Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Samuel 12:16
Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes.
Verse 16. This great thing] This unusual occurrence.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
By standing he intends not the posture of their bodies, but the consistency of their minds, by serious and fixed consideration.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
Now therefore stand,…. Which does not so much respect the position of their bodies as the fixed attention of their minds:
and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes; meaning the storm of thunder and rain which presently followed; which coming at a time when such things were not usual, and on a day when there was no appearance or likelihood of anything of this kind, and suddenly, at once, upon the prayer of Samuel, it was no less than a miracle, and might be called a “great thing”, new and unheard of, and the pure effect of almighty power.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
| Samuel Calls for Thunder; Samuel Encourages and Comforts Israel. | B. C. 1069. |
16 Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes. 17 Is it not wheat harvest to day? I will call unto the LORD, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king. 18 So Samuel called unto the LORD; and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19 And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king. 20 And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; 21 And turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain. 22 For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people. 23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: 24 Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you. 25 But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king.
Two things Samuel here aims at:–
I. To convince the people of their sin in desiring a king. They were now rejoicing before God in and with their king (ch. xi. 15), and offering to God the sacrifices of praise, which they hoped God would accept; and this perhaps made them think that there was no harm in their asking a king, but really they had done well in it. Therefore Samuel here charges it upon them as their sin, as wickedness, great wickedness in the sight of the Lord. Note, Though we meet with prosperity and success in a way of sin, yet we must not therefore think the more favourably of it. They have a king, and if they conduct themselves well their king may be a very great blessing to them, and yet Samuel will have them perceive and see that their wickedness was great in asking a king. We must never think well of that which God in his law frowns upon, though in his providence he may seem to smile upon it. Observe,
1. The expressions of God’s displeasure against them for asking a king. At Samuel’s word, God sent prodigious thunder and rain upon them, at a season of the year when, in that country, the like was never seen or known before, v. 16-18. Thunder and rain have natural causes and sometimes terrible effects. But Samuel made it to appear that this was designed by the almighty power of God on purpose to convince them that they had done very wickedly in asking a king; not only by its coming in an unusual time, in wheat-harvest, and this on a fair clear day, when there appeared not to the eye any signs of a storm, but by his giving notice of it before. Had there happened to be thunder and rain at the time when he was speaking to them, he might have improved it for their awakening and conviction, as we may in a like case; but, to make it no less than a miracle, before it came, (1.) He spoke to them of it (1Sa 12:16; 1Sa 12:17): Stand and see this great thing. He had before told them to stand and hear (v. 7); but, because he did not see that his reasoning with them affected them (so stupid were they and unthinking), now he bids them stand and see. If what he said in a still small voice did not reach their hearts, nor his doctrine which dropped as the dew, they shall hear God speaking to them in dreadful claps of thunder and the great rain of his strength. He appealed to this as a sign: “I will call upon the Lord, and he will send thunder, will send it just now, to confirm the word of his servant, and to make you see that I spoke truly when I told you that God was angry with you for asking a king.” And the event proved him a true prophet; the sign and wonder came to pass. (2.) He spoke to God for it. Samuel called unto the Lord, and, in answer to his prayer, even while he was yet speaking, the Lord sent thunder and rain. By this Samuel made it to appear, not only what a powerful influence God has upon this earth, that he could, of a sudden, when natural causes did not work towards it, produce this dreadful rain and thunder, and bring them out of his treasures (Ps. cxxxv. 7), but also what a powerful interest he had in heaven, that God would thus hearken to the voice of a man (Josh. x. 14) and answer him in the secret place of thunder, Ps. lxxxi. 7. Samuel, that son of prayer, was still famous for success in prayer. Now by this extraordinary thunder and rain sent on this occasion, [1.] God testified his displeasure against them in the same way in which he had formerly testified it, and at the prayer of Samuel too, against the Philistines. The Lord discomfited them with a great thunder, ch. vii. 10. Now that Israel rebelled, and vexed his Holy Spirit, he turned to be their enemy, and fought against them with the same weapons which, not long before, had been employed against their adversaries, Isa. lxiii. 10. [2.] He showed them their folly in desiring a king to save them, rather than God or Samuel, promising themselves more from an arm of flesh than from the arm of God or from the power of prayer. Could their king thunder with a voice like God? Job xl. 9. Could their prince command such forces as the prophet could by his prayers? [3.] He intimated to them that how serene and prosperous soever their condition seemed to be now that they had a king, like the weather in wheat-harvest, yet, if God pleased, he could soon change the face of their heavens, and persecute them with his tempest, as the Psalmist speaks.
