10. Then came the word of the Lord unto Samuel, saying,
11. It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the Lord all night.
12. And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal.
13. And Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the Lord; I have performed the commandment of the Lord.
14. And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?
15. And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.
16. Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the Lord hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on.
17. And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the Lord anointed thee king over Israel?
18. And the Lord sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.
19. Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the Lord, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the Lord?
Golden Text: “To obey is better than sacrifice.” Vs. 22.
20. 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.
21. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God in Gilgal.
22. 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.
23. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.
Note.—Our last lesson had reference to the choosing of Saul as king. Between the events of that lesson and the text brought to view in the present one, Saul had been subjected to his first great test, and failed (see 1 Sam. 13:1-14); but the Lord did not then cut off Saul himself; he was given further trial and opportunity to retrieve his individual character.
Suggestive Questions
(1) What word of the Lord came to Samuel? Verses 10, 11. Note 1. (2) How was Samuel affected by the rejection of Saul? Verse 11, last part. Note 2. (3) What was told to Samuel in the morning? Verse 12. (4) What was Saul’s salutation when Samuel came to him? Verse 13. Note 3. (5) How did Samuel answer Saul’s claim to obedience? Verse 14. (6) What was Saul’s reply? Verse 15. Notes 4 and 5. (7) What did Samuel propose to tell Saul? Verse 16. (8) What did Saul say to this proposition? Same verse. (9) Of what did Samuel then remind Saul? Verse 17. Note 6. (10) On what mission had the Lord sent Saul? Verse 18. (11) What pointed question did Samuel ask of Saul? Verse 19. (12) What obstinate reply did Saul make to this question? Verse 20. Note 7. (13) How did he show his personal disregard of the Lord? Verse 21. Note 7. (14) How did Samuel show the relative merits of obedience and sacrifice? Verse 22. Note 8. (15) With what did he compare the sins of rebellion and stubbornness? Verse 23. Note 9.
Notes
1. The commandment to Saul to utterly destroy the Amalekites and all that they had, was his second great test as to whether he would honor and obey the Lord, who had so highly honored him. And it was his final test. In this he showed that he had “turned back from following” the Lord; that is, his apostasy was complete and settled. The Lord knew that his heart was incorrigible; therefore his probation was closed. The example of Saul, as well as that of the Amalekites, shows that it is possible to pass the line of hope and of divine forbearance while in the full vigor of life, and that the Lord withdraws his Spirit when that line is passed.
2. The good spirit of Samuel is manifest in his grief over the downfall of King Saul. It will be remembered that Saul was made king because the people had rejected the government of Samuel and demanded a king. Had Samuel been a mere politician, actuated by a desire for worldly honors, he14would have rejoiced to see the fall of one who had been set up on the ruins of his own rejected administration. But he was grieved to see the once humble young man, whom he had anointed king by command of the Lord, and whom the Lord had so signally blessed and honored, recklessly throwing away not only his bright prospects, but also those of his family.
3. Although in his heart Saul had utterly “turned back” from the Lord, he still professed to keep his commandments. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” Jer. 17:9, 10. That there are many people self-deceived in their ideas of obedience is shown by the Saviour in Matt. 7:22, 23: “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
4. When Saul was confronted with the evidence that he had not obeyed the commandment of the Lord, but had spared of the sheep and oxen of the Amalekites, he laid the blame upon the people. It is very seldom that a backslider does not find excuse for his apostasy in the action of some one else. Self-defense is always the resort of the unregenerate heart when brought face to face with its faults. It is a poor defense, one on which even the righteous dare not rely. David says, “The Lord is my defense” (Ps. 94:22), and of the heathen Joshua said, “Their defense is departed from them, and the Lord is with us” (Num. 14:9).
5. The pretext that the sheep and oxen taken from the Amalekites were for a sacrifice to the Lord was exceedingly lame. The Lord had given express command that all these be destroyed, which was positive evidence that he did not want them. Moreover, it would be an offering by the people of that which did not belong to them, and could not properly be called a sacrifice. The real design was to have a great jollification to glorify their own achievement.
6. Samuel reminds Saul of his humble disposition when first anointed king. It will be remembered that Samuel anointed him while he was out hunting for his father’s asses, and that when he went home, he told about his seeing the prophet, but made no mention of his having been anointed king. And when Samuel called the people together to show them whom the Lord had chosen for them, Saul hid himself, and had to be hunted out from his hiding place in order to be presented to the people as their king. Such was the humility which the Lord chose to honor and bless, and had he remained humble and obedient, the blessing of God would have abode upon him and upon his family after him. But “pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” Prov. 16:18.
7. Saul’s real spirit of selfish obstinacy was manifested when he insisted that he had “obeyed the voice of the Lord,” and showed the live king of the Amalekites as proof, when the Lord had told him to destroy every person and everything. But his attitude rose to the point of defiance when he said to Samuel that the people had taken the sheep and oxen “to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God.” This was a bold denial of the God of Israel, and showed that the Lord had judged rightly when he told Samuel that Saul had “turned back” from following him.
8. God has not commanded offerings and sacrifices because he needs anything. They are tests of loyal obedience. No sacrifice can take the place of obedience. Grace rejected by disobedience cannot be purchased by unholy sacrifice. See Jer. 6:18-20. God demands obedience first and all the time, and nothing else can take its place. In the spirit of obedience we have the highest example in Jesus Christ, who “became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” Phil. 2:8. He could say, “I delight to do thy will, O my God; yea, thy law is within my heart.” Ps. 40:8.
9. Disobedience is rebellion, and “rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft.” The sin of witchcraft was punishable with death in Israel (Ex. 22:18); and from this rebuke of King Saul we may learn how God regards the disobedience of his commandments. We also learn from Mark 7:9 that those who hold to the traditions of men thereby reject the commandments of God.
