1 Samuel 8:7 And the LORD said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you. For it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected Me as their king.

◄ 1 Samuel 8:7 ►

New International Version
And the LORD told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.

New Living Translation
“Do everything they say to you,” the LORD replied, “for they are rejecting me, not you. They don’t want me to be their king any longer.

English Standard Version
And the LORD said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.

Berean Standard Bible
And the LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you. For it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected Me as their king.

King James Bible
And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.

New King James Version
And the LORD said to Samuel, “Heed 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 reign over them.

New American Standard Bible
And the LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people regarding all that they say to you, because they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being King over them.

NASB 1995
The LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.

NASB 1977
And the LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then Yahweh said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.

Amplified Bible
The LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being King over them.

Christian Standard Bible
But the LORD told him, “Listen to the people and everything they say to you. They have not rejected you; they have rejected me as their king.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But the LORD told him, “Listen to the people and everything they say to you. They have not rejected you; they have rejected Me as their king.

American Standard Version
And Jehovah said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king over them.

Contemporary English Version
The LORD answered: Samuel, do everything they want you to do. I am really the one they have rejected as their king.

English Revised Version
And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king over them.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The LORD told Samuel, "Listen to everything the people are saying to you. They haven't rejected you; they've rejected me.

Good News Translation
and the LORD said, "Listen to everything the people say to you. You are not the one they have rejected; I am the one they have rejected as their king.

International Standard Version
The LORD told Samuel, "Listen to the people in all that they say to you. In fact, it's not you they have rejected, but rather they have rejected me from being their king.

Majority Standard Bible
And the LORD said to Samuel, ?Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you. For it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected Me as their king.

NET Bible
The LORD said to Samuel, "Do everything the people request of you. For it is not you that they have rejected, but it is me that they have rejected as their king.

New Heart English Bible
The LORD said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they tell you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king over them.

Webster's Bible Translation
And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.

World English Bible
Yahweh said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they tell you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me as the king over them.

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
And YHWH says to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people, to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from reigning over them.

Young's Literal Translation
And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, 'Hearken to the voice of the people, to all that they say unto thee, for thee they have not rejected, but Me they have rejected, from reigning over them.

Smith's Literal Translation
And Jehovah will say to Samuel, Hear to the voice of the people to all which they will say to thee: for not thee did they reject, but me they rejected from reigning over them.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the Lord said to Samuel: Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to thee. For they have not rejected thee, but me, that I should not reign over them.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Then the Lord said to Samuel: “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they are saying to you. For they have not rejected you, but me, lest I reign over them.

New American Bible
The LORD said: Listen to whatever the people say. You are not the one they are rejecting. They are rejecting me as their king.

New Revised Standard Version
and the LORD 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 from being king over them.

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken 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 reign over them.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And LORD JEHOVAH said to Shemueil: “Listen to the voice of all the people who speak to you, because it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me, that I would not reign over them

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
And the LORD said unto Samuel: 'Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, that I should not be king over them.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the Lord said to Samuel, Hear the voice of the people, in whatever they shall say to thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me from reigning over them.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

Israel Demands a King
…6But when they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” their demand was displeasing in the sight of Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. 7And the LORD said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they say to you. For it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected Me as their king. 8Just as they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking Me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you.…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Deuteronomy 17:14-20
When you enter the land that the LORD your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,” / you are to appoint over yourselves the king whom the LORD your God shall choose. Appoint a king from among your brothers; you are not to set over yourselves a foreigner who is not one of your brothers. / But the king must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire more horses, for the LORD has said, ‘You are never to go back that way again.’ ...

Hosea 13:10-11
Where is your king now to save you in all your cities, and the rulers to whom you said, “Give me a king and princes”? / So in My anger I gave you a king, and in My wrath I took him away.

Judges 8:23
But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD shall rule over you.”

1 Samuel 10:19
But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions, and you have said to Him, ‘No, set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and clans.”

1 Samuel 12:12-17
But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was your king. / Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you requested. Behold, the LORD has placed a king over you. / If you fear the LORD and serve Him and obey His voice, and if you do not rebel against the command of the LORD, and if both you and the king who rules over you follow the LORD your God, then all will be well. ...

