I Chronicles 10 The Death of Saul and His Sons

 I Chronicles 10

The Death of Saul and His Sons

1 Now the Philistines fought with Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines, and fell wounded on Mount Gilboa.

2 And the Philistines pressed Saul and his sons, and the Philistines slew Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, Saul's sons.

3 And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers found him; and he was greatly afraid of the archers.

4 Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, "Draw your sword and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised men come and mock me." But his armor-bearer would not, for he was greatly afraid. So Saul took his sword and fell on it.

5 And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died.

6 So Saul and his three sons died, and all his household died together.

7 When all the men of Israel who were in the valley saw that they had fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled. Then the Philistines came and lived in them.

8 On the next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.

9 They stripped him and took his head and his armor and sent them throughout the land of the Philistines to tell their idols and the people.

10 They put his armor in the house of their god, and his head they set in the house of Dagon. 

11 When all Jabesh-gilead heard of everything the Philistines had done to Saul, 

12 all the fighting men arose and took away the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons and brought them to Jebez. They buried his bones under an oak in Jabez and fasted for seven days. 

13 So Saul died for his trespass against the LORD, for the word of the LORD, which he had not kept, and because he had consulted a medium to inquire of her. 

14 He did not seek the LORD, so he killed him and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse.