Samuel {did not see Saul again} until the day of his death, but Samuel mourned over Saul, and Yahweh regretted that he made Saul king over Israel.

David went out {whenever} Saul sent him, [and] he succeeded. So Saul appointed him over the men of the war, and it {pleased} all the people and even {pleased} the servants of Saul.

Saul went {on one side of the mountain}, and David and his men {went on the other side of the mountain}. David was hurrying to get away from Saul, while Saul and his men [were] closing in on David and his men to capture them.

When David finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said, "[Is] this your voice, my son David?" And Saul lifted up his voice and wept.

Then David got up and came to the place where Saul had encamped, and David saw the place where Saul [was] lying down, {as well as} Abner the son of Ner, the commander of his army. (Now Saul [was] lying in the encampment, and the army [was] encamping around him.)

Now the female donkeys of Kish the father of Saul got lost, and Kish said to Saul his son, "Please take one of the servants with you and get up; go and seek the female donkeys."

So the cook took up the shank and what was on it and put it before Saul, and he said, "Look, {the saved portion} [is] placed {before you}--eat, because it has been kept for you for the appointed time," {and he said}, "I have invited the people." So Saul ate with Samuel that day.

They got up early, {and as dawn was breaking}, Samuel called to Saul on the roof, saying, "Get up, so that I can send you away." So Saul got up and the two of them, he and Samuel, went outside.

{Just then}, Saul was coming from the field behind the cattle. Saul said, "What [is the matter] with the people, that they [are] weeping?" So they recounted to him the words of the men of Jabesh.

So all the people went to Gilgal and they made Saul king there before Yahweh in Gilgal. They sacrificed fellowship offerings there before Yahweh. Then Saul rejoiced there greatly [along with] all the men of Israel.

And all Israel did hear, saying, "Saul has defeated the garrison of [the] Philistines; and also, Israel has become a stench among [the] Philistines!" So the people were called out after Saul at Gilgal.

{So} on [the] day of battle, there was not a sword or a spear found in the hands of all the army that was with Saul and Jonathan, but {Saul and his son Jonathan had them}.

While Saul was still speaking to the priest, the tumult in the camp of [the] Philistines {increased more and more}, so Saul said to the priest, "Withdraw your hand!"

Then Saul said to Yahweh the God of Israel, "{Render a decision perfectly}." Jonathan and Saul were chosen [by lot] and the people went out.

The name of Saul's wife [was] Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz, and the name of the commander of his army [was] Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.

Warfare was severe against [the] Philistines all the days of Saul. Whenever Saul saw {anyone who was a mighty warrior} or {any brave man}, he {conscripted him into his service}.

Then Samuel got up early in the morning to meet Saul. Samuel was told, "Saul has gone to Carmel, and look, he [is] setting up a monument for himself." Then he turned around and crossed over and went down to Gilgal.

When Samuel came to Saul, Saul said to him, "May you be blessed by Yahweh! I have kept the word of Yahweh."

So Samuel returned after Saul, and Saul {worshiped} Yahweh.

Then Samuel went to Ramah and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul.

So David came to Saul and {entered his service}. He loved him greatly and {he became Saul's armor bearer}.

So whenever the [evil] spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the stringed instrument and play it with his hand. Then {it would bring relief} for Saul; {he would feel better} and the evil spirit would depart from him.

{On} [the] next day, the evil spirit from God rushed upon Saul, and he prophesied in the middle of the house. Now David was playing [the lyre] with his hand on [that] day {as usual}, and the spear was in Saul's hand.

{Now Saul was threatened by the presence of David} because Yahweh was with him, but had departed from Saul.

Then Saul said to David, "Here [is] my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you as [your] wife. Only be {a brave warrior} for me and fight the battles of Yahweh." For Saul thought, "My hand will not be against him, but let the hand of [the] Philistines be against him."

Now Saul's daughter Michal loved David, so they told Saul, and the matter {pleased him}.

And Saul thought, "I will give her to him, so that she may be a snare for him and the hand of [the] Philistines may be against him." So Saul said to David, "For a second [time] you can become my son-in-law today."

Then Saul said, "This [is] what you must say to David: '{The king desires no bride price} except for a hundred foreskins of [the] Philistines, to avenge himself on the enemies of the king.'" (Now Saul had planned to allow David to fall by the hand of [the] Philistines.)

Saul {was threatened by David still more}, so Saul {became a perpetual enemy of David}.

Now Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants about killing David, but Saul's son Jonathan {liked David very much}.

So Saul tried {to pin David to the wall with the spear}, but {he eluded Saul}, so that he struck the spear into the wall, and David fled and escaped that [same] night.

Then Saul said to Michal, "Why have you deceived me like this and sent away my enemy, so that he escaped?" Michal said to Saul, "He said to me, 'Let me go, why should I kill you?'"

So Saul sent messengers to capture David. When they saw the company of the prophets prophesying and Samuel standing [as] chief over them, then the Spirit of God came upon Saul's messengers, and they also prophesied.

So they told Saul, and he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. Again Saul sent messengers a third [time], and they also prophesied.

Now there was a man from the servants of Saul on that day, detained before Yahweh, whose name [was] Doeg the Edomite, the chief of Saul's shepherds.

Now Saul heard that David and the men who [were] with him had been located. Saul [was] sitting at Gibeah under the tamarisk [tree] at Ramah. Now his spear [was] in his hand and all his servants [were] stationed around him.

When it was told to Saul that David had gone to Keilah, Saul said, "God {has given him} into my hand, because he has shut himself in by going into a city [with] {two barred gates}.

He said to him, "Do not be afraid, for the hand of my father Saul will not find you. You will be king over Israel, and {I will be second to you}. My father Saul knows [this] also."

And Saul and his men went to seek [him], and they told David, so he went down [to] the rock and stayed in the wilderness of Maon. When Saul heard [this], he pursued David [into] the wilderness of Maon.

So David rebuked his men with the words and did not allow them to rise against Saul. And Saul got up from the cave, and he went on his way.

Then David got up afterward and went out of the cave and called after Saul, "My lord the king!" When Saul looked after him, David knelt down [with his] face to the ground and bowed down.

So David swore [this on oath] to Saul, and Saul went to his house, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

Now Saul was on the hill of Hakilah, which [is] opposite Jeshimon by the road, but David was staying in the wilderness. When he realized that Saul had come to the wilderness after him,

Then Saul said to David, "Blessed are you, my son David; {you will not only do many things, but also will always succeed}!" Then David went on his way and Saul returned to his place.

Then David {thought to himself}, "Now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul! There is nothing better for me but [that] I must certainly escape to the land of [the] Philistines. Then Saul will desist from searching for me further in all of the territories of Israel, and so I will escape from his hand."

When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice, and the woman said to Saul, "Why did you deceive me? You [are] Saul!"

Then Samuel said to Saul, "Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?" And Saul said, "{I am in distress}! For [the] Philistines [are about] to make war against me, but God has turned away from me, and he does not answer me any more, not {by the prophets} or by the dreams. So I called to you to let me know what I should do."

And [the] Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and [the] Philistines killed Jonathan and Abinadab and Malki-Shua, the sons of Saul.

Then Saul said to {his armor bearer}, "Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, so that these uncircumcised do not come and thrust me through and make a fool of me!" But {his armor bearer} [was] not willing [to do so] because he [was] very afraid. So Saul took the sword and fell on it.