Ovita kuna Ovafilisti
1 Saul wa ri nozombura omirongo vitatu tja rira ombara. Neye tja honaparera Ovaisrael oure wozombura mbari, 2 otje ritoororera ovarumendu omayovi yetatu mOvaisrael; pu ye omuini pa ri omayovi yevari mOmikmas na mehi rozondundu ra Betel, neyovi rimwe ra ri pu Jonatan mOgibea mehi romuhoko wa Benjamin. Nu ihi otjihupe tjovarwe wovita we tji esa kutja tji yaruke kozonganda zatjo.
3 Jonatan wa zepa omuhongore wovita wOvafilisti mOgeba, nOvafilisti avehe va zuva otjiṋa hi. Nu Saul wa tuma ovahindwa ve kaposise onya mehi arihe okuisana Ovaheberi kutja ve ye kovita. 4 NOvaisrael avehe va zuva kutja Saul wa zepa omuhongore wovita wOvafilisti, nokutja Ovaisrael ve rihumisa kOvafilisti. Ovarwe avehe wovita otji va isanewa okukongorera Saul kOgilgal.
5 NOvafilisti va worongana okurwisa Ovaisrael; owo va ri nomatemba wovita omayovi yetatu, novakavire voukambe omayovi hamboumwe, novandu vopehi votjivaro tji tja ṱekire peheke romukuro wokuvare. Owo va katona ozondanda mOmikmas, komukuma wokomuhuka wa Bet-Awen. 6 Ovaisrael tji va muna kutja ve ri mombamisiro, otji va kaṱara mozondimba na momina na motupoko na motuhoro na mozombu. 7 Novengi vawo va konda onḓonḓu Jordan ave i kehi ra Gad nora Gilead.
Nungwari Saul tjandje ingee u ri mOgilgal, novarwe wovita avehe, mba ri pu ye, va urumine tjinene. 8 Neye wa undja Samuel omayuva hambombari otja koruveze Samuel ndwa twa po. Nungwari Samuel tjandje ingee kee ya kOgilgal, novarwe va Saul wovita va uta okurimbara. 9 Nu Saul arire tja tja: “Ndji etereye ozombunguhiro ozoningiririsiwa nozohange!” Neye wa punguha ombunguhiro oningiririsiwa. 10 Nu Saul tja za nokupunguha ombunguhiro oningiririsiwa ndji, kamanga Samuel arire tje ya mbo; nu Saul wa pita okukemutjakanena nokumuminika. 11 Nu Samuel we mu pura nai: “Ove wa ungura tjike?”
Saul wa zira a tja: “Ami mba munu ovarwe wovita kutja ve ndji esa nave rimbara nokutja ove wina ko ere moruveze ndu wa twa po; nOvafilisti va woronganena mOmikmas. 12 Otji mbe ripura nai: ‘Nambano Ovafilisti mave ndji rwisire mOgilgal, ngunda ambi hiya kondja okumuna ondjingonekero ku Muhona.’ Otji mbe ripura kutja me sokupunguha ombunguhiro.”
13 Samuel wa zira nai ku Saul: “Ove wa tjita ouyova, ko ṱakamisire etwako ra Muhona, Ndjambi woye, nde ku rakiza. Andakuzu wa ṱakamisa ro, Muhona atja zikamisa ouhona woye kombanda ya Israel nga aruhe. 14 Nungwari nambano ouhona woye kau nokukarerera. Muhona we ripahera omurumendu ngu ma vanga, a honaparere otjiwaṋa tje, ove tjinga au ha tjitire imbi Muhona mbye ku rakiza.”
15 Samuel wa za mOgilgal na twara ondjira ye. Otjihupe tjovandu tja kongorera Saul, indu eye tja ya okukawana novarwe ve wovita. Owo va za mOgilgal nave i kOgibea kehi ra Benjamin. Nu Saul wa vara otjimbumba tje tjovita tji tja ri pu ye, ovarumendu mangara omasere hamboumwe. 16 Saul nomuzandu we Jonatan novarwe vawo wovita va kara mOgeba mehi romuhoko wa Benjamin; nOvafilisti va tona ozondanda zawo mOmikmas. 17 Novarwe vOvafilisti wovita va pita mozondanda zawo motupa tutatu okukahuura: Orupa rumwe rwa hungama kOfra mehi rOvashual; 18 norupa rwarwe rwa hungama Bet-Horon, nu indwi orutjatatu rwa hungama omuruko mbwa tara kotjana tja Sebojim mokuti onguza.
