1 Samuel 15:22

1 Samuel 15:22 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)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.
• New International Version (NIV)But Samuel replied: “Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And Samuel said, "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 listen than the fat of rams.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So Samuel said: “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.

Context of 1 Samuel 15:22

20Saul said to Samuel, ‘I did obey the Lord! I did the job that the Lord told me to do. I killed all the Amalekites and I brought back Agag, their king. 21But the army did not kill all the sheep and cows that they took from the Amalekites. They brought the best animals to offer as a sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.’ But Samuel said, ‘What makes the Lord happy? Which is better? Is he more pleased when people offer burnt offerings and sacrifices to him? Or is he more pleased when people obey him? Listen! It is better to obey the Lord than to offer sacrifices to him. That is true even if you offer to him the best animals that you have. 23You have turned against God. That is worse than using magic. You think that you know what is right better than God does. That is as bad as worshipping idols. You decided not to obey the Lord's command. Now the Lord has decided that you will not be king any longer.’ 24Then Saul said to Samuel, ‘It is true, I have done a bad thing. I did not obey the Lord's command. I did not do what you told me to do. I was afraid of the army. I agreed to do what they wanted.

1 Samuel 15:22 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר שְׁמוּאֵ֗ל הַחֵ֤פֶץ לַֽיהוָה֙ בְּעֹל֣וֹת וּזְבָחִ֔ים כִּשְׁמֹ֖עַ בְּק֣וֹל יְהוָ֑ה הִנֵּ֤ה שְׁמֹ֙עַ֙ מִזֶּ֣בַח ט֔וֹב לְהַקְשִׁ֖יב מֵחֵ֥לֶב אֵילִֽים׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Samuelשְׁמוּאֵלshemû'êl · SamuelH8050
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Hath the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• delightחֵ֫פֶץchêphets · pleasureH2656
• in burnt offeringsעֹלָה‛ôlâh ‛ôlâh · burnt offeringH5930
• and sacrificesזֶ֫בַחzebach · sacrificeH2077
• as in obeyingשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: obeyH8085
• the voiceקוֹלqôl qôl · voiceH6963
• betterטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
• to hearkenקָשַׁבqâshab · to listenH7181
• than the fatחֵ֫לֶבcheleb chêleb · fatH2459
• of ramsאַ֫יִל'ayil · ramH352

Cross-references for 1 Samuel 15:22

• Psalms 50:8You offer sacrifices and burnt offerings to me all the time but that is not why I speak against you.
• Psalms 51:16I would be happy to offer sacrifices to you, but that is not what you really want. You do not want a burnt offering from me.
• Proverbs 21:3If you do what is right and fair, it pleases the Lord more than sacrifices.
• Isaiah 1:11The Lord says, ‘All your sacrifices are not important to me. I have received too many sacrifices that you have burned as gifts to me. I have received too many sheep and fat animals. I do not want any more blood from bulls, goats and lambs that you have offered to me as sacrifices. They do not give me any pleasure.
• Jeremiah 7:22Remember this: I brought your ancestors safely out of Egypt. Then I gave them my commands. Those commands were not only about burnt offerings and sacrifices.
• Hosea 6:6It is faithful love that makes me happy. That would be better than your sacrifices to me. You should know me as your God. That would be better than your burnt offerings.
• Amos 5:21The Lord says, ‘When you have your festivals, I hate them! When you meet to worship me, it does not make me happy!
• Micah 6:6‘I come to meet with the Lord,’ you say. ‘I must know what to bring when I come. I bend down to worship him. I must know what to offer when I bend down. He is God and he is greater than everything. Perhaps he would like it if I burn young cows one year old for him.
• Matthew 9:13Go and study what it says in the Bible. God says there, “I want people to be kind to each other. I do not want them only to offer sacrifices to me.” Some people think that they always obey God. I did not come to help people like that. Some people know that they have done wrong things. I am asking those people to come to me for help.’
• Matthew 12:7You should understand what the Bible teaches. God says there, “I want people to be kind to each other. I do not just want them to offer sacrifices to me.” If you had understood this, then you would not have said to me, “Your disciples are doing something wrong.”
• Matthew 23:23It will be very bad for you, teachers of God's Law and Pharisees. You are hypocrites! When you grow spices to cook with food, you give a tenth part of these small things to God. You are right to obey this rule. But you do not obey the more important parts of God's Law. You do not help people in a good way. You are not kind to them. You do not always do what God says is right. You should have done these important things as well as the other small things.
• Hebrews 10:4We know that the blood of bulls and of goats cannot remove the punishment for sins.
• Exodus 19:5Now you must be careful to obey me and my covenant with you. Then you will belong to me as my special people. The whole earth belongs to me, and I have chosen you from among all the nations.
• Ecclesiastes 5:1When you go to God's temple, be careful what you do. Listen carefully when you come near to God. Do not offer sacrifices in the way that foolish people do. They do not even know that they are doing something bad.
• Jeremiah 7:23I also told them, “Obey me. Then I will be your God, and you will be my people. You must live in the way that I have commanded you. If you do that, you will enjoy your lives.”
• Jeremiah 11:4I gave those rules to your ancestors when I brought them safely out of Egypt. That place was like a hot oven where they were in great pain. At that time, I said to them, ‘Obey me and do everything that I command you to do. If you obey my covenant with you, you will be my people and I will be your God.

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 15:22

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 22Hath the Lord as great delight, etc. - This was a very proper answer to, and refutation of Saul's excuse. Is not obedience to the will of God the end of all religion, of its rites, ceremonies, and sacrifices?Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 22Hath the Lord … - A grand example of the moral and spiritual teaching of the prophets (see the marginal references). The tension of Samuel‘s spirit, as he is about to pronounce the sentence of rejection, produces a lyrical turn of thought and language.Read the comment
• 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. 22Does the LORD delight: God values obedience more than ritual acts (see also Psalm 40:6; Hosea 6:6; Matthew 12:7). the fat of rams: People offered the best parts of the animal to God.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 15:22

• Amalekites
• Church and State
• Falsehood
• Formalism
• Gilgal
• Minister, Christian
• Obedience
• Offerings
• Presumption
• Repentance
• Reproof
• Rulers
• Saul
• Self-Righteousness
• Self-Will

In the dictionaries

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

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