The Daily Audio Bible

1 Sha’ul had died, and David had been two days in Ziklag after returning from the slaughter of the ‘Amaleki. ² On the third day, there came a man from Sha’ul’s camp with his clothes torn and earth on his head. He approached David, fell to the ground and prostrated himself. ³ David said to him, “Where are you coming from?” “I escaped from the camp of Isra’el,” he replied. ⁴ “Tell me, please, how did things go?” asked David. “The people have fled the battle,” he answered, “and many of them are wounded or dead. Sha’ul and Y’honatan his son are dead too.” ⁵ David asked the young man who had told him this, “How do you know that Sha’ul and Y’honatan his son are dead?” ⁶ The young man who had told him said, “I happened to be on Mount Gilboa when I saw Sha’ul leaning on his spear. The chariots and cavalry were bearing down on him. ⁷ He looked behind him, saw me and called to me. I answered, ‘Here I am.’ ⁸ He said to me, ‘Who are you?’ and I answered, ‘I’m an ‘Amaleki’ ⁹ He said to me, ‘I’m in agony, and I’m going to die, but I’m still alive. So please, stand next to me; and kill me.’ ¹⁰ So I stood next to him and killed him, because I was sure he was so badly wounded that he couldn’t live. I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet on his arm and have brought them here to my lord.”

¹¹ Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and likewise all the men who were with him. ¹² They wailed and cried, and they fasted until evening for Sha’ul, for Y’honatan his son, for Adonai’s people and for the house of Isra’el; because they had fallen by the sword.

¹³ David said to the young man who had told him, “Where are you from?” He answered, “I’m the son of a [resident] foreigner, an ‘Amaleki.” ¹⁴ David asked him, “How is it that you weren’t afraid to raise your hand to destroy Adonai’s anointed?” ¹⁵ David called one of his young men and said, “Go over to him, and kill him.” The man struck him down, and he died. ¹⁶ David said to him, “Your blood is on your own head. Your own mouth convicted you when you said, ‘I killed Adonai’s anointed.’”

¹⁷ Then David pronounced this lament over Sha’ul and over Y’honatan his son, ¹⁸ in order to teach the people of Y’hudah [not to underestimate] archery (the lament has been written down in the book of Yashar):

2 After this, David consulted Adonai; he asked, “Should I go up into any of the cities of Y’hudah?” Adonai said to him, “Go up.” David asked, “Where should I go up?” He said, “To Hevron.” ² So David went up there with his two wives Achino‘am from Yizre‘el and Avigayil the widow of Naval from Karmel. ³ David brought the men up with him, each with his household; and they lived in the cities of Hevron.

⁴ Then the men of Y’hudah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Y’hudah. They informed David that the men of Yavesh-Gil‘ad were the ones who had buried Sha’ul. ⁵ So David sent messengers to the men of Yavesh-Gil‘ad with this message: “May you be blessed by Adonai, because you showed this kindness to your lord, Sha’ul, and buried him. ⁶ Now may Adonai show kindness and truth to you; and I too will show you favor because you have done this. ⁷ Be strong, and be brave. Sha’ul your lord is dead, but the house of Y’hudah have anointed me king over them.”

⁸ Avner the son of Ner, commander of Sha’ul’s army, had taken Ish-Boshet the son of Sha’ul, brought him over to Machanayim, ⁹ and made him king over Gil‘ad, the Ashuri, Yizre‘el, Efrayim, Binyamin and all Isra’el. ¹⁰ Ish-Boshet the son of Sha’ul was forty years old when he began to rule over Isra’el, and he ruled for two years. But the house of Y’hudah followed David. ¹¹ David was king in Hevron over the house of Y’hudah for seven years and six months.

²⁰ Among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greek-speaking Jews. ²¹ They approached Philip, the one from Beit-Tzaidah in the Galil, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Yeshua.” ²² Philip came and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Yeshua. ²³ Yeshua gave them this answer: “The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴ Yes, indeed! I tell you that unless a grain of wheat that falls to the ground dies, it stays just a grain; but if it dies, it produces a big harvest. ²⁵ He who loves his life loses it, but he who hates his life in this world will keep it safe right on into eternal life! ²⁶ If someone is serving me, let him follow me; wherever I am, my servant will be there too. My Father will honor anyone who serves me.

²⁷ “Now I am in turmoil. What can I say — ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason that I have come to this hour. I will say this: ²⁸ ‘Father, glorify your name!’” At this a bat-kol came out of heaven, “I have glorified it before, and I will glorify it again!” ²⁹ The crowd standing there and hearing it said that it had thundered; others said, “An angel spoke to him.” ³⁰ Yeshua answered, “This bat-kol did not come for my sake but for yours. ³¹ Now is the time for this world to be judged, now the ruler of this world will be expelled. ³² As for me, when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” ³³ He said this to indicate what kind of death he would die.

³⁴ The crowd answered, “We have learned from the Torah that the Messiah remains forever. How is it that you say the Son of Man has to be ‘lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?” ³⁵ Yeshua said to them, “The light will be with you only a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, or the dark will overtake you; he who walks in the dark doesn’t know where he’s going. ³⁶ While you have the light, put your trust in the light, so that you may become people of light.” Yeshua said these things, then went off and kept himself hidden from them.

³⁷ Even though he had performed so many miracles in their presence, they still did not put their trust in him, ³⁸ in order that what Yesha‘yahu the prophet had said might be fulfilled,

³⁹ The reason they could not believe was — as Yesha‘yahu said elsewhere —

⁴¹ (Yesha‘yahu said these things because he saw the Sh’khinah of Yeshua and spoke about him.) ⁴² Nevertheless, many of the leaders did trust in him; but because of the P’rushim they did not say so openly, out of fear of being banned from the synagogue; ⁴³ for they loved praise from other people more than praise from God.

⁴⁴ Yeshua declared publicly, “Those who put their trust in me are trusting not merely in me, but in the One who sent me. ⁴⁵ Also those who see me see the One who sent me. ⁴⁶ I have come as a light into the world, so that everyone who trusts in me might not remain in the dark. ⁴⁷ If anyone hears what I am saying and does not observe it, I don’t judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. ⁴⁸ Those who reject me and don’t accept what I say have a judge — the word which I have spoken will judge them on the Last Day. ⁴⁹ For I have not spoken on my own initiative, but the Father who sent me has given me a command, namely, what to say and how to say it. ⁵⁰ And I know that his command is eternal life. So what I say is simply what the Father has told me to say.”