New King James Version (NKJV)

Saul Chosen to Be King

1 There was a man of Benjamin whose namewasKish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of power.

2 And he had a choice and handsome son whose namewasSaul.Therewasnot a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel.From his shoulders upwardhewastaller than any of the people.

3 Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. And Kish said to his son Saul, “Please take one of the servants with you, and arise, go and look for the donkeys.”

4 So he passed through the mountains of Ephraim and through the land ofShalisha, but they did not findthem.Then they passed through the land of Shaalim, andtheywerenotthere.Then he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they did not findthem.

5 When they had come to the land ofZuph, Saul said to his servant whowaswith him, “Come, letus return, lest my father ceasecaringabout the donkeys and become worried about us.”

6 And he said to him, “Look now,thereisin this citya man of God, andheisan honorable man;all that he says surely comes to pass. So let us go there; perhaps he can show us the way that we should go.”

7 Then Saul said to his servant, “But look,ifwe go,what shall we bring the man? For the bread in our vessels is all gone, andthereisno present to bring to the man of God. What do we have?”

8 And the servant answered Saul again and said, “Look, I have here at hand one-fourth of a shekel of silver. I will givethatto the man of God, to tell us our way.”

9 (Formerly in Israel, when a manwent to inquire of God, he spoke thus: “Come, let us go to the seer”; forhewhoisnowcalleda prophet was formerly calleda seer.)

10 Then Saul said to his servant, “Well said; come, let us go.” So they went to the city where the man of Godwas.

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

12 And they answered them and said, “Yes, there he is, just ahead of you. Hurry now; for today he came to this city, becausethere is a sacrifice of the people todayon the high place.

13 As soon as you come into the city, you will surely find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. For the people will not eat until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward those who are invited will eat. Now therefore, go up, for about this time you will find him.”

14 So they went up to the city. As they were coming into the city, there was Samuel, coming out toward them on his way up to the high place.

15 Now theLordhad told Samuel in his ear the day before Saul came, saying,

16 “Tomorrow about this timeI will send you a man from the land of Benjamin,and you shall anoint him commander over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines; for I havelooked upon My people, because their cry has come to Me.”

17 So when Samuel saw Saul, theLordsaid to him,“There he is, the man of whom I spoke to you. This one shall reign over My people.”

18 Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, “Please tell me, whereisthe seer’s house?”

19 Samuel answered Saul and said, “Iamthe seer. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and tomorrow I will let you go and will tell you all thatisin your heart.

20 But as foryour donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not be anxious about them, for they have been found. And on whomisall the desire of Israel?Isitnot on you and on all your father’s house?”

21 And Saul answered and said,“AmI not a Benjamite, of thesmallest of the tribes of Israel, andmy family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then do you speak like this to me?”

22 Now Samuel took Saul and his servant and brought them into the hall, and had them sit in the place of honor among those who were invited; therewereabout thirty persons.

23 And Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the portion which I gave you, of which I said to you, ‘Set it apart.’ ”

24 So the cook took upthe thigh with its upper part and setitbefore Saul. AndSamuelsaid, “Here it is, what was kept back.Itwas set apart for you. Eat; for until this time it has been kept for you, since I said I invited the people.” So Saul ate with Samuel that day.

25 When they had come down from the high place into the city,Samuelspoke with Saul onthe top of the house.

26 They arose early; and it was about the dawning of the day that Samuel called to Saul on the top of the house, saying, “Get up, that I may send you on your way.” And Saul arose, and both of them went outside, he and Samuel.

Saul Anointed King

27 As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us.” And he went on. “But you stand here awhile, that I may announce to you the word of God.”

1 ThenSamuel took a flask of oil and pourediton his head,and kissed him and said: “Isitnot becausetheLordhas anointed you commander overHis inheritance?

2 When you have departed from me today, you will find two men byRachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjaminat Zelzah; and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys which you went to look for have been found. And now your father has ceased caring about the donkeys and is worrying aboutyou, saying, “What shall I do about my son?” ’

3 Then you shall go on forward from there and come to the terebinth tree of Tabor. There three men going upto God at Bethel will meet you, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine.

4 And they will greet you and give you twoloavesof bread, which you shall receive from their hands.

5 After that you shall come to the hill of Godwhere the Philistine garrisonis.And it will happen, when you have come there to the city, that you will meet a group of prophets coming downfrom the high place with a stringed instrument, a tambourine, a flute, and a harp before them;and they will be prophesying.

