15:1 撒母耳對掃羅說：「耶和華差遣我膏你為王，治理他的百姓以色列；所以你當聽從耶和華的話。
15:2 萬軍之耶和華如此說：『以色列人出埃及的時候，在路上亞瑪力人怎樣待他們，怎樣抵擋他們，我都沒忘。
15:3 現在你要去擊打亞瑪力人，滅盡他們所有的，不可憐惜他們，將男女、孩童、吃奶的，並牛、羊、駱駝，和驢盡行殺死。』」
15:4 於是掃羅招聚百姓在提拉因，數點他們，共有步兵二十萬，另有猶大人一萬。
15:5 掃羅到了亞瑪力的京城，在谷中設下埋伏。
15:6 掃羅對基尼人說：「你們離開亞瑪力人下去吧，恐怕我將你們和亞瑪力人一同殺滅；因為以色列人出埃及的時候，你們曾恩待他們。」於是基尼人離開亞瑪力人去了。
15:7 掃羅擊打亞瑪力人，從哈腓拉直到埃及前的書珥，
15:8 生擒了亞瑪力王亞甲，用刀殺盡亞瑪力的眾民。
15:9 掃羅和百姓卻憐惜亞甲，也愛惜上好的牛、羊、牛犢、羊羔，並一切美物，不肯滅絕。凡下賤瘦弱的，盡都殺了。
15:10 耶和華的話臨到撒母耳說：
15:11 「我立掃羅為王，我後悔了；因為他轉去不跟從我，不遵守我的命令。」撒母耳便甚憂愁，終夜哀求耶和華。
15:12 撒母耳清早起來，迎接掃羅。有人告訴撒母耳說：「掃羅到了迦密，在那裡立了紀念碑，又轉身下到吉甲。」
15:13 撒母耳到了掃羅那裡，掃羅對他說：「願耶和華賜福與你，耶和華的命令我已遵守了。」
15:14 撒母耳說：「我耳中聽見有羊叫、牛鳴，是從哪裡來的呢？」
15:15 掃羅說：「這是百姓從亞瑪力人那裡帶來的；因為他們愛惜上好的牛羊，要獻與耶和華─你的上帝；其餘的，我們都滅盡了。」
15:16 撒母耳對掃羅說：「你住口吧！等我將耶和華昨夜向我所說的話告訴你。」掃羅說：「請講。」
15:17 撒母耳對掃羅說：「從前你雖然以自己為小，豈不是被立為以色列支派的元首嗎？耶和華膏你作以色列的王。
15:18 耶和華差遣你，吩咐你說，你去擊打那些犯罪的亞瑪力人，將他們滅絕淨盡。
15:19 你為何沒有聽從耶和華的命令，急忙擄掠財物，行耶和華眼中看為惡的事呢？」
15:20 掃羅對撒母耳說：「我實在聽從了耶和華的命令，行了耶和華所差遣我行的路，擒了亞瑪力王亞甲來，滅盡了亞瑪力人。
15:21 百姓卻在所當滅的物中，取了最好的牛羊，要在吉甲獻與耶和華─你的上帝。」
15:22 撒母耳說：耶和華喜悅燔祭和平安祭，豈如喜悅人聽從他的話呢？聽命勝於獻祭；順從勝於公羊的脂油。
15:23 悖逆的罪與行邪術的罪相等；頑梗的罪與拜虛神和偶像的罪相同。你既厭棄耶和華的命令，耶和華也厭棄你作王。
15:24 掃羅對撒母耳說：「我有罪了，我因懼怕百姓，聽從他們的話，就違背了耶和華的命令和你的言語。
15:25 現在求你赦免我的罪，同我回去，我好敬拜耶和華。」
15:26 撒母耳對掃羅說：「我不同你回去；因為你厭棄耶和華的命令，耶和華也厭棄你作以色列的王。」
15:27 撒母耳轉身要走，掃羅就扯住他外袍的衣襟，衣襟就撕斷了。
15:28 撒母耳對他說：「如此，今日耶和華使以色列國與你斷絕，將這國賜與比你更好的人。
15:29 以色列的大能者必不致說謊，也不致後悔；因為他迥非世人，決不後悔。」
15:30 掃羅說：「我有罪了，雖然如此，求你在我百姓的長老和以色列人面前抬舉我，同我回去，我好敬拜耶和華─你的上帝。」
15:31 於是撒母耳轉身跟隨掃羅回去，掃羅就敬拜耶和華。
15:32 撒母耳說：「要把亞瑪力王亞甲帶到我這裡來。」亞甲就歡歡喜喜地來到他面前，心裡說，死亡的苦難必定過去了。
15:33 撒母耳說：「你既用刀使婦人喪子，這樣，你母親在婦人中也必喪子。」於是，撒母耳在吉甲耶和華面前將亞甲殺死。
15:34 撒母耳回了拉瑪。掃羅上他所住的基比亞，回自己的家去了。
15:35 撒母耳直到死的日子，再沒有見掃羅；但撒母耳為掃羅悲傷，是因耶和華後悔立他為以色列的王。
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.”
