1 Samuel 14

¹ Now it came to pass upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said unto the young man that bare his armour,By this example God declared to Israel that the victory did not consist in multitude or armour, but only because of his grace.Come, and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison, that [is] on the other side. But he told not his father.

² And Saul taried in the border of Gibeah vnder a pomegranate tree, which was in Migron, and the people that were with him, were about sixe hundreth men.

³ And Ahiah the sonne of Ahitub, Ichabods brother, the sonne of Phinehas, the sonne of Eli, was the Lordes Priest in Shiloh, and ware an Ephod: and the people knewe not that Ionathan was gone.

⁴ Nowe in the way whereby Ionathan sought to go ouer to the Philistims garison, there was a sharpe rocke on the one side, and a sharpe rocke on the other side: the name of the one was called Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

⁵ The one rocke stretched from the North towarde Michmash, and the other was from the South toward Gibeah.

⁶ And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of theseThat is, the Philistines.uncircumcised: it may be that the LORD will work for us: for [there is] no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few.

⁷ And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that [is] in thine heart: turn thee; behold,I will follow you wherever you go.I [am] with thee according to thy heart.

⁸ Then said Ionathan, Beholde, we goe ouer vnto those men, and will shewe our selues vnto them.

⁹ This he spoke by the spirit of prophecy, and by this God gave him assurance of victory.If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them.

¹⁰ But if they say, Come vp vnto vs, then we will goe vp: for the Lorde hath deliuered them into our hande: and this shall be a signe vnto vs.

¹¹ And both of them discovered themselves unto the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of theThus they spoke contemptuously and by derision.holes where they had hid themselves.

¹² And the men of the garison answered Ionathan, and his armour bearer, and said, Come vp to vs: for we will shewe you a thing. Then Ionathan said vnto his armour bearer, Come vp after me: for the Lorde hath deliuered them into the hand of Israel.

¹³ And Jonathan climbed up uponThat is, he crept up, or went up with all haste.his hands and upon his feet, and his armourbearer after him: and they fell before Jonathan; and his armourbearer slew after him.

¹⁴ And thatThe second was when they slew one another, and the third when the Israelites chased them.first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armourbearer made, was about twenty men, within as it were an half acre of land, [which] a yoke [of oxen might plow].

¹⁵ And there was trembling in the host, in the field, and among all the people: the garrison, and the spoilers, they also trembled, and the earthIn that the insensible creatures tremble for fear of God's judgment, it declares how terrible his vengeance will be against his enemies.quaked: so it was a very great trembling.

¹⁶ Then the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Beniamin sawe: and beholde, the multitude was discomfited, and smitten as they went.

¹⁷ Therefore saide Saul vnto the people that were with him, Search nowe and see, who is gone from vs; when they had nombred, beholde, Ionathan and his armour bearer were not there.

¹⁸ And Saul said vnto Ahiah, Bring hither the Arke of God (for the Arke of God was at that time with the children of Israel)

¹⁹ And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the noise that [was] in the host of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said unto the priest,Leave the Ephod alone, for I have no time now to ask counsel from God, (Num_27:21).Withdraw thine hand.

²⁰ And Saul was assembled with all the people that were with him, and they came to the battell: and behold, euery mans sworde was against his fellow, and there was a very great discomfiture.

²¹ Moreover the Hebrews [that] were with the Philistines before that time, which went up with them into the camp [from the country] round about, even they also [turned] to be with theThough before for fear of the Philistines they declared themselves as enemies to their brethren.Israelites that [were] with Saul and Jonathan.

²² Also all the men of Israel which had hid themselues in mount Ephraim, when they heard, that the Philistims were fled, they followed after them in the battell.

²³ And so the Lord saued Israel that day: and the battell continued vnto Beth-auen.

²⁴ And the men of Israel were distressed that day: for Saul had adjured the people, saying,Such was his hypocrisy and arrogancy, that he thought to attribute to his policy that which God had given by the hand of Jonathan.Cursed [be] the man that eateth [any] food until evening, that I may be avenged on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted [any] food.

²⁵ And all they of the land came to a wood, where hony lay vpon the ground.

²⁶ And when the people were come into the wood, behold, the honey dropped; but no man put his hand to his mouth: for the people feared theThat is, the punishment if they break their oath.oath.

