Bible in 90 Days

³⁰ Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, says, I did promise that your house and that of your father [forefather Aaron] should go in and out before Me forever. But now the Lord says, Be it far from Me. For those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.

³¹ Behold, the time is coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your own father’s house, that there shall not be an old man in your house.

³² And you shall behold the distress of My house, even in all the prosperity which God will give Israel, and there shall not be an old man in your house forever.

³³ Yet I will not cut off from My altar every man of yours; some shall survive to weep and mourn [over the family’s ruin], but all the increase of your house shall die in their best years.^(A)

³⁴ And what befalls your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, shall be a sign to you—in one day they both shall die. [Fulfilled in I Sam. 4:17, 18.]

³⁵ And I will raise up for Myself a ^[a]faithful priest (Priest), who shall do according to what is in My heart and mind. And I will build him a sure house, and he shall walk before My anointed (Anointed) forever.^(B)

³⁶ Everyone who is left in your house shall come crouching to him for a piece of silver and a bit of bread and say, Put me, I pray you, into a priest’s office so I may have a piece of bread.

3 Now the boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli. The word of the Lord was rare and precious in those days; there was no frequent or widely spread vision.

² At that time Eli, whose eyesight had dimmed so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place.

³ The lamp of God had not yet gone out in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was lying down

⁴ When the Lord called, Samuel! And he answered, Here I am.

⁵ He ran to Eli and said, Here I am, for you called me. Eli said, I did not call you; lie down again. So he went and lay down.

⁶ And the Lord called again, Samuel! And Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, Here am I; you did call me. Eli answered, I did not call, my son; lie down again.

⁷ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord was not yet revealed to him.

⁸ And the Lord called Samuel the third time. And he went to Eli and said, Here I am, for you did call me. Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy.

⁹ So Eli said to Samuel, Go, lie down. And if He calls you, you shall say, Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

¹⁰ And the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, Samuel! Samuel! Then Samuel answered, Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.

¹¹ The Lord told Samuel, Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of all who hear it shall tingle.

¹² On that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end.

¹³ And I [now] announce to him that I will judge and punish his house forever for the iniquity of which he knew, for his sons were bringing a curse upon themselves [blaspheming God], and he did not restrain them.

¹⁴ Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for or purged with sacrifice or offering forever.

¹⁵ Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the Lord’s house. And [he] was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.

¹⁶ But Eli called Samuel and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, Here I am.

¹⁷ Eli said, What is it He told you? Pray do not hide it from me. May God do so to you, and more also, if you hide anything from me of all that He said to you.

¹⁸ And Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing. And Eli said, It is the Lord; let Him do what seems good to Him.

¹⁹ Samuel grew; the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.^(C)

²⁰ And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord.

²¹ And the Lord continued to appear in Shiloh, for the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh through the word of the Lord.

4 And the word of [the Lord through] Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out to battle against the Philistines and encamped beside Ebenezer; the Philistines encamped at Aphek.

² The Philistines drew up against Israel, and when the battle spread, Israel was smitten by the Philistines, who slew about 4,000 men on the battlefield.

³ When the troops had come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Why has the Lord smitten us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord here from Shiloh, that He may come among us and save us from the power of our enemies.

⁴ So the people sent to Shiloh and brought from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, Who dwells above the cherubim. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were with the ark of the covenant of God.

⁵ And when the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth resounded.

⁶ And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What does this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews mean? When they understood that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp,

⁷ The Philistines were afraid, for they said, God has come into the camp. And they said, Woe to us! For such a thing has not happened before.

⁸ Woe to us! Who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty gods? These are the gods that smote the Egyptians with every kind of plague in the wilderness.

⁹ Be strong, and acquit yourselves like men, O you Philistines, that you may not become servants to the Hebrews, as they have been to you; behave yourselves like men, and fight!

¹⁰ And the Philistines fought; Israel was smitten and they fled every man to his own home. There was a very great slaughter; for 30,000 foot soldiers of Israel fell.

¹¹ And the ark of God was taken, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain. [Foretold in I Sam. 2:34.]

¹² Now a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh that day, with his clothes torn and earth on his head.

¹³ When he arrived, Eli was sitting by the road watching, for his heart trembled for the ark of God. When the man told the news in the city, all the city [people] cried out.

