Then Samuel came! And Saul hurried out to meet him. But Samuel drew back from his greeting, and told him he had been very disobedient, and that the Lord would choose someone else to be the king; one who would keep God's commandments and love Him with all his heart!
So Samuel went back to Gilgal, and Saul went to fight against the Philistines.
* * * * * *
By and by God sent another message to Saul by Samuel the prophet, and this was the message: "Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, I remember what Amalek did to Israel . . . when he came up from Egypt, now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not."
So Saul went to fight against Amalek and conquered them; but again he was disobedient. He saved the king and did not kill him as he had been commanded, and he also saved all the best of the sheep and oxen.
Then the Lord said to Samuel, "It repenteth Me that I have made Saul king, for he hath not kept My commandments."
And it grieved Samuel, and he cried unto the Lord all that night.
And when Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul, the king hurried to him and told him he had done all that the Lord had told him to do!
But Samuel stopped him. "What is the meaning of this bleating of sheep that I hear, then?" he asked.
And Saul said, "The people saved the best to sacrifice to God!"