And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?
When thou wast little in thine own sight ... Samuel saw the real state of the case, and, in discharge of the commission he had received before setting out, proceeded to denounce his conduct as characterized by pride, rebellion, and obstinate disobedience. When Saul persisted in declaring that he had obeyed, alleging that the animals whose bleating was heard had been reserved for a liberal sacrifice of thanksgiving to God his shuffling, prevaricating answer called forth a stern rebuke from the prophet. It well deserved it, because the destination of the spoil to the altar was a flimsy pretext, a gross deception; an attempt to conceal the selfishness of the original motive under the cloak of religious zeal and gratitude.