¹⁴ When Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What is this uproar? And the man came hastily and told Eli.

¹⁵ Now Eli was 98 years old; his eyes were dim so that he could not see.

¹⁶ The man said to Eli, I have come from the battle; I fled from the battle today. Eli said, How did it go, my son?

¹⁷ The messenger replied, Israel fled before the Philistines, and there has been a great slaughter among the people. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God is captured.

¹⁸ And when he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell off the seat backward by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years.

¹⁹ Now his daughter-in-law, Phinehas’ wife, was with child, about to be delivered. And when she heard that the ark of God was captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and gave birth, for her pains came upon her.

²⁰ And about the time of her death the women attending her said to her, Fear not, for you have borne a son. But she did not answer or notice.

²¹ And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel!—because the ark of God had been captured and because of her father-in-law and her husband.

²² She said, The glory is gone from Israel, for the ark of God has been taken.

5 The Philistines brought the ark of God from Ebenezer to Ashdod.

² They took the ark of God into the house of Dagon and set it beside Dagon [their idol].

³ When they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon had fallen upon his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set him in his place again.

⁴ But when they arose early the next morning, behold, Dagon had again fallen on his face on the ground before the ark of the Lord, and [his] head and both the palms of his hands were lying cut off on the threshold; only the trunk of Dagon was left him.

⁵ This is the reason neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon’s house tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day.

⁶ But the hand of the Lord was heavy upon the people of Ashdod, and He caused [mice to spring up and there was] very deadly destruction and He smote the people with [very painful] tumors or boils, both Ashdod and its territory.

⁷ When the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for His hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.

⁸ So they sent and gathered all the lords of the Philistines to them and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? They answered, Let [it] be carried around to Gath. So they carried the ark of the God of Israel there.

⁹ But after they had carried it to Gath, the hand of the Lord was against the city, causing an exceedingly great panic [at the deaths from the plague], for He afflicted the people of the city, both small and great, and tumors or boils broke out on them.

¹⁰ So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And as [it] came, the people of Ekron cried out, They have brought the ark of the God of Israel to us to slay us and our people!

¹¹ So they sent and assembled all the lords of the Philistines and said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel; let it return to its own place, that it may not slay us and our people. For there was a deadly panic throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.

¹² The men who had not died were stricken with very painful tumors or boils, and the cry of the city went up to heaven.

6 The ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months.

² And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the Lord? Tell us with what we shall send it to its place.

³ And they said, If you send away the ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty, but at least return to Him a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and it will be known to you why His hand is not removed [and healing granted you].

⁴ Then they said, What shall be the guilt offering which we shall return to Him? They answered, Five golden tumors and five golden mice, according to the number of the Philistine lords, for one plague was on you all, even on your lords.

⁵ Therefore you must make images of your tumors and of your mice that destroy the land, and give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps He will lighten His hand from off you and your gods and your land.

⁶ Why then do you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When He had done wonders and made a mock of them, did they not let the people go, and they departed?

⁷ Now then, make and prepare a new cart and two milch cows on which no yoke has ever come; and yoke the cows to the cart, but take their calves home, away from them.

⁸ And take the ark of the Lord and place it upon the cart, and put in a box at its side the figures of gold which you are returning to Him as a guilt offering. Then send it away and let it be gone.

⁹ And watch. If it goes up by the way of its own land to Beth-shemesh, then He has done us this great evil. But if not, then we shall know that it was not His hand that struck us; it happened to us by chance.

¹⁰ And the men did so, and took two milch cows and yoked them to the cart and shut up their calves at home.

¹¹ And they put the ark of the Lord on the cart and along with it the box with the mice of gold and the images of their tumors.

¹² And the cows went straight toward Beth-shemesh along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right or the left. And the Philistine lords followed them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.

¹³ Now the men of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley, and they lifted up their eyes and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it.

¹⁴ The cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh and stopped there. A great stone was there; and the men split up the wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord.

¹⁵ The Levites took down the ark of the Lord and the box beside it in which were the figures of gold and put them upon the great stone. And the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offerings and made sacrifices that day to the Lord.

¹⁶ When the five lords of the Philistines saw it, they returned that day to Ekron.

