1 Samuel 13:13

13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done follily, and thou hast not kept the behests of thy Lord God, which he commanded to thee (Thou hast done foolishly, and thou hast not obeyed the command of the Lord thy God, which he commanded to thee); and if thou haddest not done this thing, right now the Lord had made ready thy realm upon Israel [into] without end;

1 Samuel 13:13 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 13:13

And Samuel said to Saul, thou hast done foolishly
Not by intruding himself into the priest's office, with that he is not charged, but not waiting the full time till Samuel came; which showed his impatience, disregard to Samuel, and distrust of God; and though he thought he had acted wisely, and taken the proper precautions in his circumstances, yet he acted foolishly; and though a king, Samuel being a prophet of the Lord, and in his name, spared not to tell him so:

thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which he
commanded thee;
by his prophet, that he should wait seven days for his coming, who would then offer sacrifices, and tell him what he should do; and not to keep the commandment of God was acting a foolish part:

for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel for
ever;
that is, for a long time, on his son, and son's son; and then, according to promise and prophecy, it would come to one of the tribe of Judah; but now seeing he had acted such a part, it should not continue long in his family, no longer than his own life, and quickly come into other hands.

1 Samuel 13:13 In-Context

11 And Samuel said to Saul, What hast thou done? Saul answered, Lo! for I saw that the people went away from me, and thou camest not by the days of (our) covenant; and the Philistines were gathered together in Michmash;
12 I said, Now (the) Philistines shall come down to me in(to) Gilgal, and I have not pleased the face of the Lord; (and so) I was compelled by need, and I offered (a) burnt sacrifice to the Lord.
13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done follily, and thou hast not kept the behests of thy Lord God, which he commanded to thee (Thou hast done foolishly, and thou hast not obeyed the command of the Lord thy God, which he commanded to thee); and if thou haddest not done this thing, right now the Lord had made ready thy realm upon Israel [into] without end;
14 but thy realm shall not rise further. The Lord hath sought a man to himself after his heart; and the Lord hath commanded to him, that he should be duke on his people, for thou keptest not those things which the Lord commanded. (but now thy kingdom shall not endure. And the Lord shall seek another man for himself after his own heart; and the Lord shall command him, that he should be the ruler over his people, for thou hast not kept, or obeyed, what the Lord commanded to thee.)
15 And Samuel rose, and went up from Gilgal into Gibeah of Benjamin; and the people that (were) left went up after Saul against the people that fought against them; and they came from Gilgal into Gibeah, in the hill of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people, that were found with him, as six hundred men. (And Samuel rose up, and went away from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin; and the people who were left went up with Saul to fight against their enemies; and they came from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul counted the people who were found with him, and there were about six hundred men.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.