1 Samuel 14-16

New American Standard Bible

Jonathan’s Victory

14 Now the day came that Jonathan, the son of Saul, said to the young man who was carrying his armor, “Come, and let’s cross over to the Philistines’ garrison that is on the other side.” But he did not tell his father. ² Saul was staying on the outskirts of ^(A)Gibeah under the pomegranate tree that is in ^(B)Migron. And the people who were with him numbered ^(C)about six hundred men; ³ and Ahijah, the ^(D)son of Ahitub, ^(E)Ichabod’s brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of the Lord at ^(F)Shiloh, ^(G)was ^[a]wearing an ephod. And the people did not know that Jonathan had gone. ⁴ Now ^(H)between the gorges by which Jonathan sought to cross over to the Philistines’ garrison there was a rocky crag on the one side, and a rocky crag on the other side; and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other, Seneh. ⁵ The one crag rose on the north opposite Michmash, and the other on the south opposite Geba.

⁶ Then Jonathan said to the young man who was carrying his armor, “Come, and let’s cross over to the garrison of ^(I)these uncircumcised men; perhaps the Lord will work for us, because ^(J)the Lord is not limited to saving by many or by few!” ⁷ His armor bearer said to him, “Do everything that is in your heart; turn yourself to it, and here I am with you, as your heart desires.” ⁸ Then Jonathan said, “^(K)Behold, we are going to cross over to the men and reveal ourselves to them. ⁹ If they ^[b]say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you’; then we will stand in our place and not go up to them. ¹⁰ But if they ^[c]say, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up, for the Lord has handed them over to us; and ^(L)this shall be the sign to us.” ¹¹ When the two of them revealed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines, the Philistines said, “Behold, ^(M)Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have kept themselves hidden.” ¹² So the men of the garrison responded to Jonathan and his armor bearer and said, “Come up to us and ^(N)we will inform you of something.” And Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come up after me, for ^(O)the Lord has handed them over to Israel.” ¹³ Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer behind him; and the men fell before Jonathan, and his armor bearer put some to death after him. ¹⁴ Now that first slaughter which Jonathan and his armor bearer inflicted was about twenty men within about half a furrow in an acre of land. ¹⁵ And there was a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. Even the garrison and ^(P)the raiders trembled, and ^(Q)the earth quaked so ^(R)that it became a ^[d]great trembling.

¹⁶ Now Saul’s watchmen in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold, the multitude dissolved; they went here and there. ¹⁷ So Saul said to the people who were with him, “Look carefully now and see who has left us.” And when they had looked, behold, Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there. ¹⁸ Then Saul said to Ahijah, “^(S)Bring the ark of God here.” For at that time the ark of God was with the sons of Israel. ^19 (T)While Saul talked to the priest, the commotion in the camp of the Philistines continued and increased; so Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.” ²⁰ Then Saul and all the people who were with him rallied and came to the battle; and behold, ^(U)every man’s sword was against his fellow Philistine, and there was very great confusion. ²¹ Now the Hebrews who were with the Philistines previously, who went up with them all around in the camp, even ^(V)they also returned to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan. ²² When all the ^(W)men of Israel who had kept themselves hidden in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, they also closely pursued them in the battle. ²³ So ^(X)the Lord saved Israel that day, and the battle ^[e]spread beyond ^(Y)Beth-aven.

Saul’s Foolish Order

²⁴ Now the men of Israel were hard-pressed on that day, for Saul had ^(Z)put the people under oath, saying, “Cursed be the man who eats food ^[f]before evening, and before I have avenged myself on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food. ²⁵ All the people of the land entered the forest, and there was honey on the ground. ²⁶ When the people entered the forest, behold, ^(AA)there was honey dripping; but no man put his hand to his mouth, because the people feared the oath. ²⁷ However, Jonathan had not heard it when his father put the people under oath; so ^(AB)he put out the end of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it in the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth, and ^(AC)his eyes ^[g]brightened. ²⁸ Then one of the people responded and said, “Your father strictly put the people under oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food today.’” And the people were weary. ²⁹ Then Jonathan said, “^(AD)My father has troubled the land. See now that my eyes have brightened because I tasted a little of this honey. ³⁰ How much more, if only the people had freely eaten today of the spoils of their enemies which they found! For now the defeat among the Philistines has not been great.”

