1 And one day, Saul’s son Jonathan proposed to the lad who carried his armour for him, Let us attack the Philistine detachment over yonder; but he said no word of it to Saul.
1 Et accidit quadam die ut diceret Jonathas filius Saul ad adolescentem armigerum suum: Veni, et transeamus ad stationem Philisthinorum, quæ est trans locum illum. Patri autem suo hoc ipsum non indicavit.
2 Saul was encamped on the outskirts of Gabaa, under the pomegranate tree at Magron, with some six hundred men under him; 3 he had a priest with him, bearing the sacred mantle, Achias son of Achitob. (This Achitob was brother to Ichabod, and son of that Phinees whose father Heli was once the Lord’s priest at Silo.) The men in the ranks, too, knew nothing of Jonathan’s errand. 4 Just where he planned his attack on the Philistines, between the paths that climbed the hill, a rock jutted out on either hand like a single tooth, sheer on every side. One was called Boses and the other Sene; 5 one faced northwards towards Machmas, and the other southwards towards Gabaa. 6 Here, then, Jonathan said to his squire, Let us attack the post these uncircumcised Philistines have set on guard, and see if the Lord will speed us. Many or few, if the Lord means to grant us victory, who shall prevent him? 7 As thou wilt, his squire answered; lead on, I will follow where thou biddest.
2 Porro Saul morabatur in extrema parte Gabaa sub malogranato, quæ erat in Magron: et erat populus cum eo quasi sexcentorum virorum. 3 Et Achias filius Achitob fratris Ichabod filii Phinees, qui ortus fuerat ex Heli sacerdote Domini in Silo, portabat ephod. Sed et populus ignorabat quo isset Jonathas. 4 Erant autem inter ascensus per quos nitebatur Jonathas transire ad stationem Philisthinorum, eminentes petræ ex utraque parte, et quasi in modum dentium scopuli hinc et inde prærupti: nomen uni Boses, et nomen alteri Sene: 5 unus scopulus prominens ad aquilonem ex adverso Machmas, et alter ad meridiem contra Gabaa. 6 Dixit autem Jonathas ad adolescentem armigerum suum: Veni, transeamus ad stationem incircumcisorum horum, si forte faciat Dominus pro nobis: quia non est Domino difficile salvare, vel in multis, vel in paucis. 7 Dixitque ei armiger suus: Fac omnia quæ placent animo tuo: perge quo cupis, et ero tecum ubicumque volueris.
8 We approach them, then, said Jonathan, and shew ourselves. 9 And now, if they bid us wait till they come down to fetch us, let us keep our ground, and abandon all thought of the ascent. 10 But if they bid us come up to their side, then go up we will; it is a sign that the Lord means to give us the mastery. 11 So both shewed themselves to the Philistine detachment; Why, said the Philistines, here are the Hebrews coming out of the pits where they lay in hiding! 12 And they cried out from their post to Jonathan and his squire, Come up to our side; we have something to disclose to you. And at that, Jonathan said to his squire, Up, then, go we; follow me close; the Lord is giving Israel the mastery. 13 So, crawling upon hands and knees, Jonathan climbed up, and his squire after him; and of the enemy, some fell to Jonathan himself, some to the squire as he came up behind him. 14 This first slaughter that befell, when Jonathan and his squire assailed them, was but of twenty men, on a piece of ground that measured half an acre, a day’s ploughing for a pair of oxen. 15 But all through the camp, all through the countryside, came a sudden terror; the rest of the detachment, that were returning from a foray, stood there open-mouthed; the earth, too, shook, and it seemed as if a divine terror were abroad.
8 Et ait Jonathas: Ecce nos transimus ad viros istos. Cumque apparuerimus eis, 9 si taliter locuti fuerint ad nos: Manete donec veniamus ad vos: stemus in loco nostro, nec ascendamus ad eos. 10 Si autem dixerint: Ascendite ad nos: ascendamus, quia tradidit eos Dominus in manibus nostris: hoc erit nobis signum. 11 Apparuit igitur uterque stationi Philisthinorum: dixeruntque Philisthiim: En Hebræi egrediuntur de cavernis in quibus absconditi fuerant. 12 Et locuti sunt viri de statione ad Jonathan et ad armigerum ejus, dixeruntque: Ascendite ad nos, et ostendemus vobis rem. Et ait Jonathas ad armigerum suum: Ascendamus: sequere me: tradidit enim Dominus eos in manus Israël. 13 Ascendit autem Jonathas manibus et pedibus reptans, et armiger ejus post eum. Itaque alii cadebant ante Jonathan, alios armiger ejus interficiebat sequens eum. 14 Et facta est plaga prima qua percussit Jonathas et armiger ejus, quasi viginti virorum in media parte jugeri quam par boum in die arare consuevit. 15 Et factum est miraculum in castris per agros: sed et omnis populus stationis eorum qui ierant ad prædandum, obstupuit, et conturbata est terra: et accidit quasi miraculum a Deo.
16 Looking out from Gabaa, the watchmen of Saul’s army wondered at the sight; so many men that lay slain, so many more in flight this way and that. 17 And now Saul bade his men find out who it was that had left the ranks, and learned that Jonathan was not there, nor his squire. 18 So he bade Achias consult the ark of God[1] (it was there that day, God’s ark, among the ranks of Israel); 19 but even as he was talking with the priest, a great clamour arose in the Philistine camp, that gained force and grew louder with every moment. Stay thy hand, he said to the priest, 20 and so, with his whole army, raised the war-cry and went to the attack. They found that the Philistines had come to blows, friend turning his sword against friend, and the slaughter raged beyond all bounds. 21 Those Hebrews who, till now, had taken part with the Philistines, and were fighting at their side, now went over to the camp of Israel, the camp of Saul and Jonathan; 22 and all those others who were in hiding among the hills of Ephraim, when they heard of the Philistine rout, came out to aid their fellow-countrymen, till Saul found himself at the head of some ten thousand men. 23 Thus the Lord gave Israel the victory that day, and the field of battle spread wider till it reached Bethaven.
16 Et respexerunt speculatores Saul qui erant in Gabaa Benjamin, et ecce multitudo prostrata, et huc illucque diffugiens. 17 Et ait Saul populo qui erat cum eo: Requirite, et videte quis abierit ex nobis. Cumque requisissent, repertum est non adesse Jonathan et armigerum ejus. 18 Et ait Saul ad Achiam: Applica arcam Dei. (Erat enim ibi arca Dei in die illa cum filiis Israël.) 19 Cumque loqueretur Saul ad sacerdotem, tumultus magnus exortus est in castris Philisthinorum: crescebatque paulatim, et clarius resonabat. Et ait Saul ad sacerdotem: Contrahe manum tuam. 20 Conclamavit ergo Saul, et omnis populus qui erat cum eo, et venerunt usque ad locum certaminis: et ecce versus fuerat gladius uniuscujusque ad proximum suum, et cædes magna nimis. 21 Sed et Hebræi qui fuerant cum Philisthiim heri et nudiustertius, ascenderantque cum eis in castris, reversi sunt ut essent cum Israël qui erant cum Saul et Jonatha. 22 Omnes quoque Israëlitæ qui se absconderant in monte Ephraim, audientes quod fugissent Philisthæi, sociaverunt se cum suis in prælio. Et erant cum Saul quasi decem millia virorum. 23 Et salvavit Dominus in die illa Israël: pugna autem pervenit usque ad Bethaven.
24 The Israelites were fighting, that day, in a close body, and Saul put a ban on