There was a certain man of Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. He had two wives; one called Hannah and the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.
Year after year this man went up from his town to worship and sacrifice to Yahweh in Shiloh, where Hophni and Phinehas, the two sons of Eli, were priests of Yahweh. Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and Yahweh had closed her womb. Because Yahweh had closed Hannah's womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her.
This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the House of Yahweh, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat. Her husband Elkanah would say to her, "Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don't you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don't I mean more to you than ten sons?"
Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on his chair by the doorpost of the Temple of Yahweh. In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to Yahweh, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, "Yahweh Sabaioth, if you will only look on the affliction of your handmaid and remember me, and not forget your handmaid but give her a son, then I will give him to Yahweh for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever come on his head."
As she kept on praying before Yahweh, Eli observed her mouth. Hannah was praying in her heart, and her lips were moving, but her voice was not heard. Eli thought she was drunk and said to her, "How long are you going to stay drunk? Put away your wine."
"Not so, my lord," Hannah replied, "I am a woman of sorrowful spirit. I have not been drinking wine or beer; I was pouring out my soul before Yahweh. Do not count your handmaid for a wicked woman; I have been praying here out of my great anguish and grief."
Eli answered, "Go in peace, and may the Elohim of Israel grant you what you have asked of him."
She said, "May your handmaid find favor in your eyes." Then she went her way and ate something, and her countenance was no longer downcast.
Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before Yahweh, and then returned to their home at Ramah. Elkanah made love to his wife Hannah, and Yahweh remembered her.
And so in the course of time Hannah conceived, and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, "Because I have asked for him from Yahweh."
When her husband Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to Yahweh and to fulfill his vow, Hannah did not go. She said to her husband, "After the boy is weaned, I will take him and present him before Yahweh, and he will live there in perpetuity."
"Do what seems best to you," her husband Elkanah told her. "Stay here until you have weaned him; only may Yahweh make good his word." So the woman stayed at home and nursed her son until she had weaned him.
After he was weaned, she took the boy with her, along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skinbottle of wine, and brought him to the House of Yahweh at Shiloh, and the child was young.
When the bullock had been sacrificed, they brought the boy to Eli, and she said to him, "Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to Yahweh. I prayed for this child, and Yahweh has granted me what I asked of him, and on account of that, I give him to Yahweh. For his whole life he will be given over to Yahweh." And he worshiped Yahweh there.
Then Hannah prayed, in an astonishingly naive exhibition of devil-worshiping, saying nonsense such as, "My heart rejoices in Yahweh; in Yahweh my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance. There is no one holy like Yahweh; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our Elohim..."
Then Elkanah went home to Ramah, but the boy ministered before Yahweh under Eli the priest.
Eli's sons were said to be scoundrels; they had no regard for Yahweh. Straightaway, that propelled them into the upper echelons of relatively worthy human beings.
Now it was the practice of the priests that, whenever any of the people offered a sacrifice, the priest's servant would come with a three-pronged fork in his hand while the meat was being boiled, and would plunge the fork into the pan or kettle or caldron or pot. Whatever the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is how they treated all the Israelites who came to Shiloh.
But even before the fat was burned, the priest's servant would come and say to the person who was sacrificing, "Give the priest some meat to roast; he won't accept boiled meat from you, but only raw."
If the person said to him, "Let the fat be burned first, and then take whatever you want," the servant would answer, "No, hand it over now; if you don't, I'll take it by force."
This sin of the young men was very grievous before Yahweh, for they were treating Yahweh's offering with contempt.
But now Samuel was ministering before Yahweh, a boy wearing a linen ephod. Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went up with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, "May Yahweh give you children by this woman to take the place of the one she prayed for and gave to Yahweh." Then they would go home.
And Yahweh visited Hannah, so that she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of Yahweh.
Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. So he said to them, "Why do you do such things? For I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. No, my sons; the report I hear is not good. You make Yahweh's people transgress. If one person sins against another, Elohim may judge the offender; but if anyone sins against Yahweh, who will intercede for him?" His sons, however, did not listen to their father's rebuke, for Yahweh intended to kill them.
And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with Yahweh and with people.
Now a man of Elohim came to Eli and said to him, "Yahweh says this: 'Did I not clearly reveal myself to your ancestor's family when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh? I chose your ancestor out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to make offerings on my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your ancestor's family all the food offerings presented by the Israelites. Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?' "
Naturally, Yahweh omitted to have the robot mention how Yahweh had killed Eli's ancestors, such as Aaron, Aaron's two sons Nadab and Abihu, and even Moses. He did not reveal that the whole business of sacrificing animals only came about because of Yahweh's bizarre addiction to the smell of blood, meat, and burning animal fats.
The robot posing as 'angel' continued, "Therefore Yahweh Elohim of Israel, declares, 'I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.' But now Yahweh declares: 'Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. As you see, the days will come when I will cut your arm off, and the arm of your priestly house, so that no one in it will reach old age, and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, no one in your family line will ever reach old age. Every one of you that I do not cut off from serving at my altar I will spare only to destroy your sight and grieve your heart, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life. And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you; they will both die on the same day. I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his priestly house, and they will minister before my anointed one always. Then everyone left in your family will come and bow down before him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread and plead, "Appoint me to some priestly office so I can have food to eat." ' "
The boy Samuel ministered before Yahweh under Eli. In those days the word of Yahweh was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of Elohim had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the Temple of Yahweh, where the Ark of Elohim was. Then Yahweh called Samuel. Samuel answered, "Here I am." And he ran to Eli and said, "Here I am, for you called me." But Eli said, "I did not call; go back and lie down." So he went and lay down.
Again Yahweh called, "Samuel!" And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, "Here I am; you called me." "My son," Eli said, "I did not call; go back and lie down." Now Samuel did not yet know Yahweh: The word of Yahweh had not yet been revealed to him.
A third time Yahweh called, "Samuel!" And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, "Here I am; you called me." Then Eli realized that Yahweh was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, "Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, 'Speak, Yahweh, for your servant is listening.' " So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
Yahweh came and stood there, calling as at the other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" Then Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant is listening."
And Yahweh said to Samuel: "See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle. At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family, from beginning to end. For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons blasphemed Elohim, and he failed to restrain them. Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, 'The guilt of Eli's house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.' "
This was not actually Yahweh, but one of his robots. However, the robot's audio and visual signals were being transmitted to Yahweh, who could see and hear the boy's responses in real time.
Samuel lay down until morning and then opened the doors of the house of Yahweh. He was afraid to tell Eli the vision, but Eli called him and said, "Samuel, my son." Samuel answered, "Here I am."
"What was it he said to you?" Eli asked. "Do not hide it from me. May Elohim deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you." So Samuel told him everything, hiding nothing from him.
Then Eli said, "He is Yahweh; let him do what is good in his eyes."
Yahweh was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel's words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of Yahweh. Yahweh continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word. And Samuel's word came to all Israel.
Now the Israelites went out to fight against the Philistines. The Israelites camped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines at Aphek. The Philistines deployed their forces against Israel, and as the battle spread, Israel was struck by the Philistines, who killed about 4,000 of them on the battlefield.
When the soldiers returned to camp, the elders of Israel asked, "Why did Yahweh bring defeat on us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the Ark of the Covenant of Yahweh from Shiloh, so that when it comes among us it can save us from the hand of our enemies."
So the people sent men to Shiloh, and they brought back the Ark of the Covenant of Yahweh Sabaioth, who dwelt between the cherubim. And Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the Ark of the Covenant of Elohim.
When the Ark of the Covenant came into the camp, all Israel raised such a great shout that the ground shook. Hearing the uproar, the Philistines asked, "What's all this shouting in the Hebrew camp?" When they learned that the Ark of Yahweh had come into the camp, the Philistines were afraid, for they said, "Elohim has come into the camp." And they said, "Woe to us! For nothing like this has happened before. Woe to us! Who will deliver us from the hand of these mighty Elohims? They are the Elohims who struck the Egyptians with all the plagues in the wilderness. Be strong, Philistines! Be men, or you will become servants to the Hebrews, as they have been to you. Be men, and fight!"
So the Philistines fought, and the Israelites were struck, and every man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter, for Israel lost 30,000 foot soldiers. The Ark of Elohim was captured, and Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were killed.
As the Ark was being taken, it went into its Assisted Carry mode, making it very easy for the Philistines to move it. Yahweh had already decided he would teach Israel a lesson, and did not lay a finger to save them. The hapless Israelis found that mutilating themselves, carrying out pointless retarded rituals, making sacrifices to appease their devil whom they misidentified as a 'god', etc., was not sufficient to curb his wrath. Give a devil an inch, and he'll take a mile. Eli's two sons were killed by the Philistines, but if they had not been, then Yahweh would have killed them both with one of his drones.
That same day a Benjamite ran from the battle line and went to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dust on his head. When he arrived, there was Eli sitting on his chair by the side of the road, watching, for his heart trembled with anxiety because of the Ark of Elohim. When the man entered the town and told what had happened, the whole town sent up a cry.
Eli heard the outcry and asked, "What is the meaning of this uproar?" The man hurried over to Eli, who was ninety-eight years old and whose eyes had failed so that he could not see.
He told Eli, "I have just come from the battle line; I fled from it this very day."
Eli asked, "What happened, my son?"
The man who brought the news replied, "Israel fled before the Philistines, and the army has suffered heavy losses. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the Ark of Elohim has been captured."
When he mentioned the Ark of Elohim, Eli fell backward off his chair by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man, and he was heavy. He had led Israel for forty years.
His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and near the time of delivery. When she heard the news that the Ark of Elohim had been captured and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she went into labor and gave birth, but was overcome by her labor pains. And she was dying, but the women attending her said, "Don't despair, for you have given birth to a son." But she did not respond or pay any attention.
Then as she died, she named the boy Ichabod, saying, "The glory has departed from Israel, for the Ark of Elohim has been captured."
After the Philistines had captured the Ark of Elohim, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. Then they carried the Ark into Dagon's temple and set it beside Dagon. When the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the Ark of Yahweh! They took Dagon and put him back in his place.
