1 Samuel 11:1-15
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 11
1Now Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, 'Make a covenant with us and we will serve you.' 2But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, 'I will make it with you on this condition, that I will gouge out the right eye of every one of you, and thereby I will inflict a disgrace on all Israel.' 3So the elders of Jabesh said to him, 'Allow us seven days to send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you.' 4Then the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and spoke these words in the hearing of the people, and all the people raised their voices and wept.
5Now behold, Saul was coming from the field behind the oxen, and Saul said, 'What is the matter with the people that they weep?' So they reported to him the words of the men of Jabesh.
6Then the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and he became very angry.
7He then took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout the territory of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying, 'Whoever does not come out after Saul and after Samuel, the same shall be done to his oxen.' Then the dread of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out as one person.
8He counted them in Bezek; and the sons of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah, thirty thousand.
9They said to the messengers who had come, 'This is what you shall say to the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you will be saved.’?' So the messengers went and told the men of Jabesh; and they rejoiced.
10Then the men of Jabesh said, 'Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.'
11The next morning Saul put the people in three companies; and they came into the midst of the camp at the morning watch, and struck and killed the Ammonites until the heat of the day. And those who survived scattered, so that no two of them were left together.
12Then the people said to Samuel, 'Who is he that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ Bring the men, so that we may put them to death!'
13But Saul said, 'Not a single person shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has brought about victory in Israel.'
14Then Samuel said to the people, 'Come, and let us go to Gilgal and renew the kingdom there.'
15So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they also offered sacrifices of peace offerings before the Lord; and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
King James Version
4Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul, and told the tidings in the ears of the people: and all the people lifted up their voices, and wept.
5And, behold, Saul came after the herd out of the field; and Saul said, What aileth the people that they weep? And they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh.
6And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was kindled greatly.
7And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the coasts of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done unto his oxen. And the fear of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out with one consent.
8And when he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.
9And they said unto the messengers that came, Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabeshgilead, To morrow, by that time the sun be hot, ye shall have help. And the messengers came and shewed it to the men of Jabesh; and they were glad.
10Therefore the men of Jabesh said, To morrow we will come out unto you, and ye shall do with us all that seemeth good unto you.
11And it was so on the morrow, that Saul put the people in three companies; and they came into the midst of the host in the morning watch, and slew the Ammonites until the heat of the day: and it came to pass, that they which remained were scattered, so that two of them were not left together.
12And the people said unto Samuel, Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over us? bring the men, that we may put them to death.
13And Saul said, There shall not a man be put to death this day: for to day the Lord hath wrought salvation in Israel.
14Then said Samuel to the people, Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there.
15And all the people went to Gilgal; and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal; and there they sacrificed sacrifices of peace offerings before the Lord; and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
Christian Standard Bible
4When the messengers came to Gibeah, Saul’s hometown, and told the terms to the people, all wept aloud.
5Just then Saul was coming in from the field behind his oxen. "What’s the matter with the people? Why are they weeping?" Saul inquired, and they repeated to him the words of the men from Jabesh.
6When Saul heard these words, the Spirit of God suddenly came powerfully on him, and his anger burned furiously.
7He took a team of oxen, cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout the territory of Israel by messengers who said, "This is what will be done to the ox of anyone who doesn’t march behind Saul and Samuel." As a result, the terror of the Lord fell on the people, and they went out united.
8Saul counted them at Bezek. There were three hundred thousand Israelites and thirty thousand men from Judah.
9He told the messengers who had come, "Tell this to the men of Jabesh-gilead: ‘Deliverance will be yours tomorrow by the time the sun is hot.’" So the messengers told the men of Jabesh, and they rejoiced.
14Then Samuel said to the people, "Come, let’s go to Gilgal, so we can renew the kingship there."
15So all the people went to Gilgal, and there in the Lord’s presence they made Saul king. There they sacrificed fellowship offerings in the Lord’s presence, and Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
New Living Translation
4When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the people about their plight, everyone broke into tears.
5Saul had been plowing a field with his oxen, and when he returned to town, he asked, 'What’s the matter? Why is everyone crying?' So they told him about the message from Jabesh.
6Then the Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he became very angry.
7He took two oxen and cut them into pieces and sent the messengers to carry them throughout Israel with this message: 'This is what will happen to the oxen of anyone who refuses to follow Saul and Samuel into battle!' And the Lord made the people afraid of Saul’s anger, and all of them came out together as one.
8When Saul mobilized them at Bezek, he found that there were 300,000 men from Israel and 30,000 men from Judah.
10The men of Jabesh then told their enemies, 'Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you can do to us whatever you wish.'
11But before dawn the next morning, Saul arrived, having divided his army into three detachments. He launched a surprise attack against the Ammonites and slaughtered them the whole morning. The remnant of their army was so badly scattered that no two of them were left together.
English Standard Version
Chapter 11
1Then Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead, and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, "Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you." 2But Nahash the Ammonite said to them, "On this condition I will make a treaty with you, that I gouge out all your right eyes, and thus bring disgrace on all Israel." 3The 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." 4When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, they reported the matter in the ears of the people, and all the people wept aloud.
5Now, 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.
6And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled.
7He took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of the messengers, saying, "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 as one man.
8When he mustered them at Bezek, the people of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.
9And 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 salvation.’" When the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh, they were glad.
10Therefore the men of Jabesh said, "Tomorrow we will give ourselves up to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you."
11And the next day Saul put the people in 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.
12Then the people said to Samuel, "Who is it that said, ‘Shall Saul reign over us?’ Bring the men, that we may put them to death."
13But Saul said, "Not a man shall be put to death this day, for today the Lord has worked salvation in Israel."
14Then Samuel said to the people, "Come, let us go to Gilgal and there renew the kingdom."
15So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they sacrificed peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
New International Version
4When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and reported these terms to the people, they all wept aloud.
5Just then Saul was returning from the fields, behind his oxen, and he asked, "What is wrong with everyone? Why are they weeping?" Then they repeated to him what the men of Jabesh had said.
6When Saul heard their words, the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him, and he burned with anger.
7He took a pair of oxen, cut them into pieces, and sent the pieces by messengers throughout Israel, proclaiming, "This is what will be done to the oxen of anyone who does not follow Saul and Samuel." Then the terror of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out together as one.
8When Saul mustered them at Bezek, the men of Israel numbered three hundred thousand and those of Judah thirty thousand.
9They told the messengers who had come, "Say to the men of Jabesh Gilead, ‘By the time the sun is hot tomorrow, you will be rescued.’ " When the messengers went and reported this to the men of Jabesh, they were elated.
10They said to the Ammonites, "Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you can do to us whatever you like."
New King James Version
4So the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the news in the hearing of the people. And all the people lifted up their voices and wept.
5Now there was Saul, coming behind the herd from the field; and Saul said, “What troubles the people, that they weep?” And they told him the words of the men of Jabesh.
6Then the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard this news, and his anger was greatly aroused.
7So he took a yoke of oxen and cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the territory of Israel by the hands of messengers, saying, “Whoever does not go out with Saul and Samuel to battle, so it shall be done to his oxen.” And the fear of the Lord fell on the people, and they came out with one consent.
8When he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.
9And they said to the messengers who came, “Thus you shall say to the men of Jabesh Gilead: ‘Tomorrow, by the time the sun is hot, you shall have help.’ ” Then the messengers came and reported it to the men of Jabesh, and they were glad.
10Therefore the men of Jabesh said, “Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you may do with us whatever seems good to you.”
14Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal and renew the kingdom there.”
15So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they made sacrifices of peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
