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1 Samuel 11

Defeat of the Ammonites.

1^* About a month later, Nahash the Ammonite went up and besieged Jabesh-gilead. All the people of Jabesh begged Nahash, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.”^a

2But Nahash the Ammonite replied, “This is my condition for making a treaty with you: I will gouge out the right eye of every man,^* and thus bring shame on all Israel.”

3The elders of Jabesh said to him: “Give us seven days to send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you.”

4When the messengers arrived at Gibeah of Saul and reported the news in the people’s hearing, they all wept aloud.

5Just then Saul came in from the field, behind his oxen. “Why are the people weeping?” he asked. They repeated the message of the inhabitants of Jabesh for him.

6As he listened to this report, the spirit of God rushed upon him and he became very angry.^b

7Taking a yoke of oxen, he cut them into pieces and sent them throughout the territory of Israel^* by messengers saying, “If anyone does not come out to follow Saul and Samuel, the same thing will be done to his oxen!” The dread of the LORD came upon the people and they went forth as one.^c

8When Saul reviewed them in Bezek,^* there were three hundred thousand Israelites and seventy thousand Judahites.

9To the messengers who had come he said, “Tell the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead that tomorrow, when the sun grows hot, they will be saved.” The messengers went and reported this to the inhabitants of Jabesh, and they rejoiced.

10The men of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you may do with us whatever you want.”

11The next day, Saul arranged his troops in three companies and invaded the camp during the dawn watch. They slaughtered Ammonites until the day had gotten hot; by then the survivors were so scattered that no two of them were left together.

Saul Accepted as King.

12^* The people then said to Samuel: “Who questioned whether Saul should rule over us? Hand them over and we will put them to death.”^d

13But Saul objected, “No one will be put to death this day, for today the LORD has rescued Israel.”^e

14Samuel said to the people, “Come, let us go to Gilgal to renew the kingship there.”

15So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king in the LORD’s presence. They also sacrificed communion offerings there before the LORD, and Saul and all the Israelites rejoiced greatly.

1 Samuel 12

Samuel’s Integrity.

1^* Samuel addressed all Israel: “I have granted your request in every respect,” he said. “I have set a king over you^a

2and now the king will lead you. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are among you. I was your leader from my youth to the present day.

3Here I stand! Answer me in the presence of the LORD and the LORD’s anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I wronged? From whom have I accepted a bribe and shut my eyes because of it? I will make restitution to you.”^b

4They replied, “You have neither cheated us, nor oppressed us, nor accepted anything from anyone.”

5So he said to them, “The LORD is witness against you this day, and the LORD’s anointed is witness, that you have found nothing in my possession.” “The LORD is witness,” they said.

Samuel Admonishes the People.

6Samuel continued: “The LORD is witness, who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your ancestors up from the land of Egypt.^c

7Now take your stand, that I may judge you in the presence of the LORD according to all the gracious acts that the LORD has done for you and your ancestors.

8When Jacob and his sons went to Egypt and the Egyptians oppressed them, your ancestors cried out to the LORD. The LORD then sent Moses and Aaron to bring them out of Egypt and settled them in this place.^d

9But they forgot the LORD their God; and so the LORD sold them into the power of Sisera, the captain of the army of Hazor, the power of the Philistines, and the power of the king of Moab, who made war against them.^e

10They cried out to the LORD and said, ‘We have sinned because we abandoned the LORD and served the Baals and Astartes. Now deliver us from the power of our enemies, and we will serve you.’^f

11The LORD sent Jerubbaal, Barak, Jephthah, and Samuel; he delivered you from the power of your enemies on every side, so that you could live in security.^g

12Yet, when you saw Nahash, king of the Ammonites, advancing against you, you said to me, ‘No! A king must rule us,’ even though the LORD your God is your king.^h

Warnings for People and King.

13“Now here is the king you chose. See! The LORD has given you a king.ⁱ

14If you fear and serve the LORD, if you listen to the voice of the LORD and do not rebel against the LORD’s command, if both you and the king, who rules over you, follow the LORD your God—well and good.

