Through Israel’s demand for a king we see the result of their compromised worship in Canaan. They have rejected Yahwey, and thus it is no surprise their motives are problematic. They sound like a manipulative toddler: “we just want to have a king like everybody else!” As we know, God allowed them to get what they wanted – but they didn’t want what they got! They got an earthly king; ideal in the eyes of man – someone of wealth, looks, and stature; but a man whose heart was not right with God. God had warned that their sinful desire for an earthly king to judge them would result in a man who would take, take, and take some more, seeking to serve his own good.
But the Lord didn’t want Israel to be like other nations. God said they were his treasured possession and a nation set apart: a nation that would obey his voice and heed his covenant as a holy nation (see Exodus 19:5-6). By looking to other nations, they forgot who they were and how they were to look. Their vision was too small. All the way back to Abraham God had promised that through them would come a King through whom all the nations of the world would be blessed. Through Jacob the Lord said: “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. (Genesis 49:10)”
Christ Connection:
Certainly, this prophecy finds its beginning in Israel’s monarchy, especially through Saul’s successor David (who was of the tribe of Judah, unlike Saul). God redeemed the monarchy and brought it into his covenant through David (more on this when we get to 2 Samuel 7). However, as always his ways are not our ways and his thoughts not ours, for what God had in mind was a King he was yet to send. The greater David (Matthew 1:1): the one who came to serve rather than be served; the one who would subdue hearts, not armies; the one who would give and not take and whose greatest gift was eternal life, for his kingdom was not of this world (John 18:36). It is just as easy for us to lose godly perspective and long for other sources of blessing, security, and hope. May God’s unfolding “Story of Everything” continue to inspire you to trust in the God who knows the end from the beginning. If he can uphold “all things by the word of his power (Hebrews 1:3)”, he can uphold our lives as well!