The Amalekites Attack

⁸ At Rephidim, Amalek^[a](A) came and fought against Israel. ⁹ Moses said to Joshua,^(B) “Select some men for us and go fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with God’s staff in my hand.”

¹⁰ Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. ¹¹ While Moses held up his hand,^[b] Israel prevailed, but whenever he put his hand^[c] down, Amalek prevailed.^{(C) 12} When Moses’ hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat down on it. Then Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down. ¹³ So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army^[d] with the sword.

¹⁴ The Lord then said to Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a reminder and recite it to Joshua: I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek under heaven.”^(D)

¹⁵ And Moses built an altar^(E) and named it, “The Lord Is My Banner.”^{[e] 16} He said, “Indeed, my hand is lifted up toward^[f] the Lord’s throne. The Lord will be at war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

Saul Rejected as King

15 Samuel told Saul, “The Lord sent me to anoint you as king over His people Israel.^(A) Now, listen to the words of the Lord. ² This is what the Lord of Hosts says: ‘I witnessed^[a] what the Amalekites did to the Israelites when they opposed them along the way as they were coming out of Egypt.^{(B) 3} Now go and attack the Amalekites and completely destroy everything they have.^(C) Do not spare them. Kill men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”^(D)

⁴ Then Saul summoned the troops and counted them at Telaim: 200,000 foot soldiers and 10,000 men from Judah. ⁵ Saul came to the city of Amalek and set up an ambush in the wadi. ⁶ He warned the Kenites,^(E) “Since you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came out of Egypt,^(F) go on and leave! Get away from the Amalekites, or I’ll sweep you away with them.” So the Kenites withdrew from the Amalekites.

⁷ Then Saul struck down the Amalekites^(G) from Havilah^(H) all the way to Shur,^(I) which is next to Egypt. ⁸ He captured Agag^(J) king of Amalek alive, but he completely destroyed all the rest of the people with the sword.^{(K) 9} Saul and the troops spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, cattle, and choice animals,^[b] as well as the young rams and the best of everything else. They were not willing to destroy them, but they did destroy all the worthless and unwanted things.

¹⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, ¹¹ “I regret that I made Saul king,^(L) for he has turned away from following Me and has not carried out My instructions.”^(M) So Samuel became angry and cried out to the Lord all night.^(N)

¹² Early in the morning Samuel got up to confront Saul, but it was reported to Samuel, “Saul went to Carmel^(O) where he set up a monument for himself. Then he turned around and went down to Gilgal.”^{(P) 13} When Samuel came to him, Saul said, “May the Lord bless you.^(Q) I have carried out the Lord’s instructions.”

¹⁴ Samuel replied, “Then what is this sound of sheep^[c] and cattle I hear?”

¹⁵ Saul answered, “The troops brought them from the Amalekites and spared the best sheep and cattle in order to offer a sacrifice to the Lord your God,^(R) but the rest we destroyed.”^(S)

¹⁶ “Stop!” exclaimed Samuel. “Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.”

“Tell me,” he replied.

¹⁷ Samuel continued, “Although you once considered yourself unimportant,^(T) have you not become the leader of the tribes of Israel? The Lord anointed you king over Israel ¹⁸ and then sent you on a mission and said: ‘Go and completely destroy the sinful Amalekites. Fight against them until you have annihilated them.’ ¹⁹ So why didn’t you obey the Lord? Why did you rush on the plunder^(U) and do what was evil in the Lord’s sight?”

²⁰ “But I did obey the Lord!” Saul answered.^[d] “I went on the mission the Lord gave me: I brought back Agag, king of Amalek, and I completely destroyed the Amalekites. ²¹ The troops took sheep and cattle from the plunder—the best of what was set apart for destruction—to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.”^(V)

²² Then Samuel said:

²⁴ Saul answered Samuel, “I have sinned.^(AB) I have transgressed the Lord’s command^(AC) and your words. Because I was afraid of the people, I obeyed them. ²⁵ Now therefore, please forgive my sin^(AD) and return with me so I can worship the Lord.”

²⁶ Samuel replied to Saul, “I will not return with you. Because you rejected the word of the Lord,^(AE) the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” ²⁷ When Samuel turned to go, Saul grabbed the hem of his robe, and it tore. ²⁸ Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingship of Israel away from you today^(AF) and has given it to your neighbor who is better than you.^{(AG) 29} Furthermore, the Eternal One of Israel^(AH) does not lie or change His mind, for He is not man who changes his mind.”^(AI)

³⁰ Saul said, “I have sinned. Please honor me^(AJ) now before the elders of my people and before Israel. Come back with me so I can bow in worship to the Lord your God.”^{(AK) 31} Then Samuel went back, following Saul, and Saul bowed down to the Lord.

