موت الملك شاول
(1صم 31:1-13)1 وحارَبَ الفلِسطيُّونَ بَني إِسرائيلَ، فانهَزَمَ رجالُ إِسرائيلَ مِنْ أمامِهِم، وسقَطَ مُعظَمُهُم قَتلَى في جبَلِ جِلْبوعَ. 2 ولحِقَ الفلِسطيُّونَ شاوُلَ وبَنيهِ وقَتَلوا يوناثانَ وأبـينادابَ ومَلكيشوعَ بَني شاوُلَ. 3 واشتَدَّتِ الحربُ على شاوُلَ، وفاجأهُ الرُّماةُ بالأقواسِ فارتَعَبَ مِنهُم جِدًّا. 4 فقالَ لِحامِلِ سلاحِهِ: «إِستَلَّ سيفَكَ واطْعَنِّي بهِ لِئلاَّ يأتيَ هؤلاءِ الفلِسطيُّونَ غَيرُ المَختونينَ ويَقتُلوني ويُشَنِّعوا فيَّ». فرفَضَ حامِلُ سلاحِهِ أمرَهُ هذا لأنَّهُ خافَ جِدًّا. فأخَذَ شاوُلُ سيفَهُ وسقَطَ علَيهِ. 5 ولمَّا رأى حامِلُ سلاحِهِ أنَّهُ ماتَ، سقَطَ هوَ أيضا على سيفِهِ وماتَ معَهُ. 6 فماتَ شاوُلُ وبَنوهُ الثَّلاثَةُ، وجميعُ أهلِ بـيتِه، في ذلِكَ اليومِ. 7 ولمَّا عَلِمَ بَنو إِسرائيلَ الّذينَ في الجانِبِ الآخَرِ مِنَ الوادي أنَّ رِجالَهُم هربوا وأنَّ شاوُلَ وبنيهِ ماتوا، تَركوا المُدُنَ وهربوا هُم أيضا فجاءَ الفلِسطيُّونَ وأقاموا فيها.
8 وفي الغَدِ أقبَلَ الفلِسطيُّونَ ليَسلُبوا القَتلَى. فوَجَدوا شاوُلَ وبَنيهِ الثَّلاثَةَ قَتلَى في جبَلِ جِلْبوعَ. 9 فقَطَعُوا رأسَهُ ونزَعوا سِلاحَه، وأرسلوا يُبَشِّرونَ في أرضِهِم أصنامَهم وشعبَهُم. 10 ووضَعُوا سلاحَهُ في هَيكلِ عَشتاروتَ، وعَلَّقُوا جُمجُمَتَهُ في بَيتِ داجونَ. 11 وسَمِعَ أهلُ يابـيشَ في جلعادَ بِما فعَلَ الفلِسطيُّونَ بِشاوُلَ، 12 فنَهَضَ مُقاتِلوهُم، وأخَذوا جُثَّةَ شاوُلَ وجُثَثَ بَنيهِ وجاؤوا بِها إلى يابـيشَ ودفَنوا عِظامَهُم تَحتَ شجَرةِ البُطْمَةِ الّتي في يابـيشَ، وصاموا سَبعةَ أيّامٍ. 13 فماتَ شاوُلُ لأنَّهُ خانَ الرّبَّ وعصَى كلِمَتَهُ، وأيضا لأنَّهُ استَشارَ أرواحَ الموتى. 14 ولم يَستَشِرِ الرّبَّ، فأهلَكَهُ وحَوَّلَ المُلْكَ إلى داوُدَ بنِ يَسَّى.
The Death of King Saul
(1 Samuel 31.1-13)1 The Philistines fought a battle against the Israelites on Mount Gilboa. Many Israelites were killed there, and the rest of them, including King Saul and his sons, fled. 2 But the Philistines caught up with them and killed three of Saul's sons, Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua. 3 The fighting was heavy around Saul, and he was hit by enemy arrows and badly wounded. 4 He said to the young man carrying his weapons, “Draw your sword and kill me, to keep these godless Philistines from gloating over me.” But the young man was too terrified to do it. So Saul took his own sword and threw himself on it. 5 The young man saw that Saul was dead, so he too threw himself on his sword and died. 6 So Saul and his three sons all died together, and none of his descendants ever ruled. 7 When the Israelites who lived in Jezreel Valley heard that the army had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their towns and ran off. Then the Philistines came and occupied them.
8 The day after the battle the Philistines went to plunder the corpses, and they found the bodies of Saul and his sons lying on Mount Gilboa. 9 They cut off Saul's head, stripped off his armor, and sent messengers with them throughout Philistia to tell the good news to their idols and to their people. 10 They put his weapons in one of their temples and hung his head in the temple of their god Dagon. 11 When the people of Jabesh in Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 the bravest men went and got the bodies of Saul and his sons and took them to Jabesh. They buried them there under an oak and fasted for seven days.
13 Saul died because he was unfaithful to the Lord. He disobeyed the Lord's commands; he tried to find guidance by consulting the spirits of the dead 14 instead of consulting the Lord. So the Lord killed him and gave control of the kingdom to David son of Jesse.
