1 Samuel
Chapter 1
1:1There was a man of one of the two Ramathaim-zophim, of mount Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephrathite:
1:2And he had two wives:the name of one was Hannah,and the name of the other Peninnah:and Peninnah had children,but Hannah had no children.
1:3And this man went up out of his city every year, to worship and to sacrifice to YHWH of hosts in Shiloh, where were the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas Priests of YHWH.
1:4And on a day, when Elkanah sacrificed, he gave to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters portions,
1:5But to Hannah he gave a worthy portion:for he loved Hannah,and YHWH had made her barren.
1:6And her adversary vexed her sore, forasmuch as she upbraided her, because YHWH had made her barren.
1:7(And so did he year by year) and as oft as she went up to the house of YHWH, thus she vexed her,that she wept and did not eat.
1:8Then said Elkanah her husband to her, Hannah, why weep you? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart troubled? Am not I better to you than ten sons?
1:9So Hannah rose up after that they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh (and Eli the Priest sat upon a stool by one of the posts of the Temple of YHWH)
1:10And she was troubled in her nephesh,and prayed to YHWH,and wept sore:
1:11Also she vowed a vow,and said, O YHWH of hosts, if You will look on the trouble of Your handmaid,and remember me,and not forget your handmaid,but give to your handmaid a manchild, then I will give him to YHWH all the days of his life,and there shall no razor come upon his head.
1:12And as she continued praying before YHWH, Eli marked her mouth.
1:13For Hannah spoke in her heart:her lips did move only,but her voice was not heard:therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.
1:14And Eli said to her, How long will you be drunken? Put away your wine from you.
1:15Then Hannah answered and said, No my lord,but I am a woman troubled in spirit:I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink,but have poured out my nephesh before YHWH.
1:16Count not your handmaid for a wicked woman:for of the abundance of my complaint and my grief have I spoken until now.
1:17Then Eli answered,and said, Go in peace,and the Elohim of Israel grant your petition that you have asked of him.
1:18She said again, Let your handmaid find favor in your sight:so the woman went her way,and did eat,and looked no more sad.
1:19Then they rose up early,and worshiped before YHWH,and returned,and came to their house to Ramah. Now Elkanah knew Hannah his wife,and YHWH remembered her.
1:20For in process of time Hannah conceived,and bore a son,and she called his name Samuel, Because, said she, I have asked him of YHWH.
1:21So the man Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to YHWH the yearly sacrifice,and his vow:
1:22But Hannah went not up:for she said to her husband, I will wait until the child be weaned, then I will bring him that he may appear before YHWH,and there abide forever.
1:23And Elkanah her husband said to her, Do what seems you best:wait until you have weaned him:only YHWH accomplish his word. So the woman abode,and gave her son suck until she weaned him.
1:24And when she had weaned him, she took him with her with three bullocks and an Ephah of flour and a bottle of wine,and brought him to the house of YHWH in Shiloh,and the child was young.
1:25And they slew a bullock,and brought the child to Eli.
1:26And she said, Oh my YHWH, as your nephesh lives, my lord, I am the woman that stood with you here praying to the Lord.
1:27I prayed for this child,and YHWH has given me my desire which I asked of him.
1:28Therefore also I have given him to YHWH:as long as he lives he shall be given to YHWH:and he worshiped YHWH there.
Chapter 2
2:1And Hannah prayed,and said, My heart rejoices in YHWH, my horn is exalted in YHWH:my mouth is enlarged over my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation.
2:2There is none holy as YHWH:yes, there is none besides you,and there is no god like our Elohim.
2:3Do not speak anymore presumptuously:let not arrogance come out of your mouth:for YHWH is a El of knowledge,and by him enterprises are established.
2:4The bow and the mighty men are broken,and the weak have girded themselves with strength.
2:5They that were full, are hired forth for bread,and the hungry are no more hired, so that the barren has born seven:and she that had many children, is feeble.
2:6YHWH kills and makes alive:brings down to Sheol and raises up.
2:7YHWH makes poor and makes rich:brings low,and exalts.
2:8He raises up the poor out of the dust,and lifts up the needy from the ash heap, to set them among princes,and to make them inherit the seat of glory:for the pillars of the earth are YHWH's,and he has set the world upon them.
2:9He will keep the feet of his Saints,and the wicked shall keep silence in darkness:for in his own might shall no man be strong.
2:10The YHWH's adversaries shall be destroyed,and out of heaven shall he thunder upon them:YHWH shall judge the ends of the world,and shall give power to his King,and exalt the horn of his Anointed.
2:11And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house,and the child did minister to YHWH before Eli the Priest.
2:12Now the sons of Eli were wicked men,and knew not YHWH.
2:13For the Priests custom toward the people was this:when any man offered sacrifice, the Priests boy came, while the flesh was boiling,and a three-pronged fork, in his hand,
2:14And thrust it into the kettle, or into the cauldron, or into the pan, or into the pot:all that the fork brought up, the Priest took for himself:thus they did to all the Israelites,that came there to Shiloh.
2:15Yes, before they burnt the fat, the priests boy came and said to the man that offered, Give me flesh to roast for the priest:for he will not have boiled flesh of you,but raw.
2:16And if any man said to him, Let them burn the fat according to the custom, then take as much as your nephesh desires:then he would answer, No,but you shall give it now:and if you will not, I will take it by force.
2:17Therefore the sin of the young men was very great before YHWH:for men abhorred the offering of YHWH.
2:18Now Samuel being a young child ministered before YHWH, girded with a linen Ephod.
2:19And his mother made him a little coat,and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband, to offer the yearly sacrifice.
2:20And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife,and said, YHWH give the seed of this woman,for the petition that she asked of YHWH:and they departed to their place.
2:21And YHWH visited Hannah, so that she conceived,and bore three sons,and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before YHWH.
2:22So Eli was very old,and heard all that his sons did to all Israel,and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the Congregation.
2:23And he said to them, Why do you such things? For of all this people I hear evil reports of you.
2:24Do no more, my sons,for it is no good report that I hear, which is,that you make YHWH's people to trespass.
2:25If one man sin against another, the Judge shall judge it:but if a man sin against YHWH, who will plead for him? Notwithstanding they obeyed not the voice of their father, because YHWH would slay them.
2:26(Now the child Samuel profited and grew,and was in favor both with YHWH and also with men)
2:27And there came a man of Elohim to Eli,and said to him, Thus saysYHWH, Did not I plainly appear to the house of your father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house?
2:28And I chose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my Priest, to offer upon my altar,and to burn incense,and to wear an Ephod before me,and I gave to the house of your father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel.
2:29Why have you kicked against my sacrifice and my offering, which I commanded in my Tabernacle,and honor your children above me, to make yourselves fat of the first fruits of all the offerings of Israel my people?
2:30Therefore YHWH Elohim of Israel says, I said,that your house and the house of your father should walk before me forever:but now YHWH says, It shall not be so:for them that honor me, I will honor,and they that despise me, shall be despised.
2:31Behold, the days come,that I will cut off your arm,and the arm of your fathers house,that there shall not be an old man in your house.
2:32And you shall see your enemy in the habitation of the Lord in all things with which God shall bless Israel, and there shall not be an old man in your house forever.
2:33Nevertheless, I will not destroy every one of your from my altar, to make your eyes to fail,and to make your nephesh sorrowful:and all the multitude of your house shall die when they be men.
2:34And this shall be a sign to you,that shall come upon your two sons Hophni and Phinehas:in one day they shall die both.
2:35And I will stir me up a faithful Priest,that shall do according to my heart and according to my nephesh:and I will build him a sure house,and he shall walk before my Anointed forever.
2:36And all that are left in your house, shall come and bow down to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread,and shall say, Appoint me, please, to one of the priests offices,that I may eat a morsel of bread.
Chapter 3
3:1Now the child Samuel ministered to YHWH before Eli:and the word of YHWH was precious in those days:for there was no manifest vision.
3:2And at that time, as Eli lay in his place, his eyes began to grow dim that he could not see.
3:3And yet the light of Elohim went out, Samuel slept in the temple of YHWH, where the Ark of Elohim was.
3:4Then YHWH called Samuel:and he said, Here I am.
3:5And he ran to Eli,and said, Here am I,for you called me. But he said, I called you not:go again and sleep. And he went and slept.
3:6And YHWH called once again, Samuel. And Samuel arose,and went to Eli,and said, I am here:for you did call me. And he answered, I called you not, my son:go again and sleep.
3:7Thus did Samuel, before he knew YHWH,and before the word of YHWH was revealed to him.
3:8And YHWH called Samuel again the third time:and he arose,and went to Eli,and said, I am here:for you have called me. Then Eli perceived that YHWH had called the child.
3:9Therefore Eli said to Samuel, Go and sleep:and if he calls you, then say, Speak YHWH,for your servant hears. So Samuel went,and slept in his place.
3:10And YHWH came,and stood,and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak,for your servant hears.
3:11Then YHWH said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, of which whoever shall hear, his two ears shall tingle.
3:12In that day I will raise up against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house:when I begin, I will also make an end.
3:13And I have told him that I will judge his house forever,for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons ran into a slander,and he stayed them not.
3:14Now therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house, shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering forever.
3:15Afterward Samuel slept until the morning,and opened the doors of the house of YHWH,and Samuel feared to show Eli the vision.
3:16Then Eli called Samuel,and said, Samuel my son. And he answered, Here I am.
3:17Then he said, What is it,that the Lord said to you? please, hide it not from me. Elohim do so to you,and more also, if you hide anything from me, of all that he said to you.
3:18So Samuel told him every whit,and hid nothing from him. Then he said, It is YHWH:let him do what seems him good.
3:19And Samuel grew,and YHWH was with him,and let none of his words fall to the ground.
3:20And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that faithful Samuel was YHWH's Prophet.
3:21And YHWH appeared again in Shiloh:for YHWH revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by his word.
Chapter 4
4:1And Samuel spoke to all Israel:and Israel went out against the Philistines to battle and pitched beside Ebenezer:and the Philistines pitched in Aphek.
4:2And the Philistines put themselves in array against Israel:and when they joined the battle, Israel was smitten down before the Philistines:who slew of the army in the field about four thousand men.
4:3So when the people were come into the camp, the Elders of Israel said, Why has YHWH smitten us this day before the Philistines? Let us bring the Ark of the covenant of YHWH out of Shiloh to us,that when it comes among us, it may save us out of the hand of our enemies.
4:4Then the people sent to Shiloh,and brought from there the Ark of the covenant of YHWH of hosts, who dwells between the Cherubim:and there were the two sons of Eli, Hophni,and Phinehas, with the Ark of the covenant of Elohim.
4:5And when the Ark of the covenant of YHWH came into the host, all Israel shouted a mighty shout, so that the earth rang again.
4:6And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What means the sound of this mighty shout in the host of the Hebrews? And they knewthat the Ark of YHWH was come into the host.
4:7And the Philistines were afraid,and said, Elohim is come into the host:therefore said they, Woe to us:for it has not been so heretofore.
4:8Woe to us, who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? These are the Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness.
4:9Be strong and play the men, O Philistines,that you be not servants to the Hebrews, as they have served you:be valiant therefore,and fight.
4:10And the Philistines fought,and Israel was smitten down,and fled every man into his tent:and there was an exceeding great slaughter:for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.
4:11And the Ark of Elohim was taken,and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas died.
4:12And there ran a man of Beniamin out of the army,and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent,and earth upon his head.
4:13And when he came, lo, Eli sat upon a seat by the wayside, waiting:for his heart feared for the Ark of Elohim and when the man came into the city to tell it, all the city cried out.
4:14And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What means this noise of the tumult? And the man came in hastily,and told Eli.
4:15(Now Eli was fourscore and eighteen year old,and his eyes were dim that he could not see)
4:16And the man said to Eli, I came from the army,and I fled this day out of the host:and he said, What thing is done, my son?
4:17Then the messenger answered and said, Israel is fled before the Philistines,and there has been also a great slaughter among the people:and moreover your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas are dead,and the Ark of Elohim is taken.
4:18And when he had made mention of the Ark of Elohim, Eli fell from his seat backward by the side of the gate,and his neck was broken,and he died:for he was an old man and heavy:and he had judged Israel forty years.
4:19And his daughter-in-law Phinehas' wife was with child near giving birth: and when she heard the report that the Ark of Elohim was taken, and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself, and gave birth: for her labor pains came upon her.
4:20And about the time of her death, the women that stood about her, said to her, Fear not:for you have born a son:but she answered not, nor regarded it.
4:21And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel, because the Ark of Elohim was taken,and because of her father-in-law and her husband.
4:22She said again, The glory is departed from Israel:for the Ark of Elohim is taken.
