Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close NET

1 Samuel 15:10-31
New English Translation

10 Then the Lord’s message came to Samuel: 11 “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned away from me and has not done what I told him to do.” Samuel became angry and he cried out to the Lord all that night.

12 Then Samuel got up early to meet Saul the next morning. But Samuel was informed, “Saul has gone to Carmel where[a] he is setting up a monument for himself.” Then Samuel left[b] and went down to Gilgal.[c] 13 When Samuel came to Saul, Saul said to him, “May the Lord bless you! I have fulfilled the Lord’s orders.”[d]

14 Samuel replied, “If that is the case,[e] then what is this sound of sheep in my ears and the sound of cattle that I hear?” 15 Saul said, “They were brought[f] from the Amalekites; the army spared the best of the flocks and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord our God. But everything else we slaughtered.”

16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Wait a minute![g] Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” Saul[h] said to him, “Tell me.” 17 Samuel said, “Is it not true that when you were insignificant in your own eyes, you became head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord chose[i] you as king over Israel. 18 The Lord sent you on a campaign[j] saying, ‘Go and exterminate those sinful Amalekites! Fight against them until you[k] have destroyed them.’ 19 Why haven’t you obeyed[l] the Lord? Instead you have greedily rushed upon the plunder! You have done what is wrong in the Lord’s estimation.”[m]

20 Then Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed[n] the Lord! I went on the campaign[o] the Lord sent me on. I brought back King Agag of the Amalekites after exterminating the Amalekites. 21 But the army took from the plunder some of the sheep and cattle—the best of what was to be slaughtered—to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”

22 Then Samuel said,

“Does the Lord take pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as he does in obedience?[p]
Certainly,[q] obedience[r] is better than sacrifice;
paying attention is better than[s] the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and presumption is like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the Lord’s orders,[t]
he has rejected you from being king.”

24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have disobeyed what the Lord commanded[u] and your words as well. For I was afraid of the army,[v] and I obeyed their voice. 25 Now please forgive my sin. Go back with me so I can worship the Lord.”

26 Samuel said to Saul, “I will not go back with you, for you have rejected the Lord’s orders,[w] and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel!”

27 When Samuel turned to leave, Saul[x] grabbed the edge of his robe and it tore. 28 Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to one of your colleagues who is better than you! 29 The Preeminent One[y] of Israel does not go back on his word[z] or change his mind, for he is not a human being who changes his mind.”[aa] 30 Saul[ab] again replied, “I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel. Go back with me so I may worship the Lord your God.” 31 So Samuel followed Saul back, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 15:12 tn Heb “and look.”
  2. 1 Samuel 15:12 tn Heb “and he turned and crossed over.” Some translations assume that the quotation continues and that “he” is Saul. The wording of the LXX, “he went down to Gilgal to Saul” assumes that Samuel is the subject and that the quotation has ended.tc The LXX also has “he returned the chariot” or “the chariot returned” before “he went down.” Again this may or may not be part of the quotation.
  3. 1 Samuel 15:12 tc At the end of v. 12 the LXX and one Old Latin ms include the following words not found in the MT: “to Saul. And behold, he was offering as a burnt offering to the Lord the best of the spoils that he had brought from the Amalekites.” The Lucianic Greek translation does not include this text.
  4. 1 Samuel 15:13 tn Or “message, word.”
  5. 1 Samuel 15:14 tn The words “if that is the case” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  6. 1 Samuel 15:15 tn Heb “they brought them.”
  7. 1 Samuel 15:16 tn Or perhaps “be quiet.”
  8. 1 Samuel 15:16 tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew mss in reading the singular (“he said”) rather than the plural (“they said”) of the Kethib.tn Heb “he”; the referent (Saul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  9. 1 Samuel 15:17 tn Heb “anointed.”
  10. 1 Samuel 15:18 tn Heb “journey.”
  11. 1 Samuel 15:18 tc The translation follows the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and the Targum in reading the second person singular suffix (“you”) rather than the third person plural suffix of the MT (“they”).
  12. 1 Samuel 15:19 tn Heb “listened to the voice of the Lord.”
  13. 1 Samuel 15:19 tn Heb “you have done what is evil in the eyes of the Lord.”
  14. 1 Samuel 15:20 tn Heb “listened to the voice of the Lord.”
  15. 1 Samuel 15:20 tn Heb “journey.”
  16. 1 Samuel 15:22 tn Heb “as [in] listening to the voice of the Lord.”
  17. 1 Samuel 15:22 tn Heb “look.”
  18. 1 Samuel 15:22 tn Heb “listening.”
  19. 1 Samuel 15:22 tn The expression “is better” is understood here by ellipsis (see the immediately preceding statement).
  20. 1 Samuel 15:23 tn Or “message, word.”
  21. 1 Samuel 15:24 tn Heb “the mouth of the Lord.”
  22. 1 Samuel 15:24 tn Heb “people.”
  23. 1 Samuel 15:26 tn Or “message, word.”
  24. 1 Samuel 15:27 tn Heb “he,” but Saul is clearly the referent. A Qumran ms and the LXX include the name “Saul” here.
  25. 1 Samuel 15:29 tn Heb “splendor,” used here by metonymy as a title for the Lord.
  26. 1 Samuel 15:29 tn Or perhaps “does not lie.”
  27. 1 Samuel 15:29 sn This observation marks the preceding statement (v. 28) as an unconditional, unalterable decree. When God makes such a decree he will not alter it or change his mind. This does not mean that God never deviates from his stated intentions or changes his mind. On the contrary, several passages describe him as changing his mind. In fact, his willingness to do so is one of his fundamental divine attributes (see Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2). For a fuller discussion see R. B. Chisholm, Jr., “Does God Change His Mind?” BSac 152 (1995): 387-99.
  28. 1 Samuel 15:30 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Saul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Close ASV