19 Nu kapa ri omuhambure mehi arihe ra Israel, orondu Ovafilisti tji va tja nai: “Ngatu tjaere Ovaheberi kutja ave ha hambura omangaruvyo nomanga.” 20 Ovaisrael otjaave i kOvafilisti okukaupika ovitaure vyehi, nomatemo nomakuva, novikonde vyomahozu. 21 Omaningiriro wotjimariva ya ri okamariva kemwe komaupikiro wovitaure vyehi nomakuva, novimariva vivari komaupikiro womatemo na komaṱunino womipiṋe. 22 Nu komuhingo mbwi meyuva rovita kapa ri umwe ngwa ri nengaruvyo poo nenga meke re movarwe wovita avehe mba, mba ri pu Saul na Jonatan, posi ya Saul nomuzandu we Jonatan porwe.
23 Notjimbumba tjovatjevere tjOvafilisti tja ryama komurungu okukayeura omeero wa Mikmas.
Saul Disobeys the Lord
1 Saul was a young man when he became king, and he ruled Israel for two years. 2 Then he chose 3,000 men from Israel to be full-time soldiers and sent everyone else home. Two thousand of these troops stayed with him in the hills around Michmash and Bethel. The other 1,000 were stationed with Jonathan at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin.
3 Jonathan led an attack on the Philistine army camp at Geba. The Philistine camp was destroyed, but the other Philistines heard what had happened. Then Saul told his messengers, “Go to every village in the country. Give a signal with the trumpet, and when the people come together, tell them what has happened.”
4 The messengers then said to the people of Israel, “Saul has destroyed the Philistine army camp at Geba. Now the Philistines really hate Israel, so every town and village must send men to join Saul's army at Gilgal.”
5 The Philistines called their army together to fight Israel. They had 3,000 chariots, 6,000 cavalry, and as many foot soldiers as there are grains of sand on the beach. They went to Michmash and set up camp there east of Beth-Aven.
6 The Israelite army realized that they were outnumbered and were going to lose the battle. Some of the Israelite men hid in caves or in clumps of bushes, and some ran to places where they could hide among large rocks. Others hid in tombs or in deep dry pits. 7 Still others went to Gad and Gilead on the other side of the Jordan River.
Saul stayed at Gilgal. His soldiers were shaking with fear, 8 and they were starting to run off and leave him. Saul waited there seven days, just as Samuel had ordered him to do, but Samuel did not come. 9 Finally, Saul commanded, “Bring me some animals, so we can offer sacrifices to please the Lord and ask for his help.”
Saul killed one of the animals, 10 and just as he placed it on the altar, Samuel arrived. Saul went out to welcome him.
11 “What have you done?” Samuel asked.
Saul answered, “My soldiers were leaving in all directions, and you didn't come when you were supposed to. The Philistines were gathering at Michmash, 12 and I was worried that they would attack me here at Gilgal. I hadn't offered a sacrifice to ask for the Lord's help, so I forced myself to offer a sacrifice on the altar fire.”
13 “That was stupid!” Samuel said. “You didn't obey the Lord your God. If you had obeyed him, someone from your family would always have been king of Israel. 14 But no, you disobeyed, and so the Lord won't choose anyone else from your family to be king. In fact, he has already chosen the one he wants to be the next leader of his people.” 15 Then Samuel left Gilgal.
Part of Saul's army had not deserted him, and he led them to Gibeah in Benjamin to join his other troops. Then he counted them and found that he still had 600 men. 16 Saul, Jonathan, and their army set up camp at Geba in Benjamin.
Jonathan Attacks the Philistines
The Philistine army was camped at Michmash. 17 Each day they sent out patrols to attack and rob villages and then destroy them. One patrol would go north along the road to Ophrah in the region of Shual. 18 Another patrol would go west along the road to Beth-Horon. A third patrol would go east toward the desert on the road to the ridge that overlooks Zeboim Valley.
19 The Philistines would not allow any Israelites to learn how to make iron tools. “If we allowed that,” they said, “those worthless Israelites would make swords and spears.”
20-21 Whenever the Israelites wanted to get an iron point put on a cattle prod, they had to go to the Philistines. Even if they wanted to sharpen plow-blades, picks, axes, sickles, and pitchforks they still had to go to them. And the Philistines charged high prices. 22 So, whenever the Israelite soldiers had to go into battle, none of them had a sword or a spear except Saul and his son Jonathan.
23 The Philistines moved their camp to the pass at Michmash,