Chapter 5
5:1Then the Philistines took the Ark of Elohim and carried it from Ebenezer to Ashdod,
5:2Even the Philistines took the Ark of Elohim,and brought it into the house of Dagon,and set it by Dagon.
5:3And when they of Ashdod rose the next day in the morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face on the ground before the Ark of YHWH,and they took up Dagon,and set him in his place again.
5:4Also they rose up early in the morning the next day,and behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face on the ground before the Ark of YHWH,and the head of Dagon and the two palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold:only the stump of Dagon was left to him.
5:5Therefore the Priests of Dagon,and all that come into Dagon's house tread not on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod, to this day.
5:6But the hand of YHWH was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and destroyed them, and smote them with tumors, both Ashdod, and the coasts of it.
5:7And when the men of Ashdod saw this, they said, Let not the Ark of the Elohim of Israel abide with us:for his hand is sore upon us and upon Dagon our god.
5:8They sent therefore and gathered all the princes of the Philistines to them,and said, What shall we do with the Ark of the Elohim of Israel? And they answered, Let the Ark of the Elohim of Israel be carried about to Gath:and they carried the Ark of the Elohim of Israel about.
5:9And when they had carried it about, the hand of YHWH was against the city with a very great destruction,and he smote the men of the city both small and great,and they had tumors in their secret parts.
5:10Therefore they sent the Ark of Elohim to Ekron:and as soon as the Ark of Elohim came to Ekron, the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought the Ark of the Elohim of Israel to us to slay us and our people.
5:11Therefore they sent,and gathered together all the princes of the Philistines and said, Send away the Ark of the Elohim of Israel,and let it return to his own place,that it slay us not and our people:for there was a destruction and death throughout all the city,and the hand of Elohim was very sore there.
5:12And the men that died not, were smitten with tumors:and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
Chapter 6
6:1So the Ark of YHWH was in the country of the Philistines seven months.
6:2And the Philistines called the priests and the soothsayers, saying, What shall we do with the Ark of YHWH? Tell us with what we shall send it home again.
6:3And they said, If you send away the Ark of the Elohim of Israel, send it not away empty,but give to it a sin offering:then shall you be healed,and it shall be known to you, why his hand departs not from you.
6:4Then they said, What shall be the sin offering, which we shall give to it? And they answered, Five golden tumors and five golden mice, according to the number of the princes of the Philistines:for one plague was on you all,and on your princes.
6:5Therefore you shall make the images of your tumors,and the images of your mice that destroy the land:so you shall give glory to the Elohim of Israel,that he may take his hand from you,and from your gods,and from your land.
6:6Why then should you harden your hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? When he worked wonderfully among them, did they not let them go,and they departed?
6:7Now therefore make a new cart,and take two milk cows, on whom there has come no yoke:and tie the cows to the cart,and bring the calves home from them.
6:8Then take the Ark of YHWH, and set it upon the cart, and put the jewels of gold which you give it for a sin offering in a coffer by the side of it, and send it away, that it may go.
6:9And take heed, if it go up by the way of his own coast to Beth-shemesh, it is he that did us this great evil:but if not, we shall know then,that it is not his hand that smote us,but it was a chance that happened us.
6:10And the men did so:for they took two cows that gave milk,and tied them to the cart,and shut the calves at home.
6:11So they set the Ark of YHWH upon the cart,and the coffer with the golden mice,and with the images of their tumors.
6:12And the cows went the straight way to Beth-shemesh,and kept one path and lowed as they went,and turned neither to the right hand nor to the left:also the Princes of the Philistines went after them, to the borders of Beth-shemesh.
6:13Now they of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley,and they lifted up their eyes,and spied the Ark,and rejoiced when they saw it.
6:14And the cart came into the field of Joshua a Beth-shemite,and stood still there. There was also a great stone,and they split the wood of the cart,and offered the cows for a burnt offering to YHWH.
6:15And the Levites took down the Ark of YHWH, and the coffer that was with it, in which the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone, and the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt offering, and sacrificed sacrifices that same day to YHWH.
6:16And when the five Princes of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.
6:17So these are the golden tumors, which the Philistines gave for a sin offering to YHWH:for Ashdod one,for Gaza one,for Ashkelon one,for Gath one,and for Ekron one,
6:18And golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines, belonging to the five princes, both of walled towns, and of towns unwalled, to the great stone of Abel, on which they set the Ark of YHWH: which stone remains to this day in the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite.
6:19And he smote of the men of Beth-shemesh, because they had looked in the Ark of YHWH:he slew even among the people fifty thousand men and three score and ten men. And the people lamented, because YHWH had slain the people with so great a slaughter.
6:20Why the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy YHWH Elohim? And to whom shall he go from us?
6:21And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-Jearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the Ark of YHWH:come down and take it up to you.
Chapter 7
7:1Then the men of Kiriath-Jearim came,and took up the Ark of YHWH,and brought it into the house of Abinadab in the hill:and they sanctified Eleazar his son, to keep the Ark of YHWH.
7:2(For while the Ark abode in Kiriath-Jearim, the time was long,for it was twenty years) and all the house of Israel lamented after YHWH.
7:3Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, If you be come again to YHWH with all your heart, put away the strange gods from among you,and Ashtaroth,and direct your hearts to YHWH,and serve him only,and he shall deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.
7:4Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim and Ashtaroth,and served YHWH only.
7:5And Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpah,and I will pray for you to YHWH.
7:6And they gathered together to Mizpah,and drew water and poured it out before YHWH,and fasted the same day,and said there, We have sinned against YHWH. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpah.
7:7When the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpah, the princes of the Philistines went up against Israel:and when the children of Israel heard that, they were afraid of the Philistines.
7:8And the children of Israel said to Samuel, Cease not to cry to YHWH our Elohim for us,that he may save us out of the hand of the Philistines.
7:9Then Samuel took a suckling lamb,and offered it all together for a burnt offering to YHWH,and Samuel cried to YHWH for Israel,and YHWH heard him.
7:10And as Samuel offered the burnt offering, the Philistines came to fight against Israel:but YHWH thundered with a great thunder that day upon the Philistines,and scattered them:so they were slain before Israel.
7:11And the men of Israel went from Mizpah and pursued the Philistines,and smote them until they came under Beth-car.
7:12Then Samuel took a stone and pitched it between Mizpah and Shen, and called the name of it, Ebenezer, and he said, Thus far YHWH has helped us.
7:13So the Philistines were brought under,and they came no more again into the coasts of Israel:and the hand of YHWH was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.
7:14Also the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel, were restored to Israel, from Ekron even to Gath:and Israel delivered the coasts of the same out of the hands of the Philistines:and there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.
7:15And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life,
7:16And went about year by year to Bethel,and Gilgal,and Mizpah,and judged Israel in all those places.
7:17Afterward he returned to Ramah:for there was his house,and there he judged Israel:also he built an altar there to YHWH.
Chapter 8
8:1When Samuel was now become old, he made his sons Judges over Israel.
8:2(And the name of his eldest son was Joel,and the name of the second Abijah) even Judges in Beersheba.
8:3And his sons walked not in his ways,but turned aside after lucre,and took rewards,and perverted the judgment.
8:4Therefore all the Elders of Israel gathered them together,and came to Samuel to Ramah,
8:5And said to him, Behold, you are old,and your sons walk not in your ways:make us now a King to judge us like all nations.
8:6But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a King to judge us:and Samuel prayed to YHWH.
8:7And YHWH said to Samuel, Hear the voice of the people in all that they shall say to you:for they have not cast you away,but they have cast me away,that I should not reign over them.
8:8As they have ever done since I brought them out of Egypt even to this day, (and have forsaken me,and served other gods) even so do they to you.
8:9Now therefore listen to their voice:however yet testify to them,and show them the manner of the King that shall reign over them.
8:10So Samuel told all the words of YHWH to the people that asked a King of him.
8:11And he said, This shall be the manner of the King that shall reign over you:he will take your sons,and appoint them to his chariots,and to be his horsemen,and some shall run before his chariot.
8:12Also he will make them his captains over thousands,and captains over fifties,and to ear his ground,and to reap his harvest,and to make instruments of war,and the things that serve for his chariots.
8:13He will also take your daughters and make them apothecaries,and cooks,and bakers.
8:14And he will take your fields,and your vineyards,and your best Olive trees,and give them to his servants.
8:15And he will take the tenth of your seed,and of your vineyards,and give it to his Eunuchs,and to his servants.
8:16And he will take your men servants,and your maid servants,and the chief of your young men,and your donkeys,and put them to his work.
8:17He will take the tenth of your sheep,and you shall be his servants.
8:18And you shall cry out at that day, because of your King, whom you have chosen you,and YHWH will not hear you at that day.
8:19But the people would not hear the voice of Samuel,but did say, No,but there shall be a King over us.
8:20And we also will be like all other nations,and our King shall judge us,and go out before us,and fight our battles.
8:21Therefore when Samuel heard all the words of the people, he rehearsed them in the ears of YHWH.
8:22And YHWH said to Samuel, Listen to their voice,and make them a King. And Samuel said to the men of Israel, Go every man to his city.
Chapter 9
9:1There was now a man of Beniamin, mighty in power named Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a man of Jemini.
9:2And he had a son called Saul, a goodly young man and a fair:so that among the children of Israel there was none goodlier than he:from the shoulders upward he was higher than any of the people.
9:3And the donkeys of Kish Saul's father were lost:therefore Kish said to Saul his son, Take now one of the servants with you,and arise, go,and seek the donkeys.
9:4So he passed through mount Ephraim,and went through the land of Shalisha,but they found them not. Then they went through the land of Shaalim,and there they were not:he went also through the land of Jemini,but they found them not.
9:5When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant that was with him, Come and let us return,lest my father leave the care of donkeys,and take thought for us.
9:6And he said to him, Behold now, in this city is a man of Elohim,and he is an honorable man:all that he says comes to pass:let us now go there, if so be that he can show us what way we may go.
9:7Then said Saul to his servant, Well then, let us go:but what shall we bring to the man? For the bread is spent in our vessels,and there is no present to bring to the man of Elohim:what have we?
9:8And the servant answered Saul again,and said, Behold, I have found about me the fourth part of a shekel of silver:that will I give the man of Elohim, to tell us our way.
9:9(Beforetime in Israel when a man went to seek an answer of Elohim, thus he spoke, Come,and let us go to the Seer:for he that is called now a Prophet, was in the old time called a Seer)
9:10Then said Saul to his servant, Well said, come, let us go:so they went into the city where the man of Elohim was.
9:11And as they were going up the high way to the city, they found maids that came out to draw water,and said to them, Is there here a Seer?
9:12And they answered them,and said, Yes:lo, he is before you:make haste now,for he came this day to the city:for there is an offering of the people this day in the high place.
9:13When you shall come into the city, you shall find him before he goes up to the high place to eat:for the people will not eat until he come, because he will bless the sacrifice:and then eat they that are invited to the feast:now therefore go up:for even now shall you find him.
9:14Then they went up into the city,and when they were come into the midst of the city, Samuel came out against them, to go up to the high place.
9:15But YHWH had revealed to Samuel secretly (a day before Saul came) saying,
9:16Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man out of the land of Beniamin:him shall you anoint to be governor over my people Israel,that he may save my people out of the hands of the Philistines:for I have looked upon my people,and their cry is come to me.
9:17When Samuel therefore saw Saul, YHWH answered him, See, this is the man whom I spoke to you of, he shall rule my people.
9:18Then went Saul to Samuel in the midst of the gate, and said, Tell me, please, where the Seer's house is.
9:19And Samuel answered Saul,and said, 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 in your heart.
9:20And as for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, set not your heart on them: for they are found. And on whom is set all the desire of Israel? Is it not upon you and on all your fathers house?
9:21But Saul answered,and said, Am not I the son of Jemini of the smallest tribe of Israel? And my family is the least of all the families of the tribe of Beniamin. Why then speak you so to me?
9:22And Samuel took Saul and his servant,and brought them into the chamber,and made them sit in the chief place among those who were invited:which were about thirty persons.
9:23And Samuel said to the cook, Bring forth the portion which I gave you, and of what I said to you, Keep it with you.
9:24And the cook took up the shoulder,and that which was upon it,and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold,that which is left, set it before you and eat:for until now has it been kept for you, saying, Also I have called the people. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day.
9:25And when they were come down from the high place into the city, he communed with Saul upon the top of the house.
9:26And when they arose early about the spring of the day, Samuel called Saul to the top of the house, saying, Up,that I may send you away. And Saul arose,and they went out, both he,and Samuel.
9:27And when they were come down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Tell the servant to go before us, (and he went) but stand still now,that I may show you the word of Elohim.
