Read 1 Samuel 8 here (text coming …) or at Bible Gateway.
The Hebrew paragraphs:
8:1-3 {p} Samuel made his sons judges, but they perverted justice for gain
8:4-6 {p} Elders of Israel ask Samuel for a king, but it displeased him
8:7-9 {s} YHVH’s instruction: Give them a king, for they are not rejecting you, but Me from being King over them
8:10 {s} Samuel told all the words of YHVH to those who had asked for a king
8:11-21 {p} Samuel forewarned the people of the king, but they insisted; and Samuel told YHVH
8:22 {p} YHVH’s instruction: Give them their king
The Strong themes:
8:7-21 {s+s+p} They are rejecting YHVH as King, therefore Samuel warned the people of the manner of kings, but would not listen
1 Samuel 8:1-22 Chiastic Structure:
This is one of the saddest paragraphs in Scripture (which also makes its own Chiastic structure):
And YHVH said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not be king over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, in that they have forsaken Me, and served other gods, so now they are also doing to you. Now therefore listen to their voice; however you shall solemnly warn them, and shall declare to them the manner of the king who shall reign over them.” {s} 1 Sam 8:7-9
To reject is in Hebrew, Strong’s H3988, מאס ma’as, a primitive verb meaning “to refuse, to reject.” The ancient pictorgraphs are mem + aleph + sin.
mem מ, ם = the water, thus chaos, mighty, blood
aleph א = the ox head, thus strength, power, leader
sin ס = the thorn, thus grab, hate, protect
The parable being told by the Hebrew Root Word is of water (mem), a powerful (aleph) solvent (sin, in that water molecules grab onto other molecules and disperse them); thus to dissolve, to melt away. Of course Hebrew as a language existed long before man’s knowledge of water molecules and how they react to other molecules that are not water. But when I was studying solvents in Chemistry at university, I learned that water is probably the most powerful solvent on earth. Water does not work as fast as acids, but it dissolves everything. Water even wears away mountains, given enough time. This truth stuck with me so much that when I became a wife and mother, I cleaned my kitchen with water, not chemicals. I would spray water on whatever mess was stuck on my stove, and give it time to do its work, and then come back and wipe it up, without resorting to anything toxic.
Back to the Hebrew parable, rejection dissolves away strength of heart and mind, and love, and drive, and confidence. After lies, rejection is one of the great weapons in the enemy’s arsenal against us, and one of his greatest lies is that God does not accept us, but has rejected us. This lie destroys our natural affections, and sows the seeds of hatred, which, when fully grown, bears the fruit of murder. The truth is, God has accepted us, and not rejected us or cast us away. He absolutely has not done to us as we have done to Him. And that truth plants the seeds of love in the heart, which, when fully grown, bears the fruit of unselfish good deeds to bless others.
If there are questions, this is a good resource:
God accepts me – Christine Miller
What is the definition of a theocracy? – Got Questions
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