The Shameful Origin of Moab and Ammon

³⁰ Now Lot went up out of Zoar and settled in the hills with his two daughters, for he was afraid to stay in Zoar, so he lived in a cave with his two daughters. ³¹ And the firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man on earth to come in to us after the manner of all the world.^{(A) 32} Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, so that we may preserve offspring through our father.”^{(B) 33} So they made their father drink wine that night, and the firstborn went in and lay with her father; he did not know when she lay down or when she rose. ³⁴ On the next day, the firstborn said to the younger, “Look, I lay last night with my father; let us make him drink wine tonight also; then you go in and lie with him, so that we may preserve offspring through our father.” ³⁵ So they made their father drink wine that night also, and the younger rose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she rose. ³⁶ Thus both the daughters of Lot became pregnant by their father. ³⁷ The firstborn bore a son and named him Moab;^[a] he is the ancestor of the Moabites to this day. ³⁸ The younger also bore a son and named him Ben-ammi;^[b] he is the ancestor of the Ammonites to this day.^(C)

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⁵ Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game for his father,^{[a] 6} Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father say to your brother Esau, ⁷ ‘Bring me game, and prepare for me savory food to eat, that I may bless you before the Lord before I die.’ ⁸ Now therefore, my son, obey my word as I command you.^{(A) 9} Go to the flock, and get me two choice kids, so that I may prepare from them savory food for your father, such as he likes, ¹⁰ and you shall take it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”

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Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife

39 Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there.^{(A) 2} The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man; he was in the house of his Egyptian master.^{(B) 3} His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to prosper in his hands.^{(C) 4} So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him; he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had.^{(D) 5} From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field.^{(E) 6} So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and with him there he had no concern for anything but the food that he ate.

Now Joseph was handsome and good-looking. ⁷ And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.”^{(F) 8} But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Look, with me here, my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my hand. ⁹ He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great wickedness and sin against God?”^{(G) 10} And although she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not consent to lie beside her or to be with her. ¹¹ One day, however, when he went into the house to do his work, and while no one else was in the house, ¹² she caught hold of his garment, saying, “Lie with me!” But he left his garment in her hand and fled and ran outside.^{(H) 13} When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled outside, ¹⁴ she called out to the members of her household and said to them, “See, my husband^[a] has brought among us a Hebrew to insult us! He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice, ¹⁵ and when he heard me raise my voice and cry out, he left his garment beside me and fled outside.” ¹⁶ Then she kept his garment by her until his master came home, ¹⁷ and she told him the same story, saying, “The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought among us, came in to me to insult me,^{(I) 18} but as soon as I raised my voice and cried out, he left his garment beside me and fled outside.”

¹⁹ When his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him, saying, “This is the way your servant treated me,” he became enraged.^{(J) 20} And Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined; he remained there in prison.^{(K) 21} But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love; he gave him favor in the sight of the chief jailer.^{(L) 22} The chief jailer committed to Joseph’s care all the prisoners who were in the prison, and whatever was done there, he was the one who did it.^{(M) 23} The chief jailer paid no heed to anything that was in Joseph’s care because the Lord was with him, and whatever he did, the Lord made it prosper.^(N)

Aaron and Miriam Jealous of Moses

12 While they were at Hazeroth, Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married (for he had indeed married a Cushite woman),^{(A) 2} and they said, “Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” And the Lord heard it.^{(B) 3} Now the man Moses was very humble, more so than anyone else on the face of the earth.^{(C) 4} Suddenly the Lord said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tent of meeting.” So the three of them came out. ⁵ Then the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward.^{(D) 6} And he said, “Hear my words:

“Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”^{(G) 9} And the anger of the Lord was kindled against them, and he departed.

¹⁰ When the cloud went away from over the tent, Miriam’s skin had become diseased, as white as snow. And Aaron turned toward Miriam and saw that she was diseased.^{(H) 11} Then Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, do not punish us^[a] for a sin that we have so foolishly committed.^{(I) 12} Do not let her be like one stillborn, whose flesh is half consumed when it comes out of its mother’s womb.” ¹³ And Moses cried to the Lord, saying, “O God, please heal her.” ¹⁴ But the Lord said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days? Let her be shut out of the camp for seven days, and after that she may be brought in again.”^{(J) 15} So Miriam was shut out of the camp for seven days, and the people did not set out on the march until Miriam had been brought in again. ¹⁶ After that the people set out from Hazeroth and camped in the wilderness of Paran.

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¹⁵ On the fourth^[a] day they said to Samson’s wife, “Coax your husband to explain the riddle to us, or we will burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us here to impoverish us?”^{(A) 16} So Samson’s wife wept before him, saying, “You hate me; you do not really love me. You have asked a riddle of my people, but you have not explained it to me.” He said to her, “Look, I have not told my father or my mother. Why should I tell you?” ¹⁷ She wept before him the seven days that their feast lasted, and because she nagged him, on the seventh day he told her. Then she explained the riddle to her people. ¹⁸ The men of the town said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down,

And he said to them,

¹⁹ Then the spirit of the Lord rushed on him, and he went down to Ashkelon. He killed thirty men of the town, took their spoil, and gave the festal garments to those who had explained the riddle. In hot anger he went back to his father’s house.^{(C) 20} And Samson’s wife was given to his companion, who had been his best man.^(D)

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⁴ After this he fell in love with a woman in the valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah. ⁵ The lords of the Philistines came to her and said to her, “Coax him, and find out what makes his strength so great and how we may overpower him, so that we may bind him in order to subdue him, and we will each give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.”^{(A) 6} So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes your strength so great and how you could be bound, so that one could subdue you.” ⁷ Samson said to her, “If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings that are not dried out, then I shall become weak and be like anyone else.” ⁸ Then the lords of the Philistines brought her seven fresh bowstrings that had not dried out, and she bound him with them. ⁹ While men were lying in wait in an inner chamber, she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he snapped the bowstrings as a strand of fiber snaps when it touches the fire. So the secret of his strength was not known.

¹⁰ Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have mocked me and told me lies; please tell me how you could be bound.”^{(B) 11} He said to her, “If they bind me with new ropes that have not been used, then I shall become weak and be like anyone else.” ¹² So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them and said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” (The men lying in wait were in an inner chamber.) But he snapped the ropes off his arms like a thread.

¹³ Then Delilah said to Samson, “Until now you have mocked me and told me lies; tell me how you could be bound.” He said to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my head with the web and make it tight with the pin, then I shall become weak and be like anyone else.”^{(C) 14} So while he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his head and wove them into the web^[a] and made them tight with the pin. Then she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled away the pin, the loom, and the web.

¹⁵ Then she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me three times now and have not told me what makes your strength so great.”^{(D) 16} Finally, after she had nagged him with her words day after day and pestered him, he was tired to death. ¹⁷ So he told her his whole secret and said to her, “A razor has never come upon my head, for I have been a nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, then my strength would leave me; I would become weak and be like anyone else.”^(E)

¹⁸ When Delilah realized that he had told her his whole secret, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, “This time come up, for he has told his whole secret to me.” Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands. ¹⁹ She let him fall asleep on her lap, and she called a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. He began to weaken,^[b] and his strength left him.^{(F) 20} Then she said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” When he awoke from his sleep, he thought, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.^{(G) 21} So the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes. They brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze shackles, and he ground at the mill in the prison. ²² But the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.

