King James Version

1 And Samuel said to all Israel, "Here, I have heard your voice regarding all that you said to me, and I have set a king over you." 2 And now behold, the king is walking before you, and I have grown old and gray, and my sons are here with you, and I have walked before you from my youth until this day. 3 Here I am; answer me before the LORD and before His anointed: Whose ox have I taken, and whose donkey have I taken? And whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? And from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? I will restore it to you. 4 And they said, "You have not oppressed us, and you have not wronged us, and you have not taken anything from any man's hand." 5 And he said to them, "You are witnesses of the Lord against you, and witnesses of His anointed today, for you have not found anything in my hand." And he said, "You are witnesses." 6 And Samuel said to the people, "The Lord who made Moses and Aaron and who brought your ancestors up from the land of Egypt." 7 And now, stand firm, and I will judge you before the Lord regarding all the righteous acts of the Lord that He performed with you and with your fathers. 8 When Jacob came to Egypt, your fathers cried out to the Lord, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, and they brought your fathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place. 9 And they forgot the Lord their God and sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 10 And they cried out to the LORD and said, "We have sinned, for we have forsaken the LORD and have served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and now deliver us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve You." 11 And the LORD sent Jerubbaal and Bedan and Jephthah and Samuel, and he saved you from the hand of your enemies all around, and you dwelled in safety. 12 And you saw that Nahash the king of the Ammonites came against you, and you said to me, "No, but a king shall reign over us," when the Lord your God was your king. 13 And now, here is the king whom you have chosen, whom you asked for; and behold, the LORD has set a king over you. 14 If you fear the LORD and serve Him and listen to His voice and do not rebel against the command of the LORD, then you also will be with you and also the king who rules over you after the LORD your God. 15 And if you do not listen to the voice of the Lord and rebel against the mouth of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you and against your fathers. 16 Now also stand and see this great thing that the LORD is doing before your eyes. 17 "Should I not call to the Lord today for the harvest of wheat, and He will give voices and rain? And you should know and see that your evil is great which you have done in the eyes of the Lord, to make for yourselves a king." 18 And Samuel called to the LORD, and the LORD gave voices and rain on that day, and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19 And all the people said to Samuel, "Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, and do not let us die, for we have added to all our evil sins a king." 20 And Samuel said to the people, "Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart." 21 And do not turn aside, for after the emptiness that will not profit and will not save, for they are emptiness. 22 For the LORD will not forsake His people for His great name's sake, because it has pleased the LORD to make you a people for Himself. 23 Also, I would be far from me to sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and right way. 24 But you shall fear the LORD and serve Him in truth with all your heart, for you have seen what He has done among you. 25 And if you harm the neighbor, both you and your kings will be cut off.