1 Samuel 14
14
1Now it came to pass one day that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man that bore his armour, Come and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison which is on the other side. But he did not tell his father. 2And Saul abode at the extreme end of Gibeah under the pomegranate-tree which was in Migron; and the people that were with him were about six hundred men. 3(And Ahijah the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, Jehovah's priest in Shiloh, wore the ephod.) And the people did not know that Jonathan was gone. 4Now between the passes by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistines' garrison there was a sharp rock on the one side and a sharp rock on the other side; and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh. 5The one crag formed a pillar on the north opposite to Michmash, and the other on the south opposite to Geba. 6And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armour, Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised: perhaps Jehovah will work for us; for there is no restraint to Jehovah to save by many or by few. 7And his armour-bearer said to him, Do all that is in thy heart; turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart. 8Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over to the men, and we will shew ourselves to them. 9If they say thus to us, Stand still until we come to you, then we will stay in our place, and will not go up to them. 10And if they say thus, Come up to us, then we will go up; for Jehovah has given them into our hand; and this shall be the sign to us. 11And both of them shewed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines; and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves. 12And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armour-bearer and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you something. And Jonathan said to his armour-bearer, Come up after me; for Jehovah has delivered them into the hand of Israel. 13And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armour-bearer after him; and they fell before Jonathan; and his armour-bearer slew after him. 14And that first slaughter which Jonathan and his armour-bearer wrought was about twenty men, as it were on the half-furrow of an acre of land. 15And there was trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people; the garrison, and the ravagers, they also trembled, and the earth quaked; for it was a trembling from God#GodHebrew: Elohim
16And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold, the multitude melted away, and they went on slaying one another. 17Then said Saul to the people that were with him, Muster now, and see who is gone from us. And they mustered, and behold, Jonathan and his armour-bearer were not there. 18And Saul said to Ahijah, Bring hither the ark of God#GodHebrew: Elohim For the ark of God#GodHebrew: Elohim was at that time with the children of Israel. 19And it came to pass while Saul talked to the priest, that the noise which was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased; and Saul said to the priest, Withdraw thy hand. 20And Saul and all the people that were with him were called together, and they came to the battle; and behold, every man's sword was against his fellow, a very great confusion. 21And there were Hebrews with the Philistines before that time, who had gone up with them into the camp round about; and they also turned to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan. 22And all the men of Israel who had hid themselves in mount Ephraim heard that the Philistines fled, and they also followed hard after them in the battle. 23And Jehovah saved Israel that day; and the battle passed over beyond Beth-Aven.
24But the men of Israel were distressed that day. Now Saul had adjured the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth food until evening, and until I am avenged on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted food. 25And all they of the land came to a wood; and there was honey on the ground. 26And the people had come into the wood, and behold, the honey flowed; but no man put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath. 27But Jonathan had not heard when his father adjured the people; and he put forth the end of his staff which was in his hand, and dipped it in the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth, and his eyes became bright. 28Then answered one of the people and said, Thy father strictly adjured the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth food this day; and the people are faint. 29And Jonathan said, My father has troubled the land: see, I pray you, that mine eyes are bright, because I tasted a little of this honey. 30How much more, if the people had eaten freely to-day of the spoil of their enemies which they found? for would there not now have been a much greater slaughter among the Philistines? 31And they smote the Philistines that day from Michmash to Ajalon; and the people were very faint. 32And the people fell on the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slaughtered them on the ground; and the people ate them with the blood. 33And they told Saul, saying, Behold, the people sin against Jehovah, in that they eat with the blood. And he said, Ye have acted perversely: roll me now a great stone. 34And Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and say to them, Bring near to me every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slaughter them here, and eat; and sin not against Jehovah in eating with the blood. And all the people brought every man his ox with him that night, and slaughtered them there. 35And Saul built an altar to Jehovah: this was the first altar he built to Jehovah.
