Discovery Box1 Samuel 12:1--15:35
Context12:1 Samuel said to all Israel, “I have done 1 everything you requested. 2 I have given you a king. 3 12:2 Now look! This king walks before you. As for me, I am old and gray, though my sons are here with you. I have walked before you from the time of my youth till the present day. 12:3 Here I am. Bring a charge against me before the Lord and before his chosen king. 4 Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I wronged? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I taken a bribe so that I would overlook something? Tell me, 5 and I will return it to you!”
12:4 They replied, “You have not wronged us or oppressed us. You have not taken anything from the hand of anyone.” 12:5 He said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and his chosen king 6 is witness this day, that you have not found any reason to accuse me.” 7 They said, “He is witness!”
12:6 Samuel said to the people, “The Lord is the one who chose Moses and Aaron and who brought your ancestors 8 up from the land of Egypt. 12:7 Now take your positions, so I may confront you 9 before the Lord regarding all the Lord’s just actions toward you and your ancestors. 10 12:8 When Jacob entered Egypt, your ancestors cried out to the Lord. The Lord sent Moses and Aaron, and they led your ancestors out of Egypt and settled them in this place.
12:9 “But they forgot the Lord their God, so he gave 11 them into the hand of Sisera, the general in command of Hazor’s 12 army, 13 and into the hand of the Philistines and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 12:10 Then they cried out to the Lord and admitted, 14 ‘We have sinned, for we have forsaken the Lord and have served the Baals and the images of Ashtoreth. 15 Now deliver us from the hand of our enemies so that we may serve you.’ 16 12:11 So the Lord sent Jerub-Baal, 17 Barak, 18 Jephthah, and Samuel, 19 and he delivered you from the hand of the enemies all around you, and you were able to live securely.
12:12 “When you saw that King Nahash of the Ammonites was advancing against you, you said to me, ‘No! A king will rule over us’ – even though the Lord your God is your king! 12:13 Now look! Here is the king you have chosen – the one that you asked for! Look, the Lord has given you a king! 12:14 If you fear the Lord, serving him and obeying him 20 and not rebelling against what he says, 21 and if both you and the king who rules over you follow the Lord your God, all will be well. 22 12:15 But if you don’t obey 23 the Lord and rebel against what the Lord says, the hand of the Lord will be against both you and your king. 24
12:16 “So now, take your positions and watch this great thing that the Lord is about to do in your sight. 12:17 Is this not the time of the wheat harvest? I will call on the Lord so that he makes it thunder and rain. Realize and see what a great sin you have committed before the Lord by asking for a king for yourselves.”
12:18 So Samuel called to the Lord, and the Lord made it thunder and rain that day. All the people were very afraid of both the Lord and Samuel. 12:19 All the people said to Samuel, “Pray to the Lord your God on behalf of us – your servants – so we won’t die, for we have added to all our sins by asking for a king.” 25
12:20 Then Samuel said to the people, “Don’t be afraid. You have indeed sinned. 26 However, don’t turn aside from the Lord. Serve the Lord with all your heart. 12:21 You should not turn aside after empty things that can’t profit and can’t deliver, since they are empty. 27 12:22 The Lord will not abandon his people because he wants to uphold his great reputation. 28 The Lord was pleased to make you his own people. 12:23 As far as I am concerned, far be it from me to sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you! I will instruct you in the way that is good and upright. 12:24 However, fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart. Just look at the great things he has done for you! 12:25 But if you continue to do evil, both you and your king will be swept away.”
13:1 Saul was [thirty] 29 years old when he began to reign; he ruled over Israel for [forty] 30 years. 13:2 Saul selected for himself three thousand men from Israel. Two thousand of these were with Saul at Micmash and in the hill country of Bethel; 31 the remaining thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin. 32 He sent all the rest of the people back home. 33
13:3 Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost 34 that was at Geba and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul alerted 35 all the land saying, “Let the Hebrews pay attention!” 13:4 All Israel heard this message, 36 “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel is repulsive 37 to the Philistines!” So the people were summoned to join 38 Saul at Gilgal.
13:5 For the battle with Israel the Philistines had amassed 3,000 39 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and an army as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Micmash, east of Beth Aven. 13:6 The men of Israel realized they had a problem because their army was hard pressed. So the army hid in caves, thickets, cliffs, strongholds, 40 and cisterns. 13:7 Some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan River 41 to the land of Gad and Gilead. But Saul stayed at Gilgal; the entire army that was with him was terrified. 13:8 He waited for seven days, the time period indicated by Samuel. 42 But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the army began to abandon Saul. 43
13:9 So Saul said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” Then he offered a burnt offering. 13:10 Just when he had finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel appeared on the scene. Saul went out to meet him and to greet him. 44
13:11 But Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul replied, “When I saw that the army had started to abandon me 45 and that you didn’t come at the appointed time and that the Philistines had assembled at Micmash, 13:12 I thought, 46 ‘Now the Philistines will come down on me at Gilgal and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt obligated 47 to offer the burnt offering.”