Chapter 10
10:1Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it upon his head,and kissed him,and said, Has not YHWH anointed you to be governor over his inheritance?
10:2When you shall depart from me this day, you shall find two men by Rachel's sepulchre in the border of Beniamin, even at Zelzah,and they will say to you, The donkeys which you went to seek, are found:and lo, your father has left the care of the donkeys,and sorrows for you, saying, What shall I do for my son?
10:3Then shall you go forth from there and shall come to the plain of Tabor,and there shall meet you three men going up to Elohim to Bethel:one carrying three kids,and another carrying three loaves of bread,and another carrying a bottle of wine:
10:4And they will ask you if all be well,and will give you the two loaves of bread, which you shall receive of their hands.
10:5After that shall you come to the hill of Elohim, where is the garrison of the Philistines:and when you are come there to the city, you shall meet a company of Prophets coming down from the high place with a lyre,and a timbrel,and a pipe,and a harp before them,and they shall prophecy.
10:6Then the Spirit of YHWH will come upon you,and you shall prophecy with them,and shall be turned into another man.
10:7Therefore when these signs shall come to you, do as occasion shall serve:for Elohim is with you.
10:8And you shall go down before me to Gilgal:and I also will come down to you to offer burnt offerings,and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace. Wait for me seven days, till I come to you and show you what you shall do.
10:9And when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, Elohim gave him another heart:and all those tokens came to pass that same day.
10:10And when they came there to the hill, behold, the company of Prophets meet him,and the Spirit of Elohim came upon him,and he prophesied among them.
10:11Therefore all the people that knew him before, when they saw that he prophesied among the Prophets, said each to other, What is come to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the Prophets?
10:12And one of the same place answered,and said,But who is their father? Therefore it was a proverb, Is Saul also among the Prophets?
10:13And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the high place.
10:14And Saul's uncle said to him,and to his servant, Where went you? And he said, To seek the donkeys:and when we saw that they were nowhere, we came to Samuel.
10:15And Saul's uncle said, Tell me, please, what Samuel said to you.
10:16Then Saul said to his uncle, He told us plainly that the donkeys were found: but concerning the kingdom of which Samuel spoke, told he him not.
10:17And Samuel assembled the people to YHWH in Mizpah,
10:18And he said to the children of Israel, Thus saysYHWH Elohim of Israel, I have brought Israel out of Egypt,and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians,and out of the hands of all kingdoms that troubled you.
10:19But you have this day cast away your Elohim, who only delivers you out of all your adversities and tribulations:and you said to him, No,but appoint a King over us. Now therefore stand before YHWH according to your tribes,and according to your thousands.
10:20And when Samuel had gathered together all the tribes of Israel, the tribe of Beniamin was taken.
10:21Afterward he assembled the tribe of Beniamin according to their families,and the family of Matri was taken. So Saul the son of Kish was taken,and when they sought him, he could not be found.
10:22Therefore they asked YHWH again, if that man should yet come there. And YHWH answered, Behold, he has hid himself among the stuff.
10:23And they ran,and brought him from there:and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from the shoulders upward.
10:24And Samuel said to all the people, See you not him, whom YHWH has chosen,that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted and said, God save the King.
10:25Then Samuel told the people the duty of the kingdom,and wrote it in a book,and laid it up before YHWH,and Samuel sent all the people away every man to his house.
10:26Saul also went home to Gibeah,and there followed him a band of men, whose heart Elohim had touched,
10:27But the wicked men said, How shall he save us? So they despised him,and brought him no presents:but he held his tongue.
Chapter 11
11:1Then Nahash the Ammonite came up,and besieged Jabesh Gilead:and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, Make a covenant with us,and we will be your servants.
11:2And Nahash the Ammonite answered them, On this condition will I make a covenant with you,that I may thrust out all your right eyes,and bring that shame upon all Israel.
11:3To whom the Elders of Jabesh said, Give us seven days respet,that we may send messengers to all the coasts of Israel:and then if no man deliver us, we will come out to you.
11:4Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul,and told these tidings in the ears of the people:and all the people lifted up their voices and wept.
11:5And behold, Saul came following the cattle out of the field,and Saul said, What ails this people,that they weep? And they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh.
11:6Then the Spirit of Elohim came upon Saul, when he heard those tidings,and he was exceeding angry,
11:7And took a yoke of oxen,and hewed them in pieces,and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, Whoever comes not forth after Saul,and after Samuel, so shall his oxen be served. And the fear of YHWH fell on the people,and they came out with one consent.
11:8And when he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand men:and the men of Judah thirty thousand.
11:9Then they said to the messengers that came, So say to the men of Jabesh Gilead, Tomorrow by then the sun be hot, you shall have help. And the messengers came and showed it to the men of Jabesh, which were glad.
11:10Therefore the men of Jabesh said, Tomorrow we will come out to you,and you shall do with us all that pleases you.
11:11And when the morrow was come, Saul put the people in three bands,and they came in upon the host in the morning watch,and slew the Ammonites until the heat of the day:and they that remained, were scattered, so that two of them were not left together.
11:12Then the people said to Samuel, Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over us? Bring those men that we may slay them.
11:13But Saul said, There shall no man die this day:for today YHWH has saved Israel.
11:14Then said Samuel to the people, Come,that we may go to Gilgal,and renew the kingdom there.
11:15So all the people went to Gilgal,and made Saul King there before YHWH in Gilgal:and there they offered peace offerings before YHWH:and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced exceedingly.
Chapter 12
12:1Samuel then said to all Israel, Behold, I have listened to your voice in all that you said to me,and have appointed a King over you.
12:2Now therefore behold, your King walks before you,and I am old and gray headed,and behold, my sons are with you:and I have walked before you from my childhood to this day.
12:3Behold, here I am: bear record of me before YHWH and before his Anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I done wrong to? Or whom have I hurt? Or of whose hand have I received any bribe, to blind my eyes with it, and I will restore it you?
12:4Then they said, You have done us no wrong, nor have hurt us,neither have you taken anything from any man's hand.
12:5And he said to them, YHWH is witness against you,and his Anointed is witness this day,that you have found nothing in my hands. And they answered, He is witness.
12:6Then Samuel said to the people, It is YHWH that made Moses and Aaron,and that brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt.
12:7Now therefore stand still,that I may reason with you before YHWH according to all the righteousness of YHWH, who he showed to you and to your fathers.
12:8After that Jacob was come into Egypt,and your fathers cried to YHWH, then YHWH sent Moses and Aaron which brought your fathers out of Egypt,and made them dwell in this place.
12:9And when they forgot YHWH their Elohim, he sold them into the hand of Sisera captain of the host of Hazor,and into the hand of the Philistines,and into the hand of the king of Moab,and they fought against them.
12:10And they cried to YHWH,and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken YHWH,and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth. Now therefore deliver us out of the hands of our enemies,and we will serve you.
12:11Therefore YHWH sent Jerubbaal and Bedan and Jephthah,and Samuel,and delivered you out of the hands of your enemies on every side,and you dwelled safe.
12:12Notwithstanding when you saw,that Nahash the King of the children of Ammon came against you, you said to me, No,but a King shall reign over us:when yet YHWH your Elohim was your King.
12:13Now therefore behold the King whom you have chosen,and whom you have asked for:lo therefore, YHWH has set a King over you.
12:14If you will fear YHWH and serve him,and hear his voice,and not disobey the word of YHWH, both you,and the King that reigns over you, shall follow YHWH your Elohim.
12:15But if you will not obey the voice of YHWH,but disobey YHWH's mouth, then shall the hand of YHWH be upon you,and on your fathers.
12:16Now also stand and see this great thing which YHWH will do before your eyes.
12:17Is it not now wheat harvest? I will call to YHWH,and he shall send thunder and rain,that you may perceive and see, how that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of YHWH in asking you a King.
12:18Then Samuel called to YHWH,and YHWH sent thunder and rain the same day:and all the people feared YHWH and Samuel exceedingly.
12:19And all the people said to Samuel, Pray for your servants to YHWH your Elohim,that we die not:for we have sinned in asking us a King, beside all our other sins.
12:20And Samuel said to the people, Fear not. (you have indeed done all this wickedness, yet depart not from following YHWH,but serve YHWH with all your heart,
12:21Neither turn you back:for that should be after vain things which cannot profit you, nor deliver you,for they are but vanity)
12:22For YHWH will not forsake his people for his great Name's sake: because it has pleased YHWH to make you his people.
12:23Moreover God forbid,that I should sin against YHWH,and cease praying for you,but I will show you the good and right way.
12:24Therefore fear YHWH,and serve him in the truth with all your hearts,and consider how great things he has done for you.
12:25But if you do wickedly, you shall perish, both you,and your King.
Chapter 13
13:1Saul now had been King one year,and he reigned two years over Israel.
13:2Then Saul chose him three thousand of Israel:and two thousand were with Saul in Michmash,and in mount Bethel,and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Beniamin:and the rest of the people he sent every one to his tent.
13:3And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines,that was in the hill:and it came to the Philistines ears:and Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Hear, O you Hebrews.
13:4And all Israel heard say, Saul has destroyed a garrison of the Philistines:therefore Israel was had in abomination with the Philistines:and the people gathered together after Saul to Gilgal.
13:5The Philistines also gathered themselves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots,and six thousand horsemen:for the people was like the sand which is by the seas side in multitude,and came up,and pitched in Michmash Eastward from Beth-auen.
13:6And when the men of Israel saw that they were in danger (for the people were in distress) the people hid themselves in caves,and in holds,and in rocks,and in towers,and in pits.
13:7And some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead:and Saul was yet in Gilgal,and all the people for fear followed him.
13:8And he stayed seven days, according to the time that Samuel had appointed:but Samuel came not to Gilgal,therefore the people were scattered from him.
13:9And Saul said, Bring a burnt offering to me and peace offerings:and he offered a burnt offering.
13:10And as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came:and Saul went forth to meet him, to salute him.
13:11And Samuel said, What have you done? Then Saul said, Because I saw that the people was scattered from me,and that you came not within the days appointed,and that the Philistines gathered themselves together to Michmash,
13:12Therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal,and I have not made supplication to YHWH. I was bold therefore and offered a burnt offering.
13:13And Samuel said to Saul, You have done foolishly:you have not kept the commandment of YHWH your Elohim, who he commanded you:for YHWH had now established your kingdom upon Israel forever.
13:14But now your kingdom shall not continue:YHWH has sought him a man after his own heart,and YHWH has commanded him to be governor over his people, because you have not kept that which YHWH had commanded you.
13:15And Samuel arose,and got himself up from Gilgal in Gibeah of Beniamin:and Saul numbered the people that were found with him, about six hundred men.
13:16And Saul and Jonathan his son,and the people that were found with them, had their abiding in Gibeah of Beniamin:but the Philistines pitched in Michmash.
13:17And there came out of the host of the Philistines three bands to destroy, one band turned to the way of Ophrah to the land of Shual,
13:18And another bad turned toward the way to Beth-horon,and the third band turned toward the way of the coast that looks toward the valley of Zeboim, toward the wilderness.
13:19Then there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel:for the Philistines said,Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears.
13:20Therefore all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his share, his mattock,and his axe,and his weeding hook.
13:21Yet they had a file for the shares,and for the mattocks,and for the pick forks,and for the axes,and for to sharpen the goads.
13:22So when the day of battle was come, there was neither sword nor spear found in the hands of any of the people that were with Saul and with Jonathan:but only with Saul and Jonathan his son was there found.
13:23And the garrison of the Philistines came out to the passage of Michmash.
Chapter 14
14:1Then on a day Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man that bore his armor, Come and let us go over toward the Philistines garrison,that is over there on the other side,but he told not his father.
14:2And Saul stayed in the border of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree, which was in Migron,and the people that were with him, were about six hundred men.
14:3And Ahijah the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, was YHWH's Priest in Shiloh,and ware an Ephod:and the people knew not that Jonathan was gone.
14:4Now in the way by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistines garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side, and a sharp rock on the other side: the name of the one was called Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.
14:5The one rock stretched from the North toward Michmash,and the other was from the South toward Gibeah.
14:6And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armor, Come,and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised:it may be that YHWH will work with us:for it is not hard to YHWH to save with many, or with few.
14:7And he that bore his armor, said to him, Do all that is in your heart:go where it pleases you:behold, I am with you as your heart desires.
14:8Then said Jonathan, Behold, we go over to those men,and will show ourselves to them.
14:9If they say on this wise to us, Wait until we come to you, then we will stand still in our place,and not go up to them.
14:10But if they say, Come up to us, then we will go up:for YHWH has delivered them into our hand:and this shall be a sign to us.
14:11So they both showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, See, the Hebrews come out of the holes in which they had hid themselves.
