The Koine Bible

And it happened when Samuel had grown old, that he appointed his sons judges for Israel.

And these were the names of his sons: the firstborn, Joel, and the name of the second, Abia, judges in Beersheba.

And his sons did not walk in his way, and they turned aside after extortion, and they were taking gifts and perverted judgments

And the men of Israel gathered together and came to Armathaim to Samuel.

And they said to him, Behold, you have grown old, and your sons do not walk in your way; and now appoint over us a king to judge us, according as also the rest of the nations.

And the thing was evil in the eyes of Samuel, as they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed to the Lord.

And the Lord said to Samuel, Hear the voice of the people, according to all that they shall speak to you; for they have not rejected you, but me they have rejected, so as not to reign over them.

according to all the deeds that they did to me from the day when I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, and they abandoned me and served other gods, so they are doing also to you

And now, listen to their voice; only, you shall solemnly testify to them and you shall declare to them the right of the king who will reign over them.

And Samuel spoke every word of the Lord to the people, those asking from him for a king.

And he said, This will be the ordinance of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and will put them in his chariots and with his horsemen and running before his chariots.

and he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and to reap his harvest and to gather in his vintage and to make his weapons of war and the equipment of his chariots

And your daughters he will take for perfumers and for cooks and for bakers

And your fields and your vineyards and your good oliveyards he will take, and he will give them to his servants.

And your seed and your vineyards he will tithe, and he will give to his eunuchs and to his slaves.

And your male slaves and your female slaves and your good cattle herds and your donkeys he will take, and he will take a tenth for his works.

And he will tithe your flocks, and you will be his slaves.

And you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the Lord will not listen to you in those days, because you have chosen a king for yourselves.

And the people were not willing to listen to Samuel, and they said to him, No, but rather a king shall be over us.

And we also shall be like all the nations, and our king shall judge us and shall go out before us and shall fight our battle.

And Samuel heard all the words of the people and spoke them into the ears of the Lord.

And the Lord said to Samuel, Hear their voice and make a king reign over them. And Samuel said to the men of Israel, Let each run away to his city.