1 Samuel 15 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

1 Samuel 15

The Lord Rejects Saul

15:1 And Samuel said to Saul, “The LORD sent me to anoint you king over his people Israel; now therefore listen to the words of the LORD. 2 Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘I have noted what Amalek did to Israel in opposing them on the way when they came up out of Egypt. 3 Now go and strike Amalek and devote to destruction¹ all that they have. Do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’”

4 So Saul summoned the people and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand men on foot, and ten thousand men of Judah. 5 And Saul came to the city of Amalek and lay in wait in the valley. 6 Then Saul 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 people of Israel when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. 7 And Saul defeated the Amalekites from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt. 8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive and devoted to destruction 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 fattened calves² and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was despised and worthless they devoted to destruction.

10 The word of the LORD came to Samuel: 11 “I regret³ that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments.” And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the LORD all night. 12 And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning. And it was told Samuel, “Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself and turned and passed on and went down to Gilgal.” 13 And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed be you to the LORD. I have performed the commandment of the LORD.” 14 And Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears and the lowing of the oxen that I hear?” 15 Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice to the LORD your God, and the rest we have devoted to destruction.” 16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop! I will tell you what the LORD said to me this night.” And he said to him, “Speak.”

17 And Samuel said, “Though you are little in your own eyes, are you not the head of the tribes of Israel? The LORD anointed you king over Israel. 18 And the LORD sent you on a mission and said, ‘Go, devote to destruction the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’ 19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the LORD? Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the LORD?” 20 And Saul said to Samuel, “I have obeyed the voice of the LORD. I have gone on the mission on which the LORD sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction. 21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the LORD your God in Gilgal.” 22 And Samuel 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.
23   For rebellion is as the sin of divination,
    and presumption is as iniquity and idolatry.
  Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,
    he has also rejected you from being king.”

24 Saul 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. 25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me that I may bow before the LORD.” 26 And Samuel 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.” 27 As Samuel turned to go away, Saul seized the skirt of his robe, and it tore. 28 And Samuel 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. 29 And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret.” 30 Then he said, “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may bow before the LORD your God.” 31 So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul bowed before the LORD.

32 Then Samuel said, “Bring here to me Agag the king of the Amalekites.” And Agag came to him cheerfully.⁴ Agag said, “Surely the bitterness of death is past.” 33 And Samuel said, “As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women.” And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.

34 Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. 35 And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the LORD regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.

Footnotes

[1] 15:3 That is, set apart (devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction); also verses 8, 9, 15, 18, 20, 21
[2] 15:9 The meaning of the Hebrew term is uncertain
[3] 15:11 See also verses 29, 35
[4] 15:32 Or haltingly (compare Septuagint); the Hebrew is uncertain

Commentary

v1-3: The Lord had a test for Saul. It may have been that He gave a fresh opportunity to show real obedience.

The Amalekites had shown cruelty to Israel in the wilderness, by attacking the stragglers. Saul's task was to destroy them completely, fulfilling God's own word, Deut 25.17-19.

v4-6: As Saul planned his attack, he warned the Kenites, who had shown kindness to Israel years before. It seems that all Israelites would have respected the Kenites, so Saul's words do not indicate that he showed any special mercy.

v7-9: Saul destroyed everything that was despised and worthless, but kept "everything that was good". Like Achan, he looked with human eyes, and rejected God's ways. He was disobedient to the clear command given through Samuel.

v10-11: Samuel was God's messenger. His sorrow over Saul was communicated only to Samuel. Samuel, full of mercy and kindness, prayed through the night. Perhaps this was a key turning point for Saul, although he was ignorant of this ‘message’ from the Lord to Samuel.

v12: Saul had built a monument to his own honour and name, like Absalom later. Such folly, in the light of his disobedience.

v13: Saul boasted in his personal achievement.

v14: Samuel was not fooled, and the noise of sheep and cattle exposed Saul's disobedience.

v15: Saul provided an excuse, even a 'spiritual' argument about offering a sacrifice to God. The Lord is “the Lord your God,” not Saul’s God, but Samuel’s. Already, here is clear testimony of Saul’s lack of faith.

v16: Samuel was the one in touch with God, and even told the king to "Stop!", 'Be quiet!'

v17-21: Samuel pointed out Saul's disobedience. Saul argued, claiming to have obeyed, and also to be keen to offer a sacrifice to the Lord.

v22-23: Samuel's response is clear. Obedience is better than animal sacrifice. Rebellion and arrogance, of which Saul was guilty, are as serious as divination (witchcraft) and idolatry. The previous warning in 13.13-14 was carried through. John Groves comments that ‘rebellion is worse than witchcraft because witchcraft is only one of the fruits of rebellion. On the other hand obedience is the highest expression of honour to God, better than sacrifice.

These words also expose some potentially faulty thinking. Some consider that witchcraft and other occult practices alone 'open the door' to demonic influence. In reality any sin can do so; in particular, it seems, serious sin frequently has such an effect.

v24-26: Saul admitted his wrong doing, but blamed the people. True sorrow and repentance has no qualifications. Saul hoped that God would forgive. But Samuel insisted that the kingdom had finished, Saul's authority had gone.

v27-29: The tearing of Samuel's coat gave a further prophecy, that the kingdom had been taken out of Saul's hands, and God had raised up another to be king. God had decided, and nothing Saul could do would change that.

v30-31: Saul wanted to worship God, and Samuel did not stop him. Saul had lost the authority as king, but could not be prevented from worshipping God. Sadly, this was not a regular practice.

v32-33: Samuel put Agag to death, completing the work that Saul had failed to do. Saul's 'mercy' led to the birth of Haman, the Agagite (Esth 3.1), who threatened the nation of Israel. One failure one day can cause serious consequences later.

v34-35: Saul did not keep close to the Lord. He lost touch with God and with Samuel. His downward slide continued for the rest of his life, with the affliction of an evil spirit, the pursuit of David, and the enquiring of a medium.