14:12And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan,and his armor bearer,and said, Come up to us:for we will show you a thing. Then Jonathan said to his armor bearer, Come up after me:for YHWH has delivered them into the hand of Israel.
14:13So Jonathan went up upon his hands and upon his feet,and his armor bearer after him:and some fell before Jonathan,and his armor bearer slew others after him.
14:14So the first slaughter which Jonathan and his armor bearer made, was about twenty men, as it were within half an acre of land which two oxen plow.
14:15And there was a fear in the host,and in the field,and among all the people:the garrison also,and they that went out to spoil, were afraid themselves:and the earth trembled:for it was stricken with fear by Elohim.
14:16Then the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Beniamin saw:and behold, the multitude was discomfited,and smitten as they went.
14:17Therefore said Saul to the people that were with him, Search now and see, who is gone from us. And when they had numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.
14:18And Saul said to Ahijah, Bring here the Ark of Elohim (for the Ark of Elohim was at that time with the children of Israel)
14:19And while Saul talked to the Priest, the noise that was in the host of the Philistines, spread farther abroad,and increased:therefore Saul said to the Priest, Withdraw your hand.
14:20And Saul was assembled with all the people that were with him,and they came to the battle:and behold, every man's sword was against his fellow,and there was a very great discomfiture.
14:21Moreover, the Hebrews that were with the Philistines beforetime,and were come with them into all parts of the host, even they also turned to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan.
14:22Also all the men of Israel which had hid themselves in mount Ephraim, when they heard,that the Philistines were fled, they followed after them in the battle.
14:23And so YHWH saved Israel that day:and the battle continued to Beth-auen.
14:24And at that time the men of Israel were pressed with hunger:for Saul charged the people with an oath, saying, Cursed be the man that eats food till night,that I may be avenged of my enemies:so none of the people tasted any sustenance.
14:25And all they of the land came to a wood, where honey lay upon the ground.
14:26And the people came into the wood,and behold, the honey dropped,and no man moved his hand to his mouth:for the people feared the oath.
14:27But Jonathan heard not when his father charged the people with the oath: therefore he put forth the end of the rod that was in his hand, and dipped it in a honey combe, and put his hand to his mouth, and his eyes were lightened.
14:28Then answered one of the people,and said, Your father made the people to swear, saying, Cursed be the man that eats sustenance this day:and the people were faint.
14:29Then said Jonathan, My father has troubled the land: see now how my eyes are lightened, because I have tasted a little of this honey:
14:30How much more, if the people had eaten today of the spoil of their enemies which they found? For had there not been now a greater slaughter among the Philistines?
14:31And they smote the Philistines that day, from Michmash to Aijalon:and the people were exceeding faint.
14:32So the people turned to the spoil,and took sheep,and oxen,and calves,and slew them on the ground,and the people did eat them with the blood.
14:33Then men told Saul, saying, Behold, the people sin against YHWH, in that they eat with the blood. And he said, You have trespassed:roll a great stone to me this day.
14:34Again Saul said, Go abroad among the people,and command them to bring me every man his ox,and every man his sheep,and slay them here,and eat and do not sin against YHWH in eating with the blood. And the people brought every man his ox in his hand that night,and slew them there.
14:35Then Saul made an altar to YHWH,and that was the first altar that he made to YHWH.
14:36And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night,and spoil them until the morning shine,and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatever you think best. Then said the Priest, Let us draw near here to Elohim.
14:37So Saul asked of Elohim, saying, Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will you deliver them into the hands of Israel? But he answered him not at that time.
14:38And Saul said, All the chief of the people, come you here,and know,and see by whom this sin is done this day.
14:39For as YHWH lives, which saves Israel, though it be done by Jonathan my son, he shall die the death. But none of all the people answered him.
14:40Then he said to all Israel, Be you on one side,and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. And the people said to Saul, Do what you think best.
14:41Then Saul said to YHWH Elohim of Israel, Give a perfect lot. And Jonathan and Saul were taken,but the people escaped.
14:42And Saul said, Cast lot between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken.
14:43Then Saul said to Jonathan, Tell me what you have done. And Jonathan told him,and said, I tasted a little honey with the end of the rod,that was in my hand,and lo, I must die.
14:44Again Saul answered, Elohim do so and more also, unless you die the death, Jonathan.
14:45And the people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who has so mightily delivered Israel? Elohim forbid. As YHWH lives, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground:for he has worked with God this day. So the people delivered Jonathan that he died not.
14:46Then Saul came up from the Philistines:and the Philistines went to their own place.
14:47So Saul held the kingdom over Israel,and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab,and against the children of Ammon,and against Edom,and against the Kings of Zobah,and against the Philistines:and wherever he went, he handled them as wicked men.
14:48He gathered also a host and smote Amalek,and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that spoiled them.
14:49Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan,and Jishui,and Malchishua:and the names of his two daughters, the elder was called Merab,and the younger was named Michal.
14:50And the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz:and the name of his chief captain was Abner the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.
14:51And Kish was Saul's father:and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.
14:52And there was sore war against the Philistines all the days of Saul:and whomever Saul saw to be a strong man,and meet for the war, he took him to him.
Chapter 15
15:1Afterward Samuel said to Saul, YHWH sent me to anoint you King over his people, over Israel:now therefore obey the voice of the words of YHWH.
15:2Thus saysYHWH of hosts, I remember what Amalek did to Israel, how they laid wait for them in the way, as they came up from Egypt.
15:3Now therefore go,and smite Amalek,and destroy all that pertains to them,and have no compassion on them,but slay both man and woman, both infant and suckling, both ox,and sheep, both camel,and donkey.
15:4And Saul assembled the people,and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen,and ten thousand men of Judah.
15:5And Saul came to a city of Amalek,and set watch at the river.
15:6And Saul said to the Kenites, Go, depart,and go down from among the Amalekites,lest I destroy you with them:for you showed chesed to all the children of Israel, when they came up from Egypt:and the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.
15:7So Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah as you come to Shur,that is before Egypt,
15:8And took Agag the King of the Amalekites alive,and destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.
15:9But Saul and the people spared Agag,and the better sheep,and the oxen,and the fat beasts,and the lambs,and all that was good,and they would not destroy them:but everything that was despised and worthless,that they destroyed.
15:10Then came the word of YHWH to Samuel, saying,
15:11It repents me that I have made Saul King:for he is turned from me,and has not performed my commandments. And Samuel was moved,and cried to YHWH all night.
15:12And when Samuel arose early to meet Saul in the morning, one told Samuel, saying, Saul is gone to Carmel:and behold, he has made him there a place, from where he returned,and departed,and is gone down to Gilgal.
15:13Then Samuel came to Saul,and Saul said to him. Blessed be you of YHWH, I have fulfilled the commandment of YHWH.
15:14But Samuel said, What means then the bleating of the sheep in my ears,and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?
15:15And Saul answered, They have brought them from the Amalekites:for the people spared the best of the sheep,and of the oxen to sacrifice them to YHWH your Elohim,and the remnant have we destroyed.
15:16Again Samuel said to Saul, Let me tell you what YHWH has said to me this night. And he said to him, Say on.
15:17Then Samuel said, When you were little in your own sight, were you not made the head of the tribes of Israel? For YHWH anointed you King over Israel.
15:18And YHWH sent you on a journey,and said, Go,and destroy those sinners the Amalekites,and fight against them, until you destroy them.
15:19Now why have you not obeyed the voice of YHWH,but have turned to the prey,and have done wickedly in the sight of YHWH?
15:20And Saul said to Samuel, Yes, I have obeyed the voice of YHWH,and have gone the way which YHWH sent me,and have brought Agag the King of Amalek,and have destroyed the Amalekites.
15:21But the people took of the spoil, sheep,and oxen,and the chief of the things which should have been destroyed, to offer to YHWH your Elohim in Gilgal.
15:22And Samuel said, Has YHWH as great pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as when the voice of YHWH is obeyed? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,and to listen is better than the fat of rams.
15:23For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,and transgression is wickedness and idolatry. Because you have cast away the word of YHWH,therefore he has cast away you from being King.
15:24Then Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned:for I have transgressed the commandment of YHWH,and your words, because I feared the people,and obeyed their voice.
15:25Now therefore please, take away my sin,and turn again with me,that I may worship YHWH.
15:26But Samuel said to Saul, I will not return with you:for you have cast away the word of YHWH,and YHWH has cast away you,that you shall not be King over Israel.
15:27And as Samuel turned himself to go away, he caught the lap of his coat,and it rent.
15:28Then Samuel said to him, YHWH has rent the kingdom of Israel from you this day,and has given it to your neighbor,that is better than you.
15:29For indeed the strength of Israel will not lie nor repent:for he is not a man that he should repent.
15:30Then he said, I have sinned:but honor me, please, before the Elders of my people,and before Israel,and turn again with me,that I may worship YHWH your Elohim.
15:31So Samuel turned again,and followed Saul:and Saul worshiped YHWH.
15:32Then said Samuel, Bring you here to me Agag the King of the Amalekites:and Agag came to him pleasantly,and Agag said, Truly the bitterness of death is passed.
15:33And Samuel said, As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among other women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before YHWH in Gilgal.
15:34So Samuel departed to Ramah,and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul.
15:35And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death:but Samuel mourned for Saul,and YHWH repented that he made Saul King over Israel.
Chapter 16
16:1YHWH then said to Samuel, How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have cast him away from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and come, I will send you to Ishai the Bethlehemite:for I have provided me a King among his sons.
16:2And Samuel said, How can I go? For if Saul shall hear it, he will kill me. Then YHWH answered, Take a heifer with you,and say, I am come to do sacrifice to YHWH.
16:3And call Ishai to the sacrifice,and I will show you what you shall do,and you shall anoint to me him whom I name to you.
16:4So Samuel did that YHWH commanded him,and came to Bethlehem,and the Elders of the town were astonished at his coming,and said, Do you come peaceably?
16:5And he answered, Yes:I am come to do sacrifice to YHWH:sanctify yourselves,and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Ishai and his sons,and called them to the sacrifice.
16:6And when they were come, he looked on Eliab,and said, Surely YHWH's Anointed is before him.
16:7But YHWH said to Samuel, Look not on his countenance, nor on the height of his stature, because I have refused him:for God sees not as man sees:for man looks on the outward appearance,but YHWH beholds the heart.
16:8Then Ishai called Abinadab,and made him come before Samuel. And he said,Neither has YHWH chosen this.
16:9Then Ishai made Shammah come. And he said,Neither yet has YHWH chosen him.
16:10Again Ishai made his seven sons to come before Samuel:and Samuel said to Ishai, YHWH has chosen none of these.
16:11Finally, Samuel said to Ishai, Are there no more children but these? And he said, There remains yet a little one behind,that keeps the sheep. Then Samuel said to Ishai, Send and set him:for we will not sit down, till he be come here.
16:12And he sent,and brought him in:and he was ruddy,and of a good countenance,and comely visage. And YHWH said, Arise,and anoint him:for this is he.
16:13Then Samuel took the horn of oil,and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the Spirit of YHWH came upon David, from that day forward:then Samuel rose up,and went to Ramah.
16:14But the Spirit of YHWH departed from Saul,and an evil spirit from YHWH vexed him.
16:15And Saul's servants said to him, Behold now, the evil spirit of Elohim vexes you.
16:16Let our Lord therefore command your servants,that are before you, to seek a man that is a cunning player upon the harp:that when the evil spirit of Elohim comes upon you, he may play with his hand,and you may be eased.
16:17Saul then said to his servants, Provide me a man, please,that can play well,and bring him to me.
16:18Then answered one of his servants,and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Ishai, a Bethlehemite,that can play,and is strong, valiant and a man of war and wise in matters,and a comely person,and YHWH is with him.
16:19Therefore Saul sent messengers to Ishai,and said, Send me David your son who is with the sheep.
16:20And Ishai took a donkey laden with bread and a skin of wine and a kid,and sent them by the hand of David his son to Saul.
16:21And David came to Saul,and stood before him:and he loved him very well,and he was his armor bearer.
16:22And Saul sent to Ishai, saying, Let David now remain with me:for he has found favor in my sight.
16:23And so when the spirit of Elohim came to Saul, David took a harp and played with his hand,and Saul was refreshed,and was eased:for the evil spirit departed from him.
Chapter 17
17:1Now the Philistines gathered their armies to battle,and came together to Sochoh, which is in Judah,and pitched between Sochoh and Azekah, in the coast of Dammim.
17:2And Saul,and the men of Israel assembled,and pitched in the valley of Elah,and put themselves in battle array to meet the Philistines.
17:3And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side,and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side:so a valley was between them.
