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¹ Now it fell on a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man that bore his armor, Come, and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison, that is on yonder side. But he didn't tell his father.² And Saul abode in the uttermost part of Gibeah under the pomegranate-tree which is in Migron: and the people that were with him were about six hundred men;³ and Ahijah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of Yahweh in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people didn't know that Jonathan was gone.⁴ And between the passes, by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistines' garrison, there was a rocky crag on the one side, and a rocky crag on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.⁵ The one crag rose up on the north in front of Michmash, and the other on the south in front of Geba.⁶ And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armor, Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that Yahweh will work for us; for there is no restraint to Yahweh to save by many or by few.⁷ And his armorbearer said to him, Do all that is in your heart: turn yourself, look, I am with you according to your heart.⁸ Then said Jonathan, Look, we will pass over to the men, and we will disclose ourselves to them.⁹ If they say thus to us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up to them.¹⁰ But if they say thus, Come up to us; then we will go up; for Yahweh has delivered them into our hand: and this shall be the sign to us.¹¹ And both of them disclosed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, Look, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves.¹² And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armorbearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will show you something. And Jonathan said to his armorbearer, Come up after me; for Yahweh has delivered them into the hand of Israel.¹³ And Jonathan climbed up on his hands and on his feet, and his armorbearer after him: and they fell before Jonathan; and his armorbearer slew them after him.¹⁴ And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armorbearer made, was about twenty men, within, as it were, half a furrow's length in an acre of land.¹⁵ And there was a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people; the garrison, and the spoilers, they also trembled; and the earth quaked: so there was an exceeding great trembling.

¹⁶ And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and saw that the multitude melted away, and they went [here] and there.¹⁷ Then Saul said to the people that were with him, Number now, and see who has gone from us. And when they had numbered, look, Jonathan and his armorbearer were not there.¹⁸ And Saul said to Ahijah, Bring here the ark of God. For the ark of God was [there] at that time with the sons of Israel.¹⁹ And it came to pass, while Saul talked to the priest, that the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said to the priest, Withdraw your hand.²⁰ And Saul and all the people that were with him were gathered together, and came to the battle: and saw that every man's sword was against his fellow, [and there was] a very great panic.²¹ Now the Hebrews that were with the Philistines as formerly, and that went up with them into the camp, [from the country] round about, and they also [turned] to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan.²² Likewise all the men of Israel that had hid themselves in the hill-country of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, even they also followed hard after them in the battle.²³ So Yahweh saved Israel that day: and the battle passed over by Beth-aven.

²⁴ And the men of Israel were distressed that day; for Saul had adjured the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eats any food until it is evening, and I may be avenged on my enemies. So none of the people tasted food.²⁵ And all the people came into the forest; and there was honey on the ground.²⁶ And when the people had come to the forest, look, the honey dropped: but no man put his hand to his mouth; for the people feared the oath.²⁷ But Jonathan didn't hear when his father charged the people with the oath: therefore he put forth the end of the rod that was in his hand, and dipped it in the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his eyes were enlightened.²⁸ Then one of the people answered, and said, Your father straitly charged the people with an oath, saying, Cursed be the man that eats food this day. And the people were faint.²⁹ Then said Jonathan, My father has troubled the land: see, I pray you, how my eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.³⁰ How much more, if perhaps the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies which they found? for now there has been no great slaughter among the Philistines.³¹ And they smote of the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. And the people were very faint;³² and the people flew on the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground; and the people ate them with the blood.³³ Then they told Saul, saying, Look, the people sin against Yahweh, in that they eat with the blood. And he said, you have dealt treacherously: roll a great stone to me this day.³⁴ And Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and say to them, Bring me here every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them here, and eat; and don't sin against Yahweh in eating with the blood. And all the people brought every man his ox with him that night, and slew them there.³⁵ And Saul built an altar to Yahweh: the same was the first altar that he built to Yahweh.

³⁶ And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and take spoil among them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatever seems good to you. Then said the priest, Let us draw near here to God.³⁷ And Saul asked counsel of God, Shall I go down after the Philistines? will you deliver them into the hand of Israel? But he did not answer him that day.³⁸ And Saul said, Draw near here, all you chiefs of the people; and know and see wherein this sin has been this day.³⁹ For, as Yahweh lives, who saves Israel, though it is in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die. But there wasn't a man among all the people that answered him.⁴⁰ Then he said to all Israel, You be on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. And the people said to Saul, Do what seems good to you.⁴¹ Therefore Saul said to Yahweh, the God of Israel, Why haven't you answered your slave today? If the guilt is in me or in Jonathan my son, Yahweh, God of Israel, give Urim; but if it is in your people Israel, give Thummim. And Jonathan and Saul were taken [by lot]; but the people escaped.⁴² And Saul said, Cast [lots] between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken.⁴³ Then Saul said to Jonathan, Tell me what you have done. And Jonathan told him, and said, I did certainly taste a little honey with the end of the rod that was in my hand; and, look, I must die.⁴⁴ And Saul said, God do so and more also; for you shall surely die, Jonathan.⁴⁵ And the people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who has wrought this great salvation in Israel? Far from it: as Yahweh lives, not one hair of his head shall fall to the ground; for he has wrought with God this day. So the people rescued Jonathan, that he did not die.⁴⁶ Then Saul went up from following the Philistines; and the Philistines went to their own place.

⁴⁷ Now when Saul had taken the kingdom over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the sons of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines: and wherever he turned himself, he saved.⁴⁸ And he did valiantly, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of those that despoiled them.⁴⁹ Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishvi, and Malchishua; and the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the first-born Merab, and the name of the younger Michal:⁵⁰ and the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. And the name of the captain of his host was Abner the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.⁵¹ And Kish was the father of Saul; and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.⁵² And there was intense war against the Philistines all the days of Saul: and when Saul saw any mighty man, or any valiant man, he took him to himself.