1 Samuel 15:7-9

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:1-9

Here, I. Samuel, in God's name, solemnly requires Saul to be obedient to the command of God, and plainly intimates that he was now about to put him upon a trial, in one particular instance, whether he would be obedient or no, 1 Sam. 15:1. And the making of this so expressly the trial of his obedience did very much aggravate his disobedience. 1. He reminds him of what God had done for him: ?The Lord sent me to anoint thee to be a king. God gave thee thy power, and therefore he expects thou... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:7

And Saul smote the Amalekites ,.... Engaging in battle with them, he overcame them, and beat them, and slew great numbers of them: from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt ; having routed them in the valley, or in whatsoever place the battle was fought, he pursued them from one end of their country to the other; from Havilah, which lay to the northeast, to Shur, which lay to the southwest, and destroyed all that came in his way between those two points, see ... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:8

And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive ,.... This name seems to be a common name of the kings of these people, as Pharaoh was of the Egyptians, see Numbers 24:2 . When this king fell into the hands of Saul, he did not put him to death, as he should have done, but preserved him; for what reasons, see in the following verse: and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword ; that is, all that came in his way, or fell into his hands; all between Havilah and Shur;... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:9

And Saul and all the people spared Agag ,.... Perhaps Saul made the motion to spare him, and the people agreed to it; it may be, out of respect to him as a king; or because of the comeliness of his person, the height of his stature, and the largeness of his body, as Josephus F25 Ut supra, (Antiqu. l. 6. c. 7.) sect. 2. notes; or to carry him in triumph in a public show, see 1 Samuel 15:12 . and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings ; or "of the second sort",... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Samuel 15:7

From Havilah - to Shur - From Pelusium in Egypt, unto the Red Sea. - Josephus. But Havilah lay eastward from the Red Sea; the Amalekites lay between this and the way to Egypt towards Shur. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:1-7

God's terrible acts. The facts are— 1 . Saul is reminded that though a king he is but the servant of God, and bound to carry out his declared will. 2 . Saul is commanded to utterly destroy Amalek in retribution for former sins. 3 . In prosecuting his duty Saul discriminates in favour of the Kenites, then resident among the Amalekites, in consequence of their former kindness to Israel. It appears from 1 Samuel 14:48 that, although the sin of Amalek in bygone times ( Exodus... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:7

From Havilah until thou comest to Shur. Hebrew, "from Havilah as thou goest towards Shur." It seems impossible that this Havilah can be the northwestern portion of Yemen, called Chawlan, and identified with the Havilah of Genesis 10:7 , Genesis 10:29 , as this would make Saul smite them from southeast to northwest. Shur , which means wall, is, as Wellhausen (Text Samuel 97) observes, originally the name of the wall which ran from Pelusium past Migdol to Hero, and which gave to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:8

He took Agag. This was the official name of the Amalekite kings (see Numbers 24:7 ), as Pharaoh was that of the kings of Egypt. For its meaning we must wait till we know more about the language of this race. Agag, however, from 1 Samuel 15:32 , seems to have been able to speak Hebrew. He utterly destroyed — i.e. put under the ban— all the people. They appear, however, again in 1 Samuel 27:8 , and with so vast a wilderness in which to take refuge, it would be impossible really to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:8-11

The limits of patience. The facts are— 1 . Saul, in disobedience to the command of God, spares Agag and the best of the spoil. 2 . God declares to Samuel that he can endure with Saul as king no longer. 3 . Samuel, in his grief, cries unto God all night. It is never said that God changes his purpose absolutely. Where promises are given conditional on conduct they are revoked when conduct fails. We cannot ascribe human feelings to God; yet it is only by the analogy of human... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:9

The fatlings. So the Syriac and Chaldee render the word, but the Hebrew literally means "the second best." Kimchi and Tanchum give perhaps a preferable rendering, "the second born," such animals being considered superior to the first born, as the dams had by that time arrived at their full strength. REJECTION OF SAUL AND HIS DYNASTY ( 1 Samuel 15:10-23 ). read more

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