This is an important chapter because it marks the point at which the Israelites made a choice which had a profound effect on their subsequent history.

Verses 1-5 present the situation faced by Samuel as he grew old. He had appointed his sons to follow him as judges in Israel, basing them at Beersheba in the south of Palestine, while he continued to live in central Palestine. His sons were a severe disappointment and proved corrupt, with the result that the tribal heads of the Israelites went to Samuel and asked him to appoint a king to rule over the whole nation. The fact that they went to him indicates that they still accepted him as God's appointed leader for the Israelites, but they had recognized that he could not live for many more years and they rejected his sons as his successors. They wanted Samuel, under the guidance of God, to find them a leader who would not only have national authority over them but would be recognized as Israel's leader by the other nations around. A resurgence of Philistine power could occur at any time as the Philistines still held the coastal plain. When Samuel died, the Israelites wanted to be prepared for any future attacks and able to hold their own against the surrounding nations. This is stated in verses 19-20.

Verses 6-9 present the response of Samuel and the message which he received from God in response to his prayer about the people's request. Samuel's displeasure shows that he did not agree with the proposal because it challenged the kingship of God over Israel. The message he receives from God also confirms that the people's request is basically a rejection of the theocratic ideal for Israel. However, Samuel is told to listen to the people, and an implication in this is that their rejection of the theocratic ideal for Israel is a consequence of the failure of Samuel's own sons. If Samuel's sons had not proved corrupt and weak, would the people have finally rejected the leadership of the judges? It is clear that the sons had no charismatic leadership among the people. In appointing his sons to succeed him, Samuel was trying to establish a new hereditary principle of leadership and setting aside the charismatic principle whereby a man was accepted as leader by the people because he was a 'man of Yahweh' whose gifts of leadership were clearly seen.

In verses 10-18, the account is given of Samuel's warning of the oppression which an unjust ruler could inflict on his people. It is an accurate picture of what was experienced under some of the kings of the future. The response of the people was to demand a king (v. 19). Samuel listened to them, after which he prayed again to God: 'Do what they want and give them a king', was the message which came to him then from God. God sanctioned the appointment of a king, even commanded it, after the people had been warned of what could result from moving in this new direction. But we should note the significance of Samuel, still the spokesman of God, in this new situation. The king is to be chosen by the prophet of God, at the command of God, but with the understanding that the king is subject to God. The king of Israel was not to be a 'human god' in the tradition of the Egyptian Pharaohs of that period. He was to be the servant of Israel's God and only if he remained faithful to this understanding would there be blessing and prosperity for Israel.