1 Samuel 9
9
1And there is a man of Benjamin, and his name [is] Kish, son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Bechorath, son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, mighty of valour,
2and he hath a son, and his name [is] Saul, a choice youth and goodly, and there is not a man among the sons of Israel goodlier than he — from his shoulder and upward, higher than any of the people.
3And the asses of Kish, father of Saul, are lost, and Kish saith unto Saul his son, ‘Take, I pray thee, with thee, one of the young men, and rise, go, seek the asses.’
4And he passeth over through the hill-country of Ephraim, and passeth over through the land of Shalisha, and they have not found; and they pass over through the land of Shaalim, and they are not; and he passeth over through the land of Benjamin, and they have not found.
5They have come in unto the land of Zuph, and Saul hath said to his young man who [is] with him, ‘Come, and we turn back, lest my father leave off from the asses, and hath been sorrowful for us.’
6And he saith to him, ‘Lo, I pray thee, a man of God [is] in this city, and the man is honoured; all that he speaketh doth certainly come; now, we go there, it may be he doth declare to us our way on which we have gone.’
7And Saul saith to his young man, ‘And lo, we go, and what do we bring in to the man? for the bread hath gone from our vessels, and a present there is not to bring in to the man of God — what [is] with us?’
8And the young man addeth to answer Saul, and saith, ‘Lo, there is found with me a fourth of a shekel of silver: and I have given to the man of God, and he hath declared to us our way.’
9Formerly in Israel, thus said the man in his going to seek God, ‘Come and we go unto the seer,’ for the ‘prophet’ of to-day is called formerly ‘the seer.’
10And Saul saith to his young man, ‘Thy word [is] good; come, we go;’ and they go unto the city where the man of God [is].
11They are going up in the ascent of the city, and have found young women going out to draw water, and say to them, ‘Is the seer in this [place]?’
12And they answer them and say, ‘He is; lo, before thee! haste, now, for to-day he hath come in to the city, for the people hath a stated sacrifice in a high place.
13At your going in to the city so ye do find him, before he doth go up in to the high place to eat; for the people do not eat till his coming, for he doth bless the sacrifice; afterwards they eat, who are called, and now, go up, for at this time ye find him.’
14And they go up in to the city; they are coming in to the midst of the city, and lo, Samuel is coming out to meet them, to go up to the high place;
15and Jehovah had uncovered the ear of Samuel one day before the coming of Saul, saying,
16‘At this time tomorrow, I send unto thee a man out of the land of Benjamin — and thou hast anointed him for leader over My people Israel, and he hath saved My people out of the hand of the Philistines; for I have seen My people, for its cry hath come in unto Me.’
17When Samuel hath seen Saul, then hath Jehovah answered him, ‘Lo, the man of whom I have spoken unto thee; this [one] doth restrain My people.’
18And Saul draweth nigh to Samuel in the midst of the gate, and saith, ‘Declare, I pray thee, to me, where [is] this — the seer's house?’
19And Samuel answereth Saul and saith, ‘I [am] the seer; go up before me into the high place, and ye have eaten with me to-day, and I have sent thee away in the morning, and all that [is] in thy heart I declare to thee.
20As to the asses which are lost to thee this day three days, set not thy heart to them, for they have been found; and to whom [is] all the desire of Israel?’ is it not to thee and to all thy father's house?’
21And Saul answereth and saith, ‘Am not I a Benjamite — of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? and why hast thou spoken unto me according to this word?’
22And Samuel taketh Saul, and his young man, and bringeth them in to the chamber, and giveth to them a place at the head of those called; and they [are] about thirty men.
23And Samuel saith to the cook, ‘Give the portion which I gave to thee, of which I said unto thee, ‘Set it by thee?’
24(and the cook lifteth up the leg, and that which [is] on it, and setteth before Saul), and he saith, ‘Lo, that which is left; set [it] before thee — eat, for to this appointed season it is kept for thee, saying, The people I have called;’ and Saul eateth with Samuel on that day.
25And they come down from the high place to the city, and he speaketh with Saul on the roof.
26And they rise early, and it cometh to pass, at the ascending of the dawn, that Samuel calleth unto Saul, on the roof, saying, ‘Rise, and I send thee away;’ and Saul riseth, and they go out, both of them — he and Samuel, without.
27They are going down in the extremity of the city, and Samuel hath said unto Saul, ‘Say to the young man that he pass on before us (and he passeth on), and thou, stand at this time, and I cause thee to hear the word of God.’
