Amalekites in the Bible

Exact Match

And they returned, and came to Enmishpat, which is Kadesh, and smote all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, that dwelt in Hazezontamar.

Moses told Joshua, "Choose some men for us and go out to fight against the Amalekites. Tomorrow I'll stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand."

So Joshua did as Moses told him and fought against the Amalekites, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.

Verse ConceptsAaron, Life EventsAaron, PrivilegesApprentices

Whenever Moses raised his hand, the Israelis prevailed, but when his hand remained at his side, then the Amalekites prevailed.

Verse ConceptsCalling upon GodMoses, Significance OfLifting HandsPutting Things DownWinningBattleisrael

Then the LORD told Moses, "Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua: "I'll certainly wipe out the memory of the Amalekites from under heaven.'"

Verse ConceptsAmalekitesRemindersScrollsWritingBlotted OutJudgements WrittenBooks Of Prophecy

The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south: and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites, dwell in the mountains: and the Canaanites dwell by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.

Verse ConceptsJerusalem, History OfThe Region Of Jordan

(Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) To morrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.

Verse ConceptsValleysComing To The Red SeaGod Led Them Through The Wilderness

For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you.

Verse ConceptsConversion, God's demands forKilled With The Sword

Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah.

Verse ConceptsDefeat Of God's People

Remember what the Amalekites did to you on your way from Egypt,

So when the Lord your God gives you relief from all the enemies who surround you in the land he is giving you as an inheritance, you must wipe out the memory of the Amalekites from under heaven -- do not forget!

Verse ConceptsBlottingBlotted OutTime Of Peace

Now Hobab the Kenite, Moses' father-in-law, had come up out of the town of palm-trees, with the children of Judah, into the waste land of Arad; and he went and was living among the Amalekites;

Verse ConceptsFathers In LawsBrothers in law

Eglon formed alliances with the Ammonites and Amalekites. He came and defeated Israel, and they seized the City of Date Palm Trees.

Verse ConceptsAmalekitesenemies, of Israel and JudahAmmonitesDefeat Of God's People

Whenever the Israelites planted their crops, the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east would attack them.

Verse ConceptsNomadsFarmingEnemy Attacksisraelsowing

All the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east assembled. They crossed the Jordan River and camped in the Jezreel Valley.

Verse ConceptseastValleys

Now the Midianites, Amalekites, and the people from the east covered the valley like a swarm of locusts. Their camels could not be counted; they were as innumerable as the sand on the seashore.

Verse ConceptsMany CombatantsLocustsSandCamelsMany CreaturesSand And Gravel

Also when the Sidonians, the Amalekites, and the Maonites oppressed and crushed you, you cried out to Me, and I rescued you from their hands.

Then Abdon son of Hillel the Pirathonite died and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill country of the Amalekites.

And he gathered an host, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that spoiled them.

Verse ConceptsdefeatIndividuals Saving Others

Here is what the Lord of hosts says: 'I carefully observed how the Amalekites opposed Israel along the way when Israel came up from Egypt.

Verse ConceptsWarfare, Nature Of

So go now and strike down the Amalekites. Destroy everything that they have. Don't spare them. Put them to death -- man, woman, child, infant, ox, sheep, camel, and donkey alike.'"

Verse ConceptsBad ChildrenDeath penaltyResponsibility, Examples OfExterminationBoth Men And Animals KilledThe Death Of Babiesgenocide

And Saul came to the city of the Amalekites, and set an ambush in the valley.

Verse ConceptsAmbush

And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.

Verse ConceptsGrace, In Human RelationshipsKindnessSeparation From Evil People

And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt.

And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.

Verse ConceptsAnnihilationExterminationWhilst Alive

And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.

Verse ConceptsAnnihilation

And the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.

Verse ConceptsSinnersExtermination

And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

Verse ConceptsAnnihilationExterminationWe Obey

Then said Samuel, Bring ye hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came unto him delicately. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past.

Verse ConceptsOptimismNot DyingDeath AvertedBitterness

And David and his men went up, and invaded the Geshurites, and the Gezrites, and the Amalekites: for those nations were of old the inhabitants of the land, as thou goest to Shur, even unto the land of Egypt.

Verse ConceptsAmalekitesHistory Of NationsFighting Enemies

Since you did not obey the Lord and did not carry out his fierce anger against the Amalekites, the Lord has done this thing to you today.

Verse ConceptsDisobedience, Examples OfApostasy Of SaulGod Angry With The Nations

And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire;

Verse ConceptsConflagrationsBurning Cities

So he led him, and there were the Amalekites, spread out over the entire area, eating, drinking, and celebrating because of the great amount of plunder they had taken from the land of the Philistines and the land of Judah.

Verse ConceptsGluttonyFeastingExcessRevelryEating And Drinking

Nothing of theirs was missing from the youngest to the oldest, including the sons and daughters, of all the plunder the Amalekites had taken. David got everything back.

Verse ConceptsLackNo LossMissing SomeoneBeing Lost

Now it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag;

Verse ConceptsTwo Days

from Edom, Moab, the Ammonites, the Philistines, the Amalekites, and the spoil of Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

and they smote the rest of the Amalekites that had escaped; and they dwelt there unto this day.

