things he has done for you.

25 But if you persevere in wickedness, both you and your king will perish together.”

But if you still do evil, destruction will overtake you and your king.