1 Samuel 7:3–11

³So Samuel said to all the Israelites, “If you are returning^j to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid^k yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths^l and commit^m yourselves to the Lord and serve him only,ⁿ and he will deliver^o you out of the hand of the Philistines.” ⁴So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only.

⁵Then Samuel^p said, “Assemble all Israel at Mizpah,^q and I will intercede^r with the Lord for you.” ⁶When they had assembled at Mizpah,^s they drew water and poured^t it out before the Lord. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, “We have sinned against the Lord.” Now Samuel was serving as leader^au of Israel at Mizpah.

⁷When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpah, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid^v because of the Philistines. ⁸They said to Samuel, “Do not stop crying^w out to the Lord our God for us, that he may rescue us from the hand of the Philistines.” ⁹Then Samuel^x took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. He cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him.^y

¹⁰While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day the Lord thundered^z with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic^a that they were routed before the Israelites. ¹¹The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Kar.