Holman Christian Standard Bible (86 page)

14
 Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let's go to Gilgal, so we can renew the kingship there.”
15
 So all the people went to Gilgal, and there in the
Lord
's presence they made Saul king. There they sacrificed
•fellowship
offerings in the
Lord
's presence, and Saul and all the men of Israel greatly rejoiced.

1 Samuel

Samuel's Final Public Speech

12
Then Samuel said to all Israel, “I have carefully listened to everything you said to me and placed a king over you. 
2
 Now you can see that the king is leading you. As for me, I'm old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have led you from my youth until today.
3
 Here I am. Bring charges against me before the
Lord
and His anointed: Whose ox or donkey have I taken? Whom have I wronged or mistreated? From whose hand have I taken a bribe to overlook something? I will return it to you.”

4
 “You haven't wronged us, you haven't mistreated us, and you haven't taken anything from anyone's hand,” they responded.

5
 He said to them, “The
Lord
is a witness against you, and His anointed is a witness today that you haven't found anything in my hand.” 

“He is a witness,” they said.

6
 Then Samuel said to the people, “The
Lord
, who appointed Moses and Aaron and who brought your ancestors up from the land of Egypt, is a witness. 
7
 Now present yourselves, so I may confront you before the
Lord
about all the righteous acts He has done for you and your ancestors.

8
 “When Jacob went to Egypt, your ancestors cried out to the
Lord
, and He sent them Moses and Aaron, who led your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place. 
9
 But they forgot the
Lord
their God, so He handed them over to Sisera commander of the army of Hazor, to the Philistines, and to the king of Moab. These enemies fought against them.
10
 Then they cried out to the
Lord
and said, ‘We have sinned, for we abandoned the
Lord
and worshiped the
•Baals
and the
•Ashtoreths
. Now deliver us from the power of our enemies, and we will serve You.'
11
 So the
Lord
sent Jerubbaal, Barak, Jephthah, and Samuel. He rescued you from the power of the enemies around you, and you lived securely.
12
 But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was coming against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king rule over us' — even though the
Lord
your God is your king.

13
 “Now here is the king you've chosen, the one you requested. Look, this is the king the
Lord
has placed over you.
14
 If you
•fear
the
Lord
, worship and obey Him, and if you don't rebel against the
Lord
's command, then both you and the king who rules over you will follow the
Lord
your God.
15
 However, if you disobey the
Lord
 and rebel against His command, the
Lord
's hand will be against you and against your ancestors.

16
 “Now, therefore, present yourselves and see this great thing that the
Lord
will do before your eyes. 
17
 Isn't the wheat harvest today? I will call on the
Lord
and He will send thunder and rain, so that you will know and see what a great evil you committed in the
Lord
's sight by requesting a king for yourselves.” 
18
 Samuel called on the
Lord
, and on that day the
Lord
sent thunder and rain. As a result, all the people greatly feared the
Lord
and Samuel. 

19
 They pleaded with Samuel, “Pray to the
Lord
your God for your servants, so we won't die! For we have added to all our sins the evil of requesting a king for ourselves.” 

20
 Samuel replied, “Don't be afraid. Even though you have committed all this evil, don't turn away from following the
Lord
. Instead, worship the
Lord
with all your heart.
21
 Don't turn away to follow worthless things that can't profit or deliver you; they are worthless. 
22
 The
Lord
will not abandon His people, because of His great name and because He has determined to make you His own people. 

23
 “As for me, I vow that I will not sin against the
Lord
by ceasing to pray for you. I will teach you the good and right way.
24
 Above all, fear the
Lord
and worship Him faithfully with all your heart; consider the great things He has done for you. 
25
 However, if you continue to do what is evil, both you and your king will be swept away.” 

1 Samuel

Saul's Failure

13
Saul was 30 years old when he became king, and he reigned 42 years over Israel. 
2
 He chose 3,000 men from Israel for himself: 2,000 were with Saul at Michmash and in Bethel's hill country, and 1,000 were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. He sent the rest of the troops away, each to his own tent.

3
 Jonathan attacked the Philistine garrison that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. So Saul blew the ram's horn throughout the land saying, “Let the Hebrews hear! ”
4
 And all Israel heard the news, “Saul has attacked the Philistine garrison, and Israel is now repulsive to the Philistines.” Then the troops were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.

5
 The Philistines also gathered to fight against Israel: 3,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and troops as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Michmash, east of Beth-aven.

6
 The men of Israel saw that they were in trouble because the troops were in a difficult situation. They hid in caves, thickets, among rocks, and in holes and cisterns. 
7
 Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.

Saul, however, was still at Gilgal, and all his troops were gripped with fear.
8
 He waited seven days for the appointed time that Samuel had set, but Samuel didn't come to Gilgal, and the troops were deserting him.
9
 So Saul said, “Bring me the
•burnt
offering and the
•fellowship
offerings.” Then he offered the burnt offering.

10
 Just as he finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel arrived. So Saul went out to greet him,
11
 and Samuel asked, “What have you done? ”

Saul answered, “When I saw that the troops were deserting me and you didn't come within the appointed days and the Philistines were gathering at Michmash,
12
 I thought: The Philistines will now descend on me at Gilgal, and I haven't sought the
Lord
's favor. So I forced myself to offer the burnt offering.”

13
 Samuel said to Saul, “You have been foolish. You have not kept the command which the
Lord
your God gave you. It was at this time that the
Lord
would have permanently established your reign over Israel, 
14
 but now your reign will not endure. The
Lord
has found a man loyal to Him, and the
Lord
has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not done what the
Lord
commanded.”
15
 Then Samuel went from Gilgal to Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul registered the troops who were with him, about 600 men.

16
 Saul, his son Jonathan, and the troops who were with them were staying in Geba of Benjamin, and the Philistines were camped at Michmash.
17
 Raiding parties went out from the Philistine camp in three divisions. One division headed toward the Ophrah road leading to the land of Shual.
18
 The next division headed toward the Beth-horon road, and the last division headed down the border road that looks out over the Valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.

19
 No blacksmith could be found in all the land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, “Otherwise, the Hebrews will make swords or spears.”
20
 So all the Israelites went to the Philistines to sharpen their plows, mattocks, axes, and sickles. 
21
 The price was two-thirds of a
•shekel
 for plows and mattocks, and one-third of a shekel for pitchforks and axes, and for putting a point on an oxgoad.
22
 So on the day of battle not a sword or spear could be found in the hand of any of the troops who were with Saul and Jonathan; only Saul and his son Jonathan had weapons.

Jonathan's Victory over the Philistines

23
 Now a Philistine garrison took control of the pass at Michmash.

1 Samuel

14
 That same day Saul's son Jonathan said to the attendant who carried his weapons, “Come on, let's cross over to the Philistine garrison on the other side.” However, he did not tell his father.

2
 Saul was staying under the pomegranate tree in Migron on the outskirts of Gibeah. The troops with him numbered about 600. 
3
 Ahijah, who was wearing an
•ephod
, was also there. He was the son of Ahitub, the brother of Ichabod son of Phinehas, son of Eli the
Lord
's priest at Shiloh. But the troops did not know that Jonathan had left.

4
 There were sharp columns of rock on both sides of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine garrison. One was named Bozez and the other Seneh;
5
 one stood to the north in front of Michmash and the other to the south in front of Geba.
6
 Jonathan said to the attendant who carried his weapons, “Come on, let's cross over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the
Lord
will help us. Nothing can keep the
Lord
from saving, whether by many or by few.” 

7
 His armor-bearer responded, “Do what is in your heart. You choose. I'm right here with you whatever you decide.”

8
 “All right,” Jonathan replied, “we'll cross over to the men and then let them see us.
9
 If they say, ‘Wait until we reach you,' then we will stay where we are and not go up to them.
10
 But if they say, ‘Come on up,' then we'll go up, because the
Lord
has handed them over to us — that will be our sign.”

11
 They let themselves be seen by the Philistine garrison, and the Philistines said, “Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they've been hiding! ”
12
 The men of the garrison called to Jonathan and his armor-bearer. “Come on up, and we'll teach you a lesson! ” they said.

“Follow me,” Jonathan told his armor-bearer, “for the
Lord
has handed them over to Israel.” 
13
 Jonathan climbed up using his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer behind him. Jonathan cut them down, and his armor-bearer followed and finished them off.
14
 In that first assault Jonathan and his armor-bearer struck down about 20 men in a half-acre field.

A Defeat for the Philistines

15
 Terror spread through the Philistine camp and the open fields to all the troops. Even the garrison and the raiding parties were terrified. The earth shook, and terror spread from God.
16
 When Saul's watchmen in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, they saw the panicking troops scattering in every direction.
17
 So Saul said to the troops with him, “Call the roll and determine who has left us.” They called the roll and saw that Jonathan and his armor-bearer were gone.

18
 Saul told Ahijah, “Bring the ark of God,” for it was with the Israelites at that time.
19
 While Saul spoke to the priest, the panic in the Philistine camp increased in intensity. So Saul said to the priest, “Stop what you're doing.” 

20
 Saul and all the troops with him assembled and marched to the battle, and there, the Philistines were fighting against each other in great confusion! 
21
 There were Hebrews from the area who had gone earlier into the camp to join the Philistines, but even they joined the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.
22
 When all the Israelite men who had been hiding in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were fleeing, they also joined Saul and Jonathan in the battle.
23
 So the
Lord
saved Israel that day. 

Saul's Rash Oath

The battle extended beyond Beth-aven,
24
 and the men of Israel were worn out that day, for Saul had placed the troops under an oath: “The man who eats food before evening, before I have taken vengeance on my enemies is cursed.” So none of the troops tasted any food.

25
 Everyone went into the forest, and there was honey on the ground.
26
 When the troops entered the forest, they saw the flow of honey, but none of them ate any of it because they feared the oath.
27
 However, Jonathan had not heard his father make the troops swear the oath. He reached out with the end of the staff he was carrying and dipped it into the honeycomb. When he ate the honey, he had renewed energy. 
28
 Then, one of the troops said, “Your father made the troops solemnly swear, ‘The man who eats food today is cursed,' and the troops are exhausted.”