The Death of Saul and His Sons

10 ^(A)Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. ² And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul. ³ The battle pressed hard against Saul, and the archers found him, and he was wounded by the archers. ⁴ Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and mistreat me.” But his armor-bearer would not, for he feared greatly. Therefore Saul took his own sword and fell upon it. ⁵ And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell upon his sword and died. ⁶ Thus Saul died; he and his three sons and all his house died together. ⁷ And when all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that the army^[a] had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled, and the Philistines came and lived in them.

⁸ The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ And they stripped him and took his head and his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to carry the good news to their idols and to the people. ¹⁰ And they put his armor in the temple of their gods and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon. ¹¹ But when all Jabesh-gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul, ¹² all the valiant men arose and took away the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons, and brought them to Jabesh. And they buried their bones under the oak in Jabesh and fasted seven days.

¹³ So Saul died ^(B)for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not keep the command of the Lord, and also ^(C)consulted a medium, seeking guidance. ¹⁴ He ^(D)did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore the Lord put him to death and ^(E)turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.

David Anointed King

11 ^(F)Then all Israel gathered together to David at Hebron and said, “Behold, we are your bone and flesh. ² In times past, even when Saul was king, it was you who led out and brought in Israel. And the Lord your God said to you, ^(G)‘You shall be shepherd of my people Israel, and you shall be prince over my people Israel.’” ³ So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord. And they anointed David king over Israel, ^(H)according to the word of the Lord by Samuel.

David Takes Jerusalem

⁴ And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, ^(I)that is, Jebus, where the Jebusites were, ^(J)the inhabitants of the land. ⁵ The inhabitants of Jebus said to David, “You will not come in here.” Nevertheless, David took the stronghold of Zion, that is, the city of David. ⁶ David said, “Whoever strikes the Jebusites first ^(K)shall be chief and commander.” And Joab the son of Zeruiah went up first, so he became chief. ⁷ And David lived in the stronghold; therefore it was called the city of David. ⁸ And he built the city all around from the Millo in complete circuit, and Joab repaired the rest of the city. ⁹ And David ^(L)became greater and greater, for the Lord of hosts was with him.

David's Mighty Men

^10 (M)Now these are the chiefs of David's mighty men, who gave him strong support in his kingdom, together with all Israel, to make him king, ^(N)according to the word of the Lord concerning Israel. ¹¹ This is an account of David's mighty men: ^(O)Jashobeam, a ^(P)Hachmonite, was ^(Q)chief of the three.^[b] He wielded his spear against 300 whom he killed at one time.

¹² And next to him among the three mighty men was Eleazar the son of ^(R)Dodo, the Ahohite. ¹³ He was with David at Pas-dammim ^(S)when the Philistines were gathered there for battle. There was a plot of ground full of barley, and the men fled from the Philistines. ¹⁴ But he took his^[c] stand in the midst of the plot and defended it and killed the Philistines. And the Lord saved them by a great victory.

¹⁵ Three of the thirty chief men went down to the rock to David at the cave of Adullam, when the army of Philistines was encamped in the ^(T)Valley of Rephaim. ¹⁶ David was then in the stronghold, and the ^(U)garrison of the Philistines was then at Bethlehem. ¹⁷ And David said longingly, “Oh that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!” ¹⁸ Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and took it and brought it to David. But David would not drink it. He poured it out to the Lord ¹⁹ and said, “Far be it from me before my God that I should do this. Shall I drink the lifeblood of these men? For at the risk of their lives they brought it.” Therefore he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men.

²⁰ Now Abishai, the brother of Joab, was chief of the thirty.^[d] And he wielded his spear against 300 men and killed them and won a name beside the three. ²¹ He was the most renowned^[e] of the thirty^[f] and became their commander, but he did not attain to the three.

²² And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was a valiant man^[g] of Kabzeel, a doer of great deeds. He struck down two heroes of Moab. He also went down and struck down a lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen. ²³ And he struck down an Egyptian, a man of great stature, five cubits^[h] tall. The Egyptian had in his hand a spear ^(V)like a weaver's beam, but Benaiah went down to him with a staff and snatched the spear out of the Egyptian's hand and killed him with his own spear. ²⁴ These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and won a name beside the three mighty men. ²⁵ He was renowned among the thirty, but he did not attain to the three. And David set him over his bodyguard.

