To The Word – Day 76

₁The LORD said to Samuel, “How long will you go on grieving over Saul? I have rejected him as king of Israel. But now get some olive oil and go to Bethlehem, to a man named Jesse, because I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”

₂“How can I do that?” Samuel asked. “If Saul hears about it, he will kill me!”

The LORD answered, “Take a calf with you and say that you are there to offer a sacrifice to the LORD. ₃Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will tell you what to do. You will anoint as king the man I tell you to.”

₄Samuel did what the LORD told him to do and went to Bethlehem, where the city leaders came trembling to meet him and asked, “Is this a peaceful visit, seer?”

₅“Yes,” he answered. “I have come to offer a sacrifice to the LORD. Purify yourselves and come with me.” He also told Jesse and his sons to purify themselves, and he invited them to the sacrifice.

₆When they arrived, Samuel saw Jesse's son Eliab and said to himself, “This man standing here in the LORD's presence is surely the one he has chosen.” ₇But the LORD said to him, “Pay no attention to how tall and handsome he is. I have rejected him, because I do not judge as people judge. They look at the outward appearance, but I look at the heart.”

₈Then Jesse called his son Abinadab and brought him to Samuel. But Samuel said, “No, the LORD hasn't chosen him either.” ₉Jesse then brought Shammah. “No, the LORD hasn't chosen him either,” Samuel said. ₁₀In this way Jesse brought seven of his sons to Samuel. And Samuel said to him, “No, the LORD hasn't chosen any of these.” ₁₁Then he asked him, “Have you any more sons?”

Jesse answered, “There is still the youngest, but he is out taking care of the sheep.”

“Tell him to come here,” Samuel said. “We won't offer the sacrifice until he comes.” ₁₂So Jesse sent for him. He was a handsome, healthy young man, and his eyes sparkled. The LORD said to Samuel, “This is the one — anoint him!” ₁₃Samuel took the olive oil and anointed David in front of his brothers. Immediately the Spirit of the LORD took control of David and was with him from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.

₁₄The LORD's spirit left Saul, and an evil spirit sent by the LORD tormented him. ₁₅His servants said to him, “We know that an evil spirit sent by God is tormenting you. ₁₆So give us the order, sir, and we will look for a man who knows how to play the harp. Then when the evil spirit comes on you, the man can play his harp, and you will be all right again.”

₁₇Saul ordered them, “Find me a man who plays well and bring him to me.”

₁₈One of his attendants said, “Jesse, of the town of Bethlehem, has a son who is a good musician. He is also a brave and handsome man, a good soldier, and an able speaker. The LORD is with him.”

₁₉So Saul sent messengers to Jesse to say, “Send me your son David, the one who takes care of the sheep.” ₂₀Jesse sent David to Saul with a young goat, a donkey loaded with bread, and a leather bag full of wine. ₂₁David came to Saul and entered his service. Saul liked him very much and chose him as the man to carry his weapons. ₂₂Then Saul sent a message to Jesse: “I like David. Let him stay here in my service.” ₂₃From then on, whenever the evil spirit sent by God came on Saul, David would get his harp and play it. The evil spirit would leave, and Saul would feel better and be all right again.

₁The Philistines gathered for battle in Socoh, a town in Judah; they camped at a place called Ephes Dammim, between Socoh and Azekah. ₂Saul and the Israelites assembled and camped in the Valley of Elah, where they got ready to fight the Philistines. ₃The Philistines lined up on one hill and the Israelites on another, with a valley between them.

₄A man named Goliath, from the city of Gath, came out from the Philistine camp to challenge the Israelites. He was nearly three metres tall ₅and wore bronze armour that weighed about 57 kilogrammes and a bronze helmet. ₆His legs were also protected by bronze armour, and he carried a bronze javelin slung over his shoulder. ₇His spear was as thick as the bar on a weaver's loom, and its iron head weighed about seven kilogrammes. A soldier walked in front of him carrying his shield. ₈Goliath stood and shouted at the Israelites, “What are you doing there, lined up for battle? I am a Philistine, you slaves of Saul! Choose one of your men to fight me. ₉If he wins and kills me, we will be your slaves; but if I win and kill him, you will be our slaves. ₁₀Here and now I challenge the Israelite army. I dare you to pick someone to fight me!” ₁₁When Saul and his men heard this, they were terrified.

