Israel Asks for a King

8 When Samuel was old, he ·made [appointed] his sons judges ·for [over] Israel. ² His first son was named Joel, and his second son was named Abijah. Joel and Abijah were judges in Beersheba [^Cin the Negev to the extreme south]. ³ But Samuel’s sons did not ·live as he did [^Lwalk/follow in his ways]. They ·tried to get money dishonestly [were greedy; wandered after money], and they accepted ·money secretly [bribes] ·to make wrong judgments [and perverted justice/made biased decisions].

⁴ So all the elders ·came together [assembled] and met Samuel at Ramah [1:1]. ⁵ They said to him, “You’re old, and your sons don’t ·live as you do [^Lwalk/follow in your ways]. Give us a king to ·rule over [judge] us like all the other nations [Deut. 17:14].”

⁶ When the elders said, “Give us [Appoint; ^LNow, set for us] a king to ·rule over [judge] us,” ·Samuel was not pleased [^Lit was evil/wrong in the eyes of Samuel]. So he prayed to the Lord, ⁷ and the Lord told Samuel, “Listen to ·whatever [^Lthe voice of] the people [^Lregarding what they] say to you. They have not rejected you. They have rejected me from being their king. ⁸ They are doing as they have always done. When I ·took them out of [brought them up from] Egypt, they ·left [abandoned; deserted; forsook] me and ·served [followed] other gods. They are doing the same to you. ⁹ Now ·listen to the people [listen to their voice; do as they ask], but [^Lsolemnly] warn them ·what the king who rules over them will do [about the way/manner/custom in which he will rule/reign over them].”

¹⁰ So Samuel told those who had asked him for a king ·what [everything; ^Lall the words] the Lord had said. ¹¹ Samuel said, “If you have a king ·ruling [reigning] over you, ·this is what he will do [he will act this way; ^Lthis will be the way/manner/custom in which he will rule/reign over you]: He will ·take [draft] your sons and make them serve with his chariots and his ·horses [or charioteers; horsemen], and they will run in front of the king’s chariot. ¹² He will make some of your sons commanders over thousands or over fifties. He will make some of your other sons plow his ·ground [fields] and ·reap his harvest [harvest his crops]. He will take others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. ¹³ He will take your daughters to make perfume and cook and bake for him. ¹⁴ He will take your best fields, vineyards, and olive groves and give them to his ·servants [officials; attendants]. ¹⁵ He will take ·one-tenth [a tithe] of your ·grain [crops; seed] and ·grapes [vineyards] and give it to his officers and ·servants [officials; attendants]. ¹⁶ He will take your male and female servants, your best cattle, and your donkeys and use them all for his own work. ¹⁷ He will take ·one-tenth [a tithe] of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his ·slaves [servants]. ¹⁸ ·When that time comes [^LIn that day], you will cry out because of the king you ·chose [selected]. But the Lord will not ·answer [help] you then.”

¹⁹ But the people ·would not [^Lrefused to] listen to [^Lthe voice of] Samuel. They said, “No! We ·want [are determined to have] a king to rule over us. ²⁰ Then we will be the same as all the other nations. Our king will ·judge for [govern; rule over] us and go ·with [before] us and fight our battles.”

²¹ After Samuel ·heard [listened to] all that the people said, he repeated their words ·to the Lord [^Lin the Lord’s hearing/ears]. ²² The Lord answered, “You must ·listen to them [do as they say]. ·Give [Appoint] them a king.”

Then Samuel told the people of Israel, “Go back [^Leach of you] to your ·towns [own town/city].”

Saul Looks for His Father’s Donkeys

9 Kish, son of Abiel from the tribe of Benjamin, was an ·important man [man of wealth/rank/standing/valor]. (Abiel was the son of Zeror, who was the son of Becorath, who was the son of Aphiah of Benjamin.) ² Kish had a son named Saul, who was a ·fine [handsome] young man. There was no Israelite ·better [more handsome] than he. Saul stood ·a head [head and shoulders] taller than any other man in Israel.

³ Now the donkeys of Saul’s father, Kish, were lost. So Kish said to Saul, his son, “Take one of the servants, and go and look for the donkeys.” ⁴ Saul went through the ·mountains [hill country] of Ephraim and the ·land [area; territory] of Shalisha, but he and the servant could not find the donkeys. They went into the ·land [area; territory] of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. They went through the ·land [area; territory] of Benjamin, but they still did not find them. ⁵ When they arrived in the area of Zuph, Saul said to his servant, “Let’s go back or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and will start worrying about us.”

⁶ But the servant answered, “A man of God [^Ca title for a prophet] is in this town. People ·respect [honor] him because everything he says comes true. Let’s go ·into the town now [^Lthere]. Maybe he can tell us ·something about the journey we have taken [or what way to go].”

⁷ Saul said to his servant, “If we go into the town, what can we give him? The ·food [bread] in our bags is gone. We have no gift to give him. ·Do we have anything [What do we have]?”

⁸ Again the servant answered Saul. “Look, I have ·one-tenth of an ounce [^La quarter of a shekel] of silver. ·Give [or I will give] it to the man of God. Then he will tell us ·about our journey [^Lwhat to do/way to go].” ⁹ (In ·the past [^Lthose days], if someone in Israel wanted to ·ask something from [inquire of] God, he would say, “Let’s go to the seer.” We call the person a prophet today, but in ·the past [^Lthose days] he was called a seer.)

¹⁰ Saul said to his servant, “·That’s a good idea [Well said]. Come, let’s go.” So they went toward the town where the man of God was.

¹¹ As Saul and the servant were going up the hill to the town, they met some young women coming out to ·get [draw] water. Saul and the servant asked them, “Is the seer here?”

¹² The young women answered, “Yes, he’s here. He’s ahead of you. Hurry now. He has just come to our town today, because the people will offer a sacrifice at the ·place of worship [high place]. ¹³ As soon as you enter the town, you ·will [can] find him before he goes up to the ·place of worship [high place] to eat. The people will not begin eating until the seer comes, because he must bless the sacrifice. After that, the guests will eat. Go now, and you should find him [^Lquickly; at once].”

Saul Meets Samuel

¹⁴ Saul and the servant went up to the town. Just as they ·entered it [^Larrived in the midst of the town], they saw Samuel coming toward them on his way up to the ·place of worship [high place].

¹⁵ The day before Saul came, the Lord had ·told [revealed this to] Samuel: ¹⁶ “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the ·land [territory] of Benjamin. ·Appoint [Anoint] him ·to lead [^Lruler/prince over] my people Israel. He will ·save [rescue; deliver] my people from the [^Lhand of the] Philistines. I have seen ·the suffering of my people, and I have listened to their cry [^Lmy people because their cry has reached me].”

¹⁷ When Samuel first saw Saul, the Lord said to Samuel, “This is the man I told you about. He will ·organize [rule over; govern] my people.”

¹⁸ Saul approached Samuel at the gate and said, “Please tell me where the seer’s house is.”

¹⁹ Samuel answered, “I am the seer. Go ·with [ahead of] me to the ·place of worship [high place]. Today you and your servant are to eat with me. Tomorrow morning I will ·answer all your questions [^Ltell you all that is in your heart/mind] and send you home. ²⁰ Don’t worry about the donkeys you lost three days ago, because they have been found. Soon all the ·wealth [desires] of Israel will ·belong to [be focused/fixed on; turn to] you and your family.”

²¹ Saul answered, “·But I am [^LAm I not…?] from the tribe of Benjamin, the smallest tribe in Israel. And ·my family group is [^Lis not my family/clan…?] the ·smallest [least] in the tribe of Benjamin. Why are you ·saying such things [talking this way to me]?”

²² Then Samuel took Saul and his servant into ·a large room [the hall] and ·gave them a choice place at [placed them at the head of] the table. About thirty guests were there. ²³ Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the meat I gave you, the portion I told you to set aside.”

²⁴ So the cook took the thigh and put it on the table in front of Saul. Samuel said, “This is the meat saved for you. Eat it, because it was set aside for you for this ·special [appointed] time. ·As I said, ‘I had invited the people.’ [or … even before I invited these others].” So Saul ate with Samuel that day.

²⁵ After they finished eating, they came down from the ·place of worship [high place] and went to the town. Then Samuel ·talked with [or prepared a bed for] Saul on the roof of his house [^Cthe flat roofs of Israelite houses served as living space]. ²⁶ At dawn they got up, and Samuel called to Saul on the roof. He said, “Get up, and I will send you on your way.” So Saul got up and went out of the house with Samuel. ²⁷ As Saul, his servant, and Samuel were getting near the edge of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us, but you stay, ·because I have a message from [so I may give/proclaim the word of] God for you.”

Samuel Appoints Saul

10 Samuel took a ·jar [flask; vial] of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head. He kissed Saul and said, “The Lord has ·appointed [anointed] you ·to lead [ruler; prince over] his ·people^[a] [special possession; inheritance]. ² After you leave me today, you will meet two men near Rachel’s tomb on the border of Benjamin at Zelzah [Gen. 35:19]. They will say to you, ‘The donkeys you were looking for have been found. But now your father has stopped thinking about his donkeys and is ·worrying [anxious] about you. He is asking, “What will I do about my son?” ’

³ “Then you will go on until you reach the ·big [^Loak] tree at Tabor. Three men ·on their way to worship [^Lgoing up to] God at Bethel will meet you there. One man will be carrying three ·goats [kids]. Another will be carrying three loaves of bread. And the third will have a ·leather bag [skin] full of wine. ⁴ They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you must accept. ⁵ Then you will go to ·Gibeah [or the hill] of God, where a Philistine ·camp [garrison] is. When you approach this town, a group of prophets will come down from the ·place of worship [high place]. They will be playing harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres, and they will be prophesying. ⁶ Then the Spirit of the Lord will ·rush upon [come on; seize; possess] you with power. You will prophesy with them, and you will be changed into a different man. ⁷ After these signs happen, do ·whatever you find to do [what must be done; what you see fit to do; ^Lwhat your hand finds to do], because God ·will help [is with] you [^CSaul was supposed to attack the garrison, but he did not do so].

⁸ “Go ahead of me to Gilgal. I will come down to you to offer whole burnt offerings [Lev. 1] and to sacrifice ·fellowship [peace; well-being] offerings [Lev. 3:1]. But you must wait seven days. Then I will come and ·tell [show; reveal to] you what to do [^CSaul did not do this either].”

Saul Made King

⁹ When Saul turned to leave Samuel, God ·changed Saul’s [gave Saul a new/another] heart. All these signs ·came true [were fulfilled; occurred] that day. ¹⁰ When they arrived at Gibeah, Saul met a ·group [band; procession] of prophets. The Spirit of God ·rushed upon [overwhelmed; seized; possessed] him, and he prophesied with the prophets. ¹¹ When people who had known Saul before saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, “What has happened to Kish’s son? Is even Saul ·one of [among] the prophets?”

¹² A man who lived there ·said [answered; retorted], “Who is the father of these prophets [^CSaul’s prophesying amazed and confused him]?” So this became a ·famous saying [proverb]: “Is ·even Saul one of [Saul also among] the prophets?” ¹³ When Saul finished prophesying, he ·entered the place of worship [came/went to the high place].

