1 Samuel 12:23

23 "I would never sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. I'll teach you to live in a way that is good and right.

1 Samuel 12:23 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 12:23

Moreover, as for me
As he had given them reason to believe that God would forgive their sin, by which they had offended him, rejecting him as their King, so he likewise forgave their offence against him in rejecting him as their governor under him, and so neither need fear the Lord nor him with a servile fear; and as God would still be gracious to them, if they abode by his service, so he, Samuel, would do all the good offices for them that lay in his power:

God forbid that I should sin against the Lord, in ceasing to pray
for you;
for since they had returned to the Lord, and acknowledged their sin, it would have been an evil in him not to pray for them, that they might share in the pardoning grace and mercy of God, and have all good things bestowed upon them they stood in need of; this he judged to be his duty to do, and therefore abhorred the thought of being indifferent to it, negligent of it, or of dropping it:

but I will teach you the good and the right way;
would not only pray for them, but instruct them in the way of their duty; a way that was a good one, agreeable to the will and word of God, and in walking in which good things were enjoyed, and which being a good way, must needs be a right way; though Samuel ceased to be a judge and chief magistrate among them, he should not cease to act the part of a prophet to them, both by his prayers and by his instructions.

1 Samuel 12:23 In-Context

21 "Don't turn away and worship statues of gods. They are useless. They can't do you any good. They can't save you either. They are completely useless.
22 "But the LORD will be true to his great name. He won't turn his back on his people. That's because he was pleased to make you his own people.
23 "I would never sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. I'll teach you to live in a way that is good and right.
24 "But be sure to have respect for the Lord. Serve him faithfully. Do it with all your heart. Think about the great things he has done for you.
25 But don't be stubborn. Don't continue to do what is evil. If you do, both you and your king will be swept away."
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