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After Saul was made king, Samuel
again called the people together. He was now a very old man, and
soon he must die, and leave them; but they had a young king to rule over
them when he was gone, and Samuel wanted to talk to them, and to warn
them, and to teach them what they must do to be happy with their new king. Samuel
said, "I am now an old man; my hair is white with age; I have been
with you all my life, from the time when I was a child till now.
Tell me if I have oppressed you, or if I have taken anything away from
you, and I will restore it." Then the people cried
"No;" for they all loved Samuel, and knew that he had always
been their friend. Then
Samuel said again, "Wait, and hear what I wish to say to you.
Many years ago, God brought your fathers out of Egypt, and Moses and Aaron
with them, and gave them this land for a possession. Very often your
fathers rebelled against God, and then he punished them, and sent enemies
to fight and conquer them. He sent Sisera, and the Philistines, and
the Moabites, and many more enemies to fight against them. But when
your fathers repented, and turned to God, and gave up their idols, then
the Lord had mercy, and saved them. He sent many good and faithful
captains, to conquer their enemies. Gideon, and Jephthah, and
Samson, and many more. Now you have asked for a king, because you
were tired of God ruling over you; and He has given you Saul, and you are
pleased and happy. If you and your king obey and serve the Lord,
then God's blessing will be upon you, and you will have the Lord for your
friend. But if you are disobedient, and rebel, then God will be your
enemy, and punish you as he punished your fathers. And now, God is
going to do a great thing, that you may know how much you have sinned
against Him in asking for a king." What
was this great thing? It was harvest time, when it very seldom
rains, or thunders, or lightens in Judea; but Samuel asked God to send a
storm, to show His great power to the people, and to teach them how angry
He was. God heard Samuel's
prayer, and sent a fearful storm of thunder, and lightning, and rain; and
all the people were very much afraid. Then they cried aloud, and
asked Samuel to pray to God for them, and confessed their sins, and asked
forgiveness for having wished for a new king, when God Himself was their
king. Samuel was sorry to
see the people unhappy, and he comforted them, and spoke kindly to
them. He said, "Yes, I will pray for you, and I will teach you
to do what is right. But remember always to fear the Lord, and to
love and obey Him. Think how kind He has been to you in past times,
and how merciful He is to you now. If you cleave to Him with all
your heart, He will never, never forsake you; but if you do wickedly, He
will destroy both you and your king." Then Samuel ended what he
had to say, and the people went home.
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