¹⁷ And these are the tumors of gold which the Philistines returned for a guilt offering to the Lord: one each for Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron;

¹⁸ Also the mice of gold was according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both fortified cities and country villages. The great stone, on which they set the ark of the Lord, remains as a witness to this day in the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh.

¹⁹ And the Lord slew some of the men of Beth-shemesh because they had looked into the ark of the Lord; He slew ^[b]seventy men of them, and the people mourned because the Lord had made a great slaughter among them.

²⁰ And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? And to whom shall He go away from us?

²¹ And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Come down and take it up to you.

7 So the men of Kiriath-jearim came and took the ark of the Lord and brought it into the house of Abinadab on the hill and consecrated Eleazar his son to have charge of the ark of the Lord.

² And the ark remained in Kiriath-jearim a very long time [nearly 100 years, through Samuel’s entire judgeship, Saul’s reign, and well into David’s, when it was brought to Jerusalem]. For it was twenty years before all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.^(D)

³ Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth [female deities] from among you and direct your hearts to the Lord and serve Him only, and He will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.

⁴ So the Israelites put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and served the Lord only.

⁵ Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpah and I will pray to the Lord for you.

⁶ So they gathered at Mizpah and drew water and poured it out before the Lord and fasted on that day and said there, We have sinned against the Lord. And Samuel judged the Israelites at Mizpah.

⁷ Now when the Philistines heard that the Israelites had gathered at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid of the Philistines.

⁸ And the Israelites said to Samuel, Do not cease to cry to the Lord our God for us, that He may save us from the hand of the Philistines.

⁹ So Samuel took a sucking lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord; and Samuel cried to the Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him.

¹⁰ As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to attack Israel. But the Lord thundered with a great voice that day against the Philistines and threw them into confusion, and they were defeated before Israel.

¹¹ And the men of Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines and smote them as far as below Beth-car.

¹² Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and he called the name of it Ebenezer [stone of help], saying, Heretofore the Lord has helped us.

¹³ So the Philistines were subdued and came no more into Israelite territory. And the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.

¹⁴ The cities the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron to Gath, and Israel rescued [the cities’] territory from the Philistines. There was peace also between Israel and the Amorites.

¹⁵ And Samuel judged Israel all his days.

¹⁶ And he went from year to year on a circuit to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah, and was judge for Israel in all those places.

¹⁷ Then he would return to Ramah, for his home was there; there he judged Israel, and there he built an altar to the Lord.

8 When Samuel was old, he made his sons judges over Israel.

² Now the name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second, Abijah. They were judges in Beersheba.

³ His sons did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after gain, took bribes, and perverted justice.

⁴ All the elders of Israel assembled and came to Samuel at Ramah

⁵ And said to him, Behold, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now appoint us a king to rule over us like all the other nations.

⁶ But it displeased Samuel when they said, Give us a king to govern us. And Samuel prayed to the Lord.

⁷ And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken to the voice of the people in all they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not be King over them.

⁸ According to all the works which they have done since I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking Me and serving other gods, so they also do to you.

⁹ So listen now to their voice; only solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.

¹⁰ So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who asked of him a king.

¹¹ And he said, These will be the ways of the king who shall reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots.

¹² He will appoint them for himself to be commanders over thousands and over fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest and to make his implements of war and equipment for his chariots.

¹³ He will take your daughters to be perfumers, cooks, and bakers.

¹⁴ He will take your fields, your vineyards, and your olive orchards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.

¹⁵ He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants.

¹⁶ He will take your men and women servants and the best of your cattle and your donkeys and put them to his work.

¹⁷ He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves shall be his slaves.

¹⁸ In that day you will cry out because of your king you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not hear you then.

¹⁹ Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, No! We will have a king over us,

²⁰ That we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may govern us and go out before us and fight our battles.

²¹ Samuel heard all the people’s words and repeated them in the Lord’s ears.

²² And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken to their voice and appoint them a king. And Samuel said to the men of Israel, Go every man to his city.

9 There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of wealth and valor.

² Kish had a son named Saul, a choice young man and handsome; among all the Israelites there was not a man more handsome than he. He was a head taller than any of the people.

³ The donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. Kish said to Saul, Take a servant with you and go, look for the donkeys.

⁴ And they passed through the hill country of Ephraim and the land of Shalishah, but did not find them. Then they went through the land of Shaalim and the land of Benjamin, but did not find them.