¹⁴ Saul’s uncle asked him and his servant, “Where have you been?”

Saul said, “We were looking for the donkeys. When we couldn’t find them, we went to talk to Samuel.”

¹⁵ Saul’s uncle asked, “Please tell me. What did Samuel say to you?”

¹⁶ Saul answered, “He told us the donkeys had already been found.” But Saul did not tell his uncle what Samuel had said about ·his becoming king [the kingdom; ^CSaul should have announced publicly that he was king].

¹⁷ Samuel called all the people of Israel ·to meet with [to] the Lord at Mizpah [7:5–11, 15–17]. ¹⁸ He said [^Lto the sons of Israel], “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I ·led [brought up] Israel out of Egypt. I ·saved [rescued; delivered] you from Egypt’s ·control [^Lhand] and from [^Lthe hand of] other kingdoms that were ·troubling [oppressing] you.’ ¹⁹ But ·now [today] you have rejected your God. He ·saves [rescues; delivers] you from all your ·troubles [calamities; disasters; miseries] and ·problems [distresses], but you said, ‘No! ·We want [Appoint; Set] a king to rule over us.’ Now come, ·stand [present yourselves] before the Lord in your tribes and ·family groups [clans].”

²⁰ When Samuel ·gathered [brought forward] ·all [each of] the tribes of Israel, the tribe of Benjamin was ·picked [chosen/taken by lot]. ²¹ Samuel had ·them [the tribe of Benjamin] pass by in ·family groups [clans], and Matri’s family was ·picked [chosen/taken by lot]. Then he had each man of Matri’s family pass by, and Saul son of Kish was ·picked [chosen/taken by lot]. But when they looked for Saul, ·they could not find him [he had disappeared]. ²² They ·asked [inquired further of] the Lord, “Has ·Saul [^Lthe man] come here yet?”

The Lord said, “Yes. He’s hiding ·behind [among] the baggage.”

²³ So they ran and brought him out. When Saul stood among the people, he was ·a head [head and shoulders] taller than anyone else. ²⁴ Then Samuel said to the people, “See the man the Lord has chosen. ·There is no one like him [He has no equal] among all the people.”

Then the people shouted, “Long live the king!”

²⁵ Samuel explained the ·rights and duties [ordinances; customs] of the king and then wrote them ·in a book [on a scroll] and put it before the Lord. Then he told the people to go to their homes.

²⁶ Saul also went to his home in Gibeah. ·God touched the hearts of certain brave men who went along with him […accompanied by warriors/valiant men whose hearts God had touched]. ²⁷ But some ·troublemakers [scoundrels; worthless men] said, “How can this man ·save [rescue; deliver] us?” They ·disapproved of [scorned; despised] Saul and refused to bring gifts to him. But Saul kept ·quiet^[b] [silent; held his peace; ignored them].

Nahash Troubles Jabesh Gilead

11 About a month later^[c] Nahash the Ammonite and his army ·surrounded [attacked and besieged] the city of Jabesh in Gilead. All the people of Jabesh said to Nahash, “·Make [^LCut] a ·treaty [covenant] with us, and we will ·serve [be subject to] you.”

² But Nahash the Ammonite answered, “I will ·make a treaty [^Lcut] with you only if I’m allowed to ·poke [gouge] out the right eye of each of you. Then all Israel will be ·ashamed [disgraced]!”

³ The elders of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Give us seven days to send messengers through all [^Lthe borders/territories of] Israel. If no one comes to ·help [rescue; deliver] us, we will ·give ourselves up [surrender] to you.”

⁴ When the messengers came to Gibeah where Saul lived and told the people the news, they ·cried loudly [^Lraised their voices and wept]. ⁵ Saul was coming home from plowing the fields with his oxen when he heard the people crying. He asked, “What’s wrong with the people that they are crying?” Then they told Saul what the ·messengers [^Lmen] from Jabesh had said. ⁶ When Saul heard their words, God’s Spirit ·rushed upon him with power [came mightily/powerfully on Saul], and he ·became very angry [burned with anger]. ⁷ So he took a pair of oxen and cut them into pieces. Then he gave the pieces of the oxen to messengers and ordered them to carry them through all the land of Israel [^Ca ritual to curse an enemy].

The messengers said, “This is what will happen to the oxen of anyone who does not ·follow [march with; ^Cinto battle] Saul and Samuel.” So the ·people became very afraid of the Lord [^Lterror/dread of the Lord fell on the people]. They all ·came together [marched out] as if they were one person. ⁸ Saul ·gathered [mobilized; mustered] the people together at Bezek. There were three hundred thousand men from Israel and thirty^[d] thousand men from Judah.

⁹ They said to the messengers who had come, “Tell the people at Jabesh Gilead this: ‘·Before the day warms up tomorrow [By the time the sun is hot], you will be ·saved [rescued; delivered].’” So the messengers went and reported this to the people at Jabesh, and they were ·very happy [elated; overjoyed]. ¹⁰ The people said to Nahash the Ammonite, “Tomorrow we will ·come out to meet [surrender to] you. Then you can do ·anything you want to us [to us whatever seems good to you].”

¹¹ The next morning Saul divided his soldiers into three ·groups [companies; divisions]. At dawn they entered the Ammonite camp and defeated them ·before [until] the heat of the day. The Ammonites who ·escaped [survived] were scattered; no two of them were still together.

¹² Then the people said to Samuel, “Who ·didn’t want Saul as king [was it that questioned, ‘Will Saul rule/reign over us]?’ Bring them here and we will kill them!”

¹³ But Saul said, “No! No one will be put to death today. Today the Lord has ·saved [rescued; delivered] Israel!”

¹⁴ Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let’s go to Gilgal. There we will ·again promise to obey the king [renew the kingdom].” ¹⁵ So all the people went to Gilgal, and there, before the Lord, the people made Saul king. They offered ·fellowship [peace; communion] offerings to the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites ·had a great celebration [rejoiced greatly].

Samuel’s Farewell Speech

12 Samuel said to all Israel, “I have ·done everything you wanted me to do [listened to everything you said] and have ·put [appointed] a king over you. ² Now you have a king ·to lead [walking before/in front of] you. I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have ·been your leader [walked before/in front of you] since I was young [^Luntil this day]. ³ Here I am. ·If I have done anything wrong, you must testify [Bear witness] against me before the Lord and his ·appointed king [anointed]. Did I steal anyone’s ox or donkey? Did I ·hurt [oppress] or cheat anyone? Did I ever secretly accept a bribe to ·look the other way [^Lclose my eyes]? If I did any of these things, I will make ·it right [amends].”

⁴ The Israelites answered, “You have not cheated us, or ·hurt [oppressed] us, or taken anything ·unfairly from anyone [from anyone’s hand].”

⁵ Samuel said to them, “The Lord is a witness ·to what you have said [against you]. His ·appointed [anointed] king is also a witness today that you did not find anything ·wrong in me [^Lin my hand].”

“He is our witness,” they said.

⁶ Then Samuel said to the people, “It is the Lord who ·chose [appointed; ^Lmade] Moses and Aaron and brought your ·ancestors [fathers] out of Egypt. ⁷ Now, ·stand there [or take your stand], and I will ·remind you of [plead with you/confront you concerning] all the ·good things [righteous/saving acts] the Lord did for you and your ·ancestors [fathers].

⁸ “After Jacob [^Cthe Israelites] ·entered [went to; arrived in] Egypt, ·his descendants [they] cried to the Lord for help. So the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, who took your ·ancestors [fathers] out of Egypt and ·brought them to live [settled them] in this place.

⁹ “But they forgot the Lord their God. So he ·handed them over as slaves [sold them] to Sisera [Judg. 4–5], the commander of the army of Hazor, and ·as slaves to [into the hand of] the Philistines [Judg. 13–16] and the king of Moab. ·They all […all of whom had] fought against your ·ancestors [fathers]. ¹⁰ Then your ancestors cried to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned. We have ·left [turned away from; forsaken] the Lord and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths [^Cgods and goddesses of the Canaanites]. But now ·save [rescue; deliver] us from [^Lthe hand of] our enemies, and we will ·serve [worship] you.’ ¹¹ So the Lord sent ·Gideon [^LJerubbaal; ^Canother name for Gideon; Judg. 6:32], ·Barak [^LBedan; Judg. 4:6], Jephthah [Judg. 11–12], and Samuel. He ·saved [rescued; delivered] you from [^Lthe hands of] your enemies around you, and you lived in ·safety [security]. ¹² But when you saw Nahash king of the ·Ammonites [^Lsons of Ammon] ·coming [marching] against you, you said, ‘No! We want a king to ·rule [reign] over us!’—even though the Lord your God was your king. ¹³ ·Now [All right; So] here is the king you chose, the one you asked for. The Lord has ·put [set; appointed] him over you. ¹⁴ ·You must [If you…] ·honor [fear] the Lord and ·serve [worship] him. You must ·obey [listen to] his ·word [voice] and not ·turn [rebel] against ·his commands [^Lthe mouth of the Lord]. Both you and the king ·ruling [reigning] over you must follow the Lord your God. If you do, it will be well with you. ¹⁵ But if you don’t ·obey [listen to the voice of] the Lord, and if you ·turn [rebel] against ·his commands [^Lthe mouth of the Lord], ·he [the hand of the Lord] will be ·against [heavy on] you. ·He will do to you what he did to […as it was on] your ·ancestors [fathers].

¹⁶ “Now stand ·still [where you are] and see the ·great thing [wonder; ^Lthing] the Lord will do before your eyes. ¹⁷ ·It is [Is it not…?] now the time of the wheat harvest [^Cthe dry season]. I will pray for the Lord to send thunder and rain [^Cthe rain would destroy the wheat harvest]. Then you will know what an ·evil [wicked] thing you did ·against [in the eyes/sight of] the Lord when you ·asked for [demanded] a king.”

¹⁸ Then Samuel ·prayed [called] to the Lord, and that same day the Lord sent thunder and rain. So the people were ·very afraid [in awe] of the Lord and Samuel. ¹⁹ ·They [^LAll the people] said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God for us, your servants! Don’t let us die! We’ve added to all our sins the evil of ·asking for [demanding] a king.”

²⁰ Samuel answered [^Lthe people], “Don’t be afraid. It’s true that you did ·wrong [evil], but don’t turn away from the Lord. ·Serve [Worship] the Lord with all your heart. ²¹ ·Idols [Futile things] are of no use, so don’t worship them. They can’t help you or ·save [rescue; deliver] you. They are ·useless [futile]! ²² For his own [^Lname’s] sake, the Lord won’t ·leave [abandon; reject; desert] his people. ·Instead, [For; Because] he was pleased to make you his own people. ²³ [^LAs for me,] ·I will surely not [Far be it from me to] stop praying for you, because that would be sinning against the Lord. I will ·teach [instruct] you ·what [in the way that] is good and right. ²⁴ ·You must honor [Fear only] the Lord and ·truly serve [worship] him with all your heart. ·Remember [Keep in mind; Consider] the ·wonderful [great] things he did for you! ²⁵ But if you ·are stubborn and do [persist in doing] evil, he will sweep you and your king away.”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Hard Times for Israel

¹⁶ Saul and his son Jonathan and the soldiers with him stayed in Gibeah in the land of Benjamin. The Philistines made their camp at Micmash. ¹⁷ Three ·groups [raiding parties] went out from the Philistine camp to make raids. One ·group [company] went on the Ophrah road in the land of Shual. ¹⁸ The second group went on the Beth Horon road. The third group went on the border road that overlooks the Valley of Zeboim toward the ·desert [wilderness].

