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parallelVerse INT GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOS JDG RUTH 1SA 2SA PSA AMOS HOS 1KI 2KI 1CH 2CH PRO ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL JOB YHN MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC GAL 1TH 2TH 1COR 2COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1TIM TIT 1PET 2PET 2TIM HEB YUD 1YHN 2YHN 3YHN REV
1Sa Intro C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24 C25 C26 C27 C28 C29 C30 C31
1Sa 15 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28 V29 V30 V31 V32 V34 V35
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.
Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance=normal (All still tentative.)
OET (OET-RV) Then Shemuel told him,
⇔ “Just as your sword has made women childless,
⇔ so too will your mother be made childless among women.”
§ And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces in front of Yahweh there at Gilgal.
OET-LV and_he/it_said Shəmūʼēl just_as it_has_made_childless women sword_your so she_will_become_childless among_women mother_your and_hacked_topieces Shəmūʼēl DOM Agag to_(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before YHWH in/on/at/with_Gilgāl.
UHB וַיֹּ֣אמֶר שְׁמוּאֵ֔ל כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר שִׁכְּלָ֤ה נָשִׁים֙ חַרְבֶּ֔ךָ כֵּן־תִּשְׁכַּ֥ל מִנָּשִׁ֖ים אִמֶּ֑ךָ וַיְשַׁסֵּ֨ף שְׁמוּאֵ֧ל אֶת־אֲגָ֛ג לִפְנֵ֥י יְהוָ֖ה בַּגִּלְגָּֽל׃ס ‡
(vayyoʼmer shəmūʼēl kaʼₐsher shikkəlāh nāshīm ḩarbekā kēn-tishkal minnāshim ʼimmekā vayəshaşşēf shəmūʼēl ʼet-ʼₐgāg lifənēy yhwh baggilgāl.ş)
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).
ULT And Samuel said, “Just as your sword has made women childless, so will your mother be made childless among women.” And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces before the face of Yahweh at the Gilgal.
UST But Samuel said to him,
⇔ “You have killed the sons of many women with your sword,
⇔ so now your mother will no longer have a son.”
§ And Samuel cut Agag into pieces with his sword, there at Gilgal, where the Israelites worshiped Yahweh.
BSB § But Samuel declared:
⇔ “As your sword has made women childless,
⇔ so your mother will be childless among women.”
§ And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces before the LORD at Gilgal.
OEB Samuel said, ‘As your sword has bereaved women, so will your mother be the most bereaved of women.’ Then Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.
WEBBE Samuel said, “As your sword has made women childless, so your mother will be childless amongst women!” Then Samuel cut Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
WMBB (Same as above)
NET Samuel said, “Just as your sword left women childless, so your mother will be the most bereaved among women!” Then Samuel hacked Agag to pieces there in Gilgal before the Lord.
LSV And Samuel says, “As your sword bereaved women—so is your mother bereaved above women”; and Samuel hews Agag in pieces before YHWH in Gilgal.
FBV But Samuel said, “In the same way that your sword has made women childless, so too your mother will be childless among women.” Samuel cut Agag to pieces before the Lord at Gilgal.
T4T But Samuel said to him,
⇔ “You have killed the sons of many women with your sword,
⇔ so now your mother will no longer have a son.”
§ And Samuel cut Agag into pieces with his sword, there at Gilgal, in the presence of Yahweh.
LEB • Samuel said,“Just as your sword bereaved women, • so will your mother be bereaved among women!”
¶ Then Samuel hacked Agag to pieces in the presence of Yahweh at Gilgal.
BBE And Samuel said, As your sword has made women without children, so now your mother will be without children among women. And Agag was cut up by Samuel, bone from bone, before the Lord in Gilgal.
Moff No Moff 1SA book available
JPS And Samuel said: As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
ASV And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before Jehovah in Gilgal.
DRA And Samuel said: As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed him in pieces before the Lord in Galgal.
