Now therefore behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have desired! and, behold, the LORD hath set a king over you.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now therefore see the king whom you have chosen, and whom you have asked for. Behold, Yahweh has set a king over you.
- BSB Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you requested. Behold, the LORD has placed a king over you.
- NKJV “Now therefore, here is the king whom you have chosen and whom you have desired. And take note, the Lord has set a king over you.
- NASB And now, behold, the king whom you have chosen, whom you have asked for, and behold, the Lord has put a king over you.
- NLT All right, here is the king you have chosen. You asked for him, and the Lord has granted your request.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Samuel presents the king Israel chose, whom the Lord has now set over them. God grants their request despite its sinful root.
Overview
The Lord 'has set a king over you' shows that even Israel's flawed demand is taken up into His sovereign plan. Saul is both the people's choice and God's appointment. This tension prepares the way for the line of kings through which God will ultimately bring David and, in time, the true and righteous King, Jesus Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Hos 13:11I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in my wrath.
- 1 Sam 10:24And Samuel said to all the people, See ye him whom the LORD hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted, and said, God save the king.
- 1 Sam 8:5And 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.
- 1 Sam 9:20And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on thee, and on all thy father’s house?
- 1 Sam 11:15And all the people went to Gilgal; and there they made Saul king before the LORD in Gilgal; and there they sacrificed sacrifices of peace offerings before the LORD; and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
- Ps 78:29–31So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire;
- Acts 13:21And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years.
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Christ at the center
The rise of the anointed king after Israel's failed first choice points to the true Anointed One (Messiah means 'anointed'), the shepherd-king after God's own heart from Bethlehem.
How 1 Samuel 12:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.