1 Samuel 13
1 Sawl ni kum touh a uk teh Isarelnaw apâhni kum a uknae kum dawk,
Saul was no longer a young man when he became the king. He ruled Israel for 42 years.
2 Sawl ni Isarelnaw tami 3,000 touh a rawi. Tami 2000 touh teh Mikmash hoi Bethel mon dawk Sawl koe ao awh teh, 1,000 touh teh Benjamin ram Gilead vah Jonathan koe ao awh. Alouknaw pueng teh amamouh onae koe rim dawk lengkaleng a ban sak.
[Several years after he became king], he chose three thousand men from the Israeli army to go with him [to fight the Philistines]. Then he sent the other soldiers back home. Of the men he chose, 2,000 stayed with Saul at Micmash and in the hilly area near Bethel, and 1,000 stayed with [Saul’s son] Jonathan at Gibeah, in the area where the descendants of Benjamin lived.
3 Jonathan ni Geba vah Filistin kho ramveng a thei e hah Filistinnaw ni a thai awh. Sawl ni Hebrunaw ni hai thai naseh a titeh, ram pueng dawk mongka a ueng sak.
Jonathan [and the men who were with him] attacked the Philistine soldiers who were camped at Geba. The [other] Philistines heard about that. [So Saul realized that the army of Philistia would probably come to fight the Israelis again]. So Saul [sent messengers to] blow trumpets throughout Israel [to gather the people together and] proclaim to them, “All you Hebrews need to hear [that now the Philistines will start a war with us]!”
4 Isarel miphunnaw ni Filistin kho ramveng Sawl ni a thei e hah, Filistinnaw han Isarelnaw teh panuetthopounge lah ao e a thai awh navah, Gilgal kho kaawm e Sawl koe cei hanelah tamimaya teh a kaw awh.
The messengers told the rest of the army to gather together with Saul at Gilgal. And all the people in Israel heard the news. People were saying, “Saul’s army has attacked the Philistine camp, with the result that now the Philistines hate us Israelis very much.”
5 Filistinnaw teh Isarelnaw tuk hanelah, a kamkhueng awh. Rangleng 30,000, marangransanaw 6,000 hoi tuipui rai e sadi patetlah kapap e ransanaw ao awh teh Bethaven kho Kanîtholae Mikmash kho dawk a roe awh.
The Philistines gathered together and were given equipment to fight the Israelis. The Philistines had 3,000 chariots, and 6,000 chariot-drivers. Their soldiers [seemed to be as many] as grains of sand on the seashore [HYP]. They went up and set up their tents at Micmash, to the east of Beth-Aven ([which means ‘house of wickedness’, and really referred to Bethel town]).
6 Isarelnaw ni takikatho poung e thung ka o tie a panue awh navah, atangawn talung kâko, buruk thung, atangawn talungnaw e rahak vah, tumdum e thung, talai kâko dawk a kâhro awh.
The Philistines attacked the Israelis very strongly, and the Israeli soldiers realized that they were in a very bad situation. So many of the Israeli soldiers hid in caves and holes in the ground, or among the rocks, or in pits, or in wells.
7 Hebru miphunnaw tangawn Jordan tui namran Gad hoi Gilead ram dawk a kâran awh. Sawl teh Gilgal vah ao. Tamihu ni taki pâyaw laihoi a hnuk a kâbang awh.
Some of them crossed the Jordan River at a place where it was very shallow. Then they went to the area where the descendants of Gad lived and to [the] Gilead [region]. But Saul stayed at Gilgal. All the soldiers who were with him were shaking [because they were so afraid].
8 Samuel ni hnin a khoe e patetlah hnin 7 touh a ring. Hatei Samuel teh Gilgal vah tho hoeh, a hnukkâbang e naw ni ahni teh a kâran takhai awh.
Saul waited seven days, which was the number of days that Samuel had told him to wait for him. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal [during that time], so many of the men in Saul’s army began to leave him and run away.
9 Sawl ni hmaisawi thuengnae hoi roum thuengnae kai koe thokhai awh atipouh. Hottelah hmaisawi thuengnae a sak.
So Saul said to the soldiers, “Bring to me an animal to be completely burned [on the altar] and one for the offering to enable us to maintain fellowship [with God].” [So the men did that].
10 Hmaisawi thuengnae a sak hnukkhu, Samuel a tho teh Sawl ni ahni kâhmo hanelah a dawn.
And just as he was finished burning those offerings, Samuel arrived. Saul went to greet him.
11 Samuel ni bangmaw na sak atipouh. Sawl ni taminaw ni be na kâran takhai teh, atueng khoe e hnin dawk na tho hoeh. Filistinnaw Mikmash vah be a kamkhueng awh toe tie ka thai.
Samuel [saw what Saul had done, and he] said to Saul, “Why have you done this?” Saul replied, “I saw that my men were leaving me and running away, and that you did not come here during the time that you said that you would come, and that the Philistine army was gathering together at Micmash.
