Saul Defeats the Ammonites

11 About a month later,^[a] King Nahash of Ammon led his army against the Israelite town of Jabesh-gilead. But all the citizens of Jabesh asked for peace. “Make a treaty with us, and we will be your servants,” they pleaded.

² “All right,” Nahash said, “but only on one condition. I will gouge out the right eye of every one of you as a disgrace to all Israel!”

³ “Give us seven days to send messengers throughout Israel!” replied the elders of Jabesh. “If no one comes to save us, we will agree to your terms.”

⁴ When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the people about their plight, everyone broke into tears. ⁵ Saul had been plowing a field with his oxen, and when he returned to town, he asked, “What’s the matter? Why is everyone crying?” So they told him about the message from Jabesh.

⁶ Then the Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he became very angry. ⁷ He took two oxen and cut them into pieces and sent the messengers to carry them throughout Israel with this message: “This is what will happen to the oxen of anyone who refuses to follow Saul and Samuel into battle!” And the Lord made the people afraid of Saul’s anger, and all of them came out together as one. ⁸ When Saul mobilized them at Bezek, he found that there were 300,000 men from Israel and 30,000^[b] men from Judah.

⁹ So Saul sent the messengers back to Jabesh-gilead to say, “We will rescue you by noontime tomorrow!” There was great joy throughout the town when that message arrived!

¹⁰ The men of Jabesh then told their enemies, “Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you can do to us whatever you wish.” ¹¹ But before dawn the next morning, Saul arrived, having divided his army into three detachments. He launched a surprise attack against the Ammonites and slaughtered them the whole morning. The remnant of their army was so badly scattered that no two of them were left together.

¹² Then the people exclaimed to Samuel, “Now where are those men who said, ‘Why should Saul rule over us?’ Bring them here, and we will kill them!”

¹³ But Saul replied, “No one will be executed today, for today the Lord has rescued Israel!”

¹⁴ Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us all go to Gilgal to renew the kingdom.” ¹⁵ So they all went to Gilgal, and in a solemn ceremony before the Lord they made Saul king. Then they offered peace offerings to the Lord, and Saul and all the Israelites were filled with joy.

Samuel’s Farewell Address

12 Then Samuel addressed all Israel: “I have done as you asked and given you a king. ² Your king is now your leader. I stand here before you—an old, gray-haired man—and my sons serve you. I have served as your leader from the time I was a boy to this very day. ³ Now testify against me in the presence of the Lord and before his anointed one. Whose ox or donkey have I stolen? Have I ever cheated any of you? Have I ever oppressed you? Have I ever taken a bribe and perverted justice? Tell me and I will make right whatever I have done wrong.”

⁴ “No,” they replied, “you have never cheated or oppressed us, and you have never taken even a single bribe.”

⁵ “The Lord and his anointed one are my witnesses today,” Samuel declared, “that my hands are clean.”

“Yes, he is a witness,” they replied.

⁶ “It was the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron,” Samuel continued. “He brought your ancestors out of the land of Egypt. ⁷ Now stand here quietly before the Lord as I remind you of all the great things the Lord has done for you and your ancestors.

⁸ “When the Israelites were^[c] in Egypt and cried out to the Lord, he sent Moses and Aaron to rescue them from Egypt and to bring them into this land. ⁹ But the people soon forgot about the Lord their God, so he handed them over to Sisera, the commander of Hazor’s army, and also to the Philistines and to the king of Moab, who fought against them.

¹⁰ “Then they cried to the Lord again and confessed, ‘We have sinned by turning away from the Lord and worshiping the images of Baal and Ashtoreth. But we will worship you and you alone if you will rescue us from our enemies.’ ¹¹ Then the Lord sent Gideon,^[d] Bedan,^[e] Jephthah, and Samuel^[f] to save you, and you lived in safety.

¹² “But when you were afraid of Nahash, the king of Ammon, you came to me and said that you wanted a king to reign over you, even though the Lord your God was already your king. ¹³ All right, here is the king you have chosen. You asked for him, and the Lord has granted your request.

