which had two wives, the one called Hannah and the other Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.

And it fell on a day, as Elkanah had offered, that he gave to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters portions.

But unto Hannah he gave a portion with a heavy cheer, for he loved her; nevertheless the LORD had made her barren.

And thereto her enemy Peninnah vexed her a good in casting her in the teeth how the LORD had made her barren.

Then Hannah rose up after that they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh. And Eli the priest sat upon a stool by one of the side posts of the temple of the LORD.

And in process of time she conceived and bare a son, and called his name Samuel: because she had asked him of the LORD.

And then she took him with her, when she had weaned him, with three bullocks and an ephah of flour and a bottle of wine, and brought him into the house of the LORD in Shiloh, how be it the child was yet young.

They that were full, have hired out themselves for bread, and they that were hungry cease so to be: insomuch that the barren hath borne seven, and she that had many children is waxed feeble.

Yea, and thereto before they had offered the fat, the priest's lad came and said to the man that offered, "Give flesh to roast for the priest, for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw."

And the LORD went and called Samuel the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, "I am here, for thou hast called me." Then Eli perceived that the LORD had called the lad.

And when he made mention of the ark of God, Eli fell from off his stool backward toward the gate, and his neck brake, and he died: for he was old and unwieldy. And he had judged Israel forty years.

And when they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was in the city with a mighty great plague, and he smote the men of the city both small and great: and they were smitten in their secret places with the hemorrhoids.

And so when ark of the LORD had been in the country of the Philistines seven months,

Wherefore should ye harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? Which for all that, when he had played his pageants with them, were fain to let the people go and depart.

And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.

And he plagued the men of Bethshemesh, because they had seen the ark of the LORD. And he slew of the people fifty thousand and three score and ten persons. And the people lamented, because the LORD had slain so great a slaughter of them.

Thereto, the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel came again to Israel, even from Ekron to Gath, with the coasts of the same, which Israel plucked out of the hands of the Philistines. For there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

the same had a son called Saul, a goodly young man, so that among the children of Israel, there was none goodlier than he, and was thereto, from the shoulders upward, higher than all the other people.

But the LORD had told Samuel a day before Saul came, saying,

And as soon as he had turned his shoulder to go from Samuel, God gave him another manner of heart, and all those tokens came to pass that same day.

And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the hill.

And when Samuel had brought all the tribes of Israel the tribe of Benjamin was caught.

When he had brought the tribe of Benjamin by their kindreds, the kindred of Matri was caught: and Saul the son of Kish was caught. And they sought him; but he could not be found.

And Saul also went home to Gibeah. And there went with him a host, such as God had touched their hearts.

But the children of Belial said, "How shall he save us?" And despised him and brought him not presents. And he made as though he had not heard it.

And took a yoke of oxen and hewed them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, "Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so shall his oxen be served." Then the fear of the LORD fell upon the people, and they came out as it had been but one man.

Saul was as a child of a year old, when he began to reign. And when he had reigned two years over Israel,

And Jonathan slew the Philistines in a hold they had in Gibeah, and it came to the Philistines' ears. And Saul caused the trumpet to be blown throughout all the land, saying, "Let the Hebrews hear."

And all Israel heard say, how that Saul had destroyed a hold of the Philistines, and how that Israel stank unto the Philistines. And all the people cried after Saul to Gilgal.

And he tarried seven days, as Samuel had appointed. But Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people scattered from him.

And as soon as he had made an end of offering burnt offerings behold, Samuel came. And Saul went against him, to salute him. Then said Samuel to Saul, "What hast thou done?"

And Saul and Jonathan his son and the people that were found with them, had their abiding in Gibeah of Benjamin. But the Philistines had pitched in Michmash.

And when they had both showed themselves unto the garrison of the Philistines, the Philistines said, "See, the Hebrews come out of the holes where they had hid themselves in."

Then said Saul unto the people that was with him, "Number, and see who is gone away from us." And when they had told: behold, Jonathan and his harness bearer were not there.

And they also which had hid themselves in mount Ephraim, as soon as they heard how that the Philistines were fled, they followed after them in battle.

How then, if all the people had eaten of the spoil of their enemies which they found, had there not been then a much greater slaughter among the Philistines?"

And Samuel rose early, to meet Saul in the morning. And it was told Samuel that Saul was come to Carmel, and had set him up a pillar of triumph, and was turned and departed and gone to Gilgal.

But Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, because the LORD repented that he had made him king over Israel.

and had a helmet of brass upon his head, and a coat of mail about him. And the weight of his coat of mail was five thousand sicles of brass.

And he had a harness of brass upon his legs, and a shield of brass upon his shoulders.

And this David was the son of an Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah, named Jesse; which Jesse had eight sons, and was an old man in the days of Saul among the people.