¹⁹ The whole land of Israel had no blacksmith because the Philistines had said, “The Hebrews ·might [^Lmust not] make swords and spears.” ²⁰ So all the Israelites had to go down to the Philistines to have their plows, hoes, axes, and sickles sharpened. ²¹ The Philistine blacksmiths charged ·about one-fourth of an ounce of silver [^Ltwo-thirds of a shekel] for sharpening plows and hoes. And they charged ·one-eighth of an ounce of silver [^Lone-third of a shekel] for sharpening picks, axes, and the ·sticks used to guide oxen [goads].

²² So when the battle came, the ·soldiers [people] with Saul and Jonathan had no swords or spears [^Lin their hands]. Only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.

Israel Defeats the Philistines

²³ A ·group from [unit/detachment of] the Philistine army had gone out to the pass at Micmash.

14 One day Jonathan, Saul’s son, said to ·the officer who carried his armor [his armor bearer], “Come, let’s go over to the Philistine ·camp [outpost] on the other side.” But Jonathan did not tell his father.

² Saul was sitting under a pomegranate tree at ·the threshing floor [or Migron] near Gibeah. He had about six hundred men with him. ³ One man was Ahijah who was wearing the ·holy vest [ephod; Ex. 28:6–14]. (Ahijah was a son of Ichabod’s brother Ahitub. Ichabod was the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord’s priest in Shiloh.) No one knew Jonathan had left.

⁴ There was a ·steep slope [rocky crag/cliff] on each side of the pass that Jonathan planned to go through to reach the Philistine ·camp [outpost]. The cliff on one side was named Bozez, and the cliff on the other side was named Seneh. ⁵ One ·cliff [crag] faced north toward Micmash. The other faced south toward Geba.

⁶ Jonathan said to his ·officer who carried his armor [armor bearer], “Come. Let’s go to the ·camp [outpost] of those men who are not circumcised [^CPhilistines were among the few Near Eastern people of the day who did not practice circumcision; it had special significance in Israel; Gen. 17:9–14]. Maybe the Lord will ·help [act/work something for] us. The Lord ·can give us victory if [is able to save/rescue whether] we have many people, or just a few.”

⁷ ·The officer who carried Jonathan’s armor [His armor bearer] said to him, “Do whatever you think is best. Go ahead. ·I’m with you [Our hearts/minds are one].”

⁸ Jonathan said, “Then come. We will cross over to the Philistines and let them see us. ⁹ If they say to us, ‘Stay there until we come to you [^Cin order to kill them],’ we will stay where we are. We won’t go up to them. ¹⁰ But if they say, ‘Come up to us [^Cin order to fight],’ we will climb up, and the Lord will ·let us defeat them [^Lgive them into our hands]. This will be the sign for us.”

¹¹ When they both let the Philistines see them, the Philistines said, “Look! The Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in!” ¹² The Philistines in the ·camp [outpost] shouted to Jonathan and his officer, “Come up to us. ·We’ll teach you a lesson [or We have something to tell/show you]!”

Jonathan said to his ·officer [armor bearer], “Climb up behind me, because the Lord has given the Philistines ·to [^Linto the hands of] Israel!” ¹³ So Jonathan climbed up, using his hands and feet, and his ·officer [armor bearer] climbed just behind him. ·Jonathan struck down the Philistines [^LAnd they fell before Jonathan] as he went, and his ·officer [armor bearer] killed ·them as he followed [those who came from] behind him. ¹⁴ In that first ·fight [attack; slaughter] Jonathan and his officer killed about twenty Philistines over a ·half acre [^Lyoke] of ground.

¹⁵ All the Philistine soldiers panicked—those in the ·camp [outpost] and those in the raiding party. ·The ground itself shook [An earthquake struck]! God had caused the panic.

¹⁶ Saul’s ·guards [watchmen] were at Gibeah in the land of Benjamin when they saw the ·Philistine soldiers [^Lvast army; multitude] ·running in every direction [^Lmelting away, here and there]. ¹⁷ Saul said to his army, “·Check to see who has left our camp [Call the roll and see who has left us].” When they ·checked [called the roll], they learned that Jonathan and his ·officer [armor bearer] were gone.

¹⁸ So Saul said to Ahijah the priest, “Bring the ·Ark of God^[g] [or ephod; ^Csee text note; both are means of discerning God’s will].” (At that time ·it was with [or he was wearing it in front of] the Israelites.) ¹⁹ While Saul was talking to the priest, the confusion in the Philistine camp was growing. Then Saul said to Ahijah, “Put your hand down! [^Cto stop the inquiry of God]”

²⁰ Then Saul ·gathered his army [assembled; gathered] and entered the battle. They found the Philistines [^Ltotally; greatly] confused, striking each other with their swords! ²¹ Earlier, there were Hebrews who had ·served [defected/gone over to] the Philistines and had stayed in their camp, but now they ·joined [went over to] the Israelites with Saul and Jonathan. ²² When all the Israelites hidden in the ·mountains [hill country] of Ephraim heard that the Philistine soldiers were running away, they also joined the battle ·and chased the Philistines [in hot pursuit]. ²³ So the Lord ·saved [rescued; delivered] the Israelites that day, and the battle ·moved on past [spread beyond] Beth Aven.

Saul Makes Another Mistake

²⁴ The men of Israel were ·miserable [exhausted; hard pressed] that day because Saul had ·made an oath for all of them [put them under an oath]. He had said, “No one should eat food before evening and before I ·finish defeating [have had revenge on] my enemies. If he does, he will be cursed!” So no Israelite soldier ate food.

²⁵ Now ·the whole army [^Lall the land] went into the woods, where there was some honey on the ground. ²⁶ ·They came upon some ·honey [honeycomb], but no one ·took any [^Lput his hand to his mouth] because they were afraid of the oath. ²⁷ [But] Jonathan had not heard ·the oath Saul had put on the army [that Saul had bound the people with a vow], so he dipped the end of his ·stick [staff] into the honey and lifted some out and ·ate it [^Lput his hand to his mouth]. Then ·he felt better [his eyes brightened]. ²⁸ Then one of the soldiers told Jonathan, “Your father ·made an oath for all the soldiers [bound the people with a strict oath/vow]. He said any man who eats today will be cursed! That’s why they are so ·weak [weary; faint].”

²⁹ Jonathan said, “My father has made trouble for the land! See how ·much better I feel [^Lmy eyes have brightened] after just tasting a little of this honey! ³⁰ It would have been much better for the men to eat the ·food [plunder; spoil] they took from their enemies today. We could have ·killed [slaughtered] many more Philistines!”

³¹ That day the Israelites ·defeated [attacked; struck down] the Philistines from Micmash to Aijalon. After that, they were very ·tired [weary; faint]. ³² They ·had taken [rushed to the plunder, taking] sheep, ·cattle [oxen], and calves from the Philistines. Now they were so hungry they ·killed [butchered] the animals on the ground and ate them, ·without draining the blood from them [with the blood]! ³³ Someone said to Saul, “Look! The men are sinning against the Lord. ·They’re eating meat without draining the blood from it […by eating with the blood; Gen. 9:4; Deut. 12:23]!”

Saul said, “You ·have sinned [acted treacherously; broken faith]! Roll a large stone over here now!” ³⁴ Then he said, “·Go [Disperse yourselves] ·to [among] the men and tell them that each person must bring his ox and sheep to me and ·kill [slaughter] it here and eat it. Don’t sin against the Lord by eating ·meat without draining the blood from it [with the blood].”

That night everyone brought his ·animals [oxen] and ·killed [slaughtered] them there. ³⁵ Then Saul built an altar to the Lord. It was the first altar he had built to the Lord.

³⁶ Saul said, “Let’s go after the Philistines ·tonight [after dark] and ·rob [plunder; despoil] them. We won’t ·let any of them live [leave one of them]!”

The men answered, “Do whatever you think is best.”

But the priest said, “Let’s ·ask [approach; draw near to] God [^Cby making inquiry through the sacred lots or ephod].”

³⁷ So Saul asked God, “Should I ·chase [^Lgo down after] the Philistines? Will you ·let us defeat them [^Lgive them into Israel’s hand]?” But God did not answer Saul ·at that time [that day]. ³⁸ ·Then [So] Saul said to all the ·leaders [commanders] of his army, “Come here. Let’s find out what sin has been ·done [committed] today [^CSaul believed God had not answered him because of a sin]. ³⁹ As surely as the Lord lives who has ·saved [rescued; delivered] Israel, even if my son Jonathan did the sin, he must die.” But no one ·in the army [of all the people] spoke.

⁴⁰ Then Saul said to all the Israelites, “You stand on this side. I and my son Jonathan will stand on the other side.”

The men answered, “Do whatever you think is best.”

⁴¹ Then Saul prayed to the Lord, the God of Israel, “·Give me the right answer [Let the sacred lots reveal the answer; ^LGive Thummim; ^CSaul is making inquiry through the sacred lots (the Urim and Thummim) as to who sinned; Ex. 28:29–30].”

And Saul and Jonathan were picked; the ·other men went free [people were cleared/went free/escaped blame]. ⁴² Saul said, “Now ·let us discover if it is I or Jonathan my son who is guilty [cast sacred lots between me and Jonathan].” And Jonathan was ·picked [taken].

⁴³ Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.”

So Jonathan told Saul, “I only tasted a little honey from the end of my ·stick [staff]. ·And must I die now [Does that deserve death; or I am ready to die.]?”

⁴⁴ Saul said, “Jonathan, if you don’t die, may God ·punish me terribly [do the same to me, and even more].”

⁴⁵ But the ·soldiers [people] said to Saul, “Must Jonathan die? Never! He is responsible for ·saving [rescuing; delivering; ^Lthis great victory in] Israel today! As surely as the Lord lives, not even a hair of his head will fall to the ground! ·Today Jonathan fought against the Philistines with God’s help […for he has worked with God today]!” So the ·army [people] ·saved [rescued; redeemed] Jonathan, and he did not die.

⁴⁶ Then Saul stopped chasing the Philistines, and they [^Cthe Philistines] went back to their own ·land [territory; ^Lplace].

Saul Fights Israel’s Enemies

⁴⁷ When Saul ·became king [had secured/consolidated his rule/kingship] over Israel, he fought against Israel’s enemies ·all around [on every side]. He fought Moab, the Ammonites, Edom, the ·king [or kings] of Zobah, and the Philistines. Everywhere Saul ·went [^Lturned] he ·defeated [punished; routed] Israel’s enemies. ⁴⁸ He ·fought bravely [performed valiantly] and ·defeated [struck] the Amalekites. He ·saved [rescued; delivered] the Israelites from ·their enemies who had robbed [^Lthe hand of those who plundered/pillaged] them.

