¹ And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

² Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a whale in the seas: and thou didst come forth with thy rivers, and disturb the waters with thy feet, and render their rivers foul.

³ Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will therefore spread out my net over thee with a company of many people; and they shall bring thee up in my net.

⁴ Then will I leave thee upon the land, and I will cast thee forth upon the open field, and will cause all the fowls of the heaven to remain upon thee, and I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee.

⁵ And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys with thy hight.

⁶ I will also water with thy blood the land in which thou swimmest, even to the mountains; and the rivers shall be full of thee.

⁷ And when I shall extinguish thee, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light.

⁸ All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord GOD.

⁹ I will also vex the hearts of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, into the countries which thou hast not known.

¹⁰ Yes, I will make many people amazed at thee, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish my sword before them; and they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall.

¹¹ For thus saith the Lord GOD; The sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon thee.

¹² By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall, the terrible of the nations, all of them: and they shall lay waste the pomp of Egypt, and all its multitude shall be destroyed.

¹³ I will destroy also all its beasts from beside the great waters; neither shall the foot of man disturb them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts disturb them.

¹⁴ Then will I make their waters deep, and cause their rivers to run like oil, saith the Lord GOD.

¹⁵ When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate, and the country shall be destitute of that of which it was full, when I shall smite all them that dwell in it, then shall they know that I am the LORD.

¹⁶ This is the lamentation with which they shall lament her: the daughters of the nations shall lament her: they shall lament for her, even for Egypt, and for all her multitude, saith the Lord GOD.

¹⁷ It came to pass also in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth day of the month, that the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

¹⁸ Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her, and the daughters of the famous nations, to the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit.

¹⁹ Whom dost thou pass in beauty? go down, and be thou laid with the uncircumcised.

²⁰ They shall fall in the midst of them that are slain by the sword: she is delivered to the sword: draw her and all her multitudes.

²¹ The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of the grave with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword.

²² Asshur is there and all her company: his graves are about him: all of them slain, fallen by the sword:

²³ Whose graves are set in the sides of the pit, and her company is around her grave: all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who caused terror in the land of the living.

²⁴ There is Elam and all her multitude around her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living; yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit.

²⁵ They have set her a bed in the midst of the slain with all her multitude: her graves are around him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword: though their terror was caused in the land of the living, yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit: he is put in the midst of them that are slain.

²⁶ There is Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude: her graves are around him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword, though they caused their terror in the land of the living.

²⁷ And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, who are gone down to the grave, with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living.

²⁸ Yes, thou shalt be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and shalt lie with them that are slain with the sword.

²⁹ There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, who with their might are laid by them that were slain by the sword: they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit.

³⁰ There are the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, who are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with them that are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit.

³¹ Pharaoh shall see them, and shall be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army slain by the sword, saith the Lord GOD.

³² For I have caused my terror in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that are slain with the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.

¹² And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so that the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

¹ Now it fell on a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man who bore his armor, "Come, and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison, that is on the other side." But he didn't tell his father.

² Saul stayed in the uttermost part of Gibeah under the pomegranate tree which is in Migron: and the people who were with him were about six hundred men;

³ and Ahijah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of Yahweh in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. The people didn't know that Jonathan was gone.

⁴ Between the passes, by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistines' garrison, there was a rocky crag on the one side, and a rocky crag on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

⁵ The one crag rose up on the north in front of Michmash, and the other on the south in front of Geba.

⁶ Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, "Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised. It may be that Yahweh will work for us; for there is no restraint on Yahweh to save by many or by few."

⁷ His armor bearer said to him, "Do all that is in your heart. Turn and, behold, I am with you according to your heart."

⁸ Then Jonathan said, "Behold, 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 stand still in our place, and will not go up to them.

¹⁰ But if they say this, 'Come up to us!' then we will go up; for Yahweh 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, "Behold, 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 Yahweh 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.

¹⁴ That first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armor bearer made, was about twenty men, within as it were half a furrow's length in an acre of land.

¹⁵ There was a trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people; the garrison, and the spoilers, they also trembled; and the earth quaked: so there was an exceeding great trembling.

¹⁶ The watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked; and behold, the multitude melted away, and they went [here] and there.

¹⁷ Then Saul said to the people who were with him, "Count now, and see who is missing from us." When they had counted, behold, Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.

