9. ‘But they forgot the Lord their God; so he sold them into the hands of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them.
10. They cried out to the Lord and said, “We have sinned; we have forsaken the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.”
11. Then the Lord sent Jerub-Baal,a Barak,b Jephthah and Samuel,c and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies all around you, so that you lived in safety.
12. ‘But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, “No, we want a king to rule over us” –even though the Lord your God was your king.
13. Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the Lord has set a king over you.
14. If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God – good!
15. But if you do not obey the Lord, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your ancestors.
16. ‘Now then, stand still and see this great thing the Lord is about to do before your eyes!
17. Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call on the Lord to send thunder and rain. And you will realise what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the Lord when you asked for a king.’