YLT And Samuel saith, 'As thy sword bereaved women — so is thy mother bereaved above women;' and Samuel heweth Agag in pieces before Jehovah in Gilgal.
Drby And Samuel said, As thy sword has made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless above women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before Jehovah in Gilgal.
RV And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
Wbstr And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
KJB-1769 And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
(And Samuel said, As thy/your sword hath/has made women childless, so shall thy/your mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal. )
KJB-1611 [fn]And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childlesse, so shall thy mother bee childlesse among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.
(And Samuel said, As thy/your sword hath/has made women childlesse, so shall thy/your mother be childlesse among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.)
15:33 Exod.17. 11. num. 14.45.
Bshps And Samuel sayde: As thy sworde hath made women chyldlesse, so shall thy mother be chyldlesse aboue other women. And Samuel hewed Agag in peeces before the Lorde in Gilgal.
(And Samuel said: As thy/your sword hath/has made women chyldlesse, so shall thy/your mother be chyldlesse above other women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.)
Gnva And Samuel sayde, As thy sworde hath made women childlesse, so shall thy mother bee childelesse among other women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.
(And Samuel said, As thy/your sword hath/has made women childlesse, so shall thy/your mother be childelesse among other women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal. )
Cvdl Samuel sayde: Like as thy swerde hath made wemen childlesse, so shal yi mother also be without children amonge wemen. So Samuel hewed Agag in peces before ye LORDE in Gilgall.
(Samuel said: Like as thy/your sword hath/has made women childlesse, so shall yi mother also be without children among women. So Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before ye/you_all LORD in Gilgall.)
Wyc And Samuel seide, As thi swerd made wymmen with out fre children, so thi modir schal be with out fre children among wymmen. And Samuel kittide hym in to gobetis bifor the Lord in Galgalis.
(And Samuel said, As thy/your sword made women with out free children, so thy/your mother shall be with out free children among women. And Samuel kittide him in to fragments before the Lord in Galgalis.)
Luth Samuel sprach: Wie dein Schwert Weiber ihrer Kinder beraubet hat, also soll auch deine Mutter ihrer Kinder beraubet sein unter den Weibern. Also zerhieb Samuel den Agag zu Stücken vor dem HErr’s in Gilgal.
(Samuel spoke: How your sword women of_their/her children beraubet has, also should also your mother of_their/her children beraubet his under the womenn. So zerhieb Samuel the Agag to Stücken before/in_front_of to_him LORD’s in Gilgal.)
ClVg Et ait Samuel: Sicut fecit absque liberis mulieres gladius tuus, sic absque liberis erit inter mulieres mater tua. Et in frustra concidit eum Samuel coram Domino in Galgalis.[fn]
(And he_said Samuel: Sicut he_did without freedom mulieres gladius tuus, so without freedom will_be between mulieres mater your. And in frustra concidit him Samuel coram Master in Galgalis. )
15.33 Et in frusta. Cum legunt quidam in Scripturis, quod sancti nulli hostium parcant, dicunt eos crudeles, nec intelligunt in his verbis obumbrata mysteria: ut pugnantes, scilicet, adversus vitia nullum penitus relinquamus. Si enim pepercerimus reputabitur nobis in culpam, sicut Sauli, qui regem Amalec vivum reservavit. Sancti vero, sicut Samuel, nullum peccatum dimittunt impunitum.
15.33 And in frusta. Since legunt quidam in Scripturis, that sancti nulli hostium parcant, dicunt them crudeles, but_not intelligunt in his verbis obumbrata mysteria: as pugnantes, scilicet, adversus vitia nullum penitus relinquamus. When/But_if because pepercerimus reputabitur us in culpam, like Sauli, who regem Amalec vivum reservavit. Sancti indeed/yet, like Samuel, nullum peccatum dimittunt impunitum.
BrTr And Samuel said to Agag, As thy sword has bereaved women of their children, so shall thy mother be made childless among women: and Samuel slew Agag before the Lord in Galgal.