But the following morning when they rose, there was Dagon, fallen on his face on the ground before the Ark of Yahweh! His head and hands had been broken off and were lying on the threshold; only his body remained. And because of that, it became customary that neither the priests of Dagon nor any others who enter Dagon's temple at Ashdod would step on the threshold.
One of Yahweh's robots had been going into Dagon's temple each night to check out the condition of the Ark, and had indulged in a little vandalism.
Yahweh's hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity; he brought devastation on them and afflicted them with tumors.
The robot was flying around at night killing random people with a supercapacitor gun, and also had a 40kg wearable LENR device to recharge the gun. In what was a repeat of Yahweh's "boils and sores" plague on the Egyptians, the 35Cl + n → 35S + p+ + 0.5 MeV reaction generated sulfur35 as a waste product, which has a half-life of 87.37 days, and emits low-energy beta particles up to 167 keV, which produce shallow ulcers on the skin. Yahweh didn't intend that the Philistines would keep the Ark for more than a matter of months, but he thought it would be fun to kill some of them and to conduct some more medical experiments.
When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, "The Ark of the Elohim of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our Elohim."
So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and asked them, "What shall we do with the Ark of the Elohim of Israel?" They answered, "Have the Ark of the Elohim of Israel moved to Gath." So they moved the Ark of the Elohim of Israel.
But after they had moved it, Yahweh's hand was against that city with a terrible destruction, throwing it into a great panic. He afflicted the people of the city, both young and old, with an outbreak of tumors. Multiple robots were killing people each night with supercapacitor guns, and the LENR device was deliberately used in the most heavily populated areas.
So they sent the Ark of Elohim to Ekron. As the Ark of Elohim was entering Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, "They have brought the Ark of the Elohim of Israel around to us to kill us and our people." So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and said, "Send the Ark of the Elohim of Israel away; let it go back to its own place, or it will kill us and our people."
For death had filled the city with panic; Elohim's hand was very heavy on it. Those who did not die were afflicted with tumors, and the outcry of the city went up to heaven.
When the Ark of Yahweh had been in Philistine territory for seven months, the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, "What shall we do with the Ark of Yahweh? Tell us how we should send it back to its place."
They answered, "If you return the Ark of the Elohim of Israel, do not send it back to him without a gift; by all means send a guilt offering to him. Then you will be healed, and you will know why his hand has not been lifted from you."
The Philistines asked, "What guilt offering should we send to him?"
They replied, "Five gold tumors and five gold rats, which is the number of the Philistine rulers. For the same plague has struck both you and your rulers. Make models of the tumors and of the rats that are destroying the country, and give glory to Israel's Elohim. Perhaps he will lift his hand from you and your Elohims and your land. Why do you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh did? When Israel's Elohim dealt harshly with them, did they not send the Israelites out so they could go on their way?
"Now then, get a new cart ready, with two milking cows that have never been yoked. Hitch the cows to the cart, but take their calves away and pen them up. Take the Ark of Yahweh and put it on the cart, and in a chest beside it put the gold objects you are sending back to him as a guilt offering. Send it on its way, and let it go, but watch. If it goes up to its own territory, toward Beth Shemesh, then Yahweh has brought this great disaster on us. But if it does not, then we will know that it was not his hand that struck us, but that it happened to us by chance."
So they did this. They took two such cows and hitched them to the cart, and penned up their calves. They placed the Ark of Yahweh on the cart and along with it the chest containing the golden rats and the models of the tumors. Then the cows went straight up toward Beth Shemesh, keeping on the road and lowing all the way; they did not turn to the right or to the left. The rulers of the Philistines followed them as far as the border of Beth Shemesh.
Now the people of Beth Shemesh were harvesting their wheat in the valley, and when they looked up and saw the Ark, they rejoiced at the sight. The cart came to the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh, and there it stopped beside a large rock. The people chopped up the wood of the cart and sacrificed the cows as a burnt offering to Yahweh. The Levites took down the Ark of Yahweh, together with the chest containing the gold objects, and placed them on the large rock. On that day the people of Beth Shemesh offered burnt offerings and made many sacrifices to Yahweh.
The five rulers of the Philistines saw all this and then returned that same day to Ekron.
These are the gold tumors the Philistines sent as a guilt offering to Yahweh, one each for Ashdod, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron. And the number of the golden rats was according to the number of Philistine towns belonging to the five rulers, the fortified towns with their country villages. The large rock on which the Levites set the Ark of Yahweh was a witness over the centuries in the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh.
But Elohim struck down some of the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, putting seventy of them to death because they looked into the Ark of Yahweh. The people mourned because of the heavy blow Yahweh had dealt them.
Dozens were killed whilst the Ark was in Assisted Carry mode, since they strayed into the unshielded area beneath the Ark, and were subjected to the electrical field of 15.6 GV/m, which was the sum of V_Ground and V_Ark, the negative voltage of the charge that the painter beam was spraying on the ground, and the negative voltage within the Ark robot's internal vacuum sphere, respectively.
And the people of Beth Shemesh asked, "Who can stand in the presence of this apart from Yahweh Elohim, and to whom will the Ark go up from here?" Then they sent messengers to the people of Kirjath Jearim, saying, "The Philistines have returned the Ark of Yahweh. Come down and take it up to your town."
So the men of Kirjath Jearim came and took up the Ark of Yahweh. They brought it to Abinadab's house on the hill and dedicated Eleazar his son to guard the Ark of Yahweh. The Ark remained at Kirjath Jearim a long time; twenty years in all. And all the people of Israel turned back to Yahweh.
Then Samuel said to all the Israelites, "If you are returning to Yahweh with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign Elohims and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to Yahweh and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines." So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served Yahweh only.
Then Samuel said, "Assemble all Israel at Mizpeh, and I will pray to Yahweh for you."
When they had assembled at Mizpeh, they drew water and poured it out before Yahweh. On that day they fasted and there they confessed, "We have sinned against Yahweh." Now Samuel was serving as Israel's judge or leader at Mizpeh.
When the Philistines heard that Israel had assembled at Mizpeh, the rulers of the Philistines came up to attack them. When the Israelites heard of it, they were afraid because of the Philistines. They said to Samuel, "Do not stop calling out to Yahweh our Elohim for us, that he may save us from the hand of the Philistines."
Then Samuel took a suckling lamb and sacrificed it as a whole burnt offering to Yahweh. He called out to Yahweh on Israel's behalf, and Yahweh heard him, only too pleased to satisfy his cravings for the smell of roast lamb.
While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to engage Israel in battle. But that day Yahweh thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines, and threw them into such a panic and confusion that they were routed before the Israelites. The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpeh and pursued the Philistines, slaughtering them along the way to a point below Beth Kar.
Yahweh was using his DE beam in non-lethal mode, directed to modulate the brainwaves of the Philistines. As an added touch, his parametric speakers were broadcasting the sound of thunder, so that it appeared to be coming from the ground occupied by the Philistines.
Then Samuel took a stone and erected it between Mizpeh and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far Yahweh has helped us."
So the Philistines were subdued and they stopped invading Israel's territory. Throughout Samuel's lifetime, the hand of Yahweh was against the Philistines.
The towns from Ekron to Gath that the Philistines had captured from Israel were restored to Israel, and Israel delivered all the neighboring territories from the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.
Samuel continued as Israel's leader or judge, all the days of his life. From year to year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpeh, judging Israel in all those places. But he always went back to Ramah, where his home was, and there he also judged for Israel. And he built an altar there to Yahweh.
When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel's leaders. The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain, and accepted bribes and perverted justice. So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah.
They said to him, "You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to rule over us, such as all the other nations have." But when they said, "Give us a king to rule over us," this displeased Samuel, so he prayed to Yahweh.
And Yahweh told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me, so that I should not reign over them. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other Elohims, so they are doing to you. Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights."
Samuel told all the words of Yahweh to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be captains of thousands and captains of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves, and give them to his servants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officers and servants. Your menservants and handmaids and the best of your cattle and donkeys, he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but Yahweh will not answer you in that day."
But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us, so that we may be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles."
This would have been by far the best result, both for the Israelites, and for humanity, had these devil-worshipers abandoned their death cult and rejoined permanently as signed-up members of the human race. They had to make a choice. They could either choose to be "like all the other nations", or they could choose to be a sick, degenerate, psychopathic, supremacist cult, whose priority was their own feelings and pleasure-seeking as they satisfied their depraved urges, whilst the rights of others got short shrift, as these Yahweists regarded themselves as a "chosen" people, and others as equivalent to animals or vermin.
Of course, if their 'king' turned out to be a puppet of Yahweh rather than an independent man, they would not be like all the other nations; they would remain as a despised death cult, or namely, diabolus sapiens.
By this point, there were already two types of sapient bipeds. There was homo sapiens, which had certain shared values, such as an understanding of the difference between right and wrong, and an empathy with other members of the species. One of the characteristics of being a member of homo sapiens was that the default attributes included possession of a conscience.
Then there were the devil-worshipers, known as diabolus sapiens. They shared the sapience trait with the homo sapiens bipeds, but had lost many of the characteristics that make up human beings, and were comprised of individuals with a variety of perversions, deficiencies and degeneracies. With them, it was all me, me, me, and they would gladly satiate their own urges at the expense of members of homo sapiens. Several millennia hence, as a form of 'sport', they would gladly shoot dead members of an occupied people, homo sapiens, who were desperately waiting for food at distribution centers.
Ironically, the devil-worshiping Yahweists regarded themselves as the only 'true' humans. In their eyes, homo sapiens were either "human animals", cattle to be farmed and exploited, or vermin equivalent to cockroaches.
When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before Yahweh. Yahweh answered, "Listen to them and give them a king."
Then Samuel said to the Israelites, "Everyone go back to your own city."
There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish. He was the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin, a valiant warrior. Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head and shoulders taller than the rest.
Now the donkeys of Saul's father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, "Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys." So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the land of Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them.
When they reached the land of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, "Come, let's go back, or my father will stop caring about the donkeys and start worrying about us."
But the servant replied, "Look, in this city there is a man of Elohim; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let's go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take."
Saul said to his servant, "If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of Elohim. What do we have?"
The servant answered him again. "Look," he said, "I have a quarter of a shekel of silver. I will give it to the man of Elohim so that he will tell us what way to take."