6 Thenthe Spirit of theLordwill come upon you, andyou will prophesy with them and be turned into another man.

7 And let it be, when thesesigns come to you,thatyou do as the occasion demands; forGodiswith you.

8 You shall go down before meto Gilgal; and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offeringsandmake sacrifices of peace offerings.Seven days you shall wait, till I come to you and show you what you should do.”

9 So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day.

10 When they came there to the hill, there wasa group of prophets to meet him; then the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them.

11 And it happened, when all who knew him formerly saw that he indeed prophesied among the prophets, that the people said to one another, “Whatisthisthathas come upon the son of Kish?IsSaul also among the prophets?”

12 Then a man from there answered and said, “Butwhoistheir father?” Therefore it became a proverb: “IsSaul also among the prophets?”

13 And when he had finished prophesying, he went to the high place.

14 Then Saul’suncle said to him and his servant, “Where did you go?”

So he said, “To look for the donkeys. When we saw thattheywerenowheretobefound,we went to Samuel.”

15 And Saul’s uncle said, “Tell me, please, what Samuel said to you.”

16 So Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the donkeys had beenfound.” But about the matter of the kingdom, he did not tell him what Samuel had said.

Saul Proclaimed King

17 Then Samuel called the people togetherto theLordat Mizpah,

18 and said to the children of Israel,“Thus says theLordGod of Israel: ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you from the hand of the Egyptiansandfrom the hand of all kingdoms and from those who oppressed you.’

19 But you have today rejected your God, who Himself saved you from all your adversities and your tribulations; and you have said to Him, ‘No, set a king over us!’ Now therefore, present yourselves before theLordby your tribes and by your clans.”

20 And when Samuel hadcaused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was chosen.

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

22 Therefore theyinquired of theLordfurther, “Has the man come here yet?”

And theLordanswered, “There he is, hidden among the equipment.”

23 So they ran and brought him from there; and when he stood among the people,he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward.

24 And Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see himwhom theLordhas chosen, thatthereisno one like him among all the people?”

# So all the people shouted and said,“Long live the king!”

25 Then Samuel explained to the peoplethe behavior of royalty, and wroteitin a book and laiditup before theLord. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.

26 And Saul also went hometo Gibeah; and valiantmenwent with him, whose hearts God had touched.

27 But somerebels said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him,and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.

Saul Saves Jabesh Gilead

1 ThenNahash the Ammonite came up and encamped againstJabesh Gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash,“Make a covenant with us, and we will serve you.”

2 And Nahash the Ammonite answered them, “On thisconditionI will makeacovenantwith you, that I may put out all your right eyes, and bringreproach on all Israel.”

3 Then the elders of Jabesh said to him, “Hold off for seven days, that we may send messengers to all the territory of Israel. And then, ifthereisno one to save us, we will come out to you.”

4 So the messengers cameto Gibeah of Saul and told the news in the hearing of the people. Andall the people lifted up their voices and wept.

5 Now there was Saul, coming behind the herd from the field; and Saul said, “Whattroublesthe people, that they weep?” And they told him the words of the men of Jabesh.

6 Then the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard this news, and his anger was greatly aroused.

7 So he took a yoke of oxen andcut them in pieces, and sentthemthroughout all the territory of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying,“Whoever does not go out with Saul and Samuel to battle, so it shall be done to his oxen.”

And the fear of theLordfell on the people, and they came out with one consent.

8 When he numbered them inBezek, the childrenof Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.

9 And they said to the messengers who came, “Thus you shall say to the men of Jabesh Gilead: ‘Tomorrow, bythetimethe sun is hot, you shall have help.’ ” Then the messengers came and reporteditto the men of Jabesh, and they were glad.

10 Therefore the men of Jabesh said, “Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you may do with us whatever seems good to you.”

11 So it was, on the next day, thatSaul put the peoplein three companies; and they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch, and killed Ammonites until the heat of the day. And it happened that those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.

12 Then the people said to Samuel,“Whoishe who said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’Bring the men, that we may put them to death.”

13 But Saul said,“Not a man shall be put to death this day, for todaytheLordhas accomplished salvation in Israel.”

14 Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us goto Gilgal and renew the kingdom there.”

