Saul and His Sons Die
1 Meanwhile, the Philistines were fighting Israel at Mount Gilboa. Israel's soldiers ran from the Philistines, and many of them were killed. 2 The Philistines closed in on Saul and his sons, and they killed his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua. 3 The fighting was fierce around Saul, and he was badly wounded by enemy arrows.
4 Saul told the soldier who carried his weapons, “Kill me with your sword! I don't want these worthless Philistines to torture and make fun of me.” But the soldier was afraid to kill him.
Saul then took out his own sword; he stuck the blade into his stomach, and fell on it. 5 When the soldier knew that Saul was dead, he killed himself in the same way.
6 Saul was dead, his three sons were dead, and the soldier who carried his weapons was dead. They and all his soldiers died on that same day. 7 The Israelites on the other side of Jezreel Valley and the other side of the Jordan learned that Saul and his sons were dead. They saw that the Israelite army had run away. So they ran away too, and the Philistines moved into the towns the Israelites had left behind.
8 The day after the battle, when the Philistines returned to the battlefield to take the weapons of the dead Israelite soldiers, they found Saul and his three sons lying dead on Mount Gilboa. 9-10 The Philistines cut off Saul's head and pulled off his armor. Then they put his armor in the temple of the goddess Astarte, and they nailed his body to the city wall of Beth-Shan. They also sent messengers everywhere in Philistia to spread the good news in the temples of their idols and among their people.
11 The people who lived in Jabesh in Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul's body. 12 So one night, some brave men from Jabesh went to Beth-Shan. They took down the bodies of Saul and his sons, then brought them back to Jabesh and burned them. 13 They buried the bones under a small tree in Jabesh, and for seven days, they went without eating to show their sorrow.
1 Un filistieši karoja ar Israēlu, bet Israēla vīri bēga no filistiešiem un nokauti krita Gilboas pakalnos. 2 Un filistieši uzvarēja Saulu un viņa dēlus, un filistieši nokāva Jonatānu, Abinadabu un Malhišu, Saula dēlus. 3 Kad kauja iedegās ap pašu Saulu un strēlnieki vērsa savus stopus tieši pret viņu, tad viņš tika smagi ievainots. 4 Un Sauls pavēlēja savam ieroču nesējam: "Izvelc savu zobenu no maksts un nodur ar to mani, iekāms šie neapgraizītie nāk un mani nodur, lai tie neliek mani apsmieklā!" Bet viņa ieroču nesējs negribēja to darīt, jo viņš ļoti bijās. Tad Sauls ņēma zobenu un metās uz tā. 5 Kad viņa ieroču nesējs redzēja, ka Sauls bija miris, tad arī tas metās uz savu zobenu un nomira līdz ar viņu. 6 Un tā krita tanī pašā dienā gan Sauls, gan viņa trīs dēli, gan viņa ieroču nesējs un visi viņa vīri. 7 Kad Israēla vīri, kas dzīvoja Jezreēlas līdzenuma pilsētās un pilsētās pie Jordānas, redzēja, ka Israēla vīri metās bēgt un ka Sauls ar saviem dēliem bija kritis, tad tie pameta savas pilsētas un bēga; tad tajās ienāca filistieši un apmetās tur uz dzīvi. 8 Kad nākamā dienā nāca filistieši, lai kritušos aplaupītu, un tie atrada Saulu un viņa trīs dēlus, kas visi bija krituši Gilboas pakalnos, 9 tad tie viņam nocirta galvu, novilka viņam bruņas līdz ar ieročiem, un tie sūtīja uzvaras vēsti visapkārt pa visu savu zemi, pasludinādami to savu elku dievu namos un visai tautai. 10 Un tie novietoja viņa ieročus Aštartes templī, bet viņa līķi tie pakāra pie mūra Bet-Šeanā. 11 Kad Jabešas iedzīvotāji Gileādā dzirdēja, ko filistieši bija Saulam izdarījuši, 12 tad cēlās visi spēcīgie vīri, gāja visu nakti, noņēma Saula līķi un arī viņa dēlu līķus no Bet-Šeanas mūra un griezās ar tiem atpakaļ uz Jabešu, kur viņi tos sadedzināja. 13 Un viņi ņēma viņu kaulus un apraka tos Jabešā zem tamariska un gavēja septiņas dienas.
