Saul Defeats the Ammonites

1 ^oThen Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged ^pJabesh-gilead, and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, ^q“Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.” 2 But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, “On this condition I will make a treaty with you, ^rthat I gouge out all your right eyes, and thus ^sbring disgrace on all Israel.” 3 The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days’ respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.” 4 When the messengers came to ^tGibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the ears of the people, ^uand all the people wept aloud.

5 Now, behold, Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen. And Saul said, “What is wrong with the people, that they are weeping?” So they told him the news of the men of Jabesh. 6 ^vAnd the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled. 7 He took a yoke of oxen ^wand cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of the messengers, saying, ^x“Whoever does not come out after Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen!” Then the dread of the Lord fell upon the people, and they came out ^yas one man. 8 When he mustered them at ^zBezek, ^athe people of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. 9 And they said to the messengers who had come, “Thus shall you say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have ^bsalvation.’” When the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh, they were glad. 10 Therefore the men of Jabesh said, ^c“Tomorrow we will give ourselves up to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.” 11 ^dAnd the next day Saul put the people ^ein three companies. And they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch and struck down the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.

The Kingdom Is Renewed

12 Then the people said to Samuel, ^f“Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ ^gBring the men, that we may put them to death.” 13 But Saul said, ^h“Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today ⁱthe Lord has worked ^jsalvation in Israel.” 14 Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom.” 15 So all the people went to ^kGilgal, and there they made Saul king ^lbefore the Lord in Gilgal. There ^mthey sacrificed peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

Samuel’s Farewell Address

1 And Samuel said to all Israel, “Behold, I have obeyed ⁿyour voice in all that you have said to me ^oand have made a king over you. 2 And now, behold, the king ^pwalks before you, ^qand I am old and gray; and behold, my sons are with you. I have walked before you from my youth until this day. 3 Here I am; testify against me before the Lord and before ^rhis anointed. ^sWhose ox have I taken? Or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I taken a bribe to blind my eyes with it? Testify against me¹ and I will restore it to you.” 4 They said, “You have not defrauded us or oppressed us or taken anything from any man’s hand.” 5 And he said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and ^rhis anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything ^tin my hand.” And they said, “He is witness.”

6 And Samuel said to the people, ^u“The Lord is witness,² who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore stand still that I may plead with you before the Lord concerning all the righteous deeds of the Lord that he performed for you and for your fathers. 8 ^vWhen Jacob went into Egypt, and the Egyptians oppressed them,^{3 w}then your fathers cried out to the Lord and ^xthe Lord sent Moses and Aaron, ^ywho brought your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place. 9 But ^zthey forgot the Lord their God. ^aAnd he sold them into the hand of Sisera, commander of the army of Hazor,^{4 b}and into the hand of the Philistines, ^cand into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against them. 10 ^dAnd they cried out to the Lord and said, ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord ^eand have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth. But now ^fdeliver us out of the hand of our enemies, that we may serve you.’ 11 And the Lord sent ^gJerubbaal ^hand Barak^{5 i}and Jephthah and ^jSamuel and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you lived in safety. 12 And when you saw that ^kNahash the king of the Ammonites came against you, ^lyou said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ ^mwhen the Lord your God was your king. 13 And now ⁿbehold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you have asked; behold, ^othe Lord has set a king over you. 14 If you will ^pfear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God, it will be well. 15 But ^qif you will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then ^rthe hand of the Lord will be against you and ^syour king.⁶ 16 Now therefore ^tstand still and see this great thing that the Lord will do before your eyes. 17 ^uIs it not wheat harvest today? ^vI will call upon the Lord, that he may send thunder and rain. And you shall know and see that ^wyour wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking for yourselves a king.” 18 So Samuel called upon the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, ^xand all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.

19 And all the people said to Samuel, ^y“Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king.” 20 And Samuel said to the people, “Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet ^zdo not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. 21 And ^zdo not turn aside after ^aempty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. 22 ^bFor the Lord will not forsake his people, ^cfor his great name’s sake, because ^dit has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself. 23 Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing ^eto pray for you, ^fand I will instruct you in the good and the right way. 24 ^gOnly fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart. For consider ^hwhat great things he has done for you. 25 But if you still do wickedly, ⁱyou shall be swept away, ^jboth you and your king.”

Saul Fights the Philistines

1 Saul lived for one year and then became king, and when he had reigned for two years over Israel,⁷ 2 Saul chose three thousand men of Israel. Two thousand were with Saul in ^kMichmash and the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in ^lGibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the people he sent home, every man to his tent. 3 Jonathan defeated ^mthe garrison of the Philistines that was ⁿat Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul ^oblew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear.” 4 And all Israel heard it said that Saul had defeated the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel had become a stench to the Philistines. And the people were called out to join Saul at Gilgal.