36And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and plunder them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatsoever is good in thy sight. Then said the priest, Let us come near hither to God#GodHebrew: Elohim 37And Saul inquired of God#GodHebrew: Elohim Shall I go down after the Philistines? wilt thou give them into the hand of Israel? But he did not answer him that day. 38And Saul said, Draw ye near hither, all the heads of the people; and know and see wherein this sin has been this day. 39For, as Jehovah liveth, who has saved Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall certainly die. And no one answered him among all the people. 40Then said he to all Israel, Be ye on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. And the people said to Saul, Do what is good in thy sight. 41And Saul said to Jehovah the God#GodHebrew: Elohim of Israel, Give a perfect testimony! And Jonathan and Saul were taken, and the people escaped. 42And Saul said, Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken. 43And Saul said to Jonathan, Tell me what thou hast done. And Jonathan told him and said, With the end of the staff which is in my hand I tasted a little honey, and behold, I must die! 44And Saul said, God#GodHebrew: Elohim do so to me and more also; thou shalt certainly die, Jonathan. 45And the people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who has wrought this great salvation in Israel? Far be it! as Jehovah liveth, there shall not a hair of his head fall to the ground; for he has wrought with God#GodHebrew: Elohim this day. So the people delivered Jonathan, that he died not. 46And Saul went up from following the Philistines; and the Philistines went to their own place.
47And Saul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought against all his enemies round about, 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 discomfited them. 48And he did valiantly, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of their spoilers. 49And the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Jishvi, and Malchi-shua. And the names of his two daughters: the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name of the younger Michal. 50And 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. 51And Kish the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner were sons of Abiel. 52And there was sore war against the Philistines all the days of Saul; and when Saul saw any mighty man, or any valiant man, he took him to himself.
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1 Samuel 14: DARBY
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First published in 1890. This edition is maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
1 Samuel 14
14
Jonathan's Daring Deed
1One day Jonathan said to the young man who carried his weapons, “Let's go across to the Philistine camp.” But Jonathan did not tell his father Saul, 2who was camping under a pomegranate tree in Migron, not far from Gibeah; he had about 600 men with him. 3(The priest carrying the ephod was Ahijah, the son of Ichabod's brother Ahitub, who was the son of Phinehas and grandson of Eli, the priest of the LORD in Shiloh.) The men did not know that Jonathan had left.
4In the pass of Michmash, which Jonathan had to go through to get over to the Philistine camp, there were two large jagged rocks, one on each side of the pass: one was called Bozez and the other Seneh. 5One was on the north side of the pass, facing Michmash, and the other was on the south side, facing Geba.
6Jonathan said to the young man, “Let's cross over to the camp of those heathen Philistines. Maybe the LORD will help us; if he does, nothing can keep him from giving us the victory, no matter how few of us there are.”
7The young man answered, “Whatever you want to do,#14.7 One ancient translation you want to do; Hebrew you want to do. Turn. I'm with you.”
8“All right,” Jonathan said. “We will go across and let the Philistines see us. 9If they tell us to wait for them to come to us, then we will stay where we are. 10But if they tell us to go to them, then we will, because that will be the sign that the LORD has given us victory over them.”
11So they let the Philistines see them, and the Philistines said, “Look! Some Hebrews are coming out of the holes they have been hiding in!” 12Then they called out to Jonathan and the young man, “Come on up here! We have something to tell#14.12 tell; or show. you!”
Jonathan said to the young man, “Follow me. The LORD has given Israel victory over them.” 13Jonathan climbed up out of the pass on his hands and knees, and the young man followed him. Jonathan attacked the Philistines and knocked them down, and the young man killed them. 14In that first slaughter Jonathan and the young man killed about twenty men in an area of about a quarter of a hectare.#14.14 Probable text in an area of about a quarter of a hectare; Hebrew unclear. 15All the Philistines in the countryside were terrified; the raiders and the soldiers in the camp trembled with fear; the earth shook, and there was great panic.
The Defeat of the Philistines
16Saul's men on watch at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin saw the Philistines running in confusion. 17So Saul said to his men, “Count the soldiers and find out who is missing.” They did so and found that Jonathan and the young man who carried his weapons were missing. 18“Bring the ephod#14.18 One ancient translation ephod (see 2.28); Hebrew Covenant Box. here,” Saul said to Ahijah the priest. (On that day Ahijah was carrying it in front of the people of Israel.)#14.18 One ancient translation On that day… Israel; Hebrew Because on that day God's Covenant Box and the people of Israel. 19As Saul was speaking to the priest, the confusion in the Philistine camp got worse and worse, so Saul said to him, “There's no time to consult the LORD!” 20Then he and his men marched into battle against the Philistines, who were fighting each other in complete confusion. 21Some Hebrews, who had been on the Philistine side and had gone with them to the camp, changed sides again#14.21 Some ancient translations changed sides again; Hebrew around also. and joined Saul and Jonathan. 22Others, who had been hiding in the hills of Ephraim, heard that the Philistines were running away, so they also joined in and attacked the Philistines, 23fighting all the way beyond Bethaven. The LORD saved Israel that day.
