1 Samuel
Chapter 31
1 The Philistines battled Israel: the Israelites ran from the Philistines and many were killed on Mount Gilboa.
2 The Philistines chased Saul and his sons closely; they killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Melchishua, Saul’s sons.
3 The fight was very bad for Saul, and archers shot him; he was badly hurt by the archers.
4 Saul said to his helper, “Pull out your sword and stab me with it; otherwise these enemies will come and kill me and treat me badly.” But his helper wouldn’t do it because he was very scared. So Saul took a sword and killed himself with it.
5 When his helper saw Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died with him.
6 Saul died, along with his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men, on the same day.
7 When the Israelites across the valley and the Jordan River saw that the Israelites were running away and that Saul and his sons had died, they left their towns and ran away; then the Philistines moved in and lived there.
8 The next day, when the Philistines came to take things from the dead bodies, they found Saul and his three sons dead on Mount Gilboa.
9 They cut off his head, took his armor, and sent them throughout the land of the Philistines to show them at the temples of their gods and to the people.
10 They placed his armor in the temple of Ashtaroth and hung his body on the wall of Bethshan.
11 When the people of Jabeshgilead heard what the Philistines did to Saul;
12 All the brave men got up, traveled all night, took Saul’s body and his sons’ bodies from the Bethshan wall, and went to Jabesh where they burned them.
13 They collected their bones, buried them under a tree at Jabesh, and did not eat for seven days.