1 Samuel 13

Samuel Rebukes Saul

Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty- two years.

Saul chose three thousand men from Israel; two thousand^a were with him at Mikmash^b and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah^c in Benjamin. The rest he sent back to their homes.

Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost^d at Geba,^e and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the trumpet^f blown throughout the land and said, “Let the Hebrews hear!” So all Israel heard the news: “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel has become obnoxious^g to the Philistines.” And the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.

The Philistines assembled^h to fight Israel, with three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sandⁱ on the seashore. They went up and camped at Mikmash,^j east of Beth Aven.^k When the Israelites saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid^l in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and cisterns.^m Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gadⁿ and Gilead.

Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking^o with fear. He waited seven^p days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. So he said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” And Saul offered^q up the burnt offering. Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel^r arrived, and Saul went out to greet^s him.

“What have you done?” asked Samuel.

Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash,^t I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal,^u and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.^v’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”

“You have done a foolish thing,^w” Samuel said. “You have not kept^x the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time.^y But now your kingdom^z will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart^a and appointed^b him ruler^c of his people, because you have not kept^d the Lord’s command.”

Then Samuel left Gilgal and went up to Gibeah^e in Benjamin, and Saul counted the men who were with him. They numbered about six hundred.^f

Israel Without Weapons

Saul and his son Jonathan and the men with them were staying in Gibeah^a in Benjamin, while the Philistines camped at Mikmash. Raiding^b parties went out from the Philistine camp in three detachments. One turned toward Ophrah^c in the vicinity of Shual, another toward Beth Horon,^d and the third toward the borderland overlooking the Valley of Zeboyim^e facing the wilderness.

Not a blacksmith^f could be found in the whole land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, “Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears!^g” So all Israel went down to the Philistines to have their plowpoints, mattocks, axes and sickles sharpened. The price was two-thirds of a shekel for sharpening plowpoints and mattocks, and a third of a shekel for sharpening forks and axes and for repointing goads.

So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan^h had a sword or spearⁱ in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.

Jonathan Attacks the Philistines

Now a detachment of Philistines had gone out to the pass^a at Mikmash.^b