Now, behold, the king walks before you; and I am old and gray-headed; and, behold, my sons are with you: and I have walked before you from my youth to this day.
"Here, as in 1 Samuel 8:11-18, a keyword is the verb take: if kingship was to be characterized by the tendency to take rather than to give, it was otherwise with the prophet. As he stepped down from high office, Samuel’s hands were empty (1 Samuel 12:5)." [Note: David Payne, pp. 57-58.] 