Today, I am reading and commenting on  1 Samuel 8-10.

When the people of Israel asked Samuel to appoint a king to lead their nation, Samuel warned them about the negative side of choosing a king.  In a way, Samuel’s warning reminds me of the arguments made by those who opposed the adoption of the U.S. Constitution to replace the Articles of Confederation.  In both cases, the concerns proved to have some basis.  We do not really think of it this way, but what the Israelites were asking for when they asked for a king was a central authority who could unify them, a central government.  In the same way, the U.S. Constitution was intended to establish a central authority who could unify the thirteen states which made up the loose coalition formed by the Articles of Confederation.  I will say that there is one key difference between the two.  The people of Israel were already committed to being unified under a central authority.  That central authority was God.  While the people of the United States had never committed themselves to following God in a unified way.  If the people of Israel had followed through on their commitment to follow God, they would not have needed to appoint a man as king.  If the people of the United States had agreed to commit themselves to following Gog, they would not have needed the Constitution.  People who obey God with their entire being have no need for government of any kind.  Both Ancient Israel and the early United States formed governments in an attempt to overcome their unwillingness to obey God.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.