¹⁴ “Now if you fear and worship the Lord and listen to his voice, and if you do not rebel against the Lord’s commands, then both you and your king will show that you recognize the Lord as your God. ¹⁵ But if you rebel against the Lord’s commands and refuse to listen to him, then his hand will be as heavy upon you as it was upon your ancestors.

¹⁶ “Now stand here and see the great thing the Lord is about to do. ¹⁷ You know that it does not rain at this time of the year during the wheat harvest. I will ask the Lord to send thunder and rain today. Then you will realize how wicked you have been in asking the Lord for a king!”

¹⁸ So Samuel called to the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day. And all the people were terrified of the Lord and of Samuel. ¹⁹ “Pray to the Lord your God for us, or we will die!” they all said to Samuel. “For now we have added to our sins by asking for a king.”

²⁰ “Don’t be afraid,” Samuel reassured them. “You have certainly done wrong, but make sure now that you worship the Lord with all your heart, and don’t turn your back on him. ²¹ Don’t go back to worshiping worthless idols that cannot help or rescue you—they are totally useless! ²² The Lord will not abandon his people, because that would dishonor his great name. For it has pleased the Lord to make you his very own people.

²³ “As for me, I will certainly not sin against the Lord by ending my prayers for you. And I will continue to teach you what is good and right. ²⁴ But be sure to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you. ²⁵ But if you continue to sin, you and your king will be swept away.”

From Adam to Noah’s Sons

1 The descendants of Adam were Seth, Enosh, ² Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, ³ Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, ⁴ and Noah.

The sons of Noah were^[a] Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Descendants of Japheth

⁵ The descendants of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.

⁶ The descendants of Gomer were Ashkenaz, Riphath,^[b] and Togarmah.

⁷ The descendants of Javan were Elishah, Tarshish, Kittim, and Rodanim.

Descendants of Ham

⁸ The descendants of Ham were Cush, Mizraim,^[c] Put, and Canaan.

⁹ The descendants of Cush were Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. The descendants of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan. ¹⁰ Cush was also the ancestor of Nimrod, who was the first heroic warrior on earth.

¹¹ Mizraim was the ancestor of the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, ¹² Pathrusites, Casluhites, and the Caphtorites, from whom the Philistines came.^[d]

¹³ Canaan’s oldest son was Sidon, the ancestor of the Sidonians. Canaan was also the ancestor of the Hittites,^{[e] 14} Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, ¹⁵ Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, ¹⁶ Arvadites, Zemarites, and Hamathites.

Descendants of Shem

¹⁷ The descendants of Shem were Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud, and Aram.

The descendants of Aram were^[f] Uz, Hul, Gether, and Mash.^[g]

¹⁸ Arphaxad was the father of Shelah.

Shelah was the father of Eber.

¹⁹ Eber had two sons. The first was named Peleg (which means “division”), for during his lifetime the people of the world were divided into different language groups. His brother’s name was Joktan.

²⁰ Joktan was the ancestor of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, ²¹ Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, ²² Obal,^[h] Abimael, Sheba, ²³ Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were descendants of Joktan.

²⁴ So this is the family line descended from Shem: Arphaxad, Shelah,^{[i] 25} Eber, Peleg, Reu, ²⁶ Serug, Nahor, Terah, ²⁷ and Abram, later known as Abraham.

Descendants of Abraham

²⁸ The sons of Abraham were Isaac and Ishmael. ²⁹ These are their genealogical records:

The sons of Ishmael were Nebaioth (the oldest), Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, ³⁰ Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadad, Tema, ³¹ Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. These were the sons of Ishmael.

³² The sons of Keturah, Abraham’s concubine, were Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah.

The sons of Jokshan were Sheba and Dedan.

³³ The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah.

All these were descendants of Abraham through his concubine Keturah.

Descendants of Isaac

³⁴ Abraham was the father of Isaac. The sons of Isaac were Esau and Israel.^[j]

Descendants of Esau

³⁵ The sons of Esau were Eliphaz, Reuel, Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.

³⁶ The descendants of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho,^[k] Gatam, Kenaz, and Amalek, who was born to Timna.^[l]

³⁷ The descendants of Reuel were Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah.

Original Peoples of Edom

³⁸ The descendants of Seir were Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan.

³⁹ The descendants of Lotan were Hori and Hemam.^[m] Lotan’s sister was named Timna.

