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1 Samuel 15:17-26
English Standard Version
1 Samuel 15:17-26
English Standard Version
17 And Samuel said, (A)“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? (B)Why did you pounce on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the Lord?” 20 And Saul said to Samuel, (C)“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 (D)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,
(E)“Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, (F)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 (G)idolatry.
Because (H)you have rejected the word of the Lord,
(I)he has also rejected you from being king.”
24 Saul said to Samuel, (J)“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 (K)return with me that I may bow before the Lord.” 26 And Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you. (L)For you have rejected the word of the Lord, (M)and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”
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1 Samuel 15:17-26
New International Version
1 Samuel 15:17-26
New International Version
17 Samuel said, “Although you were once small(A) 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(B) and do evil in the eyes of the Lord?”
20 “But I did obey(C) 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:
“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the Lord?
To obey is better than sacrifice,(D)
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,(E)
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected(F) the word of the Lord,
he has rejected you as king.”
24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned.(G) I violated(H) the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid(I) of the men and so I gave in to them. 25 Now I beg you, forgive(J) 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(K) the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you as king over Israel!”
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.