13:13 Then Samuel said to Saul, “You have made a foolish choice! You have not obeyed 48 the commandment that the Lord your God gave 49 you. Had you done that, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever! 13:14 But now your kingdom will not continue! The Lord has sought out 50 for himself a man who is loyal to him 51 and the Lord has appointed 52 him to be leader over his people, for you have not obeyed what the Lord commanded you.”
13:15 Then Samuel set out and went up from Gilgal 53 to Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin. 54 Saul mustered the army that remained with him; there were about six hundred men. 13:16 Saul, his son Jonathan, and the army that remained with them stayed in Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin, while the Philistines camped in Micmash. 55 13:17 Raiding bands went out from the camp of the Philistines in three groups. One band turned toward the road leading to Ophrah by the land of Shual; 13:18 another band turned toward the road leading to Beth Horon; and yet another band turned toward the road leading to the border that overlooks the valley of Zeboim in the direction of the desert.
13:19 A blacksmith could not be found in all the land of Israel, for the Philistines had said, “This will prevent the Hebrews from making swords and spears.” 13:20 So all Israel had to go down to the Philistines in order to get their plowshares, cutting instruments, axes, and sickles 56 sharpened. 13:21 They charged 57 two-thirds of a shekel 58 to sharpen plowshares and cutting instruments, and a third of a shekel 59 to sharpen picks and axes, and to set ox goads. 13:22 So on the day of the battle no sword or spear was to be found in the hand of anyone in the army that was with Saul and Jonathan. No one but Saul and his son Jonathan had them.
13:23 A garrison of the Philistines had gone out to the pass at Micmash. 14:1 Then one day Jonathan son of Saul said to his armor bearer, 60 “Come on, let’s go over to the Philistine garrison that is opposite us.” But he did not let his father know.
14:2 Now Saul was sitting under a pomegranate tree in Migron, on the outskirts of Gibeah. The army that was with him numbered about six hundred men. 14:3 Now Ahijah was carrying 61 an ephod. He was the son of Ahitub, who was the brother of Ichabod and a son of Phineas, son of Eli, the priest of the Lord in Shiloh. The army was unaware that Jonathan had left.
14:4 Now there was a steep cliff on each side of the pass through which Jonathan intended to go to reach the Philistine garrison. One cliff was named Bozez, the other Seneh. 14:5 The cliff to the north was closer to Micmash, the one to the south closer to Geba.
14:6 Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come on, let’s go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will intervene 62 for us. Nothing can prevent the Lord from delivering, whether by many or by a few.” 14:7 His armor bearer said to him, “Do everything that is on your mind. 63 Do as you’re inclined. I’m with you all the way!” 64
14:8 Jonathan replied, “All right! 65 We’ll go over to these men and fight them. 14:9 If they say to us, ‘Stay put until we approach you,’ we will stay 66 right there and not go up to them. 14:10 But if they say, ‘Come up against us,’ we will go up. For in that case the Lord has given them into our hand – it will be a sign to us.”
14:11 When they 67 made themselves known to the Philistine garrison, the Philistines said, “Look! The Hebrews are coming out of the holes in which they hid themselves.” 14:12 Then the men of the garrison said to Jonathan and his armor bearer, “Come on up to us so we can teach you a thing or two!” 68 Then Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come up behind me, for the Lord has given 69 them into the hand of Israel!”
14:13 Jonathan crawled up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer following behind him. Jonathan struck down the Philistines, 70 while his armor bearer came along behind him and killed them. 71 14:14 In this initial skirmish Jonathan and his armor bearer struck down about twenty men in an area that measured half an acre.
14:15 Then fear overwhelmed 72 those who were in the camp, those who were in the field, all the army in the garrison, and the raiding bands. They trembled and the ground shook. This fear was caused by God. 73
14:16 Saul’s watchmen at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin 74 looked on 75 as the crowd of soldiers seemed to melt away first in one direction and then in another. 76 14:17 So Saul said to the army that was with him, “Muster the troops and see who is no longer with us.” When they mustered the troops, 77 Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there. 14:18 So Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring near the ephod,” 78 for he was at that time wearing the ephod. 79 14:19 While 80 Saul spoke to the priest, the panic in the Philistines’ camp was becoming greater and greater. So Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand!”
