1 Samuel 8-15

New American Standard Bible

Israel Demands a King

8 Now it came about, when Samuel was old, that ^(A)he appointed his sons as judges over Israel. ² The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judging in ^(B)Beersheba. ³ His sons, however, did not walk in his ways but turned aside after dishonest gain, and they ^(C)took bribes and perverted justice.

⁴ Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at ^(D)Ramah; ⁵ and they said to him, “Behold, you have grown old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now ^(E)appoint us a king to judge us like all the nations.” ⁶ But the matter was ^[a](F)displeasing in the sight of Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And ^(G)Samuel prayed to the Lord. ⁷ And the Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to the voice of the people regarding all that they say to you, because ^(H)they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being King over them. ⁸ Like all the deeds which they have done since the day that I brought them up from Egypt even to this day—in that they have abandoned Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you as well. ⁹ Now then, listen to their voice; ^(I)however, you shall warn them strongly and tell them of ^(J)the ^[b]practice of the king who will reign over them.”

Warning concerning a King

¹⁰ So Samuel spoke all the words of the Lord to ^(K)the people who had asked him for a king. ¹¹ And he said, “^(L)This will be the ^[c]practice of the king who will reign over you: ^(M)he will take your sons and put them in his chariots for himself and among his horsemen, and ^(N)they will run before his chariots. ^12 (O)He will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to ^[d]do his plowing and to gather in his harvest, and to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. ¹³ He will also take your daughters and use them as perfumers, cooks, and bakers. ^14 (P)He will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive groves, and give them to his servants. ¹⁵ And he will take a tenth of your seed and your vineyards and give it to his high officials and his servants. ¹⁶ He will also take your male servants and your female servants, and your best young men, and your donkeys, and ^[e]use them for his work. ¹⁷ He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his servants. ¹⁸ Then ^(Q)you will cry out on that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, but ^(R)the Lord will not answer you on that day.”

¹⁹ Yet the people ^(S)refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, “No, but there shall be a king over us, ^20 (T)so that we also may be like all the nations, and our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.” ²¹ Now after Samuel had heard all the words of the people, ^(U)he ^[f]repeated them in the Lord’s hearing. ²² And the Lord said to Samuel, “^(V)Listen to their voice and appoint a king for them.” So Samuel said to the men of Israel, “Go, every man to his city.”

Saul’s Search

9 Now there was a man of Benjamin whose name was ^(W)Kish the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, son of a Benjaminite, a ^[g]valiant mighty man. ² He had a son whose name was Saul, a ^(X)young and handsome man, and there was not a more handsome man than he among the sons of Israel; ^(Y)from his shoulders and up he was taller than any of the people.

³ Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, had wandered off. So Kish said to his son Saul, “Now take with you one of the servants and arise, go search for the donkeys.” ⁴ So he passed through ^(Z)the hill country of Ephraim and passed through the land of ^(AA)Shalishah, but they did not find them. Then they passed through the land of ^(AB)Shaalim, but they were not there. Then he passed through the land of the Benjaminites, but they did not find them.

⁵ When they came to the land of ^(AC)Zuph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, “Come, and let’s return, ^(AD)or else my father will stop being concerned about the donkeys and will become anxious about us.” ⁶ But he said to him, “Behold now, there is ^(AE)a man of God in this city, and the man is held in honor; ^(AF)everything that he says definitely comes true. Now let’s go there, ^(AG)perhaps he can tell us about our journey on which we have set out.” ⁷ Then Saul said to his servant, “But look, if we go, what shall we bring the man? For the bread is gone from our sacks and there is ^(AH)no gift to bring to the man of God. What do we have?” ⁸ The servant answered Saul again and said, “Look, I have in my hand a fourth of a shekel of silver; I will give it to the man of God and he will ^(AI)tell us our way.” ⁹ (Previously in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he used to say, “Come, and let’s go to the seer”; for he who is called a prophet now was previously called ^(AJ)a seer.) ¹⁰ Then Saul said to his servant, “^[h]Good idea; come, let’s go.” So they went to the city where the man of God was.

