Saul

47Saul now ruled as king over Israel. He fought his enemies on every side. He fought Moab, Ammon, Edom, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. Everywhere he went, he beat them.

So Saul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines: and whithersoever he turned himself, he vexed them.

NoteMoab, Ammon, Edom, and Zobah were lands close to Israel. The people there often fought against Israel.

48He gathered an army and beat the Amalekites. He saved Israel from the people who had been robbing them.

And he gathered an host, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that spoiled them.

NoteThe Amalekites were a wandering people. They attacked Israel's towns and stole food and animals.

49Saul's sons were Jonathan, Ishui, and Melchishua. He had two daughters. The older one was Merab, and the younger one was Michal.

Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishui, and Melchishua: and the names of his two daughters were these; the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name of the younger Michal:

50Saul's wife was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz. The leader of his army was Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.

And the name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz: and the name of the captain of his host was Abner, the son of Ner, Saul’s uncle.

51Saul's father was Kish. Abner's father was Ner, and Ner's father was Abiel.

And Kish was the father of Saul; and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

52There was hard fighting against the Philistines all through Saul's life. Whenever Saul saw a strong or brave man, he took him into his army.

And there was sore war against the Philistines all the days of Saul: and when Saul saw any strong man, or any valiant man, he took him unto him.

NoteSaul had no army that stayed together all the time. When he saw a strong man, he asked him to come and fight.

1Samuel said to Saul, "The LORD sent me to pour oil on your head. That made you king over Israel, God's people. So now listen to what the LORD tells you."

Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD.

NotePouring oil on someone's head was a special sign. It showed that God had picked that person for a job. New kings were chosen this way. Samuel was a prophet, a man who told people what God said.

2"The LORD, who rules over armies, says this: I remember what the Amalekites did. They hid and attacked Israel on the road up from Egypt."

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.

NoteThe Amalekites were a people who lived in the dry land south of Israel. Long ago the people of Israel were slaves in Egypt. When they walked away to a new land, the Amalekites attacked them. The old words call God "the LORD of hosts." Hosts meant armies.

3"Now go and attack the Amalekites. Destroy everything they have. Do not let anyone go. Put to death men and women, children and babies. Kill their cattle and sheep, their camels and donkeys."

Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.

NoteAfter a battle, soldiers usually kept the animals and treasure they found. This time Saul was told to keep nothing at all.

4So Saul called his soldiers together. He counted them at a place called Telaim. There were 200,000 men on foot, and 10,000 more men from Judah.

And Saul gathered the people together, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah.

NoteMen on foot were soldiers who walked and fought. They did not ride horses or war carts. Judah was one of the big family groups of Israel.

5Saul came to a city of the Amalekites. He waited quietly in the valley, ready to attack.

And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valley.

6Saul sent word to the Kenites, another group of people. He said, "Move away from the Amalekites, or I will destroy you with them. You were kind to Israel when they came out of Egypt." So the Kenites moved away.

And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.

NoteThe Kenites were a small group of people who moved from place to place. They had been friends to Israel for a long time.

7Then Saul attacked the Amalekites. He fought them from Havilah all the way to Shur, near Egypt.

And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt.

NoteHavilah and Shur were places very far apart. Naming both means Saul fought across a huge stretch of land.

8He caught Agag, the king of the Amalekites, alive. He put all the other people to death with the sword.

And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.

NoteKings who lost a battle were usually killed. Keeping a king alive was a way to show off a big win.

9But Saul and his men let Agag live. They also kept the best sheep and cattle, the fat calves and the lambs. They kept everything that was good. They only destroyed what was weak and worth nothing.

But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.

NoteThe fattest animals were worth the most. So Saul's men kept the best prize for themselves.

10Then the LORD spoke to Samuel. He said:

Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying,

11"I am sorry that I made Saul king. He has turned away from me. He has not done what I told him to do." This upset Samuel. He cried out to the LORD all night long.

It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.

NoteThe old words say, "It repenteth me." That means God was sad and sorry about what had happened.

12Samuel got up early to go and meet Saul. Someone told him, "Saul went to Carmel. He set up a stone there to honor himself. Then he moved on down to Gilgal."

And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he set him up a place, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal.

NotePeople set up a big stone so others would remember something. Saul set one up so people would remember him. Gilgal was a town where Israel met to worship God.

13Samuel came to Saul. Saul said to him, "May the LORD bless you! I have done what the LORD told me to do."

And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD.

Note"Blessed be thou of the LORD" was a friendly hello. It was a little like saying good morning.

14Samuel said, "Then why do I hear sheep? Why do I hear cattle mooing?"

And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?

15Saul said, "The soldiers brought them from the Amalekites. They kept the best sheep and cattle as a gift for the LORD your God. We destroyed all the rest."

And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.

NoteA gift for God meant an animal given to him. It was killed and burned on a stone table called an altar. That kind of gift was called a sacrifice.

16Then Samuel said, "Stop. Let me tell you what the LORD said to me last night." Saul said, "Tell me."

