Social Architecture (12) 10s 50s 100s Destroyed

1 Samuel 8 is a really important passage. It describes how the new social structure that God had given to Israel was replaced by a systems of kings copied from the surrounding nations. This was a shocking change, as kingship uses Imposed Authority, which is Satan’s method of control.

Samuel warned of another effect of appointing a king, which is not well understood.

This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers (1 Sam 8 11,13).

The king would take young people to serve in his army and palace. For a critical period during their growth to maturity, when they would normally be developing into a role in their Ten, Fifty or Hundred, the young person will be taken out for a period of service to the king.

Loyalty to the King will replace their loyalty to their Ten, Fifty and Hundred. They would lose respect for leaders of their Ten and might never be fully grafted back in. Their relationships with other young people in the king’s service will be stronger than their relationship with leaders of their Ten and Hundred. Taking young people out of their local communities during their formative years undermines the structure of society.