1 Samuel 11:9-12:18

English Standard Version

⁹ And they said to the messengers who had come, “Thus shall you say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have ^(A)salvation.’” When the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh, they were glad. ¹⁰ Therefore the men of Jabesh said, ^(B)“Tomorrow we will give ourselves up to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.” ^11 (C)And the next day Saul put the people ^(D)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, ^(E)“Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ ^(F)Bring the men, that we may put them to death.” ¹³ But Saul said, ^(G)“Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today ^(H)the Lord has worked ^(I)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 ^(J)Gilgal, and there they made Saul king ^(K)before the Lord in Gilgal. There ^(L)they sacrificed peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

Samuel's Farewell Address

12 And Samuel said to all Israel, “Behold, I have obeyed ^(M)your voice in all that you have said to me ^(N)and have made a king over you. ² And now, behold, the king ^(O)walks before you, ^(P)and I am old and gray; and behold, my sons are with you. I have walked before you from my youth until this day. ³ Here I am; testify against me before the Lord and before ^(Q)his anointed. ^(R)Whose ox have I taken? Or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? Testify against me^[a] and I will restore it to you.” ⁴ They said, “You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from any man's hand.” ⁵ And he said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and ^(S)his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything ^(T)in my hand.” And they said, “He is witness.”

⁶ And Samuel said to the people, ^(U)“The Lord is witness,^[b] who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. ⁷ Now therefore stand still that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous deeds of the Lord that he performed for you and for your fathers. ^8 (V)When Jacob went into Egypt, and the Egyptians oppressed them,^{[c] (W)}then your fathers cried out to the Lord and ^(X)the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, ^(Y)who brought your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place. ⁹ But ^(Z)they forgot the Lord their God. ^(AA)And he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of Hazor,^{[d] (AB)}and into the hand of the Philistines, ^(AC)and into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against them. ^10 (AD)And they cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord ^(AE)and have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth. But now ^(AF)deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, that we may serve you.’ ¹¹ And the Lord sent ^(AG)Jerubbaal ^(AH)and Barak^{[e] (AI)}and Jephthah and ^(AJ)Samuel and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you lived in safety. ¹² And when you saw that ^(AK)Nahash the king of the Ammonites came against you, ^(AL)you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ ^(AM)when the Lord your God was your king. ¹³ And now ^(AN)behold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you have asked; behold, ^(AO)the Lord has set a king over you. ¹⁴ If you will ^(AP)fear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God, it will be well. ¹⁵ But ^(AQ)if you will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then ^(AR)the hand of the Lord will be against you and ^(AS)your king.^{[f] 16} Now therefore ^(AT)stand still and see this great thing that the Lord will do before your eyes. ^17 (AU)Is it not wheat harvest today? ^(AV)I will call upon the Lord, that he may send thunder and rain. And you shall know and see that ^(AW)your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking for yourselves a king.” ¹⁸ So Samuel called upon the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, ^(AX)and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.