Then Samuel said unto Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on.

17Samuel said, "You once thought you were small and not important. But God made you the leader of all the tribes of Israel. The LORD poured oil on you and made you king."

And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?

NoteThe tribes were the big family groups of Israel. There were twelve of them, all from one family long ago.

18"The LORD sent you out with a job to do. He said, 'Go and destroy the Amalekites, who do evil. Fight them until they are gone.'"

And the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed.

19"So why did you not obey the LORD? You rushed to grab the things they left behind. You did what the LORD says is wrong."

Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD?

NoteWhen soldiers won a battle, they carried things home. They took sheep, cattle, gold and clothes. The old word for all this is "spoil."

20Saul said to Samuel, "But I did obey the LORD! I went where he sent me. I brought back Agag the king. I destroyed the Amalekites."

And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

21"The soldiers took some sheep and cattle from the things we captured. They took the best ones, to give as a gift to the LORD your God at Gilgal."

But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal.

22Samuel said, "What does the LORD want more? Animals burned as gifts, or a person who obeys him? Listen: obeying is better than giving gifts. Doing what God says is better than the finest sheep."

And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

NoteA burnt offering was an animal burned on an altar as a gift to God. A ram is a father sheep. Its fat was seen as the best part, so it was burned for God.

23"Refusing to obey is as bad as using magic. Being stubborn is as bad as praying to false gods. You said no to the LORD's word. So he says you are no longer king."

For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

NoteMagic here means trying to learn secret things in a way God said no to. False gods were statues that people made and then prayed to.

24Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned. I did wrong. I broke the LORD's command and your words. I was afraid of the people, so I did what they wanted."

And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.

NoteTo sin means to do something God says is wrong.

25"Now please forgive me. Come back with me, so I can worship the LORD."

Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD.

26Samuel said to Saul, "I will not go back with you. You said no to the LORD's word. So the LORD says you are no longer king over Israel."

And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.

27Samuel turned to walk away. Saul grabbed the edge of Samuel's robe, and it tore.

And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent.

NoteA robe was a long, loose coat. Grabbing the edge of someone's robe was a way of begging them to stay.

28Samuel said to him, "Today the LORD has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you. He has given it to a man near you who is better than you."

And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.

NoteSamuel used the torn robe as a picture of what was happening. The old word here is "neighbour." It means another man of Israel, not a man living next door.

29"God is the Strength of Israel. He does not lie, and he does not change his mind. He is not a person who changes his mind."

And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repent.

Note"The Strength of Israel" is a name for God. It means he is the one who keeps Israel safe.

30Saul said, "I have sinned. But please show me respect in front of the leaders and all Israel. Come back with me, so I can worship the LORD your God."

Then he said, I have sinned: yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God.

NoteThe elders were the older men who led the people. They helped make the big choices.

31So Samuel went back with Saul, and Saul worshiped the LORD.

So Samuel turned again after Saul; and Saul worshipped the LORD.

32Then Samuel said, "Bring me Agag, the king of the Amalekites." Agag came to him calmly. He thought, "The worst is over. I will not die."

Then said Samuel, Bring ye hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came unto him delicately. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past.

NoteThe old words say Agag came "delicately." That means he walked slowly and calmly. He thought he was safe now.

33Samuel said, "Your sword took children away from their mothers. Now your own mother will lose her child." Then Samuel cut Agag to pieces at Gilgal, before the LORD.

And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.

34Then Samuel went home to Ramah. Saul went up to his own house in Gibeah.

Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul.

NoteRamah was Samuel's hometown. Gibeah was Saul's hometown. They were only a few miles apart.

35Samuel never went to see Saul again for the rest of his life. But Samuel was sad about Saul. And the LORD was sorry that he had made Saul king over Israel.

And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul: and the LORD repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.

NoteTo mourn is to be very sad about someone. It is the sad feeling people have when someone dies.

14God's Spirit left Saul. And a harmful spirit sent from God troubled him.

But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.

NoteThe old words say "an evil spirit from the LORD." It means something that made Saul feel dark, angry and afraid.

15Saul's servants said to him, "Look, a harmful spirit from God is troubling you."

And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.

16"Sir, tell us to go find a man who plays the harp well. When the harmful spirit from God comes on you, he will play. Then you will feel better."

Let our lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a cunning player on an harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.

NoteA harp here was a small wooden instrument with strings, held in the arms. People believed quiet music could calm a troubled mind.

17Saul said to his servants, "Find me a man who plays well. Bring him to me."

And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me.

18One of the servants answered, "I have seen a son of Jesse from Bethlehem. He plays well. He is brave and strong, and a fighter. He speaks wisely, and he looks fine. And God is with him."

Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the LORD is with him.

19So Saul sent messengers to Jesse. He said, "Send me your son David, who is out with the sheep."

Wherefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, which is with the sheep.

20Jesse loaded a donkey with bread. He also sent a bag of wine and a young goat. He sent them to Saul with his son David.

And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son unto Saul.

NoteWine was carried in bags sewn from animal skin, not in glass bottles. Sending food along was a polite way to answer a king.

21David came to Saul and began working for him. Saul liked him very much. David became the one who carried Saul's weapons.

And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer.

22Then Saul sent word to Jesse. He said, "Please let David stay and work for me. I am pleased with him."

And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight.

23Whenever the spirit from God came on Saul, David took his harp and played. Then Saul felt better and the harmful spirit left him.

And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

31Someone heard what David said and told Saul. So Saul sent for him.

And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul: and he sent for him.

NoteThe King James says people "rehearsed" David's words. That means they repeated them, not that they practiced a play.

32David said to Saul, "No one should lose courage because of this man. I am your servant, and I will go fight him."

And David said to Saul, Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.

NotePeople called themselves "your servant" when talking to a king. It was a polite way of saying "I."

33Saul said to David, "You cannot go and fight this Philistine. You are only a boy. He has been a soldier since he was young."

And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.

34David said to Saul, "I take care of my father's sheep. Sometimes a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock."

And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father’s sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

NoteShepherds stayed outside with their sheep all night. Wild animals came, and the shepherd had to drive them off.

35"I went after it and hit it. I pulled the lamb out of its mouth. If it turned on me, I grabbed its hair, hit it, and killed it."

And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.

NoteThe "beard" here means the thick hair around a lion's neck. We call that hair a mane.

36"I killed both the lion and the bear. This Philistine will end up like one of them. He has made fun of the armies of the living God."

Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.

37David said more: "The LORD saved me from the paw of the lion and the bear. He will save me from this Philistine too." Saul said, "Go, and may the LORD be with you."

David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee.

NoteLORD in capital letters stands for God's own name. God gave that name to the people of Israel.

38Saul dressed David in his own war clothes. He put a bronze helmet on David's head. He put armor on him too.

And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mail.

39David tied his sword on over the armor and tried to walk. He had not tried them before. He said to Saul, "I cannot walk in these. I am not used to them." So he took them off.

And David girded his sword upon his armour, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him.

NoteThe King James says David "had not proved" the armor. Proved here means tried out or tested.

40David took his shepherd's stick in his hand. He picked five smooth stones from the little stream. He put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag. With his sling in his hand, he walked toward the Philistine.

And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.

NoteA sling was a strap of leather with a pouch in the middle. A shepherd put a stone in it, spun it fast, and let one end go. The stone flew out very fast and very hard. The King James calls his bag a "scrip." That was a small food bag carried over the shoulder.

55Saul had watched David go out to fight the Philistine. He said to Abner, the leader of his army, "Abner, whose son is this boy?" Abner said, "As surely as you live, my king, I do not know."

And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.

Note"As surely as you live" was a strong way to promise. It meant "I am really telling you the truth."

56The king said, "Then find out whose son this young man is."

And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is.

NoteThe King James calls David a "stripling." That is an old word for a boy who is not grown up yet.

57David came back from killing the Philistine. He was still holding Goliath's head in his hand. Abner took him and brought him to Saul.

And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.

58Saul said to him, "Whose son are you, young man?" David answered, "I am the son of your servant Jesse, from Bethlehem."

And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.

6David had killed the Philistine giant. As the soldiers came home, women came out of every town in Israel. They came to meet King Saul. They sang and danced with happy songs. They played small drums and other instruments.

And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick.

NoteThe Philistines were a people who lived nearby. They fought against Israel again and again. When soldiers came home from a battle, women often met them with songs and dancing.

7The women sang back and forth to each other. They sang, "Saul has killed thousands, and David has killed tens of thousands."

And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.

NoteThe song was not counting exactly. It was a way of saying David won even more fights than Saul.

8Saul was very angry. The song upset him. He said, "They say David killed tens of thousands. They only say I killed thousands. The next thing they will give him is my kingdom!"

And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?

NoteA kingdom is all the land and all the people a king rules over.

9From that day on, Saul watched David closely. He did not trust him anymore.

And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.

10The next day a bad spirit from God came over Saul. He raved and shouted inside the house. David played the harp for him, the way he always did. Saul had a spear in his hand.

And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand.

NoteThe King James Bible says Saul "prophesied" here. A prophet was someone who spoke words from God. Saul was acting like one, shouting strange words in the house.

11Saul threw the spear. He thought, "I will pin David to the wall." But David got out of the way. This happened two times.

And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice.

12Saul was afraid of David. The LORD was with David, and the LORD had left Saul.

And Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him, and was departed from Saul.

NoteWhen you see LORD in big letters, it stands for God's own special name.

13So Saul sent David away from him. He put David in charge of a thousand soldiers. David led those men out to battle and back home again.

Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people.

14David did well in everything he did, because the LORD was with him.

And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the LORD was with him.

15Saul saw how well David did everything. That made Saul even more afraid of him.

Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him.

16But all the people of Israel and Judah loved David. He led them out to battle and brought them home again.

But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them.

NoteJudah was the biggest family group in Israel. Israel and Judah together mean the whole country.