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Saul Defeats the Ammonites

11 About a month later,^[a] Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead, and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.”^{(A) 2} But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, “On this condition I will make a treaty with you, namely, that I gouge out everyone’s right eye and thus put disgrace upon all Israel.”^{(B) 3} The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days’ respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.” ⁴ When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the hearing of the people, and all the people wept aloud.^(C)

⁵ Now Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen, and Saul said, “What is the matter with the people, that they are weeping?” So they told him the message from the inhabitants of Jabesh. ⁶ And the spirit of God came upon Saul in power when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled.^{(D) 7} He took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the messengers, saying, “Whoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!” Then the dread of the Lord fell upon the people, and they came out as one.^{(E) 8} When he mustered them at Bezek, those from Israel were three hundred thousand and those from Judah seventy^[b] thousand.^{(F) 9} They said to the messengers who had come, “Thus shall you say to the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead: Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have deliverance.” When the messengers came and told the inhabitants of Jabesh, they rejoiced. ¹⁰ So the inhabitants of Jabesh said, “Tomorrow we will give ourselves up to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.”^{(G) 11} The next day Saul put the people in three companies. At the morning watch they came into the camp and cut down the Ammonites until the heat of the day, and those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.^(H)

¹² The people said to Samuel, “Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ Give them to us so that we may put them to death.”^{(I) 13} But Saul said, “No one shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has brought deliverance to Israel.”^(J)

¹⁴ Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingship.”^{(K) 15} So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they sacrificed offerings of well-being before the Lord, and there Saul and all the Israelites rejoiced greatly.^(L)

Samuel’s Farewell Address

12 Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to you in all that you have said to me and have set a king over you.^{(M) 2} See, it is the king who leads you now; I am old and gray, but my sons are with you. I have led you from my youth until this day.^{(N) 3} Here I am; testify against me before the Lord and before his anointed. 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,^[c] and I will restore it to you.”^{(O) 4} They said, “You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from the hand of anyone.” ⁵ He said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.” And they said, “He is witness.”^(P)

⁶ Samuel said to the people, “The Lord is witness, who^[d] appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors up out of the land of Egypt.^{(Q) 7} Now, therefore, take your stand so that I may enter into judgment with you before the Lord, and I will declare to you^[e] all the righteous acts of the Lord that he performed for you and for your ancestors.^{(R) 8} When Jacob went into Egypt and the Egyptians oppressed them,^[f] then your ancestors cried to the Lord, and the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought forth your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.^{(S) 9} But they forgot the Lord their God, and he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of King Jabin of^[g] Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them.^{(T) 10} Then they cried to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned, for we have forsaken the Lord and have served the Baals and the Astartes, but now rescue us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you.’^{(U) 11} And the Lord sent Jerubbaal and Barak,^[h] and Jephthah, and Samson^[i] and rescued you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you lived in safety.^{(V) 12} But when you saw that King Nahash of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ though the Lord your God was your king.^{(W) 13} See, here is the king whom you have chosen, for whom you have asked; see, the Lord has set a king over you.^{(X) 14} If you will fear the Lord and serve him and heed 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;^{(Y) 15} but if you will not heed the voice of the Lord but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you and your king.^{[j](Z) 16} Now, therefore, take your stand and see this great thing that the Lord will do before your eyes.^{(AA) 17} Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call upon the Lord, that he may send thunder and rain, and you shall know and see that the wickedness that you have done in the sight of the Lord is great in demanding a king for yourselves.”^{(AB) 18} So Samuel called upon the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.^(AC)

¹⁹ All the people said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for your servants, so that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins the evil of demanding a king for ourselves.”^{(AD) 20} And Samuel said to the people, “Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil, yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart, ²¹ and do not turn aside after useless things that cannot profit or save, for they are useless.^{(AE) 22} For the Lord will not cast away his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself.^{(AF) 23} Moreover as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way.^{(AG) 24} Only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart, for consider what great things he has done for you.^{(AH) 25} But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king.”^(AI)

Saul’s Unlawful Sacrifice

13 Saul was . . .^[k] years old when he began to reign, and he reigned . . . and two^[l] 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.^{(AJ) 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!”^{(AK) 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.^{(AL) 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.^{(AM) 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.^{[m](AN) 9} So Saul said, “Bring the burnt offering here to me and the offerings of well-being.” And he offered the burnt offering.^{(AO) 10} As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to meet him and salute him.^{(AP) 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,^{(AQ) 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,^{(AR) 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.”^{(AS) 15} And Samuel left and went on his way from Gilgal.^[n] The rest of the people followed Saul to join the army; they went up from Gilgal toward Gibeah of Benjamin.^[o]

