1 Samuel 15:20 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And Saul said to Samuel, "I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I have gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction.

NIV: "But I did obey the Lord," Saul said. "I went on the mission the Lord assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king.

NASB: Then Saul said to Samuel, 'I did obey the voice of the Lord, for I went on the mission on which the Lord sent me; and I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have completely destroyed the Amalekites.

CSB: "But I did obey the Lord!" Saul answered. "I went on the mission the Lord gave me: I brought back King Agag of Amalek, and I completely destroyed the Amalekites.

NLT: But I did obey the Lord,' Saul insisted. 'I carried out the mission he gave me. I brought back King Agag, but I destroyed everyone else.

KJV: And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord, and have gone the way which the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

NKJV: And Saul said to Samuel, “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.

Samuel has thoroughly condemned King Saul as doing evil. He failed to obey God's command to kill every living person and animal among the Amalekites (1 Samuel 15:2–3, 19). Saul's response is to double down on his previous excuses and attempts to shift the blame on to those under his authority (1 Samuel 15:15).

The king insists that he did obey God. He went on the mission given to him by the Lord (1 Samuel 15:3). He declares that he brought back the Amalekite king, as if that was part of the mission. He adds that he devoted all the rest of the Amalekite people to destruction, meaning that he is taking responsibility for having all of them except for the king killed (1 Samuel 15:9). But partial obedience is no obedience at all. The king should not have been spared, and Samuel will rectify that later (1 Samuel 15:32–33).

As we often do when confronted about our sin, Saul refuses to accept an honest version of events or accountability for his actions. In the following verse, he shifts all blame onto those under his command, even as he provides an explanation to justify what they did (1 Samuel 15:21). This amounts to Saul denying his responsibility as king, blaming his followers, and then trying to excuse the actions as not sinful to begin with.

First Samuel 15:10–23 records God's response to Saul's partial obedience regarding the Amalekites (1 Samuel 15:3, 9). The Lord tells Samuel that Saul's acts—which amount to rejecting God's commands—will result in the end of Saul's rule. When Samuel confronts Saul, the king makes excuses and claims he intended to sacrifice the condemned animals to the Lord. Samuel responds with a poetic statement about how God wants obedience, not arrogant attempts to improve on His commands.

Samuel gives Saul a mission from the Lord: fulfill God's judgment on the Amalekites by killing all the people and all the animals. Saul and his army defeat Amalek, but they spare the king and the best animals. Samuel confronts Saul and reveals that because of his disobedience, the Lord has rejected Saul as king over Israel. Samuel worships the Lord with Saul one last time and then executes the Amalekite king Saul failed to kill.

First Samuel 14 ended with a summary of Saul's reign; chapter 15 describes God's rejection of Saul as king. First Samuel 13 had already indicated that Saul's household would not retain the kingdom due to Saul's disobedience (1 Samuel 13:8–14); here Saul himself is rejected. The Lord commands Saul to fulfill His longstanding judgment against the Amalekites. Saul and his army defeat Amalek, but Saul disobeys God by sparing the king and the best animals. Saul eventually admits that he has sinned, but Samuel says God will not change His mind about rejecting Saul as king. From a heavenly perspective, Saul is rejected; but from an earthly perspective, he would continue his rule for another fifteen to twenty years.

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.