¹¹ As they went up the slope to the city, ^(AK)they found young women going out to draw water, and they said to them, “Is the seer here?” ¹² They answered them and said, “He is; ^[i]see, he is ahead of you. Hurry now, for he has come into the city today, because ^(AL)the people have a sacrifice on ^(AM)the high place today. ¹³ As soon as you enter the city you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat, for the people will not eat until he comes, because ^(AN)he must bless the sacrifice; afterward those who are invited will eat. Now then, go up, for you will find him about this time.” ¹⁴ So they went up to the city. As they came into the city, behold, Samuel was coming out toward them to go up to the high place.

God’s Choice for King

¹⁵ Now a day before Saul’s coming, ^(AO)the Lord had ^[j]revealed this to Samuel, saying, ¹⁶ “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and ^(AP)you shall anoint him as ruler over My people Israel; and he will save My people from the hand of the Philistines. For ^(AQ)I have considered My people, because their outcry has come to Me.” ¹⁷ When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord ^[k]said to him, “^(AR)Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! This one shall rule over My people.” ¹⁸ Then Saul approached Samuel at the gateway and said, “Please tell me where the seer’s house is.” ¹⁹ And Samuel answered Saul and said, “I am the seer. Go up ahead of me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and in the morning I will let you go, and will tell you everything that is on your mind. ^20 (AS)And as for your donkeys that wandered off three days ago, do not be concerned about them, for they have been found. And ^(AT)for whom is everything that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you and for all your father’s household?” ²¹ Saul replied, “^(AU)Am I not a Benjaminite, of ^(AV)the smallest of the tribes of Israel, and my family the least of all the families of the ^[l]tribe of Benjamin? Why then have you spoken to me in this way?”

²² Then Samuel took Saul and his servant and brought them into the hall, and gave them a place at the head of those who were invited, who were about thirty men. ²³ And Samuel said to the cook, “^[m]Serve the portion that I gave you about which I said to you, ‘Set it ^[n]aside.’” ²⁴ Then the cook ^(AW)took up the leg with what was on it and placed it before Saul. And Samuel said, “Here is what has been reserved! Place it before you and eat, because it has been kept for you until the appointed time, ^[o]since I said I have invited the people.” So Saul ate with Samuel that day.

²⁵ When they came down from the high place into the city, ^[p]Samuel spoke with Saul ^(AX)on the roof. ²⁶ And they got up early; and at daybreak Samuel called to Saul on the roof, saying, “Get up, so that I may send you on your way.” So Saul got up, and both he and Samuel went out into the street. ²⁷ As they were going down to the edge of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Speak to the servant and have him go on ahead of us and pass by; but you stand here now, so that I may proclaim the word of God to you.”

Saul among the Prophets

10 Then ^(AY)Samuel took the flask of oil, poured it on ^[q]Saul’s head, ^(AZ)kissed him, and said, “Has ^(BA)the Lord not anointed you as ruler over ^(BB)His inheritance? ² When you leave me today, then you will find two men close to ^(BC)Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, ‘^(BD)The donkeys which you went to look for have been found. Now behold, your father has stopped talking about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, “What am I to do about my son?”’ ³ Then you will go on farther from there, and you will come as far as the ^[r](BE)oak of Tabor, and there three men going up ^(BF)to God at Bethel will meet you: one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a jug of wine. ⁴ And they will ^[s]greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from their hand. ⁵ Afterward you will come to ^[t](BG)the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is; and it shall be as soon as you have come there to the city, that you will meet ^(BH)a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and a lyre in front of them, and ^(BI)they will be prophesying. ⁶ Then ^(BJ)the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and ^(BK)you will prophesy with them and be changed into a different man. ⁷ And it shall be when these signs come to you, ^(BL)do for yourself what ^[u]the occasion requires, because ^(BM)God is with you. ⁸ And ^(BN)you shall go down ahead of me to Gilgal; and behold, I will be coming down to you to offer burnt offerings and ^(BO)sacrifice peace offerings. ^(BP)You shall wait seven days until I come to you and inform you of what you should do.”

