¹⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel: ¹¹ “I regret^[a] that I have set up Saul to be king, for he has turned back from following me, and he has not carried out my words.” Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night.

¹² Samuel got up to meet Saul early in the morning, but Samuel was told, “Saul went to Carmel, and he set up a monument for himself there. Then he turned and continued down to Gilgal.”

⎣So Samuel went to Saul, and there he saw Saul, offering a burnt offering to the Lord from the best of the spoils that he had brought from the Amalekites.⎦^[b]

¹³ When Samuel came to Saul, Saul said to him, “You are blessed by the Lord! I have carried out the word of the Lord.”

¹⁴ Samuel said, “Then what does this mean—this bleating of sheep in my ears and the lowing of cattle that I hear?”

¹⁵ Saul said, “They have been brought here from the Amalekites, because the people spared the best of the sheep and the cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God. But we have completely destroyed the rest.”

¹⁶ Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop right there! Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.”

He said to him, “Tell me.”

¹⁷ Samuel said, “Though you were insignificant in your own sight, you were made the head of the tribes of Israel. The Lord anointed you king over Israel. ¹⁸ Then the Lord sent you on a mission and said, ‘Go and devote the Amalekites, that sinful people, to destruction. Fight against them until they are exterminated.’ ¹⁹ Why didn’t you listen to the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the plunder and do what was evil in the Lord’s sight?”

²⁰ Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord and have completed the mission that the Lord gave me. I have captured Agag king of Amalek, and I have completely destroyed the Amalekites. ²¹ But the people took some of the plunder: sheep, cattle, and the best of what was devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”

²² Samuel said, “Does the Lord take as much pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obedience to the voice of the Lord? Know this! To obey is better than sacrifice, and to pay attention is better than the fat of rams. ²³ For rebellion is the same as the sin of witchcraft, and arrogance is like having useless idols or consulting household gods. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has also rejected you as king.”

²⁴ Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed against the command^[c] of the Lord, as well as against your words, because I was afraid of the people, so I listened to their voice. ²⁵ But now, please pardon my sin and come back with me again, so that I may worship the Lord.”

²⁶ But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you, because you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”

²⁷ As Samuel turned to leave, Saul grabbed the edge of his robe, and it tore. ²⁸ Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you today, and he has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you. ²⁹ The Splendor of Israel will not lie or change his mind, because he is not a man, who changes his mind.”

³⁰ Then Saul said, “I have sinned, but please honor me now 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 worshipped the Lord.