24 And Saul said to Samuel, Great is my sin: for I have gone against the orders of the Lord and against your words: because, fearing the people, I did what they said.
I, even I, am your comforter: are you so poor in heart as to be in fear of man who will come to an end, and of the son of man who will be like grass? And you have given no thought to the Lord your Maker, by whom the heavens were stretched out, and the earth placed on its base; and you went all day in fear of the wrath of the cruel one, when he was making ready for your destruction. And where is the wrath of the cruel one?
And David said to Nathan, Great is my sin against the Lord. And Nathan said to David, The Lord has put away your sin; death will not come on you.
And Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, I have done wrong, for I did not see that you were in the way against me: but now, if it is evil in your eyes, I will go back again.
For fear of the great body of people, or for fear that families might make sport of me, so that I kept quiet, and did not go out of my door;
But those who are full of fear and without faith, the unclean and takers of life, those who do the sins of the flesh, and those who make use of evil powers or who give worship to images, and all those who are false, will have their part in the sea of ever-burning fire which is the second death.
Am I now using arguments to men, or God? or is it my desire to give men pleasure? if I was still pleasing men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
And Pilate again said to them that it was his desire to let Jesus go free. But crying out they said, To the cross with him! And he said to them a third time, Why, what evil has he done? I see no reason for putting him to death: I will give him punishment and let him go. But they went on crying out loudly, Let him be put to death on the cross. And they had their way. And Pilate gave his decision for their desire to be put into effect. And in answer to their request, he let that man go free who had been in prison for acting against the government and causing death, and Jesus he gave up to their pleasure.
Then Zedekiah the king said, See, he is in your hands: for the king was not able to do anything against them.
And the man said, The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me the fruit of the tree and I took it.
And Saul said, They have taken them from the Amalekites: for the people have kept the best of the sheep and of the oxen as an offering to the Lord your God; all the rest we have given up to destruction.
But Saul and the people did not put Agag to death, and they kept the best of the sheep and the oxen and the fat beasts and the lambs, and whatever was good, not desiring to put them to the curse: but everything which was bad and of no use they put to the curse.
Do not be moved to do wrong by the general opinion, or give the support of your words to a wrong decision:
Then Pharaoh quickly sent for Moses and Aaron, and said, I have done evil against the Lord your God and against you.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on 1 Samuel 15
Commentary on 1 Samuel 15 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 15
In this chapter we have the final rejection of Saul from being king, for his disobedience to God's command in not utterly destroying the Amalekites. By his wars and victories he hoped to magnify and perpetuate his own name and honour, but, by his mismanagement of them, he ruined himself, and laid his honour in the dust. Here is,
1Sa 15:1-9
Here,
1Sa 15:10-23
Saul is here called to account by Samuel concerning the execution of his commission against the Amalekites; and remarkable instances we are here furnished with of the strictness of the justice of God and the treachery and deceitfulness of the heart of man. We are here told,
1Sa 15:24-31
Saul is at length brought to put himself into the dress of the penitent; but it is too evident that he only acts the part of a penitent, and is not one indeed. Observe,
1Sa 15:32-35
Samuel, as a prophet, is here set over kings, Jer. 1:10.