2. The impressions which this made upon the people. It startled them very much, as well it might. (1.) They greatly feared the Lord and Samuel. Though when they had a king they were ready to think they must fear him only, God made them know that he is greatly to be feared and his prophets for his sake. Now they were rejoicing in their king, God taught them to rejoice with trembling. (2.) They owned their sin and folly in desiring a king: We have added to all our sins this evil, v. 19. Some people will not be brought to a sight of their sins by any gentler methods than storms and thunders. Samuel did not extort this confession from them till the matter was settled and the king confirmed, lest it should look as if he designed by it rather to establish himself in the government than to bring them to repentance. Now that they were flattering themselves in their own eyes, their iniquity was found to be hateful, Ps. xxxvi. 2. (3.) They earnestly begged Samuel’s prayers (v. 19): Pray for thy servants, that we die not. They were apprehensive of their danger from the wrath of God, and could not expect that he should hear their prayers for themselves, and therefore they entreat Samuel to pray for them. Now they see their need of him whom awhile ago they slighted. Thus many that will not have Christ to reign over them would yet be glad to have him intercede for them, to turn away the wrath of God. And the time may come when those that have despised and ridiculed praying people will value their prayers, and desire a share in them. “Pray” (say they) “to the Lord thy God; we know not how to call him ours, but, if thou hast any interest in him, improve it for us.”
II. He aims to confirm the people in their religion, and engage them for ever to cleave unto the Lord. The design of his discourse is much the same with Joshua’s, ch. xxiii. and xxiv.
1. He would not that the terrors of the Lord should frighten them from him, for they were intended to frighten them to him (v. 20): “Fear not; though you have done all this wickedness, and though God is angry with you for it, yet do not therefore abandon his service, nor turn from following him.” Fear not, that is, “despair not, fear not with amazement, the weather will clear up after the storm. Fear not; for, though God will frown upon his people, yet he will not forsake them (v. 22) for his great name’s sake; do not you forsake him then.” Every transgression in the covenant, though it displease the Lord, yet does not throw us out of covenant, and therefore God’s just rebukes must not drive us from our hope in his mercy. The fixedness of God’s choice is owing to the freeness of it; we may therefore hope he will not forsake his people, because it has pleased him to make them his people. Had he chosen them for their good merits, we might fear he would cast them off for their bad merits; but, choosing them for his name’s sake, for his name’s sake he will not leave them.
2. He cautions them against idolatry: “Turn not aside from God and the worship of him” (1Sa 12:20; 1Sa 12:21); “for if you turn aside from God, whatever you turn aside to, you will find it is a vain thing, that can never answer your expectations, but will certainly deceive you if you trust to it; it is a broken reed, a broken cistern.” Idols could not profit those that sought to them in their wants, nor deliver those that sought to them in their straits, for they were vain, and not what they pretended to be. An idol is nothing in the world, 1 Cor. viii. 4.
3. He comforts them with an assurance that he would continue his care and concern for them, v. 23. They desired him to pray for them, v. 19. He might have said, “Go to Saul, the king that you have put in my room,” and get him to pray for you; but so far is he from upbraiding them with their disrespect to him that he promised them much more than they asked. (1.) They asked it of him as a favour; he promised it as a duty, and startles at the thought of neglecting it. Pray for you! says he, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in not doing it. Note, It is a sin against God not to pray for the Israel of God, especially for those of them that are under our charge: and good men are afraid of the guilt of omissions. (2.) They asked him to pray for them at this time, and upon this occasion, but he promised to continue his prayers for them and to cease as long as he lived. Our rule is to pray without ceasing; we sin if we restrain prayer in general, and in particular if we cease praying for the church. (3.) They asked him only to pray for them, but he promised to do more for them, not only to pray for them, but to teach them; though they were not willing to be under his government as a judge, he would not therefore deny them his instructions as a prophet. And they might be sure he would teach them no other than the good and the right way: and the right way is certainly the good way: the way of duty is the way of pleasure and profit.
4. He concludes with an earnest exhortation to practical religion and serious godliness, 1Sa 12:24; 1Sa 12:25. The great duty here pressed upon us is to fear the Lord. He had said (v. 20), “Fear not with a slavish fear,” but here, “Fear the Lord, with a filial fear.” As the fruit and evidence of this, serve him in the duties of religious worship and of a godly conversation, in truth and sincerity, and not in show and profession only, with your heart, and with all your heart, not dissembling, not dividing. And two things he urges by way of motive:– (1.) That they were bound in gratitude to serve God, considering what great things he had done for them, to engage them for ever to his service. (2.) That they were bound in interest to serve him, considering what great things he would do against them if they should still do wickedly: “You shall be destroyed by the judgments of God, both you and your king whom you are so proud of and expect so much from, and who will be a blessing to you if you keep in with God.” Thus, as a faithful watchman, he gave them warning, and so delivered his own soul.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Terror of God Leads to Repentance, vs. 16-25
Samuel’s next move was to call on the Lord for an object lesson, to teach the people of Israel the serious nature of their deed in asking for a king. The crowning of Saul occurred in the time of wheat harvest. It was very unusual to have rain in Israel at that time of year. Furthermore heavy rain on the mature, ripe wheat would wreak havoc on the harvest. Yet Samuel said that he would call on the Lord to send thunder and rain to prove to them that it was a wicked thing they had done in asking for a king.
