Saul Disobeys the Lord

15 Samuel told Saul, “The Lord sent me to anoint you king over his people, Israel. Now listen to the words^[a] of the Lord. ² This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘I’ll punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, when he set himself against Israel^[b] in the way, as they were going up from Egypt. ³ Now, go and attack Amalek. Completely destroy^[c] all that they have. Don’t spare them, but put to death both man and woman, child and infant, both ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’”

⁴ Saul summoned the people and mustered them in Telaim, 200,000 foot soldiers and 10,000 men from Judah. ⁵ Saul came to the city of Amalek and set an ambush in the valley. ⁶ Saul told the Kenites, “Withdraw from the Amalekites so that I don’t destroy you with them, for you showed kindness to all the Israelis when they departed from Egypt.” So the Kenites withdrew from the Amalekites. ⁷ Saul attacked the Amalekites from Havilah to Shur, which is east of Egypt. ⁸ He captured alive Agag king of Amalek, but he completely destroyed all the people, executing them with swords. ⁹ Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle—the fattened animals and lambs—along with all that was good. They were not willing to completely destroy them, but they did completely destroy everything that was worthless and inferior.

The Lord Rejects Saul

¹⁰ This message from the Lord came to Samuel: ¹¹ “I regret that I made Saul king, because he has turned away from following me and has not carried out my commands.” Samuel was angry, and he cried out to the Lord all night.

¹² Samuel got up early in the morning to meet Saul, but Samuel was told, “Saul went up to Carmel to set up a monument for himself. Then he turned around and traveled on to Gilgal.”

¹³ Samuel approached Saul. “May the Lord bless you,” Saul said. “I’ve carried out the Lord’s command.”

¹⁴ Samuel said, “Then what is this bleating of sheep in my ears and the lowing of cattle that I hear?”

¹⁵ Saul replied, “They brought them from the Amalekites. The people spared the best of the sheep and cattle to offer sacrifices to the Lord your God, and the rest they completely destroyed.”

¹⁶ “Be quiet!” Samuel said. “I’ll tell you what the Lord told me last night.”

Saul told him, “Speak.”

¹⁷ So Samuel replied, “Is it not true that though you were small in your own eyes you became head of the tribes of Israel, and the Lord anointed you king over Israel? ¹⁸ The Lord sent you on a mission: ‘Go and completely destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they’re destroyed.’ ¹⁹ Why didn’t you obey the Lord, but grabbed the spoil and did evil in the Lord’s sight?”

²⁰ Saul told Samuel, “I did obey the Lord. I went on the mission on which the Lord sent me, I brought Agag king of Amalek, and I completely destroyed the Amalekites. ²¹ The people took some of the spoil—sheep, cattle, and the best of what was to be completely destroyed—to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.”

²² Samuel said,

²⁴ “I’ve sinned,” Saul replied to Samuel. “I’ve broken the Lord’s command and your word, because I was afraid of the people and listened to them. ²⁵ Now, please forgive my sin and return with me so I may worship the Lord.”

²⁶ Samuel told Saul, “I won’t return with you because you have rejected the message from the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”

²⁷ As Samuel turned to go Saul^[e] seized him by the corner of his robe, and it tore. ²⁸ Samuel told him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you today, and he has given it to your neighbor who is better than you. ²⁹ Moreover, the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind, for he’s not a man that he should change his mind.”

³⁰ “I’ve sinned,” Saul^[f] said. “But please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me so I may worship the Lord your God.” ³¹ Samuel returned, following Saul, and Saul worshipped the Lord.

Samuel Executes King Agag

³² Then Samuel said, “Bring Agag king of Amalek to me.”

Agag came to him in fetters, saying to himself,^[g] “Surely the bitterness of death is past.”

³³ Samuel said, “Just as your sword has made women childless, so your mother will be childless among women.” Then Samuel cut Agag into pieces in the Lord’s presence in Gilgal.

³⁴ Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went to his house in Gibeah of Saul. ³⁵ Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul, and the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.

David Anointed to Succeed Saul

16 The Lord told Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I’ve rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I’m sending you to Jesse from Bethlehem because I’ve chosen for myself one of his sons as king.”

