1 Samuel 8:1-7 ▼

1 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges over Israel.

2 His firstborn son’s name was Joel and his second was Abijah. They were judges in Beer-sheba.

3 However, his sons did not walk in his ways—they turned toward dishonest profit, took bribes, and perverted justice.

4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and went to Samuel at Ramah.

5 They said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Therefore, appoint a king to judge us the same as all the other nations have.”

6 When they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” Samuel considered their demand wrong, so he prayed to the LORD.

7 But the LORD told him, “Listen to the people and everything they say to you. They have not rejected you; they have rejected me as their king.