The Lord sent a terrible thunderstorm which terribly frightened the people and must have destroyed their harvest. They came crying to Samuel that he would pray to the Lord to withhold His destruction lest they die, confessing that they had added this latest evil in asking for a king to the many of which they were already guilty. It instilled the fear of God in the Israelites, and they feared the great power of the Lord possessed by Samuel.
Now that the people had confessed their sin concerning the king, Samuel turns to assurance for them. Just as they had previously been told it was too late to undo the mistake in asking for the king, for God had told them He would not hear when they called on them for that (1Sa 8:18). Yet they were not to fear, though they have done wickedly, but should remain faithful to the Lord and serve Him wholeheartedly. To turn away from the Lord, even though they had a king to lead them, would be vain and foolish, for there would be none who could deliver them save the Lord.
The people were told that the Lord was not doing this, remaining with them though they had rejected Him, because of them. He was doing it for His own name’s sake, and because He had given promises concerning them to make them His people. As for himself, Samuel, emphasized that he would never cease praying for them, or teaching them to walk in the good and right way before the Lord. Samuel confessed that it would be sin on his part to discontinue his influence in Israel for their good. He concluded his address by once more stressing their reverence for, and wholehearted dedication in service to, the Lord. He admonished them to remember the great things God had done for Israel and to think on them. Such would keep them reminded of God’s love for them. If they failed, and did wickedly, the Lord would consume the people and their king.
This chapter teaches 1) God’s people should take every available opportunity to bear testimony for Him; 2) the world should not be able to bring any charge of wrongdoing against God’s people; 3) it is good to be reminded of how God has graciously dealt with His people in history past; 4) the Lord will allow chastisement to fall on those who rebel against Him; 5) one should not cease praying for those who have rebelled against God.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
Samuel Rebukes the People. 1Sa. 12:16-25
16 Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the Lord will do before your eyes.
17 Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call unto the Lord, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking you a king.
18 So Samuel called unto the Lord; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.
19 And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the Lord thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king.
20 And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart;
21 And turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain.
22 For the Lord will not forsake his people for his great names sake: because it hath pleased the Lord to make you his people.
23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way:
24 Only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you.
25 But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king.
10.
Why did Samuel ask for a sign? 1Sa. 12:16-18
Miracles were performed throughout the Old Testament and the New Testament in order to attest either the message or the messenger. When a truth pronounced by a prophet was in doubt, God often vindicated it by a sign. On other occasions a sign was given to authenticate a messenger of God. As Samuel was bidding farewell to his people, he asked them to stand still and see the great thing which the Lord would do for them.
11.
What was the effect of the sign? 1Sa. 12:17-18
Very little rain fell in Palestine during harvest time. Seasons were marked by dry periods and wet periods. The temperature did not vary a great deal. Rain falling in harvest time would be very unusual. The people realized this. The thunder they heard and the rain that fell caused the people to fear the Lord greatly. They also stood in awe and reverence of Samuel.
12.
Why did the people think that they would die? 1Sa. 12:19
A great number of the people had died when they had shown improper respect for the Ark as it was brought back to Beth-shemesh (1Sa. 6:19). When Manoah saw the angel of the Lord, he said to his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God (Jdg. 13:22). One of mans natural reactions upon the realization of his own guilt and the complete holiness of God is to realize that sin cannot abide in the presence of God. Since he is a sinner, he wonders that he is able to stand in Gods presence (Psa. 24:3). As the Israelites realized their sinful nature they believed that they would perish in the presence of the Holy God.
13.
Why did Samuel reassure the people? 1Sa. 12:20-22
God will not reject the broken and contrite heart (Psa. 51:17). The people of Israel had repented completely of their iniquity. They admitted that they had the wrong motives for asking for a king. Samuel sensed this repentant spirit and reassured the people that God would pardon them. Throughout the ages God had not forsaken His chosen people. He had threatened to destroy them in the days of Moses when they made a golden calf and Moses had interceded for them asking God to blot his name out of the book of life, but to spare the people of Israel (Exo. 32:32). Moses prayed that God would not forget His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Exo. 32:13). God did not forget His covenant, and Samuel reassured the Israelites that the Lord would not forsake His people.