²⁷ But Jonathan heard not when his father charged the people with the oath: wherefore he put forth the end of the rod that [was] in his hand, and dipped it in an honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and hisWhich were dim before from weariness and hunger.eyes were enlightened.

²⁸ Then answered one of the people, and said, Thy father made the people to sweare, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth sustenance this day: and the people were faint.

²⁹ Then said Jonathan, My father hathBy making this cruel law.troubled the land: see, I pray you, how mine eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.

³⁰ Howe much more, if the people had eaten to day of the spoyle of their enemies which they found? for had there not bene nowe a greater slaughter among the Philistims?

³¹ And they smote the Philistims that day, from Michmash to Aiialon: and the people were exceeding faint.

³² So the people turned to the spoile, & tooke sheepe, and oxen, and calues, and slewe them on the ground, and the people did eate them with the blood.

³³ Then they told Saul, saying, Behold, the people sin against the LORD, in that they eat with the blood. And he said, Ye have transgressed:That the blood of the beast that shall be slain, may be pressed out upon it.roll a great stone unto me this day.

³⁴ Againe Saul said, Goe abroade among the people, and bid them bring me euery man his oxe, and euery man his sheepe, and slay them here, and eate and sinne not against the Lord in eating with the blood; ye people brought euery man his oxe in his hand that night, & slew them there.

³⁵ Then Saul made an altar vnto the Lorde, and that was the first altar that he made vnto the Lord.

³⁶ And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and spoil them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatsoever seemeth good unto thee. Then said the priest, Let usTo ask counsel from him.draw near hither unto God.

³⁷ So Saul asked of God, saying, Shall I goe downe after ye Philistims? wilt thou deliuer them into the hands of Israel? But he answered him not at that time.

³⁸ And Saul said, All ye chiefe of the people, come ye hither, and knowe, and see by whom this sinne is done this day.

³⁹ For as the Lord liueth, which saueth Israel, though it be done by Ionathan my sonne, he shall dye the death. But none of all the people answered him.

⁴⁰ Then he saide vnto all Israel, Be ye on one side, and I and Ionathan my sonne will be on the other side; the people saide vnto Saul, Doe what thou thinkest best.

⁴¹ Therefore Saul said unto the LORD God of Israel, GiveCause the lot to fall on him that has broken the oath, but he does not consider his presumption in commanding the same oath.a perfect [lot]. And Saul and Jonathan were taken: but the people escaped.

⁴² And Saul saide, Cast lot betweene me and Ionathan my sonne; Ionathan was taken.

⁴³ Then Saul said to Ionathan, Tell me what thou hast done; Ionathan tolde him, & said, I tasted a litle hony with the ende of the rod, that was in mine hand, and loe, I must die.

⁴⁴ Againe Saul answered, God doe so & more also, vnlesse thou die the death, Ionathan.

⁴⁵ And the people said unto Saul,The people thought it their duty to rescue him, who out of ignorance had broken a rash law, and by whom they had received so great a benefit.Shall Jonathan die, who hath wrought this great salvation in Israel? God forbid: [as] the LORD liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground; for he hath wrought with God this day. So the people rescued Jonathan, that he died not.

⁴⁶ Then Saul came vp from the Philistims: and the Philistims went to their owne place.

⁴⁷ So Saul helde the kingdome ouer Israel, and fought against all his enemies on euery side, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the Kings of Zobah, and against the Philistims: and whithersoeuer he went, he handled them as wicked men.

⁴⁸ And he gathered an host, and smote theAs the Lord had commanded, (Deu_25:17).Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that spoiled them.

⁴⁹ Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan,Called also Abinadab, (1Sa_31:2).and Ishui, and Melchishua: and the names of his two daughters [were these]; the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name of the youngerWho was the wife of David, (1Sa_18:27).Michal:

⁵⁰ And the name of Saul's wife [was] Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz: and the name of the captain of his host [was]Whom Joab, David's captain, slew (2Sa_3:27).Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.

⁵¹ And Kish was Sauls father: and Ner the father of Abner was the sonne of Abiel.

⁵² And there was sore war against the Philistines all the days of Saul:As Samuel had forewarned in (1Sa_8:11).and when Saul saw any strong man, or any valiant man, he took him unto him.