⁵ And when they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant, Come, let us return, lest my father stop worrying about the donkeys and become concerned about us.

⁶ The servant said to him, Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, a man held in honor; all that he says surely comes true. Now let us go there. Perhaps he can show us where we should go.

⁷ Then Saul said to his servant, But if we go, what shall we bring the man? The bread in our sacks is gone, and there is no gift for the man of God. What have we?

⁸ The servant replied, I have here a quarter of a shekel of silver. I will give that to the man of God to tell us our way—

⁹ (Formerly in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he said, Come, let us go to the seer, for he that is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer.)

¹⁰ Saul said to his servant, Well said; come, let us go. So they went to the city where the man of God was.

¹¹ As they went up the hill to the city, they met young maidens going out to draw water, and said to them, Is the seer here?

¹² They answered, He is; behold, he is just beyond you. Hurry, for he came today to the city because the people have a sacrifice today on the high place.

¹³ As you enter the city, you will find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not eat until he comes to ask the blessing on the sacrifice. Afterward, those who are invited eat. So go on up, for about now you will find him.

¹⁴ So they went up to the city, and as they were entering, behold, Samuel came toward them, going up to the high place.

¹⁵ Now a day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed to Samuel in his ear,

¹⁶ Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be leader over My people Israel; and he shall save them out of the hand of the Philistines. For I have looked upon the distress of My people, because their cry has come to Me.

¹⁷ When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, There is the man of whom I told you. He shall have authority over My people.

¹⁸ Then Saul came near to Samuel in the gate and said, Tell me where is the seer’s house?

¹⁹ Samuel answered Saul, I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today, and tomorrow I will let you go and will tell you all that is on your mind.

²⁰ As for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not be thinking about them, for they are found. And for whom are all the desirable things of Israel? Are they not for you and for all your father’s house?

²¹ And Saul said, Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? And is not my family the least of all the families of the clans of Benjamin? Why then do you speak this way to me?

²² Then Samuel took Saul and his servant and brought them into the guest room [at the high place] and had them sit in the chief place among the persons—about thirty of them—who were invited. [The other people feasted outside.]

²³ And Samuel said to the cook, Bring the portion which I gave you, of which I said to you, Set it aside.

²⁴ And the cook lifted high the shoulder and what was on it [indicating that it was the priest’s honored portion] and set it before Saul. [Samuel] said, See what was reserved for you. Eat, for until the hour appointed it was kept for you, ever since I invited the people. So Saul ate that day with Samuel.

²⁵ When they had come down from the high place into the city, Samuel conversed with Saul on the top of the house.

²⁶ They arose early and about dawn Samuel called Saul [who was sleeping] on the top of the house, saying, Get up, that I may send you on your way. Saul arose, and both he and Samuel went out on the street.

²⁷ And as they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us—and he passed on—but you stand still, first, that I may cause you to hear the word of God.

10 Then Samuel took the vial of oil and poured it on Saul’s head and kissed him and said, Has not the Lord anointed you to be prince over His heritage Israel?

² When you have left me today, you will meet two men by Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, The donkeys you sought are found. And your father has quit caring about them and is anxious for you, asking, What shall I do about my son?

³ Then you will go on from there and you will come to the oak of Tabor, and 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 bottle of wine.

⁴ They will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall accept from their hand.

⁵ After that you will come to the hill of God, where the garrison of the Philistines is; and when you come to the city, you will meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying.

⁶ Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you mightily, and you will show yourself to be a prophet with them; and you will be turned into another man.

⁷ When these signs meet you, do whatever you find to be done, for God is with you.

⁸ You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. You shall wait seven days until I come to you and show you what you shall do.

⁹ And when [Saul] had turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart, and all these signs came to pass that day.

¹⁰ When they came to the hill [Gibeah], behold, a band of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came mightily upon him, and he spoke under divine inspiration among them.

¹¹ And when all who knew Saul before saw that he spoke by inspiration among the [schooled] prophets, the people said one to another, What has come over [him, who is nobody but] the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?

¹² One from that same place answered, But who is the father of the others? So it became a proverb, Is Saul also among the prophets?

¹³ When [Saul] had ended his inspired speaking, he went to the high place.

