Saul’s Unlawful Sacrifice

13 Saul was . . .^[a] years old when he began to reign, and he reigned . . . and two^[b] years over Israel.

² Saul chose three thousand out of Israel; two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin; the rest of the people he sent home to their tents.^{(A) 3} Jonathan defeated the garrison of the Philistines that was at Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!”^{(B) 4} When all Israel heard that Saul had defeated the garrison of the Philistines and also that Israel had become odious to the Philistines, the people were called out to join Saul at Gilgal.

⁵ The Philistines mustered to fight with Israel: thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and troops like the sand on the seashore in multitude; they came up and encamped at Michmash, to the east of Beth-aven.^{(C) 6} When the Israelites saw that they were in distress (for the troops were hard pressed), the people hid themselves in caves and in holes and in rocks and in tombs and in cisterns.^{(D) 7} Some Hebrews crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul was still at Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

⁸ He waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people began to slip away from Saul.^{[c](E) 9} So Saul said, “Bring the burnt offering here to me and the offerings of well-being.” And he offered the burnt offering.^{(F) 10} As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to meet him and salute him.^{(G) 11} Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul replied, “When I saw that the people were slipping away from me and that you did not come within the days appointed and that the Philistines were mustering at Michmash,^{(H) 12} I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down upon me at Gilgal, and I have not entreated the favor of the Lord,’ so I forced myself and offered the burnt offering.” ¹³ Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which he commanded you. The Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever,^{(I) 14} but now your kingdom will not continue; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart, and the Lord has appointed him to be ruler over his people because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”^{(J) 15} And Samuel left and went on his way from Gilgal.^[d] The rest of the people followed Saul to join the army; they went up from Gilgal toward Gibeah of Benjamin.^[e]

Preparations for Battle

Saul counted the people who were present with him, about six hundred men.^{(K) 16} Saul, his son Jonathan, and the people who were present with them stayed in Geba of Benjamin, but the Philistines encamped at Michmash. ¹⁷ And raiders came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies; one company turned toward Ophrah to the land of Shual,^{(L) 18} another company turned toward Beth-horon, and another company turned toward the mountain^[f] that looks down upon the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.^(M)

¹⁹ Now there was no smith to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, “The Hebrews must not make swords or spears for themselves,”^{(N) 20} so all the Israelites went down to the Philistines to sharpen their plowshares, mattocks, axes, or sickles.^{[g] 21} The charge was two-thirds of a shekel^[h] for the plowshares and for the mattocks and one-third of a shekel for sharpening the axes and for setting the goads.^{[i] 22} So on the day of the battle neither sword nor spear was to be found in the possession of any of the people with Saul and Jonathan, but Saul and his son Jonathan had them.^(O)

Jonathan Surprises and Routs the Philistines

²³ Now a garrison of the Philistines had gone out to the pass of Michmash.

Israel’s Rejection Is Not Final

11 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.^{(A) 2} God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?^{(B) 3} “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars; I alone am left, and they are seeking my life.” ⁴ But what is the divine reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”^{(C) 5} So, too, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace. ⁶ But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace would no longer be grace.^[a](D)

⁷ What then? Israel has not achieved what it was pursuing. The elect have achieved it, but the rest were hardened,^{(E) 8} as it is written,

⁹ And David says,

The Salvation of the Gentiles

¹¹ So I ask, have they stumbled so as to fall? By no means! But through their stumbling^[b] salvation has come to the gentiles, so as to make Israel^[c] jealous.^{(H) 12} Now if their stumbling^[d] means riches for the world and if their loss means riches for gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!

¹³ Now I am speaking to you gentiles. Inasmuch as I am an apostle to the gentiles, I celebrate my ministry^{(I) 14} in order to make my own people^[e] jealous and thus save some of them.^{(J) 15} For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? ¹⁶ If the part of the dough offered as first fruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; and if the root is holy, then the branches also are holy.

¹⁷ But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted among the others to share the rich root^[f] of the olive tree, ¹⁸ do not boast over the branches. If you do boast, remember: you do not support the root, but the root supports you. ¹⁹ You will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” ²⁰ That is true. They were broken off on account of unbelief,^[g] but you stand on account of belief.^[h] So do not become arrogant, but be afraid.^{(K) 21} For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you.^{[i] 22} Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen but God’s kindness toward you, if you continue in his kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off.^{(L) 23} And even those of Israel,^[j] if they do not continue in unbelief,^[k] will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again.^{(M) 24} For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree.

