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10 Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people, who had asked him for a king. 11 He said, “This is what the king who reigns over you will do. He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and with his teams of horses,[a] and they will have to run ahead of his chariots. 12 He will make them serve as commanders of a thousand soldiers and as commanders of fifty. He will assign some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest. He will assign some to make his weapons and the trappings[b] for his chariots.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 8:11 Or charioteers. There is no evidence for the use of cavalry in battle at this time.
  2. 1 Samuel 8:12 Trappings is the technical term for equipment like the reins and harnesses but also includes decorative elements of metal and leather. Collections of chariot trappings have been preserved archaeologically.

10 Samuel told(A) all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. 11 He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take(B) your sons and make them serve(C) with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots.(D) 12 Some he will assign to be commanders(E) of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots.

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