1 Samuel 12 - Talk 9
‘Here Comes the Judge!’ (1 Samuel 12)
a rousing speech
There have been lots of famous speeches that have altered the course of history. Moving speeches by Australian politicians tend to be rather short: ‘This the recession we had to have’ (Paul Keating); L-A-W, law (Paul Keating); ‘God save the queen, but nothing will save the Governor-General’ (Gough Whitlam); ‘Anyone who sacks you today is a bum’ (Bob Hawke after the America’s Cup win in 1983).
Other speeches are a little more thought out. This one by John F. Kennedy on January 20th 1961.
‘And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you’. Speeches such as this one changed the direction of the Cold War between America and the USSR.
Rousing speeches on big occasions can change human behaviour. Samuel’s speech in 1 Samuel 12 is a speech in response to Israel’s sin which climaxes with their request for a king. Samuel’s speech is not underwritten by the clever rhetoric, it’s a speech underwritten by the Lord himself who is responding to a rebellious people. Before we look at chapter 12 a couple of introductory points.
from judge to prophet
In my Bible 1 Samuel 12 has the heading ‘Samuel’s farewell speech’ and yet Samuel sticks around for a few more chapters to come. I assume the uninspired author of this heading had in mind this speech as Samuel’s last speech as judge over Israel. Soon judges will be no more – Israel’s new leader is king Saul and his son will be the next king. And his son will be the next king. And God will rise up prophets, starting with Samuel, who will frequently appear demanding that the king submit to their divinely-inspired word. The prophet’s role will be to remind the human king who the King really is. And so the prophet stands to be an unpopular person.
the intrusion we had to have
There is one other introductory point. 1 Samuel 12 seems like intrusion into the story of Saul’s rise to kingship. Reading from 1 Samuel 11:14 we can see why this is the case. ‘Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there reaffirm the kingship.” So all the people went to Gilgal and confirmed Saul as king in the presence of the Lord. There they sacrificed fellowship offerings before the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites held a great celebration’. Saul is confirmed as king and 13:1 seems like a nice next verse, ‘Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty- two years’.
But smack in the middle is chapter 12 which is ‘the intrusion we had to have’ (based on an important speech by Paul Keating). What does the narrator want us to know before Saul starts his forty-two year reign as king? What does God want us to know about this transition into kingship? As Christians living this side of the cross, we want to know how this part of God’s word speaks to us.
the case against Israel
a godly prosecutor (12:2-4)
Before Samuel hits Israel with the news they need to hear, he reminds the people about the sort of leader he has been to them. This is a good, pastoral move. A common response to leaders who find themselves needing to correct and rebuke is to have their character undermined as leaders. Samuel will have none of this. So in verse 2 he says, ‘I have been your leader from my youth until this day. Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these, I will make it right”’.
There are few Christian leaders whose character is not questioned when the heats on. It’s happened to me in the past and I’m sure it will happen again. Samuel lays down his hand – he has been a godly leader because he is a servant leader who loves the Lord. He never used his privileged position to his own advantage. He has never compromised justice to make his life a little easier. And right now Samuel’s not boasting – he’s cutting a clear path to serving his people once again. And such is Samuel’s character that the people respond, ‘You have not cheated or oppressed us. You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand’. Samuel is a faithful leader – a godly prosecutor who mounts his case against Israel and the evidence is convincing.
overwhelming evidence (12:5-13)
Samuel the prosecutor takes his people back into the past for there are lessons to learn. Congregations must remember and learn from the past in order to understand the present and look to the future. Samuel takes the Israel back into the past – to the time when Jacob went into Egypt on account of the famine - then came a new Pharaoh and the people felt the pain of slavery – then the exodus - that defining moment in Israel’s history when God rescued his people from bondage. Samuel utters few words, but enough words to bring the memories flooding back. This isn’t history for history’s sake. Samuel says in verse 7, ‘I am going to confront you with the evidence before the Lord as to all the righteous acts performed by the Lord for you and your fathers’. Israel’s history is a history of rebellion matched by God’s grace.
When Israel arrived in the land they forgot the Lord their God. And the Philistines rose up against them and things got so desperate that the people cried out to the Lord - verse 10, ‘We have sinned, we have forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you’. And God heard the pleas of his people and he raised up ‘judges’ who put things right between Israel and God. Leaders who brought security to the land.
But these judges were not enough. Samuel says to the people in verse 12, ‘“But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we want 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 asked for; see, the Lord has set a king over you’. God gives the people what they ask for – a king like the other nations have. A history of rebellion matched by ever increasing grace. But the trouble is that Israel forget the past and make the mistakes of the past which stand to be repeated in the future.
Remembering the past.
There are moments in the history of this church when we have sinned. Samuel doesn’t avoid Israel’s negative history because its politically incorrect and for the sake of unity these things are best not talked about. For the sake of unity Samuel raises the people’s rebellion - he ‘looks them in the eye’ with their failings. Despite their rebellion God remains faithful. Is that not a good thing for us? To look back over our past – to look at our failings – to acknowledge our sin and notice the ongoing faithfulness of God? Samuel doesn’t raise the ugliness of the past in order to revisit unsolved issues. The elders don’t hold a Session meeting to discuss Samuel’s attack on them. Samuel raises the past in order to expose the grace of God in their lives. And the failings of the past are worth raising if in such discussion we can say, ‘Thus far the Lord has helped us’.