17:4Then came a man between them both out of the tents of the Philistines, named Goliath of Gath:his height was six cubits and a hand breadth,
17:5And had a helmet of brass upon his head,and a coat of mail upon him:and the weight of his coat of mail was five thousand shekels of brass.
17:6And he had boots of brass upon his legs,and a shield of brass upon his shoulders.
17:7And the shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam:and his spear head weighed six hundred shekels of iron:and one bearing a shield went before him.
17:8And he stood,and cried against the host of Israel,and said to them, Why are you come to set your battle in array? Am not I a Philistine,and you servants to Saul? Choose you a man for you,and let him come down to me.
17:9If he be able to fight with me,and kill me, then will we be your servants:but if I overcome him,and kill him, then shall you be our servants,and serve us.
17:10Also the Philistine said, I defy the host of Israel this day:give me a man,that we may fight together.
17:11When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were discouraged,and greatly afraid.
17:12Now this David was the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah, named Ishai, which had eight sons:and this man was taken for an old man in the days of Saul.
17:13And the three eldest sons of Ishai went and followed Saul to the battle:and the names of his three sons that went to battle, were Eliab the Eldest,and the next Abinadab,and the third Shammah.
17:14So David was the least:and the three eldest went after Saul.
17:15David also went,but he returned from Saul to feed his fathers sheep in Bethlehem.
17:16And the Philistine drew near in the morning,and evening,and continued forty days.
17:17And Ishai said to David his son, Take now for your brethren an Ephah of this parched grain,and these ten cakes,and run to the host to your brethren.
17:18Also carry these ten fresh cheeses to the captain,and look how your brethren fare,and receive their pledge.
17:19(Then Saul and they,and all the men of Israel were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines)
17:20So David rose up early in the morning,and left the sheep with a keeper,and took and went as Ishai had commanded him,and came within the compass of the host:and the host went out in array,and shouted in the battle.
17:21For Israel and the Philistines had put themselves in array, army against army.
17:22And David left the things, which he bore, in the hands of the keeper of the baggage,and ran into the host,and came,and asked his brethren how they did.
17:23And as he talked with them, behold, the man that was between the two armies, came up, (whose name was Goliath the Philistine of Gath) out of the army of the Philistines,and spoke such words,and David heard them.
17:24And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, ran away from him,and were sore afraid.
17:25For every man of Israel said, Saw you not this man that comes up? Even to revile Israel is he come up:and to him that kills him, will the king give great riches,and will give him his daughter, yes,and make his fathers house free in Israel.
17:26Then David spoke to the men that stood with him,and said, What shall be done to the man that kills this Philistine,and takes away the shame from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine,that he should revile the host of the living Elohim?
17:27And the people answered him after this manner, saying, Thus shall it be done to the man that kills him.
17:28And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men,and Eliab was very angry with David,and said, Why came you down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the malice of your heart,that you are come down to see the battle.
17:29Then David said, What have I now done? Is there not a cause?
17:30And he departed from him into the presence of another,and spoke of the same manner,and the people answered him according to the former words.
17:31And they that heard the words which David spoke, rehearsed them before Saul, which caused him to be brought.
17:32So David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail him, because of him:your servant will go,and fight with this Philistine.
17:33And Saul said to David, You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him:for you are a boy,and he is a man of war from his youth.
17:34And David answered to Saul, Your servant kept his fathers sheep,and there came a lion,and likewise a bear,and took a sheep out of the flock,
17:35And I went out after him and smote him,and took it out of his mouth:and when he arose against me, I caught him by the beard,and smote him,and slew him.
17:36So your servant slew both the lion,and the bear:therefore this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he has railed on the host of the living Elohim.
17:37Moreover David said, YHWH that delivered me out of the paw of the lion,and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. Then Saul said to David, Go,and YHWH be with you.
17:38And Saul put his clothing upon David,and put a helmet of brass upon his head,and put a coat of mail upon him.
17:39Then girded David his sword upon his clothing,and began to go:for he never proved it:and David said to Saul, I cannot go with these:for I am not accustomed. Therefore David put them off him.
17:40Then took he his staff in his hand,and chose him five smooth stones out of a brook,and put them in his shepherd's bag, even his pouch,and his sling was in his hand,and he drew near to the Philistine.
17:41And the Philistine came and drew near to David,and the man that bore the shield went before him.
17:42Now when the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained him:for he was but young, ruddy,and of a comely face.
17:43And the Philistine said to David, Am I a dog,that you come to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
17:44And the Philistine said to David, Come to me,and I will give your flesh to the birds of the heavens,and to the beasts of the field.
17:45Then said David to the Philistine, You come to me with a sword,and with a spear,and with a shield,but I come to you in the Name of YHWH of hosts, the Elohim of the host of Israel, whom you have railed upon.
17:46This day shall YHWH close you in my hand,and I shall smite you,and take your head from you,and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the heavens,and to the beasts of the earth,that all the world may know that Israel has a Elohim,
17:47And that all this assembly may know,that YHWH saves not with sword nor with spear (for the battle is YHWH's) and he will give you into our hands.
17:48And when the Philistine arose to come and draw near to David, David hurried and ran to fight against the Philistine.
17:49And David put his hand in his bag,and took out a stone,and slang it,and smote the Philistine on his forehead,that the stone stuck on his forehead,and he fell groveling to the earth.
17:50So David overcame the Philistine with a sling and with a stone,and smote the Philistine,and slew him, when David had no sword in his hand.
17:51Then David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword and drew it out of his sheath, and slew him, and cut off his head with it. So when the Philistines saw, that their champion was dead, they fled.
17:52And the men of Israel and Judah arose,and shouted,and followed after the Philistines, until they came to the valley,and to the gates of Ekron:and the Philistines fell down wounded by the way of Shaaraim, even to Gath and to Ekron.
17:53And the children of Israel returned from pursuing the Philistines,and spoiled their tents.
17:54And David took the head of the Philistine,and brought it to Jerusalem,and put his armor in his tent.
17:55When Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said to Abner the captain of his host, Abner, whose son is this young man? And Abner answered, As your nephesh lives, O King, I do not know.
17:56Then the King said, Inquire you whose son this young man is.
17:57And when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, then Abner took him,and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.
17:58And Saul said to him, Whose son are you, you young man? And David answered, I am the son of your servant Ishai the Bethlehemite.
Chapter 18
18:1And when he had made an end of speaking to Saul, the nephesh of Jonathan was knit with the nephesh of David,and Jonathan loved him, as his own nephesh.
18:2And Saul took him that day,and would not let him return to his fathers house.
18:3Then Jonathan and David made a covenant:for he loved him as his own nephesh.
18:4And Jonathan put off the robe that was upon him,and gave it David,and his garments, even to his sword,and to his bow,and to his belt.
18:5And David went out wherever Saul sent him,and behaved himself wisely:so that Saul set him over the men of war,and he was accepted in the sight of all the people,and also in the sight of Saul's servants.
18:6When they came again,and David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, the women came out of all cities of Israel singing and dancing to meet king Saul, with timbrels, with instruments of joy,and with rebeckes.
18:7And the women sang by course in their play,and said, Saul has slain his thousand,and David his ten thousand.
18:8Therefore Saul was exceedingly angry,and the saying displeased him,and he said, They have ascribed to David ten thousand,and to me they have ascribed but a thousand,and what can he have more save the kingdom?
18:9Therefore Saul had an eye on David from that day forward.
18:10And on the morrow, the evil spirit of Elohim came upon Saul,and he prophesied in the midst of the house:and David played with his hand like as at other times,and there was a spear in Saul's hand.
18:11And Saul took the spear,and said, I will smite David through to the wall. But David avoided twice out of his presence.
18:12And Saul was afraid of David, because YHWH was with him,and was departed from Saul.
18:13Therefore Saul put him from him,and made him a captain over a thousand,and he went out and in before the people.
18:14And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways:for YHWH was with him.
18:15Therefore when Saul saw that he was very wise, he was afraid of him.
18:16For all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and in before them.
18:17Then Saul said to David, Behold my eldest daughter Merab, her I will give you to wife:only be a valiant son to me,and fight YHWH's battles:for Saul thought, My hand shall not be upon him,but the hand of the Philistines shall be upon him.
18:18And David answered Saul, What am I? And what is my life, or the family of my father in Israel,that I should be son-in-law to the King?
18:19However when Merab Saul's daughter should have been given to David, she was given to Adriel a Meholathite to wife.
18:20Then Michal Saul's daughter loved David:and they showed Saul,and the thing pleased him.
18:21Therefore Saul said, I will give him her,that she may be a snare to him,and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Therefore Saul said to David, You shall this day be my son-in-law in one of the two.
18:22And Saul commanded his servants, Speak with David secretly, and say, Behold, the King has a favor to you, and all his servants love you: be now therefore the King's son-in-law.
18:23And Saul's servants spoke these words in the ears of David. And David said, Does it seem to you a light thing to be a King's son-in-law, seeing that I am a poor man and of small reputation?
18:24And then Saul's servants brought him word again, saying, Such words spoke David.
18:25And Saul said, This wise shall you say to David, The King desires no dowry,but a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the Kings enemies:for Saul thought to make David fall into the hands of the Philistines.
18:26And when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well, to be the King's son-in-law:and the days were not expired.
18:27Afterward David arose with his men, and went and slew of the Philistines two hundred men: and David brought their foreskins, and they gave them wholly to the King that he might be the King's son-in-law: therefore Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife.
18:28Then Saul saw,and understood that YHWH was with David,and that Michal the daughter of Saul loved him.
18:29Then Saul was more and more afraid of David,and Saul became always David's enemy.
18:30And when the Princes of the Philistines went forth, at their going forth David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so that his name was much set by.
Chapter 19
19:1Then Saul spoke to Jonathan his son,and to all his servants,that they should kill David:but Jonathan Saul's son had a great favor to David.
19:2And Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father goes about to slay you:now therefore, please, take heed to yourself to the morning,and abide in a secret place,and hide yourself.
19:3And I will go out,and stand by my father in the field where you are,and will commune with my father of you,and I will see what he says,and will tell you.
19:4And Jonathan spoke good of David to Saul his father,and said to him, Let not the King sin against his servant, against David:for he has not sinned against you,but his works have been to you very good.
19:5For he did put his nephesh in danger,and slew the Philistine,and YHWH worked a great salvation for all Israel:you saw it,and you rejoiced:why then will you sin against innocent blood,and slay David without a cause?
19:6Then Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan,and Saul swore, As YHWH lives, he shall not die.
19:7So Jonathan called David,and Jonathan showed him all those words,and Jonathan brought David to Saul,and he was in his presence as in times past.
19:8Again the war began,and David went out and fought with the Philistines,and slew them with a great slaughter,and they fled from him.
19:9And the evil spirit of YHWH was upon Saul, as he sat in his house having his spear in his hand,and David played with his hand.
19:10And Saul intended to smite David to the wall with the spear:but he turned aside out of Saul's presence,and he smote the spear against the wall:but David fled,and escaped the same night.
19:11Saul also sent messengers to David's house, to watch him,and to slay him in the morning:and Michal David's wife told it him, saying, If you save not your nephesh this night, Tomorrow you shall be slain.
19:12So Michal let David down through a window:and he went,and fled,and escaped.
19:13Then Michal took an image,and laid it in the bed,and put a pillow stuffed with goats hair under the head of it,and covered it with a cloth.
19:14And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, He is sick.
19:15And Saul sent the messengers again to see David, saying, Bring him to me in the bed,that I may slay him.
19:16And when the messengers were come in, behold, an image was in the bed, with a pillow of goats hair under the head of it.
19:17And Saul said to Michal, Why have you mocked me so,and sent away my enemy,that he is escaped? And Michal answered Saul, He said to me, Let me go, or else I will kill you.
19:18So David fled,and escaped,and came to Samuel to Ramah,and told him all that Saul had done to him:and he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth.
19:19But one told Saul, saying, Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.
19:20And Saul sent messengers to take David:and when they saw a company of Prophets prophesying,and Samuel standing as appointed over them, the Spirit of Elohim fell upon the messengers of Saul,and they also prophesied.
19:21And when it was told Saul, he sent other messengers,and they prophesied likewise:again Saul sent the third messengers,and they prophesied also.
19:22Then went he himself to Ramah,and came to a great well that is in Sechu,and he asked,and said, Where are Samuel and David? And one said, Behold, they be at Naioth in Ramah.
19:23And he went there, even to Naioth in Ramah,and the Spirit of Elohim came upon him also,and he went prophesying until he came to Naioth in Ramah.
19:24And he stript off his clothes,and he prophesied also before Samuel,and fell down naked all that day and all that night:therefore they say, Is Saul also among the Prophets?
