Deuteronomy 17:14

"When thou art come unto the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee, and thou shalt possess it, and dwell therein, and shall say, I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are round about me; thou shalt surely set him a king over thee, whom Jehovah thy God shall choose: one from among the brethren shalt thou set king over thee; thou mayest not put a foreigner over thee, who is not thy brother. Only he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he may multiply horses; forasmuch as Jehovah hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way. Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold."

First, it should be noted here that no commandment was given for Israel to elect a king. God's permission for Israel to have a king is indicated here, and Moses words amount to a prophecy that, in time, Israel would indeed request a king in order "to be like the nations around them." This prophecy was most circumstantially fulfilled in the days of Samuel. "The monarchy must be viewed as permitted only, not ordained, by God."[9] We reject as absolutely irresponsible, the assertion, "That these verses were written in criticism of a known monarch. He would multiply horses, wives, or money (Deuteronomy 17:16-17). This is a reference to Solomon's activity."[10] The very text itself in this passage contradicts and nullifies such comments. "He shall not cause the people to return to Egypt" (Deuteronomy 17:16). Could anyone acquainted with Solomon and criticizing him have said a thing like that? Certainly not, As Keil expressed it:

"The notion of modern critics, that there is an allusion in these verses to the constitution and kingdom of Solomon, is so far from having any foundation, that the reason assigned - namely, the fear lest the king should lead back the people to Egypt from his love of horses, "to the end that he should multiply horses," - precludes the times of Solomon. In the days of Solomon, the time had long gone by when any thought could have been entertained of leading the people back to the land of Egypt."[11]

Harrison also pointed out that there is no necessity whatever to suppose that this passage was written retrospectively with reference to the kingdom of Solomon. The kind of debaucheries that marked Solomon's reign "were familiar to any intelligent observer in the 2millennium B.C."[12] What is plainly obvious here is that Moses in this passage prophesied what any king would be likely to do in that era of the world's history. It is this prophecy that runs the critics in all directions trying to find some way to deny it. Jamieson perfectly understood the prophetic nature of this passage:

"In this passage, Moses prophetically announced a revolution which should occur at a later period in Israel's history. No sanction or recommendation is indicated. On the contrary, when the popular clamor had effected such a constitutional change in the theocracy by the appointment of a king, the Divine disapproval was expressed in the most unequivocal terms (1 Samuel 8:7)."[13]

The rationalistic critics object to this on the basis that, "Although the monarchy was contemplated and provided for in the Law, God afterward expressed strong disapproval of it."[14] The answer to such an objection is clear enough. There is neither a commandment to appoint a king, nor an approval of one when he was appointed anywhere to be found here. As Dummelow said, "The people were not commanded to appoint a king, but their desire for one was anticipated by Moses."[15] All of the rules, therefore, that Moses laid down here, were for the purpose of trying to PROTECT the people (in a degree) from the colossal error that Moses knew they would make in demanding a king. The rules Moses prescribed as somewhat of an easement of the blunder into which Israel would fall were given as follows by Unger:

(1) He was to be God's choice.

(2) He was to be an Israelite, a covenant person, not a foreigner.

(3) He was to be God's servant and representative.

(4) He was not to multiply horses, which in that era was equivalent to relying upon military power.

(5) He was not to multiply wives unto himself (this was customary for Oriental monarchs throughout the world at that time).

(6) He was not to amass silver and gold.

(7) He was to take a copy of God's law for himself and always walk in the light of it.[16]

If we may paraphrase Moses' instructions here, we might read: "All right, I know that in ages to come you Israelites will want a king like the nations around you, but when you thus decide, here are the rules you must follow."