³¹ They attacked the Philistines that day from ^(AE)Michmash to ^(AF)Aijalon. But the people were very tired. ³² So ^(AG)the people loudly rushed upon the spoils, and took sheep, oxen, and calves, and slaughtered them on the ground; and the people ate them ^(AH)with the blood. ³³ Then observers informed Saul, saying, “Look, the people are ^(AI)sinning against the Lord by eating meat with the blood.” And he said, “You have acted treacherously; roll a large rock to me today.” ³⁴ Then Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the people and say to them, ‘Each one of you bring me his ox or his sheep, and slaughter it here and eat; and do not sin against the Lord by eating it with the blood.’” So all the people brought them that night, each one his ox ^[h]with him, and they slaughtered them there. ³⁵ And ^(AJ)Saul built an altar to the Lord; it was the first altar that he built to the Lord.

³⁶ Then Saul said, “Let’s go down after the Philistines by night and take plunder among them until the morning light, and let’s not leave a man among them alive.” And they said, “Do whatever seems good ^[i]to you.” So ^(AK)the priest said, “Let’s approach God here.” ³⁷ So Saul ^(AL)inquired of God: “Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You hand them over to Israel?” But ^(AM)He did not answer him on that day. ³⁸ Then Saul said, “^(AN)[j]Come here, all you ^[k]leaders of the people, and investigate and see how this sin has happened today. ³⁹ For ^(AO)as the Lord lives, who saves Israel, even if it is in my son Jonathan, he shall assuredly die!” But not one of all the people answered him. ⁴⁰ Then he said to all Israel, “You shall be on one side, and I and my son Jonathan will be on the other side.” And the people said to Saul, “Do what seems good ^[l]to you.” ⁴¹ Therefore, Saul said to the Lord, the God of Israel, “^(AP)Give a ^[m]perfect lot.” And Jonathan and Saul were selected by lot, but the people ^[n]were exonerated. ⁴² Then Saul said, “Cast lots between me and my son Jonathan.” And Jonathan was selected by lot.

⁴³ So Saul said to Jonathan, “^(AQ)Tell me what you have done.” And Jonathan told him, and said, “^(AR)I did indeed taste a little honey with the end of the staff that was in my hand. Here I am, I must die!” ⁴⁴ And Saul said, “^(AS)May God do the same to me and more also, for ^(AT)you shall certainly die, Jonathan!” ⁴⁵ But the people said to Saul, “Must Jonathan die, he who has ^[o]brought about this great ^[p]victory in Israel? Far from it! As the Lord lives, ^(AU)not even a hair of his head shall fall to the ground, because ^(AV)he has worked with God this day.” So the people ^[q]rescued Jonathan and he did not die. ⁴⁶ Then Saul went up from ^[r]pursuing the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their own place.

Constant Warfare

⁴⁷ Now when Saul had taken control of the kingdom over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, ^(AW)the sons of Ammon, Edom, ^(AX)the kings of Zobah, and ^(AY)the Philistines; and wherever he turned, he ^[s]inflicted punishment. ⁴⁸ And he acted valiantly and ^[t](AZ)defeated the Amalekites, and saved Israel from the hands of ^[u]those who plundered them.

⁴⁹ Now ^(BA)the sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchi-shua; and the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the firstborn was ^(BB)Merab, and the name of the younger, ^(BC)Michal. ⁵⁰ And the name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. And ^(BD)the name of the commander of his army was Abner the son of Ner, Saul’s uncle. ^51 (BE)Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

⁵² Now the war against the Philistines was severe all the days of Saul; and when Saul saw any warrior or any valiant man, he ^[v](BF)attached him to his staff.

