² This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will punish the Amalekites^(A) for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. ³ Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally^(B) destroy^[a] all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”

⁴ So Saul summoned the men and mustered them at Telaim—two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand from Judah. ⁵ Saul went to the city of Amalek and set an ambush in the ravine. ⁶ Then he said to the Kenites,^(C) “Go away, leave the Amalekites so that I do not destroy you along with them; for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites.

⁷ Then Saul attacked the Amalekites^(D) all the way from Havilah to Shur,^(E) near the eastern border of Egypt. ⁸ He took Agag^(F) king of the Amalekites alive,^(G) and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. ⁹ But Saul and the army spared^(H) Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves^[b] and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed.

¹⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel: ¹¹ “I regret^(I) that I have made Saul king, because he has turned^(J) away from me and has not carried out my instructions.”^(K) Samuel was angry,^(L) and he cried out to the Lord all that night.

¹² Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, “Saul has gone to Carmel.^(M) There he has set up a monument^(N) in his own honor and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal.”

¹³ When Samuel reached him, Saul said, “The Lord bless you! I have carried out the Lord’s instructions.”

¹⁴ But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?”

¹⁵ Saul answered, “The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but we totally destroyed the rest.”

¹⁶ “Enough!” Samuel said to Saul. “Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.”

“Tell me,” Saul replied.

¹⁷ Samuel said, “Although you were once small^(O) in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord anointed you king over Israel. ¹⁸ And he sent you on a mission, saying, ‘Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; wage war against them until you have wiped them out.’ ¹⁹ Why did you not obey the Lord? Why did you pounce on the plunder^(P) and do evil in the eyes of the Lord?”

²⁰ “But I did obey^(Q) the Lord,” Saul said. “I went on the mission the Lord assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. ²¹ The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal.”

²² But Samuel replied:

²⁴ Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned.^(U) I violated^(V) the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid^(W) of the men and so I gave in to them. ²⁵ Now I beg you, forgive^(X) my sin and come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord.”

²⁶ But Samuel said to him, “I will not go back with you. You have rejected^(Y) the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you as king over Israel!”

²⁷ As Samuel turned to leave, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe,^(Z) and it tore.^{(AA) 28} Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn^(AB) the kingdom^(AC) of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors—to one better than you.^{(AD) 29} He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie^(AE) or change^(AF) his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind.”

³⁰ Saul replied, “I have sinned.^(AG) But please honor^(AH) me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.” ³¹ So Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

³² Then Samuel said, “Bring me Agag king of the Amalekites.”

Agag came to him in chains.^[c] And he thought, “Surely the bitterness of death is past.”

³³ But Samuel said,

And Samuel put Agag to death before the Lord at Gilgal.

³⁴ Then Samuel left for Ramah,^(AJ) but Saul went up to his home in Gibeah^(AK) of Saul.

¹¹ The word of the Lord came to me: ¹² “Son of man, take up a lament^(A) concerning the king of Tyre and say to him: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

¹⁰ “Son of man, describe the temple to the people of Israel, that they may be ashamed^(A) of their sins. Let them consider its perfection, ¹¹ and if they are ashamed of all they have done, make known to them the design of the temple—its arrangement, its exits and entrances—its whole design and all its regulations^[a] and laws. Write these down before them so that they may be faithful to its design and follow all its regulations.^(B)

¹² “This is the law of the temple: All the surrounding area^(C) on top of the mountain will be most holy.^(D) Such is the law of the temple.

The Great Altar Restored

¹³ “These are the measurements of the altar^(E) in long cubits,^[b] that cubit being a cubit and a handbreadth: Its gutter is a cubit deep and a cubit wide, with a rim of one span^[c] around the edge. And this is the height of the altar: ¹⁴ From the gutter on the ground up to the lower ledge that goes around the altar it is two cubits high, and the ledge is a cubit wide.^[d] From this lower ledge to the upper ledge that goes around the altar it is four cubits high, and that ledge is also a cubit wide.^{[e] 15} Above that, the altar hearth^(F) is four cubits high, and four horns^(G) project upward from the hearth. ¹⁶ The altar hearth is square, twelve cubits^[f] long and twelve cubits wide.^{(H) 17} The upper ledge^(I) also is square, fourteen cubits^[g] long and fourteen cubits wide. All around the altar is a gutter of one cubit with a rim of half a cubit.^[h] The steps^(J) of the altar face east.^(K)”

¹⁸ Then he said to me, “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: These will be the regulations for sacrificing burnt offerings^(L) and splashing blood^(M) against the altar when it is built: ¹⁹ You are to give a young bull^(N) as a sin offering^[i] to the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok,^(O) who come near^(P) to minister before me, declares the Sovereign Lord. ²⁰ You are to take some of its blood and put it on the four horns of the altar^(Q) and on the four corners of the upper ledge^(R) and all around the rim, and so purify the altar^(S) and make atonement for it. ²¹ You are to take the bull for the sin offering and burn it in the designated part of the temple area outside the sanctuary.^(T)

²² “On the second day you are to offer a male goat without defect for a sin offering, and the altar is to be purified as it was purified with the bull. ²³ When you have finished purifying it, you are to offer a young bull and a ram from the flock, both without defect.^{(U) 24} You are to offer them before the Lord, and the priests are to sprinkle salt^(V) on them and sacrifice them as a burnt offering to the Lord.

²⁵ “For seven days^(W) you are to provide a male goat daily for a sin offering; you are also to provide a young bull and a ram from the flock, both without defect.^{(X) 26} For seven days they are to make atonement for the altar and cleanse it; thus they will dedicate it. ²⁷ At the end of these days, from the eighth day^(Y) on, the priests are to present your burnt offerings^(Z) and fellowship offerings^(AA) on the altar. Then I will accept you, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

⁹ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: No foreigner uncircumcised in heart and flesh is to enter my sanctuary, not even the foreigners who live among the Israelites.^(A)

¹⁰ “‘The Levites who went far from me when Israel went astray^(B) and who wandered from me after their idols must bear the consequences of their sin.^{(C) 11} They may serve in my sanctuary, having charge of the gates of the temple and serving in it; they may slaughter the burnt offerings^(D) and sacrifices for the people and stand before the people and serve them.^{(E) 12} But because they served them in the presence of their idols and made the people of Israel fall^(F) into sin, therefore I have sworn with uplifted hand^(G) that they must bear the consequences of their sin, declares the Sovereign Lord.^{(H) 13} They are not to come near to serve me as priests or come near any of my holy things or my most holy offerings; they must bear the shame^(I) of their detestable practices.^{(J) 14} And I will appoint them to guard the temple for all the work that is to be done in it.^(K)

¹⁵ “‘But the Levitical priests, who are descendants of Zadok^(L) and who guarded my sanctuary when the Israelites went astray from me, are to come near to minister before me; they are to stand before me to offer sacrifices of fat^(M) and blood, declares the Sovereign Lord.^{(N) 16} They alone are to enter my sanctuary; they alone are to come near my table^(O) to minister before me and serve me as guards.^(P)

¹⁷ “‘When they enter the gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen clothes;^(Q) they must not wear any woolen garment while ministering at the gates of the inner court or inside the temple. ¹⁸ They are to wear linen turbans^(R) on their heads and linen undergarments^(S) around their waists. They must not wear anything that makes them perspire.^(T)