7 And the men of Kirjathjearim came and fetched up the ark of the Lord, and brought it into the house of Abinadab on the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the Lord.

² And it came to pass, while the ark remained in Kirjathjearim, that the time was long, for it was twenty years; and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.

³ And Samuel spoke unto all the house of Israel, saying, “If ye do return unto the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the Lord and serve Him only; and He will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”

⁴ Then the children of Israel put away the Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the Lord only.

⁵ And Samuel said, “Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray for you unto the Lord.”

⁶ And they gathered together at Mizpah, and drew water and poured it out before the Lord, and fasted on that day, and said there, “We have sinned against the Lord.” And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah.

⁷ And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines.

⁸ And the children of Israel said to Samuel, “Cease not to cry unto the Lord our God for us, that He will save us out of the hand of the Philistines.”

⁹ And Samuel took a sucking lamb and offered it for a burnt offering wholly unto the Lord; and Samuel cried unto the Lord for Israel, and the Lord heard him.

¹⁰ And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel; but the Lord thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines and discomfited them, and they were smitten before Israel.

¹¹ And the men of Israel went out of Mizpah, and pursued the Philistines and smote them until they came under Bethcar.

¹² Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer [that is, The stone of help], saying, “Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.”

¹³ So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more into the border of Israel; and the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.

¹⁴ And the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even unto Gath; and the borders thereof did Israel deliver out of the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

¹⁵ And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.

¹⁶ And he went from year to year in circuit to Bethel and Gilgal and Mizpah, and judged Israel in all those places.

¹⁷ And his return was to Ramah, for there was his house; and there he judged Israel, and there he built an altar unto the Lord.

8 And it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel.

² Now the name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba.

³ And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre and took bribes and perverted judgment.

⁴ Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel at Ramah

⁵ and said unto him, “Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways. Now make us a king to judge us, like all the nations.”

⁶ But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed unto the Lord.

⁷ And the Lord said unto Samuel, “Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.

⁸ According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken Me and served other gods, so do they also unto thee.

⁹ Now therefore hearken unto their voice. However, yet protest solemnly unto them and show them the ways of the king that shall reign over them.”

¹⁰ And Samuel told all the words of the Lord unto the people who asked of him a king.

¹¹ And he said, “This will be the manner of the king who shall reign over you: He will take your sons and appoint them for himself, for his chariots and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots.

¹² And he will appoint him captains over thousands and captains over fifties, and will set them to till his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war and instruments of his chariots.

¹³ And he will take your daughters to be confectioners and to be cooks and to be bakers.

¹⁴ And he will take your fields and your vineyards and your olive yards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.

¹⁵ And he will take a tenth of your seed and of your vineyards, and give to his officers and to his servants.

¹⁶ And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work.

¹⁷ He will take a tenth of your sheep; and ye shall be his servants.

¹⁸ And ye shall cry out on that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the Lord will not hear you in that day.”

¹⁹ Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel, and they said, “Nay; but we will have a king over us,

²⁰ that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.”

²¹ And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he recounted them in the ears of the Lord.

²² And the Lord said to Samuel, “Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king.” And Samuel said unto the men of Israel, “Go ye every man unto his city.”