However, the people of Israel began to demand a king to rule over them. They were not satisfied to have the priests and judges. They wanted a royal family to rule them like the nations around them.
So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.” … This displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. And the LORD told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 1 Samuel 8.4-8
God told Samuel to choose Saul of the tribe of Benjamin to be king. Saul’s history is recorded in the first book of Samuel (1 Samuel). He was not a good king because he did not obey the voice of God, and he did not follow the instructions of God’s prophet, Samuel. King Saul was told to protect the land of Israel from its enemies and to remove idols from the land. He disobeyed because of his own pride and selfishness. He made excuses by saying that it was the people’s mistake because they forced him to go against God’s will. The prophet Samuel had this to say to Saul:
“Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has rejected you asking.” 1 Samuel 15.22-23