Events after the Battle
24The Israelites were weak with hunger that day, because Saul, with a solemn oath, had given the order: “A curse be on anyone who eats any food today before I take revenge on my enemies.” So nobody had eaten anything all day. 25They all#14.25 Probable text They all; Hebrew All the land. came into a wooded area and found honey everywhere. 26The woods were full of honey, but no one ate any of it because they were all afraid of Saul's curse. 27But Jonathan had not heard his father threaten the people with a curse; so he reached out with the stick he was carrying, dipped it in a honeycomb, and ate some honey. At once he felt much better. 28But one of the men said, “We are all weak with hunger, but your father threatened us and said, ‘A curse be on anyone who eats any food today.’ ”
29Jonathan answered, “What a terrible thing my father has done to our people! See how much better I feel because I ate some honey! 30How much better it would have been today if our people had eaten the food they took when they defeated the enemy. Just think how many more Philistines they would have killed!”
31That day the Israelites defeated the Philistines, fighting all the way from Michmash to Aijalon. By this time the Israelites were very weak with hunger, 32and so they rushed over to what they had captured from the enemy, took sheep and cattle, slaughtered them on the spot, and ate the meat with the blood still in it. 33#Gen 9.4; Lev 7.26–27; 17.10–14; 19.26; Deut 12.16, 23; 15.23Saul was told, “Look, the people are sinning against the LORD by eating meat with the blood in it.”
“You are traitors!” Saul cried out. “Roll a big stone over here#14.33 One ancient translation here; Hebrew today. to me.” 34Then he gave another order: “Go among the people and tell them all to bring their cattle and sheep here. They are to slaughter them and eat them here; they must not sin against the LORD by eating meat with blood in it.” So that night they all brought their cattle and slaughtered them there. 35Saul built an altar to the LORD, the first one that he built.
36Saul said to his men, “Let's go down and attack the Philistines in the night, plunder them until dawn, and kill them all.”
“Do whatever you think best,” they answered.
But the priest said, “Let's consult God first.”
37So Saul asked God, “Shall I attack the Philistines? Will you give us victory?” But God did not answer that day. 38Then Saul said to the leaders of the people, “Come here and find out what sin was committed today. 39I promise by the living LORD, who gives Israel victory, that the guilty one will be put to death, even if he is my son Jonathan.” But no one said anything. 40Then Saul said to them, “All of you stand over there, and Jonathan and I will stand over here.”
“Do whatever you think best,” they answered.
41 #
Num 27.21; 1 Sam 28.6 Saul said to the LORD, the God of Israel, “LORD, why have you not answered me today? LORD, God of Israel, answer me by the sacred stones. If the guilt is Jonathan's or mine, answer by the Urim; but if it belongs to your people Israel,#14.41 Some ancient translations answer me by the sacred stones… your people Israel; Hebrew does not have these words. answer by the Thummim.”#14.41 Urim… Thummim: Two stones used by the priest to determine God's will; it is not known precisely how they were used. The answer indicated Jonathan and Saul; and the people were cleared. 42Then Saul said, “Decide between my son Jonathan and me.” And Jonathan was indicated. 43Then Saul asked Jonathan, “What have you done?”
Jonathan answered, “I ate a little honey with the stick I was holding. Here I am — I am ready to die.”
44Saul said to him, “May God strike me dead if you are not put to death!”
45But the people said to Saul, “Will Jonathan, who won this great victory for Israel, be put to death? No! We promise by the living LORD that he will not lose even a hair from his head. What he did today was done with God's help.” So the people saved Jonathan from being put to death.
46After that, Saul stopped pursuing the Philistines, and they went back to their own territory.
Saul's Reign and Family
47After Saul became king of Israel, he fought against all his enemies everywhere: the people of Moab, of Ammon, and of Edom, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. Wherever he fought he was victorious.#14.47 One ancient translation was victorious; Hebrew acted wickedly. 48He fought heroically and defeated even the people of Amalek. He saved the Israelites from all attacks.
49Saul's sons were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchishua. His elder daughter was named Merab, and the younger one Michal. 50His wife was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz; his army commander was his cousin Abner, the son of his uncle Ner. 51Saul's father Kish and Abner's father Ner were sons of Abiel.
52As long as he lived, Saul had to fight fiercely against the Philistines. So whenever he found a man who was strong or brave, he would enlist him in his army.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.