I. SAMUEL.

from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the Lord, and serve him only; and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines. 4 Then the children of Israel did put away Baalim and Ashtaroth, and served the Lord only. 5 And Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and I will pray for you unto the Lord. 11 And the men of Israel went out of Mizpeh, and pursued the Philistines, and smote them, until they came under Beth-car. 13 So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more into the coast of Israel, and the hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 15 And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.

CHAPTER XII.

SAMUEL'S APPEAL TO THE PEOPLE.

AND Samuel said unto all Israel, Behold, I have hearkened unto your voice in all that you said unto me, and have made a king over you. 2 And now, behold, the king walketh before you and I am old and grayheaded; and behold my sons are with you and I have walked before you from my childhood unto this day. 3 Behold, here I am: witness against me before the Lord, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you. 4 And they said, Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken ought of any man's hand.

5 And he said unto them, The Lord is witness against you, and his anointed is witness this day, that ye have not found ought in my hand. And they answered, He is witness. 6 And Samuel said unto the people, It is the Lord that advanced Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the Lord, of all the righteous acts of the Lord, which he did

I. SAMUEL.

to you and to your fathers. 8 When Jacob was come into Egypt, and your fathers cried unto the Lord, then the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, which brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and made them dwell in this place.

9 And when they forgat the Lord their God, he sold them into the hand of Sisera captain of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 10 And they cried unto the Lord, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord, and have served Baalim and Ashtaroth: but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve thee. 11 And the Lord sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthab, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies, on every side, and ye dwelled safe. 12 And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me, Nay, but a king shall reign over us; when the Lord your God was your king.

13 Now therefore behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have desired: and behold, the Lord hath set a king over you. 14 If ye will fear the Lord, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then shall both ye, and also the king that reigneth over you, continue following the Lord your God: 15 But if ye will not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then shall the hand of the Lord be against you, as it was against your fathers. 16. Now therefore stand and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes.

17 Is it not wheat-harvest to day? I will call unto the Lord, and he shall send thunder and rain: that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great which ye have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking you a king. 18 So Samuel called unto the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day: and all the people greatly feared the Lord and Samuel. 19 And all the people said unto Samuel, pray for thy servants unto the Lord thy God, that we die not: for we have added unto all our sins this eyil, to ask us a king. 20 And Samuel said unto the

I. SAMUEL.

people, Fear not, ye have done all this wickedness: yet turn not aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart.

21 And turn ye not aside for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain. 22 For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name's sake: because it hath pleased the Lord to make you his people. 23 Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the Lord, in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and the right way: 24 Only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart; for consider how great things he hath done for you. 25 But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be consumed, both ye and your king.

CHAPTER XV.

SAUL ANOINTED KING.

SAMUEL also said unto Saul, The Lord sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now, therefore, hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the Lord. 2 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way when he came up from Egypt. 3 Now go, and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not. 7 And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt. 8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.

13 And Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the Lord: I have performed the commandment of the Lord. 14 And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine

I. SAMUEL.

ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear? 15 And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen to sacrifice unto the Lord thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed. 22 And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burntofferings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice; and to hearken than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry: because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

CHAPTER XVI.

DAVID IS ANOINTED KING.

And the Lord said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons. 2 And Samuel said, How can I go? If Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the Lord said, Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord. 3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou shalt do : and thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I name unto thee. 4 And Samuel did that which the Lord spake, and came to Beth-lehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably ? 5 And he said, Peaceably: I am come to sacrifice unto the Lord: sanctify yourselves, and Come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

6 And it came to pass when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him. 2 But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him. For the Lord seeth not as man seeth: for man looketh on the outward appearance,

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but the Lord looketh on the heart. 8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this. 9 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this. 10 Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, the Lord hath not chosen these.

11 And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and behold he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither. 12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he. 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

CHAPTER XVII.

GOLIATH SLAIN BY DAVID.

Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Shochoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them. 4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.

8 And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose ye a man for you, and let him come down to me. 9 If he be able to fight with me, and to