1 Samuel 14:9-25
New American Standard Bible
Chapter 14
9If they say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you’; then we will stand in our place and not go up to them. 10But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up, for the Lord has handed them over to us; and this shall be the sign to us.' 11When the two of them revealed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines, the Philistines said, 'Behold, Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have kept themselves hidden.' 12So the men of the garrison responded to Jonathan and his armor bearer and said, 'Come up to us and we will inform you of something.' And Jonathan said to his armor bearer, 'Come up after me, for the Lord has handed them over to Israel.' 13Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer behind him; and the men fell before Jonathan, and his armor bearer put some to death after him. 14Now that first slaughter which Jonathan and his armor bearer inflicted was about twenty men within about half a furrow in an acre of land. 15And there was a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. Even the garrison and the raiders trembled, and the earth quaked so that it became a great trembling.
16Now Saul’s watchmen in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold, the multitude dissolved; they went here and there.
17So Saul said to the people who were with him, 'Look carefully now and see who has left us.' And when they had looked, behold, Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.
18Then Saul said to Ahijah, 'Bring the ark of God here.' For at that time the ark of God was with the sons of Israel.
19While Saul talked to the priest, the commotion in the camp of the Philistines continued and increased; so Saul said to the priest, 'Withdraw your hand.'
20Then Saul and all the people who were with him rallied and came to the battle; and behold, every man’s sword was against his fellow Philistine, and there was very great confusion.
21Now the Hebrews who were with the Philistines previously, who went up with them all around in the camp, even they also returned to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.
22When all the men of Israel who had kept themselves hidden in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, they also closely pursued them in the battle.
23So the Lord saved Israel that day, and the battle spread beyond Beth-aven.
24Now the men of Israel were hard-pressed on that day, for Saul had put the people under oath, saying, 'Cursed be the man who eats food before evening, and before I have avenged myself on my enemies.' So none of the people tasted food.
25All the people of the land entered the forest, and there was honey on the ground.
King James Version
Chapter 14
9If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them. 10But if they say thus, Come up unto us; then we will go up: for the Lord hath delivered them into our hand: and this shall be a sign unto us.
11And both of them discovered themselves unto the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves.
12And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armourbearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan said unto his armourbearer, Come up after me: for the Lord hath delivered them into the hand of Israel.
13And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armourbearer after him: and they fell before Jonathan; and his armourbearer slew after him.
14And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armourbearer made, was about twenty men, within as it were an half acre of land, which a yoke of oxen might plow.
16And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked; and, behold, the multitude melted away, and they went on beating down one another.
17Then said Saul unto the people that were with him, Number now, and see who is gone from us. And when they had numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armourbearer were not there.
18And Saul said unto Ahiah, Bring hither the ark of God. For the ark of God was at that time with the children of Israel.
19And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the noise that was in the host of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said unto the priest, Withdraw thine hand.
20And Saul and all the people that were with him assembled themselves, and they came to the battle: and, behold, every man's sword was against his fellow, and there was a very great discomfiture.
21Moreover the Hebrews that were with the Philistines before that time, which went up with them into the camp from the country round about, even they also turned to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan.
22Likewise all the men of Israel which had hid themselves in mount Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, even they also followed hard after them in the battle.
23So the Lord saved Israel that day: and the battle passed over unto Bethaven.
24And the men of Israel were distressed that day: for Saul had adjured the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be avenged on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted any food.
Christian Standard Bible
Chapter 14
9If they say, ‘Wait until we reach you,’ then we will stay where we are and not go up to them. 10But if they say, ‘Come on up,’ then we’ll go up, because the Lord has handed them over to us—that will be our sign."
12The men of the garrison called to Jonathan and his armor-bearer. "Come on up, and we’ll teach you a lesson!" they said. "Follow me," Jonathan told his armor-bearer, "for the Lord has handed them over to Israel."
13Jonathan climbed up using his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer behind him. Jonathan cut them down, and his armor-bearer followed and finished them off.
