Leadership in Israel: Priests and Prophets: After the two sections on “secular” leadership (the judge and the king 16:18–17:20), we now have in Chapter 18 two sections on the “spiritual” leadership provided by the priest and the prophet.

The Prophet: The prophet comes last in the listing of Israel’s different leadership roles. Almost certainly this is deliberate and significant, like the putting of the judge before the king. Maintaining justice was a higher priority than having a dynastic monarchy. Judge and king must both submit to the law of God, just as the priest must faithfully teach it. But what if those entrusted with such forms of leadership were themselves to go astray? Then the last word was God’s. And God would put that word in the mouth of God’s prophet.

18:9–13  To prepare the w…