and the sons of Eli are sons of worthlessness, they have not known Jehovah.

Also before they make perfume with the fat -- then hath the priest's servant come in, and said to the man who is sacrificing, 'Give flesh to roast for the priest, and he doth not take of thee flesh boiled, but raw;'

and the man saith unto him, 'Let them surely make a perfume (as to-day) with the fat, then take to thee as thy soul desireth;' and he hath said to him, 'Surely now thou dost give; and if not -- I have taken by strength.'

Nay, my sons; for the report which I am hearing is not good causing the people of Jehovah to transgress. --

If a man sin against a man, then hath God judged him; but if against Jehovah a man sin, who doth pray for him?' and they hearken not to the voice of their father, though Jehovah hath delighted to put them to death.

Lo, days are coming, and I have cut off thine arm, and the arm of the house of thy father, that an old man is not in thy house;

and thou hast beheld an adversary in My habitation, in all that He doth good with Israel, and there is not an old man in thy house all the days.

And the man I cut not off of thine from Mine altar, is to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thy soul; and all the increase of thy house do die men;

And it cometh to pass, at that time, that Eli is lying down in his place, and his eyes have begun to be dim -- he is not able to see.

And the lamp of God is not yet extinguished, and Samuel is lying down in the temple of Jehovah, where the ark of God is,

And he runneth unto Eli, and saith, 'Here am I, for thou hast called for me;' and he saith, 'I called not; turn back, lie down;' and he goeth and lieth down.

And Jehovah addeth to call again Samuel, and Samuel riseth and goeth unto Eli, and saith, 'Here am I, for thou hast called for me;' and he saith, 'I have not called, my son, turn back, lie down.'

And Samuel hath not yet known Jehovah, and the word of Jehovah is not yet revealed unto him.

and I have declared to him that I am judging his house -- to the age, for the iniquity which he hath known, for his sons are making themselves vile, and he hath not restrained them,

and therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli: the iniquity of the house of Eli is not atoned for, by sacrifice, and by offering -- unto the age.'

And he saith, 'What is the word which He hath spoken unto thee? I pray thee, hide it not from me; so doth God do to thee, and so doth He add, if thou hidest from me a word of all the words that He hath spoken unto thee.'

And Samuel declareth to him the whole of the words, and hath not hid from him; and he saith, 'It is Jehovah; that which is good in His eyes He doth.'

And Samuel groweth up, and Jehovah hath been with him, and hath not let fall any of his words to the earth;

And the Philistines are afraid, for they said, 'God hath come in unto the camp;' and they say, 'Woe to us, for there hath not been like this heretofore.

And Eli is a son of ninety and eight years, and his eyes have stood, and he hath not been able to see.

And at the time of her death, when the women who are standing by her say, 'Fear not, for a son thou hast borne,' she hath not answered, nor set her heart to it;

therefore the priests of Dagon, and all those coming into the house of Dagon, tread not on the threshold of Dagon, in Ashdod, till this day.

And the men of Ashdod see that it is so, and have said, 'The ark of the God of Israel doth not abide with us, for hard hath been His hand upon us, and upon Dagon our god.'

And they send and gather all the princes of the Philistines, and say, 'Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and it turneth back to its place, and it doth not put us to death -- and our people;' for there hath been a deadly destruction throughout all the city, very heavy hath the hand of God been there,

and the men who have not died have been smitten with emerods, and the cry of the city goeth up into the heavens.

And they say, 'If ye are sending away the ark of the God of Israel, ye do not send it away empty; for ye do certainly send back to Him a guilt-offering; then ye are healed, and it hath been known to you why His hand doth not turn aside from you.'

and why do ye harden your heart as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their heart? do they not -- when He hath rolled Himself upon them -- send them away, and they go?

'And now, take and make one new cart, and two suckling kine, on which a yoke hath not gone up, and ye have bound the kine in the cart, and caused their young ones to turn back from after them to the house,

and ye have seen, if the way of its own border it goeth up to Beth-Shemesh -- He hath done to us this great evil; and if not, then we have known that His hand hath not come against us; an accident it hath been to us.'

And the kine go straight in the way, on the way to Beth-Shemesh, in one highway they have gone, going and lowing, and have not turned aside right or left; and the princes of the Philistines are going after them unto the border of Beth-Shemesh.

And the sons of Israel say unto Samuel, 'Keep not silent for us from crying unto Jehovah our God, and He doth save us out of the hand of the Philistines.'

And the Philistines are humbled, and have not added any more to come into the border of Israel, and the hand of Jehovah is on the Philistines all the days of Samuel.

and his sons have not walked in his ways, and turn aside after the dishonest gain, and take a bribe, and turn aside judgment.

and say unto him, 'Lo, thou hast become aged, and thy sons have not walked in thy ways; now, appoint to us a king, to judge us, like all the nations.'

And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, 'Hearken to the voice of the people, to all that they say unto thee, for thee they have not rejected, but Me they have rejected, from reigning over them.

And ye have cried out in that day because of the king whom ye have chosen for yourselves, and Jehovah doth not answer you in that day.'

and he hath a son, and his name is Saul, a choice youth and goodly, and there is not a man among the sons of Israel goodlier than he -- from his shoulder and upward, higher than any of the people.

