2 Samuel 1

The Report of Saul’s Death

1Now it came to pass after the ^adeath of Saul, when David had returned from ^bthe slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had stayed two days in Ziklag, ²on the third day, behold, it happened that ^ca man came from Saul’s camp ^dwith his clothes ¹torn and dust on his head. So it was, when he came to David, that he ^efell to the ground and prostrated himself.

³And David said to him, “Where have you come from?”

So he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.”

⁴Then David said to him, ^f“How did the matter go? Please tell me.”

And he answered, “The people have fled from the battle, many of the people are fallen and dead, and Saul and ^gJonathan his son are dead also.”

⁵So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?”

⁶Then the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance to be on ^hMount Gilboa, there was ⁱSaul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him. ⁷Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’ ⁸And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’ ⁹He said to me again, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, for ²anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.’ ¹⁰So I stood over him and ^jkilled him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.”

¹¹Therefore David took hold of his own clothes and ^ktore them, and so did all the men who were with him. ¹²And they ^lmourned and wept and ^mfasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son, for the ⁿpeople of the Lord and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.

¹³Then David said to the young man who told him, “Where are you from?”

And he answered, “I am the son of an alien, an Amalekite.”

¹⁴So David said to him, “How ^owas it you were not ^pafraid to ^qput forth your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?” ¹⁵Then ^rDavid called one of the young men and said, “Go near, and execute him!” And he struck him so that he died. ¹⁶So David said to him, ^s“Your blood is on your own head, for ^tyour own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the Lord’s anointed.’ ”

The Song of the Bow

¹⁷Then David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son, ^18uand he told them to teach the children of Judah the Song of the Bow; indeed it is written ^vin the Book ³of Jasher:

¹⁹“The beauty of Israel is slain on your high places!

^wHow the mighty have fallen!

^20xTell it not in Gath,

Proclaim it not in the streets of ^yAshkelon—

Lest ^zthe daughters of the Philistines rejoice,

Lest the daughters of ^athe uncircumcised triumph.

²¹“O ^bmountains of Gilboa,

^cLet there be no dew nor rain upon you,

Nor fields of offerings.

For the shield of the mighty is ⁴cast away there!

The shield of Saul, not ^danointed with oil.

²²From the blood of the slain,

From the fat of the mighty,

^eThe bow of Jonathan did not turn back,

And the sword of Saul did not return empty.

²³“Saul and Jonathan were beloved and pleasant in their lives,

And in their ^fdeath they were not divided;

They were swifter than eagles,

They were ^gstronger than lions.

²⁴“O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,

Who clothed you in scarlet, with luxury;

Who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.

²⁵“How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle!

Jonathan was slain in your high places.

²⁶I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;

You have been very pleasant to me;

^hYour love to me was wonderful,

Surpassing the love of women.

²⁷“How ⁱthe mighty have fallen,

And the weapons of war perished!”