But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites had come against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us’—although the LORD your God was your King. Now therefore, here is [Saul] the king whom you have chosen, and for whom you asked; behold, the LORD has set a king over you. If you will fear the LORD [with awe and profound reverence] and serve Him and listen to His voice and not rebel against His commandment, then both you and your king will follow the LORD your God [and it will be well]. But if you do not listen to the LORD’S voice, but rebel against His command, then the hand of the LORD will be against you [to punish you], as it was against your fathers. So now, take your stand and see this great thing which the LORD will do before your eyes. Is it not [the beginning of the] wheat harvest today? I will call to the LORD and He will send thunder and rain; then you will know [without any doubt], and see that your evil which you have done is great in the sight of the LORD by asking for yourselves a king.” So Samuel called to the LORD [in prayer], and He sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. Then all the people said to Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for your servants, so that we will not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil—to ask for a king for ourselves.” Samuel said to the people, “Do not be afraid. You have [indeed] done all this evil; yet do not turn away from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. You must not turn away, for then you would go after futile things which cannot profit or rescue, because they are futile. The LORD will not abandon His people for His great name’s sake, because the LORD has been pleased to make you a people for Himself. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and right way. Only fear the LORD [with awe and profound reverence] and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you.
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Compare All Versions: 1 Samuel 12:12-24
4 Days
Worship is a grand and all-encompassing word. This 4-day reading plan shows what it means and how people of the Bible were called to worship the God of heaven.
12 Days
This reading plan will introduce you to the book of Samuel, including why and under what circumstances the book was written and how it applies to Christians today.
23 Days
In part two of this six-part saga through 1 and 2 Samuel, we'll make our way through chapters 8-15 as we see the rise and fall of Israel’s first human king: Saul. Discover the dangers of following the crowd, the importance of obedience and faithfulness with the things God has given you, how power and the pressure it comes with can lead to compromise when we’re not walking in step with the Spirit, and what true spiritual leadership in the lives of others looks like.
31 Days
1 Samuel charts the rise and fall of several of Israel’s leaders. You’ll meet the notoriously arrogant king Saul and see the ascent of the man after God’s own heart – David. You’ll read of dangerous battles, murder plots, giants and even more surprises in this book. You’ll see that despite turbulence in leadership, seemingly strong enemies and spiritual decay God is very much at work orchestrating the fall of the proud and the rise of the humble. What an encouragement for us today when we are faced with challenges not too dissimilar to these!
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