1 Samuel 8:7

7 And the LORD said unto Samuel, "Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.

1 Samuel 8:7 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 8:7

And the Lord said unto Samuel
He appeared to him in a vision or dream, and by an articulate voice delivered to him what follows:

hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee;
not as approving of what they said, but permitting and allowing what they asked, as a punishment of them for their disloyalty and ingratitude, and as resenting their ill behaviour to him; for it was in anger he assented to their request, ( Hosea 13:11 )

for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me that I
should not reign over them;
most interpreters supply the word "only", as if the sense was, that they had not only rejected Samuel from judging them, but the Lord also from reigning over them; and which is spoken to comfort Samuel, and to alleviate the pressure on his mind for the ill treatment he had met with; for since they had served the Lord after this manner, it was no wonder he should be ill used, and might bear it with great patience: but I see no reason why the word may not be taken absolutely, that they had not rejected Samuel from all share in the government, at least from judging the people; for so he continued all the days of his life, even after they had a king over them; but they entirely rejected the sole and peculiar government of God over them.

1 Samuel 8:7 In-Context

5 and said unto him, "Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways. Now make us a king to judge us, like all the nations."

6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, "Give us a king to judge us." And Samuel prayed unto the LORD.

7 And the LORD said unto Samuel, "Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.

8 According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken Me and served other gods, so do they also unto thee.

9 Now therefore hearken unto their voice. However, yet protest solemnly unto them and show them the ways of the king that shall reign over them."