1 Samuel 9:15-27

Other Translations of 1 Samuel 9:15-27

King James Version

¹⁵ Now the Lord had told told...: Heb. revealed the ear of Samuel Samuel in his ear a day before Saul came, saying, ¹⁶ To morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be captain over my people Israel, that he may save my people out of the hand of the Philistines: for I have looked upon my people, because their cry is come unto me. ¹⁷ And when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said unto him, Behold the man whom I spake to thee of! this same shall reign over my people.

¹⁸ Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer's house is. ¹⁹ And Samuel answered Saul, and said, I am the seer: go up before me unto the high place; for ye shall eat with me to day, and to morrow I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thine heart. ²⁰ And as for thine asses that were lost three three...: Heb. to day three days days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on thee, and on all thy father's house? ²¹ And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou so so...: Heb. according to this word to me? ²² And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the parlour, and made them sit in the chiefest place among them that were bidden, which were about thirty persons. ²³ And Samuel said unto the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee, Set it by thee. ²⁴ And the cook took up the shoulder, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold that which is left a Benjamite: or, the son of a man of Jemini set it before thee, and eat: for unto this time hath it been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day. ²⁵ And when they were come down from the high place into the city, Samuel communed with Saul upon the top of the house. ²⁶ And they arose early: and it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called Saul to the top of the house, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad. ²⁷ And as they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us, (and he passed on,) but stand thou still a while, a while: Heb. to day that I may shew thee the word of God.

English Standard Version

¹⁵ Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed to Samuel: ¹⁶ "Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel. He shall save my people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have seenSeptuagint adds the affliction of my people, because their cry has come to me." ¹⁷ When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, "Here is the man of whom I spoke to you! He it is who shall restrain my people."

¹⁸ Then Saul approached Samuel in the gate and said, "Tell me where is the house of the seer?" ¹⁹ Samuel answered Saul, "I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for today you shall eat with me, and in the morning I will let you go and will tell you all that is on your mind. ²⁰ As for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not set your mind on them, for they have been found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you and for all your father's house?" ²¹ Saul answered, "Am I not a Benjaminite, from the least of the tribes of Israel? And is not my clan the humblest of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then have you spoken to me in this way?" ²² Then Samuel took Saul and his young man and brought them into the hall and gave them a place at the head of those who had been invited, who were about thirty persons. ²³ And Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the portion I gave you, of which I said to you, 'Put it aside.'" ²⁴ So the cook took up the leg and what was on it and set them before Saul. And Samuel said, "See, what was kept is set before you. Eat, because it was kept for you until the hour appointed, that you might eat with the guests."Hebrew appointed, saying, 'I have invited the people'So Saul ate with Samuel that day. ²⁵ And when they came down from the high place into the city, a bed was spread for SaulSeptuagint; Hebrew and he spoke with Saul on the roof, and he lay down to sleep. ²⁶ Then at the break of dawnSeptuagint; Hebrew And they arose early and at the break of dawn Samuel called to Saul on the roof, "Up, that I may send you on your way." So Saul arose, and both he and Samuel went out into the street. ²⁷ As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to pass on before us, and when he has passed on, stop here yourself for a while, that I may make known to you the word of God."

The Message

¹⁵ The very day before, God had confided in Samuel, ¹⁶ "This time tomorrow, I'm sending a man from the land of Benjamin to meet you. You're to anoint him as prince over my people Israel. He will free my people from Philistine oppression. Yes, I know all about their hard circumstances. I've heard their cries for help." ¹⁷ The moment Samuel laid eyes on Saul, God said, "He's the one, the man I told you about. This is the one who will keep my people in check."

¹⁸ Saul came up to Samuel in the street and said, "Pardon me, but can you tell me where the Seer lives?" ¹⁹ "I'm the Seer," said Samuel. "Accompany me to the shrine and eat with me. In the morning I'll tell you all about what's on your mind, and send you on your way. ²⁰ And by the way, your lost donkeys - the ones you've been hunting for the last three days - have been found, so don't worry about them. At this moment, Israel's future is in your hands." ²¹ Saul answered, "But I'm only a Benjaminite, from the smallest of Israel's tribes, and from the most insignificant clan in the tribe at that. Why are you talking to me like this?" ²² Samuel took Saul and his servant and led them into the dining hall at the shrine and seated them at the head of the table. There were about thirty guests. ²³ Then Samuel directed the chef, "Bring the choice cut I pointed out to you, the one I told you to reserve." ²⁴ The chef brought it and placed it before Saul with a flourish, saying, "This meal was kept aside just for you. Eat! It was especially prepared for this time and occasion with these guests." ²⁵ Afterward they went down from the shrine into the city. A bed was prepared for Saul on the breeze-cooled roof of Samuel's house. ²⁶ They woke at the break of day. Samuel called to Saul on the roof, "Get up and I'll send you off." Saul got up and the two of them went out in the street. ²⁷ As they approached the outskirts of town, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell your servant to go on ahead of us. You stay with me for a bit. I have a word of God to give you."

New King James Version

¹⁵ Now the Lord had told Samuel in his ear the day before Saul came, saying, ¹⁶ "Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him commander over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have looked upon My people, because their cry has come to me." ¹⁷ And when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him, "There he is, the man of whom I spoke to you. This one shall reign over My people."

¹⁸ Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said, "Please tell me, where is the seer's house?" ¹⁹ And Samuel answered Saul and said, "I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place, for you shall eat with me today; and tomorrow I will let you go and will tell you all that is in your heart. ²⁰ But as for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not be anxious about them, for they have been found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on you and on all your father's house?" ²¹ And Saul answered and said, "Am I not a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel, and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? Why then do you speak like this to me?" ²² Now Samuel took Saul and his servant and brought them into the hall, and had them sit in the place of honor among those who were invited; there were about thirty persons. ²³ And Samuel said to the cook, "Bring the portion which I gave you, of which I said to you, 'Set it apart.' " ²⁴ So the cook took up the thigh with its upper part and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, "Here it is, what was kept back. It was set apart for you. Eat; for until this time it has been kept for you, since I said I invited the people." So Saul ate with Samuel that day. ²⁵ When they had come down from the high place into the city, Samuel spoke with Saul on the top of the house. ²⁶ They arose early; and it was about the dawning of the day that Samuel called to Saul on the top of the house, saying, "Get up, that I may send you on your way." And Saul arose, and both of them went outside, he and Samuel. ²⁷ As they were going down to the outskirts of the city, Samuel said to Saul, "Tell the servant to go on ahead of us." And he went on. "But you stand here awhile, that I may announce to you the word of God."

New Living Translation

¹⁵ Now the Lord had told Samuel the previous day, ¹⁶ "About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him to be the leader of my people, Israel. He will rescue them from the Philistines, for I have looked down on my people in mercy and have heard their cry." ¹⁷ When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said, "That's the man I told you about! He will rule my people."

¹⁸ Just then Saul approached Samuel at the gateway and asked, "Can you please tell me where the seer's house is?" ¹⁹ "I am the seer!" Samuel replied. "Go up to the place of worship ahead of me. We will eat there together, and in the morning I'll tell you what you want to know and send you on your way. ²⁰ And don't worry about those donkeys that were lost three days ago, for they have been found. And I am here to tell you that you and your family are the focus of all Israel's hopes." ²¹ Saul replied, "But I'm only from the tribe of Benjamin, the smallest tribe in Israel, and my family is the least important of all the families of that tribe! Why are you talking like this to me?" ²² Then Samuel brought Saul and his servant into the hall and placed them at the head of the table, honoring them above the thirty special guests. ²³ Samuel then instructed the cook to bring Saul the finest cut of meat, the piece that had been set aside for the guest of honor. ²⁴ So the cook brought in the meat and placed it before Saul. "Go ahead and eat it," Samuel said. "I was saving it for you even before I invited these others!" So Saul ate with Samuel that day. ²⁵ When they came down from the place of worship and returned to town, Samuel took Saul up to the roof of the house and prepared a bed for him there. ²⁶ At daybreak the next morning, Samuel called to Saul, "Get up! It's time you were on your way." So Saul got ready, and he and Samuel left the house together. ²⁷ When they reached the edge of town, Samuel told Saul to send his servant on ahead. After the servant was gone, Samuel said, "Stay here, for I have received a special message for you from God."