²⁶ The mighty men were ^(W)Asahel the brother of Joab, Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem, ²⁷ Shammoth of Harod,^[i] Helez the Pelonite, ²⁸ Ira the son of Ikkesh of Tekoa, Abiezer of Anathoth, ²⁹ Sibbecai the Hushathite, Ilai the Ahohite, ³⁰ Maharai of Netophah, Heled the son of Baanah of Netophah, ³¹ Ithai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the people of Benjamin, Benaiah of Pirathon, ³² Hurai of the brooks of Gaash, Abiel the Arbathite, ³³ Azmaveth of Baharum, Eliahba the Shaalbonite, ³⁴ Hashem^[j] the Gizonite, Jonathan the son of Shagee the Hararite, ³⁵ Ahiam the son of Sachar the Hararite, Eliphal the son of Ur, ³⁶ Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite, ³⁷ Hezro of Carmel, Naarai the son of Ezbai, ³⁸ Joel the brother of Nathan, Mibhar the son of ^(X)Hagri, ³⁹ Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai of Beeroth, the armor-bearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah, ⁴⁰ Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite, ⁴¹ Uriah the Hittite, ^(Y)Zabad the son of Ahlai, ⁴² Adina the son of Shiza the Reubenite, a leader of the Reubenites, and thirty with him, ⁴³ Hanan the son of Maacah, and Joshaphat the Mithnite, ⁴⁴ Uzzia the Ashterathite, Shama and Jeiel the sons of Hotham the Aroerite, ⁴⁵ Jediael the son of Shimri, and Joha his brother, the Tizite, ⁴⁶ Eliel the Mahavite, and Jeribai, and Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam, and Ithmah the Moabite, ⁴⁷ Eliel, and Obed, and Jaasiel the Mezobaite.

I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life

14 ^(A)“Let not your hearts be troubled. ^(B)Believe in God;^[a] believe also in me. ² In ^(C)my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that ^(D)I go to prepare a place for you?^{[b] 3} And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you ^(E)to myself, that ^(F)where I am you may be also. ⁴ And you know the way to where I am going.”^{[c] 5 (G)}Thomas said to him, “Lord, ^(H)we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am ^(I)the way, and ^(J)the truth, and ^(K)the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ^7 (L)If you had known me, you would have ^(M)known my Father also.^[d] From now on you do know him and ^(N)have seen him.”

^8 (O)Philip said to him, “Lord, ^(P)show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” ⁹ Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? ^(Q)Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? ¹⁰ Do you not believe that ^(R)I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you ^(S)I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. ¹¹ Believe me that ^(T)I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else ^(U)believe on account of the works themselves.

¹² “Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(V)whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I ^(W)am going to the Father. ^13 (X)Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that ^(Y)the Father may be glorified in the Son. ^14 (Z)If you ask me^[e] anything in my name, I will do it.

Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit

^15 (AA)“If you love me, you will ^(AB)keep my commandments. ¹⁶ And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another ^(AC)Helper,^[f] to be with you forever, ¹⁷ even ^(AD)the Spirit of truth, ^(AE)whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and ^(AF)will be^[g] in you.

¹⁸ “I will not leave you as orphans; ^(AG)I will come to you. ^19 (AH)Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but ^(AI)you will see me. ^(AJ)Because I live, you also will live. ^20 (AK)In that day you will know that ^(AL)I am in my Father, and ^(AM)you in me, and ^(AN)I in you. ^21 (AO)Whoever has my commandments and ^(AP)keeps them, he it is who loves me. And ^(AQ)he who loves me ^(AR)will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and ^(AS)manifest myself to him.” ^22 (AT)Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it ^(AU)that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” ²³ Jesus answered him, ^(AV)“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and ^(AW)we will come to him and ^(AX)make our home with him. ²⁴ Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And ^(AY)the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me.

²⁵ “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. ²⁶ But the ^(AZ)Helper, the Holy Spirit, ^(BA)whom the Father will send in my name, ^(BB)he will teach you all things and ^(BC)bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. ^27 (BD)Peace I leave with you; ^(BE)my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. ^(BF)Let not your hearts be troubled, neither ^(BG)let them be afraid. ^28 (BH)You heard me say to you, ^(BI)‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I ^(BJ)am going to the Father, for ^(BK)the Father is greater than I. ²⁹ And ^(BL)now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. ³⁰ I will no longer talk much with you, for ^(BM)the ruler of this world is coming. ^(BN)He has no claim on me, ³¹ but I do ^(BO)as the Father has commanded me, ^(BP)so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.

Book Three

God Is My Strength and Portion Forever

A Psalm of ^(A)Asaph.