Also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent; for he is not a man, that he should repent.
Saul’s criterion for what he put to death was not part of God’s command but his own judgment (1 Samuel 14:9). Again, Saul’s defective view of his role under Yahweh’s sovereign rule is obvious. God had earlier revealed through Balaam that Israel’s king "shall be higher than Agag" (Numbers 24:7). As Achan had done, Saul misused some of what God had devoted to another purpose. Clearly Saul set his will against the orders of his Commander; he was "not willing" to destroy everything that breathed (1 Samuel 14:9). His obedience was selective and partial.