1Samuel:28-31

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* And it came to pass in those days , that the Philistines gathered their camps together for warfare , to fight with Israel ; and Achish said unto David , Thou must know that thou shalt go out with me into the camp , thou and thy men . * And David said to Achish , By reason of this wilt thou thyself ascertain what thy servant will do . And Achish said to David , Therefore will I make thee the guard of my head for all times . * Now Samuel was dead , and all Israel had lamented him , and buried him in Ramah , even in his own city ; and Saul had removed those that had familiar spirits , and the wizards , out of the land . * And the Philistines assembled themselves together , and came and encamped at Shunem : and Saul assembled together all Israel , and they encamped at Gilboa ’. * And when Saul saw the camp of the Philistines , he was afraid , and his heart trembled greatly . * And Saul asked counsel of the Lord ; but the Lord answered him not , either by means of dreams , or by means of the Urim , or by means of the prophets . * Then said Saul unto his servants , Seek out for me a woman that hath a familiar spirit , that I may go to her and inquire of her . And his servants said to him , Behold , there is a woman that hath a familiar spirit at ‘En –dor . * And Saul disguised himself , and put on other garments , and he went , he and two men with him , and they came to the woman by night : and he said , Divine , I pray thee , unto me by the familiar spirit , and bring up for me the one whom I shall say unto thee . * And the woman said unto him , Behold , thou well knowest that which Saul hath done , that he hath cut off those that have familiar spirits , and the wizards , out of the land ; wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life , to cause me to die ? * And Saul swore to her by the Lord , saying , As the Lord liveth , there shall no guilt attach to thee for this thing . * Then said the woman , Whom shall I bring up for thee ? And he said , Samuel thou must bring up for me . * And when the woman saw Samuel , she cried with a loud voice : and the woman said to Saul thus , Why hast thou deceived me ? since thou art Saul . * And the king said unto her , Be not afraid ; however , what hast thou seen ? And the woman said unto Saul , A divine being have I seen ascending out of the earth . * And he said unto her , What is his form ? And she said , An old man is coming up ; and he is wrapt in a mantle . And so Saul perceived that it was Samuel , and he bowed with his face to the ground , and prostrated himself . * And Samuel said to Saul , Why hast thou disquieted me , to bring me up ? And Saul answered , I am greatly distressed , and the Philistines make war against me , and God is departed from me , and hath not answered me any more , either by the agency of the prophets , or by means of dreams ; wherefore I have called thee , to make known unto me what I shall do . * Then said Samuel , And why wilt thou ask me , seeing the Lord is departed from thee , and is become thy enemy ? * And the Lord hath done for himself as he hath spoken through my agency ; and the Lord hath rent the government out of thy hand , and hath given it to thy associate , to David ; * As thou didst not obey the voice of the Lord , and didst not execute his fierce wrath upon ‘Amalek ; therefore hath the Lord done this thing unto thee this day . * And the Lord will deliver also Israel with thee into the hand of the Philistines ; and tomorrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me : also the camp of Israel will the Lord deliver into the hand of the Philistines . * Then fell Saul hastily with his full length to the earth , and was greatly afraid , because of the words of Samuel : there was also no strength in him ; for he had not eaten any food all that day , and all that night . * And the woman came unto Saul , and saw that he was greatly terrified ; and she said unto him , Behold , thy hand –maid hath obeyed thy voice ; and I put my life in my hand , and hearkened unto thy words which thou spokest unto me . * And now , hearken thou also , I pray thee , unto the voice of thy hand –maid , and let me set before thee a morsel of bread , and eat ; that thou mayest have strength when thou goest on the way . * But he refused , and said , I will not eat . But his servants urged him much , as also the woman ; and he hearkened unto their voice . So he arose from the earth , and sat upon the bed . * And the woman had a fatted calf in the house ; and she hastened , and slaughtered it , and took flour , and kneaded it , and baked unleavened bread thereof : * And she brought it near before Saul , and before his servants ; and they ate . Then they rose up , and went away that night . * Now the Philistines assembled together all their camps at Aphek : and the Israelites encamped by the spring which is by Yizre ’el . * And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds , and by thousands ; but David and his men passed on at the last with Achish . * Then said the princes of the Philistines , What are these Hebrews to do ? And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines , Behold , this is David , the servant of Saul the king of Israel , who hath been with me already a year , or even years , and I have not found the least in him from the day of his joining until this day ? * And the princes of the Philistines were angry with him ; and the princes of the Philistines said unto him , Cause this man to go back , that he may return to his place whither thou hast assigned him ; but he shall not go down with us to the battle , that he may not become an adversary to us in the battle ; for wherewith could this person reconcile himself unto his master ? is it not by means of the heads of these men ? * Is not this David , of whom they sang one to another in the dances , saying , Saul hath slain his thousands , and David his ten thousands ? * Then did Achish call David , and say unto him , As the Lord liveth , that thou art upright , and that thy going out and thy coming in with me in the camp is good in my eyes ; for I have not found in thee any evil from the day of thy coming unto me until this day ; nevertheless in the eyes of the lords thou art not good . * And now return , and go in peace , that thou mayest not do any evil in the eyes of the lords of the Philistines . * And David said unto Achish , But what have I done ? and what hast thou found in thy servant from the day that I have been before thee , until this day , that I shall not go to fight against the enemies of my Lord the king ? * And Achish answered and said to David , I know that thou art good in my eyes , as an angel of God ; nevertheless , the princes of the Philistines have said , He shall not go up with us to the battle . * And now rise up early in the morning with the servants of thy master that are come with thee : and rise then up early in the morning , and when ye have light , go away . * And David and his men rose up early to go away in the morning , to return unto the land of the Philistines ; but the Philistines went up to Yizre ’el . * And it came to pass when David and his men came to Ziklag on the third day , that the ‘Amalekites had invaded the south , and Ziklag , and