Loading...

Change Translation

Loading...
  • Recent Translations
  • All Translations

1 Samuel 12:5-15

Share

Listen to 1 Samuel 12:5-15

Settings

Text Scale

Dark Mode
5 And he said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and 1his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything 2in my hand. ” And they said, “He is witness. ”
6 And Samuel said to the people, 3“The Lord is witness, [a] who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt.
7 Now therefore stand still that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous deeds of the Lord that he performed for you and for your fathers.
8 4When Jacob went into Egypt, and the Egyptians oppressed them, [b] 5then your fathers cried out to the Lord and 6the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, 7who brought your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place.
9 But 8they forgot the Lord their God. 9And he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of Hazor, [c] 10and into the hand of the Philistines, 11and into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against them.
10 12And they cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord 13and have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth. But now 14deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, that we may serve you. ’
11 And the Lord sent 15Jerubbaal 16and Barak[d] 17and Jephthah and 18Samuel and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you lived in safety.
12 And when you saw that 19Nahash the king of the Ammonites came against you, 20you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us, ’ 21when the Lord your God was your king.
13 And now 22behold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you have asked; behold, 23the Lord has set a king over you.
14 If you will 24fear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God, it will be well.
15 But 25if you will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then 26the hand of the Lord will be against you and 27your king. [e]
Read Chapter Compare Translations
Images Related Articles Commentaries Cross References Sermons

1 Samuel 12:5-15 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 12

In this chapter Samuel, resigning the government to Saul, asserts the integrity with which he had performed his office, and calls upon the people of Israel to attest it, who did, 1Sa 12:1-5, he then reminds them of the great and good things the Lord had done for them in times past, 1Sa 12:6-11 and whereas they had desired a king, and one was given them, it was their interest to fear and serve the Lord; if not, his hand would be against them, 1Sa 12:10-15 he terrifies them by calling for thunder in an unusual time, 1Sa 12:16-19 and then comforts and encourages them, that in doing their duty God would be with them, and not forsake them, otherwise they might expect nothing but ruin and destruction, 1Sa 12:20-25.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible
Unlock Deeper Insights: Get Over 20 Commentaries with Plus! Subscribe Now

Cross References 27

  • 1. 12:5 [See ver. 3 above]
  • 2. 12:5 Ex. 21:16; 22:4
  • 3. 12:6 [Mic. 6:4]
  • 4. 12:8 Gen. 46:5, 6
  • 5. 12:8 Ex. 2:23
  • 6. 12:8 Ex. 3:10; 4:14-16
  • 7. 12:8 [ch. 10:18]
  • 8. 12:9 Judg. 3:7
  • 9. 12:9 Judg. 4:2
  • 10. 12:9 Judg. 10:7; 13:1; [Judg. 3:31]
  • 11. 12:9 Judg. 3:12
  • 12. 12:10 Judg. 10:10; [Judg. 3:9]
  • 13. 12:10 Judg. 2:13
  • 14. 12:10 Judg. 10:15
  • 15. 12:11 Judg. 6:14, 32
  • 16. 12:11 Judg. 4:6, 8, 10
  • 17. 12:11 Judg. 11:1
  • 18. 12:11 See ch. 7:10-13
  • 19. 12:12 ch. 11:1
  • 20. 12:12 ch. 8:5, 19
  • 21. 12:12 [ch. 8:7; 10:19; Judg. 8:23]
  • 22. 12:13 ch. 10:24
  • 23. 12:13 ch. 9:16, 17; [Hos. 13:11]
  • 24. 12:14 ver. 24; Deut. 6:2; Josh. 24:14
  • 25. 12:15 Lev. 26:14, 15; Deut. 28:15; Josh. 24:20
  • 26. 12:15 ch. 5:9
  • 27. 12:15 [ver. 9]

Footnotes 5

  • [a] 12:6 Septuagint; Hebrew lacks 'is witness'
  • [b] 12:8 Septuagint; Hebrew lacks 'and the Egyptians oppressed them'
  • [c] 12:9 Septuagint 'the army of Jabin king of Hazor'
  • [d] 12:11 Septuagint, Syriac; Hebrew 'Bedan'
  • [e] 12:15 Septuagint; Hebrew 'fathers'
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2025

Study Tools

PLUS

Unlock Notes

This feature is for PLUS subscribers only. Join PLUS today to access these tools and more.

JOIN PLUS

Unlock Highlights

This feature is for PLUS subscribers only. Join PLUS today to access these tools and more.

JOIN PLUS

Unlock Bookmarks

This feature is for PLUS subscribers only. Join PLUS today to access these tools and more.

JOIN PLUS

Track Your Reading

Create a free account to start a reading plan, or join PLUS to unlock our full suite of premium study tools.

CREATE FREE ACCOUNT EXPLORE PLUS
Already have an account? Sign in