14:20 Saul and all the army that was with him assembled and marched into battle, where they found 81 the Philistines in total panic killing one another with their swords. 82 14:21 The Hebrews who had earlier gone over to the Philistine side 83 joined the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan. 14:22 When all the Israelites who had hidden themselves in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, they too pursued them in battle. 14:23 So the Lord delivered Israel that day, and the battle shifted over to Beth Aven. 84
14:24 Now the men of Israel were hard pressed that day, for Saul had made the army agree to this oath: “Cursed be the man who eats food before evening! I will get my vengeance on my enemies!” So no one in the army ate anything.
14:25 Now the whole army 85 entered the forest and there was honey on the ground. 86 14:26 When the army entered the forest, they saw 87 the honey flowing, but no one ate any of it, 88 for the army was afraid of the oath. 14:27 But Jonathan had not heard about the oath his father had made the army take. He extended the end of his staff that was in his hand and dipped it in the honeycomb. When he ate it, 89 his eyes gleamed. 90 14:28 Then someone from the army informed him, “Your father put the army under a strict oath 91 saying, ‘Cursed be the man who eats food today!’ That is why the army is tired.” 14:29 Then Jonathan said, “My father has caused trouble for the land. See how my eyes gleamed 92 when I tasted just a little of this honey. 14:30 Certainly if the army had eaten some of the enemies’ provisions that they came across today, would not the slaughter of the Philistines have been even greater?”
14:31 On that day the army struck down the Philistines from Micmash to Aijalon, and they became very tired. 14:32 So the army rushed greedily on 93 the 94 plunder, confiscating sheep, cattle, and calves. They slaughtered them right on the ground, and the army ate them blood and all.
14:33 Now it was reported to Saul, “Look, the army is sinning against the Lord by eating even the blood.” He said, “All of you have broken the covenant! 95 Roll a large stone over here to me.” 14:34 Then Saul said, “Scatter out among the army and say to them, ‘Each of you bring to me your ox and sheep and slaughter them in this spot and eat. But don’t sin against the Lord by eating the blood.” So that night each one brought his ox and slaughtered it there. 96 14:35 Then Saul built an altar for the Lord; it was the first time he had built an altar for the Lord.
14:36 Saul said, “Let’s go down after the Philistines at night; we will rout 97 them until the break of day. 98 We won’t leave any of them alive!” 99 They replied, “Do whatever seems best to you.” 100 But the priest said, “Let’s approach God here.” 14:37 So Saul asked God, “Should I go down after the Philistines? Will you deliver them into the hand of Israel?” But he did not answer him that day.
14:38 Then Saul said, “All you leaders of the army come here. Find out 101 how this sin occurred today. 14:39 For as surely as the Lord, the deliverer of Israel, lives, even if it turns out to be my own son Jonathan, he will certainly die!” But no one from the army said anything. 102
14:40 Then he said to all Israel, “You will be on one side, and I and my son Jonathan will be on the other side.” The army replied to Saul, “Do whatever you think is best.”
14:41 Then Saul said, “O Lord God of Israel! If this sin has been committed by me or by my son Jonathan, then, O Lord God of Israel, respond with Urim. But if this sin has been committed by your people Israel, respond with Thummim.” 103 Then Jonathan and Saul were indicated by lot, while the army was exonerated. 104 14:42 Then Saul said, “Cast the lot between me and my son Jonathan!” 105 Jonathan was indicated by lot.
14:43 So Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.” Jonathan told him, “I used the end of the staff that was in my hand to taste a little honey. I must die!” 106 14:44 Saul said, “God will punish me severely if Jonathan doesn’t die!” 107
14:45 But the army said to Saul, “Should Jonathan, who won this great victory in Israel, die? May it never be! As surely as the Lord lives, not a single hair of his head will fall to the ground! For it is with the help of God that he has acted today.” So the army rescued Jonathan from death. 108
14:46 Then Saul stopped chasing the Philistines, and the Philistines went back home. 109 14:47 After Saul had secured his royal position over Israel, he fought against all their 110 enemies on all sides – the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. In every direction that he turned he was victorious. 111 14:48 He fought bravely, striking down the Amalekites and delivering Israel from the hand of its enemies. 112
14:49 The sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malki-Shua. 113 He had two daughters; the older one was named Merab and the younger Michal. 14:50 The name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz. The name of the general in command of his army was Abner son of Ner, Saul’s uncle. 114 14:51 Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son 115 of Abiel.
14:52 There was fierce war with the Philistines all the days of Saul. So whenever Saul saw anyone who was a warrior or a brave individual, he would conscript him.
15:1 Then Samuel said to Saul, “I was the one the Lord sent to anoint you as king over his people Israel. Now listen to what the Lord says. 116 15:2 Here is what the Lord of hosts says: ‘I carefully observed how the Amalekites opposed 117 Israel along the way when Israel 118 came up from Egypt. 15:3 So go now and strike down the Amalekites. Destroy everything that they have. Don’t spare 119 them. Put them to death – man, woman, child, infant, ox, sheep, camel, and donkey alike.’”
15:4 So Saul assembled 120 the army 121 and mustered them at Telaim. There were 200,000 foot soldiers and 10,000 men of Judah. 15:5 Saul proceeded to the city 122 of Amalek, where he set an ambush 123 in the wadi. 124 15:6 Saul said to the Kenites, “Go on and leave! Go down from among the Amalekites! Otherwise I will sweep you away 125 with them! After all, you were kind to all the Israelites when they came up from Egypt.” So the Kenites withdrew from among the Amalekites.
15:7 Then Saul struck down the Amalekites all the way from Havilah to 126 Shur, which is next to Egypt. 15:8 He captured King Agag of the Amalekites alive, but he executed all Agag’s people 127 with the sword. 15:9 However, Saul and the army spared Agag, along with the best of the flock, the cattle, the fatlings, 128 and the lambs, as well as everything else that was of value. 129 They were not willing to slaughter them. But they did slaughter everything that was despised 130 and worthless.
15:10 Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel: 15:11 “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned away from me and has not done what I told him to do.” Samuel became angry and he cried out to the Lord all that night.
15:12 Then Samuel got up early to meet Saul the next morning. But Samuel was informed, “Saul has gone to Carmel where 131 he is setting up a monument for himself. Then Samuel left 132 and went down to Gilgal.” 133 15:13 When Samuel came to him, 134 Saul said to him, “May the Lord bless you! I have done what the Lord said.”
15:14 Samuel replied, “If that is the case, 135 then what is this sound of sheep in my ears and the sound of cattle that I hear?” 15:15 Saul said, “They were brought 136 from the Amalekites; the army spared the best of the flocks and cattle to sacrifice to the Lord our God. But everything else we slaughtered.”
15:16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Wait a minute! 137 Let me tell you what the Lord said to me last night.” Saul 138 said to him, “Tell me.” 15:17 Samuel said, “Is it not true that when you were insignificant in your own eyes, you became head of the tribes of Israel? The Lord chose 139 you as king over Israel. 15:18 The Lord sent you on a campaign 140 saying, ‘Go and exterminate those sinful Amalekites! Fight against them until you 141 have destroyed them.’ 15:19 Why haven’t you obeyed 142 the Lord? Instead you have greedily rushed upon the plunder! You have done what is wrong in the Lord’s estimation.” 143
15:20 Then Saul said to Samuel, “But I have obeyed 144 the Lord! I went on the campaign 145 the Lord sent me on. I brought back King Agag of the Amalekites after exterminating the Amalekites. 15:21 But the army took from the plunder some of the sheep and cattle – the best of what was to be slaughtered – to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”
15:22 Then Samuel said,
“Does the Lord take pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as he does in obedience? 146
Certainly, 147 obedience 148 is better than sacrifice;
paying attention is better than 149 the fat of rams.
15:23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and presumption is like the evil of idolatry.
Because you have rejected the word of the Lord,
he has rejected you as 150 king.”
15:24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have disobeyed what the Lord commanded 151 and what you said as well. 152 For I was afraid of the army, and I followed their wishes. 153 15:25 Now please forgive my sin! Go back with me so I can worship 154 the Lord.”
15:26 Samuel said to Saul, “I will not go back with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel!”
15:27 When Samuel turned to leave, Saul 155 grabbed the edge of his robe and it tore. 15:28 Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to one of your colleagues who is better than you! 15:29 The Preeminent One 156 of Israel does not go back on his word 157 or change his mind, for he is not a human being who changes his mind.” 158 15:30 Saul 159 again replied, “I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel. Go back with me so I may worship the Lord your God.” 15:31 So Samuel followed Saul back, and Saul worshiped the Lord.
15:32 Then Samuel said, “Bring me King Agag of the Amalekites.” So Agag came to him trembling, 160 thinking to himself, 161 “Surely death is bitter!” 162 15:33 Samuel said, “Just as your sword left women childless, so your mother will be the most bereaved among women!” Then Samuel hacked Agag to pieces there in Gilgal before the Lord.
15:34 Then Samuel went to Ramah, while Saul went up to his home in Gibeah of Saul. 15:35 Until the day he 163 died Samuel did not see Saul again. Samuel did, however, mourn for Saul, but the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.
[12:1] 1 tn Heb “Look, I have listened to your voice.”
[12:1] 2 tn Heb “to all which you said to me.”
[12:1] 3 tn Heb “and I have installed a king over you.”
[12:3] 4 tn Heb “anointed [one].”
[12:3] 5 tn The words “tell me” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[12:5] 6 tn Heb “anointed [one].”
[12:5] 7 tn Heb “that you have not found anything in my hand.”
[12:6] 8 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 7, 8).
[12:7] 9 tn Heb “and I will enter into judgment with you” (NRSV similar); NAB “and I shall arraign you.”
[12:7] 10 tn Heb “all the just actions which he has done with you and with your fathers.”
[12:9] 11 tn Heb “sold” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NAB “he allowed them to fall into the clutches of Sisera”; NLT “he let them be conquered by Sisera.”
[12:9] 12 map For location see Map1 D2; Map2 D3; Map3 A2; Map4 C1.
[12:9] 13 tn Heb “captain of the host of Hazor.”
[12:10] 15 tn Heb “the Ashtarot” (plural). The words “images of” are supplied in both vv. 3 and 4 for clarity.
[12:10] 16 tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose/result.
[12:11] 17 sn Jerub-Baal (יְרֻבַּעַל) is also known as Gideon (see Judg 6:32). The Book of Judges uses both names for him.
[12:11] 18 tc The MT has “Bedan” (בְּדָן) here (cf. KJV, NASB, CEV). But a deliverer by this name is not elsewhere mentioned in the OT. The translation follows the LXX and the Syriac Peshitta in reading “Barak.”
[12:11] 19 tc In the ancient versions there is some confusion with regard to these names, both with regard to the particular names selected for mention and with regard to the order in which they are listed. For example, the LXX has “Jerub-Baal, Barak, Jephthah, and Samuel.” But the Targum has “Gideon, Samson, Jephthah, and Samuel,” while the Syriac Peshitta has “Deborah, Barak, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson.”
[12:14] 20 tn Heb “and you listen to his voice.”
[12:14] 21 tn Heb “the mouth of the
[12:14] 22 tn The words “all will be well” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[12:15] 23 tn Heb “listen to the voice of.”
[12:15] 24 tc The LXX reads “your king” rather than the MT’s “your fathers.” The latter makes little sense here. Some follow MT, but translate “as it was against your fathers.” See P. K. McCarter, 1 Samuel (AB), 212.
[12:19] 25 tn Heb “for we have added to all our sins an evil [thing] by asking for ourselves a king.”
[12:20] 26 tn Heb “you have done all this evil.”
[12:21] 27 tn Or “useless” (so NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “nothing”; NASB “futile”; TEV “are not real.”
[12:22] 28 tn Heb “on account of his great name.”
[13:1] 29 tc The MT does not have “thirty.” A number appears to have dropped out of the Hebrew text here, since as it stands the MT (literally, “a son of a year”) must mean that Saul was only one year old when he began to reign! The KJV, attempting to resolve this, reads “Saul reigned one year,” but that is not the normal meaning of the Hebrew text represented by the MT. Although most LXX
[13:1] 30 tc The MT has “two years” here. If this number is to be accepted as correct, the meaning apparently would be that after a lapse of two years at the beginning of Saul’s reign, he then went about the task of consolidating an army as described in what follows (cf. KJV, ASV, CEV). But if the statement in v. 1 is intended to be a comprehensive report on the length of Saul’s reign, the number is too small. According to Acts 13:21 Saul reigned for forty years. Some English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT), taking this forty to be a round number, add it to the “two years” of the MT and translate the number in 2 Sam 13:1 as “forty-two years.” While this is an acceptable option, the present translation instead replaces the MT’s “two” with the figure “forty.” Admittedly the textual evidence for this decision is weak, but the same can be said of any attempt to restore sense to this difficult text (note the ellipsis marks at this point in NAB, NRSV). The Syriac Peshitta lacks this part of v. 1.
[13:2] 31 map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.
[13:2] 32 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[13:2] 33 tn Heb “each one to his tents.”
[13:3] 34 tn Or perhaps “struck down the Philistine official.” See the note at 1 Sam 10:5. Cf. TEV “killed the Philistine commander.”
[13:3] 35 tn Heb “blew the ram’s horn in.”
[13:4] 36 tn The words “this message” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[13:4] 37 tn Heb “stinks.” The figurative language indicates that Israel had become repulsive to the Philistines.
[13:4] 38 tn Heb “were summoned after.”
[13:5] 39 tn Many English versions (e.g., KJV, NASB, NRSV, TEV) read “30,000” here.
[13:6] 40 tn Or perhaps “vaults.” This rare term also occurs in Judg 9:46, 49. Cf. KJV “high places”; ASV “coverts”; NAB “caverns”; NASB “cellars”; NIV, NCV, TEV “pits”; NRSV, NLT “tombs.”
[13:7] 41 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[13:8] 42 tn This apparently refers to the instructions given by Samuel in 1 Sam 10:8. If so, several years had passed. On the relationship between chs. 10 and 13, see V. P. Long, The Art of Biblical History (FCI), 201-23.
[13:8] 43 tn Heb “dispersed from upon him”; NAB, NRSV “began to slip away.”
[13:10] 44 tn Heb “to bless him.”
[13:11] 45 tn Heb “dispersed from upon me.”
[13:12] 47 tn Or “I forced myself” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV, CEV); NAB “So in my anxiety I offered”; NIV “I felt compelled.”
[13:13] 49 tn Heb “commanded.”
[13:14] 50 tn This verb form, as well as the one that follows (“appointed”), indicates completed action from the standpoint of the speaker. This does not necessarily mean that the Lord had already conducted his search and made his choice, however. The forms may be used for rhetorical effect to emphasize the certainty of the action. The divine search for a new king is as good as done, emphasizing that the days of Saul’s dynasty are numbered.
[13:14] 51 tn Heb “according to his heart.” The idiomatic expression means to be like-minded with another, as its use in 1 Sam 14:7 indicates.
[13:14] 52 tn Heb “commanded.”
[13:15] 53 tc The LXX and two Old Latin
[13:15] 54 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity (likewise in the following verse).
[13:16] 55 tn The juxtaposition of disjunctive clauses in v.16 indicates synchronic action.
[13:20] 56 tc The translation follows the LXX (“their sickle”) here, rather than the MT “plowshares,” which is due to dittography from the word earlier in the verse.
[13:21] 57 tn Heb “the price was.” The meaning of the Hebrew word פְּצִירָה (pÿtsirah) is uncertain. This is the only place it occurs in the OT. Some propose the meaning “sharpening,” but “price” is a more likely meaning if the following term refers to a weight (see the following note on the word “shekel”). See P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 238.
[13:21] 58 tn This word, which appears only here in the OT, probably refers to a stone weight. Stones marked פִּים (pim) have been found in excavations of Palestinian sites. The average weight of such stones is 0.268 ounces, which is equivalent to about two-thirds of a shekel. This probably refers to the price charged by the Philistines for the services listed. See P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 238; DNWSI 2:910; and G. I. Davies, Ancient Hebrew Inscriptions, 259.
[13:21] 59 tc Heb “and for a third, a pick.” The Hebrew text suffers from haplography at this point. The translation follows the textual reconstruction offered by P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 235.
[14:1] 60 tn Or “the servant who was carrying his military equipment” (likewise in vv. 6, 7, 12, 13, 14).
[14:3] 61 tn Heb “bearing.” Many English versions understand this verb to mean “wearing” (cf. KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NLT).
[14:7] 63 tn Heb “in your heart.”
[14:7] 64 tn Heb “Look, I am with you, according to your heart.” See the note at 13:14.
[14:11] 67 tn Heb “the two of them.”
[14:12] 69 tn The perfect verbal form is used rhetorically here to express Jonathan’s certitude. As far as he is concerned, the victory is as good as won and can be described as such.
[14:13] 70 tn Heb “and they fell before Jonathan.”
[14:13] 71 tn Heb “and the one carrying his equipment was killing after him.”
[14:15] 72 tn Heb “fell upon.”
[14:15] 73 tn Heb “and it was by the fear of God.” The translation understands this to mean that God was the source or cause of the fear experienced by the Philistines. This seems to be the most straightforward reading of the sentence. It is possible, however, that the word “God” functions here simply to intensify the accompanying word “fear,” in which one might translate “a very great fear” (cf. NAB, NRSV). It is clear that on some occasions that the divine name carries such a superlative nuance. For examples see Joüon 2:525 §141.n.
[14:16] 74 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[14:16] 75 tn Heb “saw, and look!”
[14:16] 76 tn Heb “the crowd melted and went, even here.”
[14:17] 77 tn Heb “and they mustered the troops, and look!”
[14:18] 78 tc Heb “the ark of God.” It seems unlikely that Saul would call for the ark, which was several miles away in Kiriath-jearim (see 1 Sam 7:2). The LXX and an Old Latin
[14:18] 79 tc Heb “for the ark of God was in that day, and the sons of Israel.” The translation follows the text of some Greek manuscripts. See the previous note.
[14:19] 80 tn Or perhaps “until.”
[14:20] 81 tn Heb “and look, there was”
[14:20] 82 tn Heb “the sword of a man against his companion, a very great panic.”
[14:21] 83 tn Heb “and the Hebrews were to the Philistines formerly, who went up with them in the camp all around.”
[14:23] 84 tc The LXX includes the following words: “And all the people were with Saul, about ten thousand men. And the battle extended to the entire city on mount Ephraim.”
[14:25] 85 tn Heb “all the land.”
[14:25] 86 tn Heb “the surface of the field.”
[14:26] 87 tn Heb “and the army entered the forest, and look!”
[14:26] 88 tn Heb “and there was no one putting his hand to his mouth.”
[14:27] 89 tn Heb “and he returned his hand to his mouth.”
[14:27] 90 tc The translation follows the Qere and several medieval Hebrew
[14:28] 91 tn Heb “your father surely put the army under an oath.” The infinitive absolute is used before the finite verb to emphasize the solemn nature of the oath.
[14:29] 92 tc The LXX reads “saw.” See v. 27.
[14:32] 93 tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[14:32] 94 tc The translation reads with the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[14:33] 95 tn Heb “You have acted deceptively.” In this context the verb refers to violating an agreement, in this case the dietary and sacrificial regulations of the Mosaic law. The verb form is second masculine plural; apparently Saul here addresses those who are eating the animals.
[14:34] 96 tn Heb “and all the army brought near, each his ox by his hand, and they slaughtered there.”
[14:36] 98 tn Heb “until the light of the morning.”
[14:36] 99 tn Heb “and there will not be left among them a man.”
[14:36] 100 tn Heb “all that is good in your eyes.” So also in v. 40.
[14:38] 101 tn Heb “know and see.”
[14:39] 102 tn Heb “and there was no one answering from all the army.”
[14:41] 103 tc Heb “to the
[14:41] 104 tn Heb “went out.”
[14:42] 105 tc The LXX includes the following words: “Whomever the Lord will indicate by the lot, let him die! And the people said to Saul, ‘It is not this word.’ But Saul prevailed over the people, and they cast lots between him and between Jonathan his son.”
[14:43] 106 tn Heb “Look, I, I will die.” Apparently Jonathan is acquiescing to his anticipated fate of death. However, the words may be taken as sarcastic (“Here I am about to die!”) or as a question, “Must I now die?” (cf. NAB, NIV, NCV, NLT).
[14:44] 107 tn Heb “So God will do and so he will add, surely you will certainly die, Jonathan.”
[14:45] 108 tn Heb “and he did not die.”
[14:46] 109 tn Heb “to their place.”
[14:47] 110 tn Heb “his,” which could refer to Israel or to Saul.
[14:47] 111 tc The translation follows the LXX (“he was delivered”), rather than the MT, which reads, “he acted wickedly.”
[14:48] 112 tn Heb “plunderers.”
[14:49] 113 sn The list differs from others. In 1 Sam 31:2 (= 1 Chr 10:2), Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malki-Shua are listed as Saul’s sons, while 1 Chr 8:33 and 9:39 list Jonathan, Malki-Shua, Abinadab, and Eshbaal.
[14:50] 114 sn The word “uncle” can modify either Abner or Ner. See the note on the word “son” in v. 51 for further discussion.
[14:51] 115 tn 1 Chr 9:35-36 indicates that Jeiel (= Abiel?) had two sons (among others) named Ner and Kish (see also 1 Sam 9:1 and 1 Chr 8:30, where some Greek manuscripts include the name Ner, though it is absent in the Hebrew text). If this Kish was the father of Saul and Ner was the father of Abner, then Saul and Abner were cousins. However, according to 1 Chr 8:33 and 9:39, Ner, not Abiel, was the father of Kish. In this case, Kish and Abner were brothers and Abner was Saul’s uncle. The simplest solution to the problem is to see two men named Kish in the genealogy: Abiel (Jeiel) was the father of Ner and Kish I. Ner was the father of Abner and Kish II. Kish II was the father of Saul. The Kish mentioned in 1 Sam 9:1 was the father of Saul (v.2) and must be identified as Kish II. In this case the genealogy is “gapped,” with Ner being omitted. Abiel was the grandfather of Kish II.
[15:1] 116 tn Heb “to the voice of the words of the
[15:2] 117 tn Heb “what Amalek did to Israel, how he placed against him.”
[15:2] 118 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Israel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:3] 119 tn Or perhaps “don’t take pity on” (cf. CEV).
[15:4] 120 tn Heb “caused the people to hear.”
[15:5] 122 tc The LXX has the plural here, “cities.”
[15:5] 123 tc The translation follows the LXX and Vulgate which assume a reading וַיָּאָרֶב (vayya’arev, “and he set an ambush,” from the root ארב [’rv] with quiescence of alef) rather than the MT, which has וַיָּרֶב (vayyareb, “and he contended,” from the root ריב [ryv]).
[15:5] 124 tn That is, “the dry stream bed.”
[15:6] 125 tc The translation follows the Syriac Peshitta and Vulgate which assume a reading אֶסִפְךָ (’esfÿka, “I sweep you away,” from the root ספה [sfh]) rather than the MT אֹסִפְךָ (’osifÿka, “I am gathering you,” from the root אסף[’sf]).
[15:7] 126 tn Heb “[as] you enter.”
[15:8] 127 tn Heb “all the people.” For clarity “Agag’s” has been supplied in the translation.
[15:9] 128 tn The Hebrew text is difficult here. We should probably read וְהַמַּשְׂמַנִּים (vÿhammasmannim, “the fat ones”) rather than the MT וְהַמִּשְׂנִים (vÿhammisnim, “the second ones”). However, if the MT is retained, the sense may be as the Jewish commentator Kimchi supposed: the second-born young, thought to be better than the firstlings. (For discussion see S. R. Driver, Notes on the Hebrew Text and the Topography of the Books of Samuel, 123-24.)
[15:9] 130 tc The MT has here the very odd form נְמִבְזָה (nÿmivzah), but this is apparently due to a scribal error. The translation follows instead the Niphal participle נִבְזָה (nivzah).
[15:12] 131 tn Heb “and look.”
[15:12] 132 tn Heb “and he turned and crossed over.”
[15:12] 133 tc At the end of v. 12 the LXX and one Old Latin
[15:14] 135 tn The words “if that is the case” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[15:15] 136 tn Heb “they brought them.”
[15:16] 137 tn Or perhaps “be quiet.”
[15:16] 138 tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[15:17] 139 tn Heb “anointed.”
[15:18] 141 tc The translation follows the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and the Targum in reading the second person singular suffix (“you”) rather than the third person plural suffix of the MT (“they”).
[15:19] 142 tn Heb “listened to the voice of the
[15:19] 143 tn Heb “you have done what is evil in the eyes of the
[15:20] 144 tn Heb “listened to the voice of the
[15:22] 146 tn Heb “as [in] listening to the voice of the
[15:22] 148 tn Heb “listening.”
[15:22] 149 tn The expression “is better” is understood here by ellipsis (see the immediately preceding statement).
[15:23] 150 tn Or “from [being].”
[15:24] 151 tn Heb “the mouth of the
[15:24] 152 tn Heb “and your words.”
[15:24] 153 tn Heb “and I listened to their voice.”
[15:25] 154 tn Following the imperative, the cohortative with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose/result.
[15:27] 155 tn Heb “he,” but Saul is clearly the referent. A Qumran
[15:29] 156 tn Heb “splendor,” used here by metonymy as a title for the
[15:29] 157 tn Or perhaps “does not lie.”
[15:29] 158 sn This observation marks the preceding statement (v. 28) as an unconditional, unalterable decree. When God makes such a decree he will not alter it or change his mind. This does not mean that God never deviates from his stated intentions or changes his mind. On the contrary, several passages describe him as changing his mind. In fact, his willingness to do so is one of his fundamental divine attributes (see Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2). For a fuller discussion see R. B. Chisholm, Jr., “Does God Change His Mind?” BSac 152 (1995): 387-99.
[15:30] 159 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Saul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:32] 160 tn The MT reading מַעֲדַנֹּת (ma’adannot, literally, “bonds,” used here adverbially, “in bonds”) is difficult. The word is found only here and in Job 38:31. Part of the problem lies in determining the root of the word. Some scholars have taken it to be from the root ענד (’nd, “to bind around”), but this assumes a metathesis of two of the letters of the root. Others take it from the root עדן (’dn) with the meaning “voluptuously,” but this does not seem to fit the context. It seems better to understand the word to be from the root מעד (m’d, “to totter” or “shake”). In that case it describes the fear that Agag experienced in realizing the mortal danger that he faced as he approached Samuel. This is the way that the LXX translators understood the word, rendering it by the Greek participle τρέμον (tremon, “trembling”).
[15:32] 161 tn Heb “and Agag said.”
[15:32] 162 tc The text is difficult here. With the LXX, two Old Latin
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