12 Hatdawkvah, Filistinnaw ni Gilgal vah na la tuk awh toe. BAWIPA koe pahrennae hei hane hai ka sak hoeh rah. Hatdawkvah, hmaisawi thuengnae teh sak hoeh laipalah coung hoeh toe telah ati.
“So I thought, ‘The Philistine army is going to attack us here at Gilgal, and I have not yet asked Yahweh to bless/help us.’ So I felt it was necessary to offer the burnt offerings [to seek God’s blessings].”
13 Samuel ni Sawl koe pathu poung lahoi na sak toe. BAWIPA Cathut e kâpoelawk na tarawi hoeh toe. Na tarawi pawiteh BAWIPA ni Isarelnaw lathueng uknaeram kâ pou a caksak han.
Samuel replied, “What you did was very foolish! You have not obeyed what Yahweh, your God, commanded [about sacrifices]. If you had obeyed him, God would have allowed you and your descendants to rule [Israel] for a long time.
14 Atuteh nange uknaeram cak mahoeh toe. BAWIPA ni ama lungkayouk e a tawng teh, a tami lathueng vah kahrawikung lah o hane BAWIPA ni kâ a poe toe. Bangkongtetpawiteh, BAWIPA e kâpoelawk na tarawi hoeh toe.
But now [because of what you have done, you will die, and after you die, ] none of your descendants will rule. Yahweh is seeking for a man [to be king] who will be just the kind of person that he wants him to be, so that he can appoint him to be the leader of his people. Yahweh will do this because you have not obeyed what he commanded.”
15 Samuel a thaw teh Gilgal kho hoi Benjamin ram Gibeah vah a takhang. Sawl ni ama koe kaawm e a touk teh 600 tabang a pha.
Then Samuel left Gilgal and went up to Gibeah. Saul stayed at Gilgal with his soldiers. There were only about 600 of them left [who had not run away].
16 Sawl hoi a capa Jonathan hoi ahnimouh koe rei kaawm e Benjamin ram Geba vah ao awh rah. Hatei, Filistinnaw teh Mikmash vah a tungpup awh.
Saul and his son Jonathan and the soldiers who were with them went to Geba [city] in the area of the tribe of Benjamin [and set up their tents there]. The Philistine army set up their tents at Micmash.
17 Filistinnaw e roenae hmuen koehoi taran ahu kathum touh ni a cei awh teh, Shual ram, Ophrah lah a cei awh.
Three groups of Philistia men soon left the place where their army was staying, and went and (raided the Israeli towns/attacked the Israelis and took their possessions). One group went [north] toward Ophrah [city] in [the] Shual [region].
18 Ahu buet touh ni, Bethhoron koelae lam, ahu buet touh ni Zeboiim yon kahrawngum khori koelae lam a dawn awh.
One group went [west] to Beth-Horon [city]. The third group went toward the [Israeli] border, above Zeboim Valley, near the desert.
19 Isarel abuemlah dawk sumkadêinaw buet touh boehai hmu hane awm hoeh. Bangkongtetpawiteh, Filistinnaw ni Hebrunaw teh tahroe hoi tahloi sakpayon vaih telah ati awh dawk doeh.
At that time, there were no men in Israel who (were blacksmiths/could make things from iron). [The people of Philistia would not permit the Israelis to do that, because they were afraid that] they would make iron swords and spears for the Hebrews to fight with.
20 Hottelah, Isarel taminaw teh tawkso thoseh, thunha thoseh, cakâ, tangkounnaw kata hanelah Filistinnaw koe ouk a ceikhai awh.
So [whenever the Israelis needed] to sharpen the blades of their plows, or picks, or axes, or sickles, they were forced to take those things to a Philistia man who could sharpen those things.
21 Tawkso, thunha, a hâ kathum touh samphei e tawkso, cakâ hoi sâw aphu teh Shekel phek touh doeh.
They needed to pay (one fourth of an ounce/8 grams) of silver for sharpening a plow, and (an eighth of an ounce/4 grams) of silver to sharpen an axe, or a sickle, or (an ox goad/a pointed rod to jab an ox to make it walk).
22 Hatdawkvah, taran tuknae hnin dawk Sawl hoi Jonathan tinaw hoi rei kaawm e ransanaw e kut dawk, tahloi tahroe awm hoeh. Sawl hoi Jonathan koe dueng doeh ao.
So [because the Israelis could not make weapons from iron], on the day that the Israelis fought [against the men of Philistia], Saul and Jonathan were the only Israeli men who had swords. None of the others had a sword; [they had only bows and arrows].
23 Hat hoi Filistin ramvengnaw teh Mikmash rakan hanelah hoi a cei awh.
Before the battle started, some Philistia men went to (the pass/a narrow place between two cliffs) outside Micmash to guard it.
