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4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, ⁵and 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.’ ⁶But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, ‘Give us a king to govern us.’ Samuel prayed to the Lord, ⁷and 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. ⁸Just 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. ⁹Now then, listen to their voice; only—you shall solemnly warn them, and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.’

10 So Samuel reported all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. ¹¹He 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; ¹²and 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. ¹³He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. ¹⁴He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his courtiers. ¹⁵He will take one-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and his courtiers. ¹⁶He will take your male and female slaves, and the best of your cattle^* and donkeys, and put them to his work. ¹⁷He will take one-tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. ¹⁸And 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.’

Israel’s Request for a King Granted

19 But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; they said, ‘No! but we are determined to have a king over us, ²⁰so that we also may be like other nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.’

Psalm 72

1  Give the king your judgements, O God, ♦︎
   and your righteousness to the son of a king.
2  Then shall he judge your people righteously ♦︎
   and your poor with justice.
3  May the mountains bring forth peace, ♦︎
   and the little hills righteousness for the people.
4  May he defend the poor among the people, ♦︎
   deliver the children of the needy and crush the oppressor.
5  May he live as long as the sun and moon endure, ♦︎
   from one generation to another.
6  May he come down like rain upon the mown grass, ♦︎
   like the showers that water the earth.
7  In his time shall righteousness flourish, ♦︎
   and abundance of peace
      till the moon shall be no more.
8  May his dominion extend from sea to sea ♦︎
   and from the River to the ends of the earth.
9  May his foes kneel before him ♦︎
   and his enemies lick the dust.
10  The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall pay tribute; ♦︎
   the kings of Sheba and Seba shall bring gifts.
11  All kings shall fall down before him; ♦︎
   all nations shall do him service.
12  For he shall deliver the poor that cry out, ♦︎
   the needy and those who have no helper.
13  He shall have pity on the weak and poor; ♦︎
   he shall preserve the lives of the needy.
14  He shall redeem their lives from oppression and violence, ♦︎
   and dear shall their blood be in his sight.
15  Long may he live;
      unto him may be given gold from Sheba; ♦︎
   may prayer be made for him continually
      and may they bless him all the day long.
16  May there be abundance of grain on the earth,
      standing thick upon the hilltops; ♦︎
   may its fruit flourish like Lebanon
      and its grain grow like the grass of the field.
17  May his name remain for ever
      and be established as long as the sun endures; ♦︎
   may all nations be blest in him
      and call him blessed.
18  Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, ♦︎
   who alone does wonderful things.
19  And blessed be his glorious name for ever. ♦︎
   May all the earth be filled with his glory.
      Amen. Amen.

33 Then Pilate entered the headquarters^* again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ ³⁴Jesus answered, ‘Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?’ ³⁵Pilate replied, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?’ ³⁶Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.’ ³⁷Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’