Preparations for Battle

Saul counted the people who were present with him, about six hundred men.^{(AT) 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,^{(AU) 18} another company turned toward Beth-horon, and another company turned toward the mountain^[p] that looks down upon the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.^(AV)

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,”^{(AW) 20} so all the Israelites went down to the Philistines to sharpen their plowshares, mattocks, axes, or sickles.^{[q] 21} The charge was two-thirds of a shekel^[r] for the plowshares and for the mattocks and one-third of a shekel for sharpening the axes and for setting the goads.^{[s] 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.^(AX)

Jonathan Surprises and Routs the Philistines

²³ Now a garrison of the Philistines had gone out to the pass of Michmash. 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,^{(AY) 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.^{(AZ) 4} In the pass^[t] 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.^{(BA) 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.”^{(BB) 7} His armor-bearer said to him, “Do all that your mind inclines to.^[u] I am with you; as your mind is, so is mine.”^{[v] 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.”^{(BC) 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.”^{(BD) 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.”^{(BE) 13} Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer following after him. The Philistines^[w] 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^[x] 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.^(BF)

¹⁶ Saul’s lookouts in Gibeah of Benjamin were watching as the multitude was surging back and forth.^{[y](BG) 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.”^{(BH) 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.^{(BI) 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.^{(BJ) 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.^[z] The battle spread out over the hill country of Ephraim.^(BK)

Saul’s Rash Oath

²⁴ Now Saul committed a very rash act on that day.^[aa] He had laid an oath on the troops, saying, “Cursed be anyone who eats food before it is evening and I have been avenged on my enemies.” So none of the troops tasted food.^{(BL) 25} All the troops^[ab] came upon a honeycomb, and there was honey on the ground. ²⁶ When the troops came upon the honeycomb, the honey was dripping out, but they did not put their hands to their mouths, for they feared the oath. ²⁷ But Jonathan had not heard his father charge the troops with the oath, so he extended the staff that was in his hand and dipped the tip of it in the honeycomb and put his hand to his mouth, and his eyes brightened.^{(BM) 28} Then one of the soldiers said, “Your father strictly charged the troops with an oath, saying, ‘Cursed be anyone who eats food this day.’ And so the troops are faint.” ²⁹ Then Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land; see how my eyes have brightened because I tasted a little of this honey.^{(BN) 30} How much better if today the troops had eaten freely of the spoil taken from their enemies, for now the defeat of the Philistines has not been great.”

³¹ After they had struck down the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon, the troops were very faint, ³² so the troops flew upon the spoil and took sheep and oxen and calves and slaughtered them on the ground, and the troops ate them with the blood.^{(BO) 33} Then it was reported to Saul, “Look, the troops are sinning against the Lord by eating with the blood.” And he said, “You have dealt treacherously; roll a large stone before me here.”^{[ac] 34} Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the troops and say to them: Let all bring their oxen or their sheep, and slaughter them here and eat, and do not sin against the Lord by eating with the blood.” So all of the troops brought their oxen with them that night and slaughtered them there. ³⁵ And Saul built an altar to the Lord; it was the first altar that he built to the Lord.^(BP)