₁₂David was the son of Jesse, who was an Ephrathite from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse had eight sons, and at the time Saul was king, he was already a very old man. ₁₃His three eldest sons had gone with Saul to war. The eldest was Eliab, the next was Abinadab, and the third was Shammah. ₁₄David was the youngest son, and while the three eldest brothers stayed with Saul, ₁₅David would go back to Bethlehem from time to time, to take care of his father's sheep.

₁₆Goliath challenged the Israelites every morning and evening for forty days.

₁₇One day Jesse said to David, “Take ten kilogrammes of this roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread, and hurry with them to your brothers in the camp. ₁₈And take these ten cheeses to the commanding officer. Find out how your brothers are getting on and bring back something to show that you saw them and that they are well. ₁₉King Saul, your brothers, and all the other Israelites are in the Valley of Elah fighting the Philistines.”

₂₀David got up early the next morning, left someone else in charge of the sheep, took the food, and went as Jesse had told him to. He arrived at the camp just as the Israelites were going out to their battle line, shouting the war cry. ₂₁The Philistine and the Israelite armies took up positions for battle, facing each other. ₂₂David left the food with the officer in charge of the supplies, ran to the battle line, went to his brothers, and asked how they were getting on. ₂₃As he was talking to them, Goliath came forward and challenged the Israelites as he had done before. And David heard him. ₂₄When the Israelites saw Goliath, they ran away in terror. ₂₅“Look at him!” they said to each other. “Listen to his challenge! King Saul has promised to give a big reward to the man who kills him; the king will also give him his daughter to marry and will not require his father's family to pay taxes.”

₂₆David asked the men who were near him, “What will the man get who kills this Philistine and frees Israel from this disgrace? After all, who is this heathen Philistine to defy the army of the living God?” ₂₇They told him what would be done for the man who killed Goliath.

₂₈Eliab, David's eldest brother, heard David talking to the men. He was angry with David and said, “What are you doing here? Who is taking care of those sheep of yours out there in the wilderness? You cheeky brat, you! You just came to watch the fighting!”

₂₉“Now what have I done?” David asked. “Can't I even ask a question?” ₃₀He turned to another man and asked him the same question, and every time he asked, he got the same answer.

₃₁Some men heard what David had said, and they told Saul, who sent for him. ₃₂David said to Saul, “Your Majesty, no one should be afraid of this Philistine! I will go and fight him.”

₃₃“No,” answered Saul. “How could you fight him? You're just a boy, and he has been a soldier all his life!”

₃₄“Your Majesty,” David said, “I take care of my father's sheep. Whenever a lion or a bear carries off a lamb, ₃₅I go after it, attack it, and rescue the lamb. And if the lion or bear turns on me, I grab it by the throat and beat it to death. ₃₆I have killed lions and bears, and I will do the same to this heathen Philistine, who has defied the army of the living God. ₃₇The LORD has saved me from lions and bears; he will save me from this Philistine.”

“All right,” Saul answered. “Go, and the LORD be with you.” ₃₈He gave his own armour to David for him to wear: a bronze helmet, which he put on David's head, and a coat of armour. ₃₉David strapped Saul's sword over the armour and tried to walk, but he couldn't, because he wasn't used to wearing them. “I can't fight with all this,” he said to Saul. “I'm not used to it.” So he took it all off. ₄₀He took his shepherd's stick and then picked up five smooth stones from the stream and put them in his bag. With his sling ready, he went out to meet Goliath.

₄₁The Philistine started walking towards David, with his shield-bearer walking in front of him. He kept coming closer, ₄₂and when he got a good look at David, he was filled with scorn for him because he was just a nice, good-looking boy. ₄₃He said to David, “What's that stick for? Do you think I'm a dog?” And he called down curses from his god on David. ₄₄“Come on,” he challenged David, “and I will give your body to the birds and animals to eat.”

₄₅David answered, “You are coming against me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the Israelite armies, which you have defied. ₄₆This very day the LORD will put you in my power; I will defeat you and cut off your head. And I will give the bodies of the Philistine soldiers to the birds and animals to eat. Then the whole world will know that Israel has a God, ₄₇and everyone here will see that the LORD does not need swords or spears to save his people. He is victorious in battle, and he will put all of you in our power.”

