The life and service of the priest, prophet, and judge Samuel was, in a word, blameless. In 1 Sam. 12.3-5, Samuel asks the gathered Israelite peoples whether he in any way had defrauded them, oppressed them, or taken anything from them. The Israelites testified before YHWH that Samuel had done none of these things. The life of Samuel provided no occasion for Israel to be turned away from God. It is perhaps for this reason that Samuel in 1 Sam. 8 Samuel appoints his two sons, Joel and Abijah, as judges to take his place.
This had never happened before: Throughout the book of Judges the role of a judge had never been passed directly to one’s descendants. It is possible that Samuel’s exemplary life led to such an appointment, the logic being that since Samuel faithfully served YHWH, so would his sons.
Sadly, Samuel’s sons would instead choose the path of the sons of Eli (Samuel’s predecessor): “Yet his sons did not walk in his ways by turned aside after gain. They took bribes and perverted justice.” (1 Sam. 8.3 ESV). Do not miss the irony of the names of Samuel’s sons. Joel means “YHWH is God”, and the child whose name declared YHWH to be God did not treat YHWH as his god, instead bowing the knee and heart to gain and earthly wealth. Abijah means “YHWH is My Father”, and the child whose name describes YHWH as his father did not walk in the path of YHWH, the path his earthly father walked with faithfulness.
In so doing, the sons of Samuel would provoke Israel to make one of the gravest errors in their history: Demand a king. “(4) Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and same to Samuel at Ramah (5) and said to him, ‘Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.’” (1 Sam. 8.4-5 ESV)
When one asks the question “Why did Isarel demand a king?”, the provided answer usually comes from 1 Sam. 8.7: “…for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them”, and this is certainly true. Israel chose to reject God’s pattern of leadership for His people and instead sought to be led as the nations were around them (see above in v.5b). But who occasioned such a bad decision? Whose fault was it that Israel became frustrated with God’s pattern of leadership? The question of “Why did Israel demand a king?” can also be answered a second way: Joel and Abijah were greedy, unjust, faithless judges. These men provided the spark, Israel provided the fuel, and together they incinerated God’s plan for leading His people.
The difference between Samuel and his sons is that Samuel did not provide an occasion for Israel to turn from God, but his sons did. It is here that we can learn an important lesson.
Each person stands before God individually and will be judged by God accordingly (2 Cor. 5.10; Rom. 14.12). No one will be able to blame another for their own poor decisions. However, we are not only liable for our own decisions, but for the occasions we provide for others. Jesus taught that while it was “inevitable” that temptations would come, He pronounced “…woe to the one by whom temptation comes!” (Matt. 18.7 NASB). In the previous verse, Jesus states that it would be better for those who would cause another to sin to have a millstone tied around their neck and thrown into “the depth of the sea” (v.6).
There is perhaps no quicker way to turn people away from God than to claim association with God, and then do what is ungodly. Considering this, note Peter’s warning in 1 Pet. 2.12 ESV: “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” Similarly, Paul would instruct Titus to “Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.” (Titus 2.7-8 ESV).
Why was it so important to Peter and Paul that their brethren remain faithful to God “in all respects”? The first answer from these two passages is that they must remain faithful avoid bringing reproach upon God’s people, and in so doing upon God. But 1 Samuel 8.4-5 shows us that there is a second answer to this question. God’s people must choose faithfulness so that we may not provide further occasion for others to turn away from God. Consider how many times a brother or sister has turned from the faith not because the facts of the Gospel have changed, but because of the ungodliness of a fellow Christian! This isn’t to say that when a person sins, they do so because of unfaithful brethren: The world overflows with occasions to turn away from God that have nothing to do with God’s people. But we are not held guiltless when we provide opportunities for others to turn away from God!
What is the lesson? Live your life in such a way that it provides no occasion for another to reject God’s way. While they certainly were tempted from without, Israel was not tempted from within by Samuel to seek a king. The same cannot be said for Joel and Abijah, because through their wickedness the sons of Samuel provoked Isarel to act on their godless urges and reject YHWH as king over them.
Who will you draw toward God by your faithfulness?
Who will you push away from God by your faithlessness?
Kyle Sanders
Kyle has been preaching since 2016 in Chiefland, Florida and Clinton, Mississippi before coming to work with the Jamestown church of Christ in 2021. Before preaching, he spent several years as a high school mathematics teacher in Indiana, Kentucky, and Florida. Kyle is a teacher at heart and brings his love of studying and interacting with students into his preaching and teaching efforts. He and his wife, a native Hoosier, have been blessed with five children, two dogs, a full house and zero leftovers.