14 ¹ One day Jonathan son of Saul said to the young man who carried his armor, “Come, let us go over to the Philistine garrison on the other side.” But he did not tell his father. ² Saul was staying in the outskirts of Gibeah under the pomegranate tree that is at Migron; the troops who were with him were about six hundred men,^{(A) 3} along with Ahijah son of Ahitub, Ichabod’s brother, son of Phinehas son of Eli, the priest of the Lord in Shiloh, carrying an ephod. Now the people did not know that Jonathan had gone.^{(B) 4} In the pass^[a] by which Jonathan tried to go over to the Philistine garrison there was a rocky crag on one side and a rocky crag on the other; the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other was Seneh.^{(C) 5} One crag rose on the north in front of Michmash and the other on the south in front of Geba.

⁶ Jonathan said to the young man who carried his armor, “Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the Lord will act for us, for nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or by few.”^{(D) 7} His armor-bearer said to him, “Do all that your mind inclines to.^[b] I am with you; as your mind is, so is mine.”^{[c] 8} Then Jonathan said, “Now we will cross over to those men and will show ourselves to them. ⁹ If they say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we will stand still in our place, and we will not go up to them. ¹⁰ But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up, for the Lord has given them into our hand. That will be the sign for us.”^{(E) 11} So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines, and the Philistines said, “Look, Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden themselves.”^{(F) 12} The men of the garrison hailed Jonathan and his armor-bearer, saying, “Come up to us, and we will show you something.” Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, “Come up after me, for the Lord has given them into the hand of Israel.”^{(G) 13} Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer following after him. The Philistines^[d] fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer coming after him killed them. ¹⁴ In that first attack Jonathan and his armor-bearer killed about twenty men within an area about half a furrow long in an acre^[e] of land. ¹⁵ There was a panic in the camp, in the field, and among all the people; the garrison and even the raiders trembled; the earth quaked; and it became a very great panic.^(H)

¹⁶ Saul’s lookouts in Gibeah of Benjamin were watching as the multitude was surging back and forth.^{[f](I) 17} Then Saul said to the troops who were with him, “Call the roll and see who has gone from us.” When they called the roll, Jonathan and his armor-bearer were not there. ¹⁸ Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring the ark of God here.” For at that time the ark of God went with the Israelites. ¹⁹ While Saul was talking to the priest, the tumult in the camp of the Philistines increased more and more, and Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.”^{(J) 20} Then Saul and all the people who were with him rallied and went into the battle, and every sword was against the other, so that there was very great confusion.^{(K) 21} Now the Hebrews who previously had been with the Philistines and had gone up with them into the camp turned and joined the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan. ²² Likewise, when all the Israelites who had gone into hiding in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were fleeing, they also followed closely after them in the battle.^{(L) 23} So the Lord gave Israel the victory that day.

The battle passed beyond Beth-aven, and the troops with Saul numbered altogether about ten thousand men.^[g] The battle spread out over the hill country of Ephraim.^(M)

Jesus Heals a Paralytic

¹⁷ One day while he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem were sitting nearby, and the power of the Lord was with him to heal.^{[a](A) 18} Just then some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a stretcher. They were trying to bring him in and lay him before Jesus,^{[b] 19} but, finding no way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down on the stretcher through the tiles into the middle of the crowd^[c] in front of Jesus.^{(B) 20} When he saw their faith, he said, “Friend,^[d] your sins are forgiven you.”^{(C) 21} Then the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, “Who is this who is speaking blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”^{(D) 22} When Jesus perceived their questionings, he answered them, “Why do you raise such questions in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Stand up and walk’? ²⁴ But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the one who was paralyzed—“I say to you, stand up and take your stretcher and go to your home.” ²⁵ Immediately he stood up before them, took what he had been lying on, and went to his home, glorifying God. ²⁶ Amazement seized all of them, and they glorified God and were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen incredible things today.”^(E)

Jesus Calls Levi

²⁷ After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax-collection station, and he said to him, “Follow me.” ²⁸ And he got up, left everything, and followed him.^(F)

²⁹ Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house, and there was a large crowd of tax collectors and others reclining at the table with them.^{(G) 30} The Pharisees and their scribes were complaining to his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”^{(H) 31} Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician but those who are sick; ³² I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”^(I)

The Question about Fasting

³³ Then they said to him, “John’s disciples, like the disciples of the Pharisees, frequently fast and pray, but your disciples eat and drink.”^{(J) 34} Jesus said to them, “You cannot make wedding attendants fast while the bridegroom is with them, can you? ³⁵ The days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.”^{(K) 36} He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and sews it on an old garment; otherwise, not only will one tear the new garment, but the piece from the new will not match the old garment. ³⁷ Similarly, no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins and will spill out, and the skins will be ruined. ³⁸ But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.^{[e] 39} And no one after drinking old wine desires new wine but says, ‘The old is good.’ ”^[f]