1 Samuel 15:22-28

New King James Version

²²So Samuel said:

^(A)“Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
As in obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, ^(B)to obey is better than sacrifice,
And to heed than the fat of rams.
²³For rebellion is as the sin of ^[a]witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
^(C)He also has rejected you from being king.”

²⁴^(D)Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I ^(E)feared the people and obeyed their voice. ²⁵Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord.”

²⁶But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you, ^(F)for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”

²⁷And as Samuel turned around to go away, ^(G)Saul seized the edge of his robe, and it tore. ²⁸So Samuel said to him, ^(H)“The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you.

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