| King James Bible | NET Bible |
| 1Then Samuel took a vial of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said, Is it not because the LORD hath anointed thee to be captain over his inheritance? | 1Then Samuel took a small container of olive oil and poured it on Saul's head. Samuel kissed him and said, "The LORD has chosen you to lead his people Israel! You will rule over the LORD's people and you will deliver them from the power of the enemies who surround them. This will be your sign that the LORD has chosen you as leader over his inheritance. |
| 2When thou art departed from me to day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulchre in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say unto thee, The asses which thou wentest to seek are found: and, lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and sorroweth for you, saying, What shall I do for my son? | 2When you leave me today, you will find two men near Rachel's tomb at Zelzah on Benjamin's border. They will say to you, 'The donkeys you have gone looking for have been found. Your father is no longer concerned about the donkeys but has become anxious about you two! He is asking, "What should I do about my son?"' |
| 3Then shalt thou go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the plain of Tabor, and there shall meet thee three men going up to God to Bethel, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine: | 3"As you continue on from there, you will come to the tall tree of Tabor. At that point three men who are going up to God at Bethel will meet you. One of them will be carrying three young goats, one of them will be carrying three round loaves of bread, and one of them will be carrying a container of wine. |
| 4And they will salute thee, and give thee two loaves of bread; which thou shalt receive of their hands. | 4They will ask you how you're doing and will give you two loaves of bread. You will accept them. |
| 5After that thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines: and it shall come to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a tabret, and a pipe, and a harp, before them; and they shall prophesy: | 5Afterward you will go to Gibeah of God, where there are Philistine officials. When you enter the town, you will meet a company of prophets coming down from the high place. They will have harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres, and they will be prophesying. |
| 6And the Spirit of the LORD will come upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into another man. | 6Then the spirit of the LORD will rush upon you and you will prophesy with them. You will be changed into a different person. |
| 7And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee, that thou do as occasion serve thee; for God is with thee. | 7"When these signs have taken place, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God will be with you. |
| 8And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and, behold, I will come down unto thee, to offer burnt offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings: seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come to thee, and shew thee what thou shalt do. | 8You will go down to Gilgal before me. I am going to join you there to offer burnt offerings and to make peace offerings. You should wait for seven days, until I arrive and tell you what to do." |
| 9And it was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart: and all those signs came to pass that day. | 9As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed his inmost person. All these signs happened on that very day. |
| 10And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them. | 10When Saul and his servant arrived at Gibeah, a company of prophets was coming out to meet him. Then the spirit of God rushed upon Saul and he prophesied among them. |
| 11And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetime saw that, behold, he prophesied among the prophets, then the people said one to another, What is this that is come unto the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets? | 11When everyone who had known him previously saw him prophesying with the prophets, the people all asked one another, "What on earth has happened to the son of Kish? Does even Saul belong with the prophets?" |
| 12And one of the same place answered and said, But who is their father? Therefore it became a proverb, Is Saul also among the prophets? | 12A man who was from there replied, "And who is their father?" Therefore this became a proverb: "Is even Saul among the prophets?" |
| 13And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the high place. | 13When Saul had finished prophesying, he went to the high place. |
| 14And Saul's uncle said unto him and to his servant, Whither went ye? And he said, To seek the asses: and when we saw that they were no where, we came to Samuel. | 14Saul's uncle asked him and his servant, "Where did you go?" Saul replied, "To look for the donkeys. But when we realized they were lost, we went to Samuel." |
| 15And Saul's uncle said, Tell me, I pray thee, what Samuel said unto you. | 15Saul's uncle said, "Tell me what Samuel said to you." |
| 16And Saul said unto his uncle, He told us plainly that the asses were found. But of the matter of the kingdom, whereof Samuel spake, he told him not. | 16Saul said to his uncle, "He assured us that the donkeys had been found." But Saul did not tell him what Samuel had said about the matter of kingship. |
| 17And Samuel called the people together unto the LORD to Mizpeh; | 17Then Samuel called the people together before the LORD at Mizpah. |
| 18And said unto the children of Israel, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all kingdoms, and of them that oppressed you: | 18He said to the Israelites, "This is what the LORD God of Israel says, 'I brought Israel up from Egypt and I delivered you from the power of the Egyptians and from the power of all the kingdoms that oppressed you. |
| 19And ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out of all your adversities and your tribulations; and ye have said unto him, Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes, and by your thousands. | 19But today you have rejected your God who saves you from all your trouble and distress. You have said, "No! Appoint a king over us." Now take your positions before the LORD by your tribes and by your clans.'" |
| 20And when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the tribe of Benjamin was taken. | 20Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was chosen by lot. |
| 21When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was taken, and Saul the son of Kish was taken: and when they sought him, he could not be found. | 21Then he brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its families, and the family of Matri was chosen by lot. At last Saul son of Kish was chosen by lot. But when they looked for him, he was nowhere to be found. |
| 22Therefore they inquired of the LORD further, if the man should yet come thither. And the LORD answered, Behold, he hath hid himself among the stuff. | 22So they inquired again of the LORD, "Has the man arrived here yet?" The LORD said, "He has hidden himself among the equipment." |
| 23And they ran and fetched him thence: and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward. | 23So they ran and brought him from there. When he took his position among the people, he stood head and shoulders above them all. |
| 24And Samuel said to all the people, See ye him whom the LORD hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted, and said, God save the king. | 24Then Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see the one whom the LORD has chosen? Indeed, there is no one like him among all the people!" All the people shouted out, "Long live the king!" |
| 25Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the LORD. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. | 25Then Samuel talked to the people about how the kingship would work. He wrote it all down on a scroll and set it before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people away to their homes. |
| 26And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched. | 26Even Saul went to his home in Gibeah. With him went some brave men whose hearts God had touched. |
| 27But the children of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace. | 27But some wicked men said, "How can this man save us?" They despised him and did not even bring him a gift. But Saul said nothing about it. |
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