1 Samuel 12:19
They pleaded with Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die! For we have added to all our sins the evil of asking for a king.”

1 Samuel 12:20-25
“Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “Even though you have committed all this evil, do not turn aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. / Do not turn aside after worthless things that cannot profit you or deliver you, for they are empty. / Indeed, for the sake of His great name, the LORD will not abandon His people, because He was pleased to make you His own. ...

1 Samuel 15:23
For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance is like the wickedness of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has rejected you as king.”

1 Samuel 10:17-19
After this, Samuel summoned the people to the LORD at Mizpah / and said to the Israelites, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I brought Israel up out of Egypt, and I rescued you from the hands of the Egyptians and of all the kingdoms that oppressed you.’ / But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions, and you have said to Him, ‘No, set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and clans.”

1 Samuel 7:3-4
Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods and Ashtoreths among you, prepare your hearts for the LORD, and serve Him only. And He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” / So the Israelites put away the Baals and Ashtoreths and served only the LORD.

2 Kings 17:7-8
All this happened because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They had worshiped other gods / and walked in the customs of the nations that the LORD had driven out before the Israelites, as well as in the practices introduced by the kings of Israel.

Isaiah 1:2-4
Listen, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, for the LORD has spoken: “I have raised children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against Me. / The ox knows its owner, and the donkey its master’s manger, but Israel does not know; My people do not understand.” / Alas, O sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who act corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD; they have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on Him.

Jeremiah 2:13
“For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug their own cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

Jeremiah 2:19
Your own evil will discipline you; your own apostasies will reprimand you. Consider and realize how evil and bitter it is for you to forsake the LORD your God and to have no fear of Me,” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts.

Ezekiel 20:18-19
In the wilderness I said to their children: ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers or keep their ordinances or defile yourselves with their idols. / I am the LORD your God; walk in My statutes, keep My ordinances, and practice them.

Treasury of Scripture

And the LORD 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 reign over them.

Hearken

Numbers 22:20
And God came unto Balaam at night, and said unto him, If the men come to call thee, rise up, and go with them; but yet the word which I shall say unto thee, that shalt thou do.

Psalm 81:11,12
But my people would not hearken to my voice; and Israel would none of me…

Isaiah 66:4
I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears upon them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spake, they did not hear: but they did evil before mine eyes, and chose that in which I delighted not.

they have not

1 Samuel 10:19
And ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and your tribulations; and ye have said unto him, Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes, and by your thousands.

1 Samuel 12:17-19
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…

Exodus 16:8
And Moses said, This shall be, when the LORD shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full; for that the LORD heareth your murmurings which ye murmur against him: and what are we? your murmurings are not against us, but against the LORD.

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1 Samuel 8

1. By occasion of the ill government of Samuel's sons, the Israelites ask a king
6. Samuel praying in grief is comforted by God
10. He tells the manner of a king
19. God wills Samuel to yield unto the importunity of the people

Berean Study Bible

And the LORD said to Samuel
This phrase introduces the divine communication between God and His prophet, Samuel. The Hebrew word for "LORD" here is "Yahweh," the covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal and unchanging nature. This highlights the personal relationship God has with His chosen leaders and His direct involvement in the affairs of Israel. Samuel, as a prophet, serves as a mediator between God and the people, underscoring the importance of divine guidance in leadership.

Listen to the voice of the people
The Hebrew word for "listen" is "shama," which means to hear intelligently, often with the implication of attention and obedience. God instructs Samuel to heed the people's request, indicating His respect for human free will, even when it leads to choices that are not in alignment with His perfect will. This phrase reflects the tension between divine sovereignty and human agency, a recurring theme in Scripture.

in all that they say to you
This part of the verse emphasizes the comprehensive nature of the people's demand. The Israelites were not merely expressing a preference but were making a definitive request for a king. Historically, this reflects the cultural and political pressures of the time, as neighboring nations were ruled by monarchs. The Israelites' desire to conform to the surrounding nations reveals a lack of trust in God's unique plan for them as a theocracy.