² Samuel said, “How can I go? Saul will hear about this^[h] and kill me!”

The Lord said, “Take a heifer^[i] with you and say, ‘I’ve come to offer a sacrifice to the Lord.’ ³ You are to invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I’ll show you what you are to do. You are to anoint for me the one I tell you.”

⁴ Samuel did what the Lord said and went to Bethlehem. The elders of the town came out to meet him trembling, and said, “May your coming be in peace.”

⁵ He said, “Peace, I’ve come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” Samuel^[j] consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

⁶ When they arrived, Samuel^[k] saw Eliab, and said, “Surely he’s the Lord’s^[l] anointed.”^[m]

⁷ The Lord told Samuel, “Don’t look at his appearance or his height,^[n] for I’ve rejected him. Truly, God does not see^[o] what man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord sees the heart.”

⁸ Then Jesse summoned Abinadab and brought him before Samuel, and he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” ⁹ Then Jesse brought Shammah, and he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” ¹⁰ Jesse brought seven of his sons before Samuel, and Samuel told Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.”

¹¹ Then Samuel told Jesse, “Are these all the young men?” He said, “There yet remains the youngest one, and right now he’s tending the sheep.” Samuel told Jesse, “Send someone to get him,^[p] for we won’t do anything else^[q] until he arrives here.” ¹² So he sent and brought him. He had a dark, healthy complexion, with beautiful eyes, and he was handsome. The Lord said, “Get up and anoint him, for this is the one.”

God’s Spirit Comes on David and Departs from Saul

¹³ Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David^[r] in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord came on David from that day forward. Then Samuel got up and went to Ramah.

¹⁴ The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him. ¹⁵ Saul’s servants told him, “Look, an evil spirit from God is troubling you. ¹⁶ Let our lord order his servants who attend you^[s] to look for a man who is skilled in playing the lyre. And then when an evil spirit from God comes on you, he will play^[t] and you will be better.”

¹⁷ Saul told his servants, “Find^[u] a man for me who can play well and bring him to me.”

¹⁸ One of the young men answered: “Look, I’ve seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is skilled in playing. The man is a valiant soldier, gifted in speech, and handsome. And the Lord is with him.”

¹⁹ So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.”

²⁰ Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a container of wine, and one kid, and sent them to Saul along with his son David. ²¹ David went to Saul and began to serve him.^[v] Saul loved him very much, and he became his armor bearer. ²² Saul sent a messenger^[w] to Jesse to tell him, “Allow David to serve me, because I’m pleased with him.”^{[x] 23} Whenever an evil^[y] spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the lyre and play it.^[z] Relief would come to Saul and he would be better, because the evil spirit would leave him.

Goliath Challenges the Israelis

17 The Philistines assembled their army for battle. They were assembled at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and they camped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. ² Saul and the Israelis assembled and camped in the valley of Elah, where they set up their forces to meet the Philistines. ³ The Philistines were standing on the hill on one side while the Israelis were standing on the hill on the other side, with the valley between them.

⁴ A champion named Goliath from Gath came out from the Philistine camp. He was four cubits and a span^[aa] tall, ⁵ wore a bronze helmet on his head, and wore bronze scale armor that weighed about 5,000 shekels.^{[ab] 6} He had bronze armor on his legs^[ac] and carried a bronze javelin slung^[ad] between his shoulders. ⁷ The shaft of his spear was like a weaver’s beam and the iron point of his spear weighed 600 shekels.^[ae] A man carrying his shield walked in front of him.

⁸ He stood still and called out to the ranks of Israel, “Why should you move into position for battle? Am I not a Philistine and you Saul’s servants? Choose a man for yourselves to come down against me. ⁹ If he’s able to fight me and strike me down, then we will become your servants; but if I prevail against him and strike him down, then you will become our servants and serve us.” ¹⁰ The Philistine said, “I defy^[af] the ranks of Israel today. Send me one man and let’s fight together.” ¹¹ When Saul and all the Israelis heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and very frightened.