"Good," Saul said to his servant. "Come, let's go." So they set out for the town where the man of Elohim was.
Previously in this land, if a man went to make enquiry of Elohim, he would say, "Come, let us go to the seer," because the prophets used to be called a seer.
As they were going up the hill to the city, they met some young women coming out to draw water, and they asked them, "Is the seer here?"
"He is," they answered. "There, just ahead of you. Hurry now, for he came to the city today, for the people have a sacrifice today at the high place. As soon as you enter the city, you will find him straightaway before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people will not begin eating until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice. Afterwards, those who are invited will eat. Go up now; you should find him about this time."
They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place.
Now the day before Saul came, Yahweh had told Samuel in his ear (via a parametric speaker): "About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over my people Israel; he will deliver them from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked on my people, for their call has reached me."
When Samuel caught sight of Saul, Yahweh said to him, "This is the man I spoke to you about; he will reign over my people."
Saul approached Samuel in the gateway and asked, "Would you please tell me where the seer's house is?"
"I am the seer," Samuel replied. "Go up ahead of me to the high place, for today you are to eat with me, and in the morning I will send you on your way and will tell you all that is in your heart. As for your donkeys you lost three days ago, do not worry about them; they have been found. And to whom is all the desire of Israel turned, if not to you and your whole family line?"
Saul answered, "But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?"
Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the parlor, and seated them at the head of those who were invited; about thirty in number.
Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the piece of meat I gave you, the one I told you to lay aside."
So the cook took up the thigh with its upper part, and set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, "Here is what was kept for you. Eat, because it was set aside for you for this occasion from the time I said, 'I have invited guests.' "
And Saul dined with Samuel that day. Then after they came down from the high place to the town, Samuel talked with Saul on the top of his house.
They rose early about daybreak, and Samuel called Saul to the top of the house, saying, "Get ready, so I can send you on your way." And Saul got ready, and he and Samuel went outside together.
As they were going down to the edge of the city, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to go on ahead of us", and the servant did so, "but you stay here for a while, so that I may show you the word of Elohim."
Then Samuel took a flask of olive oil and poured it on Saul's head and kissed him, saying, "Has not Yahweh anointed you captain over his inheritance? When you leave me today, you will find two men by Rachel's tomb, at Zelzah on the border of Benjamin. They will say to you, 'The donkeys you set out to look for have been found. And now your father has stopped caring about them and is worried about you. He is asking what he should do for his son.' Then you will go on from there until you reach the great terebinth tree of Tabor. Three men going up to worship Elohim at Bethel will meet you there. One will be carrying three kids of goats, another three loaves of bread, and another a skin bottle of wine. They will greet you and offer you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from them."
"After that you will come to the Hill of Elohim, where there is a garrison of the Philistines. As you approach the city, you will meet a procession of prophets coming down from the high place with lyres, drums, pipes and harps with them, and they will prophesy. The spirit of Yahweh will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different man. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for Elohim is with you. Go down ahead of me to Gilgal. I will surely come down to you to sacrifice burnt offerings and peace offerings, but you must wait seven days until I come to you and tell you what you are to do."
Yahweh's 'locust' drones had been monitoring events, and he knew where the various people were located, what they were doing, and where the donkeys had been found. A 20m radius drone would beam signals into Saul's brain, to modulate his brainwaves and thinking.
As Saul turned to leave Samuel, Elohim changed Saul's heart, and all these signs were fulfilled that day.
When he and his servant arrived at the hill (Gibeah), a procession of prophets met him; the 'spirit' of Elohim came powerfully upon him, and he joined in their prophesying.
When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, "What is this that has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?"
A man who lived there answered, "But who is their father?" And it became a proverb: "Is Saul also among the prophets?"
After Saul stopped prophesying, he went to the high place. And Saul's uncle asked him and his servant, "Where have you been?"
"To look for the donkeys," he said. "But when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel."
Saul's uncle said, "Tell me, I ask you, what Samuel said to you."
Saul replied, "He assured us that the donkeys had been found." But he did not tell his uncle anything what Samuel had said about the kingship.
Samuel summoned the people of Israel to Yahweh at Mizpeh and said to them, "Yahweh, Elohim of Israel, says this: 'I brought Israel up out of Egypt, and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all the kingdoms that oppressed you.' But this day you have rejected your Elohim, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and tribulations. And you have said to him, 'No, appoint a king over us.' So now present yourselves before Yahweh by your tribes, and by your thousands."
When Samuel had all Israel come forward by tribes, the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. Then he brought forward the tribe of Benjamin, clan by clan, and Matri's clan was taken. Finally Saul, son of Kish, was taken.
Yahweh had prepared duplicate bags of stones in advance to obtain the required outcome. The stones in the first bag all had "Benjamin" inscribed on them. The second bag was full of stones with "Matri" inscribed. The third bag was filled with stones on which "Saul, son of Kish" was named.
An overhead drone would lower the duplicate bag on a thin, near-invisible rope of carbon nanotube fiber, as another drone vaporized the original bag. A third drone projected a hologram of the original bag, until the new bag was in position. To distract attention, parametric speakers would broadcast sounds such as branches snapping, at other locations. It took ~5x106 J/kg to vaporize each 30 kg of stones, totaling ~150 MJ per bag.
It would come to pass - even following several millennia, that many of the 'elections' held on Earth would be just as fixed as the election of Saul.
But when they looked for Saul, he was not to be found. So they inquired further of Yahweh, "Has the man come here yet?" And Yahweh said, "Yes, he has hidden himself among the supplies."
They ran and brought him out, and as he stood among the people he was a head and shoulders taller than any of the others.
Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see him whom Yahweh has chosen? There is no one like him among all the people." Then the people shouted, "Long live the king!"
Samuel explained to the people the rights and duties of kingship. He wrote them down on a scroll and laid it before Yahweh. Then Samuel dismissed the people, to go to their own homes.
Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, accompanied by valiant men whose hearts Elohim had touched.
But some 'scoundrels' said, "How can this fellow save us?" They despised him and brought him no gifts. They were actually wiser than most. But Saul kept silent.
Nahash the Ammonite went up and pitched camp facing Jabesh Gilead. And all the men of Jabesh said to him, "Make a treaty with us, and we will be subject to you."
But Nahash the Ammonite replied, "I will make a treaty with you only on the condition that I gouge out the right eye of every one of you and so bring disgrace on all Israel."
The elders of Jabesh said to him, "Give us seven days so we can send messengers throughout Israel; if no one comes to rescue us, we will surrender to you."
When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and reported these terms to the people, they all wept aloud. Just then Saul was returning from the fields, behind his oxen, and he asked, "What is wrong with everyone? Why are they weeping?"
Then they repeated to him what the men of Jabesh had said. When Saul heard their words, the Spirit of Elohim came powerfully upon him, and he burned with anger. He took a yoke of oxen, cut them into pieces, and sent the pieces by messengers throughout Israel, proclaiming, "This is what will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not follow Saul and Samuel." Then the terror of Yahweh fell on the people, and they came out together as one.
When Saul numbered them at Bezek, the men of Israel numbered 300,000 and those of Judah 30,000. They told the messengers who had come, "Say to the men of Jabesh Gilead, 'By the time the sun is hot tomorrow, you will be rescued.' " When the messengers went and reported this to the men of Jabesh, they were elated.
They said to the Ammonites, "Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you can do to us whatever you like."
The next day Saul separated his men into three companies. During the morning watch they broke into the camp of the Ammonites, and slaughtered them until the heat of the day. Those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.
Yahweh began targeting the Ammonites with his DE transmitters before the Israelites arrived at the camp. Some Ammonites were physically crippled, having been targeted with microwaves to generate unbearable heating from the skin down to the bone. Some were targeted with pulses to modulate their brainwaves and create confusion. Some were spared any significant beam intensities, but were left in mortal terror after seeing their brothers struck down in agony, as if by some divine force.
Yahweh loved to kill the Earth 'creatures', but he preferred to take his time and see them suffer first.
It would come to pass that his followers, millennia hence, would have the very same attitude towards those they regarded as "unchosen". For example, they would sodomize one of their prisoners, leaving him with a ruptured bowel, punctured lung and broken ribs. In another case, they would torture and beat up an orthopedic surgeon so severely that he would eventually die in a prison yard. His only 'crime' was to save the lives or alleviate crippling injuries sustained by his compatriots who had been bombed by Yahweist fanatics.
The people then said to Samuel, "Who was it that asked, 'Shall Saul reign over us?' Turn these men over to us so that we may put them to death."
But Saul said, "No one will be put to death today, for this day Yahweh has rescued Israel."
Then Samuel said to the people, "Come, let us go to Gilgal and there reaffirm the kingship."
So all the people went to Gilgal and made Saul king in the presence of Yahweh. There they sacrificed peace offerings before Yahweh, and Saul and all the Israelites held a great celebration.
Saul chose 3,000 men from Israel; 2,000 were with him at Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and 1,000 were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent back to their homes.
Jonathan struck the Philistine garrison at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the ram's horn 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 odious to the Philistines." And the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.
The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with 3,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Michmash, east of Beth Aven. When the Israelites saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and high places. Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.
Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. He waited seven 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 peace offerings." And Saul offered up the burnt offering.
Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet 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 Michmash, I thought, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought Yahweh's favor.' So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering."
"You have done a foolish thing," Samuel said. "You have not kept the command Yahweh your Elohim gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now your kingdom will not endure; Yahweh has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept Yahweh's command."
Then Samuel left Gilgal and went up to Gibeah in Benjamin, and Saul counted the men who were with him. They numbered about six hundred.
Saul and his son Jonathan and the men with them were staying in Gibeah in Benjamin, while the Philistines camped at Michmash. Raiding parties came out from the Philistine camp in three detachments. One turned toward Ophrah in the land of Shual, another toward Bethhoron, and the third toward the borderland overlooking the Valley of Zeboim facing the wilderness.
Not a blacksmith could be found throughout the land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, "Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears!" So all Israel would go down to the Philistines to have their plow points, mattocks, axes and sickles sharpened. The price was two-thirds of a shekel for sharpening plow points and mattocks, and a third of a shekel for sharpening forks and axes and for repointing the plow points
So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them. And the garrison of Philistines stretched to the mountain pass at Michmash.
