The House of Saul, Dead and Buried^(A)

31 Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and Israel’s fighting men fled before the Philistines and they fell slain on Mount Gilboa. ² The Philistines overtook Saul and his sons. And the Philistines killed his sons, Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malki-Shua, Saul’s sons. ³ The battle was heavy against Saul. The archers found him, and he was severely wounded by the archers.

⁴ Then Saul said to his armor bearer, “Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through and abuse me.”

But his armor bearer would not, for he was very afraid. Therefore Saul took his sword and fell upon it. ⁵ When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell upon his sword and died with him. ⁶ So Saul died with his three sons and his armor bearer, together with all his men on that same day.

⁷ When Israel’s fighting men who were on the other side of the valley, and those who were on the other side of the Jordan, saw that Israel’s fighting men fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled. So the Philistines came and lived in them.

⁸ The following day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. ⁹ They cut off his head, stripped off his armor, and sent them into the land of the Philistines round about, to make it known in the house of their idols and among their people. ¹⁰ They put his armor in the house of Ashtoreth, and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth Shan.

¹¹ When the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, ¹² all the valiant men arose and went all night, and they took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan, and they came to Jabesh and burned them there. ¹³ Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they mourned, fasting seven days.

⁴ David said to him, “Tell me, what is the report?”

So he reported, “The people fled from battle. Many of the people have fallen and died; even Saul and his son Jonathan are dead.”

⁵ Then David asked the young man who was reporting to him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?”

⁶ The young man who was reporting to him answered, “I happened to be on Mount Gilboa when, in front of me, Saul was leaning on his spear with the chariots and horsemen drawing close. ⁷ When he turned around, he noticed me. He summoned me, and I responded, ‘Here I am.’

⁸ “He asked me, ‘Who are you?’

“I answered, ‘I am an Amalekite.’

⁹ “Then he said to me, ‘Stand over me and kill me, for I have been mortally wounded, yet I am still alive.’

¹⁰ “So I stood beside him and killed him because I knew that he could not live after he had fallen. Then I took the crown that was on his head and the armlet that was on his arm, and I have brought them here to my lord.”

¹¹ Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them, as did all of the men who were with him. ¹² They mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul, Jonathan his son, the people of the Lord, and the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.