14.
Why would it be a sin to cease praying for them? 1Sa. 12:23
Samuel would have demonstrated a reprehensible degree of selfishness if he had prayed only because he was an official. Once he was not serving as a judge, he assured the people that he would be faithful in remembering them in prayer. He would be concerned for them as long as he lived. In addition to praying for them, he would continue to teach them as a faithful prophet. Samuel stands as a good example for a model preacher.
15.
How is this a tribute to Samuel?
Every local minister could study Samuels Farewell Address with profit. Every leader of any congregation in quest of a preacher might well use him as an example. This is the sermon outline which has been suggested by this chapter:
THE BEGINNING OF SAULS REIGN
1Sa. 9:1 to 1Sa. 12:25
1.
Gibeah
Saul sent to seek asses; 1Sa. 9:1-3
2.
Ephraim, and lands of Shalishah and Shaalim;
seeking asses; 1Sa. 9:4
3.
Land of Zuph
Meeting with Samuel, and anointing of Saul; 1Sa. 9:5-8
4.
Between Zuph and Gibeah
Saul meets three groups of men.
fulfilling Samuels prophecies; 1Sa. 10:9-13.
5.
Gibeah
Saul is questioned by his uncle; 1Sa. 10:14-16
6.
Mizpah
Saul publicly proclaimed king; 1Sa. 10:17-27
7.
Jabesh-Gilead
Attack by Nahash the Ammonite; 1Sa. 11:1-5
8.
Gibeah
Saul gathers army; 1Sa. 11:6-10
9.
Jabesh-Gilead
Saul defeats Ammon; 1Sa. 11:11-13
10.
Gilgal
Samuels address to Israel; 1Sa. 11:14 to 1Sa. 12:25
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(16) This great thing, which the Lord will do.Then, to give greater emphasis to his warning words, Samuel adds: O, ye elders, stand forth. I will show you by means of a Voice from heaven that this very asking for a king, though the Eternal has granted your prayer, is evil in His sight. Their wishing for an earthly king was the crown of a long course of rebellion against the Supreme will. It was, in fact, the breaking up for ever of the glorious ideal which had been for so long before the eyes of the noblest spirits in Israel.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
16. Stand and see this great thing Rain in the time of harvest was a strange thing to a Hebrew. Pro 26:1. The following statements, taken from Robinson, (Biblical Researches, vol. i, p. 430, 431,) will illustrate this: “The harvest upon the mountains ripens, of course, later than in the plains of the Jordan and the seacoast. On the 4th and 5th of June the people of Hebron were just beginning to gather their wheat; on the 11th and 12th the threshing floors on the mount of Olives were in full operation. We had already seen the harvest in the same stage of progress on the plains of Gaza on the 19th of May; while at Jericho, on the 12th of May, the threshing floors had nearly completed their work. During the months of April and May the sky is usually serene, the air mild and balmy. Showers occur occasionally, but they are mild and refreshing. The 6th of May (1838) was remarkable for thunder and for several showers, some of which were quite heavy. But the occurrence of rain so late in the season was regarded as a very unusual circumstance. In ordinary seasons, from the cessation of the showers in spring until their commencement in October or November, rain never falls, and the sky is usually serene.”
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Samuel Then Calls On YHWH To Witness From Heaven The Fact Of Their Sinfulness By Sending Thunder And Rain At The Time Of The Wheat Harvest ( 1Sa 12:16-19 ).
Then, lest the people begin to think that perhaps their action has not been so bad after all, Samuel gives them a sign from God of His displeasure. It was the time of the wheat harvest, the time in Israel when the sky was daily blue and cloudless, and when rain was something far away from their minds because it was not expected for at least a few months, so Samuel calls on YHWH to do the ‘impossible’, to bring thunder and rain at Samuel’s request. And when He does so the people are filled with awe and fear and ask Samuel to pray for them that they might not die, for they recognise now the greatness of their sin and folly in asking for a king.
1Sa 12:16
“ Now therefore stand still and see this great thing, which YHWH will do before your eyes.”
Samuel faces the people and tells them to stand where they are, for in that very place they will see the great thing that YHWH will do before their eyes.
1Sa 12:17
“ Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call to YHWH, that he may send thunder and rain, and you will know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of YHWH, in asking for yourselves a king.”
And then he informs them what it will be. At this very time of wheat harvest (May and June) when the weather was always hot and sunny (as it always is in Palestine at this time of year, without a cloud in the sky), he will call on YHWH to send thunder and rain so that they might recognise and see that their wickedness was great in asking for a king for themselves, something which they had done before the very eyes of YHWH.
