1 Samuel 15:3
Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.
Study Note
Study Note
'Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not' — the herem ('ban'/devoted destruction) command against Amalek is one of Scripture's most ethically demanding texts, generating extensive discussion in both Jewish and Christian interpretation. Ancient Near Eastern herem practices are attested in extrabiblical texts such as the Mesha Stele, suggesting a cultural context in which such commands were understood as sacred warfare under divine authority rather than ordinary military conquest. Christian readings from Origen onward have allegorized Amalek as the flesh's sinful inclinations that must be utterly destroyed, while contemporary theology grapples with the text's historical-ethical dimensions within the canonical witness to God's character.
Other Translations
Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.
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.'
Go now and put Amalek to the sword, putting to the curse all they have, without mercy: put to death every man and woman, every child and baby at the breast, every ox and sheep, camel and ass.
Cross References
For I will rise up against them, saith the Lord of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and …
Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; that they do not rise, nor possess the land, …
And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and …
And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the Lord: only Rahab the harlot …
And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children …
Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the …
Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous …
None devoted, which shall be devoted of men, shall be redeemed; but shall surely be put to death.
Notwithstanding no devoted thing, that a man shall devote unto the Lord of all that he hath, both of man …