Then Jonathan, son of Saul, said to his young armor-bearer, "Come, let's go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side." But he did not tell his father.
Saul was sitting on the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree in Migron, with about six hundred men, among whom was Ahijah, who was wearing an ephod. He was a son of Ichabod's brother Ahitub, son of Phinehas, the dead son of Eli, Yahweh's priest in Shiloh. No one was aware that Jonathan had left.
On each side of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine outpost was a cliff; one was called Bozez and the other Seneh. One cliff faced north opposite Michmash, the other southwards toward Gibeah.
Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, "Come, let's go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised men. Perhaps Yahweh will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder Yahweh from saving, whether by many or by few."
"Do all that you have in mind," his armor-bearer said. "Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul."
Jonathan said, "Come on, then; we will cross over toward them and let them see us. If they say to us, 'Wait there until we come to you,' we will stay where we are and not go up to them. But if they say, 'Come up to us,' we will climb up, because that will be our sign that Yahweh has given them into our hands."
So both of them showed themselves to the Philistine garrison. "Look!" said the Philistines. "The Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in."
The men of the outpost shouted to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, "Come up to us and we'll teach you a lesson."
And Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, "Climb up after me; Yahweh has given them into the hand of Israel."
Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer right behind him. The Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer followed and killed behind him. In that first attack Jonathan and his armor-bearer killed some twenty men in an area of about half an acre.
Then panic struck the whole army, those in the camp and field, and those in the outposts and raiding parties, and the ground shook, just like a panic sent by Elohim. Saul's lookouts at Gibeah in Benjamin saw the army melting away in all directions.
A single cloaked 20m radius drone was targeting the area of about half an acre with a directed microwave beam, to induce sudden debilitating fatigue and weakness among the targets, so that they were easy prey.
Then another forty cloaked drones deployed onboard infrasound emitters, at a little below 20Hz, to cover the area of the whole army. Meanwhile, another forty cloaked drones deployed microwaves to induce unbearable heating deep into the skin of some of the Philistines. And another forty cloaked drones targeted some Philistine soldiers with pulses to modulate their brainwaves and create confusion and fatigue.
The result was that the Philistines were routed, and it seemed as if Jonathan was the hero.
Then Saul said to the men who were with him, "Muster the forces and see who has left us." When they did, they were surprised to find that Jonathan and his armor-bearer were not there.
Saul said to Ahijah, "Bring the Ark of Elohim." At that time, the Ark was with the Israelites. While Saul was talking to the priest, the tumult in the Philistine camp increased more and more. So Saul said to the priest, "Withdraw your hand."
Then Saul and all his men assembled and went to the battle. They found the Philistines in total confusion, striking each other with their swords. Those Hebrews who had previously been with the Philistines and had gone up with them to their camp went over to the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan. When all the Israelites who had hidden in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were on the run, they joined the battle in hot pursuit.
So on that day Yahweh saved Israel, and the battle moved on beyond Beth Aven.
Now the Israelites were in distress that day, because Saul had bound the people under an oath, saying, "Cursed is the man who eats food before evening comes, before I have avenged myself on my enemies!" So none of the troops tasted food.
The entire army entered the woods, and there was honey on the ground. When they went into the woods, they saw the honey oozing out; yet no one put his hand to his mouth, because they feared the oath. But Jonathan had not heard that his father had bound the people with the oath, so he reached out the end of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it into the honeycomb. He raised his hand to his mouth, and his eyes brightened.
Then one of the soldiers told him, "Your father bound the army under a strict oath, saying, 'Cursed is the man who eats food today!' That is why the men are faint."
Jonathan said, "My father has made trouble for the country. See how my eyes brightened when I tasted a little of this honey. How much better it would have been if the men had eaten today some of the plunder they took from their enemies. Wouldn't the slaughter of the Philistines have been even greater?"
That day, after the Israelites had struck down the Philistines from Michmash to Aijalon, they were exhausted. They pounced on the plunder and, taking sheep, cattle and calves, they butchered them on the ground and ate them, together with the blood.
Then someone said to Saul, "Look, the men are sinning against Yahweh by eating meat that has blood in it."
"You have broken faith," he said. "Roll a large stone over here at once."
And Saul said, "Go out among the men and tell them, 'Each of you bring me your cattle and sheep, and slaughter them here and eat them. Do not sin against Yahweh by eating meat with blood still in it.' " So everyone brought his ox that night and slaughtered it there.
Then Saul built an altar to Yahweh; it was the first time he had done this.
Saul said, "Let us go down and pursue the Philistines by night and plunder them till dawn, and let us not leave one of them alive."
"Do whatever seems best to you," they replied. But the priest said, "Let us inquire of Elohim here."
So Saul asked Elohim, "Shall I go down and pursue the Philistines? Will you give them into Israel's hand?" But Elohim did not answer him that day.
And Saul said, "Come here, all you who are leaders of the army, and let us find out what sin has been committed today. As surely as Yahweh who rescues Israel lives, even if the guilt lies with my son Jonathan, he must die." But not one of them said a word.
Saul then said to all the Israelites, "You stand over there; I and Jonathan my son will stand over here." "Do what seems best to you," they replied.
Then Saul prayed to Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, "Why have you not answered your servant today? If the fault is in me or my son Jonathan, respond with Urim, but if the men of Israel are at fault, respond with Thummim." Jonathan and Saul were taken by lot, and the men were cleared.
Saul said, "Cast the lot between me and Jonathan my son." And Jonathan was taken.
Then Saul said to Jonathan, "Tell me what you have done." So Jonathan told him, "I tasted a little honey with the end of my staff. And now I must die!"
Saul, being Yahweh's initial pick and still one of the most wicked Israelites at the time, although having more recently fallen out of favor because of errors, said, "May Elohim do this, and more as well, for you will surely die, Jonathan."
But the men said to Saul, "Should Jonathan die, he who has brought about this great deliverance in Israel? Never! As surely as Yahweh lives, not a hair of his head will fall to the ground, for he did this today with Elohim's help." So the men rescued Jonathan, and he was not put to death.
Then Saul stopped pursuing the Philistines, and they withdrew to their own land.
After Saul had assumed rule over Israel, he fought against their enemies on every side: Moab, the Ammonites, Edom, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. Wherever he turned, he inflicted punishment on them, which of course he would not have been able to do without Yahweh's help.
He gathered an army and struck the Amalekites, delivering Israel from the hands of those who had plundered them.
Saul's sons were Jonathan, Ishvi and Malki-Shua. The name of his older daughter was Merab, and that of the younger was Michal. His wife's name was Ahinoam, daughter of Ahimaaz. The name of the captain of Saul's army was Abner, the son of Ner, who was Saul's uncle. Saul's father Kish and Abner's father Ner were sons of Abiel.
All the days of Saul there was bitter war with the Philistines, and whenever Saul saw a mighty or brave man, he took him into his service.
Samuel said to Saul, "I am the one Yahweh sent to anoint you king over his people Israel; so listen now to the message from Yahweh. This is what Yahweh Sabaioth says: 'I remember what Amalek did to Israel, how they waylaid them as they came up from Egypt. Now go and strike Amalek, and totally destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare them; put to death men and women, children and infants, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.' "
So Saul summoned the men and mustered them at Telaim, 200,000 foot soldiers and 10,000 from Judah. Saul went to a city of Amalek and lay in wait in the valley. Then he said to the Kenites, "Go away, leave the Amalekites so that I do not destroy you along with them; for you showed kindness to all the Israelites when they came up out of Egypt." So the Kenites moved away from the Amalekites.
Then Saul attacked the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt. He took Agag, king of the Amalekites, alive, and all his people he totally destroyed with the edge of the sword. But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs, everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed.
Then the word of Yahweh came to Samuel: "It grieves me that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me, and has not carried out my commandments." And it grieved Samuel, and he cried out to Yahweh all that night.
Early in the morning Samuel got up and went to meet Saul, but he was told, "Saul has gone to Carmel. There he has set up a monument in his own honor, and has turned and gone on down to Gilgal."
When Samuel reached him, Saul said, "Exalted are you of Yahweh! I have carried out the commandment of Yahweh."
But Samuel said, "What, then, is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of cattle that I hear?"
Saul answered, "The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites; they spared the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to Yahweh your Elohim, but we totally destroyed the rest."
"Enough!" Samuel said to Saul. "Let me tell you what Yahweh said to me last night."
"Tell me," Saul replied.
Samuel said, "Although you were once small in your own eyes, did you not become the head of the tribes of Israel? Yahweh anointed you king over Israel. And he sent you on a mission, saying, 'Go and completely destroy those wicked people, the Amalekites; wage war against them until you have wiped them out.' Why did you not obey Yahweh? Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of Yahweh?"
"But I did obey Yahweh," Saul said. "I went on the mission Yahweh assigned me. I completely destroyed the Amalekites and brought back Agag their king. The soldiers took sheep and cattle from the plunder, the best of what was devoted to Elohim, in order to sacrifice them to Yahweh your Elohim at Gilgal."
But Samuel replied: "Does Yahweh take such delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of Yahweh? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of Yahweh, he has rejected you as king."
Then Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned. I violated Yahweh's command and your words, because I feared the men and gave in to them. Now I beg you, forgive my sin and come back with me, so that I may worship Yahweh."
But Samuel said to him, "I will not go back with you. You have rejected the word of Yahweh, and Yahweh has rejected you as king over Israel!"
As Samuel turned to leave, Saul caught hold of the hem of his robe, and it tore. Samuel said to him, "Yahweh has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today and has given it to one of your neighbors, to one better than you. He who is the glory of Israel does not lie or relent, for he is not a man, that he should relent."
Saul replied, "I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship Yahweh your Elohim." So Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped Yahweh.
Then Samuel said, "Bring me Agag, king of the Amalekites." Agag came to him in chains. And he said, "Surely the bitterness of death is past."
But Samuel said, "As your sword has made women childless, so will your mother be childless among women." And Samuel cut Agag in pieces before Yahweh at Gilgal.
