1Sa 8:10-21 | TNotes | STEP | Summary for 1Sam 8:10-18: 8:10-18 These verses list the disadvantages of kingship. Each sentence begins with something the king would take. A king would be a confiscator, not just a protector.

Summary for 1Sam 8:10-18: 8:10-18 ^a These verses list the disadvantages of kingship. Each sentence begins with something the king would take. A king would be a confiscator, not just a protector.
8:11 ^b While the people wanted a king to judge them, Samuel warned that the king would reign over them. They wanted a leader but received a ruler.
Summary for 1Sam 8:12-17: 8:12-17 ^c The king would take people as well as possessions.
8:15 ^d A tenth of the harvest was already required as a sacred donation to support God’s Temple and servants (Deut 12:6 ^e, 17-18 ^f; 14:22-29 ^g; 26:12-15 ^h). The king would demand an additional tenth, a burdensome amount given the uncertainties of agriculture.
8:17 ⁱ you will be his slaves: By demanding a king, the people whose ancestors had once been slaves in Egypt were risking a new enslavement (cp. 1 Kgs 12:1-20 ^j).
8:18 ^k The people would beg for relief as their ancestors had done in Egypt under another punishing and exacting ruler (see Exod 3:7 ^l).
8:20 ^m God had set Israel apart from the nations (Lev 20:26 ⁿ; Num 23:9 ^o). By insisting on a king and desiring to be like the nations, they were rejecting God’s plan (see 1 Sam 8:5-7 ^p; cp. Deut 17:14 ^q).

• judge us and lead us into battle: Kings performed three basic functions: (1) waging offensive and defensive war, (2) administering law, and (3) ensuring economic well-being.
8:21 ^r repeated to the Lord: The role of a prophet included bringing the people’s case before God (cp. Num 27:5 ^s).