1 Samuel 7:1–11:15
7 Then the men of aKirjath Jearim came and took the ark of the Lord, and brought it into the house of bAbinadab on the hill, and cconsecrated Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the Lord.
2 So it was that the ark remained in Kirjath Jearim a long time; it was there twenty years. And all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.
3 Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you dreturn to the Lord with all your hearts, then eput away the foreign gods and the fAshtoreths 1from among you, and gprepare your hearts for the Lord, and hserve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” 4 So the children of Israel put away the iBaals and the 2Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only.
5 And Samuel said, j“Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and kI will pray to the Lord for you.” 6 So they gathered together at Mizpah, ldrew water, and poured it out before the Lord. And they mfasted that day, and said there, n“We have sinned against the Lord.” And Samuel judged the children of Israel at Mizpah.
7 Now when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel had gathered together at Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard of it, they were afraid of the Philistines. 8 So the children of Israel said to Samuel, o“Do not cease to cry out to the Lord our God for us, that He may save us from the hand of the Philistines.”
9 And Samuel took a psuckling lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. Then qSamuel cried out to the Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him. 10 Now as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. rBut the Lord thundered with a loud thunder upon the Philistines that day, and so confused them that they were overcome before Israel. 11 And the men of Israel went out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, and 3drove them back as far as below Beth Car. 12 Then Samuel stook a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen, and called its name 4Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.”
13 tSo the Philistines were subdued, and they udid not come anymore into the territory of Israel. And the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 14 Then the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron to Gath; and Israel recovered its territory from the hands of the Philistines. Also there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.
15 And Samuel vjudged Israel all the days of his life. 16 He went from year to year on a circuit to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mizpah, and judged Israel in all those places. 17 But whe always returned to Ramah, for his home was there. There he judged Israel, and there he xbuilt an altar to the Lord.
8 Now it came to pass when Samuel was aold that he bmade his csons judges over Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. 3 But his sons ddid not walk in his ways; they turned aside eafter dishonest gain, ftook bribes, and perverted justice.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, 5 and said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now gmake us a king to judge us like all the nations.”
6 But the thing hdispleased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” So Samuel iprayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord said to Samuel, “Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for jthey have not rejected you, but kthey have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. 8 According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt, even to this day—with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also. 9 Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and lshow them the behavior of the king who will reign over them.”
10 So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who asked him for a king. 11 And he said, m“This will be the behavior of the king who will reign over you: He will take your nsons and appoint them for his own ochariots and to be his horsemen, and some will run before his chariots. 12 He will pappoint captains over his thousands and captains over his fifties, will set some to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and some to make his weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers, cooks, and bakers. 14 And qhe will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive groves, and give them to his servants. 15 He will take a tenth of your grain and your vintage, and give it to his officers and servants. 16 And he will take your male servants, your female servants, your finest 1young men, and your donkeys, and put them to his work. 17 He will take a tenth of your sheep. And you will be his servants. 18 And you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the Lord rwill not hear you in that day.”
19 Nevertheless the people srefused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, “No, but we will have a king over us, 20 that we also may be tlike all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.”
21 And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he repeated them in the hearing of the Lord. 22 So the Lord said to Samuel, u“Heed their voice, and make them a king.”
And Samuel said to the men of Israel, “Every man go to his city.”
9 There was a man of Benjamin whose name was aKish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of 1power. 2 And he had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul. There was not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. bFrom his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
3 Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost. And Kish said to his son Saul, “Please take one of the servants with you, and arise, go and look for the donkeys.” 4 So he passed through the mountains of Ephraim and through the land of cShalisha, but they did not find them. Then they passed through the land of Shaalim, and they were not there. Then he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they did not find them.
5 When they had come to the land of dZuph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, “Come, let eus return, lest my father cease caring about the donkeys and become worried about us.”
6 And he said to him, “Look now, there is in this city fa man of God, and he is an honorable man; gall that he says surely comes to pass. So let us go there; perhaps he can show us the way that we should go.”
7 Then Saul said to his servant, “But look, if we go, hwhat shall we bring the man? For the bread in our vessels is all gone, and there is no present to bring to the man of God. What do we have?”
8 And the servant answered Saul again and said, “Look, I have here at hand one-fourth of a shekel of silver. I will give that to the man of God, to tell us our way.” 9 (Formerly in Israel, when a man iwent 2to inquire of God, he spoke thus: “Come, let us go to the seer”; for he who is now called a prophet was formerly called ja seer.)
10 Then Saul said to his servant, 3“Well said; come, let us go.” So they went to the city where the man of God was.
11 As they went up the hill to the city, kthey met some young women going out to draw water, and said to them, “Is the seer here?”
12 And they answered them and said, “Yes, there he is, just ahead of you. Hurry now; for today he came to this city, because lthere is a sacrifice of the people today mon the high place. 13 As soon as you come into the city, you will surely 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; afterward those who are invited will eat. Now therefore, go up, for about this time you will find him.” 14 So they went up to the city. As they were coming into the city, there was Samuel, coming out toward them on his way up to the high place.
15 nNow the Lord had told Samuel in his ear the day before Saul came, saying, 16 “Tomorrow about this time oI will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, pand you shall anoint him 4commander over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have qlooked upon My people, because their cry has come to Me.”
17 So when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him, r“There he is, the man of whom I spoke to you. This one shall reign over My people.” 18 Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, “Please tell me, where is the seer’s house?”
19 Samuel answered Saul and said, “I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and tomorrow I will let you go and will tell you all that is in your heart. 20 But as for syour donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not be anxious about them, for they have been found. And 5on whom tis all the desire of Israel? Is it not on you and on all your father’s house?”
21 And Saul answered and said, u“Am I not a Benjamite, of the vsmallest of the tribes of Israel, and wmy family the least of all the families of the 6tribe of Benjamin? Why then do you speak like this to me?”
22 Now Samuel took Saul and his servant and brought them into the hall, and had them sit in the place of honor among those who were invited; there were about thirty persons. 23 And Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the portion which I gave you, of which I said to you, ‘Set it apart.’ ” 24 So the cook took up xthe thigh with its upper part and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, “Here it is, what was kept back. It was set apart for you. Eat; for until this time it has been kept for you, since I said I invited the people.” So Saul ate with Samuel that day.
25 When they had come down from the high place into the city, 7Samuel spoke with …