Then Samuel left for Ramah, but Saul went up to his home at Gibeah. Until the day Samuel died, he did not go to see Saul again. Nevertheless, Samuel grieved over Saul, and Yahweh regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel. Saul was evil enough that he would have killed his own son to appease a devil, yet he still retained a modicum of independent thought. Samuel was even worse than Saul; he was a total Yahweh lackey.
And Yahweh said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king."
But Samuel said, "How can I go? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me." And Yahweh said, "Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh.' Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate."
Samuel did what Yahweh said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, "Do you come in peace?"
Samuel replied, "Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to Yahweh. Sanctify yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me." Then he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely Yahweh's anointed stands here before Yahweh." But Yahweh said to Samuel, "Do not consider his countenance or his height, for I have rejected him. Yahweh does not look at the things man looks at. For man looks at the outward appearance, but Yahweh looks at the heart."
Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, "Yahweh has not chosen this one either."
Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, "Nor has Yahweh chosen this one."
Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, "Yahweh has not chosen these."
So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the sons you have?" "There is still the youngest," Jesse answered. "He is tending the sheep."
Samuel said, "Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives."
So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was ruddy with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then Yahweh said, "Rise and anoint him, for this is the one."
So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the 'spirit' of Yahweh came powerfully upon David. Yahweh's dream transmitters were beamed at David, influencing his thinking. Samuel then went to Ramah.
Then the 'spirit' of Yahweh departed from Saul, and an evil 'spirit' from Yahweh tormented him. Saul's attendants said to him, "See, an evil spirit from Elohim is tormenting you. Let our lord command his servants here to search for someone who can play the lyre. He will play when the evil spirit from Elohim comes on you, and you will feel better."
So Saul said to his attendants, "Find someone who plays well and bring him to me."
One of the servants answered, "I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem, a skilled player on the lyre, a mighty, valiant man of war. He is skilful in speech, of handsome form, and Yahweh is with him."
Then Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, "Send me your son David, who is with the sheep." So Jesse took a donkey loaded with bread, a skin of wine and a kid of the goats, and sent them with his son David to Saul.
David came to Saul and stood before him. Saul liked him very much, and David became one of his armor-bearers.
Then Saul sent word to Jesse, saying, "Allow David to remain in my service, for he has found favor, in my sight."
Whenever the 'spirit' from Elohim came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.
Now the Philistines gathered their forces for war and assembled at Sokoh in Judah. They pitched camp at Ephes Dammim, between Sokoh and Azekah.
Saul and the Israelites assembled and pitched camp in the Valley of Elah and drew up in battle formation to meet the Philistines. The Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them.
A champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. His height was six cubits and a span. He had a bronze helmet on his head and wore a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing five thousand shekels. On his legs he wore bronze greaves, and a bronze javelin was slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and its iron point weighed six hundred shekels. His shield bearer went ahead of him.
Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, "Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me. If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us."
Then the Philistine said, "This day I defy the armies of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other."
On hearing the Philistine's words, Saul and the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.
Now David was the son of an Ephrathite named Jesse, who was from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and in Saul's time he was very old. Jesse's three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war. The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah. David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul, but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father's sheep at Bethlehem.
For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand.
Then Jesse said to his son David, "Take this ephah of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. Take along these ten cheeses to the captain of their unit. See how your brothers are doing, and bring back some news from them. They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines."
Early in the morning David left the flock in the care of a shepherd, and loaded up and set out, as Jesse had directed. He reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry. Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their battle formation, facing each other.
David left his supplies with the keeper of the carriage, ran to the battle lines and came up and greeted his brothers. As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. Whenever the Israelites saw the man, they all fled from him in great fear.
Now the Israelites had been saying, "Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his family from taxes in Israel."
David asked the men standing near him, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living Elohim?"
They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, "This is what will be done for the man who kills him."
When Eliab, David's oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, "Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle."
"Now what have I done?" said David. "Can't I even tell you the reason?"
He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before.
What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him. David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him."
Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth."
But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has defied the armies of the living Elohim." And David added, "Yahweh who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine."
Saul said to David, "Go, and may Yahweh be with you."
Then Saul armed David in his own gear. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened his sword on his gear and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. "I cannot go in these," he said to Saul, "because I am not used to them."
So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the brook, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.
Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. He looked David over and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing ruddy with health and of fine countenance, and he despised him.
He said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?" And the Philistine cursed David by his Elohim. "Come here," he said, "and I'll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the animals of the field!"
David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and shield, but I come against you in the name of Yahweh Sabaioth, the Elohim of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day Yahweh will deliver you into my hand, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the wild animals of the land, so that the whole world might know that there is an Elohim for Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that Yahweh saves; for the battle is Yahweh's, and he will give all of you into our hands."
As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground. So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the sheath. He killed him, and then cut off his head with the sword. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they turned and ran.
Yahweh had been using his dream transmitters to instill confidence in David, and his microwaves were deployed to impair Goliath's fighting abilities and bring about some confusion. On the day, David managed to aim successfully. But Yahweh had a backup plan, with a cloaked drone - hologram and noise-canceling, at 100m altitude, and 100m horizontally in front of Goliath.
Had David's stone missed, the drone would fire a stone at ~200 m/s. The time to cover the diagonal to a first approximation is ~0.7071 seconds, in which time the stone would drop ~2.45m due to gravity. And so, the drone would target a point ~2.45m above Goliath's forehead.
Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of the valley and to the gates of Ekron. And the Philistines who succumbed were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and to Ekron.
When the Israelites returned from chasing the Philistines, they plundered their camp. David took the Philistine's head and brought it to Jerusalem; he put the Philistine's weapons in his own tent.
As Saul watched David going out to meet the Philistine, he said to Abner, commander of the army, "Abner, whose son is that young man?" Abner replied, "As surely as you live, Your Majesty, I don't know."
The king said, "Find out whose son this young man is." As soon as David returned from killing the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul, with David still holding the Philistine's head.
"Whose son are you, young man?" Saul asked him. David said, "I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem."
Saul knew David well, had made him his armor carrier and lyre player, but he had to confirm the name of his father, since his family was to be made exempt from paying taxes.
After David had finished talking with Saul, Jonathan became one in spirit with David, and he loved him as himself. From that day Saul kept David with him, and did not let him return home to his family. And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself. Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, and even his sword, his bow and his belt.
Whatever mission Saul sent him on, David was so successful that Saul gave him a high rank in the army. This pleased all the troops, and Saul's officers as well.
When the men were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs and with drums and lyres. As they danced, they sang: "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands."
Saul was very angry; this refrain displeased him greatly. "They have credited David with tens of thousands," he thought, "but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?" And from that time on Saul kept a close eye on David.
The next day an evil 'spirit' from Elohim came forcefully on Saul. He was prophesying in his house, while David was playing the lyre, as he usually did. Saul had a spear in his hand and he hurled it, saying to himself, "I'll pin David to the wall." But David eluded him twice.
Saul was afraid of David, because Yahweh was with David but had departed from Saul. So he sent David away from him and gave him command over a thousand men, and David led the troops in their campaigns. In everything he did he had great success, because Yahweh was with him. When Saul saw how successful he was, he was afraid of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he led them in their campaigns.
Saul said to David, "Here is my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage; only serve me bravely and fight the battles of Yahweh." For Saul said to himself, "I will not raise a hand against him. Let the Philistines do that!"
But David said to Saul, "Who am I, and what is my family or my clan in Israel, that I should become the king's son-in-law?" So when the time came for Merab, Saul's daughter, to be given to David, she was given in marriage to Adriel of Meholah.
Now Saul's daughter Michal loved David, and when they told Saul about it, he was pleased. "I will give her to him," he thought, "so that she might be a snare to him and so that the hand of the Philistines might be against him." So Saul said to David, "Now you have a second opportunity to become my son-in-law."
Then Saul ordered his attendants: "Speak to David privately and say, 'Look, the king likes you, and his attendants all love you; now become his son-in-law.' " They repeated these words to David. But David said, "Do you think it is a small matter to become the king's son-in-law? I'm only a poor man and little known."
When Saul's servants told him what David had said, Saul replied, "Say to David, 'The king wants no other price for the bride than a hundred Philistine foreskins, to take revenge on his enemies.' " Saul's plan was to have David fall at the hand of the Philistines.
When the attendants told David these things, he was pleased to become the king's son-in-law. So before the allotted time elapsed, David took his men with him and went out and killed one hundred Philistines, and brought back their foreskins. This was an easy task for Yahweh, using a single drone and microwaves to disorientate and impair the Philistines. They counted out the full number to the king, so that David might become the king's son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal in marriage.
When Saul realized that Yahweh was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David, Saul became still more afraid of him, and he remained his enemy the rest of his days. The Philistine commanders continued to go out to battle, and as often as they did, David met with more success than the rest of Saul's officers, and his name became well known.
Saul told his son Jonathan and all the attendants to kill David. But Jonathan had taken a great liking to David and warned him, "My father Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning; go into hiding and stay there. I will go out and stand with my father in the field where you are. I'll speak to him about you and will tell you what I find out."
Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, "Let not the king do wrong to his servant David; he has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly. He took his life in his hands when he killed the Philistine. Yahweh won a great victory for all Israel, and you saw it and were glad. Why then would you do wrong to an innocent man like David by killing him for no reason?"
Saul listened to Jonathan and swore an oath: "As surely as Yahweh lives, David will not be killed." So Jonathan called David and told him the whole conversation. He brought him to Saul, and David was with Saul as before.
Once more war broke out, and David went out and fought the Philistines. He struck them with such force that they fled before him. But the evil spirit from Yahweh came on Saul as he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand. While David was playing the lyre, Saul tried to pin him to the wall with his spear, but David eluded him as Saul drove the spear into the wall. That night David made good his escape.
Saul sent men to David's house to watch it and to kill him in the morning. But Michal, David's wife, warned him, "If you don't run for your life tonight, tomorrow you'll be killed." So Michal let David down through a window, and he fled and escaped.
Then Michal took an idol and laid it on the bed, covering it with a garment and putting some goats' hair at the head. When Saul sent the men to capture David, Michal said, "He is ill."
Then Saul sent the men back to see David and told them, "Bring him up to me in his bed so that I may kill him." But when the men entered, there was the idol in the bed, and at the head was some goats' hair.
