1 Samuel 28-31

Complete Jewish Bible

28 In due time the P’lishtim assembled their armies for war against Isra’el. Akhish told David, “You know, of course, that you and your men will join me and the army in battle.” ² David answered Akhish, “I see that you already know what your servant will do.” Akhish said to David, “For that answer, I am making you my personal bodyguard for life.”

³ Now Sh’mu’el was dead; all Isra’el had mourned him and buried him in his city, Ramah. Also Sha’ul had expelled from the land those who tell the future by communicating with the dead or with a demonic spirit.

⁴ The P’lishtim assembled; then they went and pitched camp at Shunem; while Sha’ul gathered all Isra’el together and pitched camp at Gilboa. ⁵ When Sha’ul saw the army of the P’lishtim, he became afraid — it struck terror in his heart. ⁶ But when he consulted Adonai, Adonai didn’t answer him — not by dreams, not by urim and not by prophets.

⁷ Then Sha’ul said to his servants, “Try to find a woman who tells the future by communicating with the dead; I want to go and consult with her.” His servants answered him, “Yes, there’s a woman in ‘Ein-Dor who tells the future by communicating with the dead.” ⁸ So Sha’ul disguised himself by wearing different clothing, went with two men, came to the woman by night and said, “Tell me the future, please. Bring up from the dead the person I name to you.” ⁹ The woman answered, “Here, you know what Sha’ul did, how he expelled from the land those who tell the future by communicating with the dead or with a demonic spirit. Why are you trying to entrap me into causing my own death?” ¹⁰ But Sha’ul swore to her by Adonai, “As Adonai lives, you will not be punished for doing this.” ¹¹ Then the woman asked, “Whom should I bring up for you?” He said, “Bring up for me Sh’mu’el.” ¹² When the woman saw Sh’mu’el, she let out a shriek. Then the woman said to Sha’ul, “Why have you deceived me? You yourself are Sha’ul!” ¹³ The king replied, “Don’t be afraid. Just tell me what you see.” The woman said to Sha’ul, “I see a god-like being coming up out of the earth.” ¹⁴ He asked her, “What does he look like?” She said, “An old man is coming up; he’s wearing a cloak.” Sha’ul realized it was Sh’mu’el, so he bowed with his face to the ground and prostrated himself.

¹⁵ Sh’mu’el asked Sha’ul, “Why have you disturbed me and brought me up?” Sha’ul answered, “I’m very upset; because the P’lishtim are making war against me; and God has left me and doesn’t answer me any more, neither by prophets nor by dreams. This is why I’ve called you, so that you can let me know what to do.” ¹⁶ Sh’mu’el said, “Why ask me, if Adonai has left you and become your enemy? ¹⁷ Adonai has done for himself what he foretold through me — Adonai has torn the kingdom out of your hands and given it to your fellow countryman David, ¹⁸ because you didn’t obey what Adonai said and execute his furious anger toward ‘Amalek. That’s why Adonai is doing this to you today. ¹⁹ Adonai is giving Isra’el as well as yourself over into the power of the P’lishtim, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. Adonai will hand over Isra’el’s army to the power of the P’lishtim.”

²⁰ Sha’ul immediately fell full length on the ground and became terribly frightened because of what Sh’mu’el had said. He had no strength left in him, for he had eaten nothing all that day and night. ²¹ The woman approached Sha’ul, saw that he was panic-stricken and said to him, “Here, your servant listened to what you said; I put my life in my hands and did what you requested me to do. ²² Now therefore, please, you listen to what your servant says: let me put a little food in front of you; then eat, so you will have some strength when you go on your way.” ²³ But he refused and said, “I won’t eat.” Then his servants, together with the woman, urged him; and he heeded what they said. He got up off the ground and sat on the bed. ²⁴ The woman had a fattened calf in the house; she hurried to slaughter it; then she took flour, kneaded it and baked matzah with it. ²⁵ She served it to Sha’ul and his servants, and they ate. Afterwards, they got up; and they went away that night.

29 The P’lishtim gathered all their army together at Afek, while Isra’el’s army pitched camp by the spring in Yizre‘el. ² The leaders of the P’lishtim were passing by with their hundreds and thousands; David and his men were bringing up the rear with Akhish. ³ The chiefs of the P’lishtim asked, “What are these Hebrews doing here?” Akhish answered the chiefs of the P’lishtim, “This is David, who was a servant of Sha’ul, king of Isra’el. He’s been with me now for well over a year, and I haven’t found anything wrong with him between the time he deserted to me and now.” ⁴ But the chiefs of the P’lishtim became angry and said to him, “Have the man return and go back to the place you set aside for him. Don’t let him go into battle with us, because on the battlefield he might become our enemy. What better way could there be for him to get reconciled with his lord than by [cutting off] the heads of our men? ⁵ This is David! They used to dance and sing about him,

⁶ So Akhish summoned David and said to him, “As Adonai lives, you have been upright; and I myself would be more than pleased to have you go on campaign with me; because I haven’t found anything wrong with you between the day you arrived and now. However, the chiefs don’t trust you. ⁷ Therefore, now, go on back; and go in peace, so as not to do what appears bad to the chiefs of the P’lishtim. ⁸ David said to Akhish, “But what have I done? What have you found in your servant during the time I’ve been with you that disqualifies me from going and fighting against the enemies of my lord the king?” ⁹ Akhish answered David, “I know that you are as good, from my point of view, as an angel of God. Nevertheless, the chiefs of the P’lishtim have said, ‘He is not to go up with us to the battlefield.’ ¹⁰ So get up early in the morning with the servants of your lord who came with you; and as soon as you are up and it gets light, leave.” ¹¹ David got up early in the morning, he and his men, to leave and go back into the land of the P’lishtim; while the P’lishtim continued up to Yizre‘el.

