1 Samuel 15:3 (YLT)

Passage

Now, go, and thou hast smitten Amalek, and devoted all that it hath, and thou hast no pity on it, and hast put to death from man unto woman, from infant unto suckling, from ox unto sheep, from camel unto ass.'

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 15:1 And Samuel saith unto Saul, `Me did Jehovah send to anoint thee for king over His people, over Israel; and now, hearken to the voice of the words of Jehovah:

1 Samuel 15:2 `Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, I have looked after that which Amalek did to Israel, that which he laid for him in the way in his going up out of Egypt.

1 Samuel 15:3 Now, go, and thou hast smitten Amalek, and devoted all that it hath, and thou hast no pity on it, and hast put to death from man unto woman, from infant unto suckling, from ox unto sheep, from camel unto ass.'

1 Samuel 15:4 And Saul summoneth the people, and inspecteth them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand <FI>are<Fi> men of Judah.

1 Samuel 15:5 And Saul cometh in unto a city of Amalek, and layeth wait in a valley;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sheep", "thou", "hast", "smitten", "amalek", "devoted", and "hath". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sheep" and "thou", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "Thus said Jehovah of Hosts I have..." into verse 4's "And Saul summoneth the people and inspecteth...", so "sheep" and "thou" 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 "thou" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.