Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed for doing comparisons of different translations. Click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.
Key: khaki:verbs, green:YHWH.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
BrLXXΚαὶ εἶπε πρὸς αὐτὸν Σαμουὴλ, διέῤῥηξε Κύριος τὴν βασιλείαν σου ἀπὸ Ἰσραὴλ ἐκ χείρος σου σήμερον, καὶ δώσει αὐτὴν τῷ πλησίον σου τῷ ἀγαθῷ ὑπὲρ σέ· (Kai eipe pros auton Samouaʸl, dieɽɽaʸxe Kurios taʸn basileian sou apo Israaʸl ek ⱪeiros sou saʸmeron, kai dōsei autaʸn tōi plaʸsion sou tōi agathōi huper se; )
BrTrAnd Samuel said to him, The Lord has rent thy kingdom from Israel out of thy hand this day, and will give it to thy neighbour who is better than thou.
ULTAnd Samuel said to him, “Yahweh has torn the kingdom of Israel from on you today. And he has given it to your companion, the better one than you.
USTSamuel said to him, “Today Yahweh has torn away from you the kingdom of Israel. He will appoint someone else to be king, someone who is a better man than you are.
BSBSo Samuel said to him, “The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to your neighbor who is better than you.
OEBThen Samuel said to him, ‘The Lord has today torn the kingdom of Israel from you and has given it to your neighbor who is better than you.
WEBBESamuel said to him, “The LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbour of yours who is better than you.
NETSamuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to one of your colleagues who is better than you!
LSVAnd Samuel says to him, “YHWH has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and given it to your neighbor who is better than you;
FBVSamuel said to him, “The Lord has ripped the kingdom of Israel away from you today and has given it to your neighbor—someone who is better than you!
T4TSamuel said to him, “You tore my robe! And today Yahweh has torn away from you the kingdom of Israel! He will appoint someone else to be king, someone who is a better man than you are.
LEBThen Samuel said to him, “Yahweh has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to your neighbor who is better than you.[fn]
BBEAnd Samuel said to him, The Lord has taken away the kingdom of Israel from you this day by force, and has given it to a neighbour of yours who is better than you.
JPSAnd Samuel said unto him: 'The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.
ASVAnd Samuel said unto him, Jehovah hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbor of thine, that is better than thou.
DRAAnd Samuel said to him: The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to thy neighbour who is better than thee.
YLTAnd Samuel saith unto him, 'Jehovah hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee to-day, and given it to thy neighbour who is better than thou;
DrbyThen Samuel said to him, Jehovah has rent the kingdom of Israel from thee to-day, and has given it to thy neighbour, who is better than thou.
RVAnd Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.
WbstrAnd Samuel said to him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbor of thine, that is better than thou.
KJB-1769And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. (And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath/has rent the kingdom of Israel from thee/you this day, and hath/has given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. )
KJB-1611And Samuel said vnto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdome of Israel from thee this day, and hath giuen it to a neighbour of thine, that is better then thou. (And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath/has rent the kingdom of Israel from thee/you this day, and hath/has given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better then thou.)
BshpsAnd Samuel sayde vnto hym: The Lorde hath rent the kyngdome of Israel from thee this day, and hath geuen it to a neighbour of thine that is better then thou. (And Samuel said unto him: The Lord hath/has rent the kingdom of Israel from thee/you this day, and hath/has given it to a neighbour of thine/your that is better then thou.)
GnvaThen Samuel saide vnto him, The Lord hath rent the kingdome of Israel from thee this day, and hath giuen it to thy neighbour, that is better then thou. (Then Samuel said unto him, The Lord hath/has rent the kingdom of Israel from thee/you this day, and hath/has given it to thy/your neighbour, that is better then thou. )
CvdlThen sayde Samuel vnto him: The LORDE hath rente the kyngdome of Israel from ye this daye, & geuen it vnto yi neghbor, which is better then thou. (Then said Samuel unto him: The LORD hath/has rente the kingdom of Israel from ye/you_all this day, and given it unto yi neghbor, which is better then thou.)
WyclAnd Samuel seide to hym, The Lord hath kit the rewme of Israel fro thee to dai, and yaf it to thi neiybore betere than thou; (And Samuel said to him, The Lord hath/has kit the realm of Israel from thee/you today, and gave it to thy/your neighbour better than thou;)
LuthDa sprach Samuel zu ihm: Der HErr hat das Königreich Israels heute von dir gerissen und deinem Nächsten gegeben, der besser ist denn du. (So spoke Samuel to him: The LORD has the kingreich Israels heute from you/to_you gerissen and your Nächsten given, the/of_the better is because du.)
ClVgEt ait ad eum Samuel: Scidit Dominus regnum Israël a te hodie, et tradidit illud proximo tuo meliori te.[fn] (And he_said to him Samuel: Scidit Master kingdom Israel from you(sg) hodie, and he_delivered illud the_next tuo meliori you(sg). )
15.28Scidit. Quamvis postea regnaverit quadraginta annis, sed tunc promeruit ut a stirpe sua scinderetur, et traderetur meliori, id est, David, et a Saul, id est, Judæis aufertur regnum, et traditur Christo. Corrigit regem de inobedientia, quia mandatum Domini non implevit, et prædicit amissionem regni. Merito autem regnum perdit, qui tenere nescit. Ille autem bene regit, qui superiori obedit et inferioribus auctoritatem suam anteponit.
