1 Samuel 12:11-21

11 Then the LORD sent Jerub-Baal,^[a] Barak,^[b] Jephthah and Samuel,^[c] and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around you, so that you lived in safety.

12 “But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we want a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was your king.

13 Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the LORD has set a king over you.

14 If you fear the LORD and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the LORD your God—good!

15 But if you do not obey the LORD, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your ancestors.

16 “Now then, stand still and see this great thing the LORD is about to do before your eyes!

17 Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the LORD to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the LORD when you asked for a king.”

18 Then Samuel called on the LORD, and that same day the LORD sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the LORD and of Samuel.

19 The people all 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 other sins the evil of asking for a king.”

20 “Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart.

21 Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless.

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1 Samuel 12:11-21 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

Cross References 26

1. Judges 6:32; Judges 6:14,32
2. S Judges 4:6
3. S Judges 11:1
4. S 1 Samuel 7:15
5. S 1 Samuel 11:1
6. S 1 Samuel 8:5
7. 1 Samuel 25:30; 2 Samuel 5:2; 1 Chronicles 5:2; Judges 8:23; 1 Samuel 8:6,19
8. S 1 Samuel 8:5; Hosea 13:11
9. S 1 Samuel 9:20; 1 Samuel 10:24
10. S Joshua 24:14
11. Jeremiah 4:17; Lamentations 1:18
12. ver 9; Leviticus 26:16; Joshua 24:20; Isaiah 1:20; Jeremiah 4:17; Jeremiah 26:4
13. S Exodus 14:14
14. S Exodus 14:13
15. S Genesis 30:14; S 1 Samuel 6:13; 1 Samuel 7:9-10
16. 1 Kings 18:42; James 5:18
17. S Exodus 9:23; S 1 Samuel 2:10
18. Genesis 7:12; Exodus 9:18; Job 37:13; Proverbs 26:1
19. S 1 Samuel 8:6-7
20. Psalms 99:6
21. S Genesis 3:10; S Exodus 14:31
22. ver 23; Exodus 9:28; S Exodus 8:8; S 1 Samuel 7:8; S Jeremiah 37:3; James 5:18; 1 John 5:16
23. S Deuteronomy 9:19
24. S Exodus 32:30
25. Isaiah 40:20; Isaiah 41:24,29; Isaiah 44:9; Jeremiah 2:5,11; Jeremiah 14:22; Jeremiah 16:19; John 2:8; Habakkuk 2:18; Acts 14:15
26. Deuteronomy 11:16

Footnotes 3

[a]. Also called "Gideon"
[b]. Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac; Hebrew "Bedan"
[c]. Hebrew; some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac "Samson"