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CAP 12
1 Forsothe Samuel seide to al Israel, Lo! Y herde youre vois bi alle thingis whiche ye spaken to me, and Y ordeynede a kyng on you;
2 and now the king goith bifor you. Sotheli Y wexide eld and hoor; forsothe my sones ben with you; therfor Y lyuyde bifor you fro my yong wexynge age `til to this dai. And lo!
3 Y am redi; speke ye to me bifor the Lord, and bifor `the crist of hym; whether Y took `the oxe of ony man, ether the asse; if Y falsly chalengide ony mon; yf Y oppresside ony man; if Y took yifte of `the hond of ony man; and Y schal `dispise it to dai, and Y schal restore to you.
4 And thei seiden, Thou hast not falsly chalengid vs, nether hast oppressid vs, nether hast take ony thing of `the hond of ony man.
5 And he seide to hem, The Lord is witnesse ayens you, and his crist is witnesse in this day; for ye han not founde ony thing in myn hond. And thei seiden, Witnesse.
6 And Samuel seide to the puple, The Lord, that made Moises and Aaron, and ledde youre fadris out of the lond of Egipt, is present;
7 now therfor stonde ye, that Y stryue bi doom ayens you bifor the Lord, of alle the mercyes of the Lord, whiche he dide with you, and with youre fadris.
8 Hou Jacob entride in to Egipt, and youre fadris crieden to the Lord; and the Lord sente Moises and Aaron, and ledde youre fadris out of Egipt, and settide hem in this place.
9 Whiche foryaten her Lord God; and he bitook hem in the hond of Sisara, maystir of the chyualrie of Asor, and in the hond of Filisteis, and in the hond of the kyng of Moab; and thei fouyten ayens hem.
10 Sotheli afterward thei crieden to the Lord, and seiden, We synneden, for we forsoken the Lord, and seruyden Baalym and Astroth; now therfor delyuere thou vs fro `the hond of oure enemyes, and we schulen serue thee.
11 And the Lord sente Gerobaal, and `Bedan, that is, Sampson, and Barach, and Jepte, and Samuel, and delyuerede you fro the hond of youre enemyes bi cumpass; and ye dwelliden tristili.
12 Forsothe ye sien, that Naas, kyng of the sones of Amon, cam ayens you; and ye seiden to me, counseilynge to axe noon other kyng than God, Nay, but a kyng schal comaunde to vs; whanne `youre Lord God regnede in you.
13 Now therfor youre kyng is redi, whom ye han chose and axid; lo! the Lord yaf to you a kyng.
14 If ye dreden the Lord, and seruen hym, and heren his vois, and wraththen not the `mouth of the Lord; ye and youre kyng, that comaundith to you, schulen sue youre Lord God.
15 Forsothe if ye heren not the vois of `the Lord, but wraththen his word, the hond of the Lord schal be on you, and on youre fadris.
16 But also now stonde ye, and se this gret thing which the Lord schal make in youre siyt.
17 Whether heruest of whete is not `to dai? I schal inwardli clepe the Lord, and he schal yyue voices, `that is, thundris, and reynes; and ye schulen wite, and schulen se, for ye axynge a kyng on you han do greuouse yuel to you in the siyt of the Lord.
18 And Samuel criede to the Lord, and the Lord yaf voices and reynes in that dai.
19 And al the puple dredde greetli the Lord and Samuel; and al the puple seide to Samuel, Preye thou for thi seruauntis to thi Lord God, that we die not; for we addiden yuel to alle oure synnes, that we axiden a kyng to vs.
20 Forsothe Samuel seide to the puple, `Nyle ye drede; ye han do al this yuel; netheles `nyle ye go awey fro the bak of the Lord, but serue ye the Lord in al youre herte;
21 and nyle ye bowe aftir veyn thingis, that schulen not profite to you, nether schulen delyuere you; for tho ben veyn thingis.
22 And the Lord schal not forsake his puple for his grete name; for the Lord swoor to make you a puple to hym silf.
23 Forsothe this synne be fer fro me in the Lord, that Y ceesse to preye for you; and Y schal teche you a riytful weie and good.
24 Therfor drede ye the Lord, and `serue ye hym in treuthe, and of al youre herte; for ye sien tho grete thingis, whiche he `dide in you;
25 that if ye contynuen in malice, bothe ye and youre kyng schulen perische to gidere.