14In that first assault Jonathan and his armor-bearer struck down about twenty men in a half-acre field.
15Terror spread through the Philistine camp and the open fields to all the troops. Even the garrison and the raiding parties were terrified. The earth shook, and terror spread from God.
16When Saul’s watchmen in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, they saw the panicking troops scattering in every direction.
17So Saul said to the troops with him, "Call the roll and determine who has left us." They called the roll and saw that Jonathan and his armor-bearer were gone.
18Saul told Ahijah, "Bring the ark of God," for it was with the Israelites at that time.
19While Saul spoke to the priest, the panic in the Philistine camp increased in intensity. So Saul said to the priest, "Stop what you’re doing."
20Saul and all the troops with him assembled and marched to the battle, and there the Philistines were, fighting against each other in great confusion!
21There were Hebrews from the area who had gone earlier into the camp to join the Philistines, but even they joined the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.
22When all the Israelite men who had been hiding in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were fleeing, they also joined Saul and Jonathan in the battle.
23So the Lord saved Israel that day. The battle extended beyond Beth-aven,
24and the men of Israel were worn out that day, for Saul had placed the troops under an oath: "The man who eats food before evening, before I have taken vengeance on my enemies is cursed." So none of the troops tasted any food.
New Living Translation
Chapter 14
9If they say to us, ‘Stay where you are or we’ll kill you,’ then we will stop and not go up to them. 10But if they say, ‘Come on up and fight,’ then we will go up. That will be the Lord’s sign that he will help us defeat them.'
13So they climbed up using both hands and feet, and the Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armor bearer killed those who came behind them.
14They killed some twenty men in all, and their bodies were scattered over about half an acre.
16Saul’s lookouts in Gibeah of Benjamin saw a strange sight — the vast army of Philistines began to melt away in every direction.
17Call the roll and find out who’s missing,' Saul ordered. And when they checked, they found that Jonathan and his armor bearer were gone.
18Then Saul shouted to Ahijah, 'Bring the ephod here!' For at that time Ahijah was wearing the ephod in front of the Israelites.
19But while Saul was talking to the priest, the confusion in the Philistine camp grew louder and louder. So Saul said to the priest, 'Never mind; let’s get going!'
20Then Saul and all his men rushed out to the battle and found the Philistines killing each other. There was terrible confusion everywhere.
21Even the Hebrews who had previously gone over to the Philistine army revolted and joined in with Saul, Jonathan, and the rest of the Israelites.
22Likewise, the men of Israel who were hiding in the hill country of Ephraim joined the chase when they saw the Philistines running away.
23So the Lord saved Israel that day, and the battle continued to rage even beyond Beth-aven.
24Now the men of Israel were pressed to exhaustion that day, because Saul had placed them under an oath, saying, 'Let a curse fall on anyone who eats before evening — before I have full revenge on my enemies.' So no one ate anything all day,
25even though they had all found honeycomb on the ground in the forest.
English Standard Version
Chapter 14
9If they say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we will stand still in our place, and we will not go up to them. 10But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up, for the Lord has given them into our hand. And this shall be the sign to us." 11So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines. And the Philistines said, "Look, Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden themselves." 12And the men of the garrison hailed Jonathan and his armor-bearer and said, "Come up to us, and we will show you a thing." And Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, "Come up after me, for the Lord has given them into the hand of Israel." 13Then Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, and his armor-bearer after him. And they fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer killed them after him. 14And that first strike, which Jonathan and his armor-bearer made, killed about twenty men within as it were half a furrow 's length in an acre of land. 15And there was a panic in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. The garrison and even the raiders trembled, the earth quaked, and it became a very great panic.
16And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold, the multitude was dispersing here and there.
17Then Saul said to the people who were with him, "Count and see who has gone from us." And when they had counted, behold, Jonathan and his armor-bearer were not there.
18So Saul said to Ahijah, "Bring the ark of God here." For the ark of God went at that time with the people of Israel.