David Comes to the Camp

¹² David was the son of that Ephrathite man named Jesse from Bethlehem in Judah. He had eight sons; at the time when Saul was king he was old, having lived to an advanced age. ¹³ The three oldest sons of Jesse followed Saul into battle. The names of his three sons who went to the battle were his firstborn Eliab, Abinadab, his second son, and Shammah, the third. ¹⁴ David was the youngest, while the three oldest had followed Saul. ¹⁵ And David would go back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s sheep in Bethlehem. ¹⁶ For 40 days the Philistine would come forward, morning and evening, to take his position.

¹⁷ Jesse told his son David, “Take this ephah^[ag] of roasted grain to your brothers, along with these ten loaves of bread, and quickly take them to your brothers in the camp. ¹⁸ Take these ten pieces of cheese to the commander of the unit,^[ah] check on the well-being of your brothers, and bring something back from them. ¹⁹ Saul, your brothers,^[ai] and all the men of Israel are in the valley of Elah fighting with the Philistines.” ²⁰ David got up early in the morning, left the sheep with a keeper, took the supplies,^[aj] and went as Jesse had directed him. He arrived at the encampment^[ak] as the army was going out to the battle line, shouting the battle cry.

David Hears Goliath’s Challenge

²¹ Israel and the Philistines moved into position for battle, battle line facing battle line. ²² David left the supplies he had with him in the care of the supply keeper and ran to the battle line. When he arrived there, he asked his brothers about their well-being. ²³ As he was speaking with them, the Philistine champion named Goliath from Gath came up from the Philistine battle lines and spoke his usual words,^[al] as David listened. ²⁴ When all the Israelis saw the man, they fled from him and were very frightened.

²⁵ “Did all of you see this man coming up?” one Israeli asked. “He comes up to defy^[am] Israel, and the king will richly reward the man who kills him. He will give his daughter to him and will make his father’s house tax^[an] free in Israel.”

²⁶ David asked the men who were standing by him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? Indeed, who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy^[ao] the armies of the living God?”

²⁷ The people also told him the same thing,^[ap] saying, “This is what will be done for the man who kills him.”

²⁸ Eliab his oldest brother heard him talking to the men. Eliab was angry with David and said, “Why did you come down here? And who did you leave those few sheep with in the wilderness? I know your insolence and wicked intentions.^[aq] You came down just to see the battle!”

²⁹ “What have I done now?” David asked. “It was just a question,^[ar] wasn’t it?” ³⁰ Then he turned from him toward another person and asked the same thing. The people replied to him the same way as the first one had.

David Accepts the Challenge

³¹ When the words that David had spoken were heard, they were reported to Saul, and he sent for him. ³² David told Saul, “Let no one’s courage^[as] fail because of him; your servant will go fight this Philistine.”

³³ Saul told David, “You can’t go against this Philistine and fight him. You are only a young man, but he has been a warrior since his youth.”

³⁴ David told Saul, “Your servant has been a shepherd for his father. When a lion or bear came and took a lamb from the flock, ³⁵ I would go out after it, strike it down, and rescue the lamb^[at] from its mouth. Then when it rose up against me, I would grab it by its fur,^[au] strike it down, and kill it. ³⁶ Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he defied^[av] the armies of the living God.” ³⁷ David continued, “The Lord who delivered me from the power of^[aw] the lion and the power of^[ax] the bear will also deliver me from the power of^[ay] this Philistine.”

Saul told David, “Go! And may the Lord be with you.”

³⁸ Saul put his garments on David, set a bronze helmet on his head, and put armor on him. ³⁹ David strapped Saul’s^[az] sword over his garments and tried to walk, but^[ba] he was not used to the armor.^[bb] David told Saul, “I can’t walk in these because I’m not used to them,”^[bc] and then took them off. ⁴⁰ He took his staff in his hand and chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook and put them in the pouch in his shepherd’s bag. He approached the Philistine with his sling in his hand.

David Defeats Goliath

⁴¹ With a man carrying his shield in front of him, the Philistine kept coming closer to David. ⁴² When the Philistine looked and saw David, he had contempt for him, because he was only a young man. David had a dark, healthy complexion and was handsome. ⁴³ The Philistine asked David, “Am I a dog that you come at me with sticks?” Then the Philistine cursed David by his own gods and ⁴⁴ told David, “Come to me! I’ll give your flesh to the birds of the sky and to the beasts of the field.”