⁹ Then it happened, when he turned his back to leave Samuel, that God ^(BQ)changed ^[v]his heart; and all those signs came about on that day. ^10 (BR)When they came there to ^[w]the hill, behold, a group of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, so that he prophesied among them. ¹¹ And it came about, when all who previously knew him saw that he was indeed prophesying with the prophets, that the people said to one another, “What is this that has happened to the son of Kish? ^(BS)Is Saul also among the prophets?” ¹² And a man from there responded and said, “And who is their father?” Therefore it became a saying: “^(BT)Is Saul also among the prophets?” ¹³ When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place.

¹⁴ Now ^(BU)Saul’s uncle said to him and his servant, “Where did you go?” And he said, “^(BV)To look for the donkeys. When we saw that they were nowhere to be found, we went to Samuel.” ¹⁵ Saul’s uncle said, “Please tell me what Samuel said to you.” ¹⁶ So Saul said to his uncle, “^(BW)He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found.” But he did not tell him about the matter of the kingdom which Samuel had mentioned.

Saul Publicly Chosen King

¹⁷ Now Samuel called the ^(BX)people together to the Lord at Mizpah; ¹⁸ and he said to the sons of Israel, “^(BY)This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘I brought Israel up from Egypt, and I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the ^[x]power of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’ ¹⁹ But today you ^(BZ)have rejected your God, who saves you from all your catastrophes and your distresses; yet you have ^[y]said, ‘No, but put a king over us!’ Now then, ^(CA)present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by your ^[z]groups of thousands.”

²⁰ So Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel forward; and the tribe of Benjamin was selected by lot. ²¹ Then he brought the tribe of Benjamin forward by its families, and the Matrite family was selected by lot. And Saul the son of Kish was selected by lot; but when they looked for him, he could not be found. ²² Therefore ^(CB)they inquired further of the Lord: “Has the man come here yet?” And the Lord said, “Behold, he is hiding himself among the baggage.” ²³ So they ran and took him from there, and when he stood among the people, ^(CC)he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. ²⁴ Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see him ^(CD)whom the Lord has chosen? Surely there is no one like him among all the people.” So all the people shouted and said, “^[aa](CE)Long live the king!”

²⁵ Then Samuel told the people ^(CF)the ordinances of the kingdom, and wrote them in the book, and ^(CG)placed it before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his house. ²⁶ Saul also went ^(CH)to his house in Gibeah; and the valiant men whose hearts God had touched went with him. ²⁷ But certain ^[ab](CI)useless men said, “How can this one save us?” And they despised him and ^(CJ)did not bring him a gift. But ^[ac]he kept silent about it.

Saul Defeats the Ammonites

11 Now ^(CK)Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged ^(CL)Jabesh-gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Make ^(CM)a covenant with us and we will serve you.” ² But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, “I will make it with you on this condition, ^(CN)that I will gouge out the right eye of every one of you, and thereby I will inflict ^(CO)a disgrace on all Israel.” ³ So ^(CP)the elders of Jabesh said to him, “Allow us seven days to send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you.” ⁴ Then the messengers came ^(CQ)to Gibeah of Saul and spoke these words in the hearing of the people, and all the people ^(CR)raised their voices and wept.

⁵ Now behold, Saul was coming from the field ^(CS)behind the oxen, and Saul said, “What is the matter with the people that they weep?” So they reported to him the words of the men of Jabesh. ⁶ Then ^(CT)the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and ^[ad]he became very angry. ⁷ He then took a yoke of oxen and ^(CU)cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout the territory of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying, “^(CV)Whoever does not come out after Saul and after Samuel, the same shall be done to his oxen.” Then the dread of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out ^(CW)as one person. ⁸ He ^[ae]counted them in ^(CX)Bezek; and the ^(CY)sons of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah, thirty thousand. ⁹ They said to the messengers who had come, “This is what you shall say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you will be saved.’” So the messengers went and told the men of Jabesh; and they rejoiced. ¹⁰ Then the men of Jabesh said, “^(CZ)Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good ^[af]to you.” ¹¹ The next morning Saul put the people ^(DA)in three companies; and they came into the midst of the camp at the morning watch, and struck and killed the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived scattered, so that no two of them were left together.