15But if you do not listen to the voice of the LORD and if you rebel against the LORD’s command, the hand of the LORD will be against you and your king.

16Now then, stand ready to witness the great marvel the LORD is about to accomplish before your eyes.

17Are we not in the harvest time for wheat?^* Yet I will call upon the LORD, and he will send thunder and rain. Thus you will see and understand how great an evil it is in the eyes of the LORD that you have asked for a king.”^j

18Samuel called upon the LORD, and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day.

Assistance Promised. Then all the people feared the LORD and Samuel.

19They said to Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for us, your servants, that we may not die for having added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.”

20“Do not fear,” Samuel answered them. “You have indeed committed all this evil! Yet do not turn from the LORD, but serve him with your whole heart.

21Do not turn aside to gods who are nothing,^* who cannot act and deliver. They are nothing.^k

22For the sake of his own great name^* the LORD will not abandon his people, since the LORD has decided to make you his people.^l

23As for me, far be it from me to sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you and to teach you the good and right way.^m

24But you must fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart, for you have seen the great things the LORD has done among you.

25If instead you continue to do evil, both you and your king shall be swept away.”

1 Samuel 13

[Saul was…years old when he became king and he reigned…-two years over Israel.]^*

Saul Offers Sacrifice.

2Saul chose three thousand of Israel, of whom two thousand remained with him in Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and one thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. He sent the rest of the army back to their tents.

3Now Jonathan struck the Philistine garrison^* in Gibeah, and the Philistines got word of it. Then Saul sounded the horn throughout the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews hear!”^a

4Then all Israel heard the report, “Saul has struck the garrison of the Philistines! Israel has become odious to the Philistines!” Then the army was called up to Saul in Gilgal.

5The Philistines also assembled for battle against Israel, with thirty thousand chariots,^* six thousand horsemen, and foot soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore.^b They came up and encamped in Michmash, east of Beth-aven.^c

6When the soldiers saw they were in danger because the army was hardpressed, they hid themselves in caves, thickets, rocks, caverns, and cisterns.

7Other Hebrews crossed the Jordan into the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul, however, held out in Gilgal, all his army trembling in fear behind him.^*

8He waited seven days, until the appointed time Samuel had set, but Samuel did not come, and the army deserted Saul.^d

9He then said, “Bring me the burnt offering and communion offerings!” Then he sacrificed the burnt offering.

King Saul Reproved.

10As he finished sacrificing the burnt offering, there came Samuel! So Saul went out toward him in order to greet him.

11Samuel asked him, “What have you done?” Saul explained: “When I saw that the army was deserting me and you did not come on the appointed day, and that the Philistines were assembling at Michmash,

12I said to myself, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not yet sought the LORD’s blessing.’ So I thought I should sacrifice the burnt offering.”

13Samuel replied to Saul: “You have acted foolishly! Had you kept the command the LORD your God gave you, the LORD would now establish your kingship in Israel forever;

14but now your kingship shall not endure. The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart^* to appoint as ruler over his people because you did not observe what the LORD commanded you.”^e

Philistine Invasion.

15Then Samuel set out from Gilgal and went his own way; but what was left of the army went up after Saul to meet the soldiers, going from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. Saul then counted the soldiers he had with him, about six hundred.^f

16Saul, his son Jonathan, and the soldiers they had with them were now occupying Geba of Benjamin, and the Philistines were encamped at Michmash.

17Meanwhile, raiders left the camp of the Philistines in three bands.^g One band took the Ophrah road toward the district of Shual;

18another turned in the direction of Beth-horon; and the third took the road for Geba that overlooks the Valley of the Hyenas toward the desert.

Disarmament of Israel.^*

19Not a single smith was to be found anywhere in Israel, for the Philistines had said, “Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears.”^h

20All Israel, therefore, had to go down to the Philistines to sharpen their plowshares, mattocks, axes, and sickles.

