Kingship on Trial — Samuel’s Farewell and the Thunder-Sermon. Every generation needs its courtroom moment—when God calls His people to account, not to destroy them, but to restore them. In 1 Samuel 12, the aging prophet Samuel summons Israel to hear the verdict of heaven. They have demanded a king like the nations, trading faith for visibility. Yet God, in mercy, does not reject them; instead, He speaks from the storm.