1 Samuel 15:14 (GNV)

Passage

But Samuel saide, What meaneth then the bleating of the sheepe in mine eares, and the lowing of the oxen which I heare?

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 15:12 And when Samuel arose early to meete Saul in the morning, one tolde Samuel, saying, Saul is gone to Carmel: and beholde, he hath made him there a place, from whence he returned, and departed, and is gone downe to Gilgal.

1 Samuel 15:13 Then Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said vnto him. Blessed be thou of the Lord, I haue fulfilled the commandement of the Lord.

1 Samuel 15:14 But Samuel saide, What meaneth then the bleating of the sheepe in mine eares, and the lowing of the oxen which I heare?

1 Samuel 15:15 And Saul answered, They haue brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheepe, and of the oxen to sacrifice them vnto the Lord thy God, and the remnant haue we destroyed.

1 Samuel 15:16 Againe Samuel saide to Saul, Let me tell thee what the Lord hath saide to me this night. And he said vnto him, Say on.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sheep", "samuel", "saide", "meaneth", "bleating", "sheepe", "mine", and "eares". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sheep" and "samuel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 13's "Then Samuel came to Saul and Saul..." into verse 15's "And Saul answered They haue brought them...", so "sheep" and "samuel" belong inside that flow. In 1 Samuel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "sheep" and "samuel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.