5 And the Philistines mustered to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen and troops ^plike the sand on the seashore in multitude. They came up and encamped in Michmash, to the east of ^qBeth-aven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in trouble (for the people were hard pressed), the people hid themselves ^rin caves and in holes and in rocks and in tombs and in cisterns, 7 and some Hebrews crossed the fords of the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul was still at Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

Saul’s Unlawful Sacrifice

8 ^sHe waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering from him. 9 So Saul said, “Bring the burnt offering here to me, and the peace offerings.” And he offered the burnt offering. 10 As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came. And Saul went out to meet him and greet him. 11 Samuel said, “What have you done?” And Saul said, “When I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines had mustered at Michmash, 12 I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the favor of the Lord.’ So I forced myself, and offered the burnt offering.” 13 And Samuel said to Saul, ^t“You have done foolishly. ^uYou have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you. For then the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. 14 But now ^vyour kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought out a man ^wafter his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince⁸ over his people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.” 15 And Samuel arose and went up from Gilgal. The rest of the people went up after Saul to meet the army; they went up from Gilgal⁹ to ^xGibeah of Benjamin.

And Saul numbered the people who were present with him, ^yabout six hundred men. 16 And Saul and Jonathan his son and the people who were present with them stayed in ^zGeba of Benjamin, but the Philistines encamped in Michmash. 17 And ^araiders came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies. One company turned toward Ophrah, to the land of Shual; 18 another company turned toward ^bBeth-horon; and another company turned toward the border that looks down on the Valley of ^cZeboim toward the wilderness.

19 ^dNow there was no blacksmith to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, “Lest the Hebrews make themselves swords or spears.” 20 But every one of the Israelites went down to the Philistines to sharpen his plowshare, his mattock, his axe, or his sickle,¹⁰ 21 and the charge was two-thirds of a shekel¹¹ for the plowshares and for the mattocks, and a third of a shekel¹² for sharpening the axes and for setting the goads.¹³ 22 So on the day of the battle ^ethere was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people with Saul and Jonathan, but Saul and Jonathan his son had them. 23 And ^fthe garrison of the Philistines went out to the ^gpass of ^hMichmash.

Do Not Forsake Me, O Lord

A Psalm of David, ^lfor the memorial offering.

The Conversion of Saul

1 But Saul, ^bstill ^cbreathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to ^dthe high priest 2 and asked him for letters ^eto the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to ^fthe Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 ^gNow as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. 4 And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting ^hme?” 5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, ^hwhom you are persecuting. 6 But ⁱrise and enter the city, and you will be told ^jwhat you are to do.” 7 ^kThe men who were traveling with him stood speechless, ^lhearing the voice but seeing no one. 8 Saul rose from the ground, and although his eyes were opened, ^mhe saw nothing. So they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

10 Now there was a disciple at Damascus named ⁿAnanias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, ^o“Here I am, Lord.” 11 And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man ^pof Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and ^qlay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” 13 But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, ^rhow much evil he has done to ^syour ^tsaints at Jerusalem. 14 And here he has authority from ^uthe chief priests to bind all who ^vcall on your name.” 15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for ^whe is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name ^xbefore the Gentiles and ^ykings and the children of Israel. 16 For ^zI will show him how much ^ahe must suffer ^bfor the sake of my name.” 17 So ^cAnanias departed and entered the house. And ^dlaying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and ^ebe filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and ^fhe regained his sight. Then ^ghe rose and was baptized; 19 and ^htaking food, he was strengthened.

Saul Proclaims Jesus in Synagogues

For ⁱsome days he was with the disciples at Damascus. 20 And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ^j“He is the Son of God.” 21 And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who ^kmade havoc ^lin Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?” 22 But Saul ^mincreased all the more in strength, and ⁿconfounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving ^othat Jesus was the Christ.

Saul Escapes from Damascus

23 ^pWhen many days had passed, the Jews¹ plotted to kill him, 24 but their ^qplot became known to Saul. ^rThey were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, 25 but his disciples took him by night and ^slet him down through an opening in the wall,² lowering him in a basket.

Saul in Jerusalem

26 And ^twhen he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. 27 But ^uBarnabas took him and ^vbrought him to the apostles and declared to them ^whow on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and ^xhow at Damascus he had ^ypreached boldly in the name of Jesus. 28 So he went ^zin and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. 29 And he spoke and disputed against ^athe Hellenists.³ But ^bthey were seeking to kill him. 30 And when ^cthe brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off ^dto Tarsus.

31 So ^ethe church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And ^fwalking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, ^git multiplied.

The Healing of Aeneas

32 Now ^has Peter went here and there among them all, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda. 33 There he found a man named Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, who was paralyzed. 34 And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, ⁱJesus Christ heals you; rise and make your bed.” And immediately he rose. 35 ^jAnd all the residents of Lydda and ^kSharon saw him, and ^lthey turned to the Lord.

Dorcas Restored to Life

36 Now there was in ^mJoppa a disciple named Tabitha, which, translated, means Dorcas.⁴ She was full of ⁿgood works and acts of charity. 37 In those days she became ill and died, and when they had washed her, they laid her in ^oan upper room. 38 Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, urging him, ^p“Please come to us without delay.” 39 So Peter rose and went with them. And when he arrived, they took him to ^qthe upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping and showing tunics⁵ and other garments that Dorcas made while she was with them. 40 But Peter ^rput them all outside, and ^sknelt down and prayed; and turning to the body ^the said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. 41 And he gave her his hand and raised her up. Then, calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive. 42 And it became known throughout all Joppa, and ^umany believed in the Lord. 43 And he stayed in Joppa for many days ^vwith one Simon, a tanner.