¹⁴ Saul’s uncle said to him and to his servant, Where did you go? And Saul said, To look for the donkeys, and when we found them nowhere, we went to Samuel.

¹⁵ Saul’s uncle said, Tell me, what did Samuel say to you?

¹⁶ And Saul said to his uncle, He told us plainly that the donkeys were found. But of the matter of the kingdom of which Samuel spoke he told him nothing.

¹⁷ And Samuel called the people together to the Lord at Mizpah

¹⁸ And said to the Israelites, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: It was I Who brought up Israel out of Egypt and delivered you out of the hands of the Egyptians and of all the kingdoms that oppressed you.

¹⁹ But you have this day rejected your God, Who Himself saves you from all your calamities and distresses; and you have said to Him, No! Set a king over us. So now present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and by your thousands.

²⁰ And when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was taken [probably by lot].

²¹ When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was taken. And Saul son of Kish was taken. But when they looked for him, he could not be found.

²² Therefore they inquired of the Lord further, if the man would yet come back. And the Lord answered, Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.^(E)

²³ They ran and brought him from there. And when he stood among the people, he was a head taller than any of them.

²⁴ And Samuel said to all the people, Do you see him whom the Lord has chosen, that none like him is among all the people? And all the people shouted and said, Long live the king!

²⁵ Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom [defining the position of the king in relation to God and to the people], and wrote it in a book and laid it up before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home.

²⁶ Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of valiant men whose hearts God had touched.

²⁷ But some worthless fellows said, How can this man save us? And they despised him and brought him no gift. But he held his peace and was as if deaf.

11 And 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.

² But Nahash the Ammonite told them, On this condition I will make a treaty with you, that I thrust out all your right eyes and thus lay disgrace on all Israel.

³ The elders of Jabesh said to Nahash, Give us seven days’ time, that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no man to save us, we will come out to you.

⁴ Then messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the news in the ears of the people; and all the people wept aloud.

⁵ Now Saul came out of the field after the oxen, and [he] said, What ails the people that they are weeping? And they told him the words of the men of Jabesh.

⁶ The Spirit of God came mightily upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was greatly kindled.

⁷ And he took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, Whoever does not come forth after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen! And terror from the Lord fell on the people, and they came out with one consent.

⁸ And he numbered them at Bezek, and the Israelites were 300,000 and the men of Judah 30,000.

⁹ The messengers who came were told, Say to the men of Jabesh-gilead, Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have help. The messengers came and reported to the men of Jabesh, and they were glad.

¹⁰ So the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you may do to us all that seems good to you.

¹¹ The next day Saul put the men in three companies; and they came into the midst of the enemy’s camp in the [darkness of the] morning watch and slew the Ammonites until midday; and the survivors were scattered, so that no two of them remained together.

¹² The people said to Samuel, Who is he who said, Shall Saul reign over us? Bring the men, that we may put them to death.

¹³ But Saul said, There shall not a man be put to death this day, for today the Lord has brought deliverance to Israel.

¹⁴ Samuel said to the people, Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom.

¹⁵ All the people went to Gilgal and there they made Saul king before the Lord. And there they sacrificed peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

12 And Samuel said to all Israel, I have listened to you in all that you have said to me and have made a king over you.

² And now, behold, the king walks before you. And I am old and gray, and behold, my sons are with you. And I have walked before you from my childhood to this day.

³ Here I am; testify against me before the Lord and Saul His anointed. Whose ox or donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded or oppressed? Or from whose hand have I received any bribe to blind my eyes? Tell me and I will restore it to you.

⁴ And they said, You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from any man’s hand.

⁵ And Samuel 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 answered, He is witness.

⁶ And Samuel said to the people, It is the Lord Who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of Egypt.

⁷ Now present yourselves, that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous acts of the Lord which He did for you and for your fathers.

⁸ When Jacob and his sons had come into Egypt [and the Egyptians oppressed them], and your fathers cried to the Lord, then the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place.

⁹ But when they forgot the Lord their God, He sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of Hazor’s army, and into the hands of the Philistines and of the king of Moab, and they fought those foes.

¹⁰ And they cried to the Lord, saying, We have sinned because we have forsaken the Lord and have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth; but now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve You.

¹¹ And the Lord sent Jerubbaal and Barak and Jephthah and Samuel, and He delivered you out of the hands of your enemies on every side, and you dwelt safely.

