When Sam'u-el was about sixty years old the weakness of increasing age led him to appoint his two sons to assist him in ruling over Is'ra-el. They were placed at Be'er-she'ba, in the southwestern part of the land, while Sam'u-el remained at the head of the nation and continued to serve in the cities of Ra'mah, Beth'el, Gil'gal, and Miz'peh. Sam'u-el had no idea of making the office of Judge a heritage of his own family, but was merely doing what seemed best at the time.
In his earnest desire to have his two sons grow up to be godly men, Sam'u-el had given each of them a name which had a deep religious meaning; one he called Jo'el, which means "Je-ho'vah is God," in protest against the idolatry of the land; the other was called A-bi'ah, which means "Je-ho'vah is Father," as a proof of his faith in the close relationship of God with all His children. He had set before them the example of a godly life, and had faithfully taught them the principles and duties of True Religion. But sad to say, Sam'u-el's sons did not follow in their father's steps. They turnt aside into evil ways, took bribes, and scorned justice.
The feebleness of Sam'u-el and the misconduct of his two sons gave rise to demand for a king. The elders of Is'ra-el came to him at Ra'mah, declaring that the people desired a king to rule over them as in other nations. This injured the feelings of Sam'u-el, for he thought that the people had rebelled against God's plan for the nation, and had scorned his authority as chief ruler. True to his usual custom, he carried the matter to the LORD in prayer. The LORD told him to yield to the wishes of the people, even though their demand had the appearance of rejecting God.
While this request of Is'ra-el for a king seems to have been hasty, and not entirely free from wrong motives, it must be remembered that God had promised both A'bra-ham and Ja'cob that kings should come from their offspring. Ja'cob had declared in his prophetic blessing upon Ju'dah that the scepter should not depart from his tribe until Shi'loh came, and Ba'laam had prophesied that a scepter should rise out of Is'ra-el. In giving the Law to Mo'ses the LORD had made special provisions for the kingdom into which Is'ra-el should later be formed.
Is'ra-el did wrong, therefore, in not waiting patiently for God's time, and in failing to ask Sam'u-el to inquire of the LORD whether or not the time had come when they might have a king. They had been chosen by the LORD as a holy nation, unlike the nations around them, and it was wrong for them to wish to imitate the heathen peoples of the world. If their demand had been based upon a desire for better government or a closer national unity for the accomplishment of God's will, then the change could have been made in keeping with the plan of God, and without any unhappy results. But, since the demand was in advance of God's time for setting up a kingdom in Is'ra-el, the early history of the kingdom was marked by unnecessary strife and turmoil.
The LORD granted the request of Is'ra-el with the solemn warning that certain burdens for which they were not prepared would be laid upon them by the appointment of a king at this time, and that their self-imposed yoke would be more irksome than the one placed upon them by their Divine King.
Sam'u-el told the people of the LORD'S decision, dismissed the elders, sent the people home, and gave careful thought to the necessary steps in selecting a king. Such was the reverence of the people for God, and so great was their confidence in his prophet, that the task of finding and appointing the right man to be their king was left entirely in the hands of Sam'u-el.
