6 Then Samuel said to the people, “The Lord, who appointed Moses and Aaronl and who brought your ancestors up from the land of Egypt, is a witness.E 7 Now present yourselves, so I may confront you before the Lord about all the righteous acts he has done for you and your ancestors.

8 “When Jacob went to Egypt,F your ancestors cried out to the Lord,m and he sent them Moses and Aaron, who led your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.n 9 But they forgot the Lord their God, so he handed them over to Siserao commander of the army of Hazor, to the Philistines, and to the king of Moab.p These enemies fought against them. 10 Then they cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned, for we abandoned the Lord and worshiped the Baals and the Ashtoreths. Now rescue us from the power of our enemies,q and we will serve you.’ 11 So the Lord sent Jerubbaal,r Barak,* s Jephthah,t and Samuel.u He rescued you from the power of the enemies around you, and you lived securely. 12 But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was coming against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king reign over us’—even though the Lord your God is your king.

13 “Now here is the king you’ve chosen,v the one you requested.w Look, this is the king the Lord has placed over you. 14 If you fear the Lord,x worship and obey him, and if you don’t rebel against the Lord’s command, then both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God. 15 However, if you disobey the Lordy and rebel against his command, the Lord’s hand will be against youz as it was against your ancestors.H,aa