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1 Samuel 13:1-15
New English Translation

Saul Fails the Lord

13 Saul was [thirty][a] years old when he began to reign; he ruled over Israel for [forty][b] years. 2 Saul selected for himself 3,000 men from Israel. Of these 2,000 were with Saul at Micmash and in the hill country of Bethel; the remaining 1,000 were with Jonathan at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin.[c] He sent all the rest of the people back home.[d]

3 Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost[e] that was at Geba and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul alerted[f] all the land saying, “Let the Hebrews pay attention!” 4 All Israel heard this message,[g] “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel is repulsive[h] to the Philistines!” So the people were summoned to join[i] Saul at Gilgal.

5 Meanwhile the Philistines gathered to battle with Israel. Then they went up against Israel[j] with 3,000 chariots,[k] 6,000 horsemen, and an army as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Micmash, east of Beth Aven. 6 The men of Israel realized they had a problem because their army was hard pressed. So the army hid in caves, thickets, cliffs, strongholds,[l] and cisterns. 7 Some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan River[m] to the land of Gad and Gilead. But Saul stayed at Gilgal; the entire army that was with him was terrified. 8 He waited for seven days, the time period indicated by Samuel.[n] But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the army began to abandon Saul.[o]

9 So Saul said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” Then he offered a burnt offering. 10 Just when he had finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel appeared on the scene. Saul went out to meet him and to greet him.[p]

11 But Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul replied, “When I saw that the army had started to abandon me,[q] and that you didn’t come at the appointed time, and that the Philistines had assembled at Micmash, 12 I thought,[r] ‘Now the Philistines will come down on me at Gilgal and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt obligated[s] to offer the burnt offering.”

13 Then Samuel said to Saul, “You have made a foolish choice! You have not obeyed[t] the commandment that the Lord your God gave[u] you. Had you done that, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. 14 But now your kingdom will not continue. The Lord has sought out[v] for himself a man who is loyal to him,[w] and the Lord has appointed[x] him to be leader over his people, for you have not obeyed what the Lord commanded you.”

15 Then Samuel set out and went up from Gilgal[y] to Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin.[z] Saul mustered the army that remained with him; there were about 600 men.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 13:1 tc The MT does not have “thirty.” A number appears to have dropped out of the Hebrew text here, since as it stands the MT (literally, “a son of a year”) must mean that Saul was only one year old when he began to reign! The KJV, attempting to resolve this, reads “Saul reigned one year,” but that is not the normal meaning of the Hebrew text represented by the MT. Although most LXX mss lack the entire verse, some Greek mss have “thirty years” here (while others have “one year” like the MT). The Syriac Peshitta has Saul’s age as twenty-one. But this seems impossible to harmonize with the implied age of Saul’s son Jonathan in the following verse. Taking into account the fact that in v. 2 Jonathan was old enough to be a military leader, some scholars prefer to supply in v. 1 the number forty (cf. ASV, NASB). The present translation (“thirty”) is a possible but admittedly uncertain proposal based on a few Greek mss and followed by a number of English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT). Other English versions simply supply ellipsis marks for the missing number (e.g., NAB, NRSV).
  2. 1 Samuel 13:1 tc The MT has “two years” here. If this number is to be accepted as correct, the meaning apparently would be that after a lapse of two years at the beginning of Saul’s reign, he then went about the task of consolidating an army as described in what follows (cf. KJV, ASV, CEV). But if the statement in v. 1 is intended to be a comprehensive report on the length of Saul’s reign, the number is too small. According to Acts 13:21 Saul reigned for forty years. Some English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT), taking this forty to be a round number, add it to the “two years” of the MT and translate the number here as “forty-two years.” While this is an acceptable option, the present translation instead replaces the MT’s “two” with the figure “forty.” Admittedly the textual evidence for this decision is weak, but the same can be said of any attempt to restore sense to this difficult text (note the ellipsis marks at this point in NAB, NRSV). The Syriac Peshitta lacks this part of v. 1.
  3. 1 Samuel 13:2 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
  4. 1 Samuel 13:2 tn Heb “each one to his tents.”
  5. 1 Samuel 13:3 tn Or perhaps “struck down the Philistine official.” See the note at 1 Sam 10:5. Cf. TEV “killed the Philistine commander.”
  6. 1 Samuel 13:3 tn Heb “blew the ram’s horn in.”
  7. 1 Samuel 13:4 tn The words “this message” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  8. 1 Samuel 13:4 tn Heb “stinks.” The figurative language indicates that Israel had become repulsive to the Philistines.
  9. 1 Samuel 13:4 tn Heb “were summoned after.”
  10. 1 Samuel 13:5 tc The MT omits “they went up against Israel” in a case of homoioteleuton, but these words are preserved in LXX.
  11. 1 Samuel 13:5 tc The translation follows the Lucianic Greek rescension and the Syriac. Many English versions follow the MT (e.g., KJV, NASB, NRSV, TEV) reading “30,000” here. One expects there to be more horsemen than chariots, cf. 2 Kgs 13:7; 2 Chr 12:3.
  12. 1 Samuel 13:6 tn Or perhaps “vaults.” This rare term also occurs in Judg 9:46, 49. Cf. KJV “high places”; ASV “coverts”; NAB “caverns”; NASB “cellars”; NIV, NCV, TEV “pits”; NRSV, NLT “tombs.”
  13. 1 Samuel 13:7 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
  14. 1 Samuel 13:8 tn This apparently refers to the instructions given by Samuel in 1 Sam 10:8. If so, several years had passed. On the relationship between chs. 10 and 13, see V. P. Long, The Art of Biblical History (FCI), 201-23.
  15. 1 Samuel 13:8 tn Heb “dispersed from upon him”; NAB, NRSV “began to slip away.”
  16. 1 Samuel 13:10 tn Heb “to bless him.”
  17. 1 Samuel 13:11 tn Heb “dispersed from upon me.”
  18. 1 Samuel 13:12 tn Heb “said.”
  19. 1 Samuel 13:12 tn Or “I forced myself” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV, CEV); NAB “So in my anxiety I offered”; NIV “I felt compelled.”
  20. 1 Samuel 13:13 tn Or “kept.”
  21. 1 Samuel 13:13 tn Heb “commanded.”
  22. 1 Samuel 13:14 tn This verb form, as well as the one that follows (“appointed”), indicates completed action from the standpoint of the speaker. This does not necessarily mean that the Lord had already conducted his search and made his choice, however. The forms may be used for rhetorical effect to emphasize the certainty of the action. The divine search for a new king is as good as done, emphasizing that the days of Saul’s dynasty are numbered.
  23. 1 Samuel 13:14 tn Heb “according to his heart.” The idiomatic expression means to be like-minded with another, as its use in 1 Sam 14:7 indicates.
  24. 1 Samuel 13:14 tn Heb “commanded.”
  25. 1 Samuel 13:15 tc The LXX and two Old Latin mss include the following words here: “on his way. And the rest of the people went up after Saul to meet the warring army. When they arrived from Gilgal….”
  26. 1 Samuel 13:15 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity (likewise in the following verse).
Close EXB

