Saul Anointed King

10 ^(A)Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head ^(B)and kissed him and said, “Has not the Lord anointed you to be prince^[a] over ^(C)his people Israel? And you shall reign over the people of the Lord and you will save them from the hand of their surrounding enemies. And this shall be the sign to you that the Lord has anointed you to be prince^[b] over his heritage.

²⁵ Then Samuel told the people ^(A)the rights and duties of the kingship, and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the Lord. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home. ²⁶ Saul also went to his home ^(B)at Gibeah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched. ²⁷ But some ^(C)worthless fellows said, “How can this man save us?” And they despised him and brought him no present. But he held his peace.

^11 (A)And the next day Saul put the people ^(B)in three companies. And they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch and struck down the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.

The Kingdom Is Renewed

¹² Then the people said to Samuel, ^(C)“Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ ^(D)Bring the men, that we may put them to death.” ¹³ But Saul said, ^(E)“Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today ^(F)the Lord has worked ^(G)salvation in Israel.” ¹⁴ Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom.” ¹⁵ So all the people went to ^(H)Gilgal, and there they made Saul king ^(I)before the Lord in Gilgal. There ^(J)they sacrificed peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.