1 Samuel 8:21

21 And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he spake them in the ears of the Lord.

1 Samuel 8:21 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 8:21

And Samuel heard all the words of the people
Patiently, and without interruption; attentively heard them, took notice of them, laid them up in his memory; but gave no answer to them, but reported them to the Lord, as in the next clause:

and he rehearsed them in the ears of the Lord;
privately, in a free and familiar manner, with great exactness, as they were expressed; this he did, not before the people publicly, but in secret prayer, seeking for direction what he should further do, or what answer he should return to them.

1 Samuel 8:21 In-Context

19 Soothly the people would not hear the voice of Samuel, but they said, Nay, for a king shall be on us; (But the people would not listen to Samuel, and they said, No! let a king rule over us;)

20 and (then) we also shall be as all folks (and then we shall be like all the other nations), and our king shall deem us, and he shall go out before us, and he shall fight our battles for us.

21 And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he spake them in the ears of the Lord.

22 And the Lord said to Samuel, Hear thou their voices, and ordain thou a king upon them. And Samuel said to the men of Israel, Each man go into his city (Now everyone go home).