1 Sam. 15 Overview:
1 Sam. 15:7-15, 22-23 - EW Commentary
3. (1 Sam. 15:7-9) Saul attacks the Amalekites.
7 So Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as you go to Shur, which is east of Egypt. 8 He captured Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.
a. Saul attacked the Amalekites: This was good, and in obedience to the LORD. But it was a selective, incomplete obedience. First, Saul took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. God commanded Saul to bring His judgment on all the people, including the king.
i. Whey did Saul take Agag king of the Amalekites alive? "Saul spared Agag, either out of a foolish pit for the goodliness of his person, which Josephus notes; or for his respect to his royal majesty, in the preservation of which he thought himself concerned; or for the glory of his triumph." (Poole)
ii. "If Saul spare Agag, the people will take liberty to spare the best of the spoil ... the sins of the great command imitation." (Trapp)
b. As well, Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. God had clearly commanded in 1 Samuel 15:3, that every ox and sheep, camel and donkey was to be destroyed also, and Saul didn't do this.
i. In a normal war in the ancient world, armies were freely permitted to plunder their conquered foes. This is how the army was often paid. Why was it wrong here? It was wrong for anyone in Israel to benefit from the war against the Amalekites, because it was an appointed judgment from God. This was just as wrong if a hangman were to empty the pockets of the man he has just executed for murder.
c. As well, they were careful to keep the best for themselves, but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. They took the care to make sure that they took home the best, and we can imagine they were all pleased with what they had gained after the battle.
i. This perhaps was worst of all, because Israel was not reflecting God's heart in His judgment. When they came home happy and excited because of what they gained from the battle, they implied there was something joyful or happy in the midst of God's judgment. This dishonored God, who brings His judgment reluctantly and without pleasure, longing that men would have repented instead.
ii. "Partial obedience is complete disobedience. Saul and his men obeyed as far as suited them; that is to say, they did not obey God at all, but their own inclinations, both in sparing the good and destroying the worthless. What was not worth carrying off was destroyed, - not because of the command, but to save trouble." (Maclaren)
iii. "We are prepared to obey the Divine commands up to a certain point, and there we stay. Just as soon as 'the best and choicest' begin to be touched, we draw the line and refuse further compliance. We listen to soft voices that bid us to stay our hand, when our Isaac is on the altar." (Meyer)
iv. "But an even deeper reading of this story is permissible. Throughout the Bible Amalek stands for the flesh, having sprung from the stock of Esau, who, for a morsel of meat, steaming fragrantly in the air, sold his birthright. To spare the best of Amalek is surely equivalent to sparing some root of evil, some plausible indulgence, some favourite sin. For us, Agag must stand for that evil propensity, which exists in all of us, for self-gratification; and to spare Agag is to be merciful to ourselves, to exonerate and palliate our failures, and to condone our besetting sin." (Meyer)
4. (1 Sam. 15:10-11) God's word to Samuel.
10 Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel, saying, 11 "I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me and has not carried out My commands." And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the LORD all night.
a. I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king: God's heart was broken over Saul's disobedience. The man who started out humble and submissive to God was now boldly going his own way in disobedience to God.
i. How can God say, "I greatly regret"? Does this mean that God did not know what would happen? That God wanted things to happen a certain way, but was powerless to make them come to pass? Not at all. This is the use of anthropomorphism, when God explains Himself to man in human terms, so man can have some understanding of God's heart. God knew from the beginning Saul's heart, and Saul's ways, and Saul's destiny. He knew that He had already sought for Himself a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). Yet, as all this unfolded, God's heart was not emotionless. He didn't sit in heaven with a clipboard, checking off boxes, coldly saying, "All according to plan." Saul's disobedience hurt God, and since we couldn't understand what was really happening in God's heart, the closest that we could come is for God to express it in the human terms of saying, "I greatly regret that I have set up Saul as king."
ii. "Repentance properly notes grief of heart, and change of counsels, and therefore cannot be in God, who is unchangeable, most wise, and most blessed; but it is ascribed to God in such cases, when men give God cause to repent, and when God alters his course and method of dealing, and treats a person as if he did indeed repent of all the kindness he had showed to him." (Poole)
iii. "God's repentance is not a change of his will, but of his work. Repentance with man, is the changing of his will; repentance with God, is the willing of a change." (Trapp)
b. And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to the LORD all night: Samuel shows that he has God's heart. It hurt God to reject Saul, and it hurt God's prophet to see him rejected. We are close to God's heart when the things that grieve Him grieve us, and the things that please God please us.
