1 Samuel 10  Christian Standard Bible Anglicised

10 Samuel took the flask of oil,^(A) poured it out on Saul’s head,^(B) kissed him, and said, ‘Hasn’t the Lord anointed you^(C) ruler over his inheritance?^{[a](D) 2} Today when you leave me, you’ll find two men at Rachel’s Grave^(E) at Zelzah in the territory of Benjamin. They will say to you, “The donkeys you went looking for have been found,^(F) and now your father has stopped being concerned about the donkeys and is worried about you, asking: What should I do about my son? ”

³ ‘You will proceed from there until you come to the oak of Tabor.^(G) Three men going up to God at Bethel^(H) will meet you there, one bringing three goats, one bringing three loaves of bread, and one bringing a clay jar of wine. ⁴ They will ask how you are and give you two loaves^[b] of bread, which you will accept from them.

⁵ ‘After that you will come to Gibeah of God^(I) where there are Philistine garrisons.^[c] When you arrive at the city, you will meet a group of prophets^(J) coming down from the high place prophesying.^(K) They will be preceded by harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres. ⁶ The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully on you,^(L) you will prophesy with them,^(M) and you will be transformed.^{(N) 7} When these signs have happened to you, do whatever your circumstances require^[d](O) because God is with you. ⁸ Afterwards, go ahead of me to Gilgal. I will come to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice fellowship offerings. Wait seven days until I come to you and show you what to do.’

⁹ When Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed his heart,^[e] and all the signs came about that day. ¹⁰ When Saul and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a group of prophets met him. Then the Spirit of God came powerfully on him, and he prophesied along with them.

¹¹ Everyone who knew him previously and saw him prophesy with the prophets asked each other, ‘What has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets? ’^(P)

¹² Then a man who was from there asked, ‘And who is their father? ’^(Q)

As a result, ‘Is Saul also among the prophets? ’ became a popular saying. ¹³ Then Saul finished prophesying and went to the high place.

¹⁴ Saul’s uncle^(R) asked him and his servant, ‘Where did you go? ’

‘To look for the donkeys,’ Saul answered. ‘When we saw they weren’t there, we went to Samuel.’^(S)

¹⁵ ‘Tell me,’ Saul’s uncle asked, ‘what did Samuel say to you? ’

¹⁶ Saul told him, ‘He assured us the donkeys had been found.’ However, Saul did not tell him what Samuel had said about the matter of kingship.

Saul Received as King

¹⁷ Samuel summoned the people to the Lord at Mizpah^{(T) 18} and said to the Israelites, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:^(U) “I brought Israel out of Egypt, and I rescued you from the power of the Egyptians and all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.” ¹⁹ But today you have rejected your God,^(V) who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions. You said to him, “You^[f] must set a king over us.”^(W) Now therefore present yourselves before the Lord by your tribes and clans.’^(X)

²⁰ Samuel made all the tribes of Israel come forward, and the tribe of Benjamin was selected. ²¹ Then he made the tribe of Benjamin come forward by its clans, and the Matrite clan was selected.^[g] Finally, Saul son of Kish was selected.^(Y) But when they searched for him, they could not find him. ²² They again enquired of the Lord,^(Z) ‘Has the man come here yet? ’

The Lord replied, ‘There he is, hidden among the supplies.’

²³ They ran and got him from there. When he stood among the people, he stood a head taller than anyone else.^{[h](AA) 24} Samuel said to all the people, ‘Do you see the one the Lord has chosen?^(AB) There is no one like him among the entire population.’

And all the people shouted,^[i] ‘Long live the king! ’^(AC)

²⁵ Samuel proclaimed to the people the rights of kingship.^(AD) He wrote them on a scroll, which he placed in the presence of the Lord.^(AE) Then Samuel sent all the people home.

²⁶ Saul also went to his home in Gibeah,^(AF) and brave men whose hearts God had touched went with him. ²⁷ But some wicked men said, ‘How can this man save us? ’ They despised him and did not bring him a gift,^(AG) but Saul said nothing.^[j][k]