⁴⁵ Then David told the Philistine, “You come at me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of the armies of Israel whom you have defied.^{[bd] 46} This very day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I’ll strike you down and remove your head from you. And this very day I’ll give the dead bodies of the Philistine army to the birds of the sky and to the animals of the earth, so that all the earth will know that there is a God in Israel, ⁴⁷ and this whole congregation will know that the Lord does not deliver by sword or spear. Indeed, the battle is the Lord’s and he will give you into our hands.”

⁴⁸ When the Philistine got up and came closer to meet David, David quickly ran to the battle line to meet the Philistine. ⁴⁹ David reached his hand into the bag, took out a stone, slung it, and struck the Philistine in his forehead. The stone sunk into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground. ⁵⁰ David defeated the Philistine with a sling and a stone; he struck down the Philistine and killed him, and there was no sword in David’s hand. ⁵¹ David ran and stood over the Philistine. He took the Philistine’s^[be] sword, pulled it from its sheath, killed him, and then he cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. ⁵² The men of Israel and Judah got up with a shout and pursued the Philistines as far as the entrance to^[bf] the valley and to the gates of Ekron. Wounded Philistines fell along the way to Shaaraim as far as Gath and Ekron. ⁵³ The Israelis returned from pursuing the Philistines and plundered their camp. ⁵⁴ David took the Philistine’s head and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put Goliath’s^[bg] weapons in his tent.

⁵⁵ When Saul saw David going out to meet the Philistine, he asked Abner, the commander of the army, “Whose son is this young man, Abner?”

Abner said, “As surely as you live, your majesty, I don’t know.”

⁵⁶ The king replied, “Go find out whose son the young man is.”

⁵⁷ When David returned from striking down the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him to Saul with the Philistine’s head in his hand. ⁵⁸ Saul told him, “Whose son are you, young man?”

David said, “The son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem.”

Jonathan and David’s Friendship

18 When David finished speaking with Saul, Jonathan became a close friend to David,^[bh] and Jonathan^[bi] loved him as himself. ² Saul took David^[bj] that day and did not let him return to his father’s house. ³ Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as he loved himself. ⁴ Jonathan took off the robe that he had on and gave it to David, along with his coat, his sword, his bow, and his belt. ⁵ David went out and was successful everywhere Saul sent him, and Saul put him in charge of the troops. This pleased the entire army,^[bk] as well as Saul’s officials.^[bl]

Saul’s Jealousy of David

⁶ When David returned from defeating the Philistine, as they were entering the city, women from all the towns of Israel came out to meet King Saul, singing and dancing as they joyously played tambourines and lyres. ⁷ As the women sang and played, they said,

⁸ Saul was very angry and he did not like what the women sang. He told himself,^[bm] “They have attributed tens of thousands to David, but to me they have attributed thousands. What else can he have but the kingdom?” ⁹ From then on Saul kept his eye on David.^[bn]

¹⁰ The next day, while David was playing the lyre^[bo] as he had before, the evil spirit from the Lord attacked Saul, and he began to rave^[bp] inside the house with a spear in his hand. ¹¹ Saul hurled it, thinking,^[bq] “I’ll pin David to the wall.” But David escaped from him twice.

¹² Now Saul was afraid of David because the Lord was with him and had departed from Saul. ¹³ Saul removed David^[br] from his presence and made him an officer over a division of soldiers.^[bs] So David led the troops in battle.^{[bt] 14} David was successful in all that he did, for the Lord was with him. ¹⁵ When Saul saw that David^[bu] was highly successful, he feared him. ¹⁶ But all Israel and Judah loved David because he led them in battle.^[bv]

David Marries Saul’s Daughter

¹⁷ Saul told David, “Here is my older daughter Merab. I’ll give her to you as a wife. Just be an excellent soldier for me and fight the Lord’s battles.” Now Saul told himself,^[bw] “I won’t harm him myself.^[bx] Instead, I’ll let the Philistines harm him.”^[by]

¹⁸ David told Saul, “Who am I and what is my life or my father’s family in Israel that I should be the king’s son-in-law?” ¹⁹ And when the time came to give Saul’s daughter Merab to David, she was given as a wife to Adriel of Meholah.