⁴⁰ The descendants of Shobal were Alvan,^[n] Manahath, Ebal, Shepho,^[o] and Onam.

The descendants of Zibeon were Aiah and Anah.

⁴¹ The son of Anah was Dishon.

The descendants of Dishon were Hemdan,^[p] Eshban, Ithran, and Keran.

⁴² The descendants of Ezer were Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan.^[q]

The descendants of Dishan^[r] were Uz and Aran.

Rulers of Edom

⁴³ These are the kings who ruled in the land of Edom before any king ruled over the Israelites^[s]:

Bela son of Beor, who ruled from his city of Dinhabah.

⁴⁴ When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah became king in his place.

⁴⁵ When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites became king in his place.

⁴⁶ When Husham died, Hadad son of Bedad became king in his place and ruled from the city of Avith. He was the one who destroyed the Midianite army in the land of Moab.

⁴⁷ When Hadad died, Samlah from the city of Masrekah became king in his place.

⁴⁸ When Samlah died, Shaul from the city of Rehoboth-on-the-River became king in his place.

⁴⁹ When Shaul died, Baal-hanan son of Acbor became king in his place.

⁵⁰ When Baal-hanan died, Hadad became king in his place and ruled from the city of Pau.^[t] His wife was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred and granddaughter of Me-zahab. ⁵¹ Then Hadad died.

The clan leaders of Edom were Timna, Alvah,^[u] Jetheth, ⁵² Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon, ⁵³ Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, ⁵⁴ Magdiel, and Iram. These are the clan leaders of Edom.

Paul and the False Apostles

11 I hope you will put up with a little more of my foolishness. Please bear with me. ² For I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself. I promised you as a pure bride^[a] to one husband—Christ. ³ But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted, just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the serpent. ⁴ You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed.

⁵ But I don’t consider myself inferior in any way to these “super apostles” who teach such things. ⁶ I may be unskilled as a speaker, but I’m not lacking in knowledge. We have made this clear to you in every possible way.

⁷ Was I wrong when I humbled myself and honored you by preaching God’s Good News to you without expecting anything in return? ⁸ I “robbed” other churches by accepting their contributions so I could serve you at no cost. ⁹ And when I was with you and didn’t have enough to live on, I did not become a financial burden to anyone. For the brothers who came from Macedonia brought me all that I needed. I have never been a burden to you, and I never will be. ¹⁰ As surely as the truth of Christ is in me, no one in all of Greece^[b] will ever stop me from boasting about this. ¹¹ Why? Because I don’t love you? God knows that I do.

¹² But I will continue doing what I have always done. This will undercut those who are looking for an opportunity to boast that their work is just like ours. ¹³ These people are false apostles. They are deceitful workers who disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. ¹⁴ But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. ¹⁵ So it is no wonder that his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. In the end they will get the punishment their wicked deeds deserve.

Paul’s Many Trials

¹⁶ Again I say, don’t think that I am a fool to talk like this. But even if you do, listen to me, as you would to a foolish person, while I also boast a little. ¹⁷ Such boasting is not from the Lord, but I am acting like a fool. ¹⁸ And since others boast about their human achievements, I will, too. ¹⁹ After all, you think you are so wise, but you enjoy putting up with fools! ²⁰ You put up with it when someone enslaves you, takes everything you have, takes advantage of you, takes control of everything, and slaps you in the face. ²¹ I’m ashamed to say that we’ve been too “weak” to do that!

But whatever they dare to boast about—I’m talking like a fool again—I dare to boast about it, too. ²² Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. ²³ Are they servants of Christ? I know I sound like a madman, but I have served him far more! I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again. ²⁴ Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes. ²⁵ Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. ²⁶ I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not.^{[c] 27} I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm.

²⁸ Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches. ²⁹ Who is weak without my feeling that weakness? Who is led astray, and I do not burn with anger?

³⁰ If I must boast, I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I am. ³¹ God, the Father of our Lord Jesus, who is worthy of eternal praise, knows I am not lying. ³² When I was in Damascus, the governor under King Aretas kept guards at the city gates to catch me. ³³ I had to be lowered in a basket through a window in the city wall to escape from him.