1 Samuel 15:8

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 15:8

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

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

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - 1 Samuel 15:8

The saving Agag alive was in direct violation of the devotion to destruction. read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - 1 Samuel 15:7-8

1 Samuel 15:7-8. To Shur That is, from one end of their country to the other; he smote all that he met with: but a great number of them fled away upon the noise of his coming, and secured themselves in other places, till the storm was over. Destroyed all Whom he found. Now they paid dear for the sins of their ancestors. They were themselves guilty of idolatry and numberless sins, for which they deserved to be cut off. Yet, when God would reckon with them, he fixes upon this as the ground... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - 1 Samuel 15:1-35

War against the Amalekites (15:1-35)The Amalekites came under the same curse as those Canaanite nations that were to be destroyed (15:1-3; cf. Exodus 17:8-16; Deuteronomy 20:16-18; Deuteronomy 25:17-19). Again Saul’s obedience was tested, and again he failed. His kingly power gave him no right to alter God-given instructions to suit himself (4-9).God sent Samuel to tell Saul of the consequences of his disobedience (10-16; cf. 13:13-14). Religious sacrifices and military victories were no... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - 1 Samuel 15:8

Kenites . Said to be the same as the Rechabites. Go, depart. Note the Figure of speech Asyndeton in 1 Samuel 15:6 . read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - 1 Samuel 15:8

8, 9. he took Agag . . . alive—This was the common title of the Amalekite kings. He had no scruple about the apparent cruelty of it, for he made fierce and indiscriminate havoc of the people. But he spared Agag, probably to enjoy the glory of displaying so distinguished a captive, and, in like manner, the most valuable portions of the booty, as the cattle. By this wilful and partial obedience to a positive command [ :-], complying with it in some parts and violating it in others, as suited his... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - 1 Samuel 15:1-35

5. Yahweh’s final rejection of Saul ch. 15"In the short pericope 1 Samuel 13:7-15 a obedience was the stone on which Saul stumbled; here it is the rock that crushes him." [Note: Ibid., p. 142.] Chapter 15 records one of the battles Saul fought with the Amalekites, Israel’s enemy to the south (cf. 1 Samuel 14:48). The Amalekites were descendants of Esau (Genesis 36:12; 1 Chronicles 1:36) and, therefore, linked with the Edomites. They were nomads who lived principally in southern Canaan and the... read more

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