¹Tedaj pride gori Nahas, Amonec, in se utabori proti Jabesu v Gileadu. In vsi prebivalci v Jabesu reko Nahasu: Skleni zavezo z nami, in hočemo ti služiti.

¹And Nahash the Ammonite cometh up, and encampeth against Jabesh-Gilead, and all the men of Jabesh say unto Nahash, `Make with us a covenant, and we serve thee.`

²Nahas pa, Amonec, jim reče: S tem pogojem se vam zavežem, da vam iztaknem vsem desno oko, in to sramoto spravim nad vsega Izraela.

²And Nahash the Ammonite saith unto them, `For this I covenant with you, by picking out to you every right eye — and I have put it a reproach on all Israel.`

³In starejšine v Jabesu mu reko: Daj nam sedem dni odloga, da pošljemo sle po vseh Izraelovih krajih. Ako ne bo nikogar, da bi nas otel, pridemo k tebi ven.

³And the elders of Jabesh say to him, `Let us alone seven days, and we send messengers into all the border of Israel: and if there is none saving us — then we have come out unto thee.`

⁴In pridejo sli v Gibeo Savlovo, in govore te besede vpričo ljudstva; in vse ljudstvo vzdigne glas in zaplaka.

⁴And the messengers come to Gibeah of Saul, and speak the words in the ears of the people, and all the people lift up their voice and weep;

⁵In glej, Savel pride gredoč za voli s polja in vpraša: Kaj je ljudstvu, da joče? In mu pripovedujejo besede mož v Jabesu.

⁵and lo, Saul hath come after the herd out of the field, and Saul saith, `What — to the people, that they weep?` and they recount to him the words of the men of Jabesh.

⁶Ko sliši take besede, pride nadenj duh Božji z močjo, in srd njegov se silno razvname.

⁶And the Spirit of God doth prosper over Saul, in his hearing these words, and his anger burneth greatly,

⁷In vzame par volov in ju razseka in pošlje kosce po slih v vse Izraelove kraje in sporoči: Kdorkoli ne pojde za Savlom in za Samuelom, ž njegovo govedjo naredimo enako! In prešine strah GOSPODOV ljudstvo, in se vzdignejo kakor en mož.

⁷and he taketh a couple of oxen, and cutteth them in pieces, and sendeth through all the border of Israel, by the hand of the messengers, saying, `He who is not coming out after Saul and after Samuel — thus it is done to his oxen;` and the fear of Jehovah falleth on the people, and they come out as one man.

⁸In preštel jih je v Bezeku, in sinov Izraelovih je bilo tristokrat tisoč in mož Judovih trideset tisoč.

⁸And he inspecteth them in Bezek, and the sons of Israel are three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.

⁹In reko slom, ki so bili prišli: Tako povejte možem v Gileadskem Jabesu: Jutri, ko bo solnce najbolj pripekalo, vam pride rešitev. Ko dospejo sli in oznanijo to možem v Jabesu, se razvesele.

⁹And they say to the messengers who are coming, `Thus do ye say to the men of Jabesh-Gilead: To-morrow ye have safety — by the heat of the sun;` and the messengers come and declare to the men of Jabesh, and they rejoice;

¹⁰Zato reko meščani v Jabesu sovražniku: Jutri pridemo k vam, in storite nam, karkoli se vam zdi prav.

¹⁰and the men of Jabesh say [to the Ammonites], `To-morrow we come out unto you, and ye have done to us according to all that [is] good in your eyes.`

¹¹Drugega jutra razpostavi torej Savel ljudstvo v tri krdela, in ob jutranji straži pridero v tabor Amoncev in jih pobijajo, dokler ni dan prevroč; in kar jih je preostalo, so bili razkropljeni, da nista dva ostala vkup.

¹¹And it cometh to pass, on the morrow, that Saul putteth the people in three detachments, and they come into the midst of the camp in the morning-watch, and smite Ammon till the heat of the day; and it cometh to pass that those left are scattered, and there have not been left of them two together.

¹²Tedaj reče ljudstvo Samuelu: Kdo je ta, ki je rekel: Ali nam bo Savel gospodoval? Dajte sem tiste može, da jih umorimo!

¹²And the people say unto Samuel, `Who is he that saith, Saul doth reign over us! give ye up the men, and we put them to death.`

¹³A Savel veli: Ta dan ne sme nihče umreti, zakaj danes je dal GOSPOD rešitev v Izraelu.

¹³And Saul saith, `There is no man put to death on this day, for to-day hath Jehovah wrought salvation in Israel.`

¹⁴Nato reče Samuel ljudstvu: Pojdite, naj gremo v Gilgal in ondi ponovimo kraljestvo!In vse ljudstvo gre v Gilgal in ondi postavijo Savla za kralja pred GOSPODOM v Gilgalu, in tam so darovali žrtve, mirovne daritve pred GOSPODOM. In Savel in vsi Izraelovi možje so se ondi silno veselili.

¹⁴And Samuel saith unto the people, `Come and we go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there;`

¹⁵In vse ljudstvo gre v Gilgal in ondi postavijo Savla za kralja pred GOSPODOM v Gilgalu, in tam so darovali žrtve, mirovne daritve pred GOSPODOM. In Savel in vsi Izraelovi možje so se ondi silno veselili.

¹⁵and all the people go to Gilgal, and cause Saul to reign there before Jehovah in Gilgal, and sacrifice there sacrifices of peace-offerings before Jehovah, and there Saul rejoiceth — and all the men of Israel — very greatly.