¹² But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, No! A king shall reign over us—when the Lord your God was your King!

¹³ Now see the king whom you have chosen and for whom you have asked; behold, the Lord has set a king over you.

¹⁴ If you will revere and fear the Lord and serve Him and hearken to His voice and not rebel against His commandment, and if both you and your king will follow the Lord your God, it will be good!

¹⁵ But if you will not hearken to the Lord’s voice, but rebel against His commandment, then the hand of the Lord will be against you, as it was against your fathers.

¹⁶ So stand still and see this great thing the Lord will do before your eyes now.

¹⁷ Is it not wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord and He will send thunder and rain; then you shall know and see that your wickedness is great which you have done in the sight of the Lord in asking for a king for yourselves.

¹⁸ So Samuel called to the Lord, and He sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

¹⁹ And [they] all said to Samuel, Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil—to ask for a king.

²⁰ And Samuel said to the people, Fear not. You have indeed done all this evil; yet turn not aside from following the Lord, but serve Him with all your heart.

²¹ And turn not aside after vain and worthless things which cannot profit or deliver you, for they are empty and futile.

²² The Lord will not forsake His people for His great name’s sake, for it has pleased Him to make you a people for Himself.

²³ Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and right way.

²⁴ Only fear the Lord and serve Him faithfully with all your heart; for consider how great are the things He has done for you.

²⁵ But if you still do wickedly, both you and your king shall be swept away.

13 Saul was ^[c][forty] years old when he began to reign; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

² Saul chose 3,000 men of Israel; 2,000 were with [him] in Michmash and the hill country of Bethel, and 1,000 with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent away, each one to his home.

³ Jonathan smote the Philistine garrison at Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear!

⁴ All Israel heard that Saul had defeated the Philistine garrison and also that Israel had become an abomination to the Philistines. And the people were called out to join Saul at Gilgal.

⁵ And the Philistines gathered to fight with Israel, 30,000 chariots and 6,000 horsemen and troops like sand on the seashore in multitude. They came up and encamped at Michmash, east of Beth-aven.

⁶ When the men of Israel saw that they were in a tight situation—for their troops were hard pressed—they hid in caves, holes, rocks, tombs, and pits or cisterns.

⁷ Some Hebrews had gone over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

⁸ Saul waited seven days, according to the set time Samuel had appointed. But Samuel had not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering from Saul.

⁹ So Saul said, Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering [which he was forbidden to do].

¹⁰ And just as he finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came! Saul went out to meet and greet him.

¹¹ Samuel said, What have you done? Saul said, Because I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines were assembled at Michmash,

¹² I thought, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the Lord. So I forced myself to offer a burnt offering.

¹³ And Samuel said to Saul, You have done foolishly! You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God which He commanded you; for the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever;

¹⁴ But now your kingdom shall not continue; the Lord has sought out [David] a man after His own ^[d]heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince and ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.

¹⁵ And Samuel went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people that were left with him, [only] about 600.

¹⁶ Saul and Jonathan his son and the people with them remained in Gibeah of Benjamin, but the Philistines encamped at Michmash.

¹⁷ And raiders came out of the Philistine camp in three companies; one company turned toward Ophrah, to the land of Shual,

¹⁸ Another turned toward Beth-horon, and another toward the border overlooking the Valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.

¹⁹ Now there was no metal worker to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make swords or spears.

²⁰ But each of the Israelites had to go down to the Philistines to get his plowshare, mattock, axe, or sickle sharpened.

²¹ And the price for plowshares and mattocks was a pim, and a third of a shekel for axes and for setting goads [with resulting blunt edges on the sickles, mattocks, forks, axes, and goads.]

²² So on the day of battle neither sword nor spear was found in the hand of any of the men who were with Saul and Jonathan; but Saul and Jonathan his son had them.

²³ And the garrison of the Philistines went out to the pass of Michmash.

14 One day Jonathan son of Saul said to his armor-bearer, Come, let us go over to the Philistine garrison on the other side. But he did not tell his father.

² Saul was remaining in the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree in Migron; and with him were about 600 men,

³ And Ahijah son of Ahitub, Ichabod’s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord’s priest in Shiloh, was wearing the ephod. And the people did not know that Jonathan was gone.

