And now, behold, the king walketh before you: and I am old and grayheaded; and, behold, my sons are with you: and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day.
Parallel translations
- WEB Now, behold, the king walks before you. I am old and gray-headed. Behold, my sons are with you. I have walked before you from my youth to this day.
- BSB Now here is the king walking before you, and I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have walked before you from my youth until this day.
- NKJV And now here is the king, walking before you; and I am old and grayheaded, and look, my sons are with you. I have walked before you from my childhood to this day.
- NASB Now, here is the king walking before you, but as for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. And I have walked before you since my youth to this day.
- NLT Your king is now your leader. I stand here before you—an old, gray-haired man—and my sons serve you. I have served as your leader from the time I was a boy to this very day.
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 points to the king now leading them while he himself is old and gray. He contrasts the new ruler with his own long, faithful service.
Overview
Samuel's reference to his age and his sons present underscores that his public ministry is closing. His lifelong walk 'before' the people testifies to a leadership lived openly and accountably. This sets up his appeal to the people to bear witness to his blameless conduct as judge.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- 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 8:1And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel.
- 1 Sam 8:20That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.
- 1 Sam 3:19–20And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.
- Num 27:17Which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.
- 1 Sam 8:3And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment.
- 1 Sam 3:16Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here am I.
- 1 Sam 2:29Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
- Isa 46:3–4Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, which are borne by me from the belly, which are carried from the womb:
- 1 Sam 3:13For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.
- Ps 71:18Now also when I am old and greyheaded, O God, forsake me not; until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to every one that is to come.
- 2 Tim 4:6For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
- 1 Sam 2:22Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
- 2 Pet 1:14Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 12:2 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.