⁴⁹ Saul’s sons were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malki-Shua. His ·older [firstborn] daughter was named Merab, and his younger daughter was named Michal. ⁵⁰ Saul’s wife was Ahinoam daughter of Ahimaaz. The commander of his army was Abner son of Ner, Saul’s uncle. ⁵¹ Saul’s father Kish and Abner’s father Ner were sons of Abiel.

⁵² All Saul’s life ·he fought hard against [there was bitter/fierce warfare with] the Philistines. When he saw strong or brave men, he ·took [drafted] them into his ·army [service; 8:11].

Saul Rejected as King

15 Samuel said to Saul, “The Lord sent me to ·appoint [anoint] you king over [^Lhis people] Israel. Now listen to ·his message [^Lthe words of the Lord]. ² This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; of hosts] says: ‘When the Israelites came out of Egypt, the Amalekites ·tried to stop them from going to Canaan [opposed/laid a trap for them; Ex. 17:8–16]. So I will ·punish [settle accounts with] them [Deut. 25:17–19]. ³ Now go, ·attack [crush; ^Lstrike] the Amalekites and ·completely destroy everything they own as an offering devoted to the Lord [devote to destruction; ^CIsrael was commanded to kill all the inhabitants of the land; Deut. 20:15–18]. Don’t ·let anything live [spare anything]. Put to death men and women, children and small babies, ·cattle [ox] and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”

⁴ So Saul ·called [mobilized] the army together at Telaim and ·counted [reviewed] them. There were two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand men from Judah. ⁵ Then Saul went to the city of Amalek and set up an ambush in the ·ravine [valley]. ⁶ He said to the Kenites [Gen. 15:19; Num. 24:21–22; Judg. 4:11; 5:24], “·Go [Move] away. Leave the Amalekites ·so that I won’t [or I will] destroy you with them, because you showed ·kindness [lovingkindness; treaty faithfulness] to the Israelites when they came out of Egypt.” So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites.

⁷ Then Saul ·defeated [^Lstruck] the Amalekites. He fought them all the way from Havilah to Shur, ·at the border [east] of Egypt. ⁸ He ·took [captured] King Agag of the Amalekites alive, but he ·killed all of Agag’s army [totally destroyed all the people; 15:3] with the sword. ⁹ Saul and the ·army let Agag live [people spared Agag], along with the best sheep, [^Loxen,] fat cattle, and lambs. They let every ·good [valuable] animal live, because they did not want to ·destroy them [devote them to destruction; 15:3]. But when they found an animal that was ·weak [despised] or useless, they ·killed it [devoted it to destruction].

¹⁰ Then the Lord spoke his word to Samuel: ¹¹ “I ·am sorry [regret] I made Saul king, because he has ·stopped [turned away from] following me and has not ·obeyed [carried out] my commands.” Samuel was ·upset [distressed; angry; deeply moved], and he cried out to the Lord all night long.

¹² Early the next morning Samuel got up and went to ·meet [find] Saul. But the people told Samuel, “Saul has gone to Carmel, where he has put up a monument ·in his own honor [to himself]. Now he has gone down to Gilgal.”

¹³ When Samuel came to Saul, Saul said, “May the Lord bless you! I have ·obeyed [carried out; upheld] the Lord’s commands.”

¹⁴ But Samuel said, “Then why do I hear ·cattle mooing [oxen lowing] and sheep bleating?”

¹⁵ Saul answered, “The ·soldiers [people] took them from the Amalekites. They saved the best sheep and cattle to offer as sacrifices to the Lord your God, but we ·destroyed [devoted to destruction; 15:3] all the other animals.”

¹⁶ Samuel said to Saul, “·Stop [Enough]! Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.”

Saul answered, “·Tell me [Speak].”

¹⁷ Samuel said, “·Once [Although] you ·didn’t think much of yourself [^Lare/were little/small in your own eyes], but now you have become the ·leader [head] of the tribes of Israel. The Lord ·appointed [anointed] you to be king over Israel. ¹⁸ And he sent you on a mission. He said, ‘Go and ·destroy [devote to destruction; 15:3] those ·evil people [^Lsinners], the Amalekites. Make war on them until all of them are ·dead [wiped out; exterminated; consumed].’ ¹⁹ Why didn’t you obey the [^Lthe voice of the] Lord? Why did you ·take the best things [^Lrush for/pounce on the plunder/spoils]? Why did you do what ·the Lord said was wrong [^Lwas evil in the Lord’s sight/eyes]?”

²⁰ Saul said [^Lto Samuel], “But I did obey [^Lthe voice of] the Lord. I ·did what the Lord told [went on the mission the Lord gave] me to do. I ·destroyed [devoted to destruction; 15:3] all the Amalekites, and I brought back Agag their king. ²¹ The ·soldiers [people] took [^Lfrom the plunder/spoil] the best sheep and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.”

²² But Samuel answered,

²⁴ Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I ·didn’t obey [broke; violated; transgressed] the Lord’s commands and your ·words [instructions]. I was afraid of the people, and I ·did what they said [^Llistened to their voice]. ²⁵ Now, I beg you, ·forgive [pardon] my sin. Come back with me so I may worship the Lord.”

²⁶ But Samuel said to Saul, “I won’t go back with you. You rejected the Lord’s ·command [word], and now he rejects you as king of Israel.”

²⁷ As Samuel turned to leave, Saul ·caught [grabbed] his robe, and it tore. ²⁸ Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors [^CDavid; 16:13] who is better than you. ²⁹ The Lord is the ·Eternal One [or Glory] of Israel. He does not lie or change his mind. He is not a ·human being [mortal], so he does not change his mind.”

³⁰ Saul answered, “I have sinned. But please ·honor [respect] me in front of the elders of my people and in front of the Israelites. Come back with me so that I can worship the Lord your God.” ³¹ So Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

³² Then Samuel said, “Bring me King Agag of the Amalekites.”

Agag came to Samuel ·in chains [or cheerfully; hopefully; or haltingly], but Agag thought, “Surely the ·threat [bitterness] of death has passed. [or Surely, death is bitter].”

³³ Samuel said to him, “Your sword made other mothers ·lose their children [childless]. Now your mother will ·have no children [be childless].” And Samuel ·cut Agag to pieces [butchered Agag] before the Lord at Gilgal.

³⁴ Then Samuel left and went to Ramah, but Saul went up to his home in Gibeah [^Lof Saul]. ³⁵ And Samuel never saw Saul again ·the rest of his life [^Luntil the day of his death], but he ·was sad [mourned; grieved] for Saul. And the Lord ·was very sorry [regretted] he had made Saul king of Israel.

Samuel Goes to Bethlehem

16 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you ·continue to feel sorry [mourn; grieve] for Saul? I have rejected him as king of Israel. Fill your ·container [flask; ^Lhorn] with olive oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse who lives in Bethlehem, because I have ·chosen [selected; found myself] one of his sons to be king.”

² But Samuel said, “·If [^LHow can…?] I go, Saul will hear the news and will try to kill me.”

The Lord said, “Take a ·young calf [heifer] with you. Say, ‘I have come to offer a sacrifice to the Lord.’ ³ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice. Then I will tell you what to do. You must ·appoint [anoint] the one I ·show you [indicate; designate; name; ^Ltell you].”

⁴ Samuel did what the Lord told him to do. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of Bethlehem ·shook with fear [trembled]. They met him and asked, “Are you coming in peace?”

⁵ Samuel answered, “Yes, I come in peace. I have come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. ·Set yourselves apart to the Lord [Consecrate/Purify/Sanctify yourselves] and come to the sacrifice with me.” Then he ·set Jesse and his sons apart to the Lord, [consecrated/purified/sanctified Jesse and his sons] and he invited them to come to the sacrifice.

⁶ When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab, and he thought, “Surely, here stands before me the Lord’s ·appointed [anointed].”

⁷ But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t look at ·how handsome Eliab is [his appearance] or ·how tall he is [his height], because I have ·not chosen [rejected] him. God does not see ·the same way [as] people see. People look at ·the outside of a person [appearances; the outward appearance], but the Lord looks ·at [on] the heart.”

⁸ Then Jesse called Abinadab and told him to ·pass by [walk in front of] Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this man either.” ⁹ Then Jesse had Shammah pass by. But Samuel said, “No, the Lord has not chosen this one.” ¹⁰ Jesse had seven of his sons ·pass by [presented to] Samuel. But Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.”

¹¹ Then he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”

Jesse answered, “I still have the youngest son. He is out taking care of the sheep.”

Samuel said, “Send for him. We will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”

¹² So Jesse sent and had his youngest son brought in. He was ·a fine boy, tanned [dark; ruddy], [^Lwith beautiful eyes] and handsome.

The Lord said to Samuel, “·Go [Rise], ·appoint [anoint] him, because he is the one.”

¹³ So Samuel took the ·container [flask; ^Lhorn] of olive oil and ·poured it on Jesse’s youngest son to appoint [anointed] him in front of his brothers. From that day on, the Lord’s Spirit ·worked in [came powerfully upon] David. Samuel then went back to Ramah.

David Serves Saul

¹⁴ But the Lord’s Spirit ·had left [departed from] Saul, and an ·evil [tormenting] spirit from the Lord ·troubled [terrorized; afflicted] him.

¹⁵ Saul’s servants said to him, “See, an ·evil [tormenting] spirit from God is ·troubling [terrorizing; afflicting] you. ¹⁶ Give ·us [^Lyour servants] the command to look for someone who can play the ·harp [lyre]. When the ·evil [tormenting] spirit from God ·troubles [terrorizes; afflicts] you, he will play, and you will ·feel better [be well].”

¹⁷ So Saul said to his servants, “Find someone who can play well and bring him to me.”

¹⁸ One of the servants said, “I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem play the ·harp [lyre]. He is brave and ·courageous [a warrior]. He ·is a good speaker [or has good judgment] and handsome, and the Lord is with him.”

¹⁹ Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse, saying, “Send me your son David, ·who is with the sheep [the shepherd].” ²⁰ So Jesse loaded a donkey with bread, a ·leather bag [wineskin] full of wine, and a young goat, and he sent them with his son David to Saul.

²¹ When David came to Saul, he ·began to serve him [entered his service; ^Lstood before him]. Saul ·liked David [loved David very much] and made him ·the officer who carried his armor [his armor bearer]. ²² Saul sent a message to Jesse, saying, “Let David ·stay and serve me [remain in my service] because ·I like him [I am pleased with him; ^Lhe has found grace/favor in my sight].”

²³ When the ·evil [tormenting] spirit from God ·troubled [terrorized; afflicted] Saul, David would take his ·harp [lyre] and play. Then the ·evil [tormenting] spirit would leave him, and Saul would feel ·better [refreshed; soothed].

David and Goliath

17 The Philistines ·gathered [assembled; mustered] their armies for ·war [battle]. They ·met [gathered; assembled; mustered] at Socoh in Judah and camped at Ephes Dammim between Socoh and Azekah. ² Saul and the Israelites ·gathered [assembled; mustered] in the Valley of Elah and camped there and ·took their positions [drew up their battle line] to fight the Philistines. ³ The Philistines ·controlled [occupied; stood on] one hill while the Israelites ·controlled [occupied; stood on] another. The valley was between them.

