1Then Samuel said to all Israel, “Behold, I have listened to your voice in all that you said to me, and I have set a king over you.”
2And now, behold, the king walks before you; but as for me, I am old and gray, and my sons—here they are with you. And I have walked before you from my youth until this day.
3Here I am; testify against me before Yahweh and before his anointed: Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I taken a bribe, that I should hide my eyes with it? And I will restore it to you.
4And they said, “You have not defrauded us, and you have not oppressed us, and you have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”
5And he said to them, “Yahweh is a witness against you, and his anointed is a witness this day, that you have found nothing in my hand.” And they said, “He is a witness.”
6And Samuel said to the people, “It is Yahweh who appointed Moses and Aaron, and who brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt.
7And now take your stand, that I may enter into judgment with you before Yahweh concerning all the righteous acts of Yahweh that he did for you and for your fathers.
8When Jacob came to Egypt, and your fathers cried out to Yahweh, then Yahweh sent Moses and Aaron, and they brought your fathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place.
9But they forgot Yahweh their God, so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander 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.
10Then they cried out to Yahweh and said, “We have sinned, for we have forsaken Yahweh and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth. But now deliver us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you.”
11And Yahweh sent Jerubbaal and Bedan and Jephthah and Samuel, and he delivered you from the hand of your enemies all around, so that you dwelt in security.
12But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us’—though Yahweh your God was your king.
13And now, behold the king whom you have chosen, whom you asked for; and behold, Yahweh has set a king over you.
14If you fear Yahweh and serve him and listen to his voice, and do not rebel against the mouth of Yahweh, then both you and the king who reigns over you will follow after Yahweh your God—
15but if you do not listen to the voice of Yahweh, and rebel against the mouth of Yahweh, then the hand of Yahweh will be against you and against your fathers.
16Now, then, take your stand and see this great thing that Yahweh is about to do before your eyes.
17Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call out to Yahweh, and he will send thunder and rain; then you will know and see that your evil is great, which you have done in the eyes of Yahweh in asking for yourselves a king.
18So Samuel called out to Yahweh, and Yahweh sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared Yahweh and Samuel.
19And all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to Yahweh your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins the evil of asking for ourselves a king.”
20And Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have done all this evil; yet do not turn aside from following Yahweh, but serve Yahweh with all your heart.
21And do not turn aside after empty things, which cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty.
22For Yahweh will not forsake his people, for the sake of his great name, because Yahweh has been pleased to make you a people for himself.
23As for me also, far be it from me that I should sin against Yahweh by ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and upright way.
24Only fear Yahweh and serve him in truth with all your heart; for see what great things he has done with you.
25But if you persist in doing wrong, both you and your king will be swept away.”
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