And David rose up early in the morning and left the sheep with a keeper, and took and went, as Jesse had commanded him, and came where the host lay. And the host was going out in array, and shouted in the battle:

for Israel and the Philistines had put themselves in array, the one against the other.

and took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of a brook and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, and in a poke; and took a sling in his hand, and went to the Philistine.

And so David overcame the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and smote the Philistine and slew him. And because David had no sword in his hand,

And when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David; insomuch that Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely. And when Saul had set him over his men of war, he pleased all the people, and Saul's servants thereto.

And Saul had a spear in his hand, and hurled it; intending to have nailed David to the wall. But David avoided out of his presence two times.

Then Saul communed with Jonathan his son, and with all his servants, that they should kill David. But Jonathan Saul's son had a great favour to David,

And so David fled and escaped and went to Samuel to Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth.

And so Jonathan arose from the table in a great anger and did eat no meat the second day of the month, for he was sorry for David, because his father had done him shame.

And when the lad was come to the place whither Jonathan had shot the arrow, Jonathan cried after him and said, "The arrow is beyond thee."

Then answered Doeg the Edomite, which had the oversight of the servants of Saul, and said, "I saw the son of Jesse, when he came to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub,

And Ahimelech answered the king, and said, "Who is so faithful among all thy servants as David and thereto the king's son-in-law, and goeth at thy bidding, and is had in honour in thine house?

and showed David how that Saul had slain the LORD's priests.

But David had knowledge that Saul imagined mischief against him, and said therefore to Abiathar the priest, "Bring the ephod."

And Saul and his men went on the one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other. And David, as a man amazed, made haste to get from Saul. For Saul and his men had compassed David and his men round about, to take them.

And immediately David's heart smote him, because he had cut off the tip of Saul's coat.

Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that the LORD had delivered thee this day into mine hand, in the cave. When they bade kill thee, mine eye had compassion on thee: and I said, 'I will not lay my hands on my master, for he is the LORD's anointed.'

When David had made an end of speaking all these words to Saul, Saul said, "Is this thy voice, my son David?" And he lifted up his voice and wept,

And thou hast showed this day how that thou hast dealt lovingly with me: forasmuch as when the LORD had locked me in thine hands, thou slewest me not.

And there was a man in Maon whose cattle was in Carmel, and the man was exceeding mighty, and had three thousand sheep and a thousand goats. And he was shearing his sheep in Carmel.

And David said, "In vain have I kept all that this fellow had in the wilderness: so that nought was missed that pertained unto him, for he hath quite me with evil for good.

For in very deed - as sure as the LORD God of Israel liveth which hath kept me back from hurting thee - except thou hadst hasted and met me, there had not been left Nabal, by the dawning of the day, a pisser against the wall."

Wherefore David arose and went to the place where Saul had pitched, and beheld the place where Saul lay with Abner the son of Ner his chief captain. For Saul lay within a round bank and the people pitched round about him.

And David took the spear and the cruse of water that were at Saul's head, and they gat them away, and no man saw or wist it or awoke. For they were all asleep, because the LORD had sent a slumber upon them.

Samuel was then dead, and all Israel had lamented him and buried him in Ramah his own city. And Saul had put the soothsayers and expounders of tokens out of the land.

And the woman said unto him, "Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath destroyed the women that had prophesying spirits, and the sorcerers, out of the land. Wherefore then layest thou a net for my soul to kill me?"

Then Saul fell straightway flat on the earth as long as he was, and was sore a dread of the words of Samuel. And thereto there was no strength in him: for he had not eaten all the day and the night before.

The woman had a fat calf in the house, and that she hasted and killed it, and took flour and kneaded it and did bake him sweet cakes,

and brought them before Saul and before his servants. And when they had eaten, they stood up, and went away the same night.

But yer David and his men were come to Ziklag the third day, the Amalekites had run in a running upon the south and upon Ziklag, and had smitten Ziklag and burnt it with fire,

and had taken the women that were therein prisoners, both small and great: but slew not a man, save carried them with them and went their ways.

and gave him a few figs and two clusters of raisins. And when he had eaten his spirits came again to him: for he had eaten no bread nor drunk no water in three days and three nights.

And when he had brought him: see, they lay scattered abroad upon the earth, eating and drinking and triumphing over all the great prey that they had carried away out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah.

And David recovered all the Amalekites had carried away, and his two wives:

so that there was no person lacking, small or great, son or daughter, or of the spoil of all that they had taken away - David brought all again.

And the battle went sore against Saul, insomuch that shooters with bows had found him, and he was sore wounded of the shooters.

When the inhabiters of Jabesh in Gilead heard thereof what the Philistines had done to Saul,