The Death of Saul and His Sons

31 Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines, and many fell^[a] on Mount Gilboa.^{(A) 2} The Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and the Philistines killed Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchishua, the sons of Saul. ³ The battle pressed hard on Saul, and the archers found him, and he was badly wounded by them.^{(B) 4} Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, so that these uncircumcised may not come and thrust me through and make sport of me.” But his armor-bearer was unwilling, for he was terrified. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it.^{(C) 5} When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died with him. ⁶ So Saul and his three sons and his armor-bearer and all his men died together on the same day. ⁷ When the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley and those beyond the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook their towns and fled, and the Philistines came and occupied them.

⁸ The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ They cut off his head, stripped off his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to carry the good news to the houses of their idols and to the people.^{(D) 10} They put his armor in the temple of Astarte,^[b] and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.^{(E) 11} But when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,^{(F) 12} all the valiant men set out, traveled all night long, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan. They came to Jabesh and burned them there.^{(G) 13} Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh and fasted seven days.^(H)

David Mourns for Saul and Jonathan

1 After the death of Saul, when David had returned from defeating the Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag.^{(A) 2} On the third day, a man came from Saul’s camp with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. When he came to David, he fell to the ground and did obeisance.^{(B) 3} David said to him, “Where have you come from?” He said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” ⁴ David said to him, “How did things go? Tell me!” He answered, “The army fled from the battle, but also many of the army fell and died, and Saul and his son Jonathan also died.” ⁵ Then David asked the young man who was reporting to him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan died?” ⁶ The young man reporting to him said, “I happened to be on Mount Gilboa, and there was Saul leaning on his spear, while the chariots and the horsemen drew close to him.^{(C) 7} When he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. I answered, ‘Here, sir.’ ⁸ And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’^{(D) 9} He said to me, ‘Come, stand over me and kill me, for convulsions have seized me, and yet my life still lingers.’ ¹⁰ So I stood over him and killed him, for I knew that he could not live after he had fallen. I took the crown that was on his head and the armlet that was on his arm, and I have brought them here to my lord.”^(E)

¹¹ Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and all the men who were with him did the same.^{(F) 12} They mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for his son Jonathan and for the army of the Lord and for the house of Israel, because they had been struck down^[a] by the sword.^{(G) 13} David said to the young man who had reported to him, “Where do you come from?” He answered, “I am the son of a resident alien, an Amalekite.”^{(H) 14} David said to him, “Were you not afraid to lift your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?”^{(I) 15} Then David called one of the young men and said, “Come here and strike him down.” So he struck him down, and he died.^{(J) 16} David said to him, “Your blood be on your head, for your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the Lord’s anointed.’ ”^(K)

¹⁷ David intoned this lamentation over Saul and his son Jonathan.^{(L) 18} (He ordered that The Song of the Bow^[b] be taught to the people of Judah; it is written in the Book of Jashar.) He said,^(M)