5. (1 Sam. 15:12-13) Saul greets Samuel.
12 Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was told Samuel, saying, "Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on down to Gilgal." 13 Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, "Blessed are you of the LORD! I have carried out the command of the LORD."
a. So when Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul: Reluctantly, Samuel (who had anointed Saul as king years before) now comes to discipline the disobedient king.
b. Was Saul grieved over his sin? Not at all. Instead, he set up a monument for himself. Saul was quite pleased with himself! He felt he had done something good, and he believed he was totally justified in what he had done. There is not the slightest bit of shame or guilt in Saul, even though he had directly disobeyed the LORD.
i. In coming chapters, God will raise up another man to replace Saul as king. David, in contrast to Saul, was known as a man after God's own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). Even thought David, as king of Israel, would also disobey God, the difference between him and Saul was great. David felt the guilt and shame one should feel when they sin. Saul didn't feel it. His conscience was dead to shame and his heart was dead to God. Saul's heart was so dead he could directly disobey God and set up a monument for himself on the occasion!
c. He set up a monument for himself also shows that Saul is not the same humble man who once had a humble opinion of himself (1 Samuel 9:21) and who once hid among the equipment out of shyness (1 Samuel 10:22). The years, the military victories, and prestige of the throne of Israel have all revealed the pride in Saul's heart.
i. "But the truth is, he was zealous for his own honour and interest, but lukewarm where God only was concerned." (Poole)
d. Saul said to him, "Blessed are you of the LORD! I have performed the commandment of the LORD." How could Saul do this? How could he come to the prophet of God with such boldness, such confidence, and boast of his obedience? Because of his pride, Saul is self-deceived. He probably really believed what he told Samuel. He probably believed, "I have performed the commandment of the LORD." Pride always leads us into self-deception!
i. Maclaren has an insightful comment on Saul's statement, "I have performed the commandment of the LORD." "That is more than true obedience is quick to say. If Saul had done it, he would have been slower to boast of it."
6. (1 Sam. 15:14-16) Saul "explains" his sin to Samuel.
14 But Samuel said, "What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the [i]lowing of the oxen which I hear?" 15 Saul said, "They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen, to sacrifice to the LORD your God; but the rest we have utterly destroyed." 16 Then Samuel said to Saul, "Wait, and let me tell you what the LORD said to me last night." And he said to him, "Speak!"
a. What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? Saul had been proud of his accomplishments. He set up a monument for himself. He could openly - and in his own mind, honestly - say "I have performed the commandment of the LORD." At the same time, the evidence of his disobedience was could be heard, even as he spoke! The livestock that God clearly commanded to be killed could be heard, seen, and even smelt even as Saul said, "I have performed the commandment of the LORD."
i. Pride and disobedience make us blind - or deaf - to our sin. What was completely obvious to Samuel was invisible to Saul. We all have blind spots of sin in our lives, and we need to constantly ask God to show them to us. We need to sincerely pray the prayer of Psalm 139:23-24: Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
ii. I heard one man say to another, "If you only knew how obvious it was to everyone else that you are in the flesh, you would be terribly embarrassed." That could be said of almost any Christian at some time or another. We need to plead with God to reveal our blind spots to us!
b. Saul's excuses are revealing. First, he blames the people, not himself (They have brought them ... the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen). Second, he includes himself in the obedience (the rest we have utterly destroyed). Third, he justifies what he has kept because of its fine quality (the best of the sheep and the oxen). Fourth, he claims to have done it for a spiritual reason (to sacrifice to the LORD your God).
i. Of course, while all this made perfect sense to Saul (in his proud self-deception), it meant nothing to God and Samuel. In fact, it was worse than nothing - it showed that Saul was desperately trying to excuse his sin by word games and half-truths.