⁴ The Philistines had a champion fighter from Gath named Goliath. He was ·about nine feet, four inches tall [^Lsix cubits and a span].^[h] He came out of the Philistine camp ⁵ with a bronze helmet on his head and a coat of bronze ·armor [mail; scale-armor] that weighed ·about one hundred twenty-five pounds [^Lfive thousand shekels]. ⁶ He wore bronze ·protectors [greaves] on his legs, and he had a bronze spear ·on his back [across his shoulders]. ⁷ The wooden part of his larger spear was like a weaver’s ·rod [beam], and its ·blade [head] weighed ·about fifteen pounds [^Lsix hundred shekels of iron]. The ·officer who carried his shield [shield bearer] walked in front of him.

⁸ Goliath stood and shouted to the ·Israelite soldiers [^Lranks of Israel], “Why have you ·taken positions [lined up] for battle? ·I am [^LAm I not…?] a Philistine, and you are Saul’s servants! Choose a man and send him to fight me. ⁹ If he can fight and kill me, we will be your ·servants [slaves]. But if I can kill him, you will be our ·servants [slaves] [^Land serve us].” ¹⁰ Then he said, “Today I stand and ·dare [defy; challenge] the ·army [ranks] of Israel! ·Send one of your men [^LGive me a man] to fight me!” ¹¹ When Saul and the Israelites heard the Philistine’s words, they were ·very scared [dismayed and terrified].

¹² Now David was the son of Jesse, an Ephrathite from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons. In Saul’s time Jesse was an old man [16:1–13]. ¹³ His three oldest sons followed Saul to the war. The ·first [^Lfirstborn] son was Eliab, the second was Abinadab, and the third was Shammah. ¹⁴ David was the youngest. Jesse’s three oldest sons ·followed [remained with] Saul, ¹⁵ but David went back and forth from Saul to Bethlehem, where he took care of his father’s sheep.

¹⁶ For forty days the Philistine came out every morning and evening and ·stood before the Israelite army [^Ltook his stand].

¹⁷ Jesse said to his son David, “Take [^Lquickly] this ·half bushel [^Lepah] of ·cooked [roasted] grain and ten loaves of bread to your brothers in the camp. ¹⁸ Also take ten ·pieces [cuts] of cheese to the commander [^Lof thousands]. See how your brothers are and bring back some ·proof to show me that they are all right [news/token/assurance of them]. ¹⁹ They are with Saul and the Israelite army in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines.”

²⁰ Early in the morning David left the sheep with ·another shepherd [^La keeper]. He took the food and left as Jesse had ·told [directed; ordered] him. When David arrived at the camp, the army was going out to their battle positions, shouting their war cry. ²¹ The Israelites and Philistines were lining up their men ·to face each other in battle [army against army].

²² David left ·the food [his baggage/bundle/things] with the man who kept the supplies and ran to the battle line to ·talk to [greet; ^Linquire about the welfare of] his brothers. ²³ While he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, came out [^Lfrom the Philistine ranks]. He shouted things against Israel as usual, and David heard him. ²⁴ When the Israelites saw Goliath, they were very much afraid and ·ran away [fled].

²⁵ They said, “·Look at [^LHave you seen…?] this man! He keeps coming out to ·challenge [defy] Israel. The king will give ·much money [a great reward; great wealth] to whoever kills him. He will also let whoever kills him marry his daughter. And his father’s family will ·not have to pay taxes [be made free] in Israel.”

²⁶ David asked the men who stood near him, “What will be done to reward the man who kills this Philistine and takes away ·the shame [this disgrace/reproach] from Israel? Who does this ·uncircumcised [pagan] Philistine think he is? Does he think he can ·speak against [taunt; defy; challenge] the armies of the living God?”

²⁷ The Israelites told David what would be done for the man who would kill Goliath.

²⁸ When David’s oldest brother Eliab heard David talking with the ·soldiers [men], ·he was angry with [^Lhis anger burned against] David. He asked David, “Why did you come here? Who’s taking care of those few sheep of yours in the ·desert [wilderness]? I know you are ·proud [insolent; impudent] and ·wicked at heart [deceitful]. You came down here just to watch the battle.”

²⁹ David asked, “Now what have I done wrong? Can’t I even ·talk [ask a question]?” ³⁰ When he turned [away] to other people and asked the same questions, they gave him the same answer as before. ³¹ ·Yet [Then] what David said was told to Saul, and he sent for David.

³² David said to Saul, “Don’t let anyone ·be discouraged [lose heart because of him]. I, your servant, will go and fight this Philistine!”

³³ Saul answered, “You can’t go out against this Philistine and fight him. You’re only a ·boy [youth]. Goliath has been a warrior since ·he was a young man [his youth].”

³⁴ But David said to Saul, “I, your servant, have been keeping my father’s sheep. When a lion or bear came and ·took [carried off; stole] a ·sheep [lamb] from the flock, ³⁵ I would chase it. I would ·attack [^Lstrike] it and ·save [rescue] the sheep from its ·mouth [jaws]. ·When [If] it ·attacked [turned on] me, I caught it by its ·fur [or jaw] and hit [^Lstruck] it and killed it. ³⁶ I, your servant, have ·killed [^Lstruck] both ·a [the] lion and ·a [the] bear! This ·uncircumcised [pagan] Philistine will be like them, because he has ·spoken against [taunted; defied; challenged] the armies of the living God. ³⁷ The Lord who ·saved [rescued; delivered] me from a lion and a bear will ·save [rescue; deliver] me from this Philistine.”

Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.” ³⁸ Saul put his own ·clothes [tunic] on David. He put a bronze helmet on his head and dressed him in ·armor [mail; a breastplate]. ³⁹ David put on Saul’s sword [^Lover it] and tried to walk around, but he was not used to all the armor Saul had put on him.

He said to Saul, “I can’t go in this, because I’m not used to ·it [them].” Then David took it all off. ⁴⁰ He took his ·stick [staff] in his hand and chose five smooth stones from a ·stream [wadi]. He put them in his shepherd’s bag and grabbed his sling. Then he ·went to meet [walked toward; approached] the Philistine.

⁴¹ At the same time, the Philistine was ·coming closer to [approaching] David. ·The man who held his shield [His shield bearer] walked in front of him. ⁴² When Goliath looked at David and saw that he was only a ·boy [youth], ·tanned [ruddy] and handsome, he looked down on David with ·disgust [contempt; scorn; disdain]. ⁴³ The Philistine said to David, “·Do you think I am [Am I] a dog, that you come at me with a ·stick [staff]?” He used his gods’ names to curse David. ⁴⁴ He said to David, “Come here. I’ll ·feed your body [^Lgive your flesh] to the birds of the air and the wild animals [^Lof the field]!”

⁴⁵ But David said to ·him [the Philistine], “You come to me using a sword ·and two spears [a spear and a javelin]. But I come to you in the name of the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; of hosts], the God of the armies of Israel! You have ·spoken against [taunted; defied; challenged] him. ⁴⁶ Today the Lord will ·hand you over to me [deliver you into my hands], and I’ll ·kill you [^Lstrike you down] and cut off your head. Today I’ll feed the bodies of the Philistine soldiers to the birds of the air and the wild animals. Then all the ·world [earth] will know there is a God in Israel! ⁴⁷ Everyone ·gathered here [in this assembly/crowd] will know the Lord does not need swords or spears to ·save [rescue; deliver] people [Ps. 46:9]. The battle ·belongs to him [is the Lord’s], and he will ·hand you over to us [give you into our hands].”

⁴⁸ As ·Goliath [^Lthe Philistine] came ·near [closer] to attack him, David ran quickly [^Ltoward the battle line] to meet him. ⁴⁹ He took a stone from his bag, put it into his sling, and slung it. The stone hit the Philistine and went deep into his forehead, and Goliath fell facedown on the ground.

⁵⁰ So David ·defeated [triumphed/prevailed over] the Philistine with only a sling and a stone. He hit him and killed him. He did not even have a sword in his hand. ⁵¹ Then David ran and stood ·beside [over] him. He took Goliath’s sword out of its ·holder [sheath] and killed him ·by cutting [or and then cut] off his head.

When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they turned and ·ran [fled]. ⁵² The men of Israel and Judah ·shouted [surged forward with a shout] and chased the Philistines all the way to the entrance of the city of Gath and to the gates of Ekron.

The Philistines’ bodies lay on the Shaaraim road as far as Gath and Ekron. ⁵³ The ·Israelites [^Lsons/^Tchildren of Israel] returned after chasing the Philistines and ·robbed [sacked; plundered] their camp. ⁵⁴ David took Goliath’s head to Jerusalem and put Goliath’s weapons in his own tent.

⁵⁵ When Saul saw David go out to ·meet [fight] Goliath, Saul asked Abner, commander of the army, “Abner, ·who is that young man’s father [whose son is that young boy]?”

Abner answered, “·As surely as you live [^LBy your life/soul], my king, I don’t know.”

⁵⁶ The king said, “Find out whose son ·he [the lad/youth] is.”

⁵⁷ When David came back from ·killing [striking] ·Goliath [the Philistine], Abner brought him to Saul. David was still holding ·Goliath’s [the Philistine’s] head.

⁵⁸ Saul asked him, “Young man, ·who is your father [whose son are you]?”

David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem.”

Saul Fears David

18 When David finished talking with Saul, ·Jonathan felt very close to David [^Lthe life/soul of Jonathan was knit/bound to the life/soul of David]. He loved David as much as ·he loved himself [^Lhis own life/soul]. ² Saul kept David with him from that day on and did not let him go home to his father’s house. ³ Jonathan made an ·agreement [covenant; solemn pact; treaty] with David, because he loved David as much as ·himself [^Lhis own life/soul]. ⁴ He took off his ·coat [robe; ^Cperhaps a royal robe] and gave it to David, along with his ·armor [tunic], including his sword, bow, and belt [^Can expression of loyalty to David and perhaps even giving him the future kingship].

⁵ [^LWherever] Saul sent David ·to fight in different battles, and David [out, he] was very successful. Then Saul put David ·over [in command of] the soldiers, which pleased Saul’s ·officers [servants] and all the other people.

⁶ After David had ·killed [^Lstruck] the Philistine, he and the men returned home. Women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul. They sang songs of joy, danced, and played tambourines and ·stringed [musical] instruments. ⁷ As they played, they sang,

⁸ The women’s ·song upset [refrain/saying displeased/^Lwas evil in the eyes/sight of] Saul, and he became very angry. He thought, “The women ·say David has killed [credit/ascribe to David] tens of thousands, but they ·say I have killed [credit/ascribe to me] only thousands. The only thing left for him to have is the kingdom!” ⁹ So Saul watched David closely from then on, because he was jealous.

¹⁰ The next day an ·evil [tormenting] spirit from God ·rushed upon [overwhelmed; seized; possessed] Saul, and he ·prophesied [or raved madly] in his house. David was playing the harp as he usually did, but Saul had a spear in his hand. ¹¹ Saul threw the spear, thinking, “I’ll pin David to the wall.” But David ·escaped from [eluded] him twice.