15 So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul kingbefore theLordin Gilgal.There they made sacrifices of peace offerings before theLord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

Samuel’s Address at Saul’s Coronation

1 Now Samuel said to all Israel: “Indeed I have heededyour voice in all that you said to me, andhave made a king over you.

2 And now here is the king,walking before you;and I am old and grayheaded, and look, my sonsarewith you. I have walked before you from my childhood to this day.

3 Here I am. Witness against me before theLordand beforeHis anointed:Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed, or from whose hand have I receivedanybribe with which toblind my eyes? I will restoreitto you.”

4 And they said,“You have not cheated us or oppressed us, nor have you taken anything from any man’s hand.”

5 Then he said to them, “TheLordiswitness against you, and His anointediswitness this day,that you have not found anythingin my hand.”

And they answered, “Heiswitness.”

6 Then Samuel said to the people,“ItistheLordwho raised up Moses and Aaron, and who brought your fathers up from the land of Egypt.

7 Now therefore, stand still, that I mayreason with you before theLordconcerning all therighteous acts of theLordwhich He did to you and your fathers:

8 When Jacob had gone into Egypt, and your fatherscried out to theLord, then theLordsent Moses and Aaron, who brought your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place.

9 And when theyforgot theLordtheir God, He sold them into the hand ofSisera, commander of the army of Hazor, into the hand of thePhilistines, and into the hand of the king ofMoab; and they fought against them.

10 Then they cried out to theLord, and said,‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken theLordand served the Baals and Ashtoreths; but now deliver us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve You.’

11 And theLordsent Jerubbaal, Bedan,Jephthah, andSamuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side; and you dwelt in safety.

12 And when you saw thatNahash king of the Ammonites came against you,you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ whentheLordyour Godwasyour king.

13 “Now therefore,here is the kingwhom you have chosenandwhom you have desired. And take note,theLordhas set a king over you.

14 If youfear theLordand serve Him and obey His voice, and do not rebel against the commandment of theLord, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following theLordyour God.

15 However, if you donot obey the voice of theLord, butrebel against the commandment of theLord, then the hand of theLordwill be against you, asitwasagainst your fathers.

16 “Now therefore,stand and see this great thing which theLordwill do before your eyes:

17 Istoday not thewheat harvest?I will call to theLord, and He will send thunder andrain, that you may perceive and see thatyour wickednessisgreat, which you have done in the sight of theLord, in asking a king for yourselves.”

18 So Samuel called to theLord, and theLordsent thunder and rain that day; andall the people greatly feared theLordand Samuel.

19 And all the people said to Samuel,“Pray for your servants to theLordyour God, that we may not die; for we have added to all our sins the evil of asking a king for ourselves.”

20 Then Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have done all this wickedness;yet do not turn aside from following theLord, but serve theLordwith all your heart.

21 Anddo not turn aside;forthenyouwouldgoafter empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for theyarenothing.

22 FortheLordwill not forsakeHis people,for His great name’s sake, becauseit has pleased theLordto make you His people.

23 Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against theLordin ceasing to pray for you; butI will teach you thegood and the right way.

24 Only fear theLord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; forconsider whatgreat things He has done for you.

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

Saul’s Unlawful Sacrifice

1 Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

2 Saul chose for himself three thousandmenof Israel. Two thousand were with Saul inMichmash and in the mountains of Bethel, and a thousand were withJonathan inGibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the people he sent away, every man to his tent.

3 And Jonathan attackedthe garrison of the Philistines thatwasinGeba, and the Philistines heardofit.Then Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!”

4 Now all Israel heard it saidthatSaul had attacked a garrison of the Philistines, andthatIsrael had also become an abomination to the Philistines. And the people were called together to Saul at Gilgal.

5 Then the Philistines gathered together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, and peopleas the sand whichison the seashore in multitude. And they came up and encamped in Michmash, to the east ofBeth Aven.

6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in danger (for the people were distressed), then the peoplehid in caves, in thickets, in rocks, in holes, and in pits.

7 Andsomeofthe Hebrews crossed over the Jordan to theland of Gad and Gilead.

As for Saul, hewasstill in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

8 Then he waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.

9 So Saul said, “Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me.” And he offered the burnt offering.

10 Now it happened, as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering, that Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might greet him.

11 And Samuel said, “What have you done?”

Saul said, “When I saw that the people were scattered from me, andthatyou did not come within the days appointed, andthatthe Philistines gathered together at Michmash,

12 then I said, ‘The Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to theLord.’ Therefore I felt compelled, and offered a burnt offering.”

13 And Samuel said to Saul,“You have done foolishly.You have not kept the commandment of theLordyour God, which He commanded you. For now theLordwould have established your kingdom over Israel forever.

14 But now your kingdom shall not continue.TheLordhas sought for Himself a manafter His own heart, and theLordhas commanded himtobecommander over His people, because you havenot kept what theLordcommanded you.”

15 Then Samuel arose and went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people present with him,about six hundred men.

No Weapons for the Army

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

17 Then raiders came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies. One company turned onto the road toOphrah, to the land of Shual,

18 another company turned to the roadtoBeth Horon, and another company turnedtothe road of the border that overlooks the Valley ofZeboim toward the wilderness.

19 Nowthere was no blacksmith to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, “Lest the Hebrews make swords or spears.”

20 But all the Israelites would go down to the Philistines to sharpen each man’s plowshare, his mattock, his ax, and his sickle;

21 and the charge for a sharpening was a pim for the plowshares, the mattocks, the forks, and the axes, and to set the points of the goads.

22 So it came about, on the day of battle, thatthere was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people whowerewith Saul and Jonathan. But they were found with Saul and Jonathan his son.

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

Jonathan Defeats the Philistines

1 Now it happened one day that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man who bore his armor, “Come, let us go over to the Philistines’ garrison thatison the other side.” But he did not tell his father.

2 And Saul was sitting in the outskirts ofGibeah under a pomegranate tree whichisin Migron. The people whowerewith himwereabout six hundred men.

3 Ahijah the son of Ahitub,Ichabod’s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, theLord’s priest in Shiloh, waswearing an ephod. But the people did not know that Jonathan had gone.

4 Between the passes, by which Jonathan sought to go overto the Philistines’ garrison,therewasa sharp rock on one side and a sharp rock on the other side. And the name of onewasBozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

5 The front of one faced northward opposite Michmash, and the other southward opposite Gibeah.

6 Then Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, “Come, let us go over to the garrison of theseuncircumcised; it may be that theLordwill work for us. For nothing restrains theLordfrom saving by many or by few.”

7 So his armorbearer said to him, “Do all that is in your heart. Go then; here I am with you, according to your heart.”

8 Then Jonathan said, “Very well, let us cross over tothesemen, and we will show ourselves to them.

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

10 But if they say thus, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up. For theLordhas delivered them into our hand, andthiswillbea sign to us.”

11 So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines. And the Philistines said, “Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they havehidden.”

12 Then the men of the garrison called to Jonathan and his armorbearer, and said, “Come up to us, and we will show you something.”

Jonathan said to his armorbearer, “Come up after me, for theLordhas delivered them into the hand of Israel.”

13 And Jonathan climbed up on his hands and knees with his armorbearer after him; and theyfell before Jonathan. And as he came after him, his armorbearer killed them.

14 That first slaughter which Jonathan and his armorbearer made was about twenty men within about half an acre of land.

15 Andthere was trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. The garrison andthe raiders also trembled; and the earth quaked, so that it wasa very great trembling.

16 Now the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, andtherewas the multitude, melting away; and theywent here and there.

17 Then Saul said to the people whowerewith him, “Now call the roll and see who has gone from us.” And when they had called the roll, surprisingly, Jonathan and his armorbearerwerenotthere.

18 And Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring the ark of God here” (for at that time the ark of God was with the children of Israel).

19 Now it happened, while Saultalked to the priest, that the noise whichwasin the camp of the Philistines continued to increase; so Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.”

20 Then Saul and all the people whowerewith him assembled, and they went to the battle; and indeedevery man’s sword was against his neighbor,andtherewasvery great confusion.

21 Moreover the Hebrewswhowere with the Philistines before that time, who went up with them into the campfromthesurroundingcountry,they also joined the Israelites whowerewith Saul and Jonathan.

22 Likewise all the men of Israel whohad hidden in the mountains of Ephraim,whenthey heard that the Philistines fled, they also followed hard after them in the battle.

23 So theLordsaved Israel that day, and the battle shiftedto Beth Aven.

Saul’s Rash Oath

24 And the men of Israel were distressed that day, for Saul hadplaced the people under oath, saying, “Cursedisthe man who eatsanyfood until evening, before I have taken vengeance on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food.