Chapter 20
20:1And David fled from Naioth in Ramah,and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? What is my iniquity? And what sin have I committed before your father,that he seeks my nephesh?
20:2And he said to him, God forbid, you shall not die:behold, my father will do nothing great nor small,but he will show it me:and why should my father hide this thing from me? He will not do it.
20:3And David swore again and said, Your father knows that I have found favor in your eyes:therefore he thinks, Jonathan shall not know it,lest he be sorry:but indeed, as YHWH lives,and as your nephesh lives, there is but a step between me and death.
20:4Then said Jonathan to David, Whatever your nephesh requires,that I will do to you.
20:5And David said to Jonathan, Behold, Tomorrow is the first day of the month,and I should sit with the King at meat:but let me go,that I may hide myself in the fields to the third day at even.
20:6If your father make mention of me, then say, David asked leave of me,that he might go to Bethlehem to his own city:for there is a yearly sacrifice for all that family.
20:7And if he say thus, It is well, your servant shall have peace:but if he be angry, be sure that wickedness is concluded of him.
20:8So shall you show chesed to your servant:for you have joined your servant into a covenant of YHWH with you,and if there be in me iniquity, slay you me:for why should you bring me to your father?
20:9And Jonathan answered, God keep that from you:for if I knew that wickedness were concluded of my father to come upon you, would not I tell it to you?
20:10Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me? How shall I know, if your father answer you cruelly?
20:11And Jonathan said to David, Come and let us go out into the field:and both of them went out into the field.
20:12Then Jonathan said to David, O YHWH Elohim of Israel, when I have groped my fathers mind tomorrow at this time, or within this three days,and if it be well with David,and I then send not to you,and show it you,
20:13YHWH do so and much more to Jonathan:but if my father have mind to do evil to you, I will show you also,and send you away,that you may go in peace:and YHWH be with you as he has been with my father.
20:14Likewise I require not while I live:for I doubt not but you will show me the chesed of YHWH,that I die not.
20:15But I require that you cut not off your chesed from my house forever:no, not when YHWH has destroyed the enemies of David, every one from the earth.
20:16So Jonathan made a bond with the house of David, saying, Let YHWH require it at the hands of David's enemies.
20:17And again Jonathan swore to David, because he loved him (for he loved him as his own nephesh)
20:18Then said Jonathan to him, Tomorrow is the first day of the month:and you shall be looked for,for your place shall be empty.
20:19Therefore you shall hide yourself three days, then you shall go down quickly and come to the place where you did hide yourself, when this matter was in hand,and shall remain by the stone Ezel.
20:20And I will shoot three arrows on the side of it, as though I shot at a mark.
20:21And after I will send a boy, saying, Go, seek the arrows. If I say to the boy, See, the arrows are on this side you, bring them,and come you:for it is well with you and no hurt, as YHWH lives.
20:22But if I say thus to the boy, Behold, the arrows are beyond you, go your way:for YHWH has sent you away.
20:23As touching the thing which you and I have spoken of, behold, YHWH be between you and me forever.
20:24So David hid himself in the field:and when the first day of the month came, the King sat to eat meat.
20:25And the King sat, as at other times upon his seat, even upon his seat by the wall:and Jonathan arose,and Abner sat by Saul's side,but David's place was empty.
20:26And Saul said nothing that day:for he thought, Something has happened to him, though he were clean, or else because he was not purified.
20:27But on the morrow which was the second day of the month, David's place was empty again:and Saul said to Jonathan his son, Why comes not the son of Ishai to meat,neither yesterday nor today?
20:28And Jonathan answered to Saul, David asked leave of me,that he might go to Bethlehem.
20:29For he said, Let me go, please: for our family offers a sacrifice in the city, and my brother has commanded me: therefore now if I have found favor in your eyes, let me go, please, and see my brethren: this is the cause that he comes not to the Kings table.
20:30Then was Saul angry with Jonathan,and said to him, The son of the wicked rebellious woman, do not I know,that you have chosen the son of Ishai to your confusion,and to the confusion and shame of your mother?
20:31For as long as the son of Ishai lives upon the earth, you shall not be established, nor your kingdom:therefore now send and fetch him to me,for he shall surely die.
20:32And Jonathan answered to Saul his father,and said to him, Why shall he die? What has he done?
20:33And Saul cast a spear at him to hit him, by what Jonathan knew, that it was determined of his father to slay David.
20:34So Jonathan arose from the table in a great anger,and did eat no meat the second day of the month:for he was sorry for David,and because his father had reviled him.
20:35On the next morning therefore Jonathan then went out into the field, at the time appointed with David,and a little boy with him.
20:36And he said to his boy, Run now, seek the arrows which I shoot,and as the boy ran, he shot an arrow beyond him.
20:37And when the boy was come to the place where the arrow was that Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the boy,and said, Is not the arrow beyond you?
20:38And Jonathan cried after the boy, Make speed, haste and do not stand still:and Jonathan's boy gathered up the arrows,and came to his master,
20:39But the boy knew nothing:only Jonathan and David knew the matter.
20:40Then Jonathan gave his bow and arrows to the boy that was with him,and said to him, Go, carry them into the city.
20:41As soon as the boy was gone, David arose out of a place that was toward the South,and fell on his face to the ground,and bowed himself three times:and they kissed one another,and wept both of them, till David exceeded.
20:42Therefore Jonathan said to David, Go in peace: that which we have sworn both of us in the Name of YHWH, saying, YHWH be between me and you, and between my seed and between your seed, let it stand forever.
Chapter 21
21:1And he arose and departed, and Jonathan went into the city.
21:2Then came David to Nob, to Ahimelech the Priest,and Ahimelech was astonished at the meeting of David,and said to him, Why are you alone,and no man with you?
21:3And David said to Ahimelech the Priest, The King has commanded me a certain thing,and has said to me, Let no man know whereabout I send you,and what I have commanded you:and I have appointed my servants to such and such places.
21:4Now therefore if you have anything under your hand, give me five cakes of bread, or what comes to hand.
21:5And the Priest answered David,and said, There is no common bread under my hand,but here is hallowed bread, if the young men have kept themselves, at least from women.
21:6David then answered the Priest,and said to him, Certainly women have been separate from us these two or three days since I came out:and the vessels of the young men were holy, though the way were profane,and how much more then shall every one be sanctified this day in the vessel?
21:7So the Priest gave him hallowed bread: for there was no bread there, save the showbread that was taken from before YHWH, to put hot bread there, the day that it was taken away.
21:8(And there was the same day one of the servants of Saul abiding before YHWH, named Doeg the Edomite, the chief of Saul's herdsmen)
21:9And David said to Ahimelech, Is there not here under your hand a spear or a sword? For I have neither brought my sword nor my harness with me, because the Kings business required haste.
21:10And the Priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you slew in the valley of Elah, behold, it is wrapped in a cloth behind the Ephod:if you will take that for yourself, take it:for there is none other save that here:And David said, There is none to that, give it to me.
21:11And David arose and fled the same day from the presence of Saul,and went to Achish the King of Gath.
21:12And the servants of Achish said to him, Is not this David the King of the land? Did they not sing to him in dances, saying, Saul has slain his thousand,and David his ten thousand?
21:13And David considered these words,and was sore afraid of Achish the King of Gath.
21:14And he changed his behavior before them,and feigned himself mad in their hands,and scrabbled on the doors of the gate,and let his spittle fall down upon his beard.
21:15Then said Achish to his servants, Lo, you see the man is beside himself, why have you brought him to me?
21:16Have I need of mad men,that you have brought this fellow to play the mad man in my presence? Shall he come into my house?
Chapter 22
22:1David therefore departed from there,and saved himself in the cave of Adullam:and when his brethren and all his fathers house heard it, they went down there to him.
22:2And there gathered to him all men that were in trouble and all men that were in debt,and all those that were vexed in nephesh,and he was their prince,and there were with him about four hundred men.
22:3And David went from there to Mizpah in Moab,and said to the King of Moab, please, let my father and my mother come and abide with you, till I know what Elohim will do for me.
22:4And he brought them before the King of Moab,and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the hold.
22:5And the Prophet Gad said to David, Do not abide in the hold,but depart and go into the land of Judah. Then David departed and came into the forest of Hereth.
22:6And Saul heard that David was discovered,and the men that were with him,and Saul remained in Gibeah under a tree in Ramah, having his spear in his hand,and all his servants stood about him.
22:7And Saul said to his servants that stood about him, Hear now, the sons of Jemini, will the son of Ishai give every one of the fields and vineyards:will he make you all captains over thousands,and captains over hundreds:
22:8That all you have conspired against me,and there is none that tells me that my son has made a covenant with the son of Ishai? And there is none of you that is sorry for me, or shows me,that my son has stirred up my servant to lie in wait against me, as appears this day?
22:9Then answered Doeg the Edomite (who was appointed over the servants of Saul) and said, I saw the son of Ishai when he came to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub,
22:10Who inquired of YHWH for him and gave him provisions,and he gave him also the sword of Goliath the Philistine.
22:11Then the King sent to call Ahimelech the Priest the son of Ahitub,and all his fathers house, namely, the Priests that were in Nob:and they came all to the King.
22:12And Saul said, Hear now the son of Ahitub. And he answered, Here I am, my lord.
22:13Then Saul said to him, Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Ishai, in that you have given him bread,and a sword,and have inquired of Elohim for him,that he should rise against me,and lie in wait as appears this day?
22:14And Ahimelech answered the King, and said, Who is so faithful among all your servants as David, being also the King's son-in-law, and goes at your commandment, and is honorable in your house?
22:15Have I this day first begun to inquire of Elohim for him? Be it far from me, let not the King impute anything to his servant, nor to all the house of my father:for your servant knew nothing of all this, less nor more.
22:16Then the King said, You shall surely die, Ahimelech, you,and all your fathers house.
22:17And the King said to the servants that stood about him, Turn,and slay the Priests of YHWH, because their hand also is with David,and because they knew when he fled,and showed it not to me. But the servants of the King would not move their hands to fall upon the Priests of YHWH.
22:18Then the King said to Doeg, Turn you and fall upon the Priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned,and ran upon the Priests,and slew that same day four score and five persons that did wear a linen Ephod.
22:19Also Nob the city of the Priests smote he with the edge of the sword, both man and woman, both child and suckling, both ox and donkey,and sheep with the edge of the sword.
22:20But one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub (whose name was Abiathar) escaped and fled after David.
22:21And Abiathar showed David,that Saul had slain YHWH's Priests.
22:22And David said to Abiathar, I knew it the same day, when Doeg the Edomite was there,that he would tell Saul. I am the cause of the death of all the nepheshes of your fathers house.
22:23Abide with me,and fear not:for he that seeks my nephesh, shall seek your nephesh also:for with me you shall be in safegard.
Chapter 23
23:1Then they told David, saying, Behold, the Philistines fight against Keilah,and spoil the barns.
23:2Therefore David inquired of YHWH, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines? And YHWH answered David, Go and smite the Philistines,and save Keilah.
23:3And David's men said to him, See, we be afraid here in Judah, how much more if we come to Keilah against the host of the Philistines?
23:4Then David inquired of YHWH again. And YHWH answered him,and said, Arise, go down to Keilah:for I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.
23:5So David and his men went to Keilah,and fought with the Philistines,and brought away their cattle,and smote them with a great slaughter:thus David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
23:6(And when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David to Keilah, he brought an Ephod with him)
23:7And it was told Saul that David was come to Keilah,and Saul said, Elohim has delivered him into my hand:for he is shut in, seeing he is come into a city that has gates and bars.
23:8Then Saul called all the people together to war,for to go down to Keilah,and to besiege David and his men.
23:9And David having knowledge that Saul imagined mischief against him, said to Abiathar the Priest, Bring the Ephod.
23:10Then said David, O YHWH Elohim of Israel, Your servant has heard,that Saul is about to come to Keilah to destroy the city for my sake.
23:11Will the lords of Keilah deliver me up into his hand? And will Saul come down, as Your servant has heard? O YHWH Elohim of Israel, I ask You, tell Your servant. And YHWH said, He will come down.
23:12Then said David, Will the lords of Keilah deliver me up,and the men that are with me, into the hand of Saul? And YHWH said, They will deliver you up.
23:13Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose,and departed out of Keilah,and went where they could. And it was told Saul,that David was fled from Keilah,and he left off his journey.
23:14And David abode in the wilderness in holds,and remained in a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day,but Elohim delivered him not into his hand.
23:15And David saw that Saul was come out for to seek his nephesh:and David was in the wilderness of Ziph in the wood.
23:16And Jonathan Saul's son arose and went to David into the wood,and comforted him in Elohim,
23:17And said to him, Fear not:for the hand of Saul my father shall not find you,and you shall be King over Israel,and I shall be next to you:and also Saul my father knows it.