¹² The Lord was with David but had ·left [departed/withdrawn/turned away from] Saul. So Saul was afraid of David. ¹³ He sent David away and made him commander of a thousand soldiers. So David led them ·in battle [^Lout and back in]. ¹⁴ He ·had great success [prospered] in everything he did because the Lord was with him. ¹⁵ When Saul saw that David ·was very successful [greatly prospered], he ·feared [dreaded; was in awe of] David even more. ¹⁶ But all the people of Israel and Judah loved David because he led them ·well in battle [^Lout and back in].

Saul’s Daughter Marries David

¹⁷ Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab. I will ·let you marry her [^Lgive her to you as a wife]. ·All I ask is that you remain [or But first you must show yourself] brave [^Lfor me] and fight the Lord’s battles.” Saul thought, “I won’t ·have to kill David [^Lraise a hand against him]. The Philistines will do that.”

¹⁸ But David answered Saul, saying, “Who am I? ·My family is not important enough [What is my father’s family in Israel…?] for me to become the king’s son-in-law.” ¹⁹ So, when the time ·came [should have come] for Saul’s daughter Merab to marry David, Saul gave her instead to Adriel of Meholah [^Las a wife].

²⁰ Now Saul’s other daughter, Michal, loved David. When they told Saul, ·he was pleased [^Lthe matter was right in his eyes]. ²¹ He thought, “I will ·let her marry [^Lgive her to] David. ·Then […so that] she will be a ·trap [snare] for him, and the ·Philistines will defeat him [^Lhand of the Philistines will be against him].” So Saul said to David ·a second time, “You may [You have a second chance to] become my son-in-law.”

²² And Saul ordered his servants to talk with David ·in private [secretly] and say, “Look, the king ·likes [is delighted with] you. His servants love you. You should ·be [become] his son-in-law.”

²³ Saul’s servants said these words ·to [^Lin the ears of] David, but David answered, “Do you think it is ·easy [^La small/trivial thing] to become the king’s son-in-law? I am poor and ·unimportant [have no position/reputation; ^CDavid cannot afford to pay the expected dowry].”

²⁴ When Saul’s servants told him what David had said, ²⁵ Saul said, “Tell David, ‘The king doesn’t want ·money [^La dowry/bride price] for the bride. All he wants is a hundred Philistine foreskins to get ·even with [revenge on] his enemies.’” Saul planned to let ·the Philistines kill David [^LDavid fall at the hands of the Philistines].

²⁶ When Saul’s servants told this to David, ·he was pleased [he was happy/delighted; ^Lthe thing was right in the eyes of David] to become the king’s son-in-law. [^LSo before the days were expired/fulfilled…] ²⁷ He and his men went out and killed two hundred Philistines. David brought all their foreskins [^Land counted them out] to ·Saul [the king] so he could be the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal for his wife. ²⁸ Saul ·saw [realized; ^Lsaw and knew] that the Lord was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David. ²⁹ So he grew even more afraid of David, and he was David’s enemy ·all his life [from then on; ^Lall the days].

³⁰ The Philistine commanders continued to go out to fight the Israelites, but every time, David was more ·skillful [successful; wise] than Saul’s officers. So he became ·famous [highly esteemed; ^Lhis name became extremely valuable].

Saul Tries to Kill David

19 Saul told his son Jonathan and all his servants to kill David, but Jonathan ·liked [delighted in] David very much. ² So he warned David, “My father Saul is ·looking for a chance [^Lseeking] to kill you. ·Watch out [Be on guard] in the morning. Hide in a secret place. ³ I will go out and stand with my father in the field where you are hiding, and I’ll talk to him about you. Then I’ll let you know what I find out.”

⁴ When Jonathan talked to Saul his father, he ·said good things about [spoke well of] David. Jonathan said, “The king should ·do no wrong to [not harm/sin against] your servant David since he has ·done nothing wrong to [not harmed/sinned against] you. What he has done has ·helped [benefited; served] you greatly. ⁵ ·David risked his life [^LHe took his life in his hand] when he ·killed Goliath the Philistine [^Lstruck the Philistine], and the Lord won a great victory for all Israel. You saw it and ·were happy [rejoiced]. Why would you ·do wrong against David? He’s innocent [^L… sin against innocent blood?]. There’s no reason to kill him!”

⁶ Saul listened to Jonathan and then ·made this promise [vowed; swore]: “As surely as the Lord lives, David won’t be put to death.”

⁷ ·So [Afterward] Jonathan called to David and told him everything that had been said. He brought David to Saul, and David ·was with [served] Saul as before.

⁸ When war broke out again, David went out to ·fight [^Lstrike] the Philistines. He ·defeated them [attacked them with great force], and they ran away from him.

⁹ But once again an ·evil [tormenting] spirit from the Lord ·rushed upon [overwhelmed; seized; possessed] Saul as he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand. David was playing the ·harp [lyre]. ¹⁰ Saul tried to pin David to the wall with his spear, but David ·jumped out of the way [slipped away; eluded him]. So Saul’s spear ·went into [stuck in] the wall, and David ·ran away [escaped] that night.

¹¹ Saul sent ·messengers [agents; soldiers] to David’s house to watch it and to kill him in the morning. But Michal, David’s wife, warned him, saying, “Tonight you must ·run for [save] your life. If you don’t, you will be dead in the morning.” ¹² So she let David down out of a window, and he ·ran away [fled] and escaped. ¹³ Then Michal took an ·idol [household image; ^Lteraphim; ^Cprobably household gods; Gen. 31:19], laid it on the bed, covered it with ·clothes [blankets], and put goats’ hair at its head.

¹⁴ Saul sent ·messengers [agents; soldiers] to take David prisoner, but Michal said, “He is sick.”

¹⁵ Saul sent ·them [^Lmessengers; agents; soldiers] back to see David, saying, “Bring him to me on his bed so I can kill him.”

¹⁶ When the ·messengers [agents; soldiers] entered David’s house, they found just an ·idol [household image; 19:13] on the bed with goats’ hair on its head.

¹⁷ Saul said to Michal, “Why did ·you trick [deceive; betray] me this way? You let my enemy go so he could ·run away [escape]!”

Michal answered Saul, “David told me ·if I did not help him escape, he would kill me [^L“Let me go. Why should I kill you?].”

¹⁸ After David had [^Lfled and] escaped from Saul, he went to Samuel at Ramah and told him everything Saul had done to him. Then David and Samuel went to Naioth and stayed there. ¹⁹ Saul heard that David was in Naioth at Ramah. ²⁰ So he sent ·messengers [agents; soldiers] to capture him. But they met a group of prophets ·prophesying [in a frenzy], with Samuel standing there ·leading [in charge of] them. So the Spirit of God ·entered [came upon] Saul’s men, and they also ·prophesied [fell into a frenzy].

²¹ When Saul heard the news, he sent more ·messengers [agents; soldiers], but they also ·prophesied [fell into a frenzy]. Then he sent ·messengers [agents; soldiers] a third time, but they also ·prophesied [fell into a frenzy]. ²² Finally, Saul himself went to Ramah, to the [large; great] well at Secu. He asked, “Where are Samuel and David?”

The people answered, “In Naioth at Ramah.”

²³ When Saul went to Naioth at Ramah, the Spirit of God also ·rushed upon [overwhelmed; seized; possessed] him. And he walked on, ·prophesying [in a frenzy,] until he came to Naioth at Ramah. ²⁴ He ·took [tore; stripped] off his ·robes [clothes] and prophesied in front of Samuel. He lay ·that way [^Lnaked] all day and all night. That is why people ask, “Is ·even [also] Saul one of the prophets?”

Jonathan Helps David

20 Then David ·ran away [fled] from Naioth in Ramah. He went to Jonathan and asked, “What have I done? What is my ·crime [guilt; iniquity]? How did I ·sin against [offend; wrong] your father? Why is he ·trying to kill me [^Lseeking my life]?”

² Jonathan answered, “·No [Never; Far from it]! You won’t die! See, my father doesn’t do anything ·great or small [important or unimportant] without first ·telling [confiding in] me. Why would he ·keep [hide] this from me? It’s not true!”

³ But David ·took an oath [vowed; swore], saying, “Your father knows very well that ·you like me [^LI have found favor in your sight]. He says to himself, ‘Jonathan must not know about it, or he will be ·upset [hurt; grieved].’ As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I am only a step away from death!”

⁴ Jonathan said to David, “I’ll do ·anything you want me to do [^Lfor you whatever you say].”

⁵ So David said, “Look, tomorrow is the New Moon festival [Num. 29:6; 2 Chr. 8:13; Ezra 3:5; Col. 2:16]. I am supposed to eat with the king, but let me hide in the field until the ·third evening [^Levening of the third day]. ⁶ If your father notices I am gone, tell him, ‘David begged ·me to let him go [^Lto hurry/run] to his hometown of Bethlehem. Every year at this time his ·family group [whole clan] offers a sacrifice.’ ⁷ If your father says, ‘·Fine [Very well; Good],’ ·I am safe [^Lyour servant is well]. But if he becomes angry, you will know that he ·wants to hurt me [is determined to harm me; has an evil plan]. ⁸ Jonathan, ·be loyal [show kindness/faithful love] to me, your servant. You have made an ·agreement [covenant; solemn pact] with me before the Lord. If I ·am guilty [have sinned], you may kill me yourself! Why ·hand me over [betray me] to your father?”

⁹ Jonathan answered, “·No, never [^LFar be it from you]! If I learn that my father ·plans to hurt you [^Ldecided on evil], ·I will warn you [wouldn’t I tell you?]!”

¹⁰ David asked, “Who will let me know if your father answers you ·unkindly [harshly]?”

¹¹ Then Jonathan said [^Lto David], “Come, let’s go out into the field.” So the two of them went out into the field.

¹² Jonathan said to David, “·I promise this before [^LBy] the Lord, the God of Israel: ·At [By] this same time ·the day after tomorrow [or tomorrow or the next day], I will ·find out how my father feels [sound out my father]. If he feels good toward you, I will send word to you and let you know. ¹³ But if my father plans to ·hurt [harm; kill] you, I will let you know and send you away safely. May the Lord ·punish me terribly [^Ldeal severely with me, and worse,] if I don’t do this. And may the Lord be with you as he ·has been [used to be] with my father. ¹⁴ ·But show me the kindness of the Lord as long as I live so that I may not die [or If I am still alive, show me the faithful love/loyalty of the Lord. But if I die…] . ¹⁵ You must never ·stop showing [^Lcut off] your ·kindness [faithful love/loyalty] to my ·family [^Lhouse], even when the Lord has ·destroyed [exterminated; ^Lcut off] all your enemies from the [^Lface of the] earth.”

¹⁶ So Jonathan ·made [^Lcut] an ·agreement [covenant; solemn pact] with David. He said, “May the Lord ·hold David’s enemies responsible [or destroy David’s enemies].” ¹⁷ And Jonathan asked David to repeat his ·promise [vow; oath] of love for him, because he loved David as much as he loved ·himself [^Lhis own life/soul].