²⁰ Saul’s daughter Michal loved David. Saul was informed of this and he liked the idea.^{[bz] 21} Saul told himself,^[ca] “I’ll give her to him and she can be a snare to him and the Philistines will harm him.”^[cb] So Saul told David, “For a second time you can be my son-in-law today.”

²² Saul commanded his officials,^[cc] “Speak with David privately and say, ‘Look, the king delights in you, and all his officials^[cd] love you. Now become the king’s son-in-law.’”

²³ Saul’s officials^[ce] delivered this message to David,^[cf] and he^[cg] asked, “Is becoming the king’s son-in-law an unimportant thing to you? I’m a poor and unimportant man.”

²⁴ Saul’s officials^[ch] reported to him: “This is what David said.”

²⁵ Saul said, “This is what you are to tell David, ‘The king desires no bride price except 100 Philistine foreskins to take vengeance on the king’s enemies.’” Now Saul thought he would cause David to die at the hand of the Philistines. ²⁶ When his officials^[ci] delivered this message to David, David decided it would be a good thing to become the king’s son-in-law. Before the time was up, ²⁷ David got up, went out with his men, and struck down 200 Philistine men. David brought their foreskins and gave them all to the king so he could become the king’s son-in-law. So Saul gave him his daughter Michal as a wife. ²⁸ As Saul continued to observe, he realized that the Lord was with David and that Saul’s daughter Michal loved him. ²⁹ Then Saul was even more afraid of David, and Saul was David’s enemy from that time on.^[cj]

³⁰ The Philistine commanders would go out to fight^[ck] and whenever they did, David was more successful than any of Saul’s other leaders.^[cl] His name was held in high esteem.

Jonathan Intercedes for David

19 Saul told his son Jonathan and all his officials^[cm] to kill David, but Saul’s son Jonathan was very fond of^[cn] David. ² So Jonathan told David, “My father Saul is trying to kill you. In the morning be careful and stay hidden in a secret place. ³ I’ll go out and stand by my father in the field where you are. I’ll speak to my father about you. If I find out what he intends to do,^[co] I’ll tell you.”

⁴ Jonathan spoke to his father Saul favorably about David. “The king shouldn’t wrong his servant David because he has not wronged you and because what he has done has been very beneficial for you. ⁵ He risked his life^[cp] and struck down the Philistine, and the Lord brought about a spectacular deliverance for all Israel. You saw that and rejoiced, so why would you do wrong and shed innocent blood^[cq] by killing David without cause?” ⁶ Saul listened to Jonathan, and swore by the life of the Lord that David^[cr] would not be killed. ⁷ Jonathan summoned David and told him all this.^[cs] Then Jonathan brought David to Saul, and David^[ct] served him^[cu] as before.

Saul Again Tries to Kill David

⁸ The war continued and David went out to fight against the Philistines. He thoroughly defeated them,^[cv] and they fled before David.^{[cw] 9} The evil spirit from the Lord attacked Saul while he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand and David was playing the lyre. ¹⁰ Saul tried to pin David to the wall with the spear, but he jumped away from Saul and the spear stuck in the wall. That night David escaped and fled.

Michal Helps David Escape

¹¹ Saul sent messengers to David’s house to watch him so they could kill him in the morning. David’s wife, Michal, told him, “If you don’t escape with your life tonight, tomorrow you’ll be put to death.” ¹² So Michal let David down through the window, and he escaped and fled. ¹³ Then Michal took the household idol^[cx] and laid it on the bed with a cover of goat hair placed at its head. Then she covered it with clothes.

¹⁴ When Saul sent the messengers to take David, Michal said, “He’s sick.”

¹⁵ Then Saul sent messengers to check on^[cy] David. He told them, “Bring him to me on the bed so I may kill him.”^{[cz] 16} The messengers went in, and there was the household idol in the bed with the cover of goat hair at its head!

¹⁷ Then Saul told Michal, “Why did you deceive me like this and let my enemy go so he could escape?”