⁴ Between the passes by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistine garrison there was a rocky crag on the one side and a rocky crag on the other side; one was named Bozez, and the other Seneh.

⁵ The one crag rose on the north in front of Michmash, and the other on the south in front of Geba.

⁶ And Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the Lord will work for us. For there is nothing to prevent the Lord from saving by many or by few.

⁷ And his armor-bearer said to him, Do all that is in your mind; I am with you in whatever you think [best].

⁸ Jonathan said, We will pass over to these men and we will let them see us.

⁹ If they say to us, Wait until we come to you, then we will stand still in our place and will not go up to them.

¹⁰ But if they say, Come up to us, we will go up, for the Lord has delivered them into our hand, and this will be our sign.

¹¹ So both of them let the Philistine garrison see them. And the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden themselves.

¹² The garrison men said to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, Come up to us and we will show you a thing. Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, Come up after me, for the Lord has given them into Israel’s hand.

¹³ Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, his armor-bearer after him; and the enemy fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer killed them after him.

¹⁴ And that first slaughter which Jonathan and his armor-bearer made was about twenty men within about a half acre of land [which a yoke of oxen might plow].

¹⁵ And there was trembling and panic in the [Philistine] camp, in the field, and among all the men; the garrison, and even the raiders trembled; the earth quaked, and it became a terror from God.

¹⁶ Saul’s watchmen in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold, the multitude melted away and went hither and thither.

¹⁷ Then Saul said to the men with him, Number and see who is gone from us. When they numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armor-bearer were missing.

¹⁸ Saul said to Ahijah, Bring here the ark of God—for at that time the ark of God was with the children of Israel.

¹⁹ While Saul talked to the priest, the tumult in the Philistine camp kept increasing. Then Saul said to the priest, Withdraw your hand.

²⁰ Then Saul and all the people with him rallied and went into the battle, and behold, every [Philistine’s] sword was against his fellow in wild confusion.

²¹ Moreover, the Hebrews who were with the Philistines before that time, who went up with them into the camp from the country round about, even they also turned to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

²² Likewise, all the men of Israel who had hid themselves in the hill country of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, they also went after them in hot pursuit in the battle.

²³ So the Lord delivered Israel that day, and the battle passed beyond Beth-aven.

²⁴ But the men of Israel were distressed that day, for Saul had caused them to take an oath, saying, Cursed be the man who eats any food before evening and until I have taken vengeance on my enemies. So none of the men tasted any food.

²⁵ And all the people of the land came to a wood, and there was honey on the ground.

²⁶ When the men entered the wood, behold, the honey was dripping, but no man tasted it, for the men feared the oath.

²⁷ But Jonathan had not heard when his father charged the people with the oath. So he dipped the end of the rod in his hand into a honeycomb and put it to his mouth, and his [weary] eyes brightened.

²⁸ Then one of the men told him, Your father strictly charged the men with an oath, saying, Cursed be the man who eats any food today. And the people were exhausted and 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.

³⁰ How much better if the men had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies which they found! For now the slaughter of the Philistines has not been great.

³¹ They smote the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. And the people were very faint.

³² [When night came and the oath expired] the men flew upon the spoil. They took sheep, oxen, and calves, slew them on the ground, and ate them [raw] with the blood.

³³ Then Saul was told, Behold, the men are sinning against the Lord by eating with the blood. And he said, You have transgressed; roll a great stone to me here.

³⁴ Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people and tell them, Bring me every man his ox or his sheep, and butcher them here and eat; and sin not against the Lord by eating the blood. So all the men brought each one his ox that night and butchered it there.

³⁵ And Saul built an altar to the Lord; it was the first altar he built to the Lord.

³⁶ Then Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night and seize and plunder them until daylight, and let us not leave a man of them. They said, Do whatever seems good to you. Then the priest said, Let us draw near here to God.

³⁷ And Saul asked counsel of God, Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You deliver them into the hand of Israel? But He did not answer him that day.

³⁸ Then Saul said, Draw near, all the chiefs of the people, and let us see how this sin [causing God’s silence] arose today.

³⁹ For as the Lord lives, Who delivers Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die. But not a man among all the people answered him.

⁴⁰ Then he said to all Israel, You be on one side; and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. The people said to Saul, Do what seems good to you.

