1 Samuel 8:17-1964 bbe — He will take a tenth of your sheep: and you will be his servants. Then you will be crying out because of your king whom…

1 Samuel 8:17-1964 in the Bible in Basic English reads: “He will take a tenth of your sheep: and you will be his servants. Then you will be crying out because of your king whom you have taken for yourselves; but the Lord will not give you an answer in that day. But the people gave no attention to the voice of Samuel; and they said, No, but we will have a king over us, So that we may be like the other nations, and so that our king may be our judge and go out before us to war. Then Samuel, after hearing all the people had to say, went and gave an account of it to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, Give ear to their voice and make a king for them. Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, Let every man go back to his town.”

1 Samuel 8:17-1964 is found in the Old Testament, in the book of 1 Samuel, chapter 8, verses 17–1964.

1 Samuel is traditionally attributed to Anonymous (traditionally Samuel, Nathan, and Gad). It was written c. 930–722 BC.

1 Samuel marks Israel's transition from judges to kings. It traces the births and ministries of the prophet Samuel, the rise and tragic fall of Saul as Israel's first king, and the anointing of the shepherd boy David, whose faith makes him a man after God's own heart.

1 Samuel explores themes including Kingship, Prophet, Faith vs. Fear, God's Sovereign Choice, Anointing. These themes shape the meaning and context of 1 Samuel 8:17-1964.

1 Samuel 8:17-1964 is available on GodsGoodBook in the King James Version (KJV), American Standard Version (ASV), World English Bible (WEB), NET Bible, Young's Literal Translation, Darby Bible, Douay-Rheims Bible, and the Bible in Basic English. Each translation reflects different translation philosophies — use the translation picker on this page to compare them, or browse our full translations directory.

1 Samuel 8:17-1964 reads (BBE): “He will take a tenth of your sheep: and you will be his servants. Then you will be crying out because of your king whom you have taken for yourselves; but the Lord will not give you an answer in that day. But the people gave no attention to the voice of Samuel; and they said, No, but we will have a king over us, So that we may be like the other nations, and so that our king may be our judge and go out before us to war. Then Samuel, after hearing all the people had to say, went and gave an account of it to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, Give ear to their voice and make a king for them. Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, Let every man go back to his town.” Read it aloud, break it into short phrases, repeat each phrase three times before adding the next, then put the phrases together. Reading it in multiple translations (above) often helps the meaning settle.