Immerse: Kingdoms Full Volume - Flipbook - Page 112
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IMMERSE
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KINGDOMS
1S
| 7:13–8:16
Mizpah and Jeshanah. He named it Ebenezer (which means “the stone of
help”), for he said, “Up to this point the Lord has helped us!”
So the Philistines were subdued and didn’t invade Israel again for some
time. And throughout Samuel’s lifetime, the Lord’s powerful hand was
raised against the Philistines. The Israelite villages near Ekron and Gath
that the Philistines had captured were restored to Israel, along with the
rest of the territory that the Philistines had taken. And there was peace
between Israel and the Amorites in those days.
Samuel continued as Israel’s judge for the rest of his life. Each year he traveled around, setting up his court first at Bethel, then at Gilgal, and then
at Mizpah. He judged the people of Israel at each of these places. Then he
would return to his home at Ramah, and he would hear cases there, too.
And Samuel built an altar to the Lord at Ramah.
As Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons to be judges over Israel. Joel
and Abijah, his oldest sons, held court in Beersheba. But they were not
like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes
and perverted justice.
Finally, all the elders of Israel met at Ramah to discuss the matter with
Samuel. “Look,” they told him, “you are now old, and your sons are not like
you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.”
Samuel was displeased with their request and went to the Lord for
guidance. “Do everything they say to you,” the Lord replied, “for they
are rejecting me, not you. They don’t want me to be their king any longer.
Ever since I brought them from Egypt they have continually abandoned
me and followed other gods. And now they are giving you the same treatment. Do as they ask, but solemnly warn them about the way a king will
reign over them.”
So Samuel passed on the Lord’s warning to the people who were asking him for a king. “This is how a king will reign over you,” Samue l said.
“The king will draft your sons and assign them to his chario ts and his
charioteers, making them run before his chariots. Some will be generals
and captains in his army, some will be forced to plow in his fields and harvest his crops, and some will make his weapons and chariot equipment.
The king will take your daughters from you and force them to cook and
bake and make perfumes for him. He will take away the best of your fields
and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his own officials. He will
take a tenth of your grain and your grape harvest and distribute it among
his officers and attendants. He will take your male and female slaves and