1 Samuel 14:1-13 ▼

1 Now it happened one day that Jonathan, the son of Saul, said to the young man who carried his armor, |Come, let’s go over to the Philistine garrison on the other side.| But he did not tell his father.

2 Now Saul stayed in the outskirts of Gibeah under the pomegranate tree by the threshing floor, and the people who were with him were about six hundred men.

3 Now Ahijah was wearing an ephod. He was the son of Ahitub, the brother of Ichabod, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of the LORD in Shiloh. And the people did not know that Jonathan was gone.

4 Now on each side of the pass through which Jonathan intended to cross to the Philistine garrison there was a steep cliff on one side and a steep cliff on the other side. And the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

5 The one cliff was to north in front of Michmash, and the other on the south in front of Geba.

6 Then Jonathan said to the young man who carried his armor, |Come, let’s go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised. It may be that the LORD will work for us, for nothing can prevent the LORD from saving by many or by a few.|

7 His armor bearer said to him, |Do all that your heart inclines toward. Look, I am with you, my heart is as your heart.|

8 Then Jonathan said, |Look, we will pass over to the men, and we will reveal ourselves to them.

9 If they say thus to us, 'Wait until we come to you,' then we will stop where we are, and will not go up to them.

10 But if they say this, 'Come up to us.' then we will go up; for the LORD has delivered them into our hand. This shall be the sign to us.|

11 Both of them revealed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, |Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they had hidden themselves.|

12 The men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armor bearer, and said, |Come up to us, and we will show you something.| Jonathan said to his armor bearer, |Come up after me; for the LORD has delivered them into the hand of Israel.|

13 Jonathan climbed up on his hands and on his feet, and his armor bearer after him. And they fell before Jonathan; and his armor bearer killed them after him.