¹² Then the people said to Samuel, “^(DB)Who is he that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ ^[ag](DC)Bring the men, so that we may put them to death!” ¹³ But Saul said, “^(DD)Not a single person shall be put to death this day, for today ^(DE)the Lord has brought about ^[ah]victory in Israel.”

¹⁴ Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, and let us go to ^(DF)Gilgal and ^(DG)renew the kingdom there.” ¹⁵ So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king ^(DH)before the Lord in Gilgal. There they also ^(DI)offered sacrifices of peace offerings before the Lord; and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

Samuel Addresses Israel

12 Then Samuel said to all Israel, “Behold, ^(DJ)I have listened to your voice for all that you said to me, and I ^(DK)have appointed a king over you. ² Now, ^(DL)here is the king walking before you, but as for me, ^(DM)I am old and gray, and ^(DN)my sons are here with you. And ^(DO)I have walked before you since my youth to this day. ³ Here I am; testify against me before the Lord and ^(DP)His anointed. ^(DQ)Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I exploited? Whom have I oppressed, or ^(DR)from whose hand have I taken a bribe to close my eyes with it? I will return it to you.” ⁴ And they said, “You have not exploited us or oppressed us, or taken anything from anyone’s hand.” ⁵ So he said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed is witness this day that ^(DS)you have found nothing ^(DT)in my hand.” And they said, “He is witness.”

⁶ Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Lord who ^[ai](DU)appointed Moses and Aaron and who brought your fathers up from the land of Egypt. ⁷ Now then, take your stand, ^(DV)so that I may enter into judgment with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous acts of the Lord that He did for you and your fathers. ^8 (DW)When Jacob went into Egypt and ^(DX)your fathers cried out to the Lord, then ^(DY)the Lord sent Moses and Aaron ^[aj](DZ)who brought your fathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place. ⁹ But ^(EA)they forgot the Lord their God, so ^(EB)He sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of Hazor, and ^(EC)into the hand of the Philistines, and ^(ED)into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. ^10 (EE)They cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned, because we have abandoned the Lord and have served ^(EF)the Baals and the Ashtaroth; but ^(EG)now save us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve You.’ ¹¹ Then the Lord sent ^(EH)Jerubbaal, ^[ak](EI)Bedan, ^(EJ)Jephthah, and ^(EK)Samuel, and saved you from the hands of your enemies all around, so that you lived in security.

The King Confirmed

¹² But when you saw ^(EL)that Nahash the king of the sons of Ammon was coming against you, you said to me, ‘^(EM)No, but a king shall reign over us!’ ^(EN)Yet the Lord your God was your king. ¹³ And now, ^(EO)behold, the king whom you have chosen, ^(EP)whom you have asked for, and behold, the Lord has ^[al]put a king over you. ^14 (EQ)If you will fear the Lord and serve Him, and listen to His voice and not rebel against the ^[am]command of the Lord, then both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God. ¹⁵ But ^(ER)if you do not listen to the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the ^[an]command of the Lord, then ^(ES)the hand of the Lord will be against you, ^(ET)even as it was against your fathers. ¹⁶ Even now, ^(EU)take your stand and see this great thing which the Lord is going to do before your eyes. ^17 (EV)Is it not the wheat harvest today? ^(EW)I will call to the Lord, that He will send ^[ao]thunder and rain. Then you will know and see that ^(EX)your wickedness is great which you have done in the sight of the Lord, by asking for yourselves a king.” ¹⁸ So Samuel called to the Lord, and the Lord sent ^[ap]thunder and rain that day; and ^(EY)all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

¹⁹ Then all the people said to Samuel, “^(EZ)Pray to the Lord your God for your servants, so that we do not die; for we have added to all our sins ^(FA)this evil, by asking for ourselves a king.” ²⁰ Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have committed all this evil, yet ^(FB)do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. ²¹ Indeed, you must not turn aside, for then you would go after ^(FC)useless things which cannot benefit or save, because they are useless. ²² For ^(FD)the Lord will not abandon His people ^(FE)on account of His great name, because the Lord ^(FF)has been pleased to make you a people for Himself. ²³ Furthermore, as for me, ^(FG)far be it from me that I would sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you; but ^(FH)I will instruct you in the good and right way. ^24 (FI)Only ^[aq]fear the Lord and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider ^(FJ)what great things He has done for you. ^25 (FK)But if you still do evil, ^(FL)both you and your king ^(FM)will be swept away.”