Michal told Saul, “He told me, ‘Let me go or I’ll kill you!’”^[da]

Saul Prophesies at Ramah and David Escapes

¹⁸ David escaped and fled. He came to Samuel at Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. Then he and Samuel went and stayed at Naioth. ¹⁹ It was reported to Saul saying, “David is at Naioth in Ramah right now.” ²⁰ Saul sent messengers to take David, and they saw a group of prophets caught up in prophetic ecstasy,^[db] with Samuel standing beside them leading them. Then the Spirit of God came on Saul’s messengers, and they also were caught up in prophetic ecstasy.^[dc]

²¹ They reported this to Saul, he sent other messengers, and they also were caught up in prophetic ecstasy.^{[dd] 22} Then Saul himself went to Ramah, and he arrived at the large well that is in Secu. He asked, “Where are Samuel and David?”

Someone^[de] replied, “They’re at Naioth in Ramah.” ²³ Saul went to Naioth in Ramah, and the Spirit of God came on him also. He continued in prophetic ecstasy^[df] until he came to Naioth in Ramah. ²⁴ He also removed his clothes and was caught up in prophetic ecstasy^[dg] right in front of Samuel! He fell down naked and remained there all that day and all night. That is why people say,^[dh] “Is Saul also among the prophets?”

David and Jonathan’s Discussion

20 David fled from Naioth in Ramah. He came to Jonathan and said, “What have I done? What is my crime, and how have I wronged your father so that he’s determined to kill me?^[di]

² Jonathan^[dj] told him, “Far from it! You won’t die. Look, my father never does anything, great or small, without telling me;^[dk] so why should my father hide this thing from me? It’s not like that!”

³ David again took an oath: “Your father certainly knows that I’ve found favor with you, and so he told himself,^[dl] ‘Jonathan must not know this so he won’t be upset.’ But as certainly as the Lord is alive and living, and as certainly as I’m alive and living, too, there is only a step between me and death.”

⁴ Jonathan told David, “Whatever you say, I’ll do.”

⁵ David told Jonathan, “Look, the New Moon is tomorrow, and I’m expected to sit down with the king to eat. Let me go so I can hide in the field until the evening of the day after tomorrow.^{[dm] 6} If your father actually notices that I’m not there,^[dn] then you are to say, ‘David urgently requested that I allow him to run to his hometown of Bethlehem because the yearly sacrifice for the entire family was taking place there.’ ⁷ If he says, ‘Good,’ then your servant will be safe.^[do] But if he actually gets angry, you will know that his intentions are evil.^{[dp] 8} Now, show gracious kindness to your servant because you have entered into a sacred covenant^[dq] with your servant. If there is iniquity in me, then kill me yourself—why should you bring me to your father?”

⁹ “Nonsense!” Jonathan replied. “If I actually knew that my father intended evil against you, wouldn’t I tell you about it?”

¹⁰ Then David told Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?”

David and Jonathan Make a Covenant

¹¹ Then Jonathan told David, “Come, let’s go into the field.” So the two of them went into the field. ¹² Jonathan told David, “The Lord God of Israel is my witness^[dr] that I’ll carefully question my father by tomorrow or the next day. And if the response^[ds] is favorable for David, will I not then send word^[dt] to you and let you know?^{[du] 13} But if my father intends to harm you, may the Lord strike me dead^[dv] if I don’t let you know and send you away so you may go safely. May the Lord be with you as he has been with my father. ¹⁴ If I remain alive, don’t fail to show me the Lord’s gracious love so that I don’t die. ¹⁵ And don’t stop showing your gracious love to my family forever, not even when the Lord eliminates each of David’s enemies from the surface of the earth.” ¹⁶ Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David: “May the Lord punish any violation of this covenant by the hand of David’s enemies.”^{[dw] 17} Jonathan made David vow again out of his love for him, because he loved him as himself.

Jonathan’s Signal to David

¹⁸ Jonathan told him, “Tomorrow is the New Moon, and you will be missed because your seat is empty. ¹⁹ On the third day go down quickly and come to the place where you hid earlier.^[dx] Remain beside the rock at Ezel. ²⁰ I’ll shoot three arrows to the side of the rock^[dy] as though I were shooting at a target. ²¹ Then I’ll send a servant,^[dz] saying,^[ea] ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I specifically say to the servant,^[eb] ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you, get them,’ then come out because it’s safe for you, and, as surely as the Lord lives, there is no danger.^{[ec] 22} But if I say this to the young man: ‘Look, the arrows are beyond you,’ then go, for the Lord has sent you away. ²³ As for the matter about which you and I spoke, remember that^[ed] the Lord is a witness^[ee] between us forever.”

