| English Standard Version | New Living Translation |
| 1Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa. | 1Now the Philistines attacked Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them. Many were slaughtered on the slopes of Mount Gilboa. |
| 2And the Philistines overtook Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan and Abinadab and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul. | 2The Philistines closed in on Saul and his sons, and they killed three of his sons—Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malkishua. |
| 3The battle pressed hard against Saul, and the archers found him, and he was badly wounded by the archers. | 3The fighting grew very fierce around Saul, and the Philistine archers caught up with him and wounded him severely. |
| 4Then Saul said to his armor-bearer, “Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and mistreat me.” But his armor-bearer would not, for he feared greatly. Therefore Saul took his own sword and fell upon it. | 4Saul groaned to his armor bearer, “Take your sword and kill me before these pagan Philistines come to run me through and taunt and torture me.” But his armor bearer was afraid and would not do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it. |
| 5And when his armor-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell upon his sword and died with him. | 5When his armor bearer realized that Saul was dead, he fell on his own sword and died beside the king. |
| 6Thus Saul died, and his three sons, and his armor-bearer, and all his men, on the same day together. | 6So Saul, his three sons, his armor bearer, and his troops all died together that same day. |
| 7And when the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley and those beyond the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and fled. And the Philistines came and lived in them. | 7When the Israelites on the other side of the Jezreel Valley and beyond the Jordan saw that the Israelite army had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their towns and fled. So the Philistines moved in and occupied their towns. |
| 8The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. | 8The next day, when the Philistines went out to strip the dead, they found the bodies of Saul and his three sons on Mount Gilboa. |
| 9So they cut off his head and stripped off his armor and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines, to carry the good news to the house of their idols and to the people. | 9So they cut off Saul’s head and stripped off his armor. Then they proclaimed the good news of Saul’s death in their pagan temple and to the people throughout the land of Philistia. |
| 10They put his armor in the temple of Ashtaroth, and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan. | 10They placed his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths, and they fastened his body to the wall of the city of Beth-shan. |
| 11But when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, | 11But when the people of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, |
| 12all the valiant men arose and went 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 burned them there. | 12all their mighty warriors traveled through the night to Beth-shan and took the bodies of Saul and his sons down from the wall. They brought them to Jabesh, where they burned the bodies. |
| 13And they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh and fasted seven days. | 13Then they took their bones and buried them beneath the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they fasted for seven days. |
| ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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