Deut 17

“When you come to the land which Jehovah your God gives you, and shall possess it and shall live in it and shall say, I will set a king over me, like all the nations around me” (Deut 17:14).

If there are any verses that prove that the Lord knows the heart of man it would be these verses given here. Read 1 Samuel 8 to hear all about the day Israel demands they are given a king. Israel was designed by God, to be governed by God. They were a Theocracy (A God governed nation). For the sake of being like the world around them, they choose to appoint themselves a king. We see here that God does not deny them this privilege, however He does set up a few guidelines.

“But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, so as to multiply horses, because Jehovah has said to you, You shall return no more that way from now on” (Deut 17:16).

Israel was not to worry about battles. The Lord God would win their battles for them. Remember what Balaam did to Israel. He knew that if Israel sinned that the Lord would not bless their conduct. Therefore he advised King Balak, who was fighting Israel, to send the women down to seduce the men of Israel. This plan worked out just the way Balaam hoped it would. Well, Israel would once again return to a life of sin. They were worshipping all sorts of idols. Therefore, to punish and cure Israel from this new obsession the Lord sent down Babylon to take out Israel for 70 years, representative of a Sabbath. Israel would be cleansed because of their evil. God was still merciful with Israel, granting them the opportunity to turn from their sins. Instead of turning from their sins, observe what Israel does in Isaiah 31, “Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and lean on horses and trust in chariots, because it is great; and in horsemen, because they are so very strong, but they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor do they seek Jehovah!” They disobeyed the exact words of the Lord by trying to make an alliance with Egypt for horses.

“Nor shall he multiply wives to himself, so that his heart does not turn away. Nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold to himself” (Deut 17:17).

There were many kings who took for themselves many wives and concubines. However, whenever I look at something like this I feel Solomon is to be pointed out. “And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines. And his wives turned away his heart.” How sad. These wives would cause the wisest man to have ever lived to allow idols and other sin to pour into Israel. Solomon not only disobeyed the law, but downright ridiculed it by taking 700 wives!

In the end, we see that the only good king to come out of Israel would be David. The only great king would be Jesus Himself. There is a reason why Jesus tells you yes and no to certain things. The reason is because, He understands your heart so well that He understands what will be a weakness for you. Listen to Jesus before you become like a king of Israel.