Control of the weather was always recognised as being in YHWH’s hands, and the sending of rain at the right time was to be seen as one of the evidences of His blessings on His people, whereas a shortage of rain indicated His displeasure. But rain and thunder had regularly been a means by which God had revealed His judgment on His people’s enemies (1Sa 7:10; compare Jdg 5:20-21). Thus this rain and thunder, coming at this time, could only indicate to the people that God was angry with them. Indeed rain in harvest was seen as something of such rarity that it was as rare as the possibility of a fool receiving honour (Pro 26:1).
The parallel in the chiasmus also indicates something further. It suggests that the rain and thunder were symbolic of coming judgments. Because they had chosen their own king rather than being in full submission to YHWH they would experience future judgments. And as we move on into Saul’s reign we discover that that is precisely what did happen. Indeed had God in His mercy not provided a David it would have been very much worse. But He tempered justice with mercy.
1Sa 12:18
‘ So Samuel called to YHWH, and YHWH sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared YHWH and Samuel.’
Samuel then carried out his proposal and called on YHWH, and YHWH sent thunder and rain ‘that very day’, and the result was that the people realised just how much they had angered both God and Samuel, and they were filled with fear before both of them (compare Exo 14:31 for a similar situation). Samuel was not, of course, simply seeking to terrify them. In his heart he was doing it for their good so that they might learn a lesson for the future. He wanted them to recognise that this manipulation of the weather was something that their new king would not be able to do for them. And he did not want them to forget YHWH.
1Sa 12:19
‘ And all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to YHWH your God, that we do not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king.” ’
The display of divine power made the people realise how foolish they had been, and they begged Samuel, on whom they had always depended in the past, to pray for them to YHWH his God that they might not die in the terrible storm, for they now recognised that they had added to all their previous sins this evil, that they had sought for themselves a king. Most of them would forget it once the storm was over. But for the present it was mightily effective.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Samuel Admonishes the People to Steadfastness
v. 16. Now, therefore, stand and see this great thing, v. 17. Is it not wheat-harvest today, v. 18. So Samuel called unto the Lord; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, v. 19. And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the Lord, thy God, that we die not; for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king, v. 20. And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not; ye have done all this wickedness, v. 21. and turn ye not aside, v. 22. For the Lord will not forsake His people for His great name’s sake, v. 23. Moreover, as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way. v. 24. Only fear the Lord and serve Him in truth, v. 25. But if ye shall still do wickedly,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
1Sa 12:16-18. Now, therefore, stand and see, &c. Rain indiscriminately in the winter months, and none at all in the summer, is what is most common in the East; so it is at Aleppo, and about Algiers: and so Jacobus de Vitriaco assures us it is in Judea: for he observes, that “lightning and thunder are wont, in the western countries, to be in the summer, but happen in the Holy Land in winter: that in the summer it seldom or never rains there; but in winter, though the returns of rain are not so frequent, yet after they begin to fall, they pour down for three or four nights together, most vehemently as if they would drown the country;” See Gesta Dei per Francos, vol. 1: p. 1097. But though commonly there is no rain at Aleppo through the whole summer, yet sometimes there is such a thing as a smart thunder-shower. So Dr. Russel tells us, that in the night between the first and second of July 1743, some severe thunder-showers fell: but he adds, that it was a thing very extraordinary at that season. Possibly it may be more uncommon still at Jerusalem; for St. Jerome, who lived long in the Holy Land, declares, in his Commentary on Amos, that he never saw rain in those provinces, and especially in Judea, in the end of June, or in the month of July: but if it should be found to be otherwise, and that, though St. Jerome had never seen it, such a thing may now and then happen there, as it did at Aleppo while Dr. Russel resided in that city; the fact here recorded might nevertheless be an authentic proof of what Samuel affirmed; since a very rare and unusual event, happening immediately, without any preceding appearance of such a thing, upon the prediction of a person professing himself to be a prophet, and giving this as an attestation of his being a messenger of God, is a sufficient proof of a divine mission, (as is also its happening at any other time distinctly marked out) though a like event has sometimes happened without any such declared interposition of God, and therefore understood on all hands to be casual, and without design. Bishop Warburton has sufficiently argued this point in his Julian, where he supposes that those fiery eruptions, crosses, &c. which happened upon that emperor’s attempt to rebuild the Jewish temple at Jerusalem, were such as have happened at other times, without any particular meaning; and yet, as they were then circumstanced, were an authentic attestation to the truth of Christianity. It should not be forgotten, that this thunder and rain of Samuel’s seem to have been in the day-time, and while Samuel and the Israelites continued together, solemnizing Saul’s inauguration; which circumstance added considerably to the energy of this event; Dr. Russel informing us, that the rains in those countries usually fall in the night, as did those uncommon thunder-showers of July 1743. See Observations, p. 4. 6 and Scheuchzer on the place.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
DISCOURSE: 293
THE ISRAELITES REJECTION OF SAMUEL REPROVED
1Sa 12:16-23. Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the Lord will do before your eyes. Is it not wheat harvest to-day? I will call unto the Lord, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking you a king. So Samuel called unto the Lord; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel. And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto to Lord thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king. And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart; and turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain. For the Lord will not forsake his people for his great names sake: because it hath pleased the Lord to make you his people. Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you.
