Day 72 of 365

¹The men of Kiriath Jearim came, and fetched up the ark of the Lord, and brought it into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the Lord.

²It happened, from the day that the ark stayed in Kiriath Jearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.

³Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, "If you do return to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you, and direct your hearts to the Lord, and serve him only; and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines."

⁴Then the children of Israel removed the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and served the Lord only.

⁵Samuel said, "Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray for you to the Lord."

⁶They gathered together to Mizpah, and drew water, and poured it out before the Lord, and fasted on that day, and said there, "We have sinned against the Lord." Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpah.

⁷When the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. When the children of Israel heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines.

⁸The children of Israel said to Samuel, "Do not cease to cry to the Lord our God for us, that he will save us out of the hand of the Philistines."

⁹Samuel took a suckling lamb, and offered it for a whole burnt offering to the Lord: and Samuel cried to the Lord for Israel; and the Lord answered him.

¹⁰As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel; but the Lord thundered with a great thunder on that day on the Philistines, and confused them; and they were struck down before Israel.

¹¹The men of Israel went out of Mizpah, and pursued the Philistines, and struck them, until they came under Beth Kar.

¹²Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and called its name Ebenezer, saying, "The Lord helped us until now."

¹³So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more within the territory of Israel. The hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel.

¹⁴The cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even to Gath; and Israel recovered its territory out of the hand of the Philistines. There was peace between Israel and the Amorites.

¹⁵Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.

¹⁶He went from year to year in circuit to Bethel and Gilgal, and Mizpah; and he judged Israel in all those places.

¹⁷His return was to Ramah, for there was his house; and there he judged Israel: and he built there an altar to the Lord.

¹It happened, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel.

²Now the name of his firstborn was Joel; and the name of his second, Abijah: they were judges in Beersheba.

³His sons did not walk in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted justice.

⁴Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel to Ramah;

⁵and they said to him, "Behold, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations."

⁶But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, "Give us a king to judge us." Samuel prayed to the Lord.

⁷The Lord said to Samuel, "Listen to the voice of the people in all that they tell you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king over them.

⁸According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, in that they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also to you.

⁹Now therefore listen to their voice: however you shall protest solemnly to them, and shall show them the way of the king who shall reign over them."

¹⁰Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who asked of him a king.

¹¹He said, "This will be the way of the king who shall reign over you: he will take your sons, and appoint them to him, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and they shall run before his chariots;

¹²and he will appoint them to him for captains of thousands, and captains of fifties; and he will assign some to plow his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and the instruments of his chariots.

¹³He will take your daughters to be perfumers, and to be cooks, and to be bakers.

¹⁴He will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your olive groves, even their best, and give them to his servants.

¹⁵He will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants.

¹⁶He will take your male servants, and your female servants, and your best young men, and your donkeys, and put them to his work.

¹⁷He will take the tenth of your flocks: and you shall be his servants.

¹⁸You shall cry out in that day because of your king whom you shall have chosen you; and the Lord will not answer you in that day."

¹⁹But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel; and they said, "No; but we will have a king over us,

²⁰that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles."

²¹Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them in the ears of the Lord.

²²The Lord said to Samuel, "Listen to their voice, and make them a king." Samuel said to the men of Israel, "Every man go to his city."

¹Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Benjamite, a mighty man of valor.

²He had a son, whose name was Saul, an impressive young man; and there was not among the children of Israel a better person than he. From his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people.

³The donkeys of Kish, Saul's father, were lost. Kish said to Saul his son, "Take now one of the servants with you, and arise, go seek the donkeys."

⁴He passed through the hill country of Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalishah, but they did not find them: then they passed through the land of Shaalim, and there they weren't there: and he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they did not find them.

⁵When they had come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, "Come, and let us return, lest my father stop caring about the donkeys, and be anxious for us."

⁶He said to him, "See now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is a man who is held in honor. All that he says surely comes to pass. Now let us go there. Perhaps he can tell us concerning our journey on which we have set out."

⁷Then Saul said to his servant, "But behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? For the bread is gone in our vessels, and there is no gift to bring to the man of God. What do we have?"

⁸The servant answered Saul again, and said, "Behold, I have in my hand the fourth part of a shekel of silver. I will give that to the man of God, to tell us our way."

⁹(In earlier times in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he would say, "Come, and let us go to the seer"; for he who is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer.)

¹⁰Then Saul said to his servant, "Well said. Come, let us go." So they went to the city where the man of God was.

¹¹As they went up the ascent to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said to them, "Is the seer here?"

¹²They answered them, and said, "He is. Behold, he is ahead of you. Hurry now, for he has come today into the city; for the people have a sacrifice today in the high place.

¹³As soon as you have come into the city, you shall immediately find him, before he goes up to the high place to eat; for the people will not eat until he comes, because he blesses the sacrifice; afterward those who are invited eat. Now therefore go up; for at this time you shall find him."

¹⁴They went up to the city. As they came within the city, behold, Samuel came out toward them, to go up to the high place.

¹⁵Now the Lord had revealed to Samuel a day before Saul came, saying,

¹⁶"Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man out of the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel; and he shall save my people out of the hand of the Philistines: for I have looked on my people, because their cry has come to me."

¹⁷When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him, "Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! This one shall have authority over my people."

¹⁸Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, "Please tell me where the seer's house is."

¹⁹Samuel answered Saul, and said, "I am he. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today. In the morning I will let you go, and will tell you all that is in your heart.

²⁰As for your donkeys who were lost three days ago, do not set your mind on them; for they have been found. And for whom does all Israel desire? Is it not for you, and for all your father's house?"

²¹Saul answered, "Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? And my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then do you speak to me like this?"

²²Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the guest room, and made them sit in the best place among those who were invited, who were about thirty persons.

²³And Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the portion which I gave you, of which I told you to set aside."

²⁴The cook took up the thigh, and that which was on it, and set it before Saul. And he said, "Behold, that which has been reserved! Set it before yourself and eat; because for the appointed time has it been kept for you, for I said, 'I have invited the people.'" So Saul ate with Samuel that day.

²⁵When they had come down from the high place into the city, he talked with Saul on the housetop.

²⁶They arose early: and it happened about daybreak, that Samuel called to Saul on the housetop, saying, "Get up, that I may send you away." Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, went outside.

²⁷As they were going down at the edge of the city, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to go on ahead," (and he passed on), "but remain here awhile, that I may make known to you the word of God."

¹Then Samuel took the vial of oil, and poured it on his head, and kissed him, and said, "Isn't it that the Lord has anointed you to be prince over his inheritance?

²When you have departed from me today, then you shall find two men by Rachel's tomb, in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will tell you, 'The donkeys which you went to seek have been found; and behold, your father has stopped caring about the donkeys, and is anxious for you, saying, "What shall I do for my son?"'

³"Then you shall go on forward from there, and you shall come to the oak of Tabor; and three men shall meet you there going up to God to Bethel, one carrying three young goats, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine:

⁴and they will greet you, and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall receive of their hand.

⁵"After that you shall come to the hill of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines: and it shall happen, when you have come there to the city, that you shall meet a band of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a tambourine, and a pipe, and a harp, before them; and they will be prophesying:

⁶and the Spirit of the Lord will come mightily on you, and you shall prophesy with them, and shall be turned into another man.

⁷Let it be, when these signs have come to you, that you do as occasion shall serve you; for God is with you.

⁸"You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down to you, to offer burnt offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings: you shall wait seven days, until I come to you, and show you what you shall do."

⁹It was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart: and all those signs happened that day.

¹⁰When they came there to the hill, behold, a band of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came mightily on him, and he prophesied among them.

¹¹It happened, when all who knew him before saw that, behold, he prophesied with the prophets, then the people said one to another, "What is this that has come to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?"

¹²One of the same place answered, "Who is their father?" Therefore it became a proverb, "Is Saul also among the prophets?"

¹³When he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the high place.

¹⁴Saul's uncle said to him and to his servant, "Where did you go?" He said, "To seek the donkeys. When we saw that they were not found, we came to Samuel."

¹⁵Saul's uncle said, "Please tell me what Samuel said to you."

¹⁶Saul said to his uncle, "He told us plainly that the donkeys were found." But concerning the matter of the kingdom, of which Samuel spoke, he did not tell him.

¹⁷Samuel called the people together to the Lord to Mizpah;

¹⁸and he said to the children of Israel, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, 'I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all the kingdoms that oppressed you:'

¹⁹but you have this day rejected your God, who himself saves you out of all your calamities and your distresses; and you have said to him, 'No! Set a king over us.' Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes, and by your thousands."

²⁰So Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken.

²¹He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by their families; and the family of the Matrites was taken; and Saul the son of Kish was taken: but when they sought him, he could not be found.

²²Therefore they asked of the Lord further, "Is there yet a man to come here?" The Lord answered, "Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage."

²³They ran and fetched him there; and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward.

²⁴Samuel said to all the people, "You see him whom the Lord has chosen, that there is none like him among all the people?" All the people shouted, and said, "Let the king live!"

²⁵Then Samuel told the people the regulations of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the Lord. Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.

²⁶Saul also went to his house to Gibeah; and there went with him the army, whose hearts God had touched.

²⁷But certain worthless fellows said, "How shall this man save us?" They despised him, and brought him no present. But he held his peace. [Nahash, king of the Ammonites, was oppressing the Gadites and the Reubenites. He put out the right eye of all of them, bringing on Israel fear and trembling. Not one was left of the Israelites beyond the Jordan whose right eye Nahash, king of the Ammonites, did not put out, except for seven thousand men who had escaped from the Ammonites and went to Jabesh Gilead.]