ii. But even in his excuse, Saul reveals the real problem: he has a poor relationship with God. Notice how he speaks of God to Samuel: "to sacrifice to the LORD your God." The LORD was not Saul's God. Saul was Saul's God. The LORD was the God of Samuel, not Saul. In his pride, Saul has removed the LORD God from the throne of his heart.
iii. "O sinners, you do miscalculate fearfully when you give to God's servants such false explanations of your sins!" (Blaikie)
c. The rest we have utterly destroyed: As it turned out, this was not even true. Saul, in fact, did not even do what he said he did. There were still Amalekites he left alive. David later had to deal with the Amalekites (1 Samuel 27:8, 30:1, 2 Samuel 8:12). Haman, the evil man who tried to wipe out all the Jewish people in the days of Esther, was in fact a descendant of Agag! (Esther 3:1). Most ironic of all, when Saul was killed on the field of battle, the final thrust of the sword was from the hand of an Amalekite! (2 Samuel 1:8-10). When we don't obey God completely, the "left over" portion will surely come back and trouble us, if not kill us!
d. Then Samuel said to Saul, "Be quiet!" Samuel has had enough. He will listen to no more from Saul. The excuse was revealed for what it was - just a lame excuse. Now it is time for Saul to be quiet, and to listen to the word of the LORD through Samuel.
i. But even in this, Saul can't shut up. He shows his proud desire to retain some control by replying, "Speak on." As if the prophet of God Samuel needed Saul's permission! He would speak on, but not because Saul had given him permission. He would speak on because he was a messenger of God.
2. (1 Sam. 15:22-23) Samuel prophesies God's judgment against King Saul.
22 Samuel said, "Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. 23 "For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has also rejected you from being king."
a. Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. Religious observance without obedience is empty before God. The best sacrificial offering we could bring to God is a repentant heart (Psalm 51:16-17), and our bodies surrendered to His service for obedience (Romans 12:1).
i. One could make a thousand sacrifices unto God; work a thousand hours for God's service; or give millions of dollars to His work. But all of those sacrifices mean little if there is not a surrendered heart to God, shown by simple obedience.
ii. In sacrifice we offer the flesh of another creature; in obedience we offer our own will before God. Luther used to say, "I had rather be obedient, than able to work miracles." (Cited in Trapp)
iii. "In sacrifices a man offers only the strange flesh of irrational animals, whereas in obedience he offers his own will, which is rational or spiritual worship." (Keil and Delitszch)
b. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry: A rebellious, stubborn heart rejects God just as certainly as someone rejects God by occult practices or idolatry.
i. Saul's problem wasn't just that he neglected some ceremony. That is how Saul thought of obedience to God. In today's world, he might have said, "What? So God wants me to go to church more? All right, I'll go." But religious observance was not Saul's problem; the problem was that his heart had become rebellious and stubborn against God. If religious observance was not helping that problem, then it was no good.
ii. It would have been easy for Saul to point his finger at the Amalekites or the Philistines and say, "Look at those Godless idolaters. They don't worship the true God like I do." But Saul didn't worship the true God either, because the real worship of God begins with surrender.
iii. "Though not so great, yet as inexcusable and impudent a sin as witchcraft; as plainly condemned, and as certainly destructive and damnable." (Poole)
iv. "All conscious disobedience is actually idolatry, because it makes self-will, the human I, into a god." (Keil and Delitszch)
c. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He also has rejected you from being king: In his empty
religious practice, rebellion, and stubbornness against God, Saul was rejecting God's word. So God rightly rejected him as king over Israel.
i. It would be easy to say, "What, Saul will be rejected as king because he spared a king and a few sheep and oxen? Later kings of Israel would do far worse, and not be rejected as king. Why is God being so tough on Saul?" But God saw Saul's heart, and saw how rebellious and stubborn it was. Saul's condition was like an iceberg: what was visible might be manageable in size, but there was far more under the surface that couldn't be seen. God could see it.
ii. So Saul was rejected ... from being king. Yet, it would be almost 25 years before there was another king enthroned in Israel. Saul's rejection was final, but it was not immediate. God needed almost 25 years to train up the right replacement for Saul!