Verse ConceptsExtermination

Them also king David dedicated to Jehovah, with the silver and the gold that he had brought from all the nations: from the Edomites, and from the Moabites, and from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines, and from the Amalekites.

Verse ConceptsSilverGarrisons

Thematic Bible



The Amalekites live in the Negev. The Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the mountain region. The Canaanites live along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea and all along the Jordan River.

The Amalekites and Canaanites are living in the valleys. Tomorrow you must turn around, go back into the desert. Follow the road that goes to the Red Sea.

Saul defeated the Amalekites. He fought all the way from Havilah to Shur, east of Egypt.

David and his men raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. Their territory extends from Telaim to Shur and Egypt.


Remember what Amalek did to you along the way when you came out from Egypt. He met you along the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear when you were faint and weary. He did not respect God. When Jehovah your God has given you rest from all your surrounding enemies, in the land Jehovah your God gives you as an inheritance to possess. You will blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget.

You disobeyed Jehovah's command and did not completely destroy the Amalekites. That is why Jehovah is doing this to you.


After Saul became king of Israel, he fought all his enemies everywhere: the people of Moab, of Ammon, and of Edom, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. He was victorious wherever he fought. He fought heroically and defeated even the people of Amalek. He saved the Israelites from all attacks.

Samuel told Saul: Jehovah sent me to anoint you king of his people Israel. Now listen to Jehovah's words: The Israelites were on their way out of Egypt when the nation of Amalek attacked them. I am Jehovah All-Powerful. I am going to make Amalek pay for what he did to Israel! Go and attack the Amalekites! Destroy them and all their possessions. Do not have any pity. Kill their men, women, children, and even their babies. Slaughter their cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys.' read more.
Saul called his forces together and inspected them at Telem. There were two hundred thousand soldiers from Israel and ten thousand from Judah. Then he and his men went to the city of Amalek. They waited in ambush in a dry riverbed. He sent a warning to the Kenites, a people whose ancestors had been kind to the Israelites when they came from Egypt: Go away and leave the Amalekites. That way I will not kill you along with them. So the Kenites left. Saul defeated the Amalekites. He fought all the way from Havilah to Shur, east of Egypt. He captured King Agag of Amalek alive and with the sword he killed all the people. Saul and his men spared Agag's life and did not kill the best sheep and cattle, the best calves and lambs, or anything else that was good. They destroyed only what was useless or worthless. Jehovah spoke to Samuel: I am sorry that I made Saul king. He has turned away from me and disobeyed my commands. Samuel was angry. All night long he pleaded with Jehovah. Early the following morning he went off to find Saul. He heard that Saul had gone to the town of Carmel. There in Carmel he built a monument to himself. Then he went to Gilgal. Samuel went up to Saul. Saul said: Jehovah bless you, Samuel! I have obeyed Jehovah's command. Samuel asked: Why do I hear the sound of cows and sheep? Saul answered: The army brought them from the Amalekites. They spared the best sheep and cows to sacrifice to Jehovah your God. But the rest they claimed for God and destroyed them. Be quiet, Samuel told Saul, Let me tell you what Jehovah told me last night. Speak, Saul replied. Samuel said to Saul: You are little in your own eyes. Even though you are a leader of all of the tribes of Israel that Jehovah anointed king over Israel. Jehovah sent you on a mission. He said: Go and destroy those sinners, the Amalekites. Fight against them until every one is dead. Why then did you not obey the voice of Jehovah? Why did you pounce on the plunder? Why did you do evil in the sight of Jehovah? Then Saul said to Samuel: I did obey the voice of Jehovah. I went on the mission Jehovah sent me. I brought back Agag the king of Amalek. I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. The people took from the plunder of the flock the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to Jehovah your God in Gilgal. Samuel said: What is more pleasing to Jehovah, burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Obeying is better than sacrifice. To pay attention is better than the fat of rams. The sin of divination is rebellion. Wickedness and idolatry are arrogance. They are evil. Because you rejected the word of Jehovah, he rejects you as king. Then Saul told Samuel: I have sinned by not following Jehovah's command or your instructions. I was afraid of the people and listened to them. But now I beg you, forgive my sin and return with me, so that I can worship Jehovah. I will not return with you, Samuel answered. You rejected Jehovah's command. He has rejected you as king of Israel. Samuel turned to leave, but Saul caught hold of his cloak, and it tore. Samuel said to him: Jehovah has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you today. He gave it to someone who is a better man than you. The Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind. He is not a mortal who changes his mind. Saul replied: I have sinned! Now please honor me in front of the elders of my people and in front of Israel. Come back with me. Let me worship Jehovah your God! Then Samuel turned and followed Saul. Saul worshiped Jehovah. Bring me King Agag of the Amalekites, Samuel said. Agag came to him trembling. Surely, the bitterness of death is past, Agag said. But Samuel said: As your sword made women childless, so your mother will be made childless among women. Samuel cut Agag in pieces in the presence of Jehovah at Gilgal.