Jonathan in Danger of Death

³⁶ Then Saul said, “Let us go down after the Philistines by night and despoil them until the morning light; let us not leave one of them.” They said, “Do whatever seems good to you.” But the priest said, “Let us draw near to God here.” ³⁷ So Saul inquired of God, “Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will you give them into the hand of Israel?” But he did not answer him that day.^{(BQ) 38} Saul said, “Come here, all you leaders of the people, and let us find out how this sin has arisen today.^{(BR) 39} For as the Lord lives who saves Israel, even if it is in my son Jonathan, he shall surely die!” But there was no one among all the people who answered him.^{(BS) 40} He said to all Israel, “You shall be on one side, and I and my son Jonathan will be on the other side.” The people said to Saul, “Do what seems good to you.” ⁴¹ Then Saul said, “O Lord God of Israel, why have you not answered your servant today? If this guilt is in me or in my son Jonathan, O Lord God of Israel, give Urim, but if this guilt is in your people Israel,^[ad] give Thummim.” And Jonathan and Saul were indicated by the lot, but the people were cleared.^{(BT) 42} Then Saul said, “Cast the lot between me and my son Jonathan.” And Jonathan was taken.

⁴³ Then Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.” Jonathan told him, “I tasted a little honey with the tip of the staff that was in my hand; here I am; I will die.”^{(BU) 44} Saul said, “God do so to me and more also; you shall surely die, Jonathan!”^{(BV) 45} Then the people said to Saul, “Shall Jonathan die, who has accomplished this great victory in Israel? Far from it! As the Lord lives, not one hair of his head shall fall to the ground, for he has worked with God today.” So the people ransomed Jonathan, and he did not die.^{(BW) 46} Then Saul withdrew from pursuing the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their own place.

Saul’s Continuing Wars

⁴⁷ When Saul had taken the kingship over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side: against Moab, against the Ammonites, against Edom, against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines; wherever he turned he routed them.^{(BX) 48} He did valiantly and struck down the Amalekites and rescued Israel out of the hands of those who plundered them.^(BY)

⁴⁹ Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchishua, and the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the firstborn was Merab, and the name of the younger was Michal.^{(BZ) 50} The name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam daughter of Ahimaaz. And the name of the commander of his army was Abner son of Ner, Saul’s uncle;^{(CA) 51} Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.^(CB)

⁵² There was hard fighting against the Philistines all the days of Saul, and when Saul saw any strong or valiant warrior, he took him into his service.^(CC)

Saul Defeats the Amalekites but Spares Their King

15 Samuel said to Saul, “The Lord sent me to anoint you king over his people Israel; now therefore listen to the words of the Lord.^{(CD) 2} Thus says the Lord of hosts: I will punish the Amalekites for what they did in opposing the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt.^{(CE) 3} Now go and attack Amalek and utterly destroy all that they have; do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.”^(CF)

⁴ So Saul summoned the people and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand soldiers of Judah. ⁵ Saul came to the city of the Amalekites and lay in wait in the valley. ⁶ Saul said to the Kenites, “Go! Leave! Withdraw from among the Amalekites, or I will destroy you with them, for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites withdrew from the Amalekites.^{(CG) 7} Saul defeated the Amalekites, from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt.^{(CH) 8} He took King Agag of the Amalekites alive but utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.^{(CI) 9} Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and of the cattle and of the fatted calves,^[ae] and the lambs, and all that was valuable and would not utterly destroy them; all that was despised and worthless they utterly destroyed.^(CJ)

Saul Rejected as King

¹⁰ The word of the Lord came to Samuel: ¹¹ “I regret that I made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not carried out my commands.” Samuel was angry, and he cried out to the Lord all night.^{(CK) 12} Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul, and Samuel was told, “Saul went to Carmel, where he set up a monument for himself, and on returning he passed on down to Gilgal.”^{(CL) 13} When Samuel came to Saul, Saul said to him, “May you be blessed by the Lord; I have carried out the command of the Lord.”^{(CM) 14} But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears and the lowing of cattle that I hear?” ¹⁵ Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and the cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but the rest we have utterly destroyed.”^{(CN) 16} Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop! I will tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” He replied, “Speak.”