30 Three days later, when David and his men arrived in Ziklag, they found that the ‘Amaleki had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had sacked Ziklag and burned it down; ² and they had taken captive the women and everyone there, great and small. They hadn’t killed anyone but had carried them off as they went on their way. ³ So when David and his men arrived at the city, there it was, burned down, with their wives, sons and daughters taken captive. ⁴ Then David and the people with him cried aloud until they had no more power to cry. ⁵ David’s two wives had been taken captive — Achino‘am from Yizre‘el and Avigayil the widow of Naval from Karmel.

⁶ David was in serious trouble: the people were talking about stoning him to death, because all the people were in such deep grief, each man over his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in Adonai his God. ⁷ David said to Avyatar the cohen, the son of Achimelekh, “Please bring the ritual vest here to me.” Avyatar brought the vest to David. ⁸ Then David consulted Adonai. He asked, “Should I go in pursuit of these raiders? Will I catch up with them?” And [Adonai] answered him, “Go in pursuit, because you will overtake them and recover everyone and everything.” ⁹ So David went, he and the six hundred men with him. They came to Vadi B’sor, where those who were to stay behind waited. ¹⁰ Then David continued in pursuit with four hundred men, while two hundred too exhausted to cross Vadi B’sor stayed behind.

¹¹ They found an Egyptian in the countryside and brought him to David. They gave him some bread to eat and water to drink; ¹² they also gave him a lump of dried figs and two bunches of raisins. After eating, he revived; because he hadn’t eaten anything or drunk any water for three days and nights. ¹³ David asked him, “To whom do you belong, and where are you from?” He answered, “I’m an Egyptian boy, the slave of an ‘Amaleki. My master abandoned me three days ago, because I got sick. ¹⁴ We raided the Negev of the K’reti, the Negev of Y’hudah and the Negev of Kalev; and we burned down Ziklag.” ¹⁵ David asked him, “Will you lead me down to this raiding party?” He said, “If you will swear by God to me that you won’t kill me or hand me back to my master, I will lead you down to the raiders.” ¹⁶ He led them down, and there they were, spread out all over the ground, eating, drinking and celebrating how much spoil they had taken from the territory of the P’lishtim and the territory of Y’hudah. ¹⁷ David attacked them from dawn until the evening of the next day. Not one of them escaped, except for 400 young men who jumped on camels and got away. ¹⁸ David recovered all that the ‘Amaleki had taken; he also rescued his two wives. ¹⁹ They found nothing missing, big or little — not sons, not daughters, not plundered goods or anything else they had taken — David brought it all back. ²⁰ David took all the flocks and herds and drove them ahead of their own livestock, announcing, “This is David’s spoil.”

²¹ David came to where the two hundred men were who had been too exhausted to follow him, whom they had let stay at Vadi B’sor. They came out to meet David and the people with him. When David approached them he greeted them. ²² But some of the men who had gone with David were evil men, scoundrels; and they said, “They didn’t go with us, so we’re not giving them any of the property we’ve recovered. Each man can take his wife and children and leave.” ²³ Then David said, “No, my brothers, don’t do this with the goods Adonai has given us. He protected us, and he handed the raiding party over to us. ²⁴ Anyhow, no one agrees with you about this. No, the share of someone who stays with the equipment will be the same as the share of someone who goes out and fights — they will share equally.” ²⁵ It has been that way from that day on; he established it as a ruling for Isra’el to this day.

²⁶ When David came to Ziklag, he sent some of the spoil to the leaders of Y’hudah who were his friends with a note, “Here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of Adonai.” ²⁷ He sent such gifts

and to all the places where David and his men had frequently visited.

31 Now the P’lishtim pressed their attack on Isra’el. The men of Isra’el fled before the P’lishtim, leaving their dead on Mount Gilboa. ² The P’lishtim pursued and overtook Sha’ul and his sons; and the P’lishtim killed Y’honatan, Avinadav and Malkishua, the sons of Sha’ul. ³ The fighting went hard against Sha’ul; then the archers overtook and wounded him, so that he was in agony. ⁴ Sha’ul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through with it. Otherwise these uncircumcised men will come, run me through and make sport of me.” But his armor-bearer refused, he was too frightened. So Sha’ul took his sword and fell on it. ⁵ When his armor-bearer saw that Sha’ul was dead, he too fell on his own sword and died with him. ⁶ Thus Sha’ul, his three sons, his armor-bearer and all his men died that same day together.

⁷ When the men of Isra’el who were on the other side of the valley and those who were on the far side of the Yarden saw that the men of Isra’el had fled and that Sha’ul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled; then the P’lishtim came and lived in them.

⁸ The following day, when the P’lishtim came to strip the dead, they found Sha’ul and his three sons lying dead on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ They cut off his head, stripped off his armor and sent these all over the territory of the P’lishtim to carry the news to the temples of their idols and to the people. ¹⁰ Then they put his armor in the temple for the ‘ashtarot and fastened his body to the wall of Beit-Sh’an.

¹¹ When the people living in Yavesh-Gil‘ad heard what the P’lishtim had done to Sha’ul, ¹² all their warriors set out, traveling all night. They took the body of Sha’ul and the bodies of his sons off the wall of Beit-Sh’an, returned to Yavesh and burned them there. ¹³ Then they took their bones, buried them under the tamarisk tree in Yavesh and fasted seven days.