1 Samuel 15 | King James Version

King James Version

1 Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD. 2 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. 3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. 4 And Saul gathered the people together, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah. 5 And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley. 6 And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. 7 And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt. 8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly. 10 Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying, 11 It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night. 12 And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal. 13 And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD. 14 And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? 15 And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed. 16 Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on. 17 And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel? 18 And the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. 19 Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD? 20 And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal. 22 And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king. 24 And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. 25 Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD. 26 And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel. 27 And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent. 28 And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. 29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent. 30 Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God. 31 So Samuel turned again after Saul; and Saul worshipped the LORD. 32 Then said Samuel, Bring ye hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came unto him delicately. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past. 33 And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal. 34 Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul. 35 And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul: and the LORD repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.

New International Reader’s Version

The Lordis sad that he made Saul king

1 Samuel said to Saul, ‘The LORD sent me to anoint you as king over his people Israel. So listen now to a message from him. 2 The LORD who rules over all says, “I will punish the Amalekites because of what they did to Israel. As the Israelites came up from Egypt, the Amalekites attacked them. 3 Now go. Attack the Amalekites. Completely destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare the Amalekites. Put the men and women to death. Put the children and babies to death. Also kill the cattle, sheep, camels and donkeys.” ’ 4 So Saul brought his men together at Telaim. The total number was 200,000 soldiers on foot from Israel and 10,000 from Judah. 5 Saul went to the city of Amalek. Then Saul had some of his men hide and wait in the valley. 6 Then Saul said to the Kenites, ‘You were kind to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt. Get away from the Amalekites. Then I won’t have to destroy you along with them.’ So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites. 7 Saul attacked the Amalekites. He struck them down all the way from Havilah to Shur. Shur was near the eastern border of Egypt. 8 Saul captured Agag, the king of the Amalekites. But he and his men totally destroyed with their swords all Agag’s people. 9 So Saul and the army spared Agag. They spared the best of the sheep and cattle. They spared the fat calves and lambs. They spared everything that was valuable. They weren’t willing to completely destroy any of those things. But they totally destroyed everything that was worthless and weak. 10 Then the LORD gave Samuel a message. He said, 11 ‘I am very sad I have made Saul king. He has turned away from me. He has not done what I instructed him to do.’ When Samuel heard that, he was angry. He cried out to the LORD during that whole night. 12 Early the next morning Samuel got up. He went to see Saul. But Samuel was told, ‘Saul went to Carmel. There he set up a monument in his own honour. Now he has gone on down to Gilgal.’ 13 When Samuel got there, Saul said, ‘May the LORD bless you. I’ve done what he instructed me to do.’ 14 But Samuel said, ‘Then why do I hear the baaing of sheep? Why do I hear the mooing of cattle?’ 15 Saul answered, ‘The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites. They spared the best of the sheep and cattle. They did it to sacrifice them to the LORD your God. But we totally destroyed everything else.’ 16 ‘That’s enough!’ Samuel said to Saul. ‘Let me tell you what the LORD said to me last night.’ ‘Tell me’, Saul replied. 17 Samuel said, ‘There was a time when you didn’t think you were important. But you became the leader of the tribes of Israel. The LORD anointed you to be king over Israel. 18 He sent you to do something for him. He said, “Go and completely destroy the Amalekites. Go and destroy those evil people. Fight against them until you have wiped them out.” 19 Why didn’t you obey the LORD? Why did you keep for yourselves what you had taken from your enemies? Why did you do what is evil in the sight of the LORD?’ 20 ‘But I did obey the LORD,’ Saul said. ‘I went to do what he sent me to do. I completely destroyed the Amalekites. I brought back Agag, their king. 21 The soldiers took sheep and cattle from what had been taken from our enemies. They took the best of what had been set apart to God. They wanted to sacrifice them to the LORD your God at Gilgal.’ 22 But Samuel replied, ‘What pleases the LORD more? Burnt offerings and sacrifices, or obeying the LORD? It is better to obey than to offer a sacrifice. It is better to do what he says than to offer the fat of rams. 23 Refusing to obey the LORD is as sinful as using evil magic. Being proud is as evil as worshipping statues of gods. You have refused to do what the LORD told you to do. So he has refused to have you as king.’ 24 Then Saul said to Samuel, ‘I have sinned. I’ve broken the LORD’s command. I haven’t done what you instructed me to do. I was afraid of the men. So I did what they said I should do. 25 Now I beg you, forgive my sin. Come back into town with me so I can worship the LORD.’ 26 But Samuel said to him, ‘I won’t go back with you. You have refused to do what the LORD told you to do. So he has refused to have you as king over Israel!’ 27 Samuel turned to leave. But Saul grabbed the hem of his robe, and it tore. 28 Samuel said to Saul, ‘The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you today. He has given it to one of your neighbours. He has given it to someone better than you. 29 The God who is the Glory of Israel does not lie. He doesn’t change his mind. That’s because he isn’t a mere human being. If he were, he might change his mind.’ 30 Saul replied, ‘I have sinned. But please honour me in front of the elders of my people and in front of Israel. Come back with me so I can worship the LORD your God.’ 31 So Samuel went back with Saul. And Saul worshipped the LORD. 32 Then Samuel said, ‘Bring me Agag, the king of the Amalekites.’ Agag was in chains when he came to Samuel. Agag thought, ‘The time for me to be put to death must have passed by now.’ 33 But Samuel said, ‘Your sword has killed the children of other women. So the child of your mother will be killed.’ Samuel put Agag to death at Gilgal in front of the LORD. 34 Then Samuel left to go to Ramah. But Saul went up to his home in Gibeah of Saul. 35 Until the day Samuel died, he didn’t go to see Saul again. Samuel was filled with sorrow because of Saul. And the LORD was very sad he had made Saul king over Israel.