Fluent Translation · Read & Reflect
1 Chronicles 10
Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. The Philistines pressed hard after Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malki-shua, Saul’s sons.
The battle bore heavily upon Saul, and the archers found him. He was in anguish because of the archers. Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword and pierce me through with it, lest these uncircumcised men come and abuse me.” But his armor-bearer would not, for he was very afraid. So Saul took the sword and fell upon it. When his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell upon the sword and died. Thus Saul died, along with his three sons; all his house died together.
When all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that they had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their towns and fled. Then the Philistines came and lived in them.
The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. They stripped him and took away his head and his weapons. They sent them throughout the land of the Philistines, to bring the news to their idols and to the people. They placed his weapons in the house of their gods, and they fastened his skull in the house of Dagon.
When all Jabesh-gilead heard everything that the Philistines had done to Saul, all the valiant men rose up and carried away Saul’s body and the bodies of his sons. They brought them to Jabesh and buried their bones beneath the oak in Jabesh. Then they fasted seven days.
So Saul died because of his unfaithfulness that he committed against the LORD: because of the word of the LORD that he did not keep, and also because he consulted a medium to seek guidance. He did not seek the LORD, so he put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse.