Samuel & King Saul

And Samuel bringeth near the whole tribes of Israel, and the tribe of Benjamin is captured,

and he bringeth near the tribe of Benjamin by its families, and the family of Matri is captured, and Saul son of Kish is captured, and they seek him, and he hath not been found.

And they ask again at Jehovah, `Hath the man yet come hither?' and Jehovah saith, `Lo, he hath been hidden near the vessels.'

And they run and bring him thence, and he stationed himself in the midst of the people, and he is higher than any of the people from his shoulder and upward.

And Samuel saith unto all the people, `Have ye seen him on whom Jehovah hath fixed, for there is none like him among all the people?' And all the people shout, and say, `Let the king live!'

And Samuel speaketh unto the people the right of the kingdom, and writeth in a book, and placeth before Jehovah; and Samuel sendeth all the people away, each to his house.

And also Saul hath gone to his house, to Gibeah, and the force go with him whose heart God hath touched;

and the sons of worthlessness have said, `What! this one doth save us!' and they despise him, and have not brought to him a present; and he is as one deaf.

And Nahash the Ammonite cometh up, and encampeth against Jabesh-Gilead, and all the men of Jabesh say unto Nahash, `Make with us a covenant, and we serve thee.'

And Nahash the Ammonite saith unto them, `For this I covenant with you, by picking out to you every right eye--and I have put it a reproach on all Israel.'

And the elders of Jabesh say to him, `Let us alone seven days, and we send messengers into all the border of Israel: and if there is none saving us--then we have come out unto thee.'

And the messengers come to Gibeah of Saul, and speak the words in the ears of the people, and all the people lift up their voice and weep;

and lo, Saul hath come after the herd out of the field, and Saul saith, `What--to the people, that they weep?' and they recount to him the words of the men of Jabesh.

And the Spirit of God doth prosper over Saul, in his hearing these words, and his anger burneth greatly,

and he taketh a couple of oxen, and cutteth them in pieces, and sendeth through all the border of Israel, by the hand of the messengers, saying, `He who is not coming out after Saul and after Samuel--thus it is done to his oxen;' and the fear of Jehovah falleth on the people, and they come out as one man.

And he inspecteth them in Bezek, and the sons of Israel are three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.

And they say to the messengers who are coming, `Thus do ye say to the men of Jabesh-Gilead: To-morrow ye have safety--by the heat of the sun;' and the messengers come and declare to the men of Jabesh, and they rejoice;

and the men of Jabesh say to the Ammonites , `To-morrow we come out unto you, and ye have done to us according to all that is good in your eyes.'

And it cometh to pass, on the morrow, that Saul putteth the people in three detachments, and they come into the midst of the camp in the morning-watch, and smite Ammon till the heat of the day; and it cometh to pass that those left are scattered, and there have not been left of them two together.

And the people say unto Samuel, `Who is he that saith, Saul doth reign over us! give ye up the men, and we put them to death.'

And Saul saith, `There is no man put to death on this day, for to-day hath Jehovah wrought salvation in Israel.'

And Samuel saith unto the people, `Come and we go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there;'

and all the people go to Gilgal, and cause Saul to reign there before Jehovah in Gilgal, and sacrifice there sacrifices of peace-offerings before Jehovah, and there Saul rejoiceth--and all the men of Israel--very greatly.

And Samuel saith unto all Israel, `Lo, I have hearkened to your voice, to all that ye said to me, and I cause to reign over you a king,

and now, lo, the king is walking habitually before you, and I have become aged and gray-headed, and my sons, lo, they are with you, and I have walked habitually before you from my youth till this day.