25 Now allthepeopleof the land came to a forest; and there washoney on the ground.

26 And when the people had come into the woods, there was the honey, dripping; but no one put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath.

27 But Jonathan had not heard his father charge the people with the oath; therefore he stretched out the end of the rod thatwasin his hand and dipped it in a honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his countenance brightened.

28 Then one of the people said, “Your father strictly charged the people with an oath, saying, ‘Cursedisthe man who eats food this day.’ ” And the people were faint.

29 But Jonathan said, “My father has troubled the land. Look now, how my countenance has brightened because I tasted a little of this honey.

30 How much better if the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies which they found! For now would there not have been a much greater slaughter among the Philistines?”

31 Now they had driven back the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. So the people were very faint.

32 And the people rushed on the spoil, and took sheep, oxen, and calves, and slaughteredthemon the ground; and the people atethemwith the blood.

33 Then they told Saul, saying, “Look, the people are sinning against theLordby eating with the blood!”

So he said, “You have dealt treacherously; roll a large stone to me this day.”

34 Then Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the people, and say to them, ‘Bring me here every man’s ox and every man’s sheep, slaughterthemhere, and eat; and do not sin against theLordby eating with the blood.’ ” So every one of the people brought his ox with him that night, and slaughtereditthere.

35 Then Saulbuilt an altar to theLord. This was the first altar that he built to theLord.

36 Now Saul said, “Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and plunder them until the morning light; and let us not leave a man of them.”

And they said, “Do whatever seems good to you.”

Then the priest said, “Let us draw near to God here.”

37 So Saulasked counsel of God, “Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You deliver them into the hand of Israel?” ButHe did not answer him that day.

38 And Saul said,“Come over here, all you chiefs of the people, and know and see what this sin was today.

39 ForastheLordlives, who saves Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die.” But not a man among all the people answered him.

40 Then he said to all Israel, “You be on one side, and my son Jonathan and I will be on the other side.”

And the people said to Saul, “Do what seems good to you.”

41 Therefore Saul said to theLordGod of Israel,“Give a perfectlot.”So Saul and Jonathan were taken, but the people escaped.

42 And Saul said, “Castlotsbetween my son Jonathan and me.” So Jonathan was taken.

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

# And Jonathan told him, and said,“I only tasted a little honey with the end of the rod thatwasin my hand. So now I must die!”

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

45 But the people said to Saul, “Shall Jonathan die, who has accomplished this great deliverance in Israel? Certainly not!As theLordlives, not one hair of his head shall fall to the ground, for he has workedwith God this day.” So the people rescued Jonathan, and he did not die.

46 Then Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their own place.

Saul’s Continuing Wars

47 So Saul established his sovereignty over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, against the people ofAmmon, against Edom, against the kings ofZobah, and against the Philistines. Wherever he turned, he harassedthem.

48 And he gathered an army andattacked the Amalekites, and delivered Israel from the hands of those who plundered them.

49 The sons of Saul were Jonathan, Jishui, and Malchishua. And the names of his two daughterswerethese:the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name of the youngerMichal.

50 The name of Saul’s wifewasAhinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. And the name of the commander of his armywasAbner the son of Ner, Saul’suncle.

51 Kishwasthe father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abnerwasthe son of Abiel.

52 Now there was fierce war with the Philistines all the days of Saul. And when Saul saw any strong man or any valiant man,he took him for himself.

Saul Spares King Agag

1 Samuel also said to Saul,“TheLordsent me to anoint you king over His people, over Israel. Now therefore, heed the voice of the words of theLord.

2 Thus says theLordof hosts: ‘I will punish Amalekforwhat he did to Israel,how he ambushed him on the way when he came up from Egypt.

3 Now go andattack Amalek, andutterly destroy all that they have, and do not spare them. But kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’ ”

4 So Saul gathered the people together and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand men of Judah.

5 And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and lay in wait in the valley.

6 Then Saul said tothe Kenites,“Go, depart, get down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them. Foryou showed kindness to all the children of Israel when they came up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.

7 And Saul attacked the Amalekites, fromHavilah all the way toShur, which is east of Egypt.

8 He also took Agag king of the Amalekites alive, andutterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.

9 But Saul and the peoplespared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and allthatwasgood, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless, that they utterly destroyed.

Saul Rejected as King

10 Now the word of theLordcame to Samuel, saying,

11 “I greatly regret that I have set up Saulasking, for he hasturned back from following Me,and has not performed My commandments.” And itgrieved Samuel, and he cried out to theLordall night.