War with the Philistines

13 Saul was ^[ar]thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for ^[as]forty-two years over Israel.

² Now Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel, of whom two thousand were with Saul in ^(FN)Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, while a thousand were with Jonathan at ^(FO)Gibeah of Benjamin. But he sent the rest of the people away, each to his tent. ³ And Jonathan attacked ^(FP)the garrison of the Philistines that was in ^(FQ)Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul ^(FR)blew the trumpet throughout the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!” ⁴ And all Israel heard ^[at]the news that Saul had attacked the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel ^(FS)had become repulsive to the Philistines. Then the people were summoned ^[au]to Saul at Gilgal.

⁵ Now the Philistines assembled to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, and ^(FT)people like the sand which is on the seashore in abundance; and they came up and camped in Michmash, east of ^(FU)Beth-aven. ⁶ When the men of Israel saw that they were in trouble (for the people were hard-pressed), then ^(FV)the people kept themselves hidden in caves, in crevices, in cliffs, in crypts, and in pits. ⁷ And some of the Hebrews crossed the Jordan into the land of ^(FW)Gad and Gilead. But as for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him, trembling.

⁸ Now ^(FX)he waited for seven days, until the appointed time that Samuel had set, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattering from him. ⁹ So Saul said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” And ^(FY)he offered the burnt offering. ¹⁰ But as soon as he finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and ^(FZ)Saul went out to meet him and to ^[av]greet him. ¹¹ But Samuel said, “What have you done?” And Saul said, “Since I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come at the appointed ^[aw]time, and that ^(GA)the Philistines were assembling at Michmash, ¹² I ^[ax]thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not ^[ay]asked the favor of the Lord.’ So I worked up the courage and offered the burnt offering.” ¹³ But Samuel said to Saul, “^(GB)You have acted foolishly! ^(GC)You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you, for the Lord would now have established your kingdom ^[az]over Israel ^(GD)forever. ¹⁴ But ^(GE)now your kingdom shall not endure. ^(GF)The Lord has sought for Himself a man ^[ba]after His own heart, and the Lord has appointed him ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”

¹⁵ Then Samuel set out and went up from Gilgal to ^(GG)Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul ^[bb]counted the people who were ^[bc]present with him, ^(GH)about six hundred men. ¹⁶ Now Saul, his son Jonathan, and the people who were ^[bd]present with them were staying in ^(GI)Geba of Benjamin while the Philistines camped at Michmash. ¹⁷ Then ^[be](GJ)raiders came from the camp of the Philistines in three ^[bf]companies: one ^[bg]company turned ^[bh]toward ^(GK)Ophrah, to the land of Shual, ¹⁸ and another ^[bi]company turned ^[bj]toward ^(GL)Beth-horon, and another ^[bk]company turned ^[bl]toward the border that overlooks the Valley of ^(GM)Zeboim toward the wilderness.

¹⁹ Now ^(GN)no blacksmith could be found in all the land of Israel, because the Philistines said, “Otherwise the Hebrews will make ^[bm](GO)swords or spears.” ²⁰ So all Israel went down to the Philistines, each to sharpen his plowshare, his mattock, his axe, and his hoe. ²¹ The charge was ^[bn]two-thirds of a shekel for the plowshares, the mattocks, the forks, and the axes, and to fix the ^[bo]cattle goads. ²² So it came about on the day of battle that ^(GP)neither sword nor spear was found in the hands of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan, but they were found with Saul and his son Jonathan. ²³ And ^(GQ)the garrison of the Philistines went out to ^(GR)the gorge of Michmash.