1 Sam. 15:7-15, 22-23 - Pulpit Commentary
v. 7: So Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as you go to Shur, which is east of Egypt. From Havilah until thou comest to Shur. Hebrew, "from Havilah as thou goest towards Shur." It seems impossible that this Havilah can be the northwestern portion of Yemen, called Chawlan, and identified with the Havilah of Genesis 10:7, Genesis 10:29, as this would make Saul smite them from southeast to northwest. Shur, which means wall, is, as Wellhausen (Text Samuel 97) observes, originally the name of the wall which ran from Pelusium past Migdol to Hero, and which gave to Egypt, as Ebers thinks, its name Mizraim, the enclosed or fortified. Shur is again mentioned in 1 Samuel 27:8 as indicating the direction towards Egypt of the region occupied by the Amalekites. Havilah, which means circle, must have been some spot on the route to the isthmus of Suez, lying on the edge of the wilderness to the south of Judah, where Saul commenced his foray. Beginning thus upon the borders of Judaea, Saul continued his devastations up to the limits of Egypt.
v. 8: He captured Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. He took Agag. This was the official name of the Amalekite kings (see Numbers 24:7), as Pharaoh was that of the kings of Egypt. For its meaning we must wait till we know more about the language of this race. Agag, however, from 1 Samuel 15:32, seems to have been able to speak Hebrew. He utterly destroyed-i.e. put under the ban-all the people. They appear, however, again in 1 Samuel 27:8, and with so vast a wilderness in which to take refuge, it would be impossible really to exterminate a people used to lead a wandering life. Moreover, as soon as Israel began to lay hands on the spoil the pursuit would flag, as the cattle would be killed by over driving.
v. 9: But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were not willing to destroy them utterly; but everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed. The fatlings. So the Syriac and Chaldee render the word, but the Hebrew literally means "the second best." Kimchi and Tanchum give perhaps a preferable rendering, "the second born," such animals being considered superior to the first born, as the dams had by that time arrived at their full strength.
REJECTION OF SAUL AND HIS DYNASTY (1 Samuel 15:10-23).
v. 10-11: Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel, saying, 11 "I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me and has not carried out My commands." And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the LORD all night. It repenteth me. By the law of man's free will his concurrence is necessary in carrying out the Divine purpose, and consequently every man called to the execution of any such purpose undergoes a probation. God's purpose will be finally carried out, but each special instrument, if it prove unworthy, will be laid aside. This change of administration is always described in Scriptural language as God's repentance, possibly because the phrase contains also the idea of the Divine grief over the rebellious sinner. But though Saul and his dynasty were thus put aside, and no longer represented Jehovah, still Saul remained the actual king, because God works slowly by the natural sequence of cause and effect. Saul's ill-governed temper, and his hatred and malice towards David, were the means of bringing about his ruin. It grieved Samuel. Hebrew, "it burned to Samuel," i.e. he was angry and displeased. The same phrase occurs in Jonah 4:1, where it is rendered "he was very angry." But with whom was Samuel vexed? Generally at the whole course of events, but especially with Saul. In choosing him he had hoped that, in addition to high military qualities, he would possess a religious and obedient heart. He had now obtained for him a second trial, and if, warned by his earlier failure, he had proved trustworthy all might have been well. Saul had too many noble gifts for Samuel to feel indifferent at the perversion of so great an intellect and so heroic a heart. But he was of a despotic temperament, and would bend to no will but his own; and so he had saved the best of the plunder to enrich the people, and Agag possibly as a proof of his personal triumph. And he cried unto Jehovah all night. I.e. he offered an earnest prayer for forgiveness for Saul, and for a change in his heart. As Abravanel says, Samuel no doubt loved Saul for his beauty and heroism, and therefore prayed for him; but no change came in answer to his prayer, and as forgiveness is conditional upon man's repentance, Saul was not forgiven. It is remarkable how often Samuel is represented as "crying" unto God (see 1 Samuel 7:8, 1 Samuel 7:9; 1 Samuel 12:18).