After the fight Jehovah said to Moses: Write an account of this victory and read it to Joshua. I want the Amalekites to be forgotten forever.

Then Moses explained: This is because I depended on Jehovah. But in future generations, Jehovah will have to fight the Amalekites again.

He looked at Amalek and continued his discourse. He said: Amalek was the first of the nations but he will end in destruction.


David and his men raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. Their territory extends from Telaim to Shur and Egypt. David attacked the territory and left no man or woman alive. He also took sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and clothing and returned to Achish.

Two days later David and his men came to Ziklag. The Amalekites raided the south country (Negev) including Ziklag. They attacked Ziklag and burned it. They captured the women young and old. However they killed no one. Instead, they took the women as prisoners. When David and his men came to Zikleg they found it completely destroyed by fire. Their wives, sons, and daughters had been taken captive. read more.
David and his men cried loudly until they did not have the strength to cry anymore. The Amalekites also captured David's two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, Nabal's widow, from Carmel. The people in their bitterness said David should be stoned. This caused him great distress. They were thinking of their sons and daughters. But David found strength in Jehovah his God. David told Abiathar the priest: Please bring me the priestly ephod. So Abiathar brought David the ephod. David asked Jehovah: Should I pursue these troops? Will I catch up with them? Pursue them! Jehovah told him: You will certainly catch up with them and rescue the captives. So David and his six hundred men went to the Besor Valley, where some were left behind. David and four hundred men went in pursuit. Two hundred men who were too exhausted to cross the Besor Valley stayed behind. David's men found an Egyptian in the open country and took him to David. They gave him food to eat and water to drink. He also ate some dried figs, and two bunches of raisins. After he ate his strength returned. He had not eaten nor did he drank for three days. Who is your master? Where are you from? David asked. I am an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite, he answered. My master left me behind three days ago when I got sick. We raided the territory of the Cherethites in the southern part of Judah. We also raided the territory of the clan of Caleb, and we burned down Ziklag. Will you lead me to those raiders? David asked him. He answered, I will if you promise me in God's name that you will not kill me or hand me over to my master. He led David to the Amalekites. They were eating, drinking and celebrating because of what they had taken from Philistia and Judah. David attacked just before sunrise the next day. They fought until sunset. Four hundred Amalekites rode away on camels. They were the only ones to escape. David rescued his two wives. They rescued everyone else the Amalekites captured at Ziklag. Young and old, sons and daughters alike, no one was missing. David brought back everything that had been stolen. They even brought back their livestock. David also took the sheep and cattle that the Amalekites had with them. He kept these separate from the others. Everyone agreed that these would be David's reward.


Eglon joined the Ammonites and the Amalekites. They defeated Israel and captured Jericho, the city of palm trees.

The Amalekites and Canaanites who lived there came down from those mountains, attacked the Israelites, and defeated them at Hormah.


And five hundred of these Simeonites, led by Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi, invaded the hill country of Seir. They killed the remaining Amalekites who had escaped, and they have lived there to this day.


The Amalekites fought Israel at Rephidim.

That is how Joshua defeated the Amalekites.


They turned back and came to En-mishpat (Kadesh), and subdued all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who lived in Hazazon-tamar.



As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel would win, but as soon as he put his hands down, the Amalekites would start to win. Finally, Moses was so tired that Aaron and Hur got a rock for him to sit on. They stood beside him and supported his arms in the same position until sunset. That is how Joshua defeated the Amalekites. read more.
After the fight Jehovah said to Moses: Write an account of this victory and read it to Joshua. I want the Amalekites to be forgotten forever.


Early the next morning they headed into the mountains. They said: We have sinned. Now we will go to the place Jehovah promised. Moses asked: Why are you disobeying Jehovah's command? Your plan will not work! Do not go! Your enemies will defeat you because Jehovah is not with you. read more.
The Amalekites and Canaanites are there. You will die in battle. Now that you have turned away from Jehovah, he will not be with you. But they headed into the mountains anyway. The Ark of the Jehovah's promise and Moses stayed in the camp. The Amalekites and Canaanites who lived there came down from those mountains, attacked the Israelites, and defeated them at Hormah.

You answered: 'We have sinned against Jehovah. We will fight just as Jehovah our God commanded us.' When every man puts on his armor and weapons of war they will be ready to go to the mountain. But Jehovah said to me: 'Tell them, do not go and fight! I am not with you. Your enemies will defeat you.' I told you, but you would not listen. You disobeyed Jehovah's command and proudly invaded the mountainous region. read more.
The Amorites who lived there came out and attacked you. They chased you like a swarm of bees. They defeated you! They drove you back from Seir all the way to Hormah. You returned and cried to Jehovah. Jehovah, however, did not listen to you. He turned a deaf ear to you!


That is how Joshua defeated the Amalekites.

Remember what Amalek did to you along the way when you came out from Egypt. He met you along the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear when you were faint and weary. He did not respect God.


Saul was dead. David defeated the Amalekites and returned to Ziklag.



Go and attack the Amalekites! Destroy them and all their possessions. Do not have any pity. Kill their men, women, children, and even their babies. Slaughter their cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys.'


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