BrLXX Καὶ εἶπε Σαμουὴλ πρὸς ʼΑγὰγ, καθότι ἠτέκνωσε γυναῖκας ἡ ῥομφαία σου, οὕτως ἀτεκνωθήσεται ἐκ γυναικῶν ἡ μήτηρ σου· καὶ ἔσφαξε Σαμουὴλ τὸν ʼΑγὰγ ἐνώπιον Κυρίου ἐν Γαλγάλ.
(Kai eipe Samouaʸl pros ʼAgag, kathoti aʸteknōse gunaikas haʸ ɽomfaia sou, houtōs ateknōthaʸsetai ek gunaikōn haʸ maʸtaʸr sou; kai esfaxe Samouaʸl ton ʼAgag enōpion Kuriou en Galgal. )
15:1-35 After Saul failed to obey God and completely destroy the Amalekites, God rejected him in even stronger terms than before (cp. 13:8-14).
God’s Change of Mind
Thirty-four times in the Old Testament, God is said to “change his mind” or “be sorry” (Hebrew nakham). What could this mean? Did he relent, or did he have pity? Was he sorry, or did he grieve?
One thing is clear: God never repents of sin or moral failure, because he is perfect (see 1 Sam 15:29; Num 23:19). He may “change his mind” regarding calamity or judgment that he initiated—that is, he may decide to stop it—in response to prayers of repentance (Jer 18:7-10; Joel 2:14; Jon 3:9-10), a human intercessor (Exod 32:11-14; Amos 7:2-6), or with no apparent human mediation (Judg 2:18; 2 Sam 24:16). On a few occasions, God is “sorry” about something he has already done, such as choosing Saul to be king (1 Sam 15:11, 35; cp. Gen 6:6). Yet God is not admitting past mistakes; he is expressing anguish over lives gone awry.
Theologians debate the degree to which God, who is all-wise and all-powerful, can “change his mind.” In the Bible, any language that refers to a change in God’s mind reflects a human perspective on God’s activity. Any change in God, therefore, is a change as humans experience him—a reflection of his unchanging love, mercy, faithfulness, and holy will. It does not suggest a change in God’s power, omniscience, foreknowledge, wisdom, or holiness.
Passages for Further Study
Gen 6:6-7; Exod 32:11-14; Num 23:19; Deut 32:36; 1 Sam 15:10-11, 29, 35; 2 Sam 24:15-16; Jer 4:28; 18:7-10; 26:2-19; Ezek 24:14; Joel 2:13-14; Amos 7:2-6; Jon 3:9–4:11
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism
(Occurrence 0) As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women
(Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said Shəmūʼēl just=as made_~_childless women/wives sword,your yes/correct/thus/so childless among,women mother,your and,hacked_~_topieces Shəmūʼēl DOM Agag to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before YHWH in/on/at/with,Gilgal )
Both of these phrases have similar meaning and may be intended to be in poetic form. Alternate translation: “Since you have killed people, you will also be killed”
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / euphemism
(Occurrence 0) made women childless, so shall your mother be childless
(Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said Shəmūʼēl just=as made_~_childless women/wives sword,your yes/correct/thus/so childless among,women mother,your and,hacked_~_topieces Shəmūʼēl DOM Agag to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before YHWH in/on/at/with,Gilgal )
This is a polite way of referring to killing people. Alternate translation: “killed the sons of other women, so shall I kill your mother’s son”
(Occurrence 0) Then Samuel chopped Agag to pieces
(Some words not found in UHB: and=he/it_said Shəmūʼēl just=as made_~_childless women/wives sword,your yes/correct/thus/so childless among,women mother,your and,hacked_~_topieces Shəmūʼēl DOM Agag to=(the)_face_of/in_front_of/before YHWH in/on/at/with,Gilgal )
Samuel is the one who completed this task that Yahweh commanded Saul to do. Alternate translation: “Then Samuel cut Agag into pieces with his sword”
1 Samuel 15
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.