Currently Selected:
1 Samuel 9: YLT98
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
1 Samuel 9
9
Samuel Anoints Saul to Be Israel’s King
1There was a man named Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. Kish was a very important person. He was the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror. Zeror was the son of Bekorath, the son of Aphiah from the tribe of Benjamin. 2Kish had a son named Saul. Saul was a handsome young man. He was more handsome than anyone in Israel. And he was a head taller than anyone else.
3The donkeys that belonged to Saul’s father Kish were lost. So Kish spoke to his son Saul. He said, “Go and look for the donkeys. Take one of the servants with you.” 4Saul and his servant went through the hill country of Ephraim. They also went through the area around Shalisha. But they didn’t find the donkeys. So they went on into the area of Shaalim. But the donkeys weren’t there either. Then Saul went through the territory of Benjamin. But they still didn’t find the donkeys.
5When Saul and the servant with him reached the area of Zuph, Saul spoke to the servant. He said, “Come on. Let’s go back. If we don’t, my father will stop thinking about the donkeys. Instead, he’ll start worrying about us.”
6But the servant replied, “There’s a man of God here in Ramah. People have a lot of respect for him. Everything he says comes true. So let’s go and see him now. Perhaps he’ll tell us which way to go.”
7Saul said to his servant, “If we go to see the man, what can we give him? There isn’t any food in our sacks. We don’t have a gift for the man of God. So what can we give him?”
8The servant answered Saul again. “Look,” he said. “I’ve got a tenth of an ounce of silver. I’ll give it to the man of God. Then maybe he’ll tell us which way to go.” 9In Israel, prophets used to be called seers. So if someone wanted to ask God for advice, they would say, “Come on. Let’s go to the seer.”
10Saul said to his servant, “That’s a good idea. Come on. Let’s go and ask the seer.” So they started out for the town where the man of God lived.
11They were going up the hill toward the town. Along the way they met some young women who were coming out to get water from the well. Saul and his servant asked them, “Is the seer here?”
12“Yes, he is,” they answered. “In fact, he’s just up ahead of you. So hurry along. He has just come to our town today. The people are going to offer a sacrifice at the high place where they worship. 13As soon as you enter the town, you will find him. He’ll be there until he goes up to the high place to eat. The people won’t start eating until he gets there. He must bless the sacrifice first. After that, those who are invited will eat. So go on up. You should find him there just about now.”
14They went up to the town. As they were entering it, they saw Samuel. He was coming toward them. He was on his way up to the high place.
15The Lord had spoken to Samuel the day before Saul came. He had said, 16“About this time tomorrow I will send you a man. He is from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him to be the king of my people Israel. He will save them from the power of the Philistines. I have seen how much my people are suffering. Their cry for help has reached me.”
17When Samuel saw a man coming toward him, the Lord spoke to Samuel again. He said, “He is the man I told you about. His name is Saul. He will govern my people.”
18Saul approached Samuel at the gate of the town. He asked Samuel, “Can you please show me the seer’s house?”
19“I’m the seer,” Samuel replied. “Go on up to the high place ahead of me. I want you and your servant to eat with me today. Tomorrow morning I’ll tell you what’s on your mind. Then I’ll send you on your way. 20Don’t worry about the donkeys you lost three days ago. They’ve already been found. But who do all the Israelites want? You and your father’s whole family!”
21Saul answered, “But I’m from the tribe of Benjamin. It’s the smallest tribe in Israel. And my family group is the least important in the whole tribe of Benjamin. So why are you saying that to me?”
22Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the room where they would be eating. He seated them at the head table. About 30 people had been invited. 23Samuel said to the cook, “Bring the piece of meat I gave you. It’s the one I told you to put to one side.”
24So the cook went and got a choice piece of thigh. He set it in front of Saul. Samuel said, “Here is what has been kept for you. Eat it. It was put to one side for you for this special occasion. We’ve saved it for you ever since I invited the guests.” And Saul ate with Samuel that day.
25They came down from the high place to the town. After that, Samuel talked with Saul on the roof of Samuel’s house. 26The next day they got up at about the time the sun was rising. Samuel called out to Saul on the roof. He said, “Get ready. Then I’ll send you on your way.” So Saul got ready. And he and Samuel went outside together. 27As they were on their way down to the edge of town, Samuel spoke to Saul. He said, “Tell the servant to go ahead of us.” So the servant went on ahead. Then Samuel continued, “Stay here for a while. I’ll give you a message from God.”
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.