1 Samuel 13
1 Saul nowe had beene King one yeere, and he reigned two yeeres ouer Israel.
Saul was no longer a young man when he became the king. He ruled Israel for 42 years.
2 Then Saul chose him three thousand of Israel: and two thousande were with Saul in Michmash, and in mount Beth-el, and a thousande were with Ionathan in Gibeah of Beniamin: and the rest of the people he sent euery one to his tent.
[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 And Ionathan smote the garison of the Philistims, that was in the hill: and it came to the Philistims eares: and Saul blewe the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Heare, O yee Ebrewes.
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 And al Israel heard say, Saul hath destroied a garison of the Philistims: wherefore Israel was had in abomination with the Philistims: and the people gathered together after Saul to Gilgal.
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 The Philistims also gathered themselues together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand charets, and sixe thousande horsemen: for the people was like the sand which is by the seas side in multitude, and came vp, and pitched in Michmash Eastward from Beth-auen.
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 And when the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait (for the people were in distresse) the people hid themselues in caues, and in holdes, and in rockes, and in towres, and in pittes.
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 And some of the Ebrewes went ouer Iorden vnto the lande of Gad and Gilead: and Saul was yet in Gilgal, and al the people for feare followed him.
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 And he taried seuen daies, according vnto the time that Samuel had appointed: but Samuel came not to Gilgal, therefore the people were scattered from him.
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 And Saul sayde, Bring a burnt offering to me and peace offrings: and he offered a burnt offering.
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 And assoone as hee had made an ende of offering the burnt offering, beholde, Samuel came: and Saul went foorth to meete him, to salute him.
And just as he was finished burning those offerings, Samuel arrived. Saul went to greet him.
11 And Samuel saide, What hast thou done? Then Saul saide, Because I sawe that the people was scattred from me, and that thou camest not within the daies appoynted, and that the Philistims gathered themselues together to Michmash,
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 Therefore said I, The Philistims will come downe nowe vpon me to Gilgal, and I haue not made supplication vnto the Lord. I was bolde therefore and offred a burnt offring.
“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 And Samuel saide to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandement of the Lord thy God, which he commanded thee: for the Lord had nowe stablished thy kingdome vpon Israel for euer.
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 But nowe thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his owne heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be gouernour ouer his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord had commanded thee.
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 And Samuel arose, and gate him vp from Gilgal in Gibeah of Beniamin: and Saul nombred the people that were found with him, about sixe hundreth men.
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 And Saul and Ionathan his sonne, and the people that were found with them, had their abiding in Gibeah of Beniamin: but the Philistims pitched in Michmash.
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 And there came out of the hoste of the Philistims three bandes to destroie, one bande turned vnto the way of Ophrah vnto the lande of Shual,
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 And another bad turned toward the way to Beth-horon, and the third band turned toward the way of the coast that looketh toward the valley of Zeboim, towarde the wildernesse.
One group went [west] to Beth-Horon [city]. The third group went toward the [Israeli] border, above Zeboim Valley, near the desert.
19 Then there was no smith founde throughout all the land of Israel: for the Philistims sayde, Lest the Ebrewes make them swordes or speares.
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 Wherefore all ye Israelites went downe to the Philistims, to sharpen euery man his share, his mattocke, and his axe, and his weeding hooke.
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 Yet they had a file for the shares, and for the mattockes, and for the picke forkes, and for the axes, and for to sharpen the goades.
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 So whe the day of battell was come, there was neither sworde nor speare founde in the handes of any of the people that were with Saul and with Ionathan: but onely with Saul and Ionathan his sonne was there founde.
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 And the garison of the Philistims came out to the passage of Michmash.
Before the battle started, some Philistia men went to (the pass/a narrow place between two cliffs) outside Micmash to guard it.