And he passeth over through the hill-country of Ephraim, and passeth over through the land of Shalisha, and they have not found; and they pass over through the land of Shaalim, and they are not; and he passeth over through the land of Benjamin, and they have not found.

And Saul saith to his young man, 'And lo, we go, and what do we bring in to the man? for the bread hath gone from our vessels, and a present there is not to bring in to the man of God -- what is with us?'

At your going in to the city so ye do find him, before he doth go up in to the high place to eat; for the people do not eat till his coming, for he doth bless the sacrifice; afterwards they eat, who are called, and now, go up, for at this time ye find him.'

As to the asses which are lost to thee this day three days, set not thy heart to them, for they have been found; and to whom is all the desire of Israel?' is it not to thee and to all thy father's house?'

And Saul answereth and saith, 'Am not I a Benjamite -- of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? and why hast thou spoken unto me according to this word?'

And Samuel taketh the vial of the oil, and poureth on his head, and kisseth him, and saith, 'Is it not because Jehovah hath appointed thee over His inheritance for leader?

and the uncle of Saul saith unto him, and unto his young man, 'Whither went ye?' and he saith, 'To seek the asses; and we see that they are not, and we come in unto Samuel.'

And Saul saith unto his uncle, 'He certainly declared to us that the asses were found;' and of the matter of the kingdom he hath not declared to him that which Samuel said.

and he bringeth near the tribe of Benjamin by its families, and the family of Matri is captured, and Saul son of Kish is captured, and they seek him, and he hath not been found.

and the sons of worthlessness have said, 'What! this one doth save us!' and they despise him, and have not brought to him a present; and he is as one deaf.

and he taketh a couple of oxen, and cutteth them in pieces, and sendeth through all the border of Israel, by the hand of the messengers, saying, 'He who is not coming out after Saul and after Samuel -- thus it is done to his oxen;' and the fear of Jehovah falleth on the people, and they come out as one man.

And it cometh to pass, on the morrow, that Saul putteth the people in three detachments, and they come into the midst of the camp in the morning-watch, and smite Ammon till the heat of the day; and it cometh to pass that those left are scattered, and there have not been left of them two together.

And they say, 'Thou hast not oppressed us, nor hast thou crushed us, nor hast thou taken from the hand of any one anything.'

And he saith unto them, 'A witness is Jehovah against you: and a witness is His anointed this day, that ye have not found anything in my hand;' and they say, 'A witness.'

If ye fear Jehovah, and have served Him, and hearkened to His voice, then ye do not provoke the mouth of Jehovah, and ye have been -- both ye and the king who hath reigned over you -- after Jehovah your God.

And if ye do not hearken to the voice of Jehovah -- then ye have provoked the mouth of Jehovah, and the hand of Jehovah hath been against you, and against your fathers.

is it not wheat-harvest to-day? I call unto Jehovah, and He doth give voices and rain; and know ye and see that your evil is great which ye have done in the eyes of Jehovah, to ask for you a king.'

and all the people say unto Samuel, 'Pray for thy servants unto Jehovah thy God, and we do not die, for we have added to all our sins evil to ask for us a king.'

And Samuel saith unto the people, 'Fear not; ye have done all this evil; only, turn not aside from after Jehovah -- and ye have served Jehovah with all your heart,

and ye do not turn aside after the vain things which do not profit nor deliver, for they are vain,

for Jehovah doth not leave His people, on account of His great name; for Jehovah hath been pleased to make you to Him for a people.

And he waiteth seven days, according to the appointment with Samuel, and Samuel hath not come to Gilgal, and the people are scattered from off him.

and Samuel saith, 'What hast thou done?' And Saul saith, 'Because I saw that the people were scattered from off me, and thou hadst not come at the appointment of the days, and the Philistines are gathered to Michmash,

and I say, Now do the Philistines come down unto me to Gilgal, and the face of Jehovah I have not appeased; and I force myself, and cause the burnt-offering to ascend.'

And Samuel saith unto Saul, 'Thou hast been foolish; thou hast not kept the command of Jehovah thy God, which He commanded thee, for now had Jehovah established thy kingdom over Israel unto the age;

and, now, thy kingdom doth not stand, Jehovah hath sought for Himself a man according to His own heart, and Jehovah chargeth him for leader over His people, for thou hast not kept that which Jehovah commanded thee.'

And an artificer is not found in all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, 'Lest the Hebrews make sword or spear;'

And it hath been, in the day of battle, that there hath not been found sword and spear in the hand of any of the people who are with Saul and with Jonathan -- and there is found to Saul and to Jonathan his son.

And the day cometh that Jonathan son of Saul saith unto the young man bearing his weapons, 'Come, and we pass over unto the station of the Philistines, which is on the other side of this;' and to his father he hath not declared it.

and Ahiah, son of Ahitub, brother of I-Chabod, son of Phinehas son of Eli priest of Jehovah in Shiloh, bearing an ephod; and the people knew not that Jonathan hath gone.

if thus they say unto us, 'Stand still till we have come unto you,' then we have stood in our place, and do not go up unto them;

And Saul saith to the people who are with him, 'Inspect, I pray you, and see; who hath gone from us?' and they inspect, and lo, Jonathan and the bearer of his weapons are not.