21The price for the plowshares and mattocks was two thirds of a shekel, and a third of a shekel for sharpening the axes and for setting the ox-goads.

22And so on the day of battle neither sword nor spear could be found in the hand of any of the soldiers with Saul or Jonathan. Only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.

Jonathan’s Exploit.

23An outpost of the Philistines had pushed forward to the pass of Michmash.ⁱ

1 Samuel 14

One day Jonathan, son of Saul, said to his armor-bearer, “Come, let us go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side.” But he did not inform his father—^a

2Saul was sitting under the pomegranate tree in Migron on the outskirts of Gibeah; with him were about six hundred men.

3Ahijah, son of Ahitub, brother of Ichabod, the son of Phinehas, son of Eli, the priest of the LORD at Shiloh, was wearing the ephod—nor did the soldiers know that Jonathan had gone.^b

4Flanking the ravine through which Jonathan intended to cross to the Philistine outpost were rocky crags on each side, one named Bozez and the other Seneh.

5One crag was to the north, toward Michmash; the other to the south, toward Geba.

6Jonathan said to his armor-bearer: “Come, let us go over to that outpost of the uncircumcised. Perhaps the LORD will help us, because it is no more difficult for the LORD to grant victory by means of a few than it is by means of many.”^c

7His armor-bearer replied, “Do whatever you think best; I am with you in whatever you decide.”

8Jonathan continued: “When we cross over to those men, we will be visible to them.

9If they say to us, ‘Stay there until we can come to you,’ we will stop where we are; we will not go up to them.

10But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ we will go up, because the LORD has delivered them into our hand. That will be our sign.”^{* d}

11When the two of them came into the view of the Philistine outpost, the Philistines remarked, “Look, some Hebrews^* are coming out of the holes where they have been hiding.”

12The men of the outpost called to Jonathan and his armor-bearer. “Come up here,” they said, “and we will teach you a lesson.” So Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, “Climb up after me, for the LORD has delivered them into the hand of Israel.”

13Jonathan clambered up with his armor-bearer behind him. As the Philistines fell before Jonathan, his armor-bearer, who followed him, would finish them off.

14In this first attack Jonathan and his armor-bearer killed about twenty men within half a furlong.

15Then terror spread through the camp and the countryside; all the soldiers in the outpost and in the raiding parties shuddered in terror. The earth shook with an awesome shuddering.^{* e}

Rout of the Philistines.

16Saul’s sentinels in Gibeah of Benjamin saw that the enemy camp had scattered and were running in all directions.

17Saul said to those around him, “Count the troops and find out if any of us are missing.” When they had taken the count, they found Jonathan and his armor-bearer missing.

18Saul then said to Ahijah, “Bring the ephod here.” (Ahijah was wearing the ephod before the Israelites at that time.)

19While Saul was speaking to the priest, the uproar in the Philistine camp kept increasing. So he said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.”

20And Saul and all his men rallied and rushed into the fight, where the Philistines, wholly confused, were thrusting swords at one another.^f

21The Hebrews who had previously sided with the Philistines and had gone up with them to their camp turned to join the Israelites under Saul and Jonathan.^g

22Likewise, all the Israelites who were hiding in the hill country of Ephraim, hearing that the Philistines were fleeing, kept after them in the battle.^h

23^* Thus the LORD saved Israel that day.

Saul’s Oath. The battle continued past Beth-aven.

24Even though the Israelites were exhausted that day, Saul laid an oath on them, saying, “Cursed be the one who takes food before evening, before I am able to avenge myself on my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food.

25Now there was a honeycomb lying on the ground,

26and when the soldiers came to the comb the honey was flowing; yet no one raised a hand from it to his mouth, because the people feared the oath.

Violation of the Oath.

27Jonathan, who had not heard that his father had put the people under oath, thrust out the end of the staff he was holding and dipped it into the honeycomb. Then he raised it to his mouth and his eyes brightened.

28At this, one of the soldiers spoke up: “Your father put the people under a strict oath, saying, ‘Cursed be the one who takes food today!’ As a result the people are weakened.”

