To what extent does a parent carry responsibility for the sins and poor choices of their offspring? In 1st Samuel chapter three, we learn that, as a small child, Samuel had brought a prophetic word of judgement to Eli for his failure to discipline his sons. (Read here) Now, in chapter eight vs 1 - 5, we read that in his old age, Samuel's own sons were greedy and corrupt. In fact, this seems to have been one of the factors involved in the Israelites' decision to ask for a king; they didn't want Samuel's sons to be their leaders.
Was this due to Samuel's failure as a father? Did he fail in this crucial role, just as much as Eli did? (We don't know anything about his wife, and we don't even know who raised Samuel himself after Eli died, or what sort of model of parenthood he grew up with.) Did he give himself to his prophetic role as the expense of his fatherly role? Or was it just one of those sad situations where children choose to go their own way, even despite the good example of their parents?
The Bible doesn't tell us the answer to that question... but it does give us a little more insight into the people's demand for a king. Read on in the post below...
