LISTEN NOW TO THE LORD’S MESSAGE

1 Samuel 15:1-15 / Keywords 15:1b

…so listen now to the message from the LORD.

 

The Lord Rejects Saul as King

15 Samuel said to Saul, “I am the one the Lord sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from the Lord. 2 This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘I will punish the Amalekites for what they did to Israel when they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. 3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally destroy[a] all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, cattle and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”

4 So Saul summoned the men and mustered them at Telaim—two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand from Judah. 5 Saul went to the city of Amalek and set an ambush in the ravine. 6 Then he said to the Kenites, “Go away, leave the Amalekites so that I do not destroy you along with them; for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites.

7 Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt. 8 He took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. 9 But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves[b] and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed.

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

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

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

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

15 Saul 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.”

Footnotes

a. 1 Samuel 15:3 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them; also in verses 8, 9, 15, 18, 20 and 21.

b. 1 Samuel 15:9 Or the grown bulls; the meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.

1. The LORD Almighty opened another opportunity for Saul to listen, repent, and obey. The LORD had anointed Saul king over Israel. Now was the time to listen to the LORD Almighty’s message. This was God’s grace to help Saul. God would punish the Amalekites for their past sins against Israel. God commanded Saul to attack the Amalekites and totally destroy them.

 

2. Saul started well. He mustered a huge fighting force. He warned the Kenites to evacuate from the territory they shared with the Amalekites. Then Saul attacked and pursued the Amalekites all the way to Egypt. But Saul disobeyed the heart of God’s command. He spared the king and everything that was good. God regretted making Saul king because Saul did not truly listen. Samuel prayed all night and then confronted Saul. Saul justified his disobedience. He even built a monument to himself. He was led by his pride, not God’s word.

 

3. Listening to God’s word requires a response of repentance, surrender, and obedience to the LORD. God will not command us to destroy people. But he commands us to love him with all our heart, soul, and strength. We are commanded to follow Jesus and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Will you listen to God’s message, today?

 

Prayer Father, forgive our rebellious and proud hearts. We want nothing more than to obey you.

One Word Listen to God’s word