And the women said to Naomi, "Blessed be Yahweh who today {did not leave you without a redeemer}! And may his name be renowned in Israel!

And the other wife did everything possible to make her unhappy, because the Lord had not let her have children;

And as he did so year by year, when she went up to the house of the LORD, so she provoked her; therefore she wept, and did not eat.

For Hannah, she spake in her heart; and her lips did but move only, but her voice was not heard. And therefore Eli took her for drunken,

And she said, Let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad.

But Hannah did not go up, for she said to her husband, I will wait until the child is weaned; then will I bring him, that he may appear before Jehovah, and there abide for ever.

And they brought him before the LORD, and his father slaughtered the sacrifice, which he did annually for the LORD. And he brought the child. And they slaughtered the bull, and brought the child to Eli.

The LORD kills and gives life, he brings people down to where the dead are and he raises them up.

And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest.

The sons of Eli [Hophni and Phinehas] were worthless (dishonorable, unprincipled) men; they did not know [nor respect] the Lord

And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh unto all the Israelites that came thither.

But Samuel did the work of the Lord's house, while he was a child, dressed in a linen ephod.

And Yahweh visited Hannah, and she conceived, and bare three sons, and two daughters. Thus did the boy Samuel grow up with Yahweh.

Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did unto all Israel; and how they lay with the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

If one man does wrong and sins against another, God will intercede (arbitrate) for him; but if a man does wrong to the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to their father, for it was the Lord’s will to put them to death.

And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house?

And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?

Therefore the Lord God of Israel declares, ‘I did indeed say that your house and that of [Aaron] your father would walk [in priestly service] before Me forever.’ But now the Lord declares, ‘Far be it from Me—for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be insignificant and contemptible.

And he ran to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I did not call: lie down again. And he went and lay down.

And Jehovah called again, Samuel! And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I did not call, my son: lie down again.

Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him.

So the Lord called Samuel a third time. And he stood and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you did call me.” Then Eli understood that it was the Lord [who was] calling the boy.

For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever, for the iniquity which he knew, because his sons did bring a curse upon themselves, and he restrained them not.

And he said, What did the Lord say to you? Do not keep it from me: may God's punishment be on you if you keep from me anything he said to you.

So Samuel told him all the words and did not conceal [anything] from him. And he said, "He [is] Yahweh, he will do {what is} good in his {sight}."

And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.

Thus did Yahweh again appear in Shiloh, - for Yahweh had revealed himself unto Samuel in Shiloh, in the word of Yahweh.

When the people (soldiers) came into the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the Lord defeated us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord here from Shiloh, so that He may come among us and save us from the hand of our enemies.”

And the ark of God was taken, and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas were dead.

The man said to Eli, “I have come from the battle line. Indeed, I escaped from the battle line today.” Eli said, “How did things go, my son?”

And the messenger answered and said, Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there hath 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 his daughter in law, Phinehas' wife, was with child, near to be delivered: and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father in law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and travailed; for her pains came upon her.

And about the time of her death the women that stood by her said unto her, Fear not; for thou hast born a son. But she answered not, neither did she regard it.

She had named the boy Ichabod,saying, "Glory has departed from Israel," because the Ark of God had been captured and because her father-in-law and husband were dead.

The men who did not die were struck with [the] tumors, so that the cry of the city for help went up [to] heaven.

Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? when he had wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the people go, and they departed?

And mark if he go up by the way that leadeth unto his own coast, to Bethshemesh, then it is he that did us this great evil. But and if he do not, then it is not his hand that smote us, but it was a chance that happened us."

And the men did so; and took two milch kine, and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home:

The cows went straight on the way on the road to Beth Shemesh, on the one main road, {lowing as they went}. They did not turn aside to the right or to the left, and the rulers of [the] Philistines [were] walking after them up to the border of Beth Shemesh.

Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the LORD only.

So the Philistines were subdued and they did not come into the territory of Israel again, and the hand of Yahweh was against [the] Philistines all the days of Samuel.

And the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even unto Gath; and the coasts thereof did Israel deliver out of the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

His sons, however, did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice.

And Jehovah will say to Samuel, Hear to the voice of the people to all which they will say to thee: for not thee did they reject, but me they rejected from reigning over them.

According to all the works which they did from the day I brought them up out of Egypt, and even to this day, and they will forsake me and serve other gods, so they do also to thee.

Nevertheless, the people would not hear the voice of Samuel, but did say, "Nay, not so: But there shall be a king over us,

And they passed through the hill country of Ephraim and the land of Shalishah, but did not find them. Then they passed through the land of Shaalim, but they were not there and the land of the Benjamites, but they [still] did not find them.

(Formerly in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he would say: "Come, let us go up to the seer." For the prophet of today was formerly called a seer.)

They answered them, “He is; look, he is ahead of you. Hurry now, for he has come into the city today because the people have a sacrifice on the high place today.

As soon as you enter the town, you will find him, before he goes up to the high place to eat. For the people will not eat until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice. Then afterward the invited [guests] will eat. So then, go up, because you will find him today!"

Samuel answered Saul, “I am the seer. Go on ahead of me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and in the morning I will let you go, and will tell you all that is on your mind.

And the cook took up the shoulder, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold that which is left! set it before thee, and eat: for unto this time hath it been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day.

While they were going down to the edge of town, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to go on ahead of us." So he did. Samuel then said, "You remain here awhile, so I can inform you of God's message."

When you leave me today, you will meet two men beside Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; they will say to you, ‘The donkeys you went to look for have been found. And your father has stopped caring about them and is worried about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?”’

