1 Samuel 15:10-31

New International Version

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

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

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

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

¹⁵Saul 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.

¹⁷Samuel said, “Although you were once small^(G) in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord anointed you king over Israel. ¹⁸And 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.’ ¹⁹Why did you not obey the Lord? Why did you pounce on the plunder^(H) and do evil in the eyes of the Lord?”

²⁰“But I did obey^(I) the Lord,” Saul said. “I went on the mission the Lord assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. ²¹The 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.”

²²But Samuel replied:

“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
    as much as in obeying the Lord?
To obey is better than sacrifice,^(J)
    and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
²³For rebellion is like the sin of divination,^(K)
    and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected^(L) the word of the Lord,
    he has rejected you as king.”

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

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

²⁷As Samuel turned to leave, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe,^(R) and it tore.^(S) ²⁸Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn^(T) the kingdom^(U) of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors—to one better than you.^(V) ²⁹He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie^(W) or change^(X) his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind.”

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

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1 Samuel 15:10-31

New King James Version

Saul Rejected as King

¹⁰Now the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying, ¹¹^(A)“I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king, for he has ^(B)turned back from following Me, ^(C)and has not performed My commandments.” And it ^(D)grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the Lord all night. ¹²So when Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul, it was told Samuel, saying, “Saul went to ^(E)Carmel, and indeed, he set up a monument for himself; and he has gone on around, passed by, and gone down to Gilgal.” ¹³Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him, ^(F)“Blessed are you of the Lord! I have performed the commandment of the Lord.”

¹⁴But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?”

¹⁵And Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites; ^(G)for the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.”

¹⁶Then Samuel said to Saul, “Be quiet! And I will tell you what the Lord said to me last night.”

And he said to him, “Speak on.”

¹⁷So Samuel said, ^(H)“When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel? And did not the Lord anoint you king over Israel? ¹⁸Now the Lord sent you on a mission, and said, ‘Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are ^[a]consumed.’ ¹⁹Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the ^[b]spoil, and do evil in the sight of the Lord?”

²⁰And Saul said to Samuel, ^(I)“But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. ²¹^(J)But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”

²²So Samuel said:

^(K)“Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
As in obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, ^(L)to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed than the fat of rams.
²³For rebellion is as the sin of ^[c]witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
^(M)He also has rejected you from being king.”

²⁴^(N)Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I ^(O)feared the people and obeyed their voice. ²⁵Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord.”

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

²⁷And as Samuel turned around to go away, ^(Q)Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it tore. ²⁸So Samuel said to him, ^(R)“The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you. ²⁹And also the Strength of Israel ^(S)will not lie nor relent. For He is not a man, that He should relent.”

³⁰Then he said, “I have sinned; yet ^(T)honor me now, please, before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord your God.” ³¹So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

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