“Even to the day of his death, Samuel never again visited Saul. Samuel mourned for Saul, and the Lord regretted He had made Saul king over Israel.” (1 Samuel 15:35, HCSB)

This entire story is a regrettable example of how we can listen to God, but then been be so disobedient to Him. God told King Saul to destroy everything related to the Amalekites. He didn’t ask to keep some of the plunder for a worship sacrifice. He told Saul to destroy it. This destruction would show Saul’s obedience to God’s commands.

While it may sound harsh that God told Saul to kill an entire clan of people, the point of the destruction was to eliminate any possibility for the people of Israel to fall away and be influenced by the Amalekites.

The problem here is that God told Saul to do something, and instead he listened to other people. The genocide is not the main point here. Obedience is the theme of this passage. Notice that God told King Saul to do something for Him:

“This is what the Lord of Hosts says: ‘I witnessed what the Amalekites did to the Israelites when they opposed them along the way as they were coming out of Egypt. Now go and attack the Amalekites and completely destroy everything they have. Do not spare them. Kill men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.’ ”” (1 Samuel 15:2–3, HCSB)

God is using Israel’s army to teach the Amalekites a lesson about their disobedience. However, King Saul is determined to listen to the opinions of others and not God.

“Saul and the troops spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, cattle, and choice animals, 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.” (1 Samuel 15:9, HCSB)

Notice that “they were not willing to destroy them”. The army was not willing to follow God’s command. We know this because confesses this later to Samuel:

“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, but the rest we destroyed.”” (1 Samuel 15:15, HCSB)

Saul places the blame on the troops, and not his leadership skills. When confronted with the sin, Saul says it is someone else’s fault. Samuel has listened to God and he knows the truth.

“Saul answered Samuel, “I have sinned. I have transgressed the Lord’s command and your words. Because I was afraid of the people, I obeyed them.”

(1 Samuel 15:24, HCSB)

Saul feared the judgment of the people. In essence, he was a politician, not a true servant of God and entrusted leader. Consequences came as a result. The truth is shown in the conversation between Saul and Samuel:

“Then Samuel said: Does the Lord take pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? Look: to obey is better than sacrifice, to pay attention is better than the fat of rams.” (1 Samuel 15:22, HCSB)

It is more important to obey than to give God a sacrifice. The flip side of this truth is just as relevant. When one is not obedient, even if it is because of fear of what other people will think, then one is in rebellion. Rebellion against God is the same as worshipping another god.

“For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and defiance is like wickedness and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has rejected you as king.”

(1 Samuel 15:23, HCSB)

In the end, Saul died a cruel death. His mental health deteriorated. He ended up consulting a witch, an ironic twist.

“You did not obey the Lord and did not carry out His burning anger against Amalek; therefore the Lord has done this to you today. The Lord will also hand Israel over to the Philistines along with you. Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me, and the Lord will hand Israel’s army over to the Philistines.”” (1 Samuel 28:18–19, HCSB)

The encounter with the Witch of Endor is unusual and no matter if it was Samuel who comes from the grave or a demon, the truth is still known. This spirit clearly tells Saul that the reason he will die today has its origin in that one act of disobedience. Disobedience has its consequences, both short-term and long-term. For Saul, he lost his kingship, and eventually his life. For Samuel, he lost a friend. For God, it broke His heart.