19Now while Saul was talking to the priest, the tumult in the camp of the Philistines increased more and more. So Saul said to the priest, "Withdraw your hand."
20Then Saul and all the people who were with him rallied and went into the battle. And behold, every Philistine 's sword was against his fellow, and there was very great confusion.
21Now the Hebrews who had been with the Philistines before that time and who had gone up with them into the camp, even they also turned to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.
22Likewise, when all the men of Israel who had hidden themselves in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were fleeing, they too followed hard after them in the battle.
23So the Lord saved Israel that day. And the battle passed beyond Beth-aven.
24And the men of Israel had been hard pressed that day, so Saul had laid an oath on the people, saying, "Cursed be the man who eats food until it is evening and I am avenged on my enemies." So none of the people had tasted food.
25Now when all the people came to the forest, behold, there was honey on the ground.
New International Version
Chapter 14
9If they say to us, ‘Wait there until we come to you,’ we will stay where we are and not go up to them. 10But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ we will climb up, because that will be our sign that the Lord has given them into our hands."
13Jonathan climbed up, using his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer right behind him. The Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer followed and killed behind him.
14In that first attack Jonathan and his armor-bearer killed some twenty men in an area of about half an acre.
16Saul’s lookouts at Gibeah in Benjamin saw the army melting away in all directions.
17Then Saul said to the men who were with him, "Muster the forces and see who has left us." When they did, it was Jonathan and his armor-bearer who were not there.
18Saul said to Ahijah, "Bring the ark of God." (At that time it was with the Israelites.)
19While Saul was talking to the priest, the tumult in the Philistine camp increased more and more. So Saul said to the priest, "Withdraw your hand."
20Then Saul and all his men assembled and went to the battle. They found the Philistines in total confusion, striking each other with their swords.
21Those Hebrews who had previously been with the Philistines and had gone up with them to their camp went over to the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.
22When all the Israelites who had hidden in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines were on the run, they joined the battle in hot pursuit.
23So on that day the Lord saved Israel, and the battle moved on beyond Beth Aven.
New King James Version
Chapter 14
9If they say thus to us, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we will stand still in our place and not go up to them. 10But if they say thus, ‘Come up to us,’ then we will go up. For the Lord has delivered them into our hand, and this will be a sign to us.”
12Then the men of the garrison called to Jonathan and his armorbearer, and said, “Come up to us, and we will show you something.” Jonathan said to his armorbearer, “Come up after me, for the Lord has delivered them into the hand of Israel.”
13And Jonathan climbed up on his hands and knees with his armorbearer after him; and they fell before Jonathan. And as he came after him, his armorbearer killed them.
14That first slaughter which Jonathan and his armorbearer made was about twenty men within about half an acre of land.
15And there was trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. The garrison and the raiders also trembled; and the earth quaked, so that it was a very great trembling.
16Now the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and there was the multitude, melting away; and they went here and there.
17Then Saul said to the people who were with him, “Now call the roll and see who has gone from us.” And when they had called the roll, surprisingly, Jonathan and his armorbearer were not there.
18And Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring the ark of God here” (for at that time the ark of God was with the children of Israel).
19Now it happened, while Saul talked to the priest, that the noise which was in the camp of the Philistines continued to increase; so Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.”
20Then Saul and all the people who were with him assembled, and they went to the battle; and indeed every man’s sword was against his neighbor, and there was very great confusion.
21Moreover the Hebrews who were with the Philistines before that time, who went up with them into the camp from the surrounding country, they also joined the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.
22Likewise all the men of Israel who had hidden in the mountains of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, they also followed hard after them in the battle.
23So the Lord saved Israel that day, and the battle shifted to Beth Aven.
24And the men of Israel were distressed that day, for Saul had placed the people under oath, saying, “Cursed is the man who eats any food until evening, before I have taken vengeance on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food.
25Now all the people of the land came to a forest; and there was honey on the ground.
