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Samuel’s Farewell Address
12 Then Samuel said to all Israel: “I have listened to your voice in all that you said to me, and have made a king over you. 2 And now, see, the king walks before you, but I am old and gray-headed. As for my sons, they are with you. But I have walked before you from my childhood to this day. 3 Behold, here I am. Witness against me before the Lord and before His anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Or from whose hand have I received any bribe to blind my eyes with? Indeed I will restore it you.”
4 They said, “You have not defrauded us, nor oppressed us. Neither have you taken anything from any man’s hand.”
5 He said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”
And they answered, “He is witness.”
6 Samuel said to the people: “It is the Lord that prepared Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore stand still that I may reason with you before the Lord, concerning all the righteous acts of the Lord, which He did for you and your fathers.
8 “When Jacob went into Egypt and your fathers cried out to the Lord, the Lord sent Moses and Aaron who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place.
9 “When they forgot the Lord their God, He sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against them. 10 They cried to the Lord, and said, ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord and have served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve You.’ 11 The Lord sent Jerub-Baal, Bedan,[a] Jephthah, and Samuel. And He delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and you dwelled in safety.
12 “When you saw that Nahash, king of the Ammonites, came against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king will reign over us,’ when the Lord your God was your king. 13 Now therefore, look at the king whom you have chosen and for whom you have asked! And see that the Lord has set a king over you. 14 If you will fear the Lord, and serve Him, and obey His voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then both you and the king that reigns over you will continue following the Lord your God. 15 But if you will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then will the hand of the Lord be against you, as it was against your fathers.
16 “Even now, take your stand and see this great thing which the Lord is doing before your eyes. 17 Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call to the Lord. And He will send thunder and rain, that you may know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, by asking for yourselves a king.”
18 So Samuel called to the Lord. And the Lord sent thunder and rain that day, and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel.
19 All the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we will not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king.”
20 Samuel said to the people, “Do not fear. You have done all this wickedness, only do not turn aside from following the Lord, and serve the Lord with all your heart. 21 But do not turn aside, for then you would be going after empty things which cannot profit or deliver, for they are nothing. 22 As befits His great name, the Lord will not abandon His people. For it has pleased the Lord to make you His people. 23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you. But I will teach you the good and the right way. 24 Fear the Lord; serve Him in truth with all your heart, and consider what great things He has done for you. 25 But if you still do wickedly, both you and your king will be swept away.”
Saul Fails His Commission
13 Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty-two years over Israel.[b]
2 Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel. Two thousand were with Saul in Mikmash and in mountains of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the people he sent each to his tent.
3 Jonathan struck the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear.” 4 All Israel heard that Saul had struck the garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel had become odious to the Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to Gilgal.
5 The Philistines gathered together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, with people like the sand which is on the seashore in multitude. And they came up and camped in Mikmash, east of Beth Aven. 6 When Israel’s fighting men saw that they were in a strait (for the people were distressed), then the people hid themselves in caves, in hollows, among rocks, and in cellars and cisterns. 7 Some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.
But as for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him, trembling. 8 He waited seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. 9 Saul said, “Bring here to me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” Then he offered the burnt offering. 10 When he finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel came. And Saul went out to meet him to greet him.
11 Samuel said, “What have you done?”
And Saul said, “Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come to the appointed assembly days, and the Philistines are gathering themselves together at Mikmash, 12 therefore I said, ‘The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not yet appeased the face of the Lord.’ So I forced myself, and offered the burnt offering.”
13 Samuel said to Saul, “You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. Truly now, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. 14 But now your kingdom will not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over His people, because you have not kept that which the Lord commanded you.”
15 Samuel arose, and went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people that were present with him, about six hundred men.
Israel Unarmed
16 Now Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that were with them, were staying in Gibeah of Benjamin, but the Philistines encamped in Mikmash. 17 Then raiders came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies. One company turned to the way that leads to Ophrah, to the land of Shual. 18 And another company turned the way to Beth Horon. And another company turned to the way of the border that looks to the Valley of Zeboyim toward the wilderness.