16 “Enough!”
Samuel said to Saul. “Let me tell you what the Lord
said to me last night.”
“Tell
me,” Saul replied.
17 Samuel
said, “Although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the
head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord
anointed you king over Israel. 18 And he sent you on a mission,
saying, ‘Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; wage
war against them until you have wiped them out.’ 19 Why did you
not obey the Lord? Why did you
pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the Lord?”
20 “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. 21 The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder,
the best of what was devoted to God, in order to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal.”
22 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.
23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
he has rejected you as king.”
24 Then
Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I violated the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of the
men and so I gave in to them. 25 Now I beg you, forgive my sin
and come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord.”
26 But
Samuel said to him, “I will not go back with you. You have rejected the word of
the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you as king over
Israel!”
27 As
Samuel turned to leave, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe, and it tore. 28 Samuel
said to him, “The Lord has torn
the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your
neighbors—to one better than you. 29 He who is the Glory of
Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he
should change his mind.”
30 Saul
replied, “I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and
before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.” 31 So
Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.
32 Then
Samuel said, “Bring me Agag king of the Amalekites.”
Agag
came to him in chains.[c] And he
thought, “Surely the bitterness of death is past.”
33 But
Samuel said,
“As
your sword has made women childless,
so will your mother be childless among women.”
And
Samuel put Agag to death before the Lord
at Gilgal.
34 Then
Samuel left for Ramah, but Saul went up to his home in Gibeah of Saul. 35 Until
the day Samuel died, he did not go to see Saul again, though Samuel mourned for
him. And the Lord regretted that
he had made Saul king over Israel.
***************
掃羅在這裡完完全全顯露出自己的本性，不遵守上帝的命令之外，更是一個虛假推諉的人，根本沒有君王的風範！讓撒母耳非常痛心，竟然讓這樣的人成為以色列的王，真是有辱上帝的名！
上帝命令掃羅說：「現在你要去擊打亞瑪力人，滅盡他們所有的，不可憐惜他們，將男女、孩童、吃奶的，並牛、羊、駱駝，和驢盡行殺死。」
掃羅有遵守嗎？當然沒有！正如聖經說：「掃羅和百姓卻憐惜亞甲，也愛惜上好的牛、羊、牛犢、羊羔，並一切美物，不肯滅絕。凡下賤瘦弱的，盡都殺了。」
掃羅表面上對先知撒母耳說遵守上的的命令，但是撒母耳沒有在場，就說一套、做一套！還好上帝都看見了，就將掃羅的行徑告訴撒母耳：「我立掃羅為王，我後悔了；因為他轉去不跟從我，不遵守我的命令。」
在這事上好像是上帝「做得不好」，很失敗的樣子！其實問題並不是出在上帝，而是人自取其辱，不知珍惜上帝高舉他，反倒自以為是、任意而為！不僅如此，還以獻祭給上帝為理由，好像上帝很好收買一樣！所以，撒母耳對他說：「耶和華喜悅燔祭和平安祭，豈如喜悅人聽從他的話呢？聽命勝於獻祭；順從勝於公羊的脂油。悖逆的罪與行邪術的罪相等；頑梗的罪與拜虛神和偶像的罪相同。你既厭棄耶和華的命令，耶和華也厭棄你作王。」
從掃羅的行徑，看到今日基督徒流行的想法，似乎和掃羅很像！以為有多人聚會，辦得很熱鬧、很有氣氛就是復興，其實背後都是人的想法作祟，好大喜功、追求名利、榮耀自己的名、…；一切都不是照著上帝的旨意，都是照人的想法，想假造復興、敬虔、教會增長、…，到頭來都是建造巴別塔！
求主幫助今日基督徒，不要受到今世的風俗的影響，從新回到真正的敬虔，就像宗教改革時代的日內瓦，在有識之士加爾文的領導下成為典範！就像英國的清教徒、蘇格蘭的長老教會、《多特信經》發表之後的荷蘭改革宗教會、或是遵循《海德堡要裡問答》的德國改革宗教會、…，這些都是敬畏上帝典範！
是的！「耶和華喜悅燔祭和平安祭，豈如喜悅人聽從他的話呢？聽命勝於獻祭；順從勝於公羊的脂油。悖逆的罪與行邪術的罪相等；頑梗的罪與拜虛神和偶像的罪相同。」