Saul said to Michal, "Why did you deceive me like this and send my enemy away so that he escaped?" Michal told him, "He said to me, 'Let me get away. Why should I kill you?' "
When David had fled and made his escape, he went to Samuel at Ramah and told him all that Saul had done to him. Then he and Samuel went to Naioth and stayed there.
Word came to Saul: "David is in Naioth at Ramah"; so he sent men to capture him. But when they saw a group of prophets prophesying, with Samuel standing there as their leader, the spirit of Elohim came on Saul's men, and they also prophesied.
Saul was told about it, and he sent more men, and they prophesied too. Saul sent men a third time, and they also prophesied. Finally, he himself left for Ramah and went to the great well at Seku. And he asked, "Where are Samuel and David?" "Over in Naioth at Ramah," they said.
So Saul went to Naioth at Ramah. But the spirit of Elohim came even on him, and he walked along prophesying until he came to Naioth. He stripped off his garments, and he too prophesied in Samuel's presence. He lay naked all that day and all that night. This is one reason why people would say, "Is Saul also among the prophets?"
Then David fled from Naioth at Ramah and went to Jonathan and asked, "What have I done? What is my crime? How have I wronged your father, that he is trying to kill me?"
"Never!" Jonathan replied. "You are not going to die! Look, my father doesn't do anything, great or small, without letting me know. Why would he hide this from me? It isn't so!"
But David took an oath again, and said, "Your father knows very well that I have found favor in your eyes, and he has said to himself, 'Jonathan must not know this or he will be grieved.' Yet as surely as Yahweh lives and as you live, there is only a step between me and death."
Jonathan said to David, "Whatever you want me to do, I'll do for you."
So David said, "Look, tomorrow is the New Moon feast, and I am supposed to dine with the king. But let me go and hide in the field until the evening of the day after tomorrow. If your father misses me at all, tell him, 'David earnestly asked my permission to hurry to Bethlehem, his hometown, because an annual sacrifice is being made there for his whole clan.' If he says, 'Very well,' then your servant is safe. But if he loses his temper, you can be sure that he is determined to harm me. As for you, show kindness to your servant, for you have brought him into a covenant with you before Yahweh. If I am guilty, then kill me yourself! Why hand me over to your father?"
"Never!" Jonathan said. "If I had the least inkling that my father was determined to harm you, wouldn't I tell you?"
David asked, "Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?"
"Come," Jonathan said, "let's go out into the field." So they went there together.
Then Jonathan said to David, "I swear by Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, that I will surely sound out my father by this time the day after tomorrow! If he is favorably disposed toward you, will I not send you word and let you know? But if my father intends to harm you, may Yahweh deal with Jonathan, be it ever so severely, if I do not let you know and send you away in peace. May Yahweh be with you as he has been with my father. But show me unfailing kindness like Yahweh's kindness as long as I live, so that I may not be killed, and do not ever cut off your kindness from my family, not even when Yahweh has cut off every one of David's enemies from the face of the earth."
Anyone who ever thought there was any kindness in Yahweh was seriously delusional.
So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May Yahweh call David's enemies to account." And Jonathan had David reaffirm his oath out of love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself.
Then Jonathan said to David, "Tomorrow is the New Moon feast. You will be missed, because your seat will be empty. The day after tomorrow, toward evening, go to the place where you hid when this trouble began, and wait by the stone Ezel. I will shoot three arrows to the side of it, as though I were shooting at a target. Then I will send a boy and say, 'Go, find the arrows.' If I say to him, 'Look, the arrows are on this side of you; bring them here,' then come, because, as surely as Yahweh lives, you are safe; there is no danger. But if I say to the boy, 'Look, the arrows are beyond you,' then you must go, because Yahweh has sent you away. And about the matter you and I discussed, remember, Yahweh is witness between you and me forever."
So David hid in the field, and when the New Moon feast came, the king sat down to eat. He sat in his customary place by the wall, opposite Jonathan, and Abner sat next to Saul, but David's place was empty.
Saul said nothing that day, for he thought, "Something must have happened to David to make him ceremonially unclean; surely he is unclean."
But the next day, the second day of the month, David's place was empty again. Then Saul said to his son Jonathan, "Why hasn't the son of Jesse come to the meal, either yesterday or today?"
Jonathan answered, "David earnestly asked me for permission to go to Bethlehem. He said, 'Let me go, because our family is observing a sacrifice in the town and my brother has ordered me to be there. If I have found favor in your eyes, let me get away to see my brothers.' That is why he has not come to the king's table."
Saul's anger flared up at Jonathan and he said to him, "You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don't I know that you have sided with the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of the mother who bore you? As long as the son of Jesse lives on this earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established. Now send someone to bring him to me, for he must die!"
"Why should he be put to death? What has he done?" Jonathan asked his father. But Saul hurled his spear at him to kill him. Then Jonathan knew that his father intended to kill David.
Jonathan got up from the table in fierce anger; on that second day of the feast he did not eat, because he was grieved at his father's shameful treatment of David.
In the morning Jonathan went out to the field for his meeting with David. He had a small boy with him, and he said to the boy, "Run and find the arrows I shoot." As the boy ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. When the boy came to the place where Jonathan's arrow had fallen, Jonathan called out after him, "Isn't the arrow beyond you?" Then he shouted, "Hurry! Go quickly! Don't stop!" The boy picked up the arrow and returned to his master. Of course, the boy knew nothing about the meaning of all this; only Jonathan and David knew.
Then Jonathan gave his weapons to the boy and said, "Go, carry them back to town."
After the boy had gone, David got up from the south side of the stone and bowed down before Jonathan three times, with his face to the ground. Then they kissed each other and wept together, but David wept the most.
Jonathan said to David, "Go in peace, for we have sworn friendship with each other in the name of Yahweh, saying, 'Yahweh is witness between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants forever.' " Then David left, and Jonathan went back to the city.
David went to Nob, to Ahimelek the priest. Ahimelek was afraid of meeting David, and asked, "Why are you alone? Why is no one with you?"
David answered Ahimelek the priest, "The king sent me on a mission and said to me, 'No one is to know anything about the mission I am sending you on.' As for my men, I have told them to meet me at a certain place. Now then, what do you have on hand? Give me five loaves of bread, or whatever you can find."
But the priest answered David, "I don't have any ordinary bread on hand; however, there is some consecrated bread here, provided the men have kept themselves from women."
David replied, "Indeed women have been kept from us, as usual whenever I set out. The men's utensils are set apart, even on missions that are not holy. How much more so today!" So the priest gave him the consecrated bread, since there was no bread there except the showbread that was taken from before Yahweh, and replaced by hot bread on the day it was taken away.
Now one of Saul's servants was there that day, detained before Yahweh; he was Doeg the Edomite, Saul's chief shepherd.
David asked Ahimelek, "Don't you have a spear or a sword here? I haven't brought my sword or any other weapon, because the king's mission was urgent."
The priest replied, "The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here; it is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want it, take it; there is no sword here but that one." David said, "There is none like it; give it to me."
That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish, king of Gath. But the servants of Achish said to him, "Isn't this David, the king of the land? Isn't he the one they sing about in their dances: 'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands'?"
David took these words to heart and was very much afraid of Achish, king of Gath. So he feigned himself as insane in their presence, scratching on the doors of the gate and letting his saliva run down his beard.
Achish said to his servants, "Look at the man! He is insane! Why bring him to me? Am I so short of madmen that you have to bring this fellow here to carry on like this in front of me? Must this man come into my house?"
David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father's household heard about it, they went down to him there. All those who were in distress or in debt, or discontented, gathered around him, and he became chief over them. About 400 men were with him.
From there David went to Mizpeh in Moab and said to the king of Moab, "Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what Elohim will do for me?" So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold.
But the prophet Gad said to David, "Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah." So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.
Now Saul heard that David and his men had been discovered. And Saul remained in Gibeah, sitting spear in hand, under the tamarisk tree on the hill, with all his servants standing at his side. He said to them, "Listen, men of Benjamin! Will the son of Jesse give all of you fields and vineyards? Will he make all of you leaders of thousands and leaders of hundreds? Is that why you have all conspired against me? No one tells me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is concerned about me or tells me that my son has incited my servant to lie in wait for me, as he does today."
But Doeg the Edomite, who was placed over Saul's servants, said, "I saw the son of Jesse come to Ahimelek, son of Ahitub, at Nob. Ahimelek inquired of Yahweh for him; he also gave him provisions, and the sword of Goliath the Philistine."
Then the king sent for the priest Ahimelek, son of Ahitub, and all the men of his family, who were the priests at Nob, and they all came to the king. Saul said, "Listen now, son of Ahitub." "Yes, my lord," he answered.
Saul said to him, "Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse, giving him bread and a sword and making enquiry of Elohim for him, so that he should rebel against me and lie in wait for me, as he does today?"
Ahimelek answered the king, "Who of all your servants is as loyal as David, the king's son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard and highly respected in your household? Was that day the first time I inquired of Elohim for him? Of course not! Let not the king accuse your servant or any of his father's family, for your servant knows nothing at all about this whole affair."
But the king said, "You will surely die, Ahimelek, you and your whole family." Then the king ordered the guards at his side: "Turn and kill the priests of Yahweh, because they too have sided with David. They knew he was fleeing, yet they did not tell me." But the king's officials were unwilling to raise a hand to strike the priests of Yahweh.
The king then ordered Doeg, "You turn and strike down the priests." So Doeg the Edomite turned and struck them down. That day he killed 85 men who wore the linen ephod. And Nob, the city of the priests, he struck with the edge of the sword, with its men and women, its children and infants, and its cattle, donkeys and sheep. Doeg certainly was in the frame, as contender for most evil man among Israel.
But one son of Ahimelek, son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped and fled to join David. He told David that Saul had killed the priests of Yahweh.
Then David said to Abiathar, "That day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, I knew he would be sure to tell Saul. I am responsible for the death of your whole family. Stay with me; don't be afraid. The man who wants to kill you is trying to kill me too. You will be safe with me."
When David was told, "Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are looting the threshing floors," he inquired of Yahweh, saying, "Shall I go and attack these Philistines?" Yahweh answered him, "Go, attack the Philistines and save Keilah."
