1 Samuel 12:18

So Samuel called to the LORD, and on that day the LORD sent thunder and rain. As a result, all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Samuel addresses the assembled Israelites during the wheat harvest, fulfilling his warning to demonstrate divine judgment for their demand for a human king. The people stand before him in immediate response to his prophetic declaration.

The words — The Hebrew verb וַיִּקְרָא (va-yi-qra') means "and he called out" or "and he prayed," marking Samuel's intercession. The noun קֹלֹת (qolot) translates literally to "thunderclaps," describing the specific atmospheric manifestation that follows.

The thread — This pattern of God responding to prophetic prayer with thunder and rain echoes Moses' confrontation with Pharaoh in Exodus 9:23. It also parallels the people's subsequent fear and belief in God following His displayed power, as recorded in Exodus 14:31.

Why it lands — The text demands recognition that divine authority supersedes human political requests. Readers must acknowledge that God's direct intervention serves as a recorded warning against substituting human leadership for His sovereignty.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

וַיִּקְרָ֤אva/i.yik.Ra'and/ he called out שְׁמוּאֵל֙she.mu.'ElSamuel אֶל־'el-to יְהוָ֔הYah.wehYahweh וַיִּתֵּ֧ןva/i.yi.Tenand/ he gave יְהוָ֛הYah.wehYahweh קֹלֹ֥תko.Lotthunder claps וּמָטָ֖רu./ma.Tarand/ rain בַּיּ֣וֹםba/i.Yomon the/ day הַה֑וּאha./Hu'<the>/ that וַיִּירָ֨אva/i.yi.Ra'and/ it feared כָל־khol-all הָעָ֥םha./'Amthe/ people מְאֹ֛דme.'Odexceedingly אֶת־'et-<obj.>יְהוָ֖הYah.wehYahweh וְאֶת־ve./'Etand/ <obj.>שְׁמוּאֵֽל׃she.mu.'ElSamuel

King James Version

So Samuel called unto the Lord; and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

Cross-references

Exodus 14:31 When Israel saw the great power that the LORD had exercised over the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and believed in Him and in His servant Moses.
Exodus 9:23 So Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and lightning struck the earth. So the LORD rained down hail upon the land of Egypt.
Ezra 10:9 So within the three days, all the men of Judah and Benjamin assembled in Jerusalem, and on the twentieth day of the ninth month, all the people sat in the square at the house of God, trembling regarding this matter and because of the heavy rain.
Psalms 106:12 Then they believed His promises and sang His praise.
Revelation 11:5 If anyone wants to harm them, fire proceeds from their mouths and devours their enemies. In this way, anyone who wants to harm them must be killed.

People named

Samuel