Every four years fools line up to cast ballots for a new king. For the year prior, a parade of fools vying for the privilege and honor to be king, crisscross the United States making promises and accepting bribes. An endless number of promises are made and a mountain of bribes are accepted, before eventually a single clown rises to ascend to the throne for four or possibly eight years.
During each reign, those who cast ballots wax and wane over the failure of the promises they were told because they do not materialize. Similarly, those with deep pockets who made hefty donations/bribes to the fools, run to the throneroom and watch as their demands are met. If enough of the initial bribes are secured with fulfilled promises, the king usually gets another turn to dispense favors from the treasury and repay 10, nay 100, nay, 1000 fold those first promised.
This is the way of kings and presidents and peasants and priests. It has always been this way with kings and it always will. King's need peasants, but peasants do not need kings, but for some reason. King's want priests who support them and their plans blindly and when the priests won't, the kings kill the priests. All sides seem to forget this simple rule until it comes to fruition. It reminds me of Israel demanding a physical king. It is a sad tale of betrayal.
In 1 Sam 12, the prophet Samuel reminds Israel how they never had a human king before, but they had defeated their enemies each and every time they were faithful and followed the will of God. God would bring forth a champion when necessary to lead them, like He used Moses, Aaron, and the different judges. God was their king during all of these times and these people had been his hand picked champion to lead during a period of struggle. Israel refused to see God as king, because they could not see the physical God. They wanted to see with their own eyes a man on a throne and nothing else would suffice.
Samuel's words to Israel at the end of this chapter are fitting, "For the Lord will not forsake his people for his great name's sake: because it hath pleased the Lord to make you his people. Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart, for consider how great things he hath done for you. But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king." (1 Sam 12: 22-25)
Samuel understood what Israel was doing and where they were going. Samuel knew they rejected God as Lord and sought a man instead. He already laid out for them what a king would do and they persisted. Yet instead of ignoring them, he promises to keep praying for them and to continue teaching them right from wrong and he urges them to do two things. Samuel urges Israel to fear the Lord and serve him in truth, with all of their heart. Unfortunately, this is a tall task and Israel will fail miserably.
Saul is rejected by God within his first year as king of Israel. Saul grew impatient waiting for Samuel and made the burnt offering and the peace offering for the people because he wanted God to release the hounds of war against the Philistines. King's seldom have the patience to wait and listen to God. Saul wanted to control and weaponize the power of God and to wield that power like a blunt instrument. God does not work for man. God does not serve man. God blesses man with abundance and more than we could ever ask for, but seldom at our command does a blessing or miracle happen, unless it is to further God's desired end.
It took less than a year for Saul to place his throne before God and for God to reject him. From this point forward we can read in 1 Samuel how Saul's leadership and decision making gets worse and worse. Saul orders Israel not to eat until he is avenged on his enemies in 1 Sam 14: 24. Being king and respected and followed has become to Saul a stumbling block. He is not leading Israel anymore, he is chasing a crown and more power and obedience, something we in the United States should be very familiar with.
Saul ignores God's demand to utterly destroy the Ameleks and their wealth. Saul sees their wealth as a chance to dispense favors and grow his power. So Israel keeps their livestock because it is a material good that can enrich and feed those who keep Saul on the throne. Saul is dispensing favors and buying friends. Saul does not recognize God has already removed his crown and rejected him. Saul's behavior towards the next king of Israel in David is a joy to read. It reminds me of a sitting president throwing endless barbs at their rivals. It truly is unbecoming for the king to behave this way.
The most effective thing a sitting king can do is lead well. They wear the crown. A good leader would lower taxes and lessen the burden on the people and keep them from endless and needless wars. Lead well do these things and no one can effectively challenge the president's position because they have the crown and demonstrated an effective use of it. They have served the people instead of their handlers. It seems so simple. More freedom and less government without endless and stupid wars makes for a good king.
During the near 50 years of my existence this has never been the case in the United States. The president often speaks strong words and while exercising poor judgment. It has been wars, taxes, and huge losses of freedom and liberty while the State has grown and grown. Presidents feed the machine that keeps them in power while starving the peasants. The wars feed the donors and kill the peasants. The intelligence community ensures there is a constant source of enemies to engage and threaten the peasants, which engorges the State and returns the favors required to enter the White House as king.
The United States is on its death spiral and cannot continue. Each subsequent president is launching their spears at every perceived slight like Saul and constantly seeking more ways to squeeze the peasants. The presidents and their henchmen drive up costs on consumers and business and eat away at the value of the currency. Peasants have always been sheep. They seldom in the history of man wield their power to reject kings so kings abuse them. Peasants simply cry out in their misery to God, seeking justice and divine judgment to free them from the burden of their slavery.
What is it going to be? How long must we wait? We have been saddled with bad governance and kings for nearly 300 years at this point and it gets worse by the day. Israel suffered in Egypt 400 years before Moses answered the call. Will we wait 400? Will we put the heavy lifting and the burden onto our children or their children and their children's children to throw off the shackles of slavery ? The United States is cooked. Every single institution is a rapacious consumer at the expense of the peasants. There is not a single institution that works to the benefit of the peasants.
The government is extremely effective. It grows itself and secures the crown for each president and gives them enormous power over the peasants and to threaten the world. There has never been a more effective government in the entire history of man than the United States right now, but it is also the worst to have ever existed. The entire world trembles under its jack boots in fear of a fresh wave of terror from its stupid presidents and their follish followers.
The president does not serve the true King and never has. This condition will not last. The true King is already annointed. His kingdom is secure and he stands at the right hand of God. As Saul threw his spear at David to try and kill the rightful king, our presidents throw their economic and military spear at every shadow trying to stop and kill the rightful King, chosen by God, from ascending to his throne. But we know Jesus is coming. The true King will lead with justice and mercy and all those who oppose him will die and the world will worship the rightful king together.
But until Jesus returns, we will suffer under the fools who wear the crown. Bad kings and fools go together.