¹⁷ Samuel said, “Though you are little in your own eyes, are you not the head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord anointed you king over Israel.^{(CO) 18} And the Lord sent you on a mission and said, ‘Go, utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’^{(CP) 19} Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the spoil and do what was evil in the sight of the Lord?”^{(CQ) 20} Saul said to Samuel, “I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I have gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me. I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.^{(CR) 21} But from the spoil the people took sheep and cattle, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”^{(CS) 22} And Samuel said,

²⁴ Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.^{(CV) 25} Now therefore, I pray, pardon my sin, and return with me, so that I may worship the Lord.” ²⁶ Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”^{(CW) 27} As Samuel turned to go away, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe, and it tore.^{(CX) 28} And Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this very day and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you.^{(CY) 29} Moreover, the Glory of Israel will not deceive or change his mind, for he is not a mortal, that he should change his mind.”^{(CZ) 30} Then Saul^[af] said, “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.”^{(DA) 31} So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

³² Then Samuel said, “Bring Agag king of the Amalekites here to me.” And Agag came to him haltingly.^[ag] Agag said, “Surely death is bitter.”^{[ah] 33} Samuel said,

And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.^(DB)

³⁴ Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul.^{(DC) 35} Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord was sorry that he had made Saul king over Israel.^(DD)

David Anointed as King

16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.”^{(DE) 2} Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’^{(DF) 3} Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do, and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you.”^{(DG) 4} Samuel did what the Lord commanded and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling and said, “Do you come peaceably?”^{(DH) 5} He said, “Peaceably. I have come to sacrifice to the Lord; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.^(DI)

⁶ When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, “Surely his anointed is now before the Lord.”^{(DJ) 7} But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him, for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”^{(DK) 8} Then Jesse called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. He said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.”^{(DL) 9} Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.”^{(DM) 10} Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.” ¹¹ Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him, for we will not sit down until he comes here.”^{(DN) 12} He sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. The Lord said, “Rise and anoint him, for this is the one.”^{(DO) 13} Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. Samuel then set out and went to Ramah.^(DP)

David Plays the Lyre for Saul

¹⁴ Now the spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him.^{(DQ) 15} And Saul’s servants said to him, “See now, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. ¹⁶ Let our lord now command the servants who attend you to look for someone who is skillful in playing the lyre, and when the evil spirit from God is upon you, he will play it, and you will feel better.”^{(DR) 17} So Saul said to his servants, “Provide for me someone who can play well, and bring him to me.” ¹⁸ One of the young men answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is skillful in playing, a man of valor, a warrior, prudent in speech, and a man of good presence, and the Lord is with him.”^{(DS) 19} So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.” ²⁰ Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine, and a kid and sent them by his son David to Saul.^{(DT) 21} And David came to Saul and entered his service. Saul^[ai] loved him greatly, and he became his armor-bearer.^{(DU) 22} Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Let David remain in my service, for he has found favor in my sight.” ²³ And whenever the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand, and Saul would be relieved and feel better, and the evil spirit would depart from him.^(DV)

David and Goliath

17 Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle; they were gathered at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim.^{(DW) 2} Saul and the Israelites gathered and encamped in the valley of Elah and formed ranks against the Philistines.^{(DX) 3} The Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with a valley between them. ⁴ And there came out from the camp of the Philistines a champion named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was four^[aj] cubits and a span.^{(DY) 5} He had a helmet of bronze on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail; the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze. ⁶ He had greaves of bronze on his legs and a javelin of bronze slung between his shoulders.^{(DZ) 7} The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron, and his shield-bearer went before him.^{(EA) 8} He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why have you come out to draw up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not servants of Saul? Choose^[ak] a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me.^{(EB) 9} If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants, but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.” ¹⁰ And the Philistine said, “Today I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man, that we may fight together.”^{(EC) 11} When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.

¹² Now David was the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah named Jesse, who had eight sons. In the days of Saul the man was already old and advanced in years.^{[al](ED) 13} The three eldest sons of Jesse had followed Saul to the battle; the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.^{(EE) 14} David was the youngest; the three eldest followed Saul, ¹⁵ but David went back and forth from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem.^{(EF) 16} For forty days the Philistine came forward and took his stand, morning and evening.

