Kingship in Ancient Israel 10/2/17 Professor Tate

Vocabulary “The Law of the King” (Deuteronomy 17:14-20) Gideon Abimelech Jotham’s Parable of the Trees Samuel Saul Messiah

The Law of the King (Deuteronomy 17) When you have come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, “I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,” you may indeed set over you a king whom the Lord your God will choose.

The Law of the King (Deuteronomy 17) “One of your own community you may set as king over you; you are not permitted to put a foreigner over you, who is not of your own community. Even so, he must not acquire many horses for himself, or return the people to Egypt in order to acquire more horses, since the Lord has said to you, ‘You must never return that way again.’ And he must not acquire many wives for himself, or else his heart will turn away; also silver and gold he must not acquire in great quantity for himself.”

The Law of the King (Deuteronomy 17) “When he has taken the throne of his kingdom, he shall have a copy of this law written for him in the presence of the levitical priests. It shall remain with him and he shall read in it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, diligently observing all the words of this law and these statutes, neither exalting himself above other members of the community nor turning aside from the commandment, either to the right or to the left, so that he and his descendants may reign long over his kingdom in Israel.”

Judges 8 Then the Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us, you and your son and your grandson also; for you have delivered us out o the hand of Midian.”Gideon said to them, “I will not rule over you, and my son will not rule over you. The Lord will rule over you.” Then Gideon said to them, “Let me make a request of you; each of you give me an earring he has taken as booty…”

Judges 9 Now Abimelech went to Shechem to his mother’s kinsfolk and said to them and to the whole clan of his mother’s family, “Say in the hearing of all the lords of Shechem, ‘Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal rule over you, or that one rule over you?’…Their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.” …He went to his father’s house at Ophrah, and killed his brothers the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy men, on one stone; but Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived, for he hid himself.

Jotham’s parable of the trees (Judges 9) The trees once went out to anoint a king over themselves. So they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’ The olive tree answered them, ‘Shall I stop producing my rich oil by which gods and mortals are honored, and go to sway over the trees?’ …The fig tree answered them, ‘Shall I stop producing my sweetie vine said to them, ‘Shall I stop producing my wine that cheers gods and mortals, and go to sway over the trees?’ …And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in good faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’

1 Samuel 8 When Samuel became old, he made his sons judges over Israel … Yet his sons did not follow in his ways, but turned aside after gain; they took bribes and perverted justice. Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, and said to him, “You are old and your sons do not follow in your ways; appoint for us, then, a king to govern us, like other nations.” But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to govern us.”

1 Samuel 8 Samuel prayed to the Lord, 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. Just as they have done to me, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so also they are doing to you. Now then, listen to their voice; only—you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”

1 Samuel 8 “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons … He will take your daughters … He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards … He will take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards … He will take your male and female slaves, and the best of your cattle and donkeys … He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves …”

1 Samuel 8 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.”

1 Samuel 10 Samuel took a vial of oil and poured it on [Saul’s] head, and kissed him; he said, “The Lord has anointed you ruler over his people Israel. You shall reign over the people of the Lord and you will save them from the hand of their enemies all around. Now this shall be the sign to you that the Lord has anointed you ruler over his heritage.”

1 Samuel 13 [Saul] waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people began to slip away from Saul… As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel arrived…Samuel said, “What have you done?!” Saul replied, “When I saw that the people were slipping away from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines were mustering at Michmash, I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down upon me at Gilgal, and I have not entreated the favor of the Lord’; so I forced myself, and offered the burnt offering.” Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which he commanded you. The Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever, but now your kingdom will not continue.”

1 Samuel 15:35 Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord was sorry that he had made Saul king over Israel.

Vocabulary “The Law of the King” (Deuteronomy 17:14-20) Gideon Abimelech Jotham’s Parable of the Trees Samuel Saul Messiah