³² Samuel said, “Bring me Agag king of Amalek.”

Agag came to him trembling,^[e] for he thought, “Certainly the bitterness of death has come.”^[f][g]

³³ Samuel declared:

Then he hacked Agag to pieces before the Lord at Gilgal.

³⁴ Samuel went to Ramah,^(AM) and Saul went up to his home in Gibeah^(AN) of Saul. ³⁵ Even to the day of his death, Samuel never again visited Saul.^(AO) Samuel mourned for Saul,^(AP) and the Lord regretted He had made Saul king over Israel.

David’s Defeat of the Amalekites

30 David and his men^(A) arrived in Ziklag^(B) on the third day. The Amalekites^(C) had raided the Negev and attacked and burned down Ziklag. ² They also had kidnapped the women and everyone^[a] in it from the youngest to the oldest. They had killed no one but had carried them off^(D) as they went on their way.

³ When David and his men arrived at the town, they found it burned down. Their wives, sons, and daughters had been kidnapped. ⁴ David and the troops with him wept loudly until they had no strength left to weep. ⁵ David’s two wives,^(E) Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had also been kidnapped. ⁶ David was in a difficult position because the troops talked about stoning him,^(F) for they were all very bitter over the loss of their sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.^(G)

⁷ David said to Abiathar the priest, son of Ahimelech, “Bring me the ephod.”^(H) So Abiathar brought it to him, ⁸ and David asked the Lord:^(I) “Should I pursue these raiders? Will I overtake them?”^(J)

The Lord replied to him, “Pursue them, for you will certainly overtake them and rescue the people.”^(K)

⁹ David and the 600 men with him^(L) went as far as the Wadi Besor, where 200 men who were to remain behind would stop.^{(M) 10} They stopped because they were too exhausted to cross the Wadi Besor. David and 400 of the men continued in pursuit.

¹¹ They found an Egyptian in the open country and brought him to David. They gave him some bread to eat and water to drink. ¹² Then they gave him some pressed figs and two clusters of raisins. After he ate he revived,^(N) for he hadn’t eaten food or drunk water for three days and three nights.

¹³ Then David said to him, “Who do you belong to? Where are you from?”

“I’m an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite man,” he said. “My master abandoned me when I got sick three days ago. ¹⁴ We raided the south country of the Cherethites,^(O) the territory of Judah, and the south country of Caleb,^(P) and we burned down Ziklag.”^(Q)

¹⁵ David then asked him, “Will you lead me to these raiders?”

He said, “Swear to me by God that you won’t kill me or turn me over to my master, and I will lead you to them.”

¹⁶ So he led him, and there were the Amalekites, spread out over the entire area, eating, drinking, and celebrating because of the great amount of plunder^(R) they had taken from the land of the Philistines and the land of Judah. ¹⁷ David slaughtered them from twilight until the evening of the next day.^(S) None of them escaped, except 400 young men who got on camels and fled.^(T)

¹⁸ David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken; he also rescued his two wives. ¹⁹ Nothing of theirs was missing from the youngest to the oldest, including the sons and daughters, of all the plunder the Amalekites had taken. David got everything back.^{(U) 20} He took all the sheep and cattle, which were driven ahead of the other livestock, and the people shouted, “This is David’s plunder!”^(V)

²¹ When David came to the 200 men who had been too exhausted to go with him and had been left at the Wadi Besor,^(W) they came out to meet him and to meet the troops with him. When David approached the men, he greeted them, ²² but all the corrupt and worthless men among those who had gone with David argued, “Because they didn’t go with us, we will not give any of the plunder we recovered to them except for each man’s wife and children. They may take them and go.”

²³ But David said, “My brothers, you must not do this with what the Lord has given us. He protected us and handed over to us the raiders who came against us. ²⁴ Who can agree to your proposal? The share of the one who goes into battle is to be the same as the share of the one who remains with the supplies. They will share equally.”^{(X) 25} And it has been so from that day forward. David established this policy as a law and an ordinance for Israel and it continues to this very day.

²⁶ When David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to his friends, the elders of Judah, saying, “Here is a gift for you^(Y) from the plunder of the Lord’s enemies.”^{(Z) 27} He sent gifts to those in Bethel,^(AA) in Ramoth of the Negev,^(AB) and in Jattir;^{(AC) 28} to those in Aroer,^(AD) in Siphmoth,^(AE) and in Eshtemoa;^{(AF) 29} to those in Racal, in the towns of the Jerahmeelites,^(AG) and in the towns of the Kenites;^{(AH) 30} to those in Hormah,^(AI) in Bor-ashan,^(AJ) and in Athach; ³¹ to those in Hebron,^(AK) and to those in all the places where David and his men had roamed.^(AL)