¹⁷ Jesse said to his son David, “Take for your brothers an ephah of this parched grain and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to your brothers; ¹⁸ also take these ten cheeses to the commander of their thousand. See how your brothers fare, and bring some token from them.”^(EG)

¹⁹ Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel were in the valley of Elah fighting with the Philistines. ²⁰ David rose early in the morning, left the sheep with a keeper, took the provisions, and went as Jesse had commanded him. He came to the encampment as the army was going forth to the battle line, shouting the war cry. ²¹ Israel and the Philistines drew up for battle, army against army. ²² David left the things in charge of the keeper of the baggage, ran to the ranks, and went and greeted his brothers. ²³ As he talked with them, the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, came up out of the ranks of the Philistines and spoke the same words as before. And David heard him.^(EH)

²⁴ All the Israelites, when they saw the man, fled from him and were very much afraid. ²⁵ The Israelites said, “Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel. The king will greatly enrich the man who kills him and will give him his daughter and make his family free in Israel.”^{(EI) 26} David said to the men who stood by him, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?”^{(EJ) 27} The people answered him in the same way, “So shall it be done for the man who kills him.”^(EK)

²⁸ His eldest brother Eliab heard him talking to the men, and Eliab’s anger was kindled against David. He said, “Why have you come down? With whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down just to see the battle.”^{(EL) 29} David said, “What have I done now? It was only a question.”^{(EM) 30} He turned away from him toward another and spoke in the same way, and the people answered him again as before.^(EN)

³¹ When the words that David spoke were heard, they repeated them before Saul, and he sent for him. ³² David said to Saul, “Let no one’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”^{(EO) 33} Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for you are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” ³⁴ But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father, and whenever a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, ³⁵ I went after it and struck it down, rescuing the lamb from its mouth, and if it turned against me, I would catch it by the jaw, strike it down, and kill it. ³⁶ Your servant has killed both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, since he has defied the armies of the living God.” ³⁷ David said, “The Lord, who saved me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will save me from the hand of this Philistine.” So Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you!”^(EP)

³⁸ Saul clothed David with his armor; he put a bronze helmet on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail. ³⁹ David strapped Saul’s sword over the armor, and he tried in vain to walk, for he was not used to them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot walk with these, for I am not used to them.” So David removed them. ⁴⁰ Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the wadi and put them in his shepherd’s bag, in the pouch; his sling was in his hand, and he drew near to the Philistine.

⁴¹ The Philistine came on and drew near to David, with his shield-bearer in front of him. ⁴² When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him, for he was only a youth, ruddy and handsome in appearance.^{(EQ) 43} The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.^{(ER) 44} The Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the wild animals of the field.”^{(ES) 45} But David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.^{(ET) 46} This very day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head, and I will give the dead bodies of the Philistine army this very day to the birds of the air and to the wild animals of the earth, so that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel^{(EU) 47} and that all this assembly may know that the Lord does not save by sword and spear, for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand.”^(EV)

⁴⁸ When the Philistine drew nearer to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. ⁴⁹ David put his hand in his bag, took out a stone, slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead; the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground.

⁵⁰ So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, striking down the Philistine and killing him; there was no sword in David’s hand. ⁵¹ Then David ran and stood over the Philistine; he grasped his sword, drew it out of its sheath, and killed him; then he cut off his head with it.

When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.^{(EW) 52} The troops of Israel and Judah rose up with a shout and pursued the Philistines as far as Gath^[am] and the gates of Ekron, so that the wounded Philistines fell on the way from Shaaraim as far as Gath and Ekron.^{(EX) 53} The Israelites came back from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their camp. ⁵⁴ David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.

⁵⁵ When Saul saw David go out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this young man?” Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.”^{(EY) 56} The king said, “Inquire whose son the young man is.” ⁵⁷ On David’s return from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul, with the head of the Philistine in his hand.^{(EZ) 58} Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”^(FA)