19 Now there was no blacksmith found throughout all the land of Israel. For the Philistines said, “Lest the Hebrews make for themselves swords or spears.” 20 So all the children of Israel went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his plow-point, his axe, his adze and his hoe. 21 The sharpening charge was two-thirds of a shekel[c] for plow-points, axes, pitchforks, and adzes, and to fix an ox-goad.
22 So it came to pass on the day of battle, that neither sword nor spear were found in the hand of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan. But they were found in the hand of Saul and Jonathan his son.
23 And the garrison of the Philistines had marched out to the ravine of Mikmash.
The Unbelief of Jesus’ Brothers
7 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee. He would not walk in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill Him. 2 Now the Jews’ Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. 3 His brothers therefore said to Him, “Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You do. 4 For no one does anything in secret, while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, reveal Yourself to the world.” 5 For even His brothers did not believe in Him.
6 Therefore Jesus told them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always fitting. 7 The world cannot hate you. But it hates Me, because I testify concerning it, that its works are evil. 8 You go up to this feast. I am not going up to this feast yet, because My time has not yet fully come.” 9 Having said these things to them, He remained in Galilee.
Jesus at the Feast of Tabernacles
10 However, after His brothers had gone up to the feast, then He also went up, not publicly, but secretly. 11 Then the Jews looked for Him at the feast, and said, “Where is He?”
12 There was much complaining among the people concerning Him. For some said, “He is a good Man.”
Others said, “No, He deceives the people.” 13 Yet no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.
14 Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and began teaching. 15 The Jews marveled, saying, “How has this Man become educated, having never been taught?”
16 Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me. 17 If any man desires to do His will, he shall know whether the teaching is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. 18 He who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory. But He who seeks the glory of Him who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him. 19 Did Moses not give you the law, and yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill Me?”
20 The people answered and said, “You have a demon. Who is seeking to kill You?”
21 Jesus answered them, “I did one work, and you all marvel. 22 Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision, you circumcise a man on the Sabbath day (although it did not come from Moses, but from the Patriarchs). 23 If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath day, so that the Law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry at Me because I completely healed a man on the Sabbath day? 24 Do not judge according to appearance, but practice righteous judgment.”
Is He the Christ?
25 Then some of them from Jerusalem said, “Is this not He whom they seek to kill? 26 Look! He speaks publicly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers indeed know that this is really the Christ? 27 But we know where this Man is from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where He is from.”
28 Then Jesus, still teaching in the temple, cried out, “You know Me and you likewise know where I am from. I have not come on My own authority, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. 29 But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me.”
30 So they tried to seize Him, but no one laid hands on Him, because His hour had not yet come.
Psalm 108(A)
A Song. A Psalm of David.
1 O God, my heart is determined;
I will sing and give praise with my whole heart.
2 Awake, O lyre and harp!
I will awake at dawn!
3 I will praise you, O Lord, among the peoples,
and I will sing praises unto You among the nations.
4 For Your mercy is great above the heavens;
Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens,
may Your glory be above all the earth.
6 That Your beloved ones may be delivered,
provide salvation with Your right hand and answer me.
7 God has spoken in His sanctuary:
“I will triumph and will divide up Shechem
and portion out the Valley of Sukkoth.
8 Gilead is Mine; Manasseh is Mine;
Ephraim is My helmet;
Judah is My royal scepter;
9 Moab is My washbasin;
on Edom I throw My shoe;
over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
10 Who will bring me into the fortified city?
Who will lead me into Edom?
11 Have You not rejected us, O God?
You surely do not go out, O God, with our armies.
12 Grant us help against the foe,
for the help of man is worthless.
13 Through God we shall be valiant,
for He shall tread down our enemies.
4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it crushes the spirit.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.