1 Samuel 15:10-31
American Standard Version

10 Then came the word of Jehovah unto Samuel, saying, 11 It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king; for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And Samuel was wroth; and he cried unto Jehovah all night. 12 And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning; and it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a [a]monument, and turned, and passed on, and went down to Gilgal. 13 And Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of Jehovah: I have performed the commandment of Jehovah. 14 And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? 15 And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto Jehovah thy God; and the rest we have [b]utterly destroyed. 16 Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what Jehovah hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on.

17 And Samuel said, [c]Though thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel? And Jehovah anointed thee king over Israel; 18 and Jehovah sent thee on a journey, and said, Go, and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. 19 Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of Jehovah, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah? 20 And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of Jehovah, and have gone the way which Jehovah sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have [d]utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice unto Jehovah thy God in Gilgal. 22 And Samuel said, Hath Jehovah as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of Jehovah? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of [e]witchcraft, and stubbornness is as [f]idolatry and teraphim. Because thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

24 And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of Jehovah, and thy words, because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. 25 Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship Jehovah. 26 And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee; for thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah, and Jehovah hath rejected thee from being king over Israel. 27 And as Samuel turned about to go away, Saul laid hold upon the skirt of his robe, and it rent. 28 And Samuel said unto him, Jehovah hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbor of thine, that is better than thou. 29 And also the [g]Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent; for he is not a man, that he should repent. 30 Then he said, I have sinned: yet honor me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship Jehovah thy God. 31 So Samuel turned again after Saul; and Saul worshipped Jehovah.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 15:12 Hebrew hand.
  2. 1 Samuel 15:15 Hebrew devoted.
  3. 1 Samuel 15:17 Or, Though thou be little . . . art thou not head of the tribe of Israel?
  4. 1 Samuel 15:20 Hebrew devoted.
  5. 1 Samuel 15:23 Hebrew divination.
  6. 1 Samuel 15:23 Or, iniquity
  7. 1 Samuel 15:29 Or, Victory. Or, Glory
Next
1 Samuel 14
1 Samuel 16
Next
dropdown
New English Translation (NET)

NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

American Standard Version (ASV)

Public Domain (Why are modern Bible translations copyrighted?)