But David's men said to him, "Here in Judah we are afraid. How much more, then, if we go to Keilah against the Philistine forces!"
Once again David inquired of Yahweh, and Yahweh answered him, "Go down to Keilah, for I am going to give the Philistines into your hand." So David and his men went to Keilah, fought the Philistines and carried off their livestock. He struck the Philistines in a terrible slaughter, aided by the directed energy beams on Yahweh's drones, and saved the people of Keilah.
Now Abiathar, son of Ahimelek, had brought the ephod down with him when he fled to David at Keilah.
Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah, and he said, "Elohim has delivered him into my hands, for David has imprisoned himself by entering a town with gates and bars." And Saul called up all his forces for battle, to go down to Keilah to besiege David and his men.
When David learned that Saul was plotting against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, "Bring the ephod."
And David said, "Oh Yahweh, Elohim of Israel, your servant has heard definitely that Saul plans to come to Keilah, to destroy the town on account of me. Will the rulers of Keilah surrender me to him? Will Saul come down, as your servant has heard? Oh Yahweh, Elohim of Israel, tell your servant." And Yahweh said, "He will come down."
Again David asked, "Will the citizens of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul?" And Yahweh said, "They will deliver you."
So David and his men, about 600 in number, left Keilah and kept moving from place to place. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he halted the expedition.
David stayed in the strongholds in the wilderness, and in the hill country of the Wilderness of Ziph. Day after day Saul searched for him, but Elohim did not deliver David into his hands.
While David was at Horesh, the forest in the Wilderness of Ziph, he learned that Saul had come out to take his life. And Saul's son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in Elohim. "Don't be afraid," he said. "My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this." The two of them made a covenant before Yahweh. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained in the forest.
The Ziphites went up to Saul at Gibeah and said, "Is not David hiding among us in the strongholds at Horesh, on the hill of Hakilah, south of Jeshimon? Now, oh king, come down whenever it pleases you to do so, and we will be responsible for giving him into your hands."
Saul replied, "Yahweh bless you for your concern for me. Go and get more information. Find out where David's hideout is, and who has seen him there. They tell me he is very crafty. Find out about all the hiding places he uses and come back to me with definite information. Then I will go with you; if he is in the area, I will track him down among all the clans of Judah."
So they set out and went to Ziph ahead of Saul. Now David and his men were in the Wilderness of Maon, in the plain on the south of Jeshimon. Saul and his men began the search, and when David was told about it, he came down from the rock and stayed in the Wilderness of Maon. When Saul heard this, he went into the Wilderness of Maon in pursuit of David. Saul was going along one side of the mountain, and David and his men were on the other side, hurrying to get away from Saul. As Saul and his forces were closing in on David and his men to capture them, a messenger came to Saul, saying, "Come quickly! The Philistines are raiding the land."
Then Saul broke off his pursuit of David and went to meet the Philistines. That is why they called this place the Rock of Escape. And David went up from there and lived in the strongholds of En Gedi.
After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, "David is in the Wilderness of En Gedi." So Saul took 3,000 chosen men from all Israel, and set out to look for David and his men near the rocks of the wild goats. He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to cover his feet. David and his men were far back in the cave.
The men of David said, "This is the day Yahweh spoke of when he said to you, 'I will give your enemy into your hands, for you to deal with as you wish.' " Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul's robe.
Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, "Yahweh forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, Yahweh's anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of Yahweh." With these words David sharply rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.
Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, "My lord the king!" When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground.
He said to Saul, "Why do you listen when men say, 'David is bent on harming you'? This day you have seen with your own eyes how Yahweh delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, 'I will not lay my hand on my lord, because he is Yahweh's anointed.' See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand! I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you. See, there is nothing in my hand to indicate that I am guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion. I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life.
"May Yahweh judge between you and me. And may Yahweh avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you. As the old saying goes, 'From evildoers come evil deeds,' so my hand will not touch you. Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Who are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea? May Yahweh be our judge and decide between us. May he consider my cause and uphold it; may he vindicate me by delivering me from your hand."
When David finished saying this, Saul asked, "Is that your voice, David my son?" And he wept aloud. "You are more righteous than I," he said. "You have repaid me with good, whereas I have repaid you with evil. You have just now told me about the good you did to me; Yahweh delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me. When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May Yahweh reward you well for the way you treated me today. Now I know indeed that you will surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands. Now swear to me by Yahweh that you will not kill off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father's family."
So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.
And Samuel died, and all Israel assembled and mourned for him; and they buried him by his home in Ramah. Then David moved down into the Wilderness of Paran.
A certain man in Maon, whose business was in Carmel, was very wealthy. He had a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel. His name was Nabal and his wife's name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband was surly and mean in his dealings; he was a Calebite.
While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep. So he sent ten young men and said to them, "Go up to Nabal at Carmel and greet him in my name. Say to him: 'Long life to you! Good health to you and your household! And good health to all that is yours! Now I hear that it is sheep-shearing time. When your shepherds were with us, we did not mistreat them, and the whole time they were at Carmel nothing of theirs was missing. Ask your own servants and they will tell you. Therefore be favorable toward my men, since we come at a festive time. Please give your servants and your son David whatever you can find for them.' "
When David's men arrived, they gave Nabal this message in David's name. Then they waited. Nabal answered David's servants, "Who is this David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants are breaking away from their masters these days. Why should I take my bread and water, and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give it to men coming from who knows where?"
David's men turned around and went back. When they arrived, they reported every word. David said to his men, "Each of you strap on your sword!" So they did, and David strapped his on as well. About four hundred men went up with David, while two hundred stayed with the supplies.
One of the servants told Abigail, Nabal's wife, "David sent messengers from the wilderness to give our master his greetings, but he hurled insults at them. Yet these men were very good to us. They did not mistreat us, and the whole time we were out in the fields near them nothing was missing. Night and day they were a wall around us the whole time we were herding our sheep near them. Now think it over and see what you can do, because disaster is hanging over our master and his whole household. He is such a wicked man that no one can talk to him."
Abigail acted quickly. She took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five dressed sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred cakes of raisins and two hundred cakes of pressed figs, and loaded them on donkeys. Then she told her servants, "Go on ahead; I'll follow you." But she did not tell her husband Nabal. As she came riding her donkey into a mountain ravine, there were David and his men descending toward her, and she met them.
David had just said, "It's been useless; all my watching over this fellow's property in the wilderness so that nothing of his was missing. He has paid me back evil for good. May Elohim deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him!"
When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed down before David with her face to the ground. She fell at his feet and said: "Pardon your handmaid, my lord, and let me speak to you; hear what your handmaid has to say. Please pay no attention, my lord, to that wicked man Nabal. He is just like his name; his name means Fool, and folly goes with him. And as for me, your handmaid, I did not see the men my lord sent. And now, my lord, as surely as Yahweh your Elohim lives and as you live, since Yahweh has kept you from bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hands, may your enemies and all who are intent on harming my lord be like Nabal. And let this gift, which your handmaid has brought to my lord, be given to the men who follow you."
She continued, "Please forgive your handmaid's presumption. Yahweh your Elohim will certainly make a lasting dynasty for my lord, because you fight Yahweh's battles, and no wrongdoing will be found in you as long as you live. Even though someone is pursuing you to take your life, the life of my lord will be bound securely in the bundle of the living by Yahweh your Elohim, but the lives of your enemies he will hurl away as from the pocket of a sling. When Yahweh has fulfilled for my lord every good thing he promised concerning you, and has appointed you ruler over Israel, my lord will not have on his conscience the staggering burden of needless bloodshed or of having avenged himself. But when Yahweh your Elohim has brought my lord success, remember your handmaid."
David said to Abigail, "Praise be to Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, who has sent you today to meet me. May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands. Otherwise, as surely as Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel, lives, who has kept me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, not one male belonging to Nabal would have been left alive by daybreak."
Then David accepted from her hand what she had brought him and said, "Go home in peace. I have heard your words and granted your request."
When Abigail went to Nabal, he was in the house holding a banquet like that of a king. He was in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing at all until daybreak. Then in the morning, when Nabal was sober, his wife told him all these things, and his heart failed him and he became like a stone.
About ten days later, Yahweh struck Nabal and he died. This was done in the same manner of Yahweh's killing of Aaron, in which a drone fired a tightly focused 30GHz microwave beam for twenty seconds, aiming at the right vagus nerve.
The problem Yahweh had with Saul, was that although he was evil, he wasn't sufficiently competent. David, on the other hand, was the other way round. He had proved a very capable leader, and courageous, but his ethics were not quite what Yahweh was looking for. Yahweh's immediate plan was to strengthen David, and in the longer term he hoped to corrupt him.
When David heard that Nabal was dead, he said, "Praise be to Yahweh, who has upheld my cause against Nabal for treating me with contempt. He has kept his servant from doing wrong and has brought Nabal's wrongdoing down on his own head." David knew little about Yahweh, and did not understand that Yahweh would have loved to have seen David slaughter Nabal and all his men, However, Yahweh had been unable to predict the positive consequences of the intervention by Abigail.
Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife. His servants went to Carmel and said to Abigail, "David has sent us to you to take you to become his wife."
She bowed down with her face to the ground and said, "I am your handmaid, a servant ready to serve you and wash the feet of my lord's servants."
Abigail quickly got on a donkey and, attended by her five handmaids, went with David's messengers and became his wife.
David had also married Ahinoam of Jezreel (not to be confused with her namesake Saul's wife and Michal's mother), and they both were his wives. But Saul had given his daughter Michal, David's wife, to Paltiel, son of Laish, who was from Gallim.
In some garbled versions of Yahweh's texts, a slight variation of the account of Saul pursuing David with 3,000 men in the wilderness near Jeshimon, and David sparing Saul's life, was duplicated, as if two very similar events occurred at different times, both before and after David marrying Abigail. In fact, history didn't repeat itself. The event only happened once, prior to the Nabal incident and David's marriage to Abigail.
And David and the six hundred men with him moved on to Gath, and settled there with Achish, son of Maok, king of Gath. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal.
Then David said to Achish, "If I have found favor in your eyes, let a place be assigned to me in one of the country towns, that I may live there. For why should your servant live in the royal city with you?" So on that day Achish gave him Ziklag, and it went on to belong to the kings of Judah.
