I Samuel 15

¹And Samuel said to Saul, The Lord sent me to put the holy oil on you and to make you king over his people, over Israel: so give ear now to the words of the Lord.

²The Lord of armies says, I will give punishment to Amalek for what he did to Israel, fighting against him on the way when Israel came out of Egypt.

³Go now and put Amalek to the sword, putting to the curse all they have, without mercy: put to death every man and woman, every child and baby at the breast, every ox and sheep, camel and ass.

⁴And Saul sent for the people and had them numbered in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen and ten thousand men of Judah.

⁵And Saul came to the town of Amalek, and took up his position in the valley secretly.

⁶And Saul said to the Kenites, Go away, take yourselves out from among the Amalekites, or destruction will overtake you with them: for you were kind to the children of Israel when they came out of Egypt. So the Kenites went away from among the Amalekites.

⁷And Saul made an attack on the Amalekites from Havilah on the road to Shur, which is before Egypt.

⁸He took Agag, king of the Amalekites, prisoner, and put all the people to the sword without mercy.

⁹But Saul and the people did not put Agag to death, and they kept the best of the sheep and the oxen and the fat beasts and the lambs, and whatever was good, not desiring to put them to the curse: but everything which was bad and of no use they put to the curse.

¹⁰Then the Lord said to Samuel,

¹¹It is no longer my pleasure for Saul to be king; for he is turned back from going in my ways, and has not done my orders. And Samuel was very sad, crying to the Lord in prayer all night.

¹²And early in the morning he got up and went to Saul; and word was given to Samuel that Saul had come to Carmel and put up a pillar, and had gone from there down to Gilgal.

¹³And Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said to him, May the blessing of the Lord be with you: I have done what was ordered by the Lord.

¹⁴And Samuel said, What then is this sound of the crying of sheep and the noise of oxen which comes to my ears?

¹⁵And Saul said, They have taken them from the Amalekites: for the people have kept the best of the sheep and of the oxen as an offering to the Lord your God; all the rest we have given up to destruction.

¹⁶Then Samuel said to Saul, Say no more! Let me give you word of what the Lord has said to me this night. And he said to him, Say on.

¹⁷And Samuel said, Though you may seem little to yourself, are you not head of the tribes of Israel? for the Lord with the holy oil made you king over Israel,

¹⁸And the Lord sent you on a journey and said, Go and put to the curse those sinners, the Amalekites, fighting against them till every one is dead.

¹⁹Why then did you not do the orders of the Lord, but by violently taking their goods did evil in the eyes of the Lord?

²⁰And Saul said, Truly, I have done the orders of the Lord and have gone the way the Lord sent me; I have taken Agag, the king of Amalek, and have given the Amalekites up to destruction.

²¹But the people took some of their goods, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which were put to the curse, to make an offering of them to the Lord your God in Gilgal.

²²And Samuel said, Has the Lord as much delight in offerings and burned offerings as in the doing of his orders? Truly, to do his pleasure is better than to make offerings, and to give ear to him than the fat of sheep.

²³For to go against his orders is like the sin of those who make use of secret arts, and pride is like giving worship to images. Because you have put away from you the word of the Lord, he has put you from your place as king.

²⁴And Saul said to Samuel, Great is my sin: for I have gone against the orders of the Lord and against your words: because, fearing the people, I did what they said.

²⁵So now, let my sin have forgiveness, and go back with me to give worship to the Lord.

²⁶And Samuel said to Saul, I will not go back with you: for you have put away from you the word of the Lord, and the Lord has put you from your place as king over Israel.

²⁷And when Samuel was turning round to go away, Saul took the skirt of his robe in his hand, and the cloth came away.

²⁸And Samuel said to him, The Lord has taken away the kingdom of Israel from you this day by force, and has given it to a neighbour of yours who is better than you.

²⁹And further, the Glory of Israel will not say what is false, and his purpose may not be changed: for he is not a man, whose purpose may be changed.

³⁰Then he said, Great is my sin: but still, give me honour now before the heads of my people and before Israel, and come back with me so that I may give worship to the Lord your God.

³¹So Samuel went back after Saul, and Saul gave worship to the Lord.

³²Then Samuel said, Make Agag, the king of the Amalekites, come here to me. And Agag came to him shaking with fear. And Agag said, Truly the pain of death is past.

³³And Samuel said, As your sword has made women without children, so now your mother will be without children among women. And Agag was cut up by Samuel, bone from bone, before the Lord in Gilgal.

³⁴Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah, in the land of Saul.

³⁵And Samuel never saw Saul again till the day of his death; but Samuel was sorrowing for Saul: and it was no longer the Lord's pleasure for Saul to be king over Israel.

I Samuel 15

¹Samuel said to Saul, "The Lord sent me to anoint you to be king over his people, over Israel. Now therefore listen to the voice of the words of the Lord.

²Thus says the Lord of hosts, 'I have marked that which Amalek did to Israel, how he set himself against him in the way, when he came up out of Egypt.

³Now go and strike Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them; but kill both man and woman, infant and nursing baby, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.'"

⁴Saul summoned the people, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah.

⁵Saul came to the city of Amalek, and lay in wait in the valley.

⁶Saul said to the Kenites, "Go, depart, go down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them; for you showed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt." So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.

⁷Saul struck the Amalekites, from Havilah as you go to Shur, that is before Egypt.

⁸He took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.

⁹But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the cattle, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and wouldn't utterly destroy them: but everything that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.

¹⁰Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying,

¹¹"It grieves me that I have set up Saul to be king; for he is turned back from following me, and has not performed my commandments." Samuel was angry; and he cried to the Lord all night.

¹²Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning; and it was told Samuel, saying, "Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, and turned, and passed on, and went down to Gilgal."

¹³Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said to him, "You are blessed by the Lord! I have performed the commandment of the Lord."

¹⁴Samuel said, "Then what does this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the cattle which I hear mean?"

¹⁵Saul said, "They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the cattle, to sacrifice to the Lord your God. We have utterly destroyed the rest."

¹⁶Then Samuel said to Saul, "Stay, and I will tell you what the Lord has said to me last night." He said to him, "Say on."

¹⁷Samuel said, "Though you were little in your own sight, weren't you made the head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord anointed you king over Israel;

¹⁸and the Lord sent you on a journey, and said, 'Go, and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.'

¹⁹Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but took the spoils, and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord?"

²⁰Saul said to Samuel, "But 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.

²¹But the people took of the spoil, sheep and cattle, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal."

²²Samuel said, "Has 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 listen than the fat of rams.

²³For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has also rejected you from being king."

²⁴Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and your words, because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.

²⁵Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the Lord."

²⁶Samuel said to Saul, "I will not return with you; for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel."

²⁷As Samuel turned about to go away, Saul grabbed the skirt of his robe, and it tore.

²⁸Samuel said to him, "The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day, and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you.

²⁹Also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent; for he is not a man, that he should repent."

³⁰Then he said, "I have sinned: yet please honor me now before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and come back with me, that I may worship the Lord your God."

³¹So Samuel went back with Saul; and Saul worshiped the Lord.

³²Then Samuel said, "Bring here to me Agag the king of the Amalekites!" Agag came to him cheerfully. Agag said, "Surely the bitterness of death is past."

³³Samuel said, "As your sword has made women childless, so your mother will be childless among women!" Samuel cut Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.

³⁴Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul.

³⁵Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death; for Samuel mourned for Saul: and the Lord grieved that he had made Saul king over Israel.