(Scripture Verses ESV taken from Biblos.com)
I Samuel 15:10-31
10 Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying, 11 “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from [f]following Me and has not carried out My commands.” And Samuel was distressed and cried out to the Lord all night. 12 Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was told Samuel, saying, “Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on [g]down to Gilgal.” 13 Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have carried out the command of the Lord.” 14 But Samuel said, “What then is this [h]bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the [i]lowing of the oxen which I hear?” 15 Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God; but the rest we have utterly destroyed.” 16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Wait, and let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” And he said to him, “Speak!”
17 Samuel said, “Is it not true, though you were little in your own eyes, you were made the head of the tribes of Israel? And the Lord anointed you king over Israel, 18 and the Lord sent you on a [j]mission, and said, ‘Go and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are exterminated.’ 19 Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but rushed upon the spoil and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord?”
20 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I did obey the voice of the Lord, and went on the [k]mission on which the Lord sent me, and have brought back Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took some of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the choicest of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.” 22 Samuel said,
“Has the Lord as much 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. 23 “For rebellion is as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king.”
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24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned; I have indeed transgressed the [l]command of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and listened to their voice. 25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me, that I may worship the Lord.” 26 But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you; for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” 27 As Samuel turned to go, Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it tore. 28 So Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to your neighbor, who is better than you. 29 Also the [m]Glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind.” 30 Then he said, “I have sinned; but please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and go back with me, that I may worship the Lord your God.” 31 So Samuel went back following Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.
There are times when we are a bit harsh on Old Testament Saints, and we recoil at the commands they were given that included at times, being agents of destruction and wrath against sinners. The point that I wanted to make about this passage of scripture is not necessarily the the folly of Saul, but the narrative between God, the prophet and appointed king. The narrative contains nuggets of truth that we can all benefit from when we truly open our hearts to what was said. In short, it teaches us about God’s ways and expecations.
The passage begins with a revelation given to Samuel about Saul’s disobedience. The Lord was grieved over Saul’s approach toward Him and because of this, he rejected Saul as king. He informed Samuel and the prophet was saddened and prayed through the night, dreading what was to follow.
Grieved and distressed, Samuel obeys God. He does not want Samuel to be removed from his newly appointed post. The people have experienced a great victory and were in one accord rallying around the new king. Samuel was about to crush the spirits of the people and the new king. Samuel acknowledged God’s sovereign right in all the affairs of the nation and the world and inclined his heart to obey. It was not Samuel’s will that mattered in this or any situation pertaining to the Kingdom of God (If only we, I could learn this lesson fully.)
Saul intellectually acquiesced to what God said, and the Lord’s right to say it, and his duty to obey the command, but he willfully defied God by refusing to carry out the mission as God prescribed it. He omitted certain parts of this mission and revised his approach toward God. The consequences were dire. He lost his kingdom, members of his family and ultimately his life. His narrative is one of the saddest in Biblical memory. His slow disintegration into madness and sorcery sends chills up the spine.
Nodding the head in agreement is easy; implementation in the face of opposition is much more difficult. Saul confessed his sin and acknowledged being afraid of the people and what they would say. He thought little of himself and even less of God’s decision to appoint him. We too struggle with believing all that God says about us. Flesh and blood in front of us presenting options and reasons for things often seem more compelling than the words an invisible God speaks to us.We must remember we are called to lead others, not follow. This is a requirement for believers. We are his sheep alone, not the sheep of everyone who claims to be a leader.
Saints we have certain advantages Saul did not: The shed blood of Christ, the assurance of election, Holy Spirit and the precious scriptures. These were not fully present in Saul’s day. It is not enough to intellectually agree with God, we must do what He says, the way He says it. Revelation 22:19 states: “And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.” The church is full of intellectual believers who have never received saving faith and they do violence to the scriptures. Fortunately this passage does not include true believers. It remains a solemn warning that God is not simply looking for people to agree with him intellectually, He wants us to follow His instructions.