18 over Israel; and the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be 19 consumed. Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst that which was evil in the sight of 20 the LORD? "And Saul said unto

Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have 1utterly destroyed the Amalekites. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice unto 2 the LORD thy God in Gilgal. And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than B the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim'. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected 24 thee from being king. And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the 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 the LORD. And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Ísrael. And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his 'robe', 28 and it rent. And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he 3 should repent. Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy 31 God. So Samuel turned again after Saul; and Saul worshipped the LORD.

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Then said Samuel, Bring 'ye hither to me Agag the king of the Ama

1 Heb. devoted. 2 Heb. divination. 3 Or, iniquity

VERSION OF 1611.-21 32 you; 35 nevertheless. 10 Again. =[20]

lekites. And Agag came unto him delicately. And Agag said, Surely 33 the bitterness of death is past. °And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.

34

Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah 35 of Saul. And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: 71for Samuel mourned for Saul and the LORD repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.

4 See Gen. xxxi. 19, 345 Or, Victory Or, Glory

And the LORD said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from 'being king over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite: for I have pro2 vided me a king among his sons. And Samuel said, How can I go? if_Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the LORD said, Take 'an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the 3 LORD. And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou shalt do: and thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee. 4 And Samuel did that which the LORD spake, and came to Beth-lehem. And the elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, Comest thou 5 peaceably? And he said, Peaceably: I am come to sacrifice unto the LORD: sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them 6 to the sacrifice. And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD'S 7 anointed is before him. But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have rejected1 him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD look8 eth on the heart. Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath 9 the LORD chosen this. Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen 10 this. And Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, The LORD 11 hath not chosen these. And Samuel

8 In 1 Chr. xxvii. 18, Elihu. In 2 Sam. xiii. 3, Shimeah. In 1 Chr. ii. 13, Shimea.

said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come 12 hither. And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look upon. And the LORD said, Arise, anoint him: for 13 this is he. Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

14

Now the spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit 15 from the LORD troubled him. And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth 16 thee. Let our lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man who is a cunning 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 shalt be well. 17 °And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, 18 and bring him to me. Then answered

one of the young men', and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty man of valour, and a man of war, and prudent in 5speech, and a comely person, and 19 the LORD is with him. Wherefore

Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, which is 20 with the sheep. And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by 21 David his son unto Saul. And David

came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he 22 became his armourbearer. And Saul

sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he 23 hath found favour in my sight. And it came to pass, when the evil 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.

gether their armies to battle, and they were gathered together at 'Socoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Socoh and 2 Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. °And

Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched in the vale of "Elah, and set the battle 3 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. 4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six 5 cubits and a span. And he had 'an' helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thou6 sand shekels of brass. And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a javelin' of brass between his shoul7 ders. "And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron and this shield-bearer' 8 went before him. And he stood and cried unto the 1oarmies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and 'yel servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him (9 come down to me. If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us. 10 And the Philistine said, I "defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together. 11 And when Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid. 12) 12Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Beth-lehem-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 13 among men. And the three eldest sons of Jesse 'had gone after Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next unto him Abin14 adab, and the third Shammah. And

David was the youngest and the 15 three eldest followed Saul. "Now! David went to and fro from Saul to

10 Heb. ranks, and in vv. 10, 21, 22, 26, &c. 11 Or, reproach

12 The Sept. omits vv. 12—31 ch. xviii. 5.

and 55

XVII. 1 Sho

feed his father's sheep at Beth-lehem. 16 And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

17

And Jesse said unto David his son, Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to 18 the camp to thy brethren; and 'bring! these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledge. 19 Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, 1were in the vale' of Elah, 20 fighting with the Philistines. 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 he came to the

place of the wagons', as the host which was going forth to the fight (21 shouted for the battle. And Israel and the Philistines put the battle in array, army against army. °And David left his baggage in the hand of the keeper of the baggage', and ran to the army, and came and saluted his brethren. And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the 'ranks' of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words: and David 24 heard them. And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid. And the men of Israel said, Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to 'defy Israel is he come up: and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel. And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God? And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to (28 the man that killeth him. And Eliab

his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why art thou come down? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know

thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle. 29 And David said, What have I now 30 done? Is there not a cause? And he turned away from him 'toward' another, and spake after the same manner: and the people answered him again after the former manner. 31 And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he sent for 32 him. And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this 33 Philistine. And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war 34 from his youth. °And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep; and when there came a lion, lor a bear, and took (35 a lamb out of the flock, I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew 36 him. Thy servant smotel both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the 37 living God. And David said, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD 38 shall be with thee. And Saul 'clad' David with his 'apparel', and he put an' helmet of brass upon his head, and he 'clad him with a coat of mail. 39 And David girded his sword upon his 'apparel, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And 40 David put them off him. And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the 'brook, and put them in the shepherd's bag which he had, even in 'his' scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine. 41 And the Philistine came on and drew

near unto David; and the man that 42 bare the shield went before him. And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him for he

7 Or, and there came a lion and a bear... and I went out &c.

8 Or, reproachedī 'Or, Itorrent bed

was but a youth, and ruddy, and 43 withal of a fair countenance. °And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed 44 David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy Hesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts 45 of the field. Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a javelin' but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which thou 46 hast 'defied. This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from off thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is 47 a God in Israel: and that all this assembly may know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD's, and he will 48 give you into our hand. And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened', and ran toward the army to meet 49 the

Philistine. "And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead; and the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the 50 earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in 51 the hand of David. Then David ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw that their. 52 2champion was dead, they fled. And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou comest to Gail, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to 4Shaaraim, even unto 53 Gath, and unto Ekron. And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they 54 spoiled their 'camp'. "And David

1 Or, Ireproached 2 Or, Imighty man\ The Sept. has, Gath.

Or, Ithe two gates

55

took the head of the Philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armour in his tent.

And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I can56 not tell. And the king said, Inquire 57 thou whose son the stripling is. And

as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 58 And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy 181 servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite. And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved 2 him as his own soul. "And Saul took him that day, and would let him go no more home to his father's house. 3 Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as 4 his own soul. And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his 'apparel', even to his sword, and to his bow, and 5 to his girdle. And David "went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely: and Saul set him over the men of war, and lit was 'good' in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's

(6

servants.

And it came to pass as they came, when David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with timbrels, with joy, and 7 with instruments of music. And the women sang one to another 'in their play', and said,

Saul hath slain his thousands,

And David his ten thousands.

8 And Saul was very wroth, and 'this' saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? 9 And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.

10

And it came to pass on the morrow, that an evil spirit from God came

'mightily upon Saul, and he 1prophesied in the midst of the house : and David played with his hand, as The did day by day': and 'Saul had (11 his spear in his hand. And Saul cast the spear; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall. And David avoided out of his presence 12 twice. And Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him, and 13 was departed from Saul. Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the 14 people. And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the 13 LORD was with him. And when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he stood in awe of him. 16 °But all Israel and Judah loved David; for he went out and came in before them.

li And Saul said to David, Behold, my elder daughter Merab, her will I give thee to wife: only be thou valiant for me, and fight the LORD's battles. For Saul said, Let not mine hand be upon him, but let the hand of the 18 Philistines be upon him. And David said unto Saul, Who am I, and 3what is my life, or my father's family in Israel, that I should be son in law to 19 the king? But it came to pass at the time when Merab Saul's daughter should have been given to David, that she was given unto Adriel the Mehol20athite to wife. "And Michal Saul's daughter loved David: and they told 21 Saul, and the thing pleased him. And Saul said, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Wherefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this day be my son in law 2 la second time'. "And Saul commanded his servants, saying, Commune with David secretly, and say, Behold, the king hath delight in thee, and all his servants love thee: now therefore be the king's son in law. And Saul's servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you a light thing to be the king's son in law, seeing that I am a poor man, and 24 lightly esteemed? And the servants

of Saul told him, saying, On this 25 manner spake David. "And Saul said, Thus shall ye say to David, The

1 Or, Iraved * Or, prospered

king desireth not any dowry, but an hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies. Now Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines. 26 And when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well to be the king's son in law. And the 27 days were not expired; and David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines two hundred men; and David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full tale to the king, that he might be the king's son in law. And Saul gave him (28 Michal his daughter to wife. And

Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David; and Michal Saul's 29 daughter loved him. And Saul was yet the more afraid of David; and Saul was David's enemy continually.

30

191

Then the princes of the Philistines went forth and it came to pass, 'as often as they went forth, that David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul; so that his name was much "set by.

And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they 2 should Islay David. But Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David. And Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father seeketh to slay thee: now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself in the morning, and abide in (3 a secret place, and hide thyself: and I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will commune with my father of thee; and if I see laught, I will tell 4 thee. And Jonathan spake good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him, Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works have been to thee(5 ward very good: for he put his life in his hand, and 'smote' the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great victory for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst rejoice: wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to 6 slay David without a cause? °And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan and Saul sware, As the LORD liveth, he shall not be put to 7 death. And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan shewed him all those things. And Jonathan brought David 5 Heb. precious.

6 Heb. salvation.