23:18So they two made a covenant before YHWH:and David did remain in the wood:but Jonathan went to his house.
23:19Then came up the Ziphims to Saul to Gibeah, saying, Does not David hide himself by us in holds, in the wood in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the right side of Jeshimon?
23:20Now therefore, O King, come down according to all that your nephesh can desire,and our part shall be to deliver him into the Kings hands.
23:21Then Saul said, Be you blessed of YHWH:for you have had compassion on me.
23:22Go, please,and prepare you yet better:know and see his place where he haunts,and who has seen him there:for it is said to me, He is subtle,and crafty.
23:23See therefore and know all the secret places where he hides himself,and come again to me with the certainty,and I will go with you:and if he be in the land, I will search him out throughout all the thousands of Judah.
23:24Then they arose and went to Ziph before Saul,but David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon, in the plain on the right hand of Jeshimon.
23:25Saul also and his men went to seek him,and they told David:therefore he came down to a rock,and abode in the wilderness of Maon. And when Saul heard that, he followed after David in the wilderness of Maon.
23:26And Saul and his men went on the one side of the mountain,and David and his men on the other side of the mountain:and David made haste to get from the presence of Saul:for Saul and his men compassed David and his men round about, to take them.
23:27But there came a messenger to Saul, saying, Haste you,and come:for the Philistines have invaded the land.
23:28Therefore Saul returned from pursuing David,and went against the Philistines. Therefore they called that place, Sela-hammahlekoth.
Chapter 24
24:1And David went from there,and dwelt in holds at En-gedi.
24:2When Saul was turned from the Philistines, they told him, saying, Behold, David is in the wilderness of En-gedi.
24:3Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel,and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks among the wild goats.
24:4And he came to the sheepcotes by the way where there was a cave,and Saul went in to do his easement:and David and his men sat in the inward parts of the cave.
24:5And the men of David said to him, See, the day is come, of which YHWH said to you, Behold, I will deliver your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you. Then David arose and cut off the lap of Saul's garment secretly.
24:6And afterward David was touched in his heart, because he had cut off the lap which was on Saul's garment.
24:7And he said to his men, YHWH keep me from doing that thing to my master YHWH's Anointed, to lay my hand upon him:for he is the Anointed of YHWH.
24:8So David overcame his servants with these words,and suffered them not to arise against Saul:so Saul rose up out of the cave and went away.
24:9David also arose afterward,and went out of the cave,and cried after Saul, saying, O my lord the King. And when Saul looked behind him, David inclined his face to the earth,and bowed himself.
24:10And David said to Saul, Why give you an ear to mens words,that say, Behold, David seeks evil against you?
24:11Behold, this day your eyes have seen,that YHWH had delivered you this day into my hand in the cave,and some told me to kill you,but I had compassion on you,and said, I will not lay my hand on my master:for he is YHWH's Anointed.
24:12Moreover my father, behold:behold, I say, the lap of your garment in my hand:for when I cut off the lap of your garment, I killed you not. Understand and see,that there is neither evil nor wickedness in me,neither have I sinned against you, yet you hunt after my nephesh to take it.
24:13YHWH be judge between you and me,and YHWH avenge me of you,and let not my hand be upon you.
24:14According as the old proverb says, Wickedness proceeds from the wicked,but my hand be not upon you.
24:15After whom is the King of Israel come out? After whom do you pursue? After a dead dog,and after a flea?
24:16YHWH therefore be judge,and judge between you and me,and see,and plead my cause,and deliver me out of your hand.
24:17When David had made an end of speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, Is this your voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice,and wept,
24:18And said to David, You are more righteous than I:for you have rendered me good,and I have rendered you evil.
24:19And you have showed this day,that you have dealt well with me:forasmuch as when YHWH had closed me in your hands, you killed me not.
24:20For who shall find his enemy,and let him depart free? Therefore YHWH render you good for that you have done to me this day.
24:21For now behold, I know that you shall be King,and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand.
24:22Swear now therefore to me by YHWH, that you will not destroy my seed after me, and that you will not abolish my name out of my fathers house.
24:23So David swore to Saul, and Saul went home: but David and his men went up to the hold.
Chapter 25
25:1Then Samuel died,and all Israel assembled,and mourned for him,and buried him in his own house at Ramah. And David arose and went down to the wilderness of Paran.
25:2Now in Maon was a man, who had his possession in Carmel,and the man was exceeding mighty and had three thousand sheep,and a thousand goats:and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.
25:3The name also of the man was Nabal,and the name of his wife Abigail,and she was a woman of singular wisdom,and beautiful,but the man was harsh,and evil in deeds,and was of the family of Caleb.
25:4And David heard in the wilderness,that Nabal did shear his sheep.
25:5Therefore David sent ten young men,and David said to the young men, Go up to Carmel,and go to Nabal,and ask him in my name how he does.
25:6And thus shall you say for salutation, Both you,and your house,and all that you have, be in peace, wealth and prosperity.
25:7Behold, I have heard,that you have shearers:now your shepherds were with us,and we did them no hurt,neither did they miss anything all the while they were in Carmel.
25:8Ask your servants and they will show you. Therefore let these young men find favor in your eyes:(for we come in a good season) give, please, whatever comes to your hand to your servants,and to your son David.
25:9And when David's young men came, they told Nabal all those words in the name of David,and held their peace.
25:10Then Nabal answered David's servants,and said, Who is David? And who is the son of Ishai? There be many servants now a days,that break away every man from his master.
25:11Shall I then take my bread,and my water,and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers,and give it to men, whom I know not from where they be?
25:12So David's servants turned their way,and went again,and came,and told him all those things.
25:13And David said to his men, Gird every man his sword about him. And they girded every man his sword:David also girded his sword. And about four hundred men went up after David,and two hundred remained by the supplies.
25:14Now one of the servants told Abigail Nabal's wife, saying, Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master,and he railed on them.
25:15Notwithstanding the men were very good to us,and we had no displeasure,neither missed we anything as long as we were conversant with them, when we were in the fields.
25:16They were as a wall to us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping sheep.
25:17Now therefore take heed,and see what you shall do:for evil will surely come upon our master,and upon all his family:for he is so wicked that a man cannot speak to him.
25:18Then Abigail made haste,and took two hundred cakes,and two bottles of wine,and five sheep ready dressed,and five measures of parched grain,and a hundred frails of raisins,and two hundred of figs,and loaded them on donkeys.
25:19Then she said to her servants, Go before me:behold, I will come after you:yet she told not her husband Nabal.
25:20And as she rode on her donkey, she came down by a secret place of the mountain,and behold, David and his men came down against her,and she met them.
25:21And David said, indeed I have kept all in vain that this fellow had in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained to him:for he has requited me evil for good.
25:22So and more also do Elohim to the enemies of David:for surely I will not leave of all that he has, by the dawning of the day, any that pisses against the wall.
25:23And when Abigail saw David, she hurried and lighted off her donkey,and fell before David on her face,and bowed herself to the ground,
25:24And fell at his feet,and said, Oh, my lord, I have committed the iniquity,and please, let your handmaid speak to you,and hear the words of your handmaid.
25:25Let not my lord, please, regard this wicked man Nabal:for as his name is, so is he:Nabal is his name,and folly is with him:but I your handmaid saw not the young men of my lord whom you sent.
25:26Now therefore my lord, as YHWH lives,and as your nephesh lives (YHWH, I say,that has withheld you from coming to shed blood,and that your hand should not save you) so now your enemies shall be as Nabal,and they that intend to do my lord evil.
25:27And now, this blessing which your handmaid has brought to my lord, let it be given to the young men,that follow my lord.
25:28please, forgive the trespass of your handmaid:for YHWH will make my lord a sure house, because my lord fights the battles of YHWH,and none evil has been found in you in all your life.
25:29Yet a man has risen up to persecute you,and to seek your nephesh,but the nephesh of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with YHWH your Elohim:and the nephesh of your enemies shall God cast out, as out of the middle of a sling.
25:30And when YHWH shall have done to my lord all the good that he has promised you,and shall have made you ruler over Israel,
25:31Then shall it be no grief to you, nor offense of heart to my lord,that he has not shed blood causeless, nor that my lord has not preserved himself:and when YHWH shall have dealt well with my lord, remember your handmaid.
25:32Then David said to Abigail, Blessed be YHWH Elohim of Israel, which sent you this day to meet me.
25:33And blessed be your counsel,and blessed be you, which have kept me this day from coming to shed blood,and that my hand has not saved me.
25:34For indeed, as YHWH Elohim of Israel lives, who has kept me back from hurting you, except you had hurried and met me, surely there had not been left to Nabal by the dawning of the day, any that pisses against the wall.
25:35Then David received of her hand that which she had brought him,and said to her, Go up in peace to your house:behold, I have heard your voice,and have granted your petition.
25:36So Abigail came to Nabal,and behold, he made a feast in his house, like the feast of a King,and Nabal's heart was merry within him,for he was very drunken:therefore she told him nothing,neither less nor more, until the morning arose.
25:37Then in the morning when the wine was gone out of Nabal, his wife told him those words,and his heart died within him,and he was like a stone.
25:38And about ten days after, YHWH smote Nabal,that he died.
25:39Now when David heard,that Nabal was dead, he said, Blessed be YHWH that has judged the cause of my rebuke of the hand of Nabal,and has kept his servant from evil:for YHWH has recompensed the wickedness of Nabal upon his own head. Also David sent to commune with Abigail to take her to his wife.
25:40And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spoke to her, saying, David sent us to you, to take you to his wife.
25:41And she arose,and bowed herself on her face to the earth,and said, Behold, let your handmaid be a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.
25:42And Abigail haste,and arose,and rode upon a donkey,and her five maids followed her,and she went after the messengers of David,and was his wife.
25:43David also took Ahinoam of Izreel,and they were both his wives.
25:44Now Saul had given Michal his daughter David's wife to Palti the son of Laish, which was of Gallim.
Chapter 26
26:1Again the Ziphims came to Saul to Gibeah, saying, Does not David hide himself in the hill of Hachilah before Jeshimon?
26:2Then Saul arose,and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having three thousand chosen men of Israel with him,for to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph.
26:3And Saul pitched in the hill of Hachilah, which is before Jeshimon by the wayside. Now David abode in the wilderness,and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness.
26:4(For David had sent out spies,and understood,that Saul was come in very deed)
26:5Then David arose,and came to the place where Saul had pitched,and when David saw the place where Saul lay,and Abner the son of Ner which was his chief captain, (for Saul lay in the fort,and the people pitched round about him)
26:6Then spoke David,and said to Ahimelech the Hittite,and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah, brother to Joab, saying, Who will go down with me to Saul to the host? Then Abishai said, I will go down with you.
26:7So David and Abishai came down to the people by night:and behold, Saul lay sleeping within the fort,and his spear did stick in the ground at his head:and Abner and the people lay round about him.
26:8Then said Abishai to David, Elohim has closed your enemy into your hand this day:now therefore, please, let me smite him once with a spear to the earth,and I will not smite him again.
26:9And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not:for who can lay his hand on YHWH's anointed,and be guiltless?
26:10Moreover David said, As YHWH lives, either YHWH shall smite him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall descend into battle,and perish.
26:11YHWH keep me from laying my hand upon YHWH's anointed:but, please, take now the spear that is at his head,and the pot of water,and let us go from here.
26:12So David took the spear and the pot of water from Saul's head,and they got themselves away,and no man saw it, nor marked it,neither did any awake,but they were all asleep:for YHWH had sent a dead sleep upon them.
26:13Then David went to the other side,and stood on the top of a hill afar off, a great space being between them.
26:14And David cried to the people,and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, Hear you not, Abner? Then Abner answered,and said, Who are you that cry to the King?
26:15And David said to Abner, Are not you a man? And who is like you in Israel? Why then have you not kept your lord the King? For there came one of the folk in to destroy the King your lord.
26:16This is not well done of you:as YHWH lives, you are worthy to die, because you have not kept your master YHWH's Anointed:and now see where the Kings spear is,and the pot of water that was at his head.
26:17And Saul knew David's voice,and said, Is this your voice, my son David? And David said, It is my voice, my lord O King.
26:18And he said, Why does my lord thus persecute his servant? For what have I done? Or what evil is in my hand?
26:19Now therefore, I ask you, let my lord the King hear the words of his servant. If YHWH have stirred you up against me, let him smell the savor of a sacrifice:but if the children of men have done it, cursed be they before YHWH:for they have cast me out this day from abiding in the inheritance of YHWH, saying, Go, serve other gods.
26:20Now therefore let not my blood fall to the earth before the face of YHWH:for the King of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as one would hunt a partridge in the mountains.