29ⁱ Jonathan replied: “My father brings trouble to the land. Look how bright my eyes are because I had this little taste of honey.

30What is more, if the army had eaten freely of the enemy’s plunder when they came across it today, surely the slaughter of the Philistines would have been the greater by now!”

Consuming the Blood.

31After the Philistines were routed that day from Michmash to Aijalon, the people were completely exhausted.

32So the army pounced upon the plunder and took sheep, oxen, and calves, slaughtering them on the ground and eating the meat with the blood in it.^j

33Informed that the army was sinning against the LORD by eating the meat with blood in it, Saul said: “You have broken faith. Roll a large stone here for me.”

34He continued: “Mingle with the people and tell each of them, ‘Bring an ox or sheep to me. Slaughter them here and then eat. But you must not sin against the LORD by eating meat with blood in it.’” So that night they all brought whatever oxen they had seized, and they slaughtered them there;

35and Saul built an altar to the LORD—this was the first time he built an altar to the LORD.^k

Jonathan in Danger of Death.

36Then Saul said, “Let us go down in pursuit of the Philistines by night, to plunder them until daybreak and leave no one alive.” They replied, “Do what you think best.” But the priest said, “Let us consult God.”

37So Saul inquired of God: “Shall I go down in pursuit of the Philistines? Will you deliver them into the hand of Israel?” But he received no answer on this occasion.^l

38“All officers of the army,” Saul announced, “come forward. Find out how this sin was committed today.

39As the LORD lives who has given victory to Israel, even if my son Jonathan has committed it, he shall surely die!” But none of the people answered him.

40So he said to all Israel, “Stand on one side, and my son Jonathan and I will stand on the other.” The people responded, “Do what you think best.”^m

41And Saul said to the LORD, the God of Israel: “Why did you not answer your servant this time? If the blame for this resides in me or my son Jonathan, LORD, God of Israel, respond with Urim; but if this guilt is in your people Israel, respond with Thummim.”^* Jonathan and Saul were designated, and the people went free.ⁿ

42Saul then said, “Cast lots between me and my son Jonathan.” And Jonathan was designated.

43Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.” Jonathan replied, “I only tasted a little honey from the end of the staff I was holding. Am I to die for this?”

44Saul declared, “May God do thus to me, and more, if you do not indeed die, Jonathan!”^o

Rescue of Jonathan.

45But the soldiers protested to Saul: “Is Jonathan to die, the man who won this great victory for Israel? This must not be! As the LORD lives, not a single hair of his head shall fall to the ground, for God was with him in what he did today!” Thus the soldiers rescued^* Jonathan and he did not die.^p

46After that Saul gave up the pursuit of the Philistines, who returned to their own territory.

Saul’s Victories.

47After taking possession of the kingship over Israel, Saul waged war on its enemies all around—Moab, the Ammonites, Edom, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. Wherever he turned, he was successful^q

48and fought bravely. He defeated Amalek and delivered Israel from the hand of those who were plundering them.^r

Saul’s Family.

49The sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchishua; the name of his firstborn daughter was Merob; the name of the younger was Michal.^s

50The name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam, daughter of Ahimaaz. The name of his general was Abner, son of Ner, Saul’s uncle;

51Kish, Saul’s father, and Ner, Abner’s father, were sons of Abiel.^t

52There was heavy fighting with the Philistines during Saul’s lifetime. Whenever Saul saw any strong or brave man, he took him into his service.

1 Corinthians 12:1-11

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THE BOOKS OF 1 Samuel

These books describe the rise and development of kingship in Israel. Samuel is a pivotal figure. He bridges the gap between the period of the Judges and the monarchy, and guides Israel’s transition to kingship. A Deuteronomistic editor presents both positive and negative traditions about the monarchy, portraying it both as evidence of Israel’s rejection of the Lord as their sovereign (1 Sm 8:6–22; 12:1–25) and as part of God’s plan to deliver the people (1 Sm 9:16; 10:17–27; 2 Sm 7:8–17). Samuel’s misgivings about abuse of royal power foreshadow the failures and misdeeds of Saul and David and the failures of subsequent Israelite kings.

