1 Samuel 15:20

1 Samuel 15:20 in other versions

• King James Version (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.
• New International Version (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.
• English Standard Version (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.
• New King James Version (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.

Context of 1 Samuel 15:20

18And Jehovah sent thee on a way and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. 19Why then didst thou not hearken to the voice of Jehovah, but didst fall upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of Jehovah? And Saul said to Samuel, I have indeed hearkened to the voice of Jehovah, and have gone the way which Jehovah sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the choicest of the devoted things, to sacrifice to Jehovah thy God in Gilgal. 22And Samuel said, Has Jehovah delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, As in hearkening to the voice of Jehovah? Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, Attention than the fat of rams.

1 Samuel 15:20 word by word

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר שָׁא֜וּל אֶל־שְׁמוּאֵ֗ל אֲשֶׁ֤ר שָׁמַ֙עְתִּי֙ בְּק֣וֹל יְהוָ֔ה וָאֵלֵ֕ךְ בַּדֶּ֖רֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־שְׁלָחַ֣נִי יְהוָ֑ה וָאָבִ֗יא אֶת־אֲגַג֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ עֲמָלֵ֔ק וְאֶת־עֲמָלֵ֖ק הֶחֱרַֽמְתִּי׃Read the interlinear

• Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Samuelשְׁמוּאֵלshemû'êl · SamuelH8050
• voiceקוֹלqôl qôl · voiceH6963
• goneבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: conductH1870
• sentשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
• Agagאֲגָג'ăgag · AgagH90
• kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• Amalekעֲמָלֵק‛ămâlêq · AmalekH6002

Cross-references for 1 Samuel 15:20

• 1 Samuel 15:13And Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said to him, Blessed art thou of Jehovah: I have fulfilled the word of Jehovah.
• Job 33:9I am clean without transgression; I am pure, and there is no iniquity in me;
• Job 34:5For Job hath said, I am righteous, and God hath taken away my judgment:
• Job 35:2Thinkest thou this to be right, that thou saidst, My righteousness is more than God's?
• Job 40:8Wilt thou also annul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me that thou mayest be righteous?
• Matthew 19:20The young man says to him, All these have I kept; what lack I yet?
• Luke 10:29But he, desirous of justifying himself, said to Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
• Luke 18:11The Pharisee, standing, prayed thus to himself: God, I thank thee that I am not as the rest of men, rapacious, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax-gatherer.
• Romans 10:3For they, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and seeking to establish their own [righteousness], have not submitted to the righteousness of God.
• 1 Samuel 15:3Now go and smite Amalek, and destroy utterly all that they have, and spare them not, but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 15:20

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-23Verses 10-23 Repentance in God is not a change of mind, as it is in us, but a change of method. The change was in Saul; "He is turned back from following me." Hereby he made God his enemy. Samuel spent a whole night in pleading for Saul. The rejection of sinners is the grief of believers: God delights not in their death, nor should we. Saul boasts to Samuel of his obedience. Thus sinners think, by justifying themselves, to escape being judged of the Lord…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-35After Saul disobeyed God by not completely destroying the Amalekites, God rejected him more strongly than before (see 1 Samuel 13:8–14).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 13-2313-23. Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the Lord: I have performed the commandment of the Lord--Saul was either blinded by a partial and delusive self-love, or he was, in his declaration to Samuel, acting the part of a bold and artful hypocrite. He professed to have fulfilled the divine command, and that the blame of any defects in the execution lay with the people. Samuel saw the real state of the case, and in discharge of the commission he had…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Samuel 15:20

• Amalekites
• Church and State
• Falsehood
• Gilgal
• Minister, Christian
• Presumption
• Repentance
• Reproof
• Responsibility
• Rulers
• Self-Righteousness
• Self-Will

In the dictionaries

• Amalek
• Samuel
• Saul
• Agag
• Better
• Chief
• Pardon
• Reject
• Skirt
• Arabia

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings