Samuel 1 13
1 Saul xɔ ƒe blaetɔ̃ esi wòzu fia eye wòɖu fia ƒe blaene-vɔ-eve, ɖe Israel dzi;
Saul was no longer a young man when he became the king. He ruled Israel for 42 years.
2 etia aʋawɔla tɔxɛ akpe etɔ̃ tso Israel. Ekplɔ wo dometɔ akpe eve ɖe eɖokui ŋuti yi Mikmas kple Betel to la dzi eye wògblẽ akpe ɖeka mamlɛa ɖe Yonatan, Saul ƒe vi gbɔ le Benyamin ƒe anyigba dzi. Eɖo asrafo bubuawo ɖe aƒe me.
[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 Yonatan si Filistitɔwo ƒe dzɔlawo le Geba eye nya sia ɖi le Filistitɔwo ƒe anyigba blibo la dzi. Eye Saul ku aʋakpẽ le Israelnyigba blibo la dzi eye wòɖe gbeƒã be “Hebritɔwo katã nesee.”
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 Ale Israel dukɔ la se nyadzɔdzɔ la be: Saul tsrɔ̃ Filistitɔwo ƒe dzɔlawo eye Israel zu nuɖianu na Filistitɔwo. Ale woyɔ Israel ƒe aʋakɔ blibo la ƒo ƒu ɖe Saul ŋu le 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 Filistitɔwo ƒo ƒu aʋakɔ gã aɖe si me tasiaɖam akpe etɔ̃ kple sɔdola akpe ade kple afɔzɔla siwo sɔ gbɔ abe ƒutake ene la nɔ be woawɔ aʋa kple Israel. Woƒu asaɖa anyi ɖe Mikmas, le Bet Aven ƒe ɣedzeƒe gome.
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 Esi Israel ŋutsuwo kpɔ xaxa gã si me wonɔ kple ale si womimi woƒe aʋakɔ la ɖoe la, wosi yi ɖaɣla ɖe agadowo, avekɔewo, kpewo tome kple ʋewo me kple vudo siwo me tsi menɔ o la me.
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 Hebritɔ aɖewo gɔ̃ la tso Yɔdan tɔsisi la eye wosi yi Gad kple Gileadnyigbawo gɔ̃ hã dzi. Saul ya tsi Gilgal eye aʋakɔ siwo nɔ eŋu la dzo nyanyanya le vɔvɔ̃ ta.
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 Elala ŋkeke adre abe ale si Samuel ɖoe nɛ ene, gake Samuel meva Gilgal o eye Saul ƒe asrafowo de asi kaka le eŋu me.
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 Ale wògblɔ be, “Mitsɔ numevɔsa kple akpedavɔsa vɛ nam.” Ale Saul sa numevɔ la.
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 Esi wòwu vɔsawo nu vɔ tetee ko la, Samuel va do. Saul yi be yeakpee ado gbe nɛ.
And just as he was finished burning those offerings, Samuel arrived. Saul went to greet him.
11 Samuel biae be, “Nu kae nye esi nèwɔ?” Saul ɖo eŋu be, “Esi mekpɔ be nye aʋawɔlawo le kakam le ŋunye, evɔ mèva ɖo le ɣeyiɣi si nèɖo nam la dzi o, gawu la Filistitɔwo ƒu asaɖa anyi ɖe Mikmas.
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 Eya ta mesusui be azɔ la, Filistitɔwo ava dze dzinye le Gilgal evɔ nyemebia amenuveve tso Yehowa gbɔ o! Esia zi dzinye eye mewɔ numevɔsa la.”
“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 gblɔ be, “Èwɔ bometsinu, mèlé Yehowa, wò Mawu la ƒe se si wòde na wò la me ɖe asi o. Nenye ɖe nèlé eme ɖe asi la, anye ne aɖo wò fiaɖuƒe la anyi le Israel hena ɣeyiɣiawo katã.
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 Ke azɔ la, wò fiaɖuƒe mali ke o. Yehowa di ame si eƒe dzi di la na eɖokui eye wòɖoe eƒe dukɔ la ƒe kplɔlae elabena mèlé Yehowa ƒe sedede me ɖe asi o.”
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 Tete Samuel dzo le Gilgal yi Gibea le Benyaminviwo ƒe anyigba dzi. Esi Saul xlẽ eƒe aʋawɔlawo la, ekpɔ be ame alafa ade koe susɔ!
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 Saul kple Yonatan kple ame alafa ade siawo ƒu asaɖa anyi ɖe Gibea le Benyaminviwo ƒe anyigba dzi le esime Filistitɔwo ganɔ Mikmas.
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 Filistitɔwo ƒe aʋalɔgo etɔ̃ ho tso woƒe asaɖa me be yewoayi aɖaha nuwo. Aʋalɔgo ɖeka ɖo ta Ofra le Sual nyigba dzi;
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 aʋalɔgo evelia yi Bet Horon eye etɔ̃lia ɖo ta liƒo si le Zeboim ƒe balime te ɖe gbegbe la ŋu la dzi.
One group went [west] to Beth-Horon [city]. The third group went toward the [Israeli] border, above Zeboim Valley, near the desert.
19 Gbede aɖeke menɔ Israelnyigba blibo la dzi le ŋkeke mawo me o elabena Filistitɔwo gblɔ bena, ne menye nenema o la, Hebritɔwo ava tu yiwo alo akplɔwo!
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 Eya ta ɣe sia ɣi si Israelviwo di be yewoanyre yewoƒe agbleŋlɔnuwo, fiawo kple nuxanuwo la, wotsɔa wo yia Filistitɔwo ƒe gbedewo gbɔ.
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 Nenye be wonyre agbleŋlɔnuawo la, woxea klosaloga gram enyi, nenema kee nye fi hã, ke woxea klosaloga gram ene ɖe gaflu kple fiawo hekpe ɖe nuŋɔnuwo nyenyre ŋuti.
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 Ale yi alo akplɔ aɖeke menɔ Israel ƒe aʋakɔ blibo la si gbe ma gbe o negbe ɖekaɖeka siwo nɔ Saul kple Yonatan si ko.
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 Azɔ Filistitɔwo ɖe asrafo aɖewo woyi ɖaxɔ mɔ si ɖo ta Mikmas.
Before the battle started, some Philistia men went to (the pass/a narrow place between two cliffs) outside Micmash to guard it.