₄₈Goliath started walking towards David again, and David ran quickly towards the Philistine battle line to fight him. ₄₉He put his hand into his bag and took out a stone, which he slung at Goliath. It hit him on the forehead and broke his skull, and Goliath fell face downwards on the ground. ₅₀And so, without a sword, David defeated and killed Goliath with a sling and a stone! ₅₁He ran to him, stood over him, took Goliath's sword out of its sheath, and cut off his head and killed him.

When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they ran away. ₅₂The men of Israel and Judah shouted and ran after them, pursuing them all the way to Gath and to the gates of Ekron. The Philistines fell wounded all along the road that leads to Shaaraim, as far as Gath and Ekron. ₅₃When the Israelites came back from pursuing the Philistines, they looted their camp. ₅₄David picked up Goliath's head and took it to Jerusalem, but he kept Goliath's weapons in his own tent.

₅₅When Saul saw David going out to fight Goliath, he asked Abner, the commander of his army, “Abner, whose son is he?”

“I have no idea, Your Majesty,” Abner answered.

₅₆“Then go and find out,” Saul ordered.

₅₇So when David returned to camp after killing Goliath, Abner took him to Saul. David was still carrying Goliath's head. ₅₈Saul asked him, “Young man, whose son are you?”

“I am the son of your servant Jesse from Bethlehem,” David answered.

₁Saul and David finished their conversation. After that, Saul's son Jonathan was deeply attracted to David and came to love him as much as he loved himself. ₂Saul kept David with him from that day on and did not let him go back home. ₃Jonathan swore eternal friendship with David because of his deep affection for him. ₄He took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, together with his armour and also his sword, bow, and belt. ₅David was successful in all the missions on which Saul sent him, and so Saul made him an officer in his army. This pleased all of Saul's officers and men.

₆As David was returning after killing Goliath and as the soldiers were coming back home, women from every town in Israel came out to meet King Saul. They were singing joyful songs, dancing, and playing tambourines and lyres. ₇In their celebration the women sang, “Saul has killed thousands, but David tens of thousands.” ₈Saul did not like this, and he became very angry. He said, “For David they claim tens of thousands, but only thousands for me. They will be making him king next!” ₉And so he was jealous and suspicious of David from that day on.

₁₀The next day an evil spirit from God suddenly took control of Saul, and he raved in his house like a madman. David was playing the harp, as he did every day, and Saul was holding a spear. ₁₁“I'll pin him to the wall,” Saul said to himself, and he threw the spear at him twice; but David dodged each time.

₁₂Saul was afraid of David because the LORD was with David but had abandoned him. ₁₃So Saul sent him away and put him in command of a thousand men. David led his men in battle ₁₄and was successful in all he did, because the LORD was with him. ₁₅Saul noticed David's success and became even more afraid of him. ₁₆But everyone in Israel and Judah loved David because he was such a successful leader.

₁₇Then Saul said to David, “Here is my elder daughter Merab. I will give her to you as your wife on condition that you serve me as a brave and loyal soldier, and fight the LORD's battles.” (Saul was thinking that in this way the Philistines would kill David, and he would not have to do it himself.)

₁₈David answered, “Who am I and what is my family that I should become the king's son-in-law?” ₁₉But when the time came for Merab to be given to David, she was given instead to a man named Adriel from Meholah.

₂₀Saul's daughter Michal, however, fell in love with David, and when Saul heard of this, he was pleased. ₂₁He said to himself, “I'll give Michal to David; I will use her to trap him, and he will be killed by the Philistines.” So for the second time Saul said to David, “You will be my son-in-law.” ₂₂He ordered his officials to speak privately to David and tell him, “The king is pleased with you and all his officials like you; now is a good time for you to marry his daughter.”

₂₃So they told David this, and he answered, “It's a great honour to become the king's son-in-law, too great for someone poor and insignificant like me.”

₂₄The officials told Saul what David had said, ₂₅and Saul ordered them to tell David: “All the king wants from you as payment for the bride is the foreskins of a hundred dead Philistines, as revenge on his enemies.” (This was how Saul planned to have David killed by the Philistines.) ₂₆Saul's officials reported to David what Saul had said, and David was delighted with the thought of becoming the king's son-in-law. Before the day set for the wedding, ₂₇David and his men went and killed 200 Philistines. He took their foreskins to the king and counted them all out to him, so that he might become his son-in-law. So Saul had to give his daughter Michal in marriage to David.