smitten Ziklag , and burnt it with fire ; * And had taken captive the women that were therein , both great and small : they had not slain any one , but had led them off , and gone on their way . * When therefore David and his men came to the city , behold , it was burnt with fire ; and their wives , and their sons , and their daughters , had been taken captive . * And David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept , until they had no more power to weep . * And the two wives of David were also taken captive , Achino ’am the Yizre ’elitess , and Abigayil the wife of Nabal the Carmelite . * And David was greatly distressed ; for the people spoke of stoning him , because the soul of all the people was imbittered , every man for his sons and for his daughters ; but David fortified himself in the Lord his God . * And David said to Ebyathar the priest , the son of Achimelech , Bring hither , I pray thee , unto me the ephod . And Ebyathar brought the ephod near unto David . * And David asked counsel of the Lord , saying , Shall I pursue after this troop ! shall I overtake them ? And he said to him , Pursue ; for thou wilt surely overtake them , and certainly recover . * So David went , he and the six hundred men that were with him , and came up to the brook Bessor , where those that were left behind stayed . * But David pursued on , he and four hundred men ; and there stayed behind two hundred men , who were too fatigued to go over the brook Bessor . * And they found an Egyptian man in the field , and took him to David , and gave him bread , and he did eat ; and they made him drink water ; * And they gave him a piece of a cake of figs , and two clusters of raisins , and he ate , and then his spirit returned to him ; for he had not eaten any bread , nor drunk any water , three days and three nights . * And David said unto him , To whom belongest thou ? and whence art thou ? And he said , I am a young Egyptian man , the servant to an ‘Amalekite ; and my master left me behind , because I fell sick , today three days ago . * We made an invasion upon the south of the Kerethites , and upon that which belongeth to Judah , and upon the south of Caleb ; and Ziklag did we burn with fire . * And David said to him , Wilt thou bring me down to this troop ? And he said , Swear unto me by God , that thou wilt not kill me , and that thou wilt not surrender me into the hand of my master , and then will I bring thee down to this troop . * And he brought him down ; and behold , they were scattered over the face of all the country , eating and drinking , and dancing for joy , because of all the great spoil which they had taken out of the land of the Philistines , and out of the land of Judah . * And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day ; and there escaped not a man of them , save four hundred young men , who rode upon camels , and fled . * And David recovered all that the ‘Amalekites had taken away ; and his two wives also did David rescue . * And there was nothing missing to them , from small to great , as also sons and daughters , and spoil , down to every thing that they had taken from them : the whole did David bring back . * And David took all the flocks and the herds : these they drove before those other cattle , and said , This is David ’s spoil . * And David came to the two hundred men , who had been too fatigued to follow after David , and whom they had left to remain at the brook Bessor : and they went forth to meet David , and to meet the people that were with him ; and David came near to the people , and asked them after their well –being . * Then exclaimed every wicked and worthless man , of those that had gone with David , and said , Because they went not with us , we will not give them aught of the spoil that we have recovered , save to every man his wife and his children , and these they may lead away , and go . * Then said David , Ye must not do so , my brethren ; since the Lord hath given us this , and guarded us , and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand . * And who will hearken unto you in this matter ? but as is the part of him that went down to the battle , so shall be the part of him that remained with the baggage : together must they share . * And it happened from that day and forward , that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel until this day . * And when David came to Ziklag , he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah , to his friends , saying , Behold , here is a present for you from the spoil of the enemies of the Lord : * To those who were in Beth –el , and to those who were in south Ramoth , and to those who were in Yattir , * And to those who were in ‘Aro ’er , and to those who were in Siphmoth , and to those who were in Eshtemoa ’, * And to those who were in Rachal , and to those who were in the cities of Yerach –meelites , and to those who were in the cities of the Kenites , * And to those who were in Chormah , and to those who were in Kor –’ashan , and to those who were in ‘Athach , * And to those who were in Hebron , and to all the places where David himself and his men had wandered about . * Now the Philistines fought against Israel ; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines , and there fell down slain on mount Gilboa ’. * And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons ; and the Philistines smote Jonathan , and Abinadab , and Malkishua ’, the sons of Saul . * And the battle was heavy against Saul , and he was found by the archers , the men with bows ; and he was greatly in dread of the archers . * And Saul said unto his armor –bearer , Draw thy sword , and thrust me through therewith ; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through , and wantonly ill –use me . But his armor –bearer would not ; for he was greatly afraid ; wherefore Saul took the sword , and fell upon it . * And when his armor –bearer saw that Saul was dead , then fell he likewise upon his sword , and died with him . * Thus died Saul , and his three sons , and his armor –bearer , also all his men , on that same day together . * And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley , and those that were on the other side of the Jordan , saw that the men of Israel had fled , and that Saul and his sons had died : they forsook the cities , and fled away ; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them . * And it came to pass on the morrow , that the Philistines came to strip the slain ; and they found Saul and his three sons fallen on mount Gilboa ’. * And they cut off his head , and stripped off his armor , and sent it into the land of the Philistines round about , to publish it in the house of their idols , and among the people . * And they put his armor in the house of ‘Ashtaroth ; and his body they fastened to the wall of Beth –shan . * And when the inhabitants of Yabeshgil ’ad heard concerning him that which the Philistines had done to Saul : * Then arose all the valiant men , and walked all the night , and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth –shan , and they came to Yabesh , and burnt them there . * And they took their bones , and buried them under the tamarisk –tree at Yabesh , and they fasted seven days .

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