12 So when Samuel rose early in the morning to meet Saul, it was told Samuel, saying, “Saul went toCarmel, and indeed, he set up a monument for himself; and he has gone on around, passed by, and gone down to Gilgal.”

13 Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him,“Blessedareyou of theLord! I have performed the commandment of theLord.”

14 But Samuel said, “What thenisthis bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?”

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

16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Be quiet! And I will tell you what theLordsaid to me last night.”

And he said to him, “Speak on.”

17 So Samuel said,“When youwerelittle in your own eyes,wereyou not head of the tribes of Israel? And did not theLordanoint you king over Israel?

18 Now theLordsent you on a mission, and said, ‘Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.’

19 Why then did you not obey the voice of theLord? Why did you swoop down on the spoil, and do evil in the sight of theLord?”

20 And Saul said to Samuel,“But I have obeyed the voice of theLord, and gone on the mission on which theLordsent me, and brought back Agag king of Amalek; I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

21 But the people took of the plunder, sheep and oxen, the best of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice to theLordyour God in Gilgal.”

22 So Samuel said:

# “Has theLordasgreatdelight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,

As in obeying the voice of theLord?

# Behold,to obey is better than sacrifice,

Andto heed than the fat of rams.

23 For rebellionisasthe sin of witchcraft,

And stubbornnessisasiniquity and idolatry.

Because you have rejected the word of theLord,

# He also has rejected you frombeingking.”

24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of theLordand your words, because Ifeared the people and obeyed their voice.

25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship theLord.”

26 But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you,for you have rejected the word of theLord, and theLordhas rejected you from being king over Israel.”

27 And as Samuel turned around to go away,Saulseized the edge of his robe, and it tore.

28 So Samuel said to him,“TheLordhas torn the kingdom of Israel from you today, and has given it to a neighbor of yours,whoisbetter than you.

29 And also the Strength of Israelwill not lie nor relent. For Heisnot a man, that He should relent.”

30 Then he said, “I have sinned;yethonor me now, please, before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may worship theLordyour God.”

31 So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul worshiped theLord.

32 Then Samuel said, “Bring Agag king of the Amalekites here to me.” So Agag came to him cautiously.

And Agag said, “Surely the bitterness of death is past.”

33 But Samuel said,“As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women.” And Samuel hacked Agag in pieces before theLordin Gilgal.

34 Then Samuel went toRamah, and Saul went up to his house atGibeah of Saul.

35 AndSamuel went no more to see Saul until the day of his death. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, and theLordregretted that He had made Saul king over Israel.

David Anointed King

1 Now theLordsaid to Samuel,“How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel?Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you toJesse the Bethlehemite. ForI have provided Myself a king among his sons.”

2 And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hearsit,he will kill me.”

# But theLordsaid, “Take a heifer with you, and say,‘I have come to sacrifice to theLord.’

3 Then invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; you shall anoint for Me the one I name to you.”

4 So Samuel did what theLordsaid, and went to Bethlehem. And the elders of the towntrembled at his coming, and said,“Do you come peaceably?”

5 And he said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to theLord.Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons, and invited them to the sacrifice.

6 So it was, when they came, that he looked atEliab andsaid, “Surely theLord’s anointedisbefore Him!”

7 But theLordsaid to Samuel,“Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him.FortheLorddoesnotseeas man sees; for manlooks at the outward appearance, but theLordlooks at theheart.”

8 So Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has theLordchosen this one.”

9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has theLordchosen this one.”

10 Thus Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “TheLordhas not chosen these.”

11 And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all the young men here?” Then he said, “There remains yet the youngest, and there he is, keeping thesheep.”

And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him. For we will not sit down till he comes here.”

12 So he sent and brought him in. Now hewasruddy,with bright eyes, and good-looking.And theLordsaid, “Arise, anoint him; for thisisthe one!”

13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; andthe Spirit of theLordcame upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah.

A Distressing Spirit Troubles Saul

14 But the Spirit of theLorddeparted from Saul, anda distressing spirit from theLordtroubled him.

15 And Saul’s servants said to him, “Surely, a distressing spirit from God is troubling you.

16 Let our master now command your servants,whoarebefore you, to seek out a manwhoisa skillful player on the harp. And it shall be that he willplay it with his hand when the distressing spirit from God is upon you, and you shall be well.”

17 So Saul said to his servants, “Provide me now a man who can play well, and bringhimto me.”

18 Then one of the servants answered and said, “Look, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite,whoisskillful in playing, a mighty man of valor, a man of war, prudent in speech, and a handsome person; andtheLordiswith him.”

19 Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, “Send me your son David, whoiswith the sheep.”

20 And Jessetook a donkeyloadedwithbread, a skin of wine, and a young goat, and sentthemby his son David to Saul.

21 So David came to Saul andstood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer.

22 Then Saul sent to Jesse, saying, “Please let David stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.”

23 And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and playitwith his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him.

David and Goliath

1 Now the Philistines gathered their armies together to battle, and were gathered atSochoh, whichbelongsto Judah; they encamped between Sochoh and Azekah, in Ephes Dammim.

2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and they encamped in the Valley of Elah, and drew up in battle array against the Philistines.

3 The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side, with a valley between them.

4 And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, namedGoliath, fromGath, whose heightwassix cubits and a span.

5 Hehada bronze helmet on his head, and hewasarmed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coatwasfive thousand shekels of bronze.

6 Andhehadbronze armor on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders.

7 Now the staff of his spearwaslike a weaver’s beam, and his iron spearheadweighedsix hundred shekels; and a shield-bearer went before him.

8 Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, “Why have you come out to line up for battle?AmI not a Philistine, and you theservants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me.

9 If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants andserve us.”

10 And the Philistine said,“I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.”

11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.

12 Now Davidwasthe son of thatEphrathite of Bethlehem Judah, whose namewasJesse, and who hadeight sons. And the man was old, advancedinyears,in the days of Saul.

13 The three oldest sons of Jesse had gone to follow Saul to the battle. Thenames of his three sons who went to the battlewereEliab the firstborn, next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.

14 Davidwasthe youngest. And the three oldest followed Saul.

15 But David occasionally went and returned from Saulto feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem.

16 And the Philistine drew near and presented himself forty days, morning and evening.

17 Then Jesse said to his son David, “Take now for your brothers an ephah of this driedgrainand these ten loaves, and run to your brothers at the camp.

18 And carry these ten cheeses to the captain oftheirthousand, andsee how your brothers fare, and bring back news of them.”

19 Now Saul and they and all the men of Israelwerein the Valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.

20 So David rose early in the morning, left the sheep with a keeper, and tookthethingsand went as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the camp as the army was going out to the fight and shouting for the battle.

21 For Israel and the Philistines had drawn up in battle array, army against army.

22 And David left his supplies in the hand of the supply keeper, ran to the army, and came and greeted his brothers.

23 Then as he talked with them, there was the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, coming up from the armies of the Philistines; and he spokeaccording to the same words. So David heardthem.

24 And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were dreadfully afraid.

25 So the men of Israel said, “Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel; and it shall bethatthe man who kills him the king will enrich with great riches,will give him his daughter, and give his father’s house exemptionfromtaxesin Israel.”

26 Then David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes awaythe reproach from Israel? For whoisthisuncircumcised Philistine, that he shoulddefy the armies ofthe living God?”

27 And the people answered him in this manner, saying,“So shall it be done for the man who kills him.”

28 Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’sanger was aroused against David, and he said, “Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”

29 And David said, “What have I done now?Isthere not a cause?”

30 Then he turned from him toward another andsaid the same thing; and these people answered him as the first onesdid.

31 Now when the words which David spoke were heard, they reportedthemto Saul; and he sent for him.

32 Then David said to Saul,“Let no man’s heart fail because of him;your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”

33 And Saul said to David,“You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for youarea youth, and he a man of war from his youth.”

34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when alion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock,

35 I went out after it and struck it, and deliveredthelambfrom its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caughtitby its beard, and struck and killed it.

36 Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.”

37 Moreover David said,“TheLord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”

# And Saul said to David,“Go, and theLordbe with you!”

38 So Saul clothed David with his armor, and he put a bronze helmet on his head; he also clothed him with a coat of mail.

39 David fastened his sword to his armor and tried to walk, for he had not testedthem.And David said to Saul, “I cannot walk with these, for I have not testedthem.” So David took them off.

40 Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had, and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine.

