1 Samuel 15:17–33

¹⁷Samuel answered, “Even though you consider yourself of no importance, you are the leader of the tribes of Israel. The Lord anointed you king of Israel, ¹⁸and he sent you out with orders to destroy those wicked people of Amalek. He told you to fight until you had killed them all. ¹⁹Why, then, did you not obey him? Why did you rush to seize the loot, and so do what displeases the Lord?”

²⁰“I did obey the Lord,” Saul replied. “I went out as he told me to, brought back King Agag, and killed all the Amalekites. ²¹But my men did not kill the best sheep and cattle that they captured; instead, they brought them here to Gilgal to offer as a sacrifice to the Lord your God.”

²²Samuel said, “Which does the Lord prefer: obedience or offerings and sacrifices? It is better to obey him than to sacrifice the best sheep to him. ²³Rebellion against him is as bad as witchcraft, and arrogance is as sinful as idolatry. Because you rejected the Lord’s command, he has rejected you as king.”

²⁴“Yes, I have sinned,” Saul replied. “I disobeyed the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of my men and did what they wanted. ²⁵But now I beg you, forgive my sin and go back with me, so that I can worship the Lord.”

²⁶“I will not go back with you,” Samuel answered. “You rejected the Lord’s command, and he has rejected you as king of Israel.”

^27*Then Samuel turned to leave, but Saul caught hold of his cloak, and it tore. ^28*Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you today and given it to someone who is a better man than you. ²⁹Israel’s majestic God does not lie or change his mind. He is not a human being—he does not change his mind.”

³⁰“I have sinned,” Saul replied. “But at least show me respect in front of the leaders of my people and all Israel. Go back with me so that I can worship the Lord your God.” ³¹So Samuel went back with him, and Saul worshipped the Lord.

³²“Bring King Agag here to me,” Samuel ordered. Agag came to him, trembling with fear, thinking to himself, “What a bitter thing it is to die!”^{y 33}Samuel said, “As your sword has made many mothers childless, so now will your mother become childless.” And he cut Agag to pieces in front of the altar in Gilgal.