1 Omtrent en måned senere kom Nahas, ammonitten, og stilte sitt folk opp for å angripe Jabesj i Gilead. Alle mennene i Jabesj sa til Nahas: Gjør en avtale med oss, så skal vi bli dine tjenere.

Then about a month after this, Nahash the Ammonite came up and put his forces in position for attacking Jabesh-gilead: and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, Make an agreement with us and we will be your servants.

2 Men Nahas, ammonitten, svarte: Jeg vil gjøre en avtale med dere på den betingelsen at jeg stikker ut det høyre øyet på dere alle, for å legge skam over hele Israel.

And Nahash the Ammonite said to them, I will make an agreement with you on this condition, that all your right eyes are put out; so that I may make it a cause of shame to all Israel.

3 De eldste i Jabesj sa til ham: Gi oss sju dager, så vi kan sende bud rundt omkring i Israel. Om ingen kommer oss til hjelp, skal vi overgi oss til deg.

Then the responsible men of Jabesh said to him, Give us seven days, so that we may send men to every part of Israel: and then, if no one comes to our help, we will come out to you.

4 Da sendte de bud til Sauls by, Gibea, og fortalte folket nyhetene. Hele folket brast ut i gråt.

So they sent representatives to Saul's town Gibeah, and these gave the news to the people: and all the people gave themselves to weeping.

5 Saul kom fra marken med oksene sine og spurte: Hvorfor gråter folket? Da fikk han høre hva mennene i Jabesj hadde sagt.

Now Saul came from the field, driving the oxen before him; and he said, Why are the people weeping? And they gave him word of what the men of Jabesh had said.

6 Da Saul hørte dette, kom Guds ånd over ham med kraft, og han ble veldig sint.

And at their words, the spirit of God came on Saul with power, and he became very angry.

7 Han tok to okser, skar dem i stykker og sendte bitene rundt i Israel med budskapet: Den som ikke følger Saul og Samuel, vil få dette gjort med sine okser. Da kom frykten for Herren over folket, og de samlet seg som én mann.

And he took two oxen and, cutting them up, sent them through all the land of Israel by the hand of runners, saying, If any man does not come out after Saul and Samuel, this will be done to his oxen. And the fear of the Lord came on the people and they came out like one man.

8 Saul talte dem opp i Bezek: Israels folk var tre hundre tusen, og Judas menn var tretti tusen.

And he had them numbered in Bezek: the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.

9 Han sa til budbringerne som hadde kommet: Si til mennene i Jabesj i Gilead at i morgen, når solen står høyt, vil dere bli frelst. Budbringerne dro tilbake og ga nyheten til mennene i Jabesj, og de ble glade.

Then he said to the representatives who had come, Say to the men of Jabesh-gilead, Tomorrow, by the time the sun is high, you will be made safe. And the representatives came and gave the news to the men of Jabesh; and they were glad.

10 Mennene i Jabesj sa: I morgen skal vi overgi oss til dere, og dere kan gjøre med oss som dere synes er best.

So the men of Jabesh said, Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.

11 Neste dag delte Saul folket i tre grupper. I morgenvakten angrep de ammonittene i leiren og fortsatte å kjempe frem til det ble hett på dagen. De som overlevde, flyktet i alle retninger, så ingen to var sammen.

Now on the day after, Saul put the people into three bands, and in the morning watch they came to the tents of the Ammonites, and they went on attacking them till the heat of the day: and those who were not put to death were put to flight in every direction, so that no two of them were together.

12 Folket sa til Samuel: Hvem var det som sa: Skal Saul være vår konge? La oss få overlevert disse mennene så vi kan drepe dem.

And the people said to Samuel, Who was it who said, Is Saul to be our king? give the men up, so that we may put them to death.

13 Men Saul sa: Ingen skal bli drept i dag, for i dag har Herren gitt Israel seier.

And Saul said, Not a man is to be put to death today: for today the Lord has made Israel safe.

14 Da sa Samuel til folket: Kom, la oss dra til Gilgal for å styrke kongedømmet under Sauls ledelse.

Then Samuel said to the people, Come, let us go to Gilgal and there make the kingdom strong in the hands of Saul.

15 Så dro hele folket til Gilgal. Der i Gilgal gjorde de Saul til konge for Herren, og de ofret fredsoffer for Herren, og både Saul og Israels menn gledet seg storlig.

So all the people went to Gilgal; and there in Gilgal they made Saul king before the Lord; and peace-offerings were offered before the Lord; and there Saul and all the men of Israel were glad with great joy.