15.28Scidit. Quamvis postea regnaverit quadraginta annis, but tunc promeruit as from stirpe his_own scinderetur, and traderetur meliori, id it_is, David, and from Saul, id it_is, Yudæis aufertur kingdom, and traditur Christo. Corrigit regem about inobedientia, because mandatum Master not/no implevit, and prædicit amissionem regni. Merito however kingdom perdit, who tenere nescit. Ille however bene regit, who superiori obedit and inferioribus auctoritatem his_own anteponit.
God instructed Saul to “completely destroy” the Amalekites, who had ambushed the Israelites after the Exodus (see Exod 17:8-16; Deut 25:17-19). The Hebrew word kharam (“completely destroy”) often means dedicating something or someone completely to the Lord, either by destroying it (1 Sam 15:3; Josh 6:17-18) or by giving it as an offering (see Lev 27:28-29; Josh 6:19).
Complete destruction was called for in cases where those to be destroyed had committed a severe offense against God, such as worshiping false gods (Deut 7:1-6; 13:12-18). In 1 Samuel 15:3, complete destruction is prescribed as God’s judgment on a nation that mistreated his chosen people. Those who curse God’s family are, in turn, cursed (Gen 12:3).
God still judges the godless and impenitent. But in the new covenant, Christians are not called to be agents of such judgment. God calls us to exercise his mercy toward those who wrong us (see Luke 9:51-56). We must completely destroy whatever within ourselves wars against Christ (Rom 8:12-13; Col 3:5). And we must overcome the enemies of Christ by our faith, by the Good News, and by our love (Eph 6:10-20; 1 Jn 2:9-17). God will mete out judgment according to his justice and in his time (Rom 12:19; 2 Thes 1:6-10).
(Occurrence 0) Yahweh has torn the kingdom of Israel
(Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said to=him/it Shəmūʼēl torn YHWHDOM kingdom Yisrael from,with,you the=day and,given,it to,neighbor,your the,better than,you )
This refers back to when Saul tore Samuel’s robe in 1 Samuel 15:27. This can be made explicit. Alternate translation: “Just as you tore my robe, Yahweh has torn the kingdom of Israel”
(Occurrence 0) has given it to a neighbor of yours, one who is better than you
(Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said to=him/it Shəmūʼēl torn YHWHDOM kingdom Yisrael from,with,you the=day and,given,it to,neighbor,your the,better than,you )
God had already decided who would be the next king after Saul.
Saul’s war against the Amalekites exemplifies many of the key traits–good and bad–of Saul’s leadership over Israel. Immediately before the story is recounted, the author notes that during Saul’s entire reign he fought valiantly against Israel’s enemies on every side (1 Samuel 14:47-52), and he amassed an army of skilled soldiers. Thus, Saul fulfilled one of the primary reasons the people demanded that Samuel appoint a king over them (1 Samuel 8). Then the author notes that the Lord, through Samuel, directed Saul to attack the Amalekites and utterly destroy them and their belongings as punishment for their cruel attack on the Israelites after they left Egypt to travel to Mount Sinai (Exodus 17; Deuteronomy 25:17-19). So Saul mustered a large number of troops at a place called Telaim and traveled to an otherwise unknown “city of the Amalekites” and lay in lay in wait for them in a valley. Saul also warned the Kenites, the descendants of Moses’ father-in-law Hobab (also called Jethro), to move away from the Amalekites so they would not be killed in the coming battle. It appears that the Kenites had remained on good terms with the Israelites since the time of Hobab/Jethro and accompanied them as they entered the Promised Land, eventually settling among the Amalekites in the Negev near Arad (Judges 1:16). Saul defeated the Amalekites, pursuing them “from Havilah as far as Shur,” according the the Hebrew text. The region of Havilah, however, was several hundred miles from the Negev, making it unlikely to be the place to which Saul pursued them, and this is underscored by the Septuagint’s substitution of “Elath” for “Havilah”. It is possible that the author was using this phrase as a hyperbolic merism to indicate that Saul pursued the Amalekites throughout the entire land in which they lived (see also Genesis 25:18 regarding the Ishmaelites). But since elsewhere in Scripture the Amalekites are said to live in the Negev and in southern Canaan (Genesis 14:7; Numbers 13:29; 14:45; Judges 1:16), another possibility is that the “Havilah” reading is a textual corruption. The Septuagint translators may have preserved the original reading of “Elath,” or they may have been making their best guess as to the intended location. Simply based on the similarity of spelling and the geography of the region (as shown on this map), it is possible that the original reading was “Hachilah,” a hill where David would later have some close encounters with Saul during his time in the wilderness (1 Samuel 23:19; 26:1). In any case, Saul and his men thoroughly defeated the Amalekites, but they failed to completely destroy them (see 1 Samuel 30) and their belongings. Instead they took King Agag alive and kept the best of the spoils. After this Saul traveled to Carmel and set up a monument for himself, and then he continued on to Gilgal. When Samuel arrived in Gilgal, however, he was angry with Saul for failing to devote all of the Amalekites and their goods to destruction, and he told Saul that the Lord regretted having made him king. Samuel then killed King Agag himself at Gilgal and returned to his home in Ramah. Saul returned to his home in Gibeah, but Samuel never spoke with Saul again.