v. 12: Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was told Samuel, saying, "Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on [g]down to Gilgal." Samuel rose early. If Samuel was at home at Ramah, he would have a journey of several days before reaching Carmel, the city mentioned in Joshua 15:55, on the road from Arad, on the borders of the wilderness of Judah, about ten miles southeast of Hebron. The words in the morning should be joined with rose early. Before setting out, however, Samuel learned that Saul had already marched northward towards Gilgal, having first set him up a place-Hebrew, "a hand," i.e. a monument, something to call attention to his victory. In 2 Samuel 18:18 Absalom's pillar is styled "Absalom's hand." A Hebrew trophy in honour of a victory possibly had a hand carved upon it. Gilgal was the city in the Jordan valley near Jericho, whither Samuel now followed Saul.
v. 13: Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, "Blessed are you of the LORD! I have carried out the command of the LORD." Blessed be thou of Jehovah. Saul meets Samuel with all external respect, and seems even to expect his approval, saying, I have performed the commandment of Jehovah. And so he had in the half way in which men generally keep God's commandments, doing that part which is agreeable to themselves, and leaving that part undone which gives them neither pleasure nor profit. Saul probably had thought very little about the exact terms of the command given him, and having successfully accomplished the main point of carrying out a vast foray against the Amalekites, regarded the captive king and the plundered cattle as proofs of his victory. The trophy at Carmel is a token of his own self satisfaction.
v. 14: But Samuel said, "What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?" What meaneth then this bleating? etc. Literally, "What is this voice of sheep in my ears, and the voice of oxen?" While Saul's own conscience was silent they were proclaiming his disobedience.
v. 15: Saul said, "They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen, to sacrifice to the LORD your God; but the rest we have utterly destroyed." They have brought them. No doubt this was verbally true, and very probably the excuse of holding a great sacrifice to Jehovah had been put prominently forward. But reasons are never wanting when men have made up their minds, and the people who so readily obeyed Saul before (1 Samuel 14:24, 1 Samuel 14:34, 1 Samuel 14:40) would have obeyed him now, had he really wished it. For a king so wilful and imperious as Saul thus to seek for excuses, and try to throw the blame on others, marks, as has been well observed, a thorough break down of his moral character.
vv. 22-23: Samuel said, "Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. 23 "For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has also rejected you from being king." The rebuke of Samuel contains one of those pregnant sayings which mark the high moral tone of the teaching of the prophets, and soon became a fundamental principle with them. To obey is better than sacrifice is a dictum reproduced by Hosea (Hosea 6:6), the most ancient of those prophets of Israel whose lessons have been preserved in writing; it is referred to in still earlier psalms (see Psalms 1:1-8-14; Psalms 51:16, Psalms 51:17); by other prophets (Isaiah 1:11; Jeremiah 6:20; Micah 6:6, Micah 6:8); and finally received our Lord's special approbation (Matthew 9:13; Matthew 12:7). It asserts in the clearest terms the superiority of moral to ritual worship, and that God can only be really served with the heart. Witchcraft is in the Hebrew divination, a sin always strongly condemned in the Old Testament. Iniquity literally means nothingness, and so is constantly used for "an idol;" and this must be its signification here, as the word coupled with it, and rendered idolatry, is really teraphim. These were the Hebrew household gods, answering to the Roman Lares, and were supposed to bring good luck. Their worship, we see from this place, was strictly forbidden. The verse, therefore, means, "For rebellion is the sin of divination (i.e. is equal to it in wickedness), and obstinacy (i.e. intractableness) is an idol and teraphim." Samuel thus accuses Saul of resistance to Jehovah's will, and of the determination at all hazards to be his own master. With this temper of mind he could be no fit representative of Jehovah, and therefore Samuel dethrones him. Henceforward he reigns only as a temporal, and no longer as the theocratic, king.
1 Sam. 15:7-15, 22-23 - Extra Commentary
Verses 7-11: Against Samuel's instructions (15:3), Saul "spared Agag and the best" of the livestock and then kept the choice animals for himself. This selfishness, outright rebellion against God's law, and disregard for His holiness caused God to "regret" making Saul king. God did not say His decision was a mistake, He knew all long what Saul would do. Rather, God expressed grief over the sins of Saul and the effect they had on Israel (see note on 15:29).