For it is not you they have rejected
Here, God reassures Samuel that the people's demand for a king is not a personal rejection of his leadership. The Hebrew word for "rejected" is "ma'as," meaning to despise or refuse. This highlights the deeper spiritual issue at play: the people's dissatisfaction is ultimately directed at God, not His prophet. This serves as a reminder that spiritual leaders often bear the brunt of people's discontent with divine authority.

but they have rejected Me as their king
This phrase is the crux of the verse, revealing the heart of the issue. The Israelites' request for a human king signifies their rejection of God's kingship. The Hebrew word "melek" for "king" underscores the role of God as the ultimate ruler and sovereign. This rejection is not merely political but spiritual, as it signifies a turning away from God's direct rule and a desire to place their trust in human institutions. This decision foreshadows the challenges and failures that will come with human kingship, as detailed in the subsequent history of Israel.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(7) Hearken unto the voice of the people.--The words spoken to Samuel, probably in a vision, by the Most High are very touching and very sad. Very touching, in their extreme tenderness to the noble old man. Take courage, they seem to say, "my old true servant, and be not dismayed at this apparently bitter proof of the ingratitude of the people you loved so well. This deliberate complaint on the part of Israel is directed not against you, the judge, but against Me, the invisible King. They have ever been the same--incapable of becoming my true subjects, and of winning on earth the lofty position I would have given them; you must give them now their hearts' desire. It has all been foreseen and provided for; only make them understand what they are asking. Then give them their earthly king." Very sad, for it was the deliberate abandonment by the Eternal God of His first intention as regarded Israel--the deliberate lowering of the grand ideal once formed for His chosen people. Here, as is not unfrequent in the Divine records, we have a corner of the veil which hangs between the creature and the Creator lifted for a moment. We see how sadly possible it is for man in the exercise of his perfect freewill to mar the glorious work arranged for him by his God. We see too in the records of such a transaction as this (see Deuteronomy 17:14) how all was foreseen by the King of heaven, and we catch sight of the sorrowful regret--if we may use the term--of the Creator for the perverse folly of His creatures.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 7. - In prayer then the answer came to him that the request of the people must be granted, however wrongly it had been urged. In itself it was wrong; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. As we saw above, they wanted no theocratic king, whose first duty would be to maintain the Mosaic law (Deuteronomy 17:18, 19), and protect the priest and prophet in the discharge of their legitimate functions; all they wanted was a soldier who would put an end to their state of anarchy, and enable them to cultivate their fields without the danger of seeing the produce swept off by marauders.

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

And the LORD
יְהוָה֙ (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

said
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

to
אֶל־ (’el-)
Preposition
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

Samuel,
שְׁמוּאֵ֔ל (šə·mū·’êl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 8050: Samuel -- 'name of God', a prophet of Israel

“Listen
שְׁמַע֙ (šə·ma‘)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 8085: To hear intelligently

to the voice
בְּק֣וֹל (bə·qō·wl)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 6963: A voice, sound

of the people
הָעָ֔ם (hā·‘ām)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5971: A people, a tribe, troops, attendants, a flock

in all
לְכֹ֥ל (lə·ḵōl)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

that
אֲשֶׁר־ (’ă·šer-)
Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

they say
יֹאמְר֖וּ (yō·mə·rū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 559: To utter, say

to you,
אֵלֶ֑יךָ (’ê·le·ḵā)
Preposition | second person masculine singular
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

for
כִּ֣י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

it is not
לֹ֤א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

you
אֹֽתְךָ֙ (’ō·ṯə·ḵā)
Direct object marker | second person masculine singular
Strong's 853: Untranslatable mark of the accusative case

they have rejected,
מָאָ֔סוּ (mā·’ā·sū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 3988: To spurn, to disappear

but
כִּֽי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

they have rejected
מָאֲס֖וּ (mā·’ă·sū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 3988: To spurn, to disappear

Me
אֹתִ֥י (’ō·ṯî)
Direct object marker | first person common singular
Strong's 853: Untranslatable mark of the accusative case

as their king.
מִמְּלֹ֥ךְ (mim·mə·lōḵ)
Preposition-m | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 4427: To reign, inceptively, to ascend the throne, to induct into royalty, to take counsel

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OT History: 1 Samuel 8:7 Yahweh said to Samuel Listen to (1Sa iSam 1 Sam i sa)