I Shmuel 15: Drama Class

Chapter 15 is full of drama. Shmuel tasks Shaul with a clear charge: wipe out Amalek- men, women, children, cattle. Shmuel invokes God’s longstanding promise from Exodus setting the chapter’s tone. Shaul destroys everything except Agag and the choicest cattle. The next morning Shaul runs to Shmuel and excitedly proclaims that he upheld God’s word. But Shaul does not know that Shmuel spent the night entreating God to overturn a decree against Shaul. Shmuel angrily confronts Shaul over the sound of bleating animals. Shaul earnestly responds that these are sacrifices. STOP! Shmuel yells at him like a teacher who has had it with their student’s excuses. Shmuel raises the heat: Shaul thought he was a simple man, but God made him king. Shaul doubles down: “But I did obey the LORD! I performed the mission on which the LORD sent me” (וָאֶשְׁמַע בְּקוֹל ה׳ וָאֵלֵךְ בַּדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־שְׁלָחַנִי ה׳) (verse 21). Shaul just cannot see what he did wrong. Shmuel lashes out in a dramatic verse that the later prophets will borrow. Does God care about sacrifices? God desires obedience. The verse ends with the first of three turns of phrases in the chapter- “because you have rejected God, God has rejected you!” (יַעַן מָאַסְתָּ אֶת־דְּבַר ה׳ וַיִּמְאָסְךָ מִמֶּלֶךְ) (verse 23). Imagine how Shaul feels here. He was not trying to hide the anything. Based on his protestations, he honestly felt that he had done the right thing. He responds that the people wanted to give sacrifices. One could argue that Shaul is trying to throw the people under the bus, but that interpretation does not match the text. Shaul is being truthful and earnest. Shaul’s problem from the start was his weakness in the face of the people. Even last chapter he went against two oaths because the people pushed to save Yonatan. The drama reaches its zenith. Shaul begs Shmuel to give him the curtesy of accompanying him back to camp. Shmuel angerly turns to storm away and Shaul grabs the hem of Shamuel’s high-quality robe, tearing it. Such a cloak would only tear if Shaul pulled as hard as Shmuel tried to walk away. Shmuel turns to Shaul with a second biting pronouncement: “The LORD has this day torn the kingship over Israel away from you and has given it to another who is worthier than you.” (קָרַע ה׳ אֶת־מַמְלְכוּת יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵעָלֶיךָ הַיּוֹם וּנְתָנָהּ לְרֵעֲךָ הַטּוֹב מִמֶּךָּ) (verse 28). Shmuel finally relents without adding one more bit of drama. He summons Agag, who knows that death is near. He turns to Agag with his final biting turn of phrase: “As your sword bereaved mothers, so too with your mother be bereaved.” (כַּאֲשֶׁר שִׁכְּלָה נָשִׁים חַרְבֶּךָ כֵּן־תִּשְׁכַּל מִנָּשִׁים אִמֶּךָ) Then Shmuel kills Aagag. This is the only time Shmuel kills someone in the whole book. The chapter ends with the dramatic statement: “Samuel never saw Saul again to the day of his death. But Samuel grieved over Saul, because the LORD regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel.” (וְלֹא־יָסַף שְׁמוּאֵל לִרְאוֹת אֶת־שָׁאוּל עַד־יוֹם מוֹתוֹ כִּי־הִתְאַבֵּל שְׁמוּאֵל אֶל־שָׁאוּל וַה׳ נִחָם כִּי־הִמְלִיךְ אֶת־שָׁאוּל עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל) (verse 35). This last verse reveals Shmuel’s inner turmoil. The stone faced servant of God depicted in this chapter, was crying inside for his protégée.