⁴¹ Therefore Saul said to the Lord, the God of Israel, Give a perfect lot and show the right. And Saul and Jonathan were taken [by lot], but the other men went free.

⁴² Saul said, Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken.

⁴³ Saul said to Jonathan, Tell me what you have done. And Jonathan said, I tasted a little honey with the end of the rod that was in my hand. And behold, I must die.

⁴⁴ Saul answered, May God do so, and more also, for you shall surely die, Jonathan.

⁴⁵ But the people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan, who has wrought this great deliverance to Israel, die? God forbid! As the Lord lives, there shall not one hair of his head perish, for he has wrought this great deliverance with God this day. So the people rescued Jonathan, and he did not die.

⁴⁶ Then Saul ceased pursuing the Philistines, and they went to their own place.

⁴⁷ When Saul took over the kingdom of Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side: Moab, the Ammonites, Edom, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. Wherever he turned, he made it worse for them.

⁴⁸ He did valiantly and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of those who plundered them.

⁴⁹ Now Saul’s sons were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchi-shua; and the names of his two daughters were, of the firstborn, Merab; and of the younger, Michal.

⁵⁰ The name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam daughter of Ahimaaz. The commander of his army was Abner son of Ner, Saul’s uncle.

⁵¹ Kish the father of Saul and Ner the father of Abner were sons of Abiel.

⁵² There was severe war against the Philistines all the days of Saul, and whenever Saul saw any mighty or [outstandingly] courageous man, he attached him to himself.

15 Samuel told Saul, The Lord sent me to anoint you king over His people Israel. Now listen and heed the words of the Lord.

² Thus says the Lord of hosts, I have considered and will punish what Amalek did to Israel, how he set himself against him in the way when [Israel] came out of Egypt.

³ Now go and smite Amalek and utterly destroy all they have; do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.

⁴ So Saul assembled the men and numbered them at Telaim—200,000 men on foot and 10,000 men of Judah.

⁵ And Saul came to the city of Amalek and laid wait in the valley.

⁶ Saul warned the Kenites, Go, depart, get down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them; for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.

⁷ Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah as far as Shur, which is east of Egypt.

⁸ And he took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, though he utterly destroyed all the rest of the people with the sword.

⁹ Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep, oxen, fatlings, lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them; but all that was undesirable or worthless they destroyed utterly.

¹⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying,

¹¹ I regret making Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me and has not performed My commands. And Samuel was grieved and angry [with Saul], and he cried to the Lord all night.

¹² When Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, he was told, Saul came to Carmel, and behold, he set up for himself a monument or trophy [of his victory] and passed on and went down to Gilgal.

¹³ And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, Blessed are you of the Lord. I have performed what the Lord ordered.

¹⁴ And Samuel said, What then means this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?

¹⁵ Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God, but the rest we have utterly destroyed.

¹⁶ Then Samuel said to Saul, Stop! I will tell you what the Lord said to me tonight. Saul said to him, Say on.

¹⁷ Samuel said, When you were small in your own sight, were you not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the Lord anointed you king over Israel?

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.

¹⁹ Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but swooped down upon the plunder and did evil in the Lord’s sight?

²⁰ Saul said to Samuel, Yes, I have obeyed the voice of the Lord and have gone the way which the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag king of Amalek and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

²¹ But the people took from the spoil sheep and oxen, the chief of the things to be utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.

²² Samuel said, Has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

²³ For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim (household good luck images). Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king.

²⁴ And 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.

²⁵ Now, I pray you, pardon my sin and go back with me, that I may worship the Lord.

²⁶ And 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.

²⁷ And as Samuel turned to go away, Saul seized the skirt of Samuel’s mantle, and it tore.

²⁸ And Samuel said to him, The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to a neighbor of yours who is better than you.

²⁹ And also the Strength of Israel will not lie or repent; for He is not a man, that He should repent.

³⁰ Saul said, I have sinned; yet honor me now, I pray you, before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may worship the Lord your God.

³¹ So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

³² Then Samuel said, Bring here to me Agag king of the Amalekites. And Agag came to him cheerfully. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past.

³³ Samuel said, As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.

³⁴ Then Samuel went to Ramah, but Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul.

³⁵ And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death, though Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord repented that He had made Saul king over Israel.