And it came to pass, that, all who knew him aforetime, looked, and lo! with the prophets, he did prophesy. So the people said, one to another - What, now, hath befallen the son of Kish? Is, even Saul, among the prophets?

Saul’s uncle said to him and to his servant, “Where did you go?” And Saul said, “To look for the donkeys. And when we saw that they were nowhere to be found, we went to Samuel [for help].”

Saul’s uncle said, “Please tell me, what did Samuel say to you?”

Then Saul said to his uncle, "He told us for certain that the female donkeys had been found." But he did not tell him about the matter of the kingship [of] which Samuel had spoken.

But you today have rejected your God who always delivers you from all of your calamities and your distresses. You have said to him, 'No, but you must appoint a king over us!' So then present yourselves before Yahweh by your tribes and by your clans."

So they inquired again of Yahweh, "{Did the man come here}?" And Yahweh said, "Look, he [is] hiding himself among the baggage."

But some wicked men said, “How can this guy save us?” They despised him and did not bring him a gift, but Saul said nothing.

But Saul said, “No man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has brought victory to Israel.”

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.

Behold me: answer against me before Jehovah and before his Messiah, whose ox did I take? or whose ass did I take? and whom did I oppress? whom did I vex? and from whose hand did I take a ransom and hidden mine eyes with it? and I will turn back to you.

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.

Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the LORD of all the righteous acts of the LORD, which he did to you and to your fathers.

But if you don't obey the LORD and rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then the LORD will turn against you as he did against your ancestors.

Is it not [the beginning of the] wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord and He will send thunder and rain; then you will know [without any doubt], and see that your evil which you have done is great in the sight of the Lord by asking for yourselves a king.”

Then said all the people unto Samuel, "Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not: for we have sinned in asking us a king, beside all the sins that ever we did."

And Samuel will say to the people, Ye shall not be afraid: ye did all this wickedness: but ye shall not turn aside from after Jehovah, and serve ye Jehovah with all your heart.

Then did Jonathan smite the garrison of Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it, - and, Saul, blew with a horn throughout all the land saying, Let the Hebrews hear!

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.

When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, (for the people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high places, and in pits.

And he waited seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.

But Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul said, “Since I saw that the people were scattering away from me, and that you did not come within the appointed time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Michmash,

On the day of battle, none of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan were armed with swords or spears, but Saul and his son Jonathan did have them.

Now it came to pass one day that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man that bore his armour, Come and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison which is on the other side. But he did not tell his father.

(And Ahijah the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, Jehovah's priest in Shiloh, wore the ephod.) And the people did not know that Jonathan was gone.

Saul told the people who were with him, "Do a roll call and see who has left us." They did a roll call, and Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.

Thus did Yahweh, on that day, save Israel, - and, the battle, passed over by Beth-aven.

But Jonathan did not hear when his father made the people swear. And he put forth the end of the rod in his hand and dipped it in a honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth. And his eyes were lightened.

But one of the people told him, “Your father strictly put the people under an oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food today.’” And the people were exhausted [and hungry].

How much better [it would have been] if only the people had eaten freely today from the spoil of their enemies which they found! For now the slaughter among the Philistines has not been great.”

And the people flew upon the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground: and the people did eat them with the blood.

So they reported [it] to Saul, saying, "Look! The troops [are] sinning against Yahweh by eating [the animals] with the blood!" And he said, "You have dealt treacherously! Roll to me a large stone {today}!"

And Saul inquired of God, Shall I go down after the Philistines? wilt thou give them into the hand of Israel? But he did not answer him that day.

Then Saul said, “Come here, all you who are leaders of the people, and let us find out how this sin [causing God’s silence] happened today.

Then Saul said to the Lord, the God of Israel, Why have you not given me an answer today? If the sin is in me or in Jonathan my son, O Lord God of Israel, give Urim, and if it is in your people Israel, give Thummim. And by the decision of the Lord, Saul and Jonathan were marked out, and the people went free.

Then Saul said to Jonathan, Tell me what thou hast done. And Jonathan told him, and said, I did but taste a little honey with the end of the rod that was in mine hand, and, lo, I must die.

Then Saul said, "So may God do [to me] and {more}, you will certainly die today, Jonathan!"

But the people said to Saul, “Must Jonathan, who has brought about this great victory in Israel, be put to death? Far from it! As the Lord lives, not one hair of his head shall fall to the ground, for he has worked with God this day.” So the people rescued Jonathan and he was not put to death.

And he did valiantly, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that despoiled them.

And Samuel saith unto Saul, 'Me did Jehovah send to anoint thee for king over His people, over Israel; and now, hearken to the voice of the words of Jehovah:

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.

And Saul will say to the Kenite, Go, remove, go down from the midst of the Amalekites, lest I shall add thee with him; for ye did mercy with all the sons of Israel in their coming up out of Egypt And the Kenite will remove from the midst of Amalek.

Saul and the troops spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, cattle, and choice animals, as well as the young rams and the best of everything else. They were not willing to destroy them, but they did destroy all the worthless and unwanted things.

And Samuel said, When you were little in your own sight, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? And Jehovah anointed you king over Israel.

And the Lord sent you on a journey and said, Go and put to the curse those sinners, the Amalekites, fighting against them till every one is dead.

Why did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but [instead] swooped down on the plunder [with shouts of victory] and did evil in the sight of the Lord?”

“But I did obey the Lord!” Saul answered. “I went on the mission the Lord gave me: I brought back Agag, king of Amalek, and I completely destroyed the Amalekites.