THERE is scarcely any more curious part of sacred history than that which relates to the appointment of Saul to the throne of Israel. He was a man of noble stature, but of a low family. His fathers asses had strayed, and he went with a servant three days in search of them. His provisions were exhausted; and he thought of returning home, lest his father should begin to be anxious about him. His servant understanding that they were not far from the abode of Samuel, whom they supposed to be a kind of magician, and capable of informing them where the asses were, proposed that they should call upon him, and seek that information at his hands: but having no money left to pay this magician for his trouble, they were discouraged; having no idea that he would give his advice without a fee. The servant however said he had the fourth part of a shekel (about seven-pence of our money) left, and that they would offer him that. Accordingly they went; and were informed that the asses were found. But Saul had further information, that quite astonished him. The people of Israel had requested Samuel to appoint a king over them; and God, on being applied to by Samuel, directed him to comply with their request; and told him moreover, that this very Saul was the person whom he should appoint. Accordingly he told Saul what God had ordained; and gave him several signs whereby he should know infallibly that the matter was of God: and then convoked the people, and drew lots before the Lord; and Saul was the person on whom the lot fell. Saul, through modesty, hid himself; but God disclosed to Samuel the place where he was hid: and Samuel sent for him, and committed to him the charge of the kingdom, for which God then fitted him by some special gifts.
Were we to judge only from that part of the history to which we have already alluded, we should suppose that this change in the constitution of Israel was pleasing to God: but Samuel, by divine command, declared the contrary, and condemned the people with great severity. This is related in the words of our text; from whence we shall be led to notice,
I.
The sin committed
The Israelites desired to change the form of their government, and to have a king appointed over them
[For this desire they had many specious reasons. Samuel was now old, and incapable of supporting the fatigues of government: he had therefore delegated a large portion of his authority to his sons, who, alas! were far from walking in his steps, or executing aright the trust reposed in them. This was assigned as one reason for their request [Note: 1Sa 8:1-5.]. But though this would have justified a request for Samuels interposition to reprove, or even to depose, them, it was by no means a sufficient reason for them to seek an extinction of that form of government which God himself had appointed, and a substitution of another in its stead.
They were now also alarmed with the menaces of Nahash, king of the Ammonites, who was preparing to invade them [Note: 1Sa 12:12.]: and they wished to have the power of their government vested in the hands of one who should be able to protect them. But they needed not an arm of flesh, whilst they had Jehovah for their king: and if Jehovah had not delivered them according to their desire, it was owing to themselves, who by their sins had forfeited his protection. They therefore should have made this an occasion of humiliation and of turning unto God, and not an occasion of desiring another king in the place of God.
Besides, they wished to be in this respect like the nations around them [Note: 1Sa 8:19; 1 Samuel 20.], forgetting that a Theocracy was their highest honour, and most distinguished privilege.]
This desire of theirs was exceeding sinful
[It was, in the first place, an act of great folly; for they enjoyed all the benefits of kingly government, without any of its expenses or of the evils generally arising out of it [Note: 1Sa 8:9-18.] In the next place, it was a mark of base ingratitude towards Samuel, who had spent his whole life in their service: and in this view Samuel could not but feel it, and complain of it. Yet so heavenly was his mind, that instead of resenting it, he committed it to God in prayer; and never complained of it till after the appointment of a king had been ratifed and confirmed Then indeed he appealed to them, whether he had not conducted himself towards them with the most unblemished integrity [Note: 1Sa 12:2-5.] But past services were of little account with persons so infatuated and self-willed as that people were at this time. But further, it was also a direct and open rejection of God himself. This was the construction which God himself put upon it [Note: 1Sa 8:7.]. And how little he deserved this treatment at their hands, Samuel shewed them, by recounting to them the mercies which he had vouchsafed unto their nation, from its first existence even to that day [Note: 1Sa 10:17-19; 1Sa 12:7-11.].
But they were deaf to every statement that he could make, and insensible to every feeling that should have actuated their minds: for who can convince those who are determined not to be convinced? Nay; but we will [Note: 1Sa 8:19; 1Sa 12:12.], is but a poor answer from those who are taught what God willeth. It is indeed the answer of sinners in general: but all who make such a reply, will hear of it again from God himself.]
What we are to think of their conduct, will further appear from,
II.
