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.”

Then David crossed to the other side and stood on the top of the hill some distance away; there was a considerable distance between them.

The king sat down in his usual place by the wall, with Jonathan opposite him ¹  and Abner at his side. ²  But David’s place was vacant.

Saul went on one side of the mountain, while David and his men went on the other side of the mountain. David was hurrying to get away from Saul, but Saul and his men were surrounding David and his men so they could capture them.

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.

The Hebrews who had earlier gone over to the Philistine side ¹  joined the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

After Saul had secured his royal position over Israel, he fought against all their ¹  enemies on all sides – the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. In every direction that he turned he was victorious. ² 

When I send a boy after them, I will say, “Go and find the arrows.” If I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; ¹  get them,’ then come back. For as surely as the Lord lives, you will be safe and there will no problem.

But if I say to the boy, “Look, the arrows are on the other side of you,’ ¹  get away. For in that case the Lord has sent you away.

Then the king said to the messengers ¹  who were stationed beside him, “Turn and kill the priests of the Lord, for they too have sided ²  with David! They knew he was fleeing, but they did not inform me.” But the king’s servants refused to harm ³  the priests of the Lord.

When he arrived in Shiloh, Eli was sitting in his chair watching by the side of ¹  the road, for he was very worried ²  about the ark of God. As the man entered the city to give his report, ³  the whole city cried out.

The Philistines were standing on one hill, and the Israelites ¹  on another hill, with the valley between them.

I will shoot three arrows near it, as though I were shooting at a target.

So the Lord sent Jerub-Baal, ¹  Barak, ²  Jephthah, and Samuel, ³  and he delivered you from the hand of the enemies all around you, and you were able to live securely.

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.

Then one day Jonathan son of Saul said to his armor bearer, ¹  “Come on, let’s go over to the Philistine garrison that is opposite us.” But he did not let his father know.

When the men of Israel who were in the valley and across the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled. The Philistines came and occupied them.

When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli ¹  fell backward from his chair beside the gate. He broke his neck and died, for he ²  was old and heavy. He had judged Israel for forty years.

The Philistines took the ark of God and brought it into the temple of Dagon, where they positioned it beside Dagon.

Samuel said, “Why are you asking me, now that the Lord has turned away from you and has become your enemy?