¹⁸ Jonathan said to David, “Tomorrow is the New Moon festival [20:5]. Your ·seat [place] will be empty, so my father will miss you. ¹⁹ ·On the third day [The day after tomorrow] go to the place where you hid when this trouble began. Wait by the ·rock Ezel [stone pile; mound of rock]. ²⁰ I will shoot three arrows to the side of the rock as if I am shooting at a target. ²¹ Then I will send a boy to find the arrows. If I say to him, ‘The arrows are ·near you [^Lon this side]; bring them here,’ you may come out of hiding. You are safe. As the Lord lives, there is no ·danger [trouble; harm]. ²² But if I say to the ·boy [youngster], ‘Look, the arrows are ·beyond you [further on],’ you must go, because the Lord is sending you away. ²³ Remember ·what we talked about [the promise we made]. The Lord is a witness between you and me forever.”

²⁴ So David hid in the field. When the New Moon festival [20:5] came, the king sat down to eat. ²⁵ He sat where he ·always [usually; customarily] sat, near the wall. Jonathan sat ·across from [facing] him, and Abner sat next to Saul, but David’s place was empty. ²⁶ That day Saul said nothing. He thought, “Maybe something has happened to David so that he is unclean. [^LYes, surely he is unclean; ^Critually unclean so he could not participate in a religious ceremony; Lev. 11–15] ²⁷ But the next day was the second day of the month, and David’s place was still empty. So Saul said to Jonathan, “Why hasn’t the son of Jesse come to the ·feast [meal] yesterday or today?”

²⁸ Jonathan answered [^LSaul], “David begged me to let him go to Bethlehem. ²⁹ He said, ‘Let me go, because our ·family [whole clan] has a sacrifice in the town, and my brother has ·ordered [commanded] me to be there. Now if I ·am your friend [^Lhave found favor in your sight/eyes], please let me go to see my brothers.’ That is why he has not come to the king’s table.”

³⁰ Then Saul ·became very angry with [^Lburned with anger against] Jonathan. He said, “You son of a ·wicked, worthless woman [whore; rebellious slut]! ·I [^LDo I not…?] know you are on the side of David son of Jesse! ·You bring shame on yourself and on your mother who gave birth to you [^L…to your own shame and the shame of your mother’s nakedness]. ³¹ As long as Jesse’s son lives [^Lon this earth], ·you will never be king or have a kingdom [^Lneither you nor your kingdom will be established]. Now send for David and bring him to me. He ·must [deserves to] die!”

³² Jonathan asked his father, “Why should David be killed? What wrong has he done?” ³³ Then Saul threw his spear at Jonathan, ·trying to kill [^Lto strike] him. So Jonathan knew that his father ·really wanted [was determined] to kill David. ³⁴ Jonathan ·was very angry [rose in fierce anger] and left the table. That second day of the ·month [or New Moon festival] he refused to eat. He ·was ashamed of his father and upset over David [grieved at his father’s shameful treatment of David; or grieved for David and because his father had disgraced/insulted/dishonored him].

³⁵ The next morning Jonathan went out to the field to meet David as they had agreed. He had a young boy with him. ³⁶ Jonathan said to the boy, “Run and find the arrows I shoot.” When he ran, Jonathan shot an arrow beyond him. ³⁷ The boy ran to the place where Jonathan’s arrow fell, but Jonathan called, “The arrow is ·beyond [further ahead of] you!” ³⁸ Then he shouted [^Lto the boy], “Hurry! Go quickly! Don’t ·stop [stay; linger]!” The boy picked up the arrow and brought it back to his master. ³⁹ (The boy ·knew nothing about what this meant [suspected nothing]; only Jonathan and David ·knew [understood].) ⁴⁰ Then Jonathan gave his weapons to the boy and told him, “Go [^Lbring them] back to town.”

⁴¹ When the boy left, David came out from the south side of the rock. He bowed facedown on the ground ·before Jonathan three [three] times. Then David and Jonathan kissed each other and cried together, but David cried the more.

⁴² Jonathan said to David, “Go in ·peace [safety]. We have ·promised [vowed; sworn] by the [^Lname of the] Lord ·that we will be friends [to each other]. We said, ‘The Lord will ·be a witness [^Lbe] between you and me, and between our descendants always.’” Then ·David [^Lhe got up and] left, and Jonathan went back to town.

David Goes to See Ahimelech

21 David went to Nob to see Ahimelech the priest. Ahimelech ·shook with fear [trembled; ^Cperhaps rumors of Saul’s displeasure were circulating] when he saw David, and he asked, “Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?”

² David answered him, “The king ·gave me a special order [sent me on a mission; commissioned me]. He told me, ‘No one must know ·what I am sending you to do or what I told you to do [about the mission I am sending you on].’ I told my [^Lyoung] men ·where to meet me [to meet me at a certain place]. ³ Now, what ·food do you have with you [^Lis at hand]? Give me five loaves of bread or anything you find.”

⁴ The priest said to David, “I don’t have any ·plain [ordinary; regular] bread here, but I do have some ·holy [consecrated; holy] bread [^Cfrom the Table of Presence; Ex. 25:23–30]. You may eat it if your men have ·kept themselves from [not recently slept with] women [^Csexual relations rendered a man ritually unclean; Lev. 15:16–18].”

⁵ David answered [^Lthe priest and said to him], “No women have been near us ·for days [or as usual on a campaign]. My men always keep ·themselves [their bodies/^Lvessels] holy, even ·when we do ordinary work [on an ordinary/common journey]. And this is especially true when the ·work [journey] is holy.”

⁶ So the priest gave David the ·holy [consecrated] bread ·from the presence of God [—the bread of the Presence—] because there was no other. Each day the holy bread was replaced with ·hot [fresh] bread.

⁷ One of Saul’s servants happened to be there that day. He had been ·held there [detained] before the Lord [^Cfor some unspecified ritual purpose]. He was Doeg the Edomite, the chief of Saul’s shepherds.

⁸ David asked Ahimelech, “Do you have a spear or sword here? The king’s business was very ·important [urgent], so I ·left without [brought neither…nor] my sword or any other weapon.”

⁹ The priest answered, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, the one you ·killed [^Lstruck] in the Valley of Elah [ch. 17], is here. It is wrapped in a cloth behind the ·holy vest [ephod; Ex. 28:6–14]. If you want it, you may take it. There’s no other sword here but that one.”

David said, “There is ·no other sword [none] like it. Give it to me.”

David Goes to Gath

¹⁰ That day David ·ran away [^Lfled] from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath [^Ca major Philistine town]. ¹¹ But the servants of Achish said to him, “·This is [^LIsn’t this…?] David, the king of the ·Israelites [^Lland]. ·He’s [^LIsn’t he…?] the man they dance and sing about, saying:

¹² David ·paid attention to [^Ltook to heart] these words and was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath. ¹³ So he ·pretended to be crazy in front of Achish and his servants [^Lchanged his behavior in their eyes/presence]. ·While he was with them [^LIn their hands], he acted like a madman and ·clawed [scratched; scribbled] on the doors of the gate and ·let spit run [drooled] down his beard.

¹⁴ Achish said to his servants, “Look at the man! He’s crazy! Why do you bring him to me? ¹⁵ ·I [Don’t I…?] have enough madmen. I don’t need you to bring him here to act like this in front of me! ·Don’t let him in [Must this one come into…?] my house!”

David at Adullam and Mizpah

22 David ·left Gath [^Lwent from there] and ·escaped to [took refuge in] the cave of Adullam [^Cin the lowlands of Judah, southwest of Jerusalem]. When his brothers and ·other relatives [^Lhis father’s household] heard that he was there, they went to ·see him [join him; ^Lhim]. ² Everyone who was in ·trouble [distress], or ·who owed money [in debt], or who was ·unsatisfied [discontented; had a grievance] gathered around David, and he became their ·leader [captain; commander]. About four hundred men were with him.

³ From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and spoke to the king of Moab. He said, “Please let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God ·is going [intends] to do for me.” ⁴ So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was hiding in the stronghold.

⁵ But the prophet Gad said to David, “Don’t stay in the stronghold. ·Go [Return] to the land of Judah.” So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.

Saul Destroys Ahimelech’s Family

⁶ Saul heard that David and his men had been ·seen [discovered; located]. Saul was sitting under the tamarisk tree on the hill at Gibeah, and all his officers were standing around him. He had a spear in his hand. ⁷ Saul said to them, “·Listen [Hear now], men of Benjamin! Do you think the son of Jesse will give all of you fields and vineyards? Will David make you commanders over thousands of men or hundreds of men? ⁸ ·You have all made plans [^LIs that why you have all conspired…?] against me! No one tells me when my son makes an ·agreement [covenant; solemn pact; treaty] with the son of Jesse! No one ·cares about [feels sorry/pity for] me! No one tells me when my son has ·encouraged [stirred up; incited] my servant to ·ambush [lie in wait for] me this very day!”

⁹ Doeg the Edomite, who was standing there with Saul’s ·officers [officials; servants], said, “I saw the son of Jesse. He came to see Ahimelech son of Ahitub at Nob. ¹⁰ Ahimelech ·prayed to [consulted; inquired of] the Lord for David and gave him ·food [provisions] and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”

¹¹ Then the king sent for the priest Ahimelech son of Ahitub and for all of ·Ahimelech’s relatives [^Lhis father’s household] who were priests at Nob. And they all came to the king. ¹² Saul said to Ahimelech, “Listen now, son of Ahitub.”

Ahimelech answered, “·Yes, master [^LHere I am, my lord/king].”

¹³ Saul said, “Why ·are [have] you and Jesse’s son [^Lconspired] against me? You gave him bread and a sword! You ·prayed to [consulted; inquired of] God for him. David has ·turned [rebelled; conspired; ^Lrisen up] against me and is ·waiting [lying in wait/ambush] ·to attack [for] me even now!”

¹⁴ Ahimelech answered [^Lthe king], “·You have no other servant who [^LWho of all your servants…?] is as ·loyal [faithful] as David, your own son-in-law and captain of your bodyguards. Everyone in your house ·respects [honors] him. ¹⁵ ·That was not [^LWas today…?] the first time I ·prayed to [consulted; inquired of] God for David. Don’t ·blame [accuse; charge] me or any of my relatives. I, your servant, know nothing about ·what is going on [all this; this whole affair].”

¹⁶ But the king said, “Ahimelech, you and all your ·relatives [^Lfather’s household] ·must [will surely] die!” ¹⁷ Then he told the ·guards [or bodyguard] at his side, “·Go [Turn; Forward] and kill the priests of the Lord, because ·they are on David’s side [^Ltheir hand is with David]. They knew he was running away, but they didn’t ·tell [warn] me.”

But the king’s ·officers [^Lservants] refused to ·kill [attack; raise a hand against] the priests of the Lord.

¹⁸ Then the king ordered Doeg, “·Go [Turn; Forward] and ·kill [attack; strike] the priests.” So Doeg the Edomite ·went [turned] and ·killed [attacked; struck] the priests. That day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ·holy vest [ephod; ^Ca distinctively priestly garment; Ex. 28:6–14]. ¹⁹ He also ·killed [struck; put to the sword] the people of Nob, the city of the priests. With the sword he killed men, women, children, babies, ·cattle [oxen], donkeys, and sheep.