Jonathan’s Victory

14 Now the day came that Jonathan, the son of Saul, said to the young man who was carrying his armor, “Come, and let’s cross over to the Philistines’ garrison that is on the other side.” But he did not tell his father. ² Saul was staying on the outskirts of ^(GS)Gibeah under the pomegranate tree that is in ^(GT)Migron. And the people who were with him numbered ^(GU)about six hundred men; ³ and Ahijah, the ^(GV)son of Ahitub, ^(GW)Ichabod’s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of the Lord at ^(GX)Shiloh, ^(GY)was ^[bp]wearing an ephod. And the people did not know that Jonathan had gone. ⁴ Now ^(GZ)between the gorges by which Jonathan sought to cross over to the Philistines’ garrison there was a rocky crag on the one side, and a rocky crag on the other side; and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other, Seneh. ⁵ The one crag rose on the north opposite Michmash, and the other on the south opposite Geba.

⁶ Then Jonathan said to the young man who was carrying his armor, “Come, and let’s cross over to the garrison of ^(HA)these uncircumcised men; perhaps the Lord will work for us, because ^(HB)the Lord is not limited to saving by many or by few!” ⁷ His armor bearer said to him, “Do everything that is in your heart; turn yourself to it, and here I am with you, as your heart desires.” ⁸ Then Jonathan said, “^(HC)Behold, we are going to cross over to the men and reveal ourselves to them. ⁹ If they ^[bq]say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you’; then we will stand in our place and not go up to them. ¹⁰ But if they ^[br]say, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up, for the Lord has handed them over to us; and ^(HD)this shall be the sign to us.” ¹¹ When the two of them revealed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines, the Philistines said, “Behold, ^(HE)Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have kept themselves hidden.” ¹² So the men of the garrison responded to Jonathan and his armor bearer and said, “Come up to us and ^(HF)we will inform you of something.” And Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come up after me, for ^(HG)the Lord has handed them over to Israel.” ¹³ Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer behind him; and the men fell before Jonathan, and his armor bearer put some to death after him. ¹⁴ Now that first slaughter which Jonathan and his armor bearer inflicted was about twenty men within about half a furrow in an acre of land. ¹⁵ And there was a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. Even the garrison and ^(HH)the raiders trembled, and ^(HI)the earth quaked so ^(HJ)that it became a ^[bs]great trembling.

¹⁶ Now Saul’s watchmen in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold, the multitude dissolved; they went here and there. ¹⁷ So Saul said to the people who were with him, “Look carefully now and see who has left us.” And when they had looked, behold, Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there. ¹⁸ Then Saul said to Ahijah, “^(HK)Bring the ark of God here.” For at that time the ark of God was with the sons of Israel. ^19 (HL)While Saul talked to the priest, the commotion in the camp of the Philistines continued and increased; so Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.” ²⁰ Then Saul and all the people who were with him rallied and came to the battle; and behold, ^(HM)every man’s sword was against his fellow Philistine, and there was very great confusion. ²¹ Now the Hebrews who were with the Philistines previously, who went up with them all around in the camp, even ^(HN)they also returned to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan. ²² When all the ^(HO)men of Israel who had kept themselves hidden in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, they also closely pursued them in the battle. ²³ So ^(HP)the Lord saved Israel that day, and the battle ^[bt]spread beyond ^(HQ)Beth-aven.

Saul’s Foolish Order

²⁴ Now the men of Israel were hard-pressed on that day, for Saul had ^(HR)put the people under oath, saying, “Cursed be the man who eats food ^[bu]before evening, and before I have avenged myself on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food. ²⁵ All the people of the land entered the forest, and there was honey on the ground. ²⁶ When the people entered the forest, behold, ^(HS)there was honey dripping; but no man put his hand to his mouth, because the people feared the oath. ²⁷ However, Jonathan had not heard it when his father put the people under oath; so ^(HT)he put out the end of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it in the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth, and ^(HU)his eyes ^[bv]brightened. ²⁸ Then one of the people responded and said, “Your father strictly put the people under oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food today.’” And the people were weary. ²⁹ Then Jonathan said, “^(HV)My father has troubled the land. See now that my eyes have brightened because I tasted a little of this honey. ³⁰ How much more, if only the people had freely eaten today of the spoils of their enemies which they found! For now the defeat among the Philistines has not been great.”