¹⁸ Saul said to Ahijah, "Bring the ark of God here." For the ark of God was [there] at that time with the children of Israel.

¹⁹ It happened, while Saul talked to the priest, that the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said to the priest, "Withdraw your hand!"

²⁰ Saul and all the people who were with him were gathered together, and came to the battle: and behold, every man's sword was against his fellow, [and there was] a very great confusion.

²¹ Now the Hebrews who were with the Philistines as before, and who went up with them into the camp, [from the country] all around, even they also [turned] to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

²² Likewise all the men of Israel who had hidden themselves in the hill country of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, even they also followed hard after them in the battle.

²³ So Yahweh saved Israel that day: and the battle passed over by Beth Aven.

²⁴ The men of Israel were distressed that day; for Saul had adjured the people, saying, "Cursed is the man who eats any food until it is evening, and I am avenged of my enemies." So none of the people tasted food.

²⁵ All the people came into the forest; and there was honey on the ground.

²⁶ When the people were come to the forest, behold, the honey dropped: but no man put his hand to his mouth; for the people feared the oath.

²⁷ But Jonathan didn't hear when his father commanded the people with the oath: therefore he put forth the end of the rod who was in his hand, and dipped it in the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his eyes were enlightened.

²⁸ Then one of the people answered, and said, "Your father directly commanded the people with an oath, saying, 'Cursed is the man who eats food this day.'" The people were faint.

²⁹ Then Jonathan said, "My father has troubled the land. Please look how my eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.

³⁰ How much more, if perhaps the people had eaten freely today of the spoil of their enemies which they found? For now has there been no great slaughter among the Philistines."

³¹ They struck of the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon. The people were very faint;

³² and the people flew on the spoil, and took sheep, and cattle, and calves, and killed them on the ground; and the people ate them with the blood.

³³ Then they told Saul, saying, "Behold, the people are sinning against Yahweh, in that they eat meat with the blood." He said, "You have dealt treacherously. Roll a large stone to me this day!"

³⁴ Saul said, "Disperse yourselves among the people, and tell them, 'Bring me here every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and kill them here, and eat; and don't sin against Yahweh in eating meat with the blood.'" All the people brought every man his ox with him that night, and killed them there.

³⁵ Saul built an altar to Yahweh. This was the first altar that he built to Yahweh.

³⁶ Saul said, "Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and take spoil among them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them." They said, "Do whatever seems good to you." Then the priest said, "Let us draw near here to God."

³⁷ Saul asked counsel of God, "Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will you deliver them into the hand of Israel?" But he didn't answer him that day.

³⁸ Saul said, "Draw near here, all you chiefs of the people; and know and see in which this sin has been this day.

³⁹ For, as Yahweh lives, who saves Israel, though it is in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die." But there was not a man among all the people who answered him.

⁴⁰ Then he said to all Israel, "You be on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side." The people said to Saul, "Do what seems good to you."

⁴¹ Therefore Saul said to Yahweh, the God of Israel, "Show the right." Jonathan and Saul were chosen; but the people escaped.

⁴² Saul said, "Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son." Jonathan was selected.

⁴³ Then Saul said to Jonathan, "Tell me what you have done!" Jonathan told him, and said, "I certainly did taste a little honey with the end of the rod that was in my hand; and behold, I must die."

⁴⁴ Saul said, "God do so and more also; for you shall surely die, Jonathan."

⁴⁵ The people said to Saul, "Shall Jonathan die, who has worked this great salvation in Israel? Far from it! As Yahweh lives, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground; for he has worked with God this day!" So the people rescued Jonathan, that he didn't die.

⁴⁶ Then Saul went up from following the Philistines; and the Philistines went to their own place.

⁴⁷ Now when Saul had taken the kingdom over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines: and wherever he turned himself, he put [them] to the worse.

⁴⁸ He did valiantly, and struck the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of those who despoiled them.

⁴⁹ Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishvi, and Malchishua; and the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name of the younger Michal:

⁵⁰ and the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz. The name of the captain of his army was Abner the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.

⁵¹ Kish was the father of Saul; and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

⁵² There was severe war against the Philistines all the days of Saul: and when Saul saw any mighty man, or any valiant man, he took him to him.