1 Samuel 12:19-22

"And all the people said unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king. And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; and turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain. For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name's sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people."

Israel had asked for a king. Up until this time in their history their king, their ruler, was the LORD God Almighty. Samuel was God's spokesman to them. But he was getting old, and his sons were not interested in the things of the LORD. Scripture says they were worthless. So rather than look to the LORD to resolve this particular dilemma, they decided for themselves that they were going to fix the problem. Samuel was quite upset about this, but the LORD reminded him that the Israelites had not rejected him (Samuel), but they had rejected Him, the LORD. Through a miracle performed by the LORD, the Israelites realized their error.

So here we have their statement to Samuel concerning this. Having seen that they had made a mistake, they admitted it. They even refer to their action as sin and evil. They are even fearful for their lives, asking Samuel to pray for them. Samuel does not overlook what they have done. Look at his words to them, "... ye have done this wickedness ..." He doesn't let them off the hook, or attempt to soft-pedal it. We might think that he would say something like, "Its not that bad." But, rejecting the LORD is always a bad thing. It is the worst thing a person can do.

Rather than make them comfortable with what they have done, he counsels them to go on with serving the LORD. He tells them to not turn aside from following Him. He tells them to do otherwise is to go after things that cannot deliver them, neither profit them. His view of God is right. For his words are encouragement to continue on with the things of the LORD in spite of their sin. We tend to think that once we have done something that is against God's ways we have closed the door of relationship with Him. We conclude that we are sinners (which we are) and are therefore incapable of following His ways. Samuel's words to Israel indicate otherwise. He knows that God will be pleased with their loyalty to Him and their service. Samuel encourages them to continue to look to the LORD.

He then adds one more thought, "... the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name's sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people." God had a lot at stake with Israel. He had mightily delivered them out of Egypt, and everyone knew about it. In doing so He had made it clear to all that these people, the Israelites, were His. He put His name on them. In so doing He had tied His reputation to their fortunes. Their failure would mean shame to His name. This, of course, did not give Israel license to behave however they wanted. But Samuel tells them that God will not forsake them. The nation of Israel stands today in testimony to this fact. While they generally don't acknowledge Him, He has made it His business to care for them.

For the Christian this is great truth. For we, too, are sinners. Not a day goes by where we don't find ourselves in one way or another having disobeyed Him. There are times when we are so ashamed of ourselves that we consider that we have disqualified ourselves from service to Him. But, God promises in Hebrews 13:5 that He will never forsake us! And a look at the history of Israel makes it clear that He is good for His word. So what are we to do? The same that Samuel encouraged Israel to do, "... turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; and turn ye not aside ..." Our sin does not cause Him to forsake us. We must admit our sin, and then go on in service. For we are forgiven by the precious blood of His Son, the LORD Jesus Christ!

HJK