Then Saul said to the people who were with him, Number now, and see who has gone from us. And when they had numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.

And Saul said to Ahijah, Bring here the ark of God. For the ark of God was [there] at that time with the sons of Israel.

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.

And Saul and all the people who were with him were gathered together, and came to the battle. And, behold, every man's sword was against his fellow, [and there was] a very great discomfiture.

Now the Hebrews who were with the Philistines as formerly, and who went up with them into the camp, [from the country] round about, even they also [turned] to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

So LORD saved Israel that day, and the battle passed over by Beth-aven.

And the men of Israel were distressed that day, for Saul had adjured the people, saying, Cursed be the man who eats any food until it be evening, and I be avenged on my enemies. So none of the people tasted food.

And all the people came into the forest, and there was honey upon the ground.

And when the people came to the forest, behold, the honey dropped, but no man put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath.

But Jonathan heard not when his father charged the people with the oath, therefore he put forth the end of the rod that was in his hand, and dipped it in the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth, and his eyes were enlightened.

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 they smote of the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. And the people were very faint,

and the people flew upon the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and killed them on the ground. And the people ate them with the blood.

Then they told Saul, saying, Behold, the people sin against LORD, in that they eat with the blood. And he said, ye have dealt treacherously. Roll a great stone to me this day.

And Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and say to them, Bring me here every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and kill them here, and eat. And sin not against LORD in eating with the blood. And all the people broug

And Saul built an altar to LORD; the same was the first altar that he built to LORD.

And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and take spoil among them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatever seems good to thee. Then the priest said, Let us draw n

And Saul asked counsel of God, Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will thou deliver them into the hand of Israel? But he did not answer him that day.

And Saul said, Draw near here, all ye chiefs of the people, and know and see how this sin has been this day.

Then he said to all Israel, Be ye on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. And the people said to Saul, Do what seems good to thee.

Therefore Saul said to LORD, the God of Israel, Show the right. And Jonathan and Saul were taken [by lot], but the people escaped.

And Saul said, Cast [lots] between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken.

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

And Saul said, God do so and more also, for thou shall surely die, Jonathan.

And the people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who has wrought this great salvation in Israel? Far from it. As LORD lives, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground, for he has wrought with God this day. So the peop

Then Saul went up from following the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their own place.

Now when Saul had taken the kingdom over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the sons of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines. And where

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

Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishvi, and Malchishua. And the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the first-born Merab, and the name of the younger Michal.

And the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. And the name of the captain of his army was Abner the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.

And Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

And there was great war against the Philistines all the days of Saul. And when Saul saw any mighty man, or any valiant man, he took him to him.

And Samuel said to Saul, LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel. Now therefore hearken thou to the voice of the words of LORD.

Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not, but kill both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.

And Saul summoned the people, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah.

And Saul came to the city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley.

And Saul said to the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them, for ye showed kindness to all the sons of Israel when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the

And Saul smote the Amalekites, from Havilah as thou go to Shur, that is before Egypt.

And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.

But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. But everything that was vile and refuse, that they dest

I regret that I have set up Saul to be king, for he has turned back from following me, and has not performed my commandments. And Samuel was angry, and he cried out to LORD all night.

And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, and it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set up for him a monument, and turned, and passed on, and went down to Gilgal.

And Samuel came to Saul. And Saul said to him, Blessed be thou of LORD. I have performed the commandment of LORD.

And Samuel said, What then means this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?

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.

Then Samuel said to Saul, Stop, and I will tell thee what LORD has said to me this night. And he said to him, Say on.

And Samuel said, Though thou were little in thine own sight, were thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel? And LORD anointed thee king over Israel.

And LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go, and utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.

Why then did thou not obey the voice of LORD, but did fly upon the spoil, and did that which was evil in the sight of LORD?

And Saul said to Samuel, Yes, I have obeyed the voice of LORD, and have gone the way which LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

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 Samuel said, Has LORD as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim. Because thou have rejected the word of LORD, he has also rejected thee from being king.

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.

Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me that I may worship LORD.

And Samuel said to Saul, I will not return with thee, for thou have rejected the word of LORD, and LORD has rejected thee from being king over Israel.

And as Samuel turned about to go away, [Saul] laid hold upon the skirt of his robe, and it tore.

And Samuel said to him, LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and has given it to a neighbor of thine, who is better than thou.

And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent, for he is not a man that he should repent.

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.

So Samuel turned again after Saul, and Saul worshipped LORD.

Then Samuel said, Bring ye here to me Agag the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came to him cheerfully. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past.

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.

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

And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death, for Samuel mourned for Saul, and LORD regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.

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, How do I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me. And LORD said, Take a heifer with thee, and say, I have come to sacrifice to LORD.

And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show thee what thou shall do. And thou shall anoint to me him whom I name to thee.

And Samuel did that which LORD spoke, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, Do thou come peaceably?

And he said, Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to LORD. Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

And it came to pass, when they came, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely LORD's anointed is before him.

Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither has LORD chosen this man.

Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither has LORD chosen this man.

And Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, LORD has not chosen these men.

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.

And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and of a beautiful countenance, and fine to look upon. And LORD said, Arise, anoint him, for this is he.

Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

Now the Spirit of LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from LORD troubled him.

And Saul's servants said to him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubles thee.

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

And Saul said to his servants, Provide for me now a man who can play well, and bring him to me.

Then one of the young men answered, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is skilful in playing, and a mighty man of valor, and a man of war, and prudent in speech, and a comely man, and LORD is with him

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

And Jesse took a donkey with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son to Saul.

And David came to Saul, and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armor bearer.

And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me, for he has found favor in my sight.

And it came to pass, when the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took the harp, and played with his hand. So Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

Now the Philistines gathered their armies together to battle. And they were gathered together at Socoh, which belongs to Judah, and encamped between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim.

And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and encamped in the vale of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines.

And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, and there was a valley between them.

And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.

And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail. And the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.

And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a javelin of brass between his shoulders.

And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam, and his spear's head [weighed] six hundred shekels of iron. And his shield-bearer went before him.

And he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them, Why have ye come out to set your battle in array? Am I not a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? Choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.

If he is able to fight with me, and kill me, then we will be your servants, but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then ye shall be our servants, and serve us.

And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day. Give me a man, that we may fight together.

And when Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem-judah, whose name was Jesse. And he had eight sons, and the man was an old man in the days of Saul, stricken [in years] among men.

And the three eldest sons of Jesse had gone after Saul to the battle. And the names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the first-born, and next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.