And Elkanah her husband said to her, Hannah, why do thou weep? And why do thou not eat? And why is thy heart grieved? Am not I better to thee than ten sons?

And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou will indeed look on the affliction of thy handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thy handmaid, but will give to thy handmaid a man-child, then I will give him to LORD all t

And Eli said to her, How long will thou be drunken? Put away thy wine from thee.

Count not thy handmaid for an iniquitous woman, for out of the abundance of my complaint and my provocation have I spoken until now.

Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant thy petition that thou have asked of him.

And she said, Let thy handmaid find favor in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and ate, and her countenance was no more [sad].

And she said, Oh, my lord, as thy soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by thee here, praying to LORD.

And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart exults in LORD. My horn is exalted in LORD. My mouth is enlarged over my enemies because I rejoice in thy salvation.

And if the man said to him, They will surely burn the fat first, and then take as much as thy soul desires, then he would say, No, but thou shall give it to me now, and if not, I will take it by force.

And there came a man of God to Eli, and said to him, Thus says LORD, Did I reveal myself to the house of thy father when they were in Egypt [in bondage] to Pharaoh's house?

And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? And did I give to the house of thy father all the offerings of the sons of Israel made by fire

Why do ye kick at my sacrifice and at my offering, which I have commanded in [my] habitation, and honor thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chief of all the offerings of Israel my people?

Therefore LORD, the God of Israel, says, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me forever, but now LORD says, Be it far from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me

Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in thy house.

And thou shall see an enemy [in my] habitation, in all that I shall give Israel, and there shall not be an old man in thy house forever.

And the man of thine, [whom] I shall not cut off from my altar, [shall be] to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thy heart. And all the increase of thy house shall die in the flower of their age.

And this shall be the sign to thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas: In one day they shall die, both of them.

And it shall come to pass, that everyone who is left in thy house shall come and bow down to him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests' offices that I may eat a morse

Therefore Eli said to Samuel, Go, lay down, and it shall be, if he calls thee, that thou shall say, Speak, LORD, for thy servant hears. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

And LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel said, Speak, for thy servant hears.

And he who brought the news answered and said, Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has been also a great slaughter among the people. And thy two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God is taken.

And they said to him, Behold, thou are old, and thy sons do not walk in thy ways. Now make for us a king to judge us like all the nations.

And Samuel answered Saul, and said, I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for ye shall eat with me today. And in the morning I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thy heart.

And as for thy donkeys that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them, for they are found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for thee, and for all thy father's house?

When thou are departed from me today, then thou shall find two men by Rachel's sepulcher in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah. And they will say to thee, The donkeys which thou went to seek are found, and, lo, thy father has left of

And all the people said to Samuel, Pray for thy servants to LORD thy God that we not die, for we have added to all our sins [this] evil, to ask a king for us.

And Samuel said to Saul, Thou have done foolishly. Thou have not kept the commandment of LORD thy God, which he commanded thee. For now LORD would have established thy kingdom upon Israel forever,

but now thy kingdom shall not continue. LORD has sought for him a man after his own heart, and LORD has appointed him to be prince over his people, because thou have not kept that which LORD commanded thee.

And his armor bearer said to him, Do all that is in thy heart. Turn thee, behold, I am with thee according to thy heart.

And it came to pass, while Saul talked to the priest, that the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased. And Saul said to the priest, Withdraw thy hand.

Then one of the people answered, and said, Thy father strictly charged the people with an oath, saying, Cursed be the man who eats food this day, and the people were faint.

And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice to LORD thy God, and the rest we have utterly destroyed.

But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice to LORD thy God in Gilgal.

And Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of LORD, and thy words, because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.

Then he said, I have sinned. Yet honor me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship LORD thy God.

And Samuel said, As thy sword has made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before LORD in Gilgal.

And LORD said to Samuel, How long will thou mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill thy horn with oil, and go. I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for me a king among

And Samuel said to Jesse, Are all thy sons here? And he said, There remains yet the youngest, and, behold, he is keeping the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send and fetch him, for we will not sit down till he comes here.

Let our lord now command thy servants, who are before thee, to seek out a man who is a skilful player on the harp. And it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou sh

Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, Send to me David thy son, who is with the sheep.

And Jesse said to David his son, Take now for thy brothers an ephah of this parched grain, and these ten loaves, and carry [them] quickly to the camp to thy brothers.

And bring these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand. And look how thy brothers fare, and take their pledge.

And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke to the men. And Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why have thou come down? And with whom have thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride, and t

And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him. Thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.

And David said to Saul, Thy servant was keeping his father's sheep, and when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock,

Thy servant smote both the lion and the bear, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.

And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh to the birds of the heavens, and to the beasts of the field.

This day LORD will deliver thee into my hand, and I will smite thee, and take thy head from off thee. And I will give the dead bodies of the armies of the Philistines this day to the birds of the heavens, and to the wild beasts of

And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain of the army, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul lives, O king, I cannot tell.

And Saul said to him, Whose son are thou, young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.

And Saul sent messengers to David's house, to watch him, and to kill him in the morning. And Michal, David's wife, told him, saying, If thou save not thy life tonight, tomorrow thou will be slain.

And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? What is my iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeks my life?