³¹ They attacked the Philistines that day from ^(HW)Michmash to ^(HX)Aijalon. But the people were very tired. ³² So ^(HY)the people loudly rushed upon the spoils, and took sheep, oxen, and calves, and slaughtered them on the ground; and the people ate them ^(HZ)with the blood. ³³ Then observers informed Saul, saying, “Look, the people are ^(IA)sinning against the Lord by eating meat with the blood.” And he said, “You have acted treacherously; roll a large rock to me today.” ³⁴ Then Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the people and say to them, ‘Each one of you bring me his ox or his sheep, and slaughter it here and eat; and do not sin against the Lord by eating it with the blood.’” So all the people brought them that night, each one his ox ^[bw]with him, and they slaughtered them there. ³⁵ And ^(IB)Saul built an altar to the Lord; it was the first altar that he built to the Lord.

³⁶ Then Saul said, “Let’s go down after the Philistines by night and take plunder among them until the morning light, and let’s not leave a man among them alive.” And they said, “Do whatever seems good ^[bx]to you.” So ^(IC)the priest said, “Let’s approach God here.” ³⁷ So Saul ^(ID)inquired of God: “Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You hand them over to Israel?” But ^(IE)He did not answer him on that day. ³⁸ Then Saul said, “^[by](IF)Come here, all you ^[bz]leaders of the people, and investigate and see how this sin has happened today. ³⁹ For ^(IG)as the Lord lives, who saves Israel, even if it is in my son Jonathan, he shall assuredly die!” But not one of all the people answered him. ⁴⁰ Then he said to all Israel, “You shall be on one side, and I and my son Jonathan will be on the other side.” And the people said to Saul, “Do what seems good ^[ca]to you.” ⁴¹ Therefore, Saul said to the Lord, the God of Israel, “^(IH)Give a ^[cb]perfect lot.” And Jonathan and Saul were selected by lot, but the people ^[cc]were exonerated. ⁴² Then Saul said, “Cast lots between me and my son Jonathan.” And Jonathan was selected by lot.

⁴³ So Saul said to Jonathan, “^(II)Tell me what you have done.” And Jonathan told him, and said, “^(IJ)I did indeed taste a little honey with the end of the staff that was in my hand. Here I am, I must die!” ⁴⁴ And Saul said, “^(IK)May God do the same to me and more also, for ^(IL)you shall certainly die, Jonathan!” ⁴⁵ But the people said to Saul, “Must Jonathan die, he who has ^[cd]brought about this great ^[ce]victory in Israel? Far from it! As the Lord lives, ^(IM)not even a hair of his head shall fall to the ground, because ^(IN)he has worked with God this day.” So the people ^[cf]rescued Jonathan and he did not die. ⁴⁶ Then Saul went up from ^[cg]pursuing the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their own place.

Constant Warfare

⁴⁷ Now when Saul had taken control of the kingdom over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, ^(IO)the sons of Ammon, Edom, ^(IP)the kings of Zobah, and ^(IQ)the Philistines; and wherever he turned, he ^[ch]inflicted punishment. ⁴⁸ And he acted valiantly and ^[ci](IR)defeated the Amalekites, and saved Israel from the hands of ^[cj]those who plundered them.

⁴⁹ Now ^(IS)the sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchi-shua; and the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the firstborn was ^(IT)Merab, and the name of the younger, ^(IU)Michal. ⁵⁰ And the name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. And ^(IV)the name of the commander of his army was Abner the son of Ner, Saul’s uncle. ^51 (IW)Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

⁵² Now the war against the Philistines was severe all the days of Saul; and when Saul saw any warrior or any valiant man, he ^[ck](IX)attached him to his staff.