And Jonathan hath not heard of his father's adjuring the people, and putteth forth the end of the rod, which is in his hand, and dippeth it in the honeycomb, and bringeth back his hand unto his mouth -- and his eyes see!

How much more if the people had well eaten to-day of the spoil of its enemies which it hath found, for now, the smiting hath not been great among the Philistines.'

And Saul saith, 'Be ye scattered among the people, and ye have said to them, Bring ye nigh unto me each his ox, and each his sheep; and ye have slain them in this place, and eaten, and ye do not sin against Jehovah to eat with the blood.' And all the people bring nigh each his ox, in his hand, that night, and slaughter them there.

And Saul saith, 'Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and we prey upon them till the light of the morning, and leave not a man of them.' And they say, 'All that is good in thine eyes do.' And the priest saith, 'Let us draw near hither unto God.'

And Saul asketh of God, 'Do I go down after the Philistines? dost Thou give them into the hand of Israel?' and He hath not answered him on that day.

And the people say unto Saul, 'Doth Jonathan die who wrought this great salvation in Israel? -- a profanation! Jehovah liveth, if there falleth from the hair of his head to the earth, for with God he hath wrought this day;' and the people rescue Jonathan, and he hath not died.

and Saul hath pity -- also the people -- on Agag, and on the best of the flock, and of the herd, and of the seconds, and on the lambs, and on all that is good, and have not been willing to devote them; and all the work, despised and wasted -- it they devoted.

'I have repented that I caused Saul to reign for king, for he hath turned back from after Me, and My words he hath not performed;' and it is displeasing to Samuel, and he crieth unto Jehovah all the night.

And Samuel saith unto Saul, 'Desist, and I declare to thee that which Jehovah hath spoken unto me to-night;' and he saith to him, 'Speak.'

And Samuel saith, 'Art not thou, if thou art little in thine own eyes, head of the tribes of Israel? and Jehovah doth anoint thee for king over Israel,

and why hast thou not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah -- and dost fly unto the spoil, and dost do the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah?'

And Samuel saith unto Saul, 'I do not turn back with thee; for thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah, and Jehovah doth reject thee from being king over Israel.'

and also, the Pre-eminence of Israel doth not lie nor repent, for He is not a man to be penitent.'

And Samuel hath not added to see Saul till the day of his death, for Samuel mourned for Saul, and Jehovah repented that He had caused Saul to reign over Israel.

And Jehovah saith unto Samuel, 'Look not unto his appearance, and unto the height of his stature, for I have rejected him; for it is not as man seeth -- for man looketh at the eyes, and Jehovah looketh at the heart.'

And Jesse calleth unto Abinadab, and causeth him to pass by before Samuel; and he saith, 'Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.'

And Jesse causeth Shammah to pass by, and he saith, 'Also on this Jehovah hath not fixed.'

And Jesse causeth seven of his sons to pass by before Samuel, and Samuel saith to Jesse, 'Jehovah hath not fixed on these.'

And Samuel saith unto Jesse, 'Are the young men finished?' and he saith, 'Yet hath been left the youngest; and lo, he delighteth himself among the flock;' and Samuel saith unto Jesse, 'Send and take him, for we do not turn round till his coming in hither.'

And he standeth and calleth unto the ranks of Israel, and saith to them, 'Why are ye come out to set in array the battle? am not I the Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose for you a man, and let him come down unto me;

And David saith, 'What have I done now? is it not a word?'

And Saul saith unto David, 'Thou art not able to go unto this Philistine, to fight with him, for a youth thou art, and he a man of war from his youth.'

And David girded his sword above his long robe, and beginneth to go, for he hath not tried it; and David saith unto Saul, 'I am not able to go with these, for I had not tried;' and David turneth them aside from off him.

and all this assembly do know that not by sword and by spear doth Jehovah save, that the battle is Jehovah's, and He hath given you into our hand.'

And when Saul seeth David going out to meet the Philistine, he hath said unto Abner, head of the host, 'Whose son is this -- the youth, Abner?' and Abner saith, 'Thy soul liveth, O king, I have not known.'

And Saul taketh him on that day, and hath not permitted him to turn back to the house of his father.

And Saul saith unto David, 'Lo, my elder daughter Merab -- her I give to thee for a wife; only, be to me for a son of valour, and fight the battles of Jehovah;' and Saul said, 'Let not my hand be on him, but let the hand of the Philistines be upon him.'

And his servants declare to David these words, and the thing is right in the eyes of David, to be son-in-law to the king; and the days have not been full,

And Jonathan speaketh good of David unto Saul his father, and saith unto him, 'Let not the king sin against his servant, against David, because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works for thee are very good;

And Saul hearkeneth to the voice of Jonathan, and Saul sweareth, 'Jehovah liveth -- he doth not die.'

and Saul seeketh to smite with the javelin through David, and through the wall, and he freeth himself from the presence of Saul, and he smiteth the javelin through the wall; and David hath fled and escapeth during that night.