Table of Contents
- What will this king do? What is this king’s leadership style like?
- How does Samuel feel about the elders asking for a king? How does the LORD feel?
- To which Israelite historical event does the passage refer? Why?
- How is the king-to-be going to be like or unlike the idealized king of Deuteronomy 17:14-20?
- Why do you think the people want to be, ‘like the other nations?
- How does Grimsrud see this as fitting into ‘God’s Healing Strategy’?
What will this king do? What is this king’s leadership style like?
The king will take from the people for himself and continue taking. The king will turn out to be like the kings from Egypt.
How does Samuel feel about the elders asking for a king? How does the LORD feel?
Samuel wasn’t happy with the elders asking for a king. He warns the Israelites to watch out for what they want. If they really want a king to rule over them, they will also see what comes with a monarch’s rule. He will make their sons into military people, the confiscate of their crops and vineyards, their daughters will be taken to work for him and a degree of taxation that will increase to the unthinkable 10%. God was not happy with the elders asking for a king but he still provided them with one.
To which Israelite historical event does the passage refer? Why?
This passage refers to the historical event of the Isralites was from The book of Deuteronomy 17. In this story, God prophesied that the Israrlites would ask for a king. The prophecy of Israel’s demand for a king, the verses in the chapter are orders from God, meant to keep the king from being like the kings of nations. The instructions God sets forth through Moses are what distinguishes his king from the nations. The king must be an Israelite. The king shall not be chosen popularly, but shall be divinely appointed. The King of God must not make horses or wives multiply. This is what pagan kings are doing, because they are given military and political power. The King of God is not to trust his own power, his own strength, but to trust in God.
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How is the king-to-be going to be like or unlike the idealized king of Deuteronomy 17:14-20?
The king to be is unlike the idealized king of Deuteronomy 17:14-20 because that king had limits. God had said that the king could not acquire wealth and horses, was not allowed to marry many wives, and limits building up a military system. (Grimsrud pg 60) The king also had to be faithful to God’s word and laws. He needed to be an Isrealite. HE explained that the king could not accumulate wealth for himself.
Why do you think the people want to be, ‘like the other nations?
The people of Israel, wanted to be like other nations that would physically symbolize power and stability and lead them into war.
How does Grimsrud see this as fitting into ‘God’s Healing Strategy’?
Grimsrud sees this as fitting into God’s Healing Strategy by showing how the people are unable to live with God as their only God. Israel continued to have kings through the years but that direction was always an impasse. The kings hindered God’s Healing Strategy. (Grimsrud pg 67) The prophets mainly kept alive the vision for God’s work of bringing salvation to all the earth.
