Israel Ne Filisti Akodi
1Bere a Saulo dii ade no, na wadi mfirihyia aduasa. Na odii ade mfirihyia aduanan abien.
2Saulo yii asraafo sononko bi a wɔn dodow yɛ mpensa fii Israel, na ɔmaa nkae no kɔɔ fie. Ɔfaa asraafo no mu mpenu kaa ne ho, de wɔn kɔɔ Mikmas ne bepɔw nsase a ɛwɔ Bet-El no so. Asraafo apem a wɔaka no kaa Saulo babarima Yonatan ho kɔɔ Gibea wɔ Benyamin asase so.
3Eyi akyi no, ankyɛ na Yonatan kɔtoaa Filistifo asraafo no dii wɔn so wɔ Geba. Asɛm no trɛw ntɛm so wɔ Filistifo no mu. Enti Saulo hyɛn torobɛnto wɔ Israel nyinaa se, “Hebrifo, monsɔre!” 4Israelfo nyinaa tee sɛ Saulo atɔre Filistifo asraafo a wɔwɔ Geba no ase, na ne saa nti, Israelfo ho ayɛ Filistifo no ahi. Enti Israel asraafo no nyinaa boaa wɔn ho ano bio hyiaa Saulo wɔ Gilgal.
5Filistifo boaboaa nsraadɔm kɛse pa ara ano a wokura nteaseɛnam mpensa, apɔnkɔsotefo mpem asia ne asraafo a wɔn dodow te sɛ mpoano nwea ano. Wɔkyeree nsraban wɔ Mikmas wɔ Bet-Awen apuei fam. 6Bere a Israel mmarima no huu atamfo no nsraadɔm mpempem no, wɔn ho dwudwoe; nti wɔyɛɛ sɛ wɔbɛkɔ akohintaw wɔn ho wɔ abodan, mmoa, abotan, aboda ne nsukorae mu. 7Ebinom twaa Asubɔnten Yordan guan kɔɔ Gad ne Gilead asase so. Saa bere no, na Saulo wɔ Gilgal a ne mmarima a wɔka ne ho no wɔ ahopopo ne osuro mu. 8Odii nnanson wɔ hɔ sɛnea Samuel hyɛɛ no sɛ onni no; nanso Samuel de, wamma Gilgal, na Saulo huu sɛ mmarima no rebɔ ahwete. 9Enti ɔhyɛe se, “Momfa ɔhyew afɔre ne asomdwoe afɔre no mmrɛ me.” Na Saulo ankasa bɔɔ ɔhyew afɔre no. 10Ɔrewie afɔre no bɔ ara pɛ, na Samuel koduu hɔ. Enti Saulo pue kohyiaa no maa no akwaaba.
11Samuel bisaa no se, “Dɛn na woayɛ yi?”
Saulo buae se, “Mihuu sɛ mmarima no rehwete, na womma no, na Filistifo no nso reboa wɔn ho ano wɔ Mikmas no, 12medwenee se, ‘Afei de, Filistifo no besian abɛtoa me wɔ Gilgal, nanso mimmisaa Awurade nkyɛn adom ɛ.’ Enti metee nka sɛ, ɛsɛ sɛ mebɔ ɔhyew afɔre ansa na woaba.” 13Na Samuel kae se, “Woadi nkwaseasɛm. Woanni mmara a Awurade, wo Nyankopɔn, hyɛɛ wo no so. Sɛ wudii so a, anka obetim wʼahenni ase wɔ Israel afebɔɔ. 14Na mprempren, wʼahenni no rentim. Awurade apɛ ɔbarima bi a ɔyɛ ne koma apɛde na wayi no sɛ ne nkurɔfo ɔkannifo, efisɛ woanni Awurade mmara no so.”
15Na Samuel fii Gilgal kɔɔ Gibea wɔ Benyamin. Saulo kan mmarima a na wɔka ne ho no, na wɔn ano si bɛyɛ ahansia. 16Na Saulo ne ne babarima Yonatan ne mmarima a wɔka ne ho no te Geba a ɛbɛn Gibea wɔ Benyamin asase so. Saa bere no na Filistifo no akyere nsraban wɔ Mikmas. 17Afowfo akuw abiɛsa fii Filistifo nsraban mu. Kuw baako de nʼani kyerɛɛ Ofra kwan so, kɔɔ Sual mpɔtam hɔ. 18Afoforo faa Bet-Horon kwan so na wɔn a wɔka ho no nso faa ɔhye a ɛkyerɛ Seboim bon no kwan so, kɔɔ sare so fam.
19Saa bere no, na ɔtomfo biara nni Israel asase no so baabiara. Filistifo no amma atomfo no kwan, efisɛ wose, “Anyɛ saa a atomfo no bɛbɔ afoa ne mpeaw ama Hebrifo no.” 20Enti na Israelfo no nyinaa kɔ Filistifo nkyɛn kɔsesew wɔn funtum nnade, nsɔw, mmonnua ne dɔtetu nnade ano. 21(Na wogye funtum nnade ne asosɔw a wɔsew no biara ho dwetɛ gram awotwe, na sɛ wɔsew mmonnua anaa mmoaka nnade a, wogye dwetɛ gram anan.) 22Ɛno nti na Israelfo no mu biara nni afoa anaa peaw, gye sɛ Saulo ne Yonatan.
23Saa bere no mu, na Filistifo asraafo no fa bi akɔ akɔfa ɔtempɔn a ɛda Mikmas no.
Samuel Rebukes Saul
1Saul was thirty13:1 A few late manuscripts of the Septuagint; Hebrew does not have thirty. years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-13:1 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text (see Acts 13:21); Masoretic Text does not have forty-. two years.
2Saul chose three thousand men from Israel; two thousand were with him at Mikmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent back to their homes.
3Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the trumpet blown throughout the land and said, “Let the Hebrews hear!” 4So all Israel heard the news: “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel has become obnoxious to the Philistines.” And the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal.
5The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand13:5 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac; Hebrew thirty thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Mikmash, east of Beth Aven. 6When the Israelites saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and cisterns. 7Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead.
Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. 8He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. 9So he said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.” And Saul offered up the burnt offering. 10Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him.
11“What have you done?” asked Samuel.
Saul replied, “When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Mikmash, 12I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”
13“You have done a foolish thing,” Samuel said. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. 14But now your kingdom will not endure; the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him ruler of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.”
15Then Samuel left Gilgal13:15 Hebrew; Septuagint Gilgal and went his way; the rest of the people went after Saul to meet the army, and they went out of Gilgal and went up to Gibeah in Benjamin, and Saul counted the men who were with him. They numbered about six hundred.
Israel Without Weapons
16Saul and his son Jonathan and the men with them were staying in Gibeah13:16 Two Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts Geba, a variant of Gibeah in Benjamin, while the Philistines camped at Mikmash. 17Raiding parties went out from the Philistine camp in three detachments. One turned toward Ophrah in the vicinity of Shual, 18another toward Beth Horon, and the third toward the borderland overlooking the Valley of Zeboyim facing the wilderness.
19Not a blacksmith could be found in the whole land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, “Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears!” 20So all Israel went down to the Philistines to have their plow points, mattocks, axes and sickles13:20 Septuagint; Hebrew plow points sharpened. 21The price was two-thirds of a shekel13:21 That is, about 1/4 ounce or about 8 grams for sharpening plow points and mattocks, and a third of a shekel13:21 That is, about 1/8 ounce or about 4 grams for sharpening forks and axes and for repointing goads.
22So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.
Jonathan Attacks the Philistines
23Now a detachment of Philistines had gone out to the pass at Mikmash.
