Remember, in His Word, God has:
- Something to see – what does the text say
- Something to understand – what does it mean
- Something to apply – what does it mean to me
- Something to praise – for what are you thankful?
(1) Through the Bible
| Day 1: 2 Kings 23-25 | Day 4: 1 Chronicles 5, 6 |
| Day 2: 1 Chronicles 1, 2 | Day 5: 1 Chronicles 7, 8 |
| Day 3: 1 Chronicles 3, 4 | Day 6: 1 Chronicles 9, 10 |
1 Samuel 8 is one of those pivotal chapters in the Old Testament that describes a time of significant transition. Israel’s time under the leadership of judges comes to an end as the nation judges Samuel’s choice of his sons and demands a king to judge them, just as the others nations have. Some good questions to ask from this short but critical text (1 Samuel 8:1-9:1) would be: what is Israel’s motivation behind the demand for a king; how does God view the request; and was Israel meant to have a king. I have included in the key passages and verses readings the first verse of chapter 9 because I think the attributes of Saul are an interesting thing for the bible to mention. Compare this to the description of God’s future King in Isaiah 9, or the New Testament’s description of this King’s birth circumstances. How do the attributes that humans want in a king compare to the attributes we ought to look for?
(2) Key Passages
| Day 1: 1 Samuel 8:1-5 | Day 1: 1 Samuel 8:15-18 |
| Day 2: 1 Samuel 8:6-9 | Day 2: 1 Samuel 8:19-1 Samuel 9:1 |
| Day 3: 1 Samuel 8:10-14 | Day 3: Isaiah 9:6-7 |
(3) Key Verses
| Day 1: 1 Samuel 8:1-3 | Day 1: 1 Samuel 8:8-9 |
| Day 2: 1 Samuel 8:4-5 | Day 2: 1 Samuel 8:19-20 |
| Day 3: 1 Samuel 8:6-7 | Day 3: Isaiah 9:6-7 |
(4) Pre-readers (in the translation of your choice, quoted below from the NLT)
“Do everything they say to you,” the Lord replied, “for they are rejecting me, not you. They don’t want me to be their king any longer.”
1 Samuel 1:7