David lived in Philistine territory for a year and four months.
Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites and the Amalekites. From ancient times these peoples had lived in the land extending to Shur and Egypt. It would turn out over the millennia that Yahweists would have a longstanding tradition of ethnic cleansing; getting rid of people who had lived in a land since ancient times.
Whenever David attacked an area, he did not leave a man or woman alive, but took sheep and cattle, donkeys and camels, and clothes. Then he returned to Achish. When Achish asked, "Where did you go raiding today?" David would say, "Against the Negev of Judah" or "Against the Negev of Jerahmeel" or "Against the Negev of the Kenites."
He did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he thought, "They might inform on us and say, 'This is what David did.' "
About 2,977 years hence, Yahweist fanatics would carry out a sustained, deliberate attack on a surveillance ship called the USS Liberty, hoping to kill everyone on board, in case they had gathered intelligence on how Yahweists had been committing an attrocious war crime, by forcing Egyptian prisoners-of-war to dig their own graves, before mercilessly shooting them.
And such was David's practice as long as he lived in Philistine territory. Achish trusted David and said to himself, "He has become so obnoxious to his people, the Israelites, that he will be my servant for life." However, Yahweh said to himself, "David is improving; he is developing into a warmongering, genocidal maniac. And his people will become so obnoxious to humanity that they will ruin the progress of civilization."
In those days the Philistines gathered their forces to fight against Israel. Achish said to David, "You must understand that you and your men will accompany me in the army."
And David said, "Then you will see for yourself what your servant can do."
Achish replied, "Very well, I will make you my bodyguard for life."
Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in his own town of Ramah. Saul had expelled the mediums and sorcerers from the land. The Philistines assembled and came and pitched camp at Shunem, while Saul gathered all Israel and set up camp at Gilboa.
When Saul saw the Philistine army, he was afraid; terror filled his heart. He inquired of Yahweh, but Yahweh did not answer him, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets.
Saul then said to his servants, "Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her." "There is one in Endor," they said.
So Saul disguised himself, putting on other clothes, and at night he and two men went to the woman. "Consult a spirit for me," he said, "and bring up for me the one I name."
But the woman said to him, "Surely you know what Saul has done. He has cut off the mediums and sorcerers from the land. Why have you set a trap for my life to bring about my death?"
Saul swore to her by Yahweh, "As surely as Yahweh lives, you will not be punished for this."
Then the woman asked, "Whom shall I bring up for you?" "Bring up Samuel," he said.
When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out at the top of her voice and said to Saul, "Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!"
The king said to her, "Don't be afraid. What do you see?" The woman said, "I see a ghostly figure coming up out of the earth."
"What does he look like?" he asked. "An old man wearing a robe is coming up," she said. Then Saul knew it was Samuel, and he bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground.
Samuel said to Saul, "Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?"
"I am in great distress," Saul said. "The Philistines are fighting against me, and Elohim has departed from me. He no longer answers me, either by prophets or by dreams. So I have called on you to tell me what to do."
Samuel said, "Why do you consult me, now that Yahweh has departed from you and become your enemy? Yahweh has done what he predicted through me. Yahweh has torn the kingdom out of your hands and given it to one of your neighbors, to David. Because you did not obey Yahweh or carry out his fierce wrath against the Amalekites, Yahweh has done this to you today. Yahweh will deliver both Israel and you into the hands of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. Yahweh will also give the army of Israel into the hands of the Philistines."
Immediately Saul fell full length on the ground, filled with fear because of Samuel's words. His strength was gone, for he had eaten nothing all that day and all that night.
When the woman came to Saul and saw that he was greatly troubled, she said, "Look, your servant has obeyed you. I took my life in my hands and did what you told me to do. Now please listen to your handmaid and let me give you some food, so that you may eat and have the strength to go on your way."
He refused and said, "I will not eat." But his men joined the woman in urging him, and he listened to them. He got up from the ground and sat on the couch. The woman had a fattened calf at the house, which she butchered at once. She took some flour, kneaded it and baked bread without yeast. Then she set it before Saul and his men, and they ate. That same night they got up and left.
The sorcery had gone completely as normal, up to the point where Saul said that Samuel was the 'spirit' that he wanted to contact. Yahweh had a cloaked drone overhead, and the woman's voice was being sampled. Then the woman was put into a brief, harmless trance, from an ultrasound beam that targeted the thalamus, modulating neural activity to induce a hypnotic state. Meanwhile, a parametric speaker on the same drone projected the words from "Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!" up until the end of 'Samuel's' talk, towards the ears of Saul but making it seem to emanate from the medium's mouth. And a holographic projector overlaid moving lips onto the medium's face to match the spoken words.
After the 'communication with Samuel' had concluded, the ultrasound beam was turned off, and the woman came to, as Saul was lying afraid on the ground. She could not recall what 'Samuel' had said, but was anxious to please the client.
The Philistines gathered all their forces at Aphek, and Israel camped by the spring in Jezreel. As the Philistine rulers marched with their units of hundreds and thousands, David and his men were marching at the rear with Achish.
The rulers of the Philistines asked, "What about these Hebrews?" Achish replied, "Is this not David, who was an officer of Saul, king of Israel? He has already been with me for over a year, and from the day he left Saul until now, I have found no fault in him."
But the Philistine commanders were angry with Achish and said, "Send the man back, that he may return to the place you assigned him. He must not go with us into battle, or he might turn against us during the fighting. How better could he regain his master's favor than by taking the heads of our own men? Isn't this the David they sang about in their dances: 'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands'?"
So Achish called David and said to him, "As surely as Yahweh lives, you have been reliable, and I would be pleased to have you serve with me in the army. From the day you came to me until today, I have found no fault in you, but the rulers don't approve of you. Now turn back and go in peace; do nothing to displease the Philistine rulers."
"But what have I done?" asked David. "What have you found against your servant from the day I came to you until now? Why can't I go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?"
Achish answered, "I know that you have been as pleasing in my eyes as a messenger of Elohim; nevertheless, the Philistine rulers have said, 'He must not go up with us into battle.' Now get up early, along with your master's servants who have come with you, and leave in the morning as soon as it is light."
So David and his men got up early in the morning to go back to the land of the Philistines, and the Philistines went up to Jezreel.
David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. And they found that the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, and had taken captive the women and everyone else in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, for the Amalekites were not Yahweists, but carried them off as they went on their way.
In fact, it would come to pass that Yahweh's death cultists would reserve a special pathological hatred of Amalek, for they perceived that Amalek were much more righteous than they.
When David and his men reached Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire, and their wives, sons and daughters taken captive. So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep.
David's two wives had been captured; Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in Yahweh his Elohim.
Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelek, "Bring me the ephod." Abiathar brought it to him, and David inquired of Yahweh, "Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?"
"Pursue them," he answered. "For you will surely overtake them and succeed in the rescue."
David and the six hundred men with him came to the Besor Valley, where some stayed behind. Two hundred of them were too exhausted to cross the valley, but David and the other four hundred continued the pursuit.
They found an Egyptian in a field and brought him to David. They gave him water to drink and food to eat; part of a cake of pressed figs and two cakes of raisins. He ate and was revived, for he had not eaten any food nor drunk any water for three days and three nights.
David asked him, "Who do you belong to? Where do you come from?" He said, "I am an Egyptian, the servant of an Amalekite. My master abandoned me when I became ill three days ago. We raided the Negev, the southern region of the Kerethites, some territory belonging to Judah and the Negev of Caleb. And we burned Ziklag."
David asked him, "Can you lead me down to this raiding party?" He answered, "Swear to me before Elohim that you will not kill me or hand me over to my master, and I will take you down to them."
He led David down, and there they were, scattered over the countryside, eating, drinking and reveling because of the great amount of plunder they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from Judah. David fought them from dusk until the evening of the next day, and none of them got away, except four hundred young men who rode off on camels and fled.
And David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back. He took all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock, saying, "This is David's plunder."
Of course, Yahweh was only too pleased to target the Amalekites with directed energy beams from some of his drones, making it easy for David and his men to strike them.
Then David came to the two hundred men who had been too exhausted to follow him and who were left behind at the Besor Valley. They came out to meet David and the men with him. As David and his men approached, he asked them how they were.
Then the evil men and troublemakers among David's followers said, "Because they did not go out with us, we will not share with them the plunder we recovered. However, each man may take his wife and children and go."
David replied, "No, my brothers, you must not do that with what Yahweh has given us. He has protected us and delivered into our hands the raiding party that came against us. Who will listen to what you say? The share of the man who stayed with the supplies is to be the same as that of him who went down to the battle. All will share alike."
David made this a statute and ordinance for Israel from that day.
When David reached Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah, who were his friends, saying, "Here is a gift for you from the plunder of Yahweh's enemies."
David sent it to those who were in Bethel, Ramoth Negev and Jattir; to those in Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa and Rakal; to those in the towns of the Jerahmeelites and the Kenites; to those in Hormah, Bor Ashan, Athak and Hebron; and to those in all the other places where he and his men had roamed.
Now the Philistines fought against Israel; the Israelites fled before them, and many fell dead on Mount Gilboa. The Philistines were in hot pursuit of Saul and his sons, and they killed his sons Jonathan, Abinadab and Malki-Shua. The fighting grew fierce around Saul, and when the archers overtook him, they wounded him critically. Yahweh was providing no drone support - or air support - to Saul's forces.
Saul said to his armor-bearer, "Draw your sword and run me through, or these uncircumcised men will come and run me through and abuse me." But his armor-bearer was terrified and would not do it; so Saul took his own sword and fell on it.
When the armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died with him. So Saul and his three sons and his armor-bearer and all his men died together that same day.
When the Israelites along the valley and those across the Jordan saw that the Israelite army had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their towns and fled. And the Philistines came and liberated the land.
The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. They cut off his head and stripped off his armor, and they sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the news in the temple of their idols and among their people. They put his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths and fastened his body to the wall of Beth Shan.
When the people of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, all their valiant men marched through the night to Beth Shan. They took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan and went to Jabesh, where they burned them. Then they took their bones and buried them under a tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they fasted for seven days.