41 So the Philistine came, and began drawing near to David, and the man who bore the shieldwentbefore him.

42 And when the Philistine looked about and saw David, hedisdained him; for he wasonlya youth,ruddy and good-looking.

43 So the Philistinesaid to David, “AmI a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

44 And the Philistinesaid to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”

45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin.But I come to you in the name of theLordof hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you havedefied.

46 This day theLordwill deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will givethe carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth,that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

47 Then all this assembly shall know that theLorddoes not save with sword and spear; forthe battleistheLord’s, and He will give you into our hands.”

48 So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried andran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

49 Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slungitand struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth.

50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with asling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Buttherewasno sword in the hand of David.

51 Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took hissword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it.

# And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead,they fled.

52 Now the men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted, and pursued the Philistines as far as the entrance of the valley and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell along the road toShaaraim, even as far as Gath and Ekron.

53 Then the children of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their tents.

54 And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.

55 When Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he said toAbner, the commander of the army, “Abner,whose sonisthis youth?”

And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.”

56 So the king said, “Inquire whose son this young manis.”

57 Then, as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saulwith the head of the Philistine in his hand.

58 And Saul said to him, “Whose sonareyou, young man?”

# So David answered,“Iamthe son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”

Saul Resents David

1 Now when he had finished speaking to Saul,the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David,and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

2 Saul took him that day,and would not let him go home to his father’s house anymore.

3 Then Jonathan and David made acovenant, because he loved him as his own soul.

4 And Jonathan took off the robe thatwason him and gave it to David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.

5 So David went out wherever Saul sent him,andbehaved wisely. And Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul’s servants.

6 Now it had happened as they were cominghome,when David was returning from the slaughter of the Philistine, thatthe women had come out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with joy, and with musical instruments.

7 So the womensang as they danced, and said:

# “Saul has slain his thousands,

And David his ten thousands.”

8 Then Saul was very angry, and the sayingdispleased him; and he said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribedonlythousands. Nowwhatmore can he have butthe kingdom?”

9 So Saul eyed David from that day forward.

10 And it happened on the next day thatthe distressing spirit from God came upon Saul,and he prophesied inside the house. So Davidplayedmusicwith his hand, as at other times;buttherewasa spear in Saul’s hand.

11 And Saulcast the spear, for he said, “I will pin David to the wall!” But David escaped his presence twice.

12 Now Saul wasafraid of David, becausetheLordwas with him, but haddeparted from Saul.

13 Therefore Saul removed him from his presence, and made him his captain over a thousand; andhe went out and came in before the people.

14 And David behaved wisely in all his ways, andtheLordwaswith him.

15 Therefore, when Saul saw that he behaved very wisely, he was afraid of him.

16 Butall Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them.

David Marries Michal

17 Then Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab;I will give her to you as a wife. Only be valiant for me, and fighttheLord’s battles.” For Saul thought,“Let my hand not be against him, but let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”

18 So David said to Saul,“WhoamI, and whatismy lifeormy father’s family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?”

19 But it happened at the time when Merab, Saul’s daughter, should have been given to David, that she was given toAdriel theMeholathite as a wife.

20 Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. And they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.

21 So Saul said, “I will give her to him, that she may be a snare to him, and thatthe hand of the Philistines may be against him.” Therefore Saul said to David a second time,“You shall be my son-in-law today.”

22 And Saul commanded his servants, “Communicate with David secretly, and say, ‘Look, the king has delight in you, and all his servants love you. Now therefore, become the king’s son-in-law.’ ”

23 So Saul’s servants spoke those words in the hearing of David. And David said, “Does it seem to youalightthingto be a king’s son-in-law, seeing Iama poor and lightly esteemed man?”

24 And the servants of Saul told him, saying, “In this manner David spoke.”

25 Then Saul said, “Thus you shall say to David: ‘The king does not desire anydowry but one hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to takevengeance on the king’s enemies.’ ” But Saulthought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines.

26 So when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well to become the king’s son-in-law. Nowthe days had not expired;

27 therefore David arose and went, he andhis men, and killed two hundred men of the Philistines. AndDavid brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full count to the king, that he might become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him Michal his daughter as a wife.

28 Thus Saul saw and knew that theLordwaswith David, andthatMichal, Saul’s daughter, loved him;

29 and Saul was still more afraid of David. So Saul became David’s enemy continually.

30 Then the princes of the Philistineswent outtowar.And so it was, whenever they went out,thatDavidbehaved more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so that his name became highly esteemed.