“Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, ‘Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations’ ” (1 Samuel 8:4, 5).
There is no shortage of disastrous rulers in history. It is easy to make up a list—Nero, Genghis Khan, Adolf Hitler, Gaius Caligula, Josef Stalin, Mao Zedong, Pol Pot, just to name a few. But when the Historical Writers Association in the United Kingdom asked 60 writers to name the worst monarch in history, they chose Henry VIII.
As the second monarch of the Tudor dynasty, Henry VIII is best re- membered for his six marriages. He has been criticized as self-indulgent, lustful, egotistical, and, of course, a wife-murderer and tyrant. He also ushered in the “divine right of kings,” which asserted that a monarch is subject to no earthly authority.
Samuel the prophet warned the Israelites that they were setting them- selves up for grief by demanding a king “like all the nations.” The people were dissatisfied with the corrupt judging by Samuel’s sons. But more than that, they wanted to be like the nations surrounding them. In essence, they did not want to be ruled by God through His prophet; they wanted a king to judge them and lead their armies.
Samuel clearly outlined what would happen to them if they had a king. He would tax them, take a portion of their crops, and use their sons and daughters in his service. “You will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the Lord will not hear you in that day” (1 Samuel 8:18). How did the people respond? “Nevertheless, the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, ‘No, but we will have a king over us’ ” (verse 19).
God allowed Israel to have its way. It wasn’t the Lord’s plan. The best and only king of Israel was Jehovah. No earthly ruler could ever perfectly lead His people. It always has been. It always will be.
O King of the universe, I submit my will completely to You. Rule over my life today.
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