Saul’s Disobedience

15 Then Samuel said to Saul, “^(IY)The Lord sent me to anoint you as king over His people, over Israel; now therefore, listen to the ^[cl]words of the Lord. ² This is what the Lord of armies says: ‘I will ^[cm]punish Amalek ^(IZ)for what he did to Israel, in that he obstructed him on the way while he was coming up from Egypt. ³ Now go and strike Amalek and ^(JA)completely destroy everything that he has, and do not spare him; but ^(JB)put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’”

⁴ Then Saul summoned the people and ^[cn]counted them in ^(JC)Telaim: two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand men of Judah. ⁵ And Saul came to the city of Amalek and set an ambush in the ^[co]wadi. ⁶ But Saul said to ^(JD)the Kenites, “Go, get away, go down from among the Amalekites, so that I do not destroy you along with them; for ^(JE)you showed kindness to all the sons of Israel when they went up from Egypt.” So the Kenites got away from among the Amalekites. ⁷ Then ^(JF)Saul ^[cp]defeated the Amalekites, from ^(JG)Havilah ^[cq]going toward ^(JH)Shur, which is ^[cr]east of Egypt. ⁸ He captured ^(JI)Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and ^(JJ)completely destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. ⁹ But Saul and the people ^(JK)spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the more valuable animals, the lambs, and everything that was good, and were unwilling to destroy them completely; but everything despicable and weak, that they completely destroyed.

Samuel Rebukes Saul

¹⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying, ¹¹ “^(JL)I regret that I have made Saul king, because ^(JM)he has turned back from ^[cs]following Me and has not carried out My commands.” And Samuel was furious and ^(JN)cried out to the Lord all night. ¹² Samuel got up early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was reported to Samuel, saying, “Saul came to ^(JO)Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on ^[ct]down to ^(JP)Gilgal.” ¹³ So Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “^(JQ)Blessed are you of the Lord! I have carried out the command of the Lord.” ¹⁴ But Samuel said, “^(JR)What then is this ^[cu]bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the ^[cv]bellowing of the oxen which I hear?” ¹⁵ Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites, for ^(JS)the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God; but the rest we have completely destroyed.” ¹⁶ Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop, and let me inform you of what the Lord said to me last night.” And he said to him, “Speak!”

¹⁷ So Samuel said, “^[cw]Is it not true, ^(JT)though you were ^[cx]insignificant in your own eyes, that you became the head of the tribes of Israel? For the Lord anointed you as king over Israel. ¹⁸ And the Lord sent you on a ^[cy]mission, and said, ‘^(JU)Go and completely destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are eliminated.’ ¹⁹ Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? ^(JV)Instead, you loudly rushed upon the spoils and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord!”

²⁰ Then Saul said to Samuel, “^(JW)I did obey the voice of the Lord, for I went on the ^[cz]mission on which the Lord sent me; and I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have completely destroyed the Amalekites. ²¹ But ^(JX)the people took some of the spoils, sheep and oxen, the choicest of the things designated for destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.” ²² Samuel said,

²⁴ Then Saul said to Samuel, “^(KD)I have sinned, for ^(KE)I have violated the ^[da]command of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and listened to their voice. ²⁵ Now then, ^(KF)please pardon my sin and return with me, so that I may worship the Lord.” ²⁶ But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you; for ^(KG)you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” ²⁷ Then Samuel turned to go, but ^(KH)Saul grasped the edge of his robe, and it tore off. ²⁸ So Samuel said to him, “^(KI)The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to your neighbor, who is better than you. ²⁹ Also the ^[db](KJ)Glory of Israel ^(KK)will not lie nor change His mind; for He is not a man, that He would change His mind.” ³⁰ Then Saul said, “I have sinned; ^(KL)but please honor me now before the elders of my people and before all Israel, and go back with me, ^(KM)so that I may worship the Lord your God.” ³¹ So Samuel went back following Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

³² Then Samuel said, “Bring me Agag, the king of the Amalekites.” And Agag came to him ^[dc]cheerfully. And Agag said, “Surely the bitterness of death is gone!” ³³ But Samuel said, “^(KN)As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women.” And Samuel cut Agag to pieces before the Lord at Gilgal.

³⁴ Then Samuel went to ^(KO)Ramah, but Saul went up to his house at ^(KP)Gibeah of Saul. ³⁵ And ^(KQ)Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, though Samuel ^(KR)mourned for ^[dd]Saul. And the Lord regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel.