aNow the Philistines were fighting
against Israel
, and the men
of Israel
fled
from before
the Philistines
and fell
slain
bon Mount
Gilboa
.
The Philistines overtook
Saul
and his sons
; and the Philistines
1killed
aJonathan
and Abinadab
and Malchi-shua
the sons
of Saul
.
aThe battle went
heavily
against
Saul
, and the archers
1hit
him; and he was badly
wounded
by the archers
.
aThen Saul said
to his armor
bearer
, "Draw
your sword
and pierce
me through
with it, otherwise
bthese
uncircumcised
will come
and pierce
me through
and make
sport
of me." But his armor
bearer
would
not, for he was greatly
afraid
. cSo Saul
took
his sword
and fell
on it.
When his armor bearer
saw
that Saul
was dead
, he also
fell
on his sword
and died
with him.
Thus Saul died
with his three
sons
, his armor
bearer
, and all
his men
on that day
together
.
When the men of Israel
who
were on the other
side
of the valley
, with those who
were beyond
the Jordan
, saw
that the men
of Israel
had fled
and that Saul
and his sons
were dead
, they abandoned
the cities
and fled
; then the Philistines
came
and lived
in them.
It came about on the 1next
day
when the Philistines
came
to strip
the slain
, that they found
Saul
and his three
sons
fallen
on Mount
Gilboa
.
They cut off
his head
and stripped
off
his weapons
, and sent
them 1throughout
the land
of the Philistines
, ato carry
the good news
bto the house
of their idols
and to the people
.
They put his weapons
in the 1temple
of aAshtaroth
, and bthey fastened
his body
to the wall
of cBeth-shan
.
Now when athe inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead
heard
1what
the Philistines
had done
to Saul
,
aall the valiant
men
rose
and walked
all
night
, and took
the body
of Saul
and the bodies
of his sons
from the wall
of Beth-shan
, and they came
to Jabesh
and bburned
them there
.
They took their bones
and aburied
them under
bthe tamarisk
tree
at Jabesh
, and cfasted
seven
days
.