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10 Samuel took a vial of oil and poured it on his head and kissed him; he said, “The Lord has anointed you ruler over his people Israel. You shall reign over the people of the Lord, and you will save them from the hand of their enemies all around. Now this shall be the sign to you that the Lord has anointed you ruler[a] over his heritage:(A) When you depart from me today you will meet two men by Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; they will say to you, ‘The donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your father has stopped worrying about them and is worrying about you, saying: “What shall I do about my son?” ’(B) Then you shall go on from there further and come to the oak of Tabor; three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there: one carrying three kids, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine.(C) They will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall accept from them. After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim,[b] at the place where the Philistine garrison is; there, as you come to the town, you will meet a band of prophets coming down from the shrine with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre playing in front of them; they will be in a prophetic frenzy.(D) Then the spirit of the Lord will possess you, and you will be in a prophetic frenzy along with them and be turned into a different person.(E) Now when these signs meet you, do whatever you see fit to do, for God is with you.(F) And you shall go down to Gilgal ahead of me; then I will come down to you to present burnt offerings and offer sacrifices of well-being. Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do.”(G)

Saul Prophesies

As he turned away to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart, and all these signs were fulfilled that day.(H) 10 When they were going from there to Gibeah,[c] a band of prophets met him, and the spirit of God possessed him, and he fell into a prophetic frenzy along with them.(I) 11 When all who knew him before saw how he prophesied with the prophets, the people said to one another, “What has come over the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?”(J) 12 A man of the place answered, “And who is their father?” Therefore it became a proverb, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” 13 When his prophetic frenzy had ended, he went home.[d]

14 Saul’s uncle said to him and to the young man, “Where did you go?” And he replied, “To seek the donkeys, and when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel.” 15 Saul’s uncle said, “Tell me what Samuel said to you.” 16 Saul said to his uncle, “He told us that the donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingship, of which Samuel had spoken, he did not tell him anything.(K)

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Footnotes

  1. 10.1 Gk: Heb lacks over his people Israel. You shall . . . anointed you ruler
  2. 10.5 Or the hill of God
  3. 10.10 Or the hill
  4. 10.13 Cn: Heb went to the shrine

Samuel anoints Saul as king

10 Samuel took a small jar of oil and poured it over Saul’s head and kissed him. “The Lord hereby anoints you leader of his people Israel,” Samuel said. “You will rule the Lord’s people and save them from the power of the enemies who surround them. And this will be the sign for you that the Lord has anointed you as leader of his very own possession:[a] When you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel’s tomb at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will tell you, ‘The donkeys you went looking for have been found. Now your father has stopped thinking about the donkeys and is worried about you. He’s asking: What should I do about my son?’ Then, when you’ve gone on a bit farther, you will come to the oak at Tabor. Three men who are going to consult God at Bethel will meet up with you there, one carrying three young goats, one carrying three loaves of bread, and one carrying a jar of wine. They will ask how you’re doing and will offer you sacrificial bread,[b] which you should accept. After that, you will come to Gibeath-elohim, which is a Philistine fort. When you enter the town, you will encounter a group of prophets coming down from the shrine preceded by harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres. They will be caught up in a prophetic frenzy. Then the Lord’s spirit will come over you, and you will be caught up in a prophetic frenzy right along with them; it will be like you’ve become a completely different person. Once these signs have happened to you, do whatever you would like to do, because God is with you. Then go down to Gilgal ahead of me. I’ll come down to meet you to offer entirely burned offerings and to make well-being sacrifices. Wait seven days until I get to you, then I’ll tell you what you should do next.”

And just as Saul turned to leave Samuel’s side, God gave him a different heart, and all these signs happened that very same day. 10 When Saul and the boy got to Gibeah, there was a group of prophets coming to meet him. God’s spirit came over Saul, and he was caught up in a prophetic frenzy right along with them. 11 When all the people who had known Saul saw him prophesying with the prophets, they said to each other, “What’s happened to Kish’s son? Is Saul also one of the prophets?” 12 One of the locals then asked, “And who is their leader?”[c] So it became a proverb: “Is Saul also one of the prophets?” 13 When the prophetic frenzy was over, Saul went home.[d]

14 Saul’s uncle said to him and to his young servant, “Where did you go?”

“To look for the donkeys,” Saul replied, “but when we couldn’t find anything, we went to Samuel.”

15 “Please tell me what Samuel told you,” Saul’s uncle said.

16 “He reassured us that the donkeys had been found,” Saul answered. But Saul didn’t tell his uncle what Samuel had said about the kingship.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 10:1 LXX; MT lacks of his people Israel.… And this will be the sign for you that.
  2. 1 Samuel 10:4 LXX; DSS (4QSama) uplifted bread (see Num 18:11) ; MT two of bread.
  3. 1 Samuel 10:12 Or father
  4. 1 Samuel 10:13 Correction; MT Saul entered the shrine.