In this chapter are recorded the order Saul had from the Lord to destroy Amalek utterly, 1 Sam. 15:1–3 the preparation he made to put it in execution, and the success thereof, 1 Sam.

Samuel also said unto Saul When and where he said to him what follows, it is not easy to determine, perhaps at Gilgal, where they after met again: the Lord sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel; that is, he gave him orders to anoint him king of Israel, otherwise Saul was in…

Thus saith the Lord of hosts Of the celestial host of angels, and of the army of Israel, yea, of all the armies of the earth: this is premised to engage the attention of Saul: I remember that which Amalek did to Israel; four hundred years ago: how he laid wait for him in the way when he came up…

Now go and smite Amalek This was one of the three things the Israelites were obliged to do when they came into the land of Canaan, as Kimchi observes; one was, to appoint a king over them, another, to build the house of the sanctuary, and the third, to blot out the name and memory of Amalek, see…

And Saul gathered the people together Or “made them to hear” [[16]], by the sound of a trumpet; or by sending heralds into all parts of the land to proclaim the above order of the Lord, and summon them to come to him, perhaps at Gilgal; so the Septuagint version, and Josephus [[17]]: and numbered…

And Saul came to a city of Amalek With his army, perhaps the nearest city of it to the land of Israel; though some think that Amalek was the name of the city, and was the metropolis of the nation, and had its name from thence: and laid wait in the valley; which was near the city, to intercept the…

And Saul said unto the Kenites Who were of the posterity of Jethro the father-in-law of Moses, or related to him; why Josephus go, depart, get ye down from among the Amalekites; for though some of these people came with Israel into the land of Canaan, and were first at Jericho, and then came into…

And Saul smote the Amalekites Engaging in battle with them, he overcame them, and beat them, and slew great numbers of them: from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt; having routed them in the valley, or in whatsoever place the battle was fought, he pursued them from one…

And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive This name seems to be a common name of the kings of these people, as Pharaoh was of the Egyptians, see .

And Saul and all the people spared Agag Perhaps Saul made the motion to spare him, and the people agreed to it; it may be, out of respect to him as a king; or because of the comeliness of his person, the height of his stature, and the largeness of his body, as Josephus and the best of the sheep,…

Then came the word of the Lord unto Samuel The word of prophecy, as the Targum; this came to him in a dream or vision, or by an articulate voice: saying; as follows.

It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king Which is not to be understood of any change of mind, counsel, purpose, or decree in God, which is not consistent with his unchangeable nature; but of a change of dispensation, and outward dealings, and is spoken after the manner of men, who, when…

And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning Having had no sleep since the revelation of the will of God was made unto him, and therefore rose early, being in haste to converse with Saul about it: it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel; not to Carmel where Elijah offered…

And Samuel came to Saul At Gilgal: and Saul said unto him, blessed be thou of the Lord; signifying that he had abundant reason to bless the Lord on his account, not only that he had anointed him king, but had sent him on such an errand, in which he had succeeded so well, and it was a pleasure to…

And Samuel said, what meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears For the orders were to destroy all living creatures belonging to the Amalekites, 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…

And Saul said, they have brought them from the Amalekites, &c.] That is, the people, laying the blame upon them, as Adam did on his wife, as if he had no concern at all in it, when it is clear from he was the principal one; nor is it probable the people should do this of themselves, without his…

Then Samuel said unto Saul, stay Stop a little, do not be in haste to be gone, as he might seem to be, fearing a reproof, and that something would be said to him not very agreeable; or “suffer” [[2]] me, that is, to speak, give me leave to say a few words; for Saul being a king, Samuel treats him…

And Samuel said, when thou wast little in thine own sight, &c.] Humble and lowly, and had a mean opinion of himself, his family and tribe, and judged himself unworthy of the kingdom; see suggesting, that now he was proud and haughty, and would have his own will and way: wast thou not made the head…

And the Lord sent thee on a journey And therefore he ought to have attended to the errand sent upon, and executed the orders given; in vain, therefore, was it to lay the blame on the people: and said, go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites; those notorious sinners, who deserve no mercy…

Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord Who had made him king, and sent him on this errand, and gave him such plain directions, and such strong orders to make an entire consumption of Amalek: but didst fly upon the spoil; like a bird of prey, such as an eagle or vulture, not to…

And Saul said to Samuel, yea, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord Here Saul breaks in upon Samuel before he had declared all that the Lord had said unto him; for having expostulated with him for not obeying the voice of the Lord, he could not forbear interrupting him, but with the utmost assurance…

But the people took the spoil, the sheep and oxen Still he continues to lay the blame on the people, when he, as king, ought to have restrained them: the chief of the things, which should have been utterly destroyed; this betrays him, and is an evidence against him; he could not plead ignorance, he…

And Samuel said In reply to Saul: hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? no, certainly, the one being merely ceremonial, the other moral; the one supposes sin committed, for which sacrifice is offered; the other moral, and is a…

For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft Or divination [[4]], in whatsoever way it was exercised; for there were various sorts of it among the Heathens, and all condemned by the law of God, .

And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned This confession of his sin does not appear to be ingenuous, cordial, and sincere, and was made chiefly for the sake of getting the sentence of rejecting him from being king reversed: for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and thy words; which…

Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin It can hardly be thought that Saul was so ignorant as to imagine that Samuel could pardon his sin, as committed against God, which none but God can do, but that he would forgive it, so far as he had offended him; or rather his meaning is, that as he was a…

And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee Not being satisfied with his repentance and confession, he still extenuating his sin, and laying the blame of it on the people.

And as Samuel turned about to go away From Saul, a different way from Gilgal, perhaps towards his own city Ramah, with an intention to have nothing more to say to Saul, or to do with him, or to see his face no more; so displeased was he with him: he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle; in order…

And Samuel said unto him, the Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day Seeing his mantle rent by Saul, he took occasion from thence to predict, and no doubt it was impressed on his mind by the Spirit of God, that his kingdom should be in a like manner rent from him, on account of his…

And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent Neither of the evil which he had threatened to Saul in taking away the kingdom from him; nor of the good which he had promised to David in giving it to him; nor of his purpose and promise to Israel to protect and defend them, save and deliver…

Then he said, I have sinned So he had said before, but his confession there was attended with an extenuation of his sin, pleading in excuse of it that it was through fear of the people, but here it is without any; and yet by what follows it appears to be not ingenuous and sincere, but hypocritical:…

So Samuel turned again after Saul Though he before said he would not, yet he did, changing his mind, as he might without being chargeable with a lie; and he also might have an impulse from the Lord so to do, and which he did not in order to worship with Saul, which it does not appear he did, but…

Then said Samuel, bring you hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites This he said very probably to some of Saul’s officers, and in his presence, and before all the people met together for sacrifice: and Agag came unto him delicately; fat and plump, as the Vulgate Latin version, and yet…

And Samuel said, as thy sword hath made women childless Or, “bereaved [[17]]” them, not of their children only, but of their husbands also, and so made them both childless and widows; by which it appears that he was a cruel prince, and justly died for his own barbarity and wickedness, as well as…

Then Samuel went to Ramah His native place, and where was his usual residence: and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul; which was also his birth place, and where was his father’s house, and where he had his palace, and kept his court; and took its name from him, to distinguish it from…

And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death Or “added not to see him” [[22]]; not that he saw him no more, he saw him afterwards, , but it was accidentally, he did not go to see him, but Saul came to him; and Abarbinel supposes he might not see him then, but hid his face from…