Saul’s Disobedience

15 Then Samuel said to Saul, “^(BG)The Lord sent me to anoint you as king over His people, over Israel; now therefore, listen to the ^[w]words of the Lord. ² This is what the Lord of armies says: ‘I will ^[x]punish Amalek ^(BH)for what he did to Israel, in that he obstructed him on the way while he was coming up from Egypt. ³ Now go and strike Amalek and ^(BI)completely destroy everything that he has, and do not spare him; but ^(BJ)put to death both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’”

⁴ Then Saul summoned the people and ^[y]counted them in ^(BK)Telaim: two hundred thousand foot soldiers and ten thousand men of Judah. ⁵ And Saul came to the city of Amalek and set an ambush in the ^[z]wadi. ⁶ But Saul said to ^(BL)the Kenites, “Go, get away, go down from among the Amalekites, so that I do not destroy you along with them; for ^(BM)you showed kindness to all the sons of Israel when they went up from Egypt.” So the Kenites got away from among the Amalekites. ⁷ Then ^(BN)Saul ^[aa]defeated the Amalekites, from ^(BO)Havilah ^[ab]going toward ^(BP)Shur, which is ^[ac]east of Egypt. ⁸ He captured ^(BQ)Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and ^(BR)completely destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. ⁹ But Saul and the people ^(BS)spared Agag and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the more valuable animals, the lambs, and everything that was good, and were unwilling to destroy them completely; but everything despicable and weak, that they completely destroyed.

Samuel Rebukes Saul

¹⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying, ¹¹ “^(BT)I regret that I have made Saul king, because ^(BU)he has turned back from ^[ad]following Me and has not carried out My commands.” And Samuel was furious and ^(BV)cried out to the Lord all night. ¹² Samuel got up early in the morning to meet Saul; and it was reported to Samuel, saying, “Saul came to ^(BW)Carmel, and behold, he set up a monument for himself, then turned and proceeded on ^[ae]down to ^(BX)Gilgal.” ¹³ So Samuel came to Saul, and Saul said to him, “^(BY)Blessed are you of the Lord! I have carried out the command of the Lord.” ¹⁴ But Samuel said, “^(BZ)What then is this ^[af]bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the ^[ag]bellowing of the oxen which I hear?” ¹⁵ Saul said, “They have brought them from the Amalekites, for ^(CA)the people spared the best of the sheep and oxen to sacrifice to the Lord your God; but the rest we have completely destroyed.” ¹⁶ Then Samuel said to Saul, “Stop, and let me inform you of what the Lord said to me last night.” And he said to him, “Speak!”

¹⁷ So Samuel said, “^[ah]Is it not true, ^(CB)though you were ^[ai]insignificant in your own eyes, that you became the head of the tribes of Israel? For the Lord anointed you as king over Israel. ¹⁸ And the Lord sent you on a ^[aj]mission, and said, ‘^(CC)Go and completely destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are eliminated.’ ¹⁹ Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord? ^(CD)Instead, you loudly rushed upon the spoils and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord!”

²⁰ Then Saul said to Samuel, “^(CE)I did obey the voice of the Lord, for I went on the ^[ak]mission on which the Lord sent me; and I have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have completely destroyed the Amalekites. ²¹ But ^(CF)the people took some of the spoils, sheep and oxen, the choicest of the things designated for destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God at Gilgal.” ²² Samuel said,

²⁴ Then Saul said to Samuel, “^(CL)I have sinned, for ^(CM)I have violated the ^[al]command of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and listened to their voice. ²⁵ Now then, ^(CN)please pardon my sin and return with me, so that I may worship the Lord.” ²⁶ But Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you; for ^(CO)you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” ²⁷ Then Samuel turned to go, but ^(CP)Saul grasped the edge of his robe, and it tore off. ²⁸ So Samuel said to him, “^(CQ)The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to your neighbor, who is better than you. ²⁹ Also the ^[am](CR)Glory of Israel ^(CS)will not lie nor change His mind; for He is not a man, that He would change His mind.” ³⁰ Then Saul said, “I have sinned; ^(CT)but please honor me now before the elders of my people and before all Israel, and go back with me, ^(CU)so that I may worship the Lord your God.” ³¹ So Samuel went back following Saul, and Saul worshiped the Lord.