1 Samuel 15:7 "And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah [until] thou comest to Shur, that [is] over against Egypt."
"From Havilah ... to Shur": Saul's victory was extensive, covering much of the Amalekite territory. However, the Amalekites were not completely destroyed (27:8; 30:1).
They were nomads, so they had to hunt them down to kill them. They were scattered from Havilah to Shur. They were scattered so much that they reached almost to Egypt.
Verses 8-9: Saul's actions were in clear violation of the divine sanctions against Amalek (see the note on 1 Chron. 10:13-14).
1 Samuel 15:8 "And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword."
"Agag": Another example of Saul's incomplete obedience, in the cast of Agag, is recorded because it had such far-reaching implications. Over 5 centuries later an Agagite named Haman attempted to exterminate the Jewish race from his power base in Persia (Esther 3:1).
"All the people": The Israelites killed everyone they came across, except for the king.
The LORD told him to kill everyone. This was not keeping the commandments of the LORD to the fullest. Saul was a great earthly king, but we would have to question how he fared with the things of the Spirit. It seemed as if he could just not do exactly what God told him to do. He did most of what God told him to do, but he would not keep every detail. He was rebellious against God in this.
1 Samuel 15:9 "But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all [that was] good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing [that was] vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly."
"Saul and the people spared": Motivated by covetousness, both Saul and the people greedily spared the choice spoil of the land, disobeying God's Word and demonstrating their faithlessness.
This is a direct disobedience of God. Saul killed only the animals that are second best, and kept the best for himself. This was not what the LORD had said to do. Saul had disobeyed the LORD, again. He had been partly obedient, but he had not been totally obedient. Obedience is better than sacrifice.
1 Samuel 15:10 "Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying,"
The word of prophecy, as the Targum; this came to him in a dream or vision, or by an articulate voice: saying; as follows.
1 Samuel 15:11 "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 it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night."
"It grieved Samuel": Samuel's role as priest over the people gave him great concern over the poor performance of the king, who was like the kings of other nations (1 Sam. 6:19-20); i.e., self-centered, self-willed, and utterly disobedient to the things of God.
God's regret is an expression drawn from human experience. Yet, the "Lord" was doubtless "grieved" because of Saul's disobedience. However, such characteristics do not indicate weakness or changeability in the divine will (James 1:17; see the note on 15:29 below).
Samuel was the moral, or spiritual, leader of Israel at this time. The LORD had told Samuel specifically what Saul was to do in the destruction of the Amalekites. Saul listened, but undoubtedly did not take the details serious enough to carry through. Now the LORD is speaking through Samuel again. Saul had failed nearly every test the LORD had given him. Saul was headstrong. He felt there was always a better way to do things, than to obey the explicit will of the LORD. He had not performed the commandments the LORD had given him through Samuel. He had spared Agag alive. He also saved the very best of all of the animals. Samuel was so grieved when he heard this about Saul that he cried all night unto the LORD.
1 Samuel 15:12 "And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal."
"Carmel": This is not Mt. Carmel of Elijah fame (1 Kings 18:20), but a Carmel located 7 miles south of Hebron.
"He sat him up a place": Saul, apparently taking credit for the victory, established a monument to himself (Absalom in 2 Sam. 18:18). This foolish act of contemptible pride was Saul's expression of self-worship rather than true worship of God and another evidence of his spiritual weakness.
"Gilgal": The site of Samuel's first confrontation with Saul (13:7b-15), became the site of this pronouncement of judgment.
We see from this, Saul did not report back to Samuel. He probably knew that Samuel would be displeased with what he had done. Samuel expected him to come back to him, and report about the victory. He did not however. Saul returned to Gilgal, which is several days' journey from Samuel's home.
1 Samuel 15:13 "And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed [be] thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD."
"I have performed the commandment of the Lord": Saul, either ignorantly or deceitfully, maintained that he did what was commanded (15:20).
If he kept the commandment, why did he not come and tell Samuel? Why did Samuel have to look for him? Saul had kept part of the commandments of the Lord. He really had kept the commandments that were pleasing unto him and did not keep those which displeased him. He is like many believers in Christ, who want the salvation of Jesus Christ, but do not want Him to be their Lord.