Jonathan Intercedes for David

²⁴ David hid in the field. When the New Moon arrived, the king sat down to eat. ²⁵ The king sat down at his place as before, in the seat by the wall. Jonathan stood while Abner sat next to Saul, but David’s place was empty. ²⁶ Saul didn’t say anything that day because he told himself,^[ef] “Something has happened; he’s unclean; surely he’s not clean.”

²⁷ But the next day, on the second day of the New Moon, David’s place was empty, and so Saul told his son Jonathan, “Why didn’t Jesse’s son come to the festival, either yesterday or today?”

²⁸ Jonathan answered Saul, “David urgently requested that I let him go to Bethlehem. ²⁹ He said, ‘Please let me go because our family has a sacrifice in the town, and my brother has ordered me to come. Now, if it’s acceptable to you,^[eg] please let me get away so I can see my brothers.’ That’s the reason he didn’t come to the king’s table.”

Saul’s Anger toward Jonathan

³⁰ Saul flew into a rage and told Jonathan, “You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don’t I know that you have chosen Jesse’s son to your shame and to the shame of your mother who bore you?^{[eh] 31} As long as^[ei] Jesse’s son lives on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established! Now send someone and bring David^[ej] to me. He’s a dead man!”

³² Jonathan asked his father Saul, “Why should he be killed? What did he do?” ³³ Then Saul threw the spear that was beside him to strike Jonathan^[ek] down. So Jonathan realized that his father was determined to kill David. ³⁴ So on the second day of the New Moon Jonathan angrily got up from the table without eating because he was upset about David, and because his father had humiliated him.

Jonathan Warns David

³⁵ In the morning Jonathan, accompanied by a servant,^[el] went out to the field for the appointment with David. ³⁶ Jonathan^[em] told his servant,^[en] “Run, find the arrows that I’m shooting.” As the servant^[eo] ran, Jonathan^[ep] shot the arrow beyond him. ³⁷ The servant^[eq] came to the place where Jonathan had shot it, and Jonathan called out to him,^[er] “The arrow is beyond you, isn’t it?” ³⁸ Jonathan called out to the servant,^[es] “Hurry, be quick, don’t stand around.” Jonathan’s servant^[et] picked up the arrow and brought it to his master. ³⁹ The servant was not aware of anything. Only Jonathan and David understood what had happened.^[eu]

⁴⁰ Then Jonathan gave his equipment to the servant^[ev] who was with him and told him, “Go, take these things to the city.” ⁴¹ The servant^[ew] went. Then David came out from the south side of the rock,^[ex] fell on his face, and bowed down three times. The men kissed each other, and both of them cried, but David even more. ⁴² Jonathan told David, “Go in peace since both of us swore in the name of the Lord: ‘May the Lord be between me and you, and between my descendants and your descendants forever.’”

^[ey]Then David^[ez] got up and left, while Jonathan went to the city.

The Philistines Prepare to Fight against Israel

28 At that time the Philistines assembled their army for war to fight against Israel. Achish told David, “You know, of course, that you and your men will go out with me into the battle.”

² David told Achish, “Very well, you will now see^[a] what your servant will do.”

Achish told David, “Very well, I’ll appoint you as my permanent bodyguard.”

Saul and the Medium at Endor

³ Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in his own town of Ramah. Saul had expelled the mediums and spiritists from the land.

⁴ The Philistines assembled, moved out, and camped at Shunem, while Saul assembled all Israel and camped at Gilboa. ⁵ When Saul saw the Philistine camp, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. ⁶ Saul inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him, either through dreams or Urim^[b] or through prophets. ⁷ Saul told his servants, “Find me a woman who is a medium so I can go to her and make my inquiry through her.”

His servants told him, “Look, there’s a woman at Endor who is a medium.”

⁸ Saul disguised himself, putting on different clothes. He went along with two men to the woman at night. He said, “Consult a familiar spirit for me and bring up for me the one whom I tell you.”

