| English Standard Version | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head and kissed him and said, “Has not the LORD anointed you to be prince over his people Israel? And you shall reign over the people of the LORD and you will save them from the hand of their surrounding enemies. And this shall be the sign to you that the LORD has anointed you to be prince over his heritage. | 1Samuel took the flask of oil, poured it out on Saul's head, kissed him, and said, "Hasn't the LORD anointed you ruler over His inheritance? |
| 2When you depart from me today, you will meet two men by Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased to care about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?”’ | 2Today when you leave me, you'll find two men at Rachel's Grave at Zelzah in the land of Benjamin. They will say to you, 'The donkeys you went looking for have been found, and now your father has stopped being concerned about the donkeys and is worried about you, asking: What should I do about my son?' |
| 3Then you shall go on from there farther and come to the oak of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine. | 3"You will proceed from there until you come to the oak of Tabor. Three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you there, one bringing three goats, one bringing three loaves of bread, and one bringing a skin of wine. |
| 4And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall accept from their hand. | 4They will ask how you are and give you two loaves of bread, which you will accept from them. |
| 5After that you shall come to Gibeath-elohim, where there is a garrison of the Philistines. And there, as soon as you come to the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with harp, tambourine, flute, and lyre before them, prophesying. | 5"After that you will come to the Hill of God where there are Philistine garrisons. When you arrive at the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place prophesying. They will be preceded by harps, tambourines, flutes, and lyres. |
| 6Then the Spirit of the LORD will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. | 6The Spirit of the LORD will control you, you will prophesy with them, and you will be transformed into a different person. |
| 7Now when these signs meet you, do what your hand finds to do, for God is with you. | 7When these signs have happened to you, do whatever your circumstances require because God is with you. |
| 8Then go down before me to Gilgal. And behold, I am coming down to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, until I come to you and show you what you shall do.” | 8Afterward, go ahead of me to Gilgal. I will come to you to offer burnt offerings and to sacrifice fellowship offerings. Wait seven days until I come to you and show you what to do." |
| 9When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart. And all these signs came to pass that day. | 9When Saul turned around to leave Samuel, God changed his heart, and all the signs came about that day. |
| 10When they came to Gibeah, behold, a group of prophets met him, and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he prophesied among them. | 10When Saul and his attendant arrived at Gibeah, a group of prophets met him. Then the Spirit of God took control of him, and he prophesied along with them. |
| 11And when all who knew him previously saw how he prophesied with the prophets, the people said to one another, “What has come over the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?” | 11Everyone who knew him previously and saw him prophesy with the prophets asked each other, "What has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?" |
| 12And a man of the place answered, “And who is their father?” Therefore it became a proverb, “Is Saul also among the prophets?” | 12Then a man who was from there asked, "And who is their father?" As a result, "Is Saul also among the prophets?" became a popular saying. |
| 13When he had finished prophesying, he came to the high place. | 13Then Saul finished prophesying and went to the high place. |
| 14Saul’s uncle said to him and to his servant, “Where did you go?” And he said, “To seek the donkeys. And when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel.” | 14Saul's uncle asked him and his attendant, "Where did you go?" "To look for the donkeys," Saul answered. "When we saw they weren't there, we went to Samuel." |
| 15And Saul’s uncle said, “Please tell me what Samuel said to you.” | 15"Tell me," Saul's uncle asked, "what did Samuel say to you?" |
| 16And Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingdom, of which Samuel had spoken, he did not tell him anything. | 16Saul told him, "He assured us the donkeys had been found." However, Saul did not tell him what Samuel had said about the matter of kingship. |
| 17Now Samuel called the people together to the LORD at Mizpah. | 17Samuel summoned the people to the LORD at Mizpah |
| 18And he said to the people of Israel, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.’ | 18and said to the Israelites, "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'I brought Israel out of Egypt, and I rescued you from the power of the Egyptians and all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.' |
| 19But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your calamities and your distresses, and you have said to him, ‘Set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and by your thousands.” | 19But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions. You said to Him, 'You must set a king over us.' Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes and clans." |
| 20Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. | 20Samuel had all the tribes of Israel come forward, and the tribe of Benjamin was selected. |
| 21He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its clans, and the clan of the Matrites was taken by lot; and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found. | 21Then he had the tribe of Benjamin come forward by its clans, and the Matrite clan was selected. Finally, Saul son of Kish was selected. But when they searched for him, they could not find him. |
| 22So they inquired again of the LORD, “Is there a man still to come?” and the LORD said, “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.” | 22They again inquired of the LORD, "Has the man come here yet?" The LORD replied, "There he is, hidden among the supplies." |
| 23Then they ran and took him from there. And when he stood among the people, he was taller than any of the people from his shoulders upward. | 23They ran and got him from there. When he stood among the people, he stood a head taller than anyone else. |
| 24And Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see him whom the LORD has chosen? There is none like him among all the people.” And all the people shouted, “Long live the king!” | 24Samuel said to all the people, "Do you see the one the LORD has chosen? There is no one like him among the entire population." And all the people shouted, "Long live the king!" |
| 25Then Samuel told the people the rights and duties of the kingship, and he wrote them in a book and laid it up before the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each one to his home. | 25Samuel proclaimed to the people the rights of kingship. He wrote them on a scroll, which he placed in the presence of the LORD. Then Samuel sent all the people away, each to his home. |
| 26Saul also went to his home at Gibeah, and with him went men of valor whose hearts God had touched. | 26Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, and brave men whose hearts God had touched went with him. |
| 27But some worthless fellows said, “How can this man save us?” And they despised him and brought him no present. But he held his peace. | 27But some wicked men said, "How can this guy save us?" They despised him and did not bring him a gift, but Saul said nothing. |
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