15:1 Then Samuel said to Saul, “I was the one the Lord sent to anoint you as king over his people Israel. Now listen to what the Lord says. ¹  15:2 Here is what the Lord of hosts says: ‘I carefully observed how the Amalekites opposed ²  Israel along the way when Israel ³  came up from Egypt. 15:3 So go now and strike down the Amalekites. Destroy everything that they have. Don’t spare ⁴  them. Put them to death – man, woman, child, infant, ox, sheep, camel, and donkey alike.’”

15:4 So Saul assembled ⁵  the army ⁶  and mustered them at Telaim. There were 200,000 foot soldiers and 10,000 men of Judah. 15:5 Saul proceeded to the city ⁷  of Amalek, where he set an ambush ⁸  in the wadi. ⁹  15:6 Saul said to the Kenites, “Go on and leave! Go down from among the Amalekites! Otherwise I will sweep you away ¹⁰  with them! After all, you were kind to all the Israelites when they came up from Egypt.” So the Kenites withdrew from among the Amalekites.

15:7 Then Saul struck down the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to ¹¹  Shur, which is next to Egypt. 15:8 He captured King Agag of the Amalekites alive, but he executed all Agag’s people ¹²  with the sword. 15:9 However, Saul and the army spared Agag, along with the best of the flock, the cattle, the fatlings, ¹³  and the lambs, as well as everything else that was of value. ¹⁴  They were not willing to slaughter them. But they did slaughter everything that was despised ¹⁵  and worthless.

15:10 Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel: 15:11 “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.

15:12 Then Samuel got up early to meet Saul the next morning. But Samuel was informed, “Saul has gone to Carmel where ¹⁶  he is setting up a monument for himself. Then Samuel left ¹⁷  and went down to Gilgal.” ¹⁸  15:13 When Samuel came to him, ¹⁹  Saul said to him, “May the Lord bless you! I have done what the Lord said.”

15:14 Samuel replied, “If that is the case, ²⁰  then what is this sound of sheep in my ears and the sound of cattle that I hear?” 15:15 Saul said, “They were brought ²¹  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.”

15:16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Wait a minute! ²²  Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” Saul ²³  said to him, “Tell me.” 15:17 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 ²⁴  you as king over Israel. 15:18 The Lord sent you on a campaign ²⁵  saying, ‘Go and exterminate those sinful Amalekites! Fight against them until you ²⁶  have destroyed them.’ 15:19 Why haven’t you obeyed ²⁷  the Lord? Instead you have greedily rushed upon the plunder! You have done what is wrong in the Lord’s estimation.” ²⁸ 

15:20 Then Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed ²⁹  the Lord! I went on the campaign ³⁰  the Lord sent me on. I brought back King Agag of the Amalekites after exterminating the Amalekites. 15:21 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.”

15:22 Then Samuel said,

“Does the Lord take pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices

as much as he does in obedience? ³¹ 

Certainly, ³²  obedience ³³  is better than sacrifice;

paying attention is better than ³⁴  the fat of rams.

15:23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,

and presumption is like the evil of idolatry.

Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,

he has rejected you as ³⁵  king.”