1 Samuel 13
1 Bere a Saulo dii ade no, na wadi mfirihyia aduasa. Na odii ade mfirihyia aduanan abien.
Saul was no longer a young man when he became the king. He ruled Israel for 42 years.
2 Saulo yii asraafo sononko bi a wɔn dodow yɛ mpensa fii Israel, na ɔmaa nkae no kɔɔ fie. Ɔfaa asraafo no mu mpenu kaa ne ho, de wɔn kɔɔ Mikmas ne bepɔw nsase a ɛwɔ Bet-El no so. Asraafo apem a wɔaka no kaa Saulo babarima Yonatan ho kɔɔ Gibea wɔ Benyamin asase so.
[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 Eyi akyi no, ankyɛ na Yonatan kɔtoaa Filistifo asraafo no dii wɔn so wɔ Geba. Asɛm no trɛw ntɛm so wɔ Filistifo no mu. Enti Saulo hyɛn torobɛnto wɔ Israel nyinaa se, “Hebrifo, monsɔre!”
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 Israelfo nyinaa tee sɛ Saulo atɔre Filistifo asraafo a wɔwɔ Geba no ase, na ne saa nti, Israelfo ho ayɛ Filistifo no ahi. Enti Israel asraafo no nyinaa boaa wɔn ho ano bio hyiaa Saulo wɔ 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 Filistifo boaboaa nsraadɔm kɛse pa ara ano a wokura nteaseɛnam mpensa, apɔnkɔsotefo mpem asia ne asraafo a wɔn dodow te sɛ mpoano nwea ano. Wɔkyeree nsraban wɔ Mikmas wɔ Bet-Awen apuei fam.
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 Bere a Israel mmarima no huu atamfo no nsraadɔm mpempem no, wɔn ho dwudwoe; nti wɔyɛɛ sɛ wɔbɛkɔ akohintaw wɔn ho wɔ abodan, mmoa, abotan, aboda ne nsukorae mu.
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 Ebinom twaa Asubɔnten Yordan guan kɔɔ Gad ne Gilead asase so. Saa bere no, na Saulo wɔ Gilgal a ne mmarima a wɔka ne ho no wɔ ahopopo ne osuro mu.
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 Odii nnanson wɔ hɔ sɛnea Samuel hyɛɛ no sɛ onni no; nanso Samuel de, wamma Gilgal, na Saulo huu sɛ mmarima no rebɔ ahwete.
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 Enti ɔhyɛe se, “Momfa ɔhyew afɔre ne asomdwoe afɔre no mmrɛ me.” Na Saulo ankasa bɔɔ ɔhyew afɔre no.
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 Ɔrewie afɔre no bɔ ara pɛ, na Samuel koduu hɔ. Enti Saulo pue kohyiaa no maa no akwaaba.
And just as he was finished burning those offerings, Samuel arrived. Saul went to greet him.
11 Samuel bisaa no se, “Dɛn na woayɛ yi?” Saulo buae se, “Mihuu sɛ mmarima no rehwete, na womma no, na Filistifo no nso reboa wɔn ho ano wɔ Mikmas no,
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 medwenee se, ‘Afei de, Filistifo no besian abɛtoa me wɔ Gilgal, nanso mimmisaa Awurade nkyɛn adom ɛ.’ Enti metee nka sɛ, ɛsɛ sɛ mebɔ ɔhyew afɔre ansa na woaba.”
“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 Na Samuel kae se, “Woadi nkwaseasɛm. Woanni mmara a Awurade, wo Nyankopɔn, hyɛɛ wo no so. Sɛ wudii so a, anka obetim wʼahenni ase wɔ Israel afebɔɔ.
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 Na mprempren, wʼahenni no rentim. Awurade apɛ ɔbarima bi a ɔyɛ ne koma apɛde na wayi no sɛ ne nkurɔfo ɔkannifo, efisɛ woanni Awurade mmara no so.”
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 Na Samuel fii Gilgal kɔɔ Gibea wɔ Benyamin. Saulo kan mmarima a na wɔka ne ho no, na wɔn ano si bɛyɛ ahansia.
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 Na Saulo ne ne babarima Yonatan ne mmarima a wɔka ne ho no te Geba a ɛbɛn Gibea wɔ Benyamin asase so. Saa bere no na Filistifo no akyere nsraban wɔ 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 Afowfo akuw abiɛsa fii Filistifo nsraban mu. Kuw baako de nʼani kyerɛɛ Ofra kwan so, kɔɔ Sual mpɔtam hɔ.
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 Afoforo faa Bet-Horon kwan so na wɔn a wɔka ho no nso faa ɔhye a ɛkyerɛ Seboim bon no kwan so, kɔɔ sare so fam.
One group went [west] to Beth-Horon [city]. The third group went toward the [Israeli] border, above Zeboim Valley, near the desert.
19 Saa bere no, na ɔtomfo biara nni Israel asase no so baabiara. Filistifo no amma atomfo no kwan, efisɛ wose, “Anyɛ saa a atomfo no bɛbɔ afoa ne mpeaw ama Hebrifo no.”
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 Enti na Israelfo no nyinaa kɔ Filistifo nkyɛn kɔsesew wɔn funtum nnade, nsɔw, mmonnua ne dɔtetu nnade ano.
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 (Na wogye funtum nnade ne asosɔw a wɔsew no biara ho dwetɛ gram awotwe, na sɛ wɔsew mmonnua anaa mmoaka nnade a, wogye dwetɛ gram anan.)
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 Ɛno nti na Israelfo no mu biara nni afoa anaa peaw, gye sɛ Saulo ne Yonatan.
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 Saa bere no mu, na Filistifo asraafo no fa bi akɔ akɔfa ɔtempɔn a ɛda Mikmas no.
Before the battle started, some Philistia men went to (the pass/a narrow place between two cliffs) outside Micmash to guard it.
