Scripture is full of kings. Sometimes Scripture names kings directly and other times it does so through symbols. And for the most part, kings are not viewed favorably – even the ones that were supposedly men after God’s own heart.
Often that is because the power kings hold corrupts them and causes them to sin.
Scripture itself has a description of what to expect from a king:
“[Samuel] said, ‘These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen, and to run before his chariots; and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plough his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his courtiers. He will take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and his courtiers. He will take your male and female slaves, and the best of your cattle and donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves; but the Lord will not answer you in that day.’”
(Source: 1 Samuel 8:11-18, NRSV)
And how did people respond to this warning? About as well as should be expected:
“But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; they said, ‘No! but we are determined to have a king over us, so that we also may be like other nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.’ When Samuel had heard all the words of the people, he repeated them in the ears of the Lord. The Lord said to Samuel, ‘Listen to their voice and set a king over them.’”
(Source: 1 Samuel 8:19-22a, NRSV)
What is it about humanity that it desires to have other humans rule over it? Kings rarely ever work out well. They often turn out exactly how God says in 1 Samuel. Yet for some reason, humanity goes right back.
Maybe you’re sitting there and saying – “But we live in a democracy, we don’t have a king!” Are you sure about that? Are there people, institutions, or things that have some kind of rule over your life in a kingly manner? Especially ones that are self imposed?
What are the kings in our life, in our community, in our churches, in our nation, and in our world?
In the coming days, I plan on writing blog posts about some of the kings listed in Scripture and what Scripture tells us about them.
In the midst of all of this, I challenge you to do some self-reflection. Ask yourself – in what ways am I like this king? How am I different? What is the king’s relationship with God? What is this king really king over? What’s God up to in relation to the king highlighted?
Laced up Lutheran 
I totally concur that the Bible is rather hard on kings. And further that even the “good” ones – the one’s that “did right in the sight of the Lord” or even were men “after God’s heart” are portrayed warts and all – and the list of their sins are extensive.
You got that right.
I think, though, that a king is God’s idea. He creates Adam and gives him dominion and rule (makes him king) over creation. Adam sins and puts it all in jeopardy. But Jesus also is King, King of kings, and he is the huge exception to this rule, and he too seems to be God’s idea all along.
I think the distinction is in the phrase “like the nations.”
What are the people of God doing asking to be “like the nations”? And they get kings that for the most part are “like the nations.”
They should have chosen God to be king, and that is in fact the problem that God discusses with Samuel. They are not rejecting you, they are rejecting Me from being there king.
I think it’s Zechariah who gives us that verse, which to many in the First Century AD, zealots and purists and Pharisees and so forth quote as a battle cry: “No King but God!”
Actually, I think there is more packed up in this line of reason than I have begun to unpack. I can see a couple of inches down into the murky water, but not much further. But I sense there is a lot more depth beyond that.
I look forward to your study. Hopefully you reveal new depths for me. At the moment, this is where my thoughts hover.
God bless….
X
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Thanks X. I think one distinction is that while a king may be God’s idea, there is a difference between God’s idea and humanity’s – just as you mentioned. The core of this is who gets to select a king? Jesus wasn’t selected as king by the people. The people demanded a king – as if they had some kind of choice in the matter. Kings don’t operate that way.
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Oh man. Yeah. I am all over that like white on rice!
The people want a “king like the nations” and God gives them Saul.
Though the Bible never puts in these terms specifically, nonetheless, the picture painted is that Saul is “the people’s choice”. So much is made of his looks and somehow that qualifies him. Yet he proves proud, paranoid, fearful, and everything God’s people are not supposed to be.
Meanwhile, right under his nose, God sends Sam to anoint another. One that is so small in stature, so far removed from “the nations” or anything LIKE them that even his own daddy doesn’t consider him a candidate among sons. But God choose HIM. That one, the one found tending the sheep!
So we have the people’s choice vs God’s choice. And David winds up running around through 16 chapters of narrative (I don’t know how many years) mostly on the lamb, looking like a crook, but still being The Lord’s Anointed – MESSIAH we might say.
God plays this theme later in the orchestral production when he anoints Jesus to be King of the Jews – God’s choice vis-à-vis Herod who is Romes Choice. Again God’s choice is not the peoples. He takes the Suffering Servant appearance. He is treated like a criminal and lays low in the hill country through much of his career.
BUT…
Remember that God tells Sam, they are rejecting ME.
The unvoiced point there being, that God himself WAS KING when Israel had Judges. Perhaps Israel didn’t realize this???
But this passage comes into view again as Jesus comes to take God’s crown on a crufix/throne. Jesus shows us what it looks like for God to be crowned KING of his own people, and a king on a cross is certainly NOT a kin like the nations.
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You’re stealing my thunder! LOL. Just kidding. I love the commentary. It’s right on the mark. I wasn’t planning on covering David, mostly because he’s such a central figure that a blog post just wouldn’t cover everything about him. I had thought about Saul, not sure if he’ll make it in a post or not. We’ll see.
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Oh man… I don’t want to steal thunder. Sorry.
No, I am excited about getting into THE BIBLE. I have no doubt there is far more to learn than what I already know. But I do have this framework I work with.
Jesus is Lord. King. He is NOT the people’s choice, but God’s. This says some really deep and powerful things about how God’s world is ordered, perhaps vs. the order we bring to it.
But this is a monarchy. Not a democracy. I don’t get a vote, in the American sense of that word. But I can join and back him for King and surrender my life and what little influence I have over any bit of his world to him and give him my allegiance and like a herald of the King, I can announce his reign to the waiting world.
God’s monarchy is a central feature of the Bible. There is sooooooooo very much there to say, think and do.
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Amen. Well said.
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Lemmings follow the crowd and do what the crowd does….once have a king, always have a king!! Humanity is so dumb some times. I, too, look forward to your study of kings, which for me, began with P Caitlin, but was not extensive. I know my king but as of yet have not succeeded in controlling “it”.
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This may get scary. Who rules over us as individuals?
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Good question. I think there are many things/people/institutions that rule over us.
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