²⁰ But Abiathar, a son of Ahimelech, who was the son of Ahitub, escaped. He ·ran away [fled] and joined David. ²¹ He told David that Saul had killed the Lord’s priests. ²² Then David told him, “Doeg the Edomite was there at Nob that day. I knew he would surely tell Saul. So I ·am responsible for [caused] the death of all your father’s ·family [household]. ²³ Stay with me. Don’t be afraid. The man who ·wants to kill you [^Lseeks your life] also ·wants to kill me [^Lseeks my life]. You will be safe with me.”

David Saves the People of Keilah

23 ·Someone told [News came to; ^LThey told] David, “Look, the Philistines are fighting ·against [at] Keilah and ·stealing grain from [^Lrobbing; plundering; looting] the threshing floors.”

² David ·asked [inquired of] the Lord, “Should I go and ·fight [attack; ^Lstrike] these Philistines?”

The Lord answered him, “Go. ·Attack [^LStrike] the Philistines, and ·save [rescue; deliver] Keilah.”

³ But David’s men said to him, “We’re afraid here in Judah. We will be more afraid if we go to Keilah ·where the Philistine army is [^Lagainst the ranks of the Philistines].”

⁴ David ·again asked [inquired again of] the Lord, and the Lord [^Lagain] answered, “Go down to Keilah. I will ·help you defeat [^Lgive into your hand] the Philistines.” ⁵ So David and his men went to Keilah and fought the Philistines and took their cattle. David ·killed [slaughtered] many Philistines and ·saved [rescued; delivered] the people of Keilah. ⁶ (Now Abiathar son of Ahimelech had brought the ·holy vest [ephod] ·with him [^Lin his hand] when he came to David at Keilah [^Cthe ephod probably held the Urim and Thummim used to determine God’s will; Ex. 28:30].)

Saul Chases David

⁷ Someone told Saul that David was now at Keilah. Saul said, “God has ·handed David over to me [^Lmade a stranger of him into my hand; ^Cthe Hebrew is obscure]! He has ·trapped [imprisoned] himself, because he has entered a town with gates and bars [^CSaul could lay siege to such a town].” ⁸ Saul called all his army together for battle, and they prepared to go down to Keilah to ·attack [^Lbesiege] David and his men.

⁹ David learned Saul was ·making evil plans [plotting evil] against him. So he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ·holy vest [ephod].” ¹⁰ David prayed, “Lord, God of Israel, ·I have [^Lyour servant has] heard that Saul plans to come to Keilah to destroy the town because ·of me [I am here]. ¹¹ Will the ·leaders [citizens; men] of Keilah ·hand me over [surrender/betray me] to Saul? Will Saul come down to Keilah, as I heard? Lord, God of Israel, tell me, your servant!”

The Lord answered, “Saul will come down.”

¹² Again David asked, “Will the ·leaders [citizens; men] of Keilah ·hand [surrender; betray] me and my men over to Saul?”

The Lord answered, “They will [^Lsurrender/betray you].”

¹³ So David and his six hundred men left Keilah and ·kept moving from place to place [^Lwent/roamed wherever they could]. When Saul found out that David had escaped from Keilah, he ·did not go there [gave up pursuit/the campaign].

¹⁴ David stayed in the ·desert [wilderness] ·hideouts [strongholds] and in the hills of the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Ziph. Every day Saul looked for David, but the Lord did not ·surrender David to him [^Lgive David into his hand].

¹⁵ While David was at Horesh in the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Ziph, he learned that Saul was coming to kill him. ¹⁶ But Saul’s son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and ·strengthened his faith [encouraged him; ^Lstrengthened his hand] in God. ¹⁷ Jonathan told him, “Don’t be afraid, because [^Lthe hand of] my father Saul won’t ·touch [^Lfind] you. You will be king of Israel, and I will be ·second [next] to you. Even my father Saul knows this.” ¹⁸ The two of them ·made [^Lcut] an ·agreement [covenant; solemn pact] before the Lord. Then Jonathan went home, but David stayed at Horesh.

¹⁹ The people from Ziph went to Saul at Gibeah and told him, “David is hiding in our land. He’s at the ·hideouts [strongholds] of Horesh, on the hill of Hakilah, ·south of [in the southern part of] Jeshimon. ²⁰ Now, our king, come down ·anytime you want [whenever you’re ready]. It’s our duty to hand David over to you.”

²¹ Saul answered, “The Lord bless you for ·helping [^Lshowing concern for; having compassion on] me. ²² Go and ·learn more about him [make sure]. ·Find out [Investigate] where he is staying and who has seen him there. I have heard that he is ·clever [very cunning/crafty]. ²³ Find all the hiding places he uses, and come back ·and tell me everything [when you are sure; with definite information]. Then I’ll go with you. If David is in the ·area [land], I will ·track him down [search him out] among all the ·families [clans; or thousands] in Judah.”

²⁴ So they went back to Ziph ahead of Saul. Now David and his men were in the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Maon^[i] in the ·desert [wilderness] area south of Jeshimon. ²⁵ Saul and his men went to look for David, but David heard about it and went down to ·a [the great] rock and stayed in the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Maon. When Saul heard that, he ·followed [pursued] David into the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Maon.

²⁶ Saul was going along one side of the mountain, and David and his men were on the other side. They were hurrying to get away from Saul, because Saul and his men were ·closing in on [surrounding] them. ²⁷ But a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Come quickly! The Philistines are ·attacking [raiding] our land!” ²⁸ So Saul stopped chasing David and went to ·challenge [meet; oppose] the Philistines. That is why people call this place Rock of ·Parting [Escape; or Separations]. ²⁹ David also left the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Maon and stayed in the ·hideouts [strongholds] of En Gedi.

David Shames Saul

24 After Saul returned from chasing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the ·Desert [Wilderness] of En Gedi.” ² So he took three thousand ·chosen men [elite soldiers] from all Israel and began looking for David and his men near the ·Rocks [Crags] of the ·Wild [Mountain] Goats.

³ Saul came to the sheep ·pens [folds] ·beside the road [along the way]. A cave was there, and he went in to ·relieve himself [^Lcover his feet]. Now David and his men were hiding ·far back in [in the inner recesses of] the cave. ⁴ The men said to David, “Today is the day the Lord spoke of when he said, ‘I will give your enemy ·over to you [^Linto your hand]. ·Do anything you want with him [Deal with him as you wish/as is good in your eyes].’”

Then David crept up to Saul and ·quietly [secretly; stealthily] cut off ·a corner [the border/edge/hem] of Saul’s robe. ⁵ Later ·David felt guilty [David’s conscience bothered him; ^Lthe heart/mind of David struck him] because he had cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. ⁶ He said to his men, “May the Lord ·keep [forbid; preserve] me from doing such a thing to my master! Saul is the Lord’s ·appointed king [anointed]. I should not ·do anything [raise/^Lsend my hand] against him, because he is the Lord’s ·appointed king [anointed]!” ⁷ David used these words to ·stop [restrain; persuade; rebuke; scold] his men; he did not let them attack Saul. Then Saul left the cave and went his way.

⁸ When David came out of the cave, he ·shouted [called] to Saul, “My ·master [lord] ·and [the] king!” Saul looked back, and David bowed ·facedown [prostrate] on the ground. ⁹ He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when people say, ‘David wants to harm you’? ¹⁰ You have seen ·something with [with] your own eyes today. ·The […how the] Lord ·put you in my power [^Lgave you into my hand] in the cave. ·They [Some] said I should kill you, but I ·was merciful [pitied/spared you]. I said, ‘I won’t ·harm [raise/^Lsend my hand against] my master, because he is the Lord’s ·appointed king [anointed].’ ¹¹ My father, look at this ·piece [border; edge; hem] of your robe in my hand! I cut off the ·corner [border; edge; hem] of your robe, but I didn’t kill you. ·Now understand and know [This proves] ·I am not planning any evil [there is no wrong or rebellion/treason] against you. I ·did nothing wrong to [have not sinned against] you, but you are hunting me to ·kill me [^Ltake my life]. ¹² May the Lord judge between us, and may he ·punish [avenge me on] you for the wrong you have done to me! But I ·am not against you [will not harm you/lay a hand on you]. ¹³ There is an old ·saying [proverb]: ‘Evil ·things [deeds] come ·from [out of] evil people.’ ·But [So] I ·am not [will not harm/raise my hand] against you. ¹⁴ Whom is the king of Israel ·coming out against [attacking]? Whom are you ·chasing [pursuing]? ·It’s as if you are chasing a [A…?] dead dog or a flea. ¹⁵ May the Lord be our judge and decide ·between you and me [which of us is right]. May he ·support me [consider/see me] and ·show that I am right [uphold/plead my cause]. May he ·save [rescue; deliver] me from ·you [^Lyour hand/power]!”

¹⁶ When David finished saying these words, Saul asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And he cried loudly. ¹⁷ He said, “You are ·a better man [more righteous] than I am. You have ·been good [behaved well; ^Lrepaid good] to me, but I have ·done wrong [behaved badly; ^Lrepaid evil] to you. ¹⁸ You [^Lhave just] told me what good things you did [^Lto me]. The Lord handed me over to you, but you did not kill me. ¹⁹ ·People don’t normally let an enemy get away like this, do they [^LFor who has found his enemy and sends him on his way safely]? May the Lord reward you ·because you were good to [or with good for what you have done for] me today. ²⁰ I [^Lnow] know you will surely be king, and ·you will rule [in your hand will be established] the kingdom of Israel. ²¹ Now swear to me by the Lord that you will not ·kill [^Lcut off] my ·descendants [^Lseed] and that you won’t wipe out my name from my father’s ·family [household; ^Cby killing all Saul’s children].”

²² So David ·made the promise [swore] to Saul. Then Saul went back home, and David and his men went up to their ·hideout [stronghold].

Nabal Insults David

25 Now Samuel died, and all the Israelites ·met [^Lgathered; assembled] and ·had a time of sadness [mourned] for him. Then they buried him at his home in Ramah.

David moved to the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Maon.^{[j] 2} A man in Maon who had ·land [business] at Carmel was very rich. He had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. He was ·cutting the wool off his sheep [having his sheep shorn] at Carmel. ³ His name was Nabal [^Cmeaning “Fool” in Hebrew], and he was a descendant of Caleb [Num. 13:6, 30; 14:6, 24, 30; Josh. 14:6; 15:14; Judg. 1:12–20]. His wife was named Abigail. She was ·wise [intelligent; clever; sensible] and beautiful, but Nabal was ·cruel [harsh; crude; surly] and mean. He was a Calebite.

⁴ While David was in the ·desert [wilderness], he heard that Nabal was ·cutting the wool from [shearing] his sheep. ⁵ So he sent ten young men and told them, “Go to Nabal at Carmel, and greet him ·for me [^Lin my name]. ⁶ Say to Nabal, ‘May you and your ·family [^Lhouse] and all who belong to you have ·good health [long life; peace; prosperity]! ⁷ I have heard that you are ·cutting the wool from [shearing] your sheep. When your shepherds were with us, we did not ·harm [mistreat] them. All the time your shepherds were at Carmel, ·we stole nothing from them [they missed/lost nothing]. ⁸ Ask your ·servants [^Lyoung men], and they will tell you. We come at a ·happy time [feast day; festive time], so ·be kind [show favor] to my young men. Please give anything [^Cprovisions] you ·can find [have at hand] for them and for your son David.’”