Throughout Israel’s history there is a tangible trail of memories behind them – like the curious practice of piling up stones at places like Gilgal where God parted the Jordan river and Israel entered into the Promised Land. The Springwood parish has tangible memories of God’s goodness to us. Three church plants at Blaxland, Woodford and Winmalee. A plaque at Winmalee church unveiled at the opening reads, ‘Thus far the Lord has helped us’ (1 Sam 7:12). The sending of men into full-time ministry. Missions to Vanuatu. Christ-centred pastors. At one time a big Sunday school – Boys Brigade – Pathfinders. The ‘Magnet Club’ for young mums. A strong mission focus. Events such as are reasons to celebrate the goodness of God amongst us.
The history of this church is part of the history of the worldwide church from now until Christ. Its too easy to look at the history of our small pond and go stagnant as eventually happens to small ponds. But the history of this church is more like the Darling River than the local fishing hole. Christians tend to grow more when they get out of the pond and into the river. This is because our minds are broadened by the great teachers and pastors of the past, that ‘great cloud of witnesses’ that lies behind us. Its important that we join ourselves to the saints throughout the ages. There are confession of faith such as the Apostles Creed, the Nicene Creed and the Westminster Confession of Faith. The great hymns that people have sung for hundreds of years must remain with us. Modern music has something very important to say – but God is the God of today and the God of the ages – and those aspects of his nature should be reflected in our worship.
Harry Reeder points that ‘good worship does not engage in the arrogance of modernity which disconnects from the past, nor does it participate in the idolatry of traditionalism which lives in the past. Rather, we should begin with the great classical worship that at one time was contemporary and has now become tried and true, and then build upon it, being ready to absorb that which is excellent in the present’. These words encourage us to be ever mindful of the rich repository of tradition that God passes onto us and which should be celebrated and passed onto our children.
an open verdict (12:14-15)
Remembering the past. Samuel confronts Israel with the God’s past faithfulness which suggests there is no need for a king. Even now – even at this moment of rebellion – Israel is a choice – there are still two ways to live. For Israel it is not too late to affirm the kingship of God. Reading from verse 14, ‘If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God—good! But if you do not obey the Lord, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your fathers’. So now they have a king. The alternatives are clear for the people and their king: live faithfully under Yahweh’s word or suffer justly under Yahweh’s hand.
Although Israel are guilty as charged, the loving Judge leaves an open verdict. As Israel look to the future they are faced with real choice – it is not too late – fear the Lord, serve him and obey him – do not rebel against his commands and having a king will be OK. Maybe the history of your life looks a little like the history of Israel. I hope not but maybe it does and it needs to be brought to the surface and dealt with by repentance and renewed faith in Jesus. God is speaking to you clearly. There is a choice that lies before you: fear the Lord or rebel against his commands. Keep listening.
God endorses his prosecutor (12:16-18)
Samuel closes the case against Israel on a thunderous note. Look at verse 16, ‘“Now then, stand still and see this great thing the Lord is about to do before your eyes! Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call upon the Lord to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king.” Then Samuel called upon the Lord, and that same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel’.
Samuel knew that his case against Israel might fall on deaf and rebellious ears. You can almost feel the people getting ready to give Samuel a piece of their mind for his confronting words. But a heavenly boom ought to get Israel’s attention. When its wheat harvest it rarely ever rains. So thunder and rain at this time of year is as crazy as 42 degrees today. The Lord is validating Samuel’s words – the Lord is foreshadowing the strength of his mighty of hand against those who rebel against him. And so God sends the thunder and the rain and Samuel’s reputation goes up a few notches – ‘the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel’.
a people and their God
fear and repentance (12:19)
At last Israel get the message. The people say to Samuel in verse 19, ‘Pray to the Lord your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king’. Now the people see their sin from God’s perspective and they turn to Samuel to intercede before God on their behalf. How tempting it is to adjudicate our sins from a human point of view. It’s good to have a healthy fear of God.
Dale Ralph Davis says, ‘Please don’t begin to spout any nonsense about how wrong it is to motivate by fear. Why did Paul write Colossians 3:6 after Colossians 3:5 (‘Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these the wrath of God is coming’). What matters is whether there is a true basis for fear. If there is reason to tremble, we ought to tremble. Neither the church or individual Christians should be above truthful terror’.
I’ve been pondering whether I’ll do this with my boys when they’re a little older: wait for the inevitable serious car accident and take them down to have a look, not too long after the event – and as long as the crash isn’t too horrific. I want my boys to fear driving. I want them to have a healthy respect for the damage cars can do – and I want this because I love them. There is a fear that saves and this is the sought of fear that God wants from us. Serve and obey the Lord, do not rebel against his commands and if it takes a healthy dose of fear to get the message through then that’s a good thing.
outpourings of mercy (12:20-25)
What does God do with his people when they have committed spiritual disaster, when we have charted our own course which is nothing less than rebellion? What does he say to his people when they come to see how ugly their sin really is?
Hear the advice of Samuel in verse 20. God says, ‘Don’t be afraid. You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you know good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless’
We know that Jesus is the one who rescues us from the condemnation of sin. The hand of God reached out against Jesus and he was consumed by much more than thunder and rain, he was consumed by God’s anger at my sin as he hung there in my place. My history is not a pretty one but in Jesus it has a bright future for nothing now separates me from the love of God. What Samuel said to the people he says also to me in verse 24, ‘But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you’.
conclusion
Like Israel of old we move forward resting in God’s goodness to us.
