1 Samuel 10:19

1Sa 10:19 And ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and your tribulations; and ye have said unto him, [Nay], but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes, and by your thousands.

Ver. 19. And ye have said unto him.] Because to me.

Nay, but set a king over us.] Here he taxeth them with singular ingratitude, incredulity, and folly, in that they would rather trust in a man whom they knew not how he would prove, than in God, whose power and goodness they had so often experienced. And this they persisted to do, refusing to be ruled by any reason, Regiumque, nomen, cunctis fere liberis gentibus semper invisum, efflictim desiderantes, {a} and still calling for a king upon any conditions.

{a} Sulp. Sever.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1Sa 10:19. Your God, who himself saved you, &c. — By raising up judges whenever you cried to him for help, who never failed to conquer your enemies. Ye have said unto him, Nay, &c. — When he desired you to continue under his government you refused, and would not be denied in what you asked. Now, therefore, &c. — He puts them upon choosing their king by lot, that all might know God had chosen Saul, (for the disposal of the lot is of the Lord,) and to prevent all dispute and exception.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

10:19 rejected your God: See also 8:7. Israel was rejecting God’s ability to protect and save them. • Clans are subdivisions of tribes.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 19. Present yourselves - by your tribes] It appears that, in order to find out the proper person who should be made their king, they must determine by lot:

1. The tribe.

2. The thousands or grand divisions by families.

3. The smaller divisions by families. And,

4. The individual.

When the lot was cast for the tribe, Benjamin was taken; when for the thousand, the division of Matri was taken; when for the family, the family of Kish was taken; when for the individual, Saul, the son of Kish, was taken.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

19. And ye have this day rejected your God] Once more the prophet is directed to rebuke the people for their ingratitude and unbelief. See above on 1Sa_8:6.

ye have said unto him] The request made to Samuel was virtually addressed to God.

by your tribes, and by your thousands] The natural subdivision of the nation into tribes: of the tribes into families or clans: of the families into houses: of the houses into men (Jos_7:14): was supplemented by Moses with an artificial organization of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens (Exo_18:25). The thousand corresponded to the family, and the terms appear to be used here as synonymous, Cp. ch. 1Sa_23:23; Jdg_6:15; Jos_22:14.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when Samuel had caused all the tribes to come near,.... The heads and representatives of them, to the place where the lots were cast:

the tribe of Benjamin was taken; the lot fell upon that tribe for the choice of a king out of it; not the tribe of, Reuben, who was the firstborn, nor the tribe of Judah, to whom the kingdom was promised, but the tribe of Benjamin, the least of all the tribes, and which sprung from the youngest son of Jacob, contrary, as it were probable, to the expectation of all.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

For the use of “thousand” as equivalent to “family,” see 1Sa 23:23; Jdg 6:15 margin. In Num 1:16 it may mean whole tribes.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Families. Lots were first drawn to determine the tribe, then to find out which of the great families, and which house, was to give a king to Israel. (Haydock) --- See Josue vii. 14. (Menochius) --- God was pleased thus to convince them that the election proceeded from him. (St. Gregory) (Worthington)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Ye have this day rejected your God; you this day declare that you persist in your former act of rejecting God’s government: See Poole "1Sa 8:7".

Who himself saved you; who by his own special providence took care to raise up judges and saviours for you, and to deliver you at all times, when you needed his help, and did not by your sins obstruct it.

Ye have said unto him, i.e. unto me his prophet and ambassador; and consequently unto the Lord, whom I represented, and in whose name I spake and acted.

By your tribes, and by your thousands; for each tribe was divided into thousands, Num 10:36; Deu 33:17; Jos 22:14,21; Mic 5:2, as in England counties are into hundreds.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Samuel, therefore, protests unto them, Ye have this day rejected your God, because what you want is a divorce of your national well being from religion. Nevertheless, God granted their request, it being a law of his providence to leave men free to choose. The king was, however, to be appointed by him, the selection being by lot. By your thousands. The natural subdivision of a tribe is into families; but when Moses distributed the people into thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, (Exo_18:25) the numerical arrangement was probably made to yield as far as possible to the natural, so that about a thousand men more or less of the same kin should be classed as a family. Hence the terms are synonymous here, and in Num_1:16 Num_10:4; Jos_22:14, etc.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Now therefore, &c. - He puts them upon chusing their king by lot, that all might know God had chosen Saul (for the disposal of the lot is of the Lord) and to prevent all dispute and exception.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.