The reproof administered
Such wickedness as this could not pass unreproved. Samuel therefore solemnly protested against them, as God had commanded [Note: 1Sa 8:9.]; and then proceeded to deal with them in that way which he conceived to be most conducive to their amendment:
1.
He desired a judgment from God, with a view to their humiliation
[There was not at that time any appearance of a storm, nor was the wheat harvest a season when storms often occurred. But he requested of God to manifest his displeasure by a sudden tempest: and immediately the thunders rolled, the rain descended in torrents, and the indignation of the Lord was clearly shewn; insomuch that the people greatly feared both the Lord and Samuel. Thus was the desired effect produced: the people saw that they had sinned; and entreated the intercession of Samuel, that they might not be punished according to their deserts. How different is the voice of God from that of man! that will convince the most obstinate, and soften the most obdurate: and, sooner or later, they who will not yield to the remonstrances of Gods servants, shall be spoken to in a way which they can neither gainsay nor resist.]
2.
He proclaimed mercy from God with a view to their encouragement
[There was nothing vindictive in the conduct of Samuel: he lamented that the people should act so wickedly, and that God should be so dishonoured; but he willingly sacrificed his own interests, and cheerfully resigned the power which had been committed to him. He saw how agitated the people were; and gladly embraced the opportunity of pouring balm into their wounds. He bade them not fear; for though they had sinned greatly, God would not utterly cast them off; and though there was nothing in them to induce him to shew mercy, he would be merciful to them for his great names sake. It was not for any merit of theirs that God had ever made them his people, but purely of his own sovereign will and pleasure: and, to shew them the immutability of his counsel, he would still continue his favours to them, notwithstanding this great transgression. They must however turn unto him, and cleave unto him, and no longer look unto the creature for deliverance; for on no other terms would he acknowledge them as his people, or vouchsafe unto them the blessings which he had reserved for them. As far as depended on himself, Samuel assured them, that he would harbour no resentment for the indignity offered him, but would continue to pray for them to his dying hour. Thus admirably did he temper severity with kindness, and soften fidelity with love.]
By way of improvement, let us beware lest there be amongst us also any who reject God
[If the rejection of Samuel was a rejection of God, what must a rejection of CHRIST be? and yet, how many are there who say of him, We will not have this man to reign over us [Note: Luk 19:14.]! Yes, though expostulated with, and warned with all fidelity, how many persist in this awful determination! They say in effect to their minister, As for the word that thou hast spoken to us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee [Note: Jer 44:16.]. To disregard the voice of his faithful ministers may appear a small thing; but it is not really so; for Jesus identifies himself with his servants; He that receiveth you, receiveth me; and he that receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me [Note: Mat 10:40.]. Beware then, Brethren, how you presume to set aside the authority of Christ, or to place a rival upon his throne. God may give you your own way; but it will be a curse to you, and not a blessing. Woe be unto you indeed, if you provoke God to choose your delusions [Note: Isa 66:4.]. He says of Israel, I gave them a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath [Note: Hos 13:11.]; as you know he did, in a miserable and disgraceful manner [Note: 1Sa 31:3-10.]. Beware lest such be the termination of your ways also, and lest you be given up to believe a lie, as a prelude to your final condemnation [Note: 2 These. 2:11, 12.]. The direction of God to you is clear; O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in ME is thy help: I will be thy King [Note: Hos 13:9-10.]. Let this counsel be welcomed by you; and your submission to his government shall ere long be followed by a participation of his glory.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
(16) Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes. (17) Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call unto the LORD, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king. (18) So Samuel called unto the LORD; and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. (19) And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king.
We ought to remark the great power of prayer, in this instance of Samuel. What an astonishing degree of faith had the Lord bestowed upon this man! And what cannot faith do, when the eye of the soul is looking stedfastly unto Jesus? Remember, what Christ himself saith of it: If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Joh 15:7 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
1Sa 12:16 Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes.
Ver. 16. Now therefore stand and see. ] He had bidden them before Stand and hear, 1Sa 12:7 now, Stand and see: that both these two learned senses, as Aristotle calleth them, being affected together, they might be instructed, lest else God’s soul should be disjointed from them, as Jer 6:8 . “Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see.” Isa 42:18
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
1 Samuel
OLD TRUTH FOR A NEW EPOCH
1Sa 12:13 – 1Sa 12:25
Samuel’s office as judge necessarily ended when Saul was made king, but his office of prophet continued. This chapter deals with both the cessation and the continuance, giving at first his dignified, and somewhat pained, vindication of his integrity, and then passing on to show him exercising his prophetic function in exhortation, miracle, and authoritative declaration of Jehovah’s will.
I. The first point is the sign which Samuel gave. Usually there is no rain in Palestine from about the end of April till October. Samuel was speaking during the wheat harvest, which falls about the beginning of June. We note that he volunteered the sign, and, what is still more remarkable, that he is sure that God will send it in answer to his prayer. Why was he thus certain? Because he recognised that the impulse to proffer the sign came from God. We know little of the mental processes by which a prophet could discriminate between his own thinkings and God’s speech, but such discrimination was possible, or there could have been no ring of confidence in the prophet’s ‘Thus saith the Lord.’ Not even a ‘Samuel among them that call upon His name’ had a right to assume that every asking would certainly have an answer. It is when we ask ‘anything according to His will’ that we know that ‘He heareth us,’ and are entitled to predict to others the sure answer.
It seems a long leap logically from hearing the thunder and seeing the rain rushing down on the harvest field, to recognising the sin of asking for a king. But the connecting steps are plain. Samuel announced the storm, he asked God to send it, it came at his word; therefore he was approved of God and was His messenger; therefore his words about the desire for a king were God’s words. Again, God sent the tempest; therefore God ruled the elemental powers, and wielded them so as to affect Israel, and therefore it had been folly and sin to wish for another defender. So the result of the thunder-burst was twofold-they ‘feared Jehovah and Samuel,’ and they confessed their sin in desiring a king. They were but rude and sense-bound men, like children in many respects; their religion was little more than outward worship and a vague awe; they needed ‘signs’ as children need picture-books. The very slightness and superficiality of their religion made their confession easy and swift, and neither the one nor the other went deep enough to be lasting. The faith that is built on ‘signs and wonders’ is easily battered down; the repentance that is due to a thunderstorm is over as soon as the sun comes out again. The shallowness of the contrition in this case is shown by two things,-the request to Samuel to pray for them, and the boon which they begged him to ask, ‘that we die not.’ They had better have prayed for themselves, and they had better have asked for strength to cleave to Jehovah. They were like Simon Magus cowering before Peter, and beseeching him, ‘Pray ye for me to the Lord, that none of the things which ye have spoken may come upon me.’ That is not the voice of true repentance, the ‘godly sorrow’ which works healing and life, but that of the ‘sorrow of the world which worketh death.’ The real penitent will press the closer to the forgiving Father, and his cry will be for purity even more than for pardon.
II. Samuel’s closing words are tender, wise, and full of great truths. He begins with encouragement blended with reiteration of the people’s sin. It is not safe for a forgiven man to forget his sin quickly. The more sure he is that God has forgotten, the more careful he should be to remember it, for gratitude, humility and watchfulness. But it should never loom so large before him as to shut out the sunshine of God’s love, for no fruits of goodness will ripen in character without that light. It is a great piece of practical wisdom always to keep one’s forgiven sin in mind, and yet not to let it paralyse hopefulness and effort. ‘Ye have indeed done all this evil, . . . yet turn not aside from following Jehovah.’ That is a truly evangelical exhortation. The memory of past failures is never to set the tune for future service. Again, Samuel based the exhortation to whole-hearted service of Jehovah on Jehovah’s faithfulness and great benefits 1Sa 12:22 – 1Sa 12:24, It is suicidal folly to turn away from Him who never turns away from us; it is black ingratitude, as well as suicidal folly, to refuse to serve Him whose mercies encompass us. That divine good pleasure, which has no source but in Himself, flows out like an artesian well, unceasing. His ‘nature and property’ is to love. His past is the prophecy of His future. He will always be what He has been, and always do what He has done. Therefore we need not fear, though we change and are faithless. ‘He cannot deny Himself.’ His revealed character would be dimmed if He abandoned a soul that clung to Him. So our faith should, in some measure, match His faithfulness, and we should build firmly on the firm foundation.
III. Samuel answers the people’s request for his prayers with a wise word, full of affection, and also full of dignity and warning, all the more impressive because veiled. He promises his continued intercession, but he puts it as a duty which he owes to God rather than to them only, and he thus sufficiently asserts his God-appointed office. He promises to do more than pray for them; namely, to continue as their ethical and religious guide, which they had not asked him to be. That at once makes his future position in the monarchy clear. He is still the prophet, though no longer the judge, and, as the future was to show, he has to direct monarch as well as people. But it also hints to the people that his prayers for them will be of little avail unless they listen to his teaching. Whether a Samuel prays for us or not, if we do not listen to the voices that bid us serve God, we ‘shall be consumed.’
Fuente: Expositions Of Holy Scripture by Alexander MacLaren
stand: 1Sa 12:7, 1Sa 15:16, Exo 14:13, Exo 14:31
Reciprocal: 1Sa 12:17 – Is it Joe 2:21 – for Mal 1:5 – your