Although the events described in 1 and 2 Samuel move from the last of the judges to the decline of David’s reign and the beginning of a legendary “Golden Age” under Solomon’s rule, this material does not present either a continuous history or a systematic account of this period. The author/editor developed a narrative timeline around freely composed speeches, delivered by prophets like Samuel (e.g., 1 Sm 15:10–31; 28:15–19) and Nathan (2 Sm 12:1–12), who endorse Deuteronomistic perspectives regarding the establishment of the monarchy, the relationship between worship and obedience, and the divine covenant established with the house of David.

These books include independent blocks (e.g., the Ark Narrative [1 Sm 4:1–7:1], Saul’s rise to power [1 Sm 9:1–11:15], David’s ascendancy over Saul [1 Sm 16–31], the Succession Narrative [2 Sm 9–20; 1 Kgs 1–2]), which the editor shaped into three narrative cycles, the last two marked by transitional passages in 1 Sm 13:1 and 2 Sm 1:1. Each section focuses on a major figure in the development of the monarchy: Samuel, the reluctant king maker (1 Sm 1–12); Saul, the king whom the Lord rejects (1 Sm 13–31); David, the king after the Lord’s own heart (2 Sm 1–24). A common theme unites these narratives: Israel’s God acts justly, prospering those who remain faithful and destroying those who reject his ways (1 Sm 2:9). Along with the rest of the Deuteronomistic History, the Books of Samuel become an object lesson for biblical Israel as it tries to re-establish its religious identity after the destruction of Jerusalem and the loss of its homeland (587/586 B.C.).

The contents of the Books of Samuel may be divided as follows:

1. The Last Judges, Eli and Samuel (1 Sm 1:1–7:17)
2. Establishment of the Monarchy (1 Sm 8:1–12:25)
3. Saul and David (1 Sm 13:1–2 Sm 2:7)
4. The Reign of David (2 Sm 2:8–20:26)
5. Appendixes (2 Sm 21:1–24:25)

THE FIRST BOOK OF 1 SAMUEL

The book of 1 Corinthians

THE FIRST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

Paul’s first letter to the church of Corinth provides us with a fuller insight into the life of an early Christian community of the first generation than any other book of the New Testament. Through it we can glimpse both the strengths and the weaknesses of this small group in a great city of the ancient world, men and women who had accepted the good news of Christ and were now trying to realize in their lives the implications of their baptism. Paul, who had founded the community and continued to look after it as a father, responds both to questions addressed to him and to situations of which he had been informed. In doing so, he reveals much about himself, his teaching, and the way in which he conducted his work of apostleship. Some things are puzzling because we have the correspondence only in one direction. For the person studying this letter, it seems to raise as many questions as it answers, but without it our knowledge of church life in the middle of the first century would be much poorer.

Paul established a Christian community in Corinth about the year 51, on his second missionary journey. The city, a commercial crossroads, was a melting pot full of devotees of various pagan cults and marked by a measure of moral depravity not unusual in a great seaport. The Acts of the Apostles suggests that moderate success attended Paul’s efforts among the Jews in Corinth at first, but that they soon turned against him (Acts 18:1–8). More fruitful was his year and a half spent among the Gentiles (Acts 18:11), which won to the faith many of the city’s poor and underprivileged (1 Cor 1:26). After his departure the eloquent Apollos, an Alexandrian Jewish Christian, rendered great service to the community, expounding “from the scriptures that the Messiah is Jesus” (Acts 18:24–28).