⁹ The woman told him, “Look, you know what Saul has done. He has removed mediums and spiritists from the land, so why are you trying to entrap me, so as to cause my death?”

¹⁰ Saul swore to her by the Lord: “As surely as the Lord lives, no punishment will come on you for this thing.”

¹¹ The woman said, “Whom shall I bring up for you?”

Saul^[c] said, “Bring up Samuel for me.”

¹² When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out loudly.^[d] The woman told Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!”

¹³ The king told her, “Don’t be afraid; but what do you see?”

The woman told Saul, “I see a divine being^[e] coming up out of the ground.”

¹⁴ Saul^[f] told her, “What does he look like?”

She said, “An old man is coming up, and he’s wrapped in a robe.” Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed low to the ground and prostrated himself.

Samuel’s Message to Saul

¹⁵ Samuel told Saul, “Why did you disturb me by bringing me up?”

Saul said, “I’m in great distress. The Philistines are waging war against me. God has departed from me and won’t answer me anymore, either by messages written by^[g] the hand of the prophets or by dreams. So I’ve summoned you to tell me what I should do.”

¹⁶ Samuel said, “Why do you ask me, since the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? ¹⁷ The Lord has done to you exactly as he spoke through me.^[h] The Lord has torn the kingdom away from you^[i] and has given it to your colleague David. ¹⁸ Because you didn’t obey the Lord and didn’t display his fierce anger against Amalek, therefore, the Lord will do this thing to you today. ¹⁹ The Lord is giving both you, and Israel with you, into Philistine control. Tomorrow, the Lord will give you, your sons with you, and also the army of Israel into the control^[j] of the Philistines.”

The Medium Attends to Saul

²⁰ Saul immediately fell down full-length on the ground. He was terrified because of Samuel’s words, and he had no strength because he had not eaten food all day and all night. ²¹ Then the woman came to Saul and saw that he was very disturbed. She told him, “Look, your servant^[k] obeyed you. I put my life into your hands, and I listened to your words that you spoke to me. ²² Now, please listen to your servant.^[l] I’ll put a piece of bread before you so you can eat and have strength to go on your way.”^[m]

²³ Saul^[n] refused, saying, “I won’t eat!”

Both his servants and the woman urged him, and so he listened to them. He got up off the ground and sat on the bed. ²⁴ The woman had a fattened calf in the house, and she quickly slaughtered it. She took flour, kneaded it, and baked unleavened bread. ²⁵ She brought it to Saul and to his servants, and they ate. Then they got up and went out that night.

Saul Killed by the Philistines^(A)

31 The Philistines fought against Israel, and the army^[a] of Israel fled before the Philistines. They fell slain on Mount Gilboa. ² The Philistines pursued Saul and his sons. The Philistines struck down Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchi-shua, Saul’s sons. ³ The heaviest fighting was directed toward Saul,^[b] and when the bowmen who were shooting located Saul, he was severely wounded by them.^[c]

⁴ Saul told his armor bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through with it, or these uncircumcised people will come and run me through and make sport of me.” But his armor bearer did not want to do it^[d] because he was very frightened, so Saul took the sword and fell on it. ⁵ When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died with him. ⁶ As a result, Saul, his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men died together that day. ⁷ When the men of Israel who were across the valley and who were across the Jordan saw that the army^[e] of Israel had fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled, and the Philistines came and occupied them.

The Philistines Desecrate Saul’s Body^(B)

⁸ The next day, the Philistines came to strip the dead, and they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ They cut off his head and stripped him of his weapons. They sent people throughout the territory of the Philistines to report the good news in the temples of their idols and to the people. ¹⁰ They put Saul’s^[f] weapons in the temple of Asherah^[g] and fastened his corpse to the wall of Beth-shan.

The People of Jabesh-gilead Give Saul a Proper Burial^(C)

¹¹ When the residents of Jabesh-gilead heard what^[h] the Philistines had done to Saul, ¹² every valiant soldier^[i] got up, traveled all night, and removed Saul’s body and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan. Then they went to Jabesh and cremated the bodies^[j] there. ¹³ They took their bones, buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh, and fasted for seven days.