1 Samuel 13:15-22

Living Bible

¹⁵ Samuel then left Gilgal and went to Gibeah in the land of Benjamin.

When Saul counted the soldiers who were still with him, he found only six hundred left! ¹⁶ Saul and Jonathan and these six hundred men set up their camp in Geba in the land of Benjamin; but the Philistines stayed at Michmash. ¹⁷ Three companies of raiders soon left the camp of the Philistines; one went toward Ophrah in the land of Shual, ¹⁸ another went to Beth-horon, and the third moved toward the border above the valley of Zeboim near the desert.

¹⁹ There were no blacksmiths at all in the land of Israel in those days, for the Philistines wouldn’t allow them for fear of their making swords and spears for the Hebrews. ²⁰ So whenever the Israelites needed to sharpen their plowshares, discs, axes, or sickles, they had to take them to a Philistine blacksmith. ²¹ The schedule of charges was as follows:

²² So there was not a single sword or spear in the entire “army” of Israel that day, except for Saul’s and Jonathan’s.