And David swore moreover, and said, Thy father knows well that I have found favor in thine eyes, and he says, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved. But truly as LORD lives, and as thy soul lives, there is but a step betwe

Then Jonathan said to David, Whatever thy soul desires, I will even do it for thee.

If thy father misses me at all, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Bethlehem his city, for it is the yearly sacrifice there for all the family.

If he says thus, It is well. Thy servant shall have peace. But if he is angry, then know that evil is determined by him.

Therefore deal kindly with thy servant, for thou have brought thy servant into a covenant of LORD with thee. But if there be in me iniquity, kill me thyself, for why should thou bring me to thy father?

Then David said to Jonathan, Who shall tell me if perchance thy father answers thee roughly?

but also thou shall not cut off thy kindness from my house forever. No, not when LORD has cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth.

Then Jonathan said to him, Tomorrow is the new moon, and thou will be missed because thy seat will be empty.

But if I say thus to the boy, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee, go thy way, for LORD has sent thee away.

Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him, Thou son of a perverse rebellious woman, do I not know that thou have chosen the son of Jesse to thine own shame, and to the shame of thy mother's nakedness?

For as long as the son of Jesse lives upon the ground, thou shall not be established, nor thy kingdom. Therefore now send and fetch him to me, for he shall surely die.

And Jonathan said to David, Go in peace, inasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of LORD, saying, LORD shall be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed, forever. And he arose and departed, and Jonathan went i

Now therefore what is under thy hand? Give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever there is present.

And David said to Ahimelech, And is there not here under thy hand spear or sword? For I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste.

Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who among all thy servants is so faithful as David, who is the king's son-in-law, and is taken into thy council, and is honorable in thy house?

Have I today begun to inquire of God for him? Be it far from me. Let not the king impute anything to his servant, nor to all the house of my father, for thy servant knows nothing of all this, less or more.

And the king said, Thou shall surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house.

And David said to Abiathar, I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have occasioned [the death] of all the persons of thy father's house.

Abide thou with me. Fear not, for he who seeks my life seeks thy life, for with me thou shall be in safeguard.

Then David inquired of LORD yet again. And LORD answered him, and said, Arise, go down to Keilah, for I will deliver the Philistines into thy hand.

Then said David, O LORD, the God of Israel, thy servant has surely heard that Saul seeks to come to Keilah to destroy the city for my sake.

Will the men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand? Will Saul come down as thy servant has heard? O LORD, the God of Israel, I beseech thee, tell thy servant. And LORD said, He will come down.

Now therefore, O king, come down, according to all the desire of thy soul to come down, and our part shall be to deliver him up into the king's hand.

And the men of David said to him, Behold, the day of which LORD said to thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thy hand, and thou shall do to him as it shall seem good to thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul

And David said to Saul, Why do thou hearken to men's words, saying, Behold, David seeks thy hurt?

Moreover, my father, see, yea, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand, for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee not. Know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in my hand, and I have not sinned

LORD therefore be judge, and give sentence between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause, and deliver me out of thy hand.

And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words to Saul, that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept.

And thou have declared this day how that thou have dealt well with me, inasmuch as when LORD had delivered me up into thy hand, thou killed me not.

And now, behold, I know that thou shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thy hand.

And thus ye shall say to him who lives [in prosperity], Peace be to thee, and peace be to thy house, and peace be to all that thou have.

And now I have heard that thou have shearers. Thy shepherds have now been with us, and we did them no hurt, neither was there anything missing to them all the while they were in Carmel.

Ask thy young men, and they will tell thee. Therefore let the young men find favor in thine eyes, for we come in a good day. Give, I pray thee, whatever comes to thy hand to thy servants, and to thy son David.

And she fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me be the iniquity, and let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine ears, and hear thou the words of thy handmaid.

Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this worthless fellow, even Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name, and folly is with him. But I thy handmaid saw not the young men of my lord whom thou sent.

Now therefore, my lord, as LORD lives, and as thy soul lives, since LORD has withheld thee from blood guiltiness, and from avenging thyself with thine own hand, now therefore let thine enemies, and those who seek evil to my lord, b

And now this present which thy servant has brought to my lord, let it be given to the young men who follow my lord.

Forgive, I pray thee, the trespass of thy handmaid. For LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord fights the battles of LORD, and evil shall not be found in thee all thy days.

And though men be risen up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul, yet the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with LORD thy God. And the souls of thine enemies, them he shall sling out as from the hollow of a sling.

that this shall be no grief to thee, nor offence of heart to my lord, either that thou have shed blood without cause, or that my lord has avenged himself. And when LORD shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thy handmaid

and blessed be thy discretion, and blessed be thou, who have kept me this day from blood guiltiness, and from avenging myself with my own hand.

So David received from her hand that which she had brought him. And he said to her, Go up in peace to thy house. See, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person.

And she arose, and bowed herself with her face to the earth, and said, Behold, thy handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.

Then said Abishai to David, God has delivered up thine enemy into thy hand this day. Now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear to the earth at one stroke, and I will not smite him the second time.

And David said to Abner, Are not thou a [valiant] man? And who is like to thee in Israel? Why then have thou not kept watch over thy lord the king? For there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy lord.

And Saul knew David's voice, and said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And David said, It is my voice, my lord, O king.

And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in my eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of LORD, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation.

And David said to Achish, If now I have found favor in thine eyes, let them give me a place in one of the cities in the country that I may dwell there, for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee?