So Achish gave him Ziklag on that day. (For that reason Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah until this very day.)

Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had lamented over him and had buried him in Ramah, his hometown. ¹  In the meantime Saul had removed the mediums ²  and magicians ³  from the land.

The Lord has done exactly as I prophesied! ¹  The Lord has torn the kingdom from your hand and has given it to your neighbor David!

Isn’t this David, of whom they sang as they danced, ¹  ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, but David his tens of thousands’?”

David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Should I pursue this raiding band? Will I overtake them?” He said to him, “Pursue, for you will certainly overtake them and carry out a rescue!”

Then they found an Egyptian in the field and brought him to David. They gave him bread to eat and water to drink.

If the individual said to him, “First let the fat be burned away, and then take for yourself whatever you wish,” he would say, “No! ¹  Hand it over right now! If you don’t, I will take it forcibly!”

If a man sins against a man, one may appeal to God on his behalf. But if a man sins against the Lord, who then will intercede for him?” But Eli’s sons ¹  would not listen to their father, for the Lord had decided ²  to kill them.

Everyone who remains in your house will come to bow before him for a little money ¹  and for a scrap of bread. Each will say, ‘Assign me to a priestly task so I can eat a scrap of bread.’”

You ¹  should tell him that I am about to judge his house forever because of ²  the sin that he knew about. For his sons were cursing God, ³  and he did not rebuke them.

They replied, “If you are going to send the ark of ¹  the God of Israel back, don’t send it away empty. Be sure to return it with a guilt offering. Then you will be healed, and you will understand why his hand is not removed from you.”

They inquired, “What is the guilt offering that we should send to him?” They replied, “The Philistine leaders number five. So send five gold sores and five gold mice, for it is the same plague that has afflicted both you and your leaders.

Then take the ark of the Lord and place it on the cart, and put in a chest beside it the gold objects you are sending to him as a guilt offering. You should then send it on its way.

But the servant said to him, “Look, there is a man of God in this town. He is highly respected. Everything that he says really happens. ¹  Now let’s go there. Perhaps he will tell us where we should go from here.” ² 

Saul said to his uncle, “He assured us that the donkeys had been found.” But Saul ¹  did not tell him what Samuel had said about the matter of kingship.

But today you have rejected your God who saves you from all your trouble and distress. You have said, “No! ¹  Appoint a king over us.” Now take your positions before the Lord by your tribes and by your clans.’”

Now Saul was walking behind the ¹  oxen as he came from the field. Saul asked, “What has happened to the people? Why are they weeping?” So they told him about ²  the men of Jabesh.

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; ¹  the remaining thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin. ²  He sent all the rest of the people back home. ³ 

But now your kingdom will not continue! The Lord has sought out ¹  for himself a man who is loyal to him ²  and the Lord has appointed ³  him to be leader over his people, for you have not obeyed what the Lord commanded you.”

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!” ¹