³² Then Samuel said, “Bring me Agag, the king of the Amalekites.” And Agag came to him ^[an]cheerfully. And Agag said, “Surely the bitterness of death is gone!” ³³ But Samuel said, “^(CV)As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women.” And Samuel cut Agag to pieces before the Lord at Gilgal.

³⁴ Then Samuel went to ^(CW)Ramah, but Saul went up to his house at ^(CX)Gibeah of Saul. ³⁵ And ^(CY)Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, though Samuel ^(CZ)mourned for ^[ao]Saul. And the Lord regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel.

Samuel Goes to Bethlehem

16 Now the Lord said to Samuel, “^(DA)How long are you going to mourn for ^[ap]Saul, since ^(DB)I have rejected him from being king over Israel? ^(DC)Fill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to ^(DD)Jesse the Bethlehemite, because I have ^(DE)chosen a king for Myself among his sons.” ² But Samuel said, “How can I go? When Saul hears about it, he will kill me.” But the Lord said, “^(DF)Take a heifer ^[aq]with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ ³ And you shall invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and ^(DG)I will let you know what you shall do; and ^(DH)you shall anoint for Me the one whom I ^[ar]designate to you.” ⁴ So Samuel did what the Lord told him, and he came to ^(DI)Bethlehem. Then the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, “^(DJ)Do you come in peace?” ⁵ And he said, “In peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. ^(DK)Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” He also consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

⁶ When they entered, he looked at ^(DL)Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is standing before Him.” ⁷ But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for ^[as]God does not see as man sees, since man looks at ^[at]the outward appearance, ^(DM)but the Lord looks at the heart.” ⁸ Then Jesse called ^(DN)Abinadab and had him pass before Samuel. But he said, “The Lord has not chosen this one, either.” ⁹ Next Jesse had ^[au](DO)Shammah pass by. And he said, “The Lord has not chosen this one, either.” ¹⁰ So Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.” ¹¹ Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are these all the boys?” And he said, “^(DP)The youngest is still left, but behold, he is tending the sheep.” So Samuel said to Jesse, “Send word and bring him; for we will not take our places at the table until he comes here.”

David Anointed

¹² So he sent word and brought him in. Now he was ^[av]reddish, with ^(DQ)beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the Lord said, “^(DR)Arise, anoint him; for this is he.” ¹³ So Samuel took the horn of oil and ^(DS)anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and ^(DT)the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel set out and went to Ramah.

^14 (DU)Now the Spirit of the Lord left Saul, and ^(DV)an evil spirit from the Lord terrified him. ¹⁵ Saul’s servants then said to him, “Behold now, an evil spirit from God is terrifying you. ¹⁶ May our lord now command your servants who are before you. Have them search for a man who is a skillful musician on the harp; and it shall come about whenever the evil spirit from God is upon you, that ^(DW)he shall play the harp with his hand, and you will become well.” ¹⁷ So Saul said to his servants, “Now select for me a man who can play well, and bring him to me.” ¹⁸ Then one of the young men responded and said, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is a skillful musician, ^(DX)a valiant mighty man, a warrior, skillful in speech, and a handsome man; and ^(DY)the Lord is with him.” ¹⁹ So Saul sent messengers to Jesse ^[aw]to say, “Send me your son David, who is with the flock.” ²⁰ And Jesse ^(DZ)took a donkey loaded with bread and a jug of wine, and he took a young goat, and sent them to Saul by his son David. ²¹ Then David came to Saul and ^[ax](EA)attended him; and Saul greatly loved him, and he became his armor bearer. ²² So Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, “Let David now ^[ay]be my attendant for he has found favor in my sight.” ²³ So it came about whenever ^(EB)the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the harp and play it with his hand; and Saul would feel relieved and become well, and the evil spirit would leave him.