Reading: 1 Samuel 8, Romans 6

¹ And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel.² Now the name of his firstborn was Joel; and the name of his second, Abiah: they were judges in Beersheba.³ And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment.⁴ Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah,⁵ And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.⁶ But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the LORD.⁷ And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them.⁸ According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee.⁹ Now therefore hearken unto their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that shall reign over them.¹⁰ And Samuel told all the words of the LORD unto the people that asked of him a king.¹¹ And he said, This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots.¹² And he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots.¹³ And he will take your daughters to be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to be bakers.¹⁴ And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.¹⁵ And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants.¹⁶ And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work.¹⁷ He will take the tenth of your sheep: and ye shall be his servants.¹⁸ And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not hear you in that day.¹⁹ Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, Nay; but we will have a king over us;²⁰ That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.²¹ And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the LORD.²² And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man unto his city.

¹ What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?² God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?³ Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?⁴ Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.⁵ For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:⁶ Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.⁷ For he that is dead is freed from sin.⁸ Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:⁹ Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.¹⁰ For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.¹¹ Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.¹² Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.¹³ Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.¹⁴ For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.¹⁵ What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.¹⁶ Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?¹⁷ But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.¹⁸ Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.¹⁹ I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.²⁰ For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.²¹ What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.²² But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.²³ For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.