1 Samuel 31
1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them, and many fell slain on Mount Gilboa.
Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa.
2 The Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons, and they killed Saul’s sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua.
And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, Saul’s sons.
3 When the battle intensified against Saul, the archers overtook him and wounded him critically.
And the battle went heavily against Saul, and the archers hit him; and he was grievously wounded by the archers.
4 Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and run it through me, or these uncircumcised men will come and run me through and torture me!” But his armor-bearer was terrified and refused to do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it.
Then said Saul to his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrust me through with it; lest these uncircumcised should come and thrust me through, and abuse me. But his armourbearer would not; for he was exceedingly afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword, and fell upon it.
5 When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his own sword and died with him.
And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him.
6 So Saul, his three sons, his armor-bearer, and all his men died together that same day.
So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armourbearer, and all his men, that same day together.
7 When the Israelites along the valley and those on the other side of the Jordan saw that the army of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their cities and ran away. So the Philistines came and occupied their cities.
And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were on the other side of Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.
8 The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.
And it came to pass on the next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen in mount Gilboa.
9 They cut off Saul’s head, stripped off his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the news in the temples of their idols and among their people.
And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent them around the land of the Philistines, to proclaim it in the house of their idols, and among the people.
10 They put his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths and hung his body on the wall of Beth-shan.
And they put his armour in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Bethshan.
11 When the people of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,
And when the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead heard of that which the Philistines had done to Saul;
12 all their men of valor set out, journeyed all night, and retrieved the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth-shan. When they arrived at Jabesh, they burned the bodies there.
All the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Bethshan, and came to Jabesh, and burnt them there.
13 Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh, and they fasted seven days.
And they took their bones, and buried them under a tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.