₂₈Saul realized clearly that the LORD was with David and also that his daughter Michal loved him. ₂₉So he became even more afraid of David and was his enemy as long as he lived.

₃₀The Philistine armies would come and fight, but in every battle David was more successful than any of Saul's other officers. As a result David became very famous.

₁Saul told his son Jonathan and all his officials that he planned to kill David. But Jonathan was very fond of David, ₂and so he said to him, “My father is trying to kill you. Please be careful tomorrow morning; hide in some secret place and stay there. ₃I will go and stand by my father in the field where you are hiding, and I will speak to him about you. If I find out anything, I will let you know.”

₄Jonathan praised David to Saul and said, “Sir, don't do wrong to your servant David. He has never done you any wrong; on the contrary, everything he has done has been a great help to you. ₅He risked his life when he killed Goliath, and the LORD won a great victory for Israel. When you saw it, you were glad. Why, then, do you now want to do wrong to an innocent man and kill David for no reason at all?”

₆Saul was convinced by what Jonathan said and made a vow in the LORD's name that he would not kill David. ₇So Jonathan called David and told him everything; then he took him to Saul, and David served the king as he had before.

₈War with the Philistines broke out again. David attacked them and defeated them so thoroughly that they fled.

₉One day an evil spirit from the LORD took control of Saul. He was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand, and David was there, playing his harp. ₁₀Saul tried to pin David to the wall with his spear, but David dodged, and the spear stuck in the wall. David ran away and escaped.

₁₁That same night Saul sent some men to watch David's house and kill him the next morning. Michal, David's wife, warned him, “If you don't get away tonight, tomorrow you will be dead.” ₁₂She let him down from a window, and he ran away and escaped. ₁₃Then she took the household idol, laid it on the bed, put a pillow made of goats'-hair at its head, and put a cover over it. ₁₄When Saul's men came to get David, Michal told them that he was ill. ₁₅But Saul sent them back to see David for themselves. He ordered them, “Carry him here in his bed, and I will kill him.” ₁₆They went inside and found the household idol in the bed and the goats'-hair pillow at its head. ₁₇Saul asked Michal, “Why have you tricked me like this and let my enemy escape?”

She answered, “He said he would kill me if I didn't help him to escape.”

₁₈David escaped and went to Samuel in Ramah and told him everything that Saul had done to him. Then he and Samuel went to Naioth and stayed there. ₁₉Saul was told that David was in Naioth in Ramah, ₂₀so he sent some men to arrest him. They saw the group of prophets dancing and shouting, with Samuel as their leader. Then the Spirit of God took control of Saul's men, and they also began to dance and shout. ₂₁When Saul heard of this, he sent more messengers, and they also began to dance and shout. He sent messengers the third time, and the same thing happened to them. ₂₂Then he himself started out for Ramah. When he came to the large well in Secu, he asked where Samuel and David were and was told that they were at Naioth. ₂₃As he was going there, the Spirit of God took control of him also, and he danced and shouted all the way to Naioth. ₂₄He took off his clothes and danced and shouted in Samuel's presence, and lay naked all that day and all that night. (This is how the saying originated, “Has even Saul become a prophet?”)

₁Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah and went to Jonathan. “What have I done?” he asked. “What crime have I committed? What wrong have I done to your father to make him want to kill me?”

₂Jonathan answered, “God forbid that you should die! My father tells me everything he does, important or not, and he would not hide this from me. It isn't true!”

₃But David answered, “Your father knows very well how much you like me, and he has decided not to let you know what he plans to do, because you would be deeply hurt. I swear to you by the living LORD that I am only a step away from death!”

₄Jonathan said, “I'll do anything you want.”

₅“Tomorrow is the New Moon Festival,” David replied, “and I am supposed to eat with the king. But if it's all right with you, I will go and hide in the fields until the evening of the day after tomorrow. ₆If your father notices that I am not at table, tell him that I begged your permission to hurry home to Bethlehem, since it's the time for the annual sacrifice there for my whole family. ₇If he says, ‘All right,’ I will be safe; but if he becomes angry, you will know that he is determined to harm me. ₈Please do me this favour, and keep the sacred promise you made to me. But if I'm guilty, kill me yourself! Why take me to your father to be killed?”

₉“Don't even think such a thing!” Jonathan answered. “If I knew for certain that my father was determined to harm you, wouldn't I tell you?”

₁₀David then asked, “Who will let me know if your father answers you angrily?”

₁₁“Let's go out to the fields,” Jonathan answered. So they went, ₁₂and Jonathan said to David, “May the LORD God of Israel be our witness! At this time tomorrow and on the following day I will question my father. If his attitude towards you is good, I will send you word. ₁₃If he intends to harm you, may the LORD strike me dead if I don't let you know about it and get you safely away. May the LORD be with you as he was with my father! ₁₄And if I remain alive, please keep your sacred promise and be loyal to me; but if I die, ₁₅show the same kind of loyalty to my family for ever. And when the LORD has completely destroyed all your enemies, ₁₆may our promise to each other still be unbroken. If it is broken, the LORD will punish you.”

₁₇Once again Jonathan made David promise to love him, for Jonathan loved David as much as he loved himself. ₁₈Then Jonathan said to him, “Since tomorrow is the New Moon Festival, your absence will be noticed if you aren't at the meal. ₁₉The day after tomorrow your absence will be noticed even more; so go to the place where you hid the other time, and hide behind the pile of stones there. ₂₀I will then shoot three arrows at it, as though it were a target. ₂₁Then I will tell my servant to go and find them. And if I tell him, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; get them,’ that means that you are safe and can come out. I swear by the living LORD that you will be in no danger. ₂₂But if I tell him, ‘The arrows are on the other side of you,’ then leave, because the LORD is sending you away. ₂₃As for the promise we have made to each other, the LORD will make sure that we will keep it for ever.”

₂₄So David hid in the fields. At the New Moon Festival, King Saul came to the meal ₂₅and sat in his usual place by the wall. Abner sat next to him, and Jonathan sat opposite him. David's place was empty, ₂₆but Saul said nothing that day, because he thought, “Something has happened to him, and he is not ritually pure.” ₂₇On the following day, the day after the New Moon Festival, David's place was still empty, and Saul asked Jonathan, “Why didn't David come to the meal either yesterday or today?”

₂₈Jonathan answered, “He begged me to let him go to Bethlehem. ₂₉‘Please let me go,’ he said, ‘because our family is celebrating the sacrificial feast in town, and my brother ordered me to be there. So then, if you are my friend, let me go and see my relatives.’ That is why he isn't in his place at your table.”

₃₀Saul was furious with Jonathan and said to him, “How rebellious and faithless your mother was! Now I know you are taking sides with David and are disgracing yourself and that mother of yours! ₃₁Don't you realize that as long as David is alive, you will never be king of this country? Now go and bring him here — he must die!”

₃₂“Why should he die?” Jonathan replied. “What has he done?”

₃₃At that, Saul threw his spear at Jonathan to kill him, and Jonathan realized that his father was really determined to kill David. ₃₄Jonathan got up from the table in a rage and ate nothing that day — the second day of the New Moon Festival. He was deeply distressed about David, because Saul had insulted him. ₃₅The following morning Jonathan went to the fields to meet David, as they had agreed. He took a young boy with him ₃₆and said to him, “Run and find the arrows I'm going to shoot.” The boy ran, and Jonathan shot an arrow beyond him. ₃₇When the boy reached the place where the arrow had fallen, Jonathan shouted to him, “The arrow is further on! ₃₈Don't just stand there! Hurry up!” The boy picked up the arrow and returned to his master, ₃₉not knowing what it all meant; only Jonathan and David knew. ₄₀Jonathan gave his weapons to the boy and told him to take them back to the town.

₄₁After the boy had left, David got up from behind the pile of stones, fell on his knees and bowed with his face to the ground three times. Both he and Jonathan were crying as they kissed each other; David's grief was even greater than Jonathan's. ₄₂Then Jonathan said to David, “God be with you. The LORD will make sure that you and I, and your descendants and mine, will for ever keep the sacred promise we have made to each other.” Then David left, and Jonathan went back to the town.