1 Samuel 13:1-15
Expanded Bible

13 Saul was thirty years old when he ·became king [began to reign/rule], and he ·was king [reigned; ruled] over Israel forty-two years.[a] 2 Saul chose three thousand men from Israel. Two thousand men stayed with him at Micmash in the ·mountains [hill country] of Bethel, and one thousand men stayed with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul sent the other men in the army back ·home [L to their tents].

3 Jonathan ·attacked [L struck] the Philistine ·camp [garrison] in Geba, and the other Philistines heard about it. Saul said, “Let the Hebrews hear what happened.” So he told the men to blow ·trumpets [ram’s horns] through all the land of Israel. 4 All the Israelites heard the news. The men said, “Saul has ·defeated [struck] the Philistine camp [garrison; C Saul receives credit for Jonathan’s victory]. Now ·the Philistines will really hate us [L Israel will stink among the Philistines]!” Then the Israelites were called to join Saul at Gilgal.

5 The Philistines gathered to fight Israel with three thousand[b] chariots and six thousand ·men to ride in them [horsemen; charioteers]. Their soldiers were as many as the grains of sand on the seashore. The Philistines went and camped at Micmash, which is east of Beth Aven. 6 When the Israelites saw that they were in ·trouble [a tight spot; desperate straits], they went to hide in caves and ·bushes [thickets; or holes], among the ·rocks [cliffs; crevices], and in ·pits [cellars; tombs; vaults] and ·wells [cisterns]. 7 Some Hebrews even went across the Jordan River to the land of Gad and Gilead.

But Saul stayed at Gilgal, and all the men in his army were ·shaking with fear [trembling; quaking]. 8 Saul waited seven days, ·because Samuel had said he would meet him then [L the period/time Samuel had set; C as a priest, Samuel had to offer sacrifices before battle]. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the soldiers began to ·leave [scatter; slip away].

9 So Saul said, “Bring me the whole burnt offering and the ·fellowship [peace; communion] offerings.” Then Saul ·offered [sacrificed] the whole burnt offering. 10 Just as he finished, Samuel arrived, and Saul went to greet him.

11 Samuel asked, “What have you ·done [been doing]?”

Saul answered, “I saw the soldiers ·leaving [scattering from] me, and you were not here ·when you said you would be [at the set/appointed time]. The Philistines were gathering at Micmash. 12 Then I thought, ‘The Philistines will come against me at Gilgal, and I haven’t asked for the Lord’s ·approval [help; favor].’ So I ·forced myself [felt compelled/it necessary] to offer the whole burnt offering.”

13 Samuel said, “You acted foolishly [C only priests could legitimately offer sacrifices]! You haven’t ·obeyed [kept] the command of the Lord your God [C frightened troops should have been allowed to leave; Deut. 20:8–9]. If you had obeyed him, the Lord would have ·made your kingdom continue [established your kingdom] ·in [over] Israel always [C Saul rather than David would have had a dynasty], 14 but now your kingdom will not ·continue [last; endure]. The Lord has ·looked for the kind of man he wants [L sought a man after his own heart; 16:6–13]. He has appointed him to ·rule [L be prince over] his people, because you haven’t ·obeyed his [kept the Lord’s] command.”

15 Then Samuel left Gilgal and went to Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul counted the men who were still with him, and there were about six hundred.

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Footnotes

  1. 1 Samuel 13:1 Saul… years This is how the verse is worded in some early Greek copies. The Hebrew is not clear here.
  2. 1 Samuel 13:5 three thousand Some Greek copies read “three thousand.” Hebrew copies say “thirty thousand.”
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