While Paul was in Ephesus on his third journey (1 Cor 16:8; Acts 19:1–20), he received disquieting news about Corinth. The community there was displaying open factionalism, as certain members were identifying themselves exclusively with individual Christian leaders and interpreting Christian teaching as a superior wisdom for the initiated few (1 Cor 1:10–4:21). The community lacked the decisiveness to take appropriate action against one of its members who was living publicly in an incestuous union (1 Cor 5:1–13). Other members engaged in legal conflicts in pagan courts of law (1 Cor 6:1–11); still others may have participated in religious prostitution (1 Cor 6:12–20) or temple sacrifices (1 Cor 10:14–22).

The community’s ills were reflected in its liturgy. In the celebration of the Eucharist certain members discriminated against others, drank too freely at the agape, or fellowship meal, and denied Christian social courtesies to the poor among the membership (1 Cor 11:17–22). Charisms such as ecstatic prayer, attributed freely to the impulse of the holy Spirit, were more highly prized than works of charity (1 Cor 13:1–2, 8), and were used at times in a disorderly way (1 Cor 14:1–40). Women appeared at the assembly without the customary head-covering (1 Cor 11:3–16), and perhaps were quarreling over their right to address the assembly (1 Cor 14:34–35).

Still other problems with which Paul had to deal concerned matters of conscience discussed among the faithful members of the community: the eating of meat that had been sacrificed to idols (1 Cor 8:1–13), the use of sex in marriage (1 Cor 7:1–7), and the attitude to be taken by the unmarried toward marriage in view of the possible proximity of Christ’s second coming (1 Cor 7:25–40). There was also a doctrinal matter that called for Paul’s attention, for some members of the community, despite their belief in the resurrection of Christ, were denying the possibility of general bodily resurrection.

To treat this wide spectrum of questions, Paul wrote this letter from Ephesus about the year 56. The majority of the Corinthian Christians may well have been quite faithful. Paul writes on their behalf to guard against the threats posed to the community by the views and conduct of various minorities. He writes with confidence in the authority of his apostolic mission, and he presumes that the Corinthians, despite their deficiencies, will recognize and accept it. On the other hand, he does not hesitate to exercise his authority as his judgment dictates in each situation, even going so far as to promise a direct confrontation with recalcitrants, should the abuses he scores remain uncorrected (1 Cor 4:18–21).

The letter illustrates well the mind and character of Paul. Although he is impelled to insist on his office as founder of the community, he recognizes that he is only one servant of God among many and generously acknowledges the labors of Apollos (1 Cor 3:5–8). He provides us in this letter with many valuable examples of his method of theological reflection and exposition. He always treats the questions at issue on the level of the purity of Christian teaching and conduct. Certain passages of the letter are of the greatest importance for the understanding of early Christian teaching on the Eucharist (1 Cor 10:14–22; 11:17–34) and on the resurrection of the body (1 Cor 15:1–58).

Paul’s authorship of 1 Corinthians, apart from a few verses that some regard as later interpolations, has never been seriously questioned. Some scholars have proposed, however, that the letter as we have it contains portions of more than one original Pauline letter. We know that Paul wrote at least two other letters to Corinth (see 1 Cor 5:9; 2 Cor 2:3–4) in addition to the two that we now have; this theory holds that the additional letters are actually contained within the two canonical ones. Most commentators, however, find 1 Corinthians quite understandable as a single coherent work.

The principal divisions of the First Letter to the Corinthians are the following:

1. Address (1:1–9)
2. Disorders in the Corinthian Community (1:10–6:20)
   1. Divisions in the Church (1:10–4:21)
   2. Moral Disorders (5:1–6:20)
3. Answers to the Corinthians’ Questions (7:1–11:1)
   1. Marriage and Virginity (7:1–40)
   2. Offerings to Idols (8:1–11:1)
4. Problems in Liturgical Assemblies (11:2–14:40)
   1. Women’s Headdresses (11:3–16)
   2. The Lord’s Supper (11:17–34)
   3. Spiritual Gifts (12:1–14:40)
5. The Resurrection (15:1–58)
   1. The Resurrection of Christ (15:1–11)
   2. The Resurrection of the Dead (15:12–34)
   3. The Manner of the Resurrection (15:35–58)
6. Conclusion (16:1–24)