26:21Then said Saul, I have sinned:come again, my son David:for I will do you no more harm, because my nephesh was precious in your eyes this day:behold, I have done foolishly,and have erred exceedingly.
26:22Then David answered,and said, Behold the Kings spear, let one of the young men come over and set it.
26:23And let YHWH reward every man according to his righteousness and faithfulness:for YHWH had delivered you into my hands this day,but I would not lay my hand upon YHWH's anointed.
26:24And behold, like as your nephesh was much set by this day in my eyes:so let my nephesh be set by in the eyes of YHWH,that he may deliver me out of all tribulation.
26:25Then Saul said to David, Blessed are you, my son David:for you shall do great things,and also prevail. So David went his way,and Saul returned to his place.
Chapter 27
27:1And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul:is it not better for me that I save myself in the land of the Philistines,and that Saul may have no hope of me to seek me any more in all the coasts of Israel,and so escape out of his hand?
27:2David therefore arose,and he,and the six hundred men that were with him, went to Achish the son of Maoch King of Gath.
27:3And David dwelt with Achish at Gath, he,and his men, every man with his household, David with his two wives, Ahinoam the Izreelite,and Abigail Nabal's wife the Carmelite.
27:4And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath:so he sought no more for him.
27:5And David said to Achish, If I have now found favor in your eyes, let them give me a place in some other city of the country,that I may dwell there:for why should your servant dwell in the head city of the kingdom with you?
27:6Then Achish gave him Ziklag that same day:therefore Ziklag pertains to the kings of Judah to this day.
27:7And the time that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines, was four months and certain days.
27:8Then David and his men went up,and invaded the Geshurites,and the Girzites,and the Amalekites:for they inhabited the land from the beginning, from the way, as you go to Shur, even to the land of Egypt.
27:9And David smote the land,and left neither man nor woman alive,and took sheep,and oxen,and donkeys,and camels,and apparel,and returned and came to Achish.
27:10And Achish said, Where have you been a roving this day? And David answered, Against the South of Judah,and against the South of the Jerahmeelites,and against the South of the Kenites.
27:11And David saved neither man nor woman alive, to bring them to Gath, saying,Lest they should tell on us,and say, So did David,and so will be his manner all the while that he dwells in the country of the Philistines.
27:12And Achish believed David, saying, He has made his people of Israel utterly to abhor him:therefore he shall be my servant forever.
Chapter 28
28:1Now at that time the Philistines assembled their bands and army to fight with Israel:therefore Achish said to David, Be sure, you shall go out with me to the battle, you,and your men.
28:2And David said to Achish, Surely you shall know, what your servant can do. And Achish said to David, Surely I will make you keeper of my head forever.
28:3(Samuel was then dead,and all Israel had lamented him,and buried him in Ramah his own city:and Saul had put away the sorcerers,and the soothsayers out of the land)
28:4Then the Philistines assembled themselves,and came,and pitched in Shunem:and Saul assembled all Israel,and they pitched in Gilboa.
28:5And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid,and his heart was sore astonished.
28:6Therefore Saul inquired of YHWH,and YHWH answered him not,neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor yet by Prophets.
28:7Then said Saul to his servants, Seek me a woman that has Ob,that I may go to her,and ask of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, there is a woman at En-dor that has Ob.
28:8Then Saul changed himself,and put on other clothing,and he went,and two men with him,and they came to the woman by night:and he said, please, conjecture to me by Ob,and bring me him up whom I shall name to you.
28:9And the woman said to him, Behold, you know what Saul has done, how he has destroyed the sorcerers,and the soothsayers out of the land:why then seek you to take my nephesh in a snare to cause me to die?
28:10And Saul swore to her by YHWH, saying, As YHWH lives, no iniquity shall come to you for this thing.
28:11Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up to you? And he answered, Bring me up Samuel.
28:12And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice,and the woman spoke to Saul, saying, Why have you deceived me? For you are Saul.
28:13And the King said to her, Be not afraid:for what saw you? And the woman said to Saul, I saw gods ascending up out of the earth.
28:14Then he said to her, What fashion is he of? And she answered, An old man comes up lapped in a mantle:and Saul knew that it was Samuel,and he inclined his face to the ground,and bowed himself.
28:15And Samuel said to Saul, Why have you disquieted me, to bring me up? Then Saul answered, I am in great distress:for the Philistines make war against me,and Elohim is departed from me,and answers me no more,neither by Prophets,neither by dreams:therefore I have called you,that you may tell me, what I shall do.
28:16Then said Samuel, Why then do you ask of me, seeing YHWH is gone from you,and is your enemy?
28:17Even YHWH has done to him, as he spoke by my hand:for YHWH will rent the kingdom out of your hand,and give it to your neighbor David.
28:18Because you obeyed not the voice of YHWH, nor executed his fierce wrath upon the Amalekites,therefore has YHWH done this to you this day.
28:19Moreover YHWH will deliver Israel with you into the hands of the Philistines:and Tomorrow shall you and your sons be with me,and YHWH shall give the host of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.
28:20Then Saul immediately fell full length on the earth,and was sore afraid because of the words of Samuel, so that there was no strength in him:for he had eaten no bread all the day nor all the night.
28:21Then the woman came to Saul,and saw that he was sore troubled,and said to him, See, your handmaid has obeyed your voice,and I have put my nephesh in my hand,and have obeyed your words which you said to me.
28:22Now therefore, please, listen also to the voice of your handmaid,and let me set a morsel of bread before you,that you may eat and get you strength,and go on your journey.
28:23But he refused,and said, I will not eat:but his servants and the woman together compelled him,and he obeyed their voice:so he arose from the earth,and sat on the bed.
28:24Now the woman had a fat calf in the house,and she hastened,and killed it,and took flour and kneaded it,and baked of it unleavened bread.
28:25Then she brought them before Saul,and before his servants:and when they had eaten, they stood,and went away the same night.
Chapter 29
29:1So the Philistines were gathered together with all their armies in Aphek:and the Israelites pitched by the fountain, which is in Izreel.
29:2And the princes of the Philistines went forth by hundreds and thousands,but David and his men came behind with Achish.
29:3Then said the princes of the Philistines, What do these Hebrews here? And Achish said to the princes of the Philistines, Is not this David the servant of Saul the King of Israel, who has been with me these days, or these years,and I have found nothing in him, since he dwelt with me to this day?
29:4But the princes of the Philistines were angry with him, and the princes of the Philistines said to him, Send this fellow back, that he may go again to his place which you have appointed him, and let him not go down with us to battle, lest that in the battle he be an adversary to us: for with what should he obtain the favor of his master? Should it not be with the heads of these men?
29:5Is not this David, of whom they sang in dances, saying, Saul slew his thousand,and David his ten thousand?
29:6Then Achish called David,and said to him, As YHWH lives, you have been upright and good in my sight, when you went out and in with me in the host,neither have I found evil with you, since you came to me to this day,but the princes do not favor you.
29:7Therefore now return,and go in peace,that you displease not the princes of the Philistines.
29:8And David said to Achish,But what have I done? And what have you found in your servant as long as I have been with you to this day,that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the King?
29:9Achish then answered,and said to David, I know you please me, as an Angel of Elohim:but the princes of the Philistines have said, Let him not go up with us to battle.
29:10Therefore now rise up early in the morning with your masters servants that are come with you:and when you be up early, as soon as you have light, depart.
29:11So David and his men rose up early to depart in the morning,and to return into the land of the Philistines:and the Philistines went up to Izreel.
Chapter 30
30:1But when David and his men were come to Ziklag the third day, the Amalekites had invaded upon the South, even to Ziklag,and had smitten Ziklag,and burnt it with fire,
30:2And had taken the women that were in it, prisoners, both small and great, and slew not a man, but carried them away, and went their ways.
30:3So David and his men came to the city,and behold, it was burnt with fire,and their wives,and their sons,and their daughters were taken prisoners.
30:4Then David and the people that was with him, lift up their voices and wept, until they could weep no more.
30:5David's two wives were taken prisoners also, Ahinoam the Izreelite,and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite.
30:6And David was in great sorrow:for the people intended to stone him, because the nephesh of all the people was bitter every man for his sons and for his daughters:but David comforted himself in YHWH his Elohim.
30:7And David said to Abiathar the Priest Ahimelech's son, please, bring me the Ephod. And Abiathar brought the Ephod to David.
30:8Then David inquired of YHWH, saying, Shall I follow after this company? Shall I overtake them? And he answered him, Follow:for you shall surely overtake them,and recover all.
30:9So David and the six hundred men that were with him, went,and came to the river Besor, where a part of them abode:
30:10But David and four hundred men followed (for two hundred abode behind, being too weary to go over the river Besor)
30:11And they found an Egyptian in the field,and brought him to David,and gave him bread and he did eat,and they gave him water to drink.
30:12Also they gave him a few figs,and two clusters of raisins:and when he had eaten, his spirit came again to him:for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water in three days,and three nights.
30:13And David said to him, To whom belong you? And from where are you? And he said, I am a young man of Egypt,and servant to an Amalekite:and my master left me three days ago, because I fell sick.
30:14We roved upon the South of Chereth,and upon the coast belonging to Judah,and upon the South of Caleb,and we burnt Ziklag with fire.
30:15And David said to him, Can you bring me to this company? And he said, Swear to me by Elohim,that you will neither kill me, nor deliver me into the hands of my master,and I will bring you to this company.
30:16And when he had brought him there, behold, they lay scattered abroad upon all the earth, eating and drinking,and dancing, because of all the great prey that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines,and out of the land of Judah.
30:17And David smote them from the twilight, even to the evening of the next morrow, so that there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, who rode upon camels,and fled.
30:18And David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken:also David rescued his two wives.
30:19And they lacked nothing, small or great, son or daughter, or of the spoil of all that they had taken away:David recovered them all.
30:20David also took all the sheep,and the oxen,and they drove them before his cattle,and said, This is David's pray.
30:21And David came to the two hundred men that were too weary for to follow David:whom they had also made to abide at the river Besor:and they came to meet David,and to meet the people that were with him:so when David came near to the people, he saluted them.
30:22Then answered all the evil and wicked of the men that went with David,and said, Because they went not with us,therefore will we give them none of the prey that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children:therefore let them carry them away and depart.
30:23Then said David, You shall not do so, my brethren, with that which YHWH has given us, who has preserved us,and delivered the company that came against us, into our hands.
30:24For who will obey you in this matter? But as his part is that goes down to the battle, so shall his part be,that stays by the baggage:they shall part alike.
30:25So from that day forward he made it a statute and a law in Israel, until this day.
30:26When David therefore came to Ziklag, he sent of the prey to the Elders of Judah and to his friends, saying, See there is a blessing for you of the spoil of the enemies of YHWH.
30:27He sent to them of Bethel,and to them of South Ramoth,and to them of Jattir,
30:28And to them of Aroer,and to them of Siphmoth,and to them of Eshtemoa,
30:29And to them of Rachal,and to them of the cities of the Jerahmeelites,and to them of the cities of the Kenites,
30:30And to them of Hormah,and to them of Chorashan,and to them of Athach,
30:31And to them of Hebron,and to all the places where David and his men had hanted.
Chapter 31
31:1Now the Philistines fought against Israel,and the men of Israel fled away from the Philistines,and they fell down wounded in mount Gilboa.
31:2And the Philistines pressed sore upon Saul and his sons,and slew Jonathan,and Abinadab,and Malchishua Saul's sons.
31:3And when the battle went sore against Saul, the archers and bowmen hit him,and he was sore wounded of the archers.
31:4Then said Saul to his armor bearer, Draw out your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest the uncircumcised come and thrust me through and mock me: but his armor bearer would not, for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword and fell upon it.
31:5And when his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword,and died with him.
31:6So Saul died,and his three sons,and his armor bearer,and all his men that same day together.
31:7And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley,and they of the other side Jordan saw that the men of Israel were put to flight,and that Saul and his sons were dead, then they left the cities,and ran away:and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.
31:8And on the morrow when the Philistines were come to spoil them that were slain, they found Saul and his three sons lying in mount Gilboa,
31:9And they cut off his head,and stripped him out of his armor,and sent into the land of the Philistines on every side,that they should publish it in the temple of their idols,and among the people.
31:10And they laid up his armor in the house of Ashtaroth,but they hanged up his body on the wall of Beth-shan.
31:11When the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard, what the Philistines had done to Saul,
31:12Then they arose (as many as were strong men) and went all night,and took the body of Saul,and the bodies of his sons, from the wall of Beth-shan,and came to Jabesh,and burnt them there,
31:13And took their bones and buried them under a tree at Jabesh,and fasted seven days.