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1 Samuel 8:10-18 meaning
In this section, Samuel warns the people what will become of their desire to have a human king, rather than having God as their king by living under His covenant in a self-governing manner. As God had directed, Samuel spoke all the words of the Lord to the people who had asked of him a king, including the dire warning that this request will result in tyranny and oppression. Samuel now lists the actions the king will take, that the people will not like. He said, "This will be the procedure of the king who will reign over you." The word translated procedure can also be translated "manner" or "judgement." Samuel now lists the basic behavior they can expect from a human king by listing a number of actions the human king will take. In each case these are actions the people will not like.
And so, the people will have come full circle. They began in Egypt as slaves to Pharaoh. They cried out, and God answered their cry. God led them into the land, gave them the law, and instituted a covenant in which they were given a self-governing nation. So long as they cared for one another as they desired to be cared for, they were free to prosper. Now, because they have asked for a human king, instead of living under God as king by serving one another in a self-governing manner, they have returned to being slaves.
At that point, the people will cry out for deliverance from oppression, just as they cried out in Egypt. Samuel warns: Then you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day. Samuel makes clear that if they choose this path, the natural consequences of tyranny will be their judgement. And when they come to their senses, and realize the terrible mistake they made, and cry out to God for deliverance, it will not come.
The people have been warned. The consequences are clear. But still, God lets them decide.
Although God often protects us from ourselves, at some level He lets each of us decide our own path as well. As Paul states in Galatians 5, each believer in Jesus has been set free to choose their own path. Each person can choose to walk in the Spirit, and gain the fruit of the Spirit, which results in a loving community, and fulfilling the law. Or each person can choose to walk in the flesh, and reap chaos and discord: "But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another" (Galatians 5:15). Each of us will reap as we sow, meaning we will experience the consequences of our decisions (Galatians 6:7). Israel remained God's elect people, but they will suffer the consequences of their choices. So it is with God's people in the New Testament. We are always His people; every sin is nailed to the cross, and will no longer come between us and God (Colossians 2:14). But even though we will always be in His family, we are still accountable, and will reap the consequences of the choices we sow.