1 Samuel 12:19

1 Samuel 12:19 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And all the people said to Samuel, "Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins the evil of asking a king for ourselves.”
• New Living Translation (NLT)“Pray to the Lord your God for us, or we will die!” they all said to Samuel. “For now we have added to our sins by asking for a king.”

Context of 1 Samuel 12:19

17Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the Lord to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king.” 18Then Samuel called on the Lord, and that same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the Lord and of Samuel. The people all said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.” 20“Do not be afraid,” Samuel replied. “You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless.

1 Samuel 12:19 word by word

וַיֹּאמְר֨וּ כָל־הָעָ֜ם אֶל־שְׁמוּאֵ֗ל הִתְפַּלֵּ֧ל בְּעַד־עֲבָדֶ֛יךָ אֶל־יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ וְאַל־נָמ֑וּת כִּֽי־יָסַ֤פְנוּ עַל־כָּל־חַטֹּאתֵ֙ינוּ֙ רָעָ֔ה לִשְׁאֹ֥ל לָ֖נוּ מֶֽלֶךְ׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And all the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto Samuelשְׁמוּאֵלshemû'êl · SamuelH8050
• Prayפָּלַלpâlal · to prayH6419
• for thy servantsעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• thy Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• that we dieמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
• not: for we have addedיָסַףyâsaph · to addH3254
• unto all our sinsחַטָּאתchaţţâ'âh chaţţâ'th · sinH2403
• evilרָעָהra‛ râ‛âh · distress: evilH7451
• to askשָׁאַלshâ'al shâ'êl · to askH7592
• us a kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428

Cross-references for 1 Samuel 12:19

• 1 Samuel 7:5Then Samuel said, “Assemble all Israel at Mizpah, and I will intercede with the Lord for you.”
• Genesis 20:7Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”
• Exodus 9:28Pray to the Lord, for we have had enough thunder and hail. I will let you go; you don’t have to stay any longer.”
• Exodus 10:17Now forgive my sin once more and pray to the Lord your God to take this deadly plague away from me.”
• Job 42:8So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.”
• Psalms 78:34Whenever God slew them, they would seek him; they eagerly turned to him again.
• Isaiah 26:16Lord, they came to you in their distress; when you disciplined them, they could barely whisper a prayer.
• Malachi 1:9“Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings from your hands, will he accept you?”—says the Lord Almighty.
• Acts 8:24Then Simon answered, “Pray to the Lord for me so that nothing you have said may happen to me.”
• James 5:15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.
• 1 John 5:16If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that.

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 12:19

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19Pray for thy servants - that we die not - As they knew they had rebelled against God, they saw that they had every thing to fear from his justice and power. We have added unto all our sins this evil - It is no sin to have a king; a good king is one of the greatest blessings of God's providence; but it is a sin to put a man in the place of God. Is it not strange that they did not now attempt to repair their fault? They might have done it, but they did not…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-25Verses 16-25 At Samuel's word, God sent thunder and rain, at a season of the year when, in that country, the like was not seen. This was to convince them they had done wickedly in asking a king; not only by its coming at an unusual time, in wheat harvest, and on a clear day, but by the prophet's giving notice of it before. He showed their folly in desiring a king to save them, rather than God, or Samuel; promising themselves more from an arm of flesh…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19The people asked Samuel to pray for them (see also 1 Samuel 7:8) instead of praying themselves, likely because they were not close to God (notice they say "your God" instead of "our God"). added to all our sins: Their sins included idol worship (1 Samuel 12:21; see study note on 1 Samuel 8:8).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 17-2517-25. Is it not wheat harvest to-day?--That season in Palestine occurs at the end of June or beginning of July, when it seldom or never rains, and the sky is serene and cloudless. There could not, therefore, have been a stronger or more appropriate proof of a divine mission than the phenomenon of rain and thunder happening, without any prognostics of its approach, upon the prediction of a person professing himself to be a prophet of the Lord, and giving…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Samuel 12:19

• Intercession
• Rain
• Repentance

In the dictionaries

• God
• Samuel
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Reason
• Samuel, Books of
• Intercession
• Jotham
• Judges, Period of
• Samuel, Books of

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings