9There was a man named Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. Kish was a very important person. He was the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror. Zeror was the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah from the tribe of Benjamin. ²Kish had a son named Saul. Saul was a handsome young man. There wasn’t anyone like him among the people of Israel. He was a head taller than any of them.

³The donkeys that belonged to Saul’s father Kish were lost. So Kish spoke to his son Saul. He said, “Go and look for the donkeys. Take one of the servants with you.”

⁴Saul and his servant went through the hill country of Ephraim. They also went through the area around Shalisha. But they didn’t find the donkeys. So they went on into the area of Shaalim. But the donkeys weren’t there either. Then Saul went through the territory of Benjamin. But they still didn’t find the donkeys.

⁵When Saul and the servant who was with him reached the area of Zuph, Saul spoke to him. He said, “Come on. Let’s go back. If we don’t, my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.”

⁶But the servant replied, “There’s a man of God here in Ramah. People have a lot of respect for him. Everything he says comes true. So let’s go and see him now. Perhaps he’ll tell us which way to go.”

⁷Saul said to his servant, “If we go to see the man, what can we give him? There isn’t any food in our sacks. We don’t have a gift for the man of God. So what can we give him?”

⁸The servant answered Saul again. “Look,” he said. “I’ve got a tenth of an ounce of silver. I’ll give it to the man of God. Then maybe he’ll tell us which way to go.”

⁹In Israel, prophets used to be called seers. So if a man wanted to ask God for advice, he would say, “Come on. Let’s go to the seer.”

¹⁰Saul said to his servant, “That’s a good idea. Come on. Let’s go and ask the seer.” So they started out for the town where the man of God lived.

¹¹They were going up the hill toward the town. Along the way they met some young women who were coming out to get water from the well. Saul and his servant asked them, “Is the seer here?”

¹²“Yes, he is,” they answered. “In fact, he’s just up ahead of you. So hurry along. He has just come to our town today. The people are going to offer a sacrifice at the high place where they worship. ¹³As soon as you enter the town, you will find him. He’ll be there until he goes up to the high place to eat. The people won’t start eating until he gets there. He must bless the sacrifice first. After that, those who are invited will eat. So go on up. You should find him there just about now.”

¹⁴They went up to the town. As they were entering it, they saw Samuel. He was coming toward them. He was on his way up to the high place.

¹⁵The Lord had spoken to Samuel the day before Saul came. He had said, ¹⁶“About this time tomorrow I will send you a man. He is from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him to be the leader of my people Israel. He will save them from the powerful hand of the Philistines. I have seen how much my people are suffering. Their cry for help has reached me.”

¹⁷When Samuel saw a man coming toward him, the Lord spoke to Samuel again. He said, “He is the man I told you about. His name is Saul. He will govern my people.”

¹⁸Saul approached Samuel at the gate of the town. He asked Samuel, “Can you please show me the house where the seer is staying?”

¹⁹“I’m the seer,” Samuel replied. “Go on up to the high place ahead of me. I want you and your servant to eat with me today. Tomorrow morning I’ll tell you what’s on your mind. Then I’ll let you go. ²⁰Don’t worry about the donkeys you lost three days ago. They’ve already been found. But who are all of the people of Israel longing for? You and your father’s whole family!”

²¹Saul answered, “But I’m from the tribe of Benjamin. It’s the smallest tribe in Israel. And my family group is the least important in the whole tribe of Benjamin. So why are you saying that to me?”

²²Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the room where they would be eating. He seated them at the head table. About 30 people had been invited. ²³Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the piece of meat I gave you. It’s the one I told you to put to one side.”

²⁴So the cook went and got a choice piece of thigh. He set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, “Here is what has been kept for you. Eat it. It was put to one side for you for this special occasion. We’ve saved it for you ever since I invited the guests.” And Saul ate with Samuel that day.

²⁵They came down from the high place to the town. After that, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of Samuel’s house.

²⁶The next day they got up at about the time the sun was rising. Samuel called out to Saul on the roof. He said, “Get ready. Then I’ll send you on your way.” So Saul got ready. And he and Samuel went outside together.

²⁷As they were on their way down to the edge of town, Samuel spoke to Saul. He said, “Tell the servant to go ahead of us.” So the servant went on ahead. Then Samuel continued, “Stay here awhile. I’ll give you a message from God.”

10Then Samuel took a bottle of olive oil. He poured it on Saul’s head and kissed him. He said, “The Lord has anointed you to be the leader of his people. ²When you leave me today, you will meet two men. They will be near Rachel’s tomb at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They’ll say to you, ‘The donkeys you have been looking for have been found. Now your father has stopped thinking about them. Instead, he’s worried about you. He’s asking, “What can I do to find my son?” ’

³“You will go on from Zelzah until you come to the large tree at Tabor. Three men will meet you there. They’ll be on their way up to Bethel to worship God. One of them will be carrying three young goats. Another will be carrying three loaves of bread. A third will be carrying a bottle of wine. It will be a bottle that is made out of animal skin. ⁴The men will greet you. They’ll offer you two loaves of bread. You will accept the loaves from them.

⁵“After that, you will go to Gibeah of God. Some Philistine soldiers are stationed there. As you approach the town, you will meet a group of prophets. They’ll be coming down from the high place where they worship. People will be playing lyres, tambourines, flutes and harps at the head of the group. The prophets will be prophesying. ⁶The Spirit of the Lord will come on you with power. Then you will prophesy along with them. You will become a different person.

⁷“All of those things will happen. Then do what you want to do. God is with you.

⁸“Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. You can be sure that I’ll come down to you there. I’ll come and sacrifice burnt offerings and friendship offerings. But you must wait there for seven days until I come to you. Then I’ll tell you what to do.”

Saul Is Made King of Israel

⁹As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul’s heart. All of those things happened that day. ¹⁰When Saul and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a group of prophets met Saul. Then the Spirit of God came on him with power. He prophesied along with them. ¹¹Those who had known Saul before saw him prophesying with the prophets. They asked one another, “What has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also one of the prophets?”

¹²A man who lived in Gibeah answered, “Yes, he is. In fact, he’s their leader.” That’s why people say, “Is Saul also one of the prophets?”

¹³After Saul stopped prophesying, he went to the high place to worship.

¹⁴Later, Saul’s uncle spoke to him and his servant. He asked, “Where have you been?”

“Looking for the donkeys,” he said. “But we couldn’t find them. So we went to Samuel.”

¹⁵Saul’s uncle said, “Tell me what Samuel said to you.”

¹⁶Saul replied, “He told us the donkeys had been found.” But Saul didn’t tell his uncle that Samuel had said he would become king.

¹⁷Samuel sent a message to the people of Israel. He told them to meet with the Lord at Mizpah. ¹⁸He said to them, “The Lord is the God of Israel. He says, ‘Israel, I brought you up out of Egypt. I saved you from their powerful hand. I also saved you from the powerful hand of all of the kingdoms that had beaten you down.’

¹⁹“But now you have turned your backs on your God. He saves you out of all of your trouble and suffering. In spite of that, you have said, ‘We refuse to listen. Place a king over us.’

“So now gather together to meet with the Lord. Do it tribe by tribe and family group by family group.”

²⁰Then Samuel had each tribe of Israel come forward. The tribe of Benjamin was chosen. ²¹Next he had the tribe of Benjamin come forward, family group by family group. Matri’s group was chosen. Finally Saul, the son of Kish, was chosen. But when people looked for him, they realized he wasn’t there. ²²They needed more help from the Lord. So they asked him, “Has the man come here yet?”

The Lord said, “Yes. He has hidden himself among the supplies.”

²³So they ran over there and brought him out. When he stood up, the people saw that he was a head taller than any of them.

²⁴Samuel spoke to all of the people. He said, “Look at the man the Lord has chosen! There isn’t anyone like him among all of the people.”

Then the people shouted, “May the king live a long time!”

²⁵Samuel explained to the people what the king who ruled over them should do. He wrote it down on a scroll. He placed it in front of the Lord in the holy tent. Then he sent the people away. He sent each of them to their own homes.

²⁶Saul also went to his home in Gibeah. Some brave men whose hearts God had touched went with Saul.

²⁷But some evil people who wanted to stir up trouble said, “How can this fellow save us?” They looked down on him. They didn’t bring him any gifts. But Saul kept quiet about it.

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