1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain on Mount Gilboa. 2 The Philistines overtook Saul and his sons; and the Philistines killed Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul. 3 The battle went hard against Saul, and the archers overtook him; and he was greatly distressed by reason of the archers. 4 Then Saul said to his armor bearer, "Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through and abuse me!" But his armor bearer would not, for he was terrified. Therefore Saul took his sword and fell on it. 5 When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell on his sword, and died with him. 6 So Saul died with his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men that same day together.

7 When the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley, and those who were beyond the Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled; and the Philistines came and lived in them. 8 On the next day, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. 9 They cut off his head, stripped off his armor, and sent into the land of the Philistines all around, to carry the news to the house of their idols and to the people. 10 They put his armor in the house of the Ashtaroth, and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth Shan. 11 When the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all the valiant men arose, 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. 13 They took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree in Jabesh, and fasted seven days.

1 Os filisteus lutaram contra Israel. E os homens de Israel, fugindo da presença dos filisteus, caíram mortos no monte Gilboa. 2 Os filisteus seguiram de perto Saul e seus filhos e mataram Jônatas, Abinadabe e Malquisua, filhos de Saul. 3 A batalha se intensificou contra Saul. Os flecheiros o avistaram e ele foi ferido gravemente. 4 Então Saul disse ao seu escudeiro:

— Arranque a sua espada e atravesse-me com ela, para que não venham esses incircuncisos, me atravessem com a espada e zombem de mim.

Mas o seu escudeiro não quis fazer isso, porque estava com muito medo. Então Saul pegou a sua própria espada e se lançou sobre ela. 5 Quando o escudeiro viu que Saul estava morto, também se lançou sobre a sua espada e morreu com ele. 6 E assim morreram juntamente naquele dia Saul, os seus três filhos, o seu escudeiro e todos os seus soldados. 7 Quando os homens de Israel que estavam no outro lado do vale e no outro lado do Jordão viram que o exército de Israel fugiu e que Saul e seus filhos estavam mortos, abandonaram as cidades e fugiram. E vieram os filisteus e habitaram nelas.

8 E aconteceu que no dia seguinte, quando os filisteus foram tirar os despojos dos mortos, encontraram Saul e os seus três filhos caídos no monte Gilboa. 9 Cortaram a cabeça de Saul e o despojaram das suas armas. Enviaram mensageiros pela terra dos filisteus, ao redor, para levar as boas-novas ao templo dos seus ídolos e ao povo. 10 Puseram as armas de Saul no templo de Astarote, e o seu corpo afixaram na muralha de Bete-Seã.

11 Quando os moradores de Jabes-Gileade ouviram o que os filisteus haviam feito com Saul, 12 todos os homens valentes se levantaram, caminharam toda a noite, tiraram o corpo de Saul e os corpos de seus filhos da muralha de Bete-Seã e os levaram a Jabes, onde os queimaram. 13 Depois pegaram os ossos deles e os sepultaram debaixo de um arvoredo, em Jabes. E jejuaram sete dias.