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1 Samuel 15:3-11
English Standard Version
1 Samuel 15:3-11
English Standard Version
3 Now go and strike Amalek and (A)devote to destruction[a] all that they have. Do not spare them, (B)but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’”
4 So Saul summoned the people and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand men on foot, and ten thousand men of Judah. 5 And Saul came to the city of Amalek and lay in wait in the valley. 6 Then Saul said to (C)the Kenites, “Go, depart; go down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them. (D)For you showed kindness to all the people of Israel when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. 7 (E)And Saul defeated the Amalekites from (F)Havilah as far as (G)Shur, which is east of Egypt. 8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive (H)and devoted to destruction all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 (I)But Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fattened calves[b] and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was despised and worthless they devoted to destruction.
10 The word of the Lord came to Samuel: 11 (J)“I regret[c] that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and (K)has not performed my commandments.” And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Samuel 15:3 That is, set apart (devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction); also verses 8, 9, 15, 18, 20, 21
- 1 Samuel 15:9 The meaning of the Hebrew term is uncertain
- 1 Samuel 15:11 See also verses 29, 35
1 Samuel 15:3-11
New International Version
1 Samuel 15:3-11
New International Version
3 Now go, attack the Amalekites and totally(A) 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,(B) “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(C) all the way from Havilah to Shur,(D) near the eastern border of Egypt. 8 He took Agag(E) king of the Amalekites alive,(F) and all his people he totally destroyed with the sword. 9 But Saul and the army spared(G) 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(H) that I have made Saul king, because he has turned(I) away from me and has not carried out my instructions.”(J) Samuel was angry,(K) and he cried out to the Lord all that night.
Footnotes
- 1 Samuel 15:3 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them; also in verses 8, 9, 15, 18, 20 and 21.
- 1 Samuel 15:9 Or the grown bulls; the meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.