1 Samuel 15:14 "And Samuel said, What [meaneth] then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?"
For the orders were to destroy all living creatures belonging to the Amalekites (1 Sam. 15:3), if therefore Saul had performed the commandment of the Lord, as he said he had, from whence were these sheep Samuel heard bleating?
"And the lowing of the oxen which I hear?" Where do they come from? These questions he put to convict him of the falsehood he had delivered; the bleating and lowing of these creatures proved him a liar, and were witnesses of his breach of the divine command. One would think every bleating and lowing of these must alarm his conscience, unless dreadfully stupefied.
The LORD had told Saul to kill all of the animals. He had kept the choicest animals back. The sound of the animals is convicting Saul of this sin.
1 Samuel 15:15 "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 the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed."
"The people spared the best ... to sacrifice": Saul began to place blame on others, making room for his own excuses just as he had done earlier (13:11-12). Then he tried to justify his sin by saying that the animals would be used to sacrifice to the God of Samuel. Saul's blatant disobedience at least pained his conscience so that he could not claim God as his God.
Once again "Saul," the sinner, attempts to shift the blame to others (13:11-12), or plead extenuating circumstances (verses 20-21). The practices are as old as sin itself (Gen. 3:12-13).
It appears that if Saul were going to sacrifice these choice animals, he would have gone to Samuel, instead of Samuel looking him up. In my opinion, a sacrifice should actually be the finest thing you have that belongs to you, not someone else's property. It really does not matter what he was going to do with them. He disobeyed God by taking them at all. Saul seems to have become extremely proud of his own opinion, even to overruling the will of God.
Verses 22-23: These verses reinforce the Old Testament viewpoint that religious ritual devoid of spiritual reality and a life of total allegiance to a sovereign "Lord" is worthless (Psalm 40:6-8; Isa. 1:10-20; Micah 6:8).
1 Samuel 15:22 "And Samuel said, Hath the LORD [as great] delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey [is] better than sacrifice, [and] to hearken than the fat of rams."
"To obey is better than sacrifice": This is an essential Old Testament truth. Samuel stated that God desires heart obedience over the ritual sacrifice of animals (Psalm 51:16-17; Isa. 1:10-17). The sacrificial system was never intended to function in place of living an obedient life, but was rather to be an expression of it (Hosea 6:6; Amos 5:21-27; Micah 6:6-8).
"Even if Saul's intentions had been pure, he still disobeyed God's decree. Partial obedience is just another form of disobedience (Psalm 51:17; Prov. 21:3).
This is one of the most important statements in the entire Bible. From the beginning, God has wanted His people to obey Him. Saul wanted to do things his way. He did not have his heart stayed upon God. Jesus said the same thing in the following Scripture.
John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Many times, we do not understand why God has commanded us to do something. It is not our place to question His commands. We must just do what He commands us. He knows what is best, whether we understand or not.
1 Samuel 15:23 "For rebellion [is as] the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness [is as] iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from [being] king."
"Rebellion ... stubbornness": Saul needed to see that his real worship was indicated by his behavior and not by his sacrifices. He demonstrated himself to be an idolater whose idol was himself. He had failed the conditions (12:13-15) which would have brought blessing on the nation. His disobedience here was on the same level as witchcraft and idolatry, sins worthy of death.
"Because thou has rejected ... he hath also rejected": A universal principle is given here that those who continually reject God will one day be rejected by Him. The sins of Saul caused God to immediately depose Saul and his descendants forever from the throne of Israel.
Saul had never given his heart completely over to God. He was a follower of God (He knew of God), but had never given the LORD all of his heart. Unshakeable faith in the LORD comes from a heart stayed upon God. Rebellion comes from a heart stayed upon self. A self-willed person is actually worshipping himself. This self worship is the worship of an idol. The idol just happens to be self. You can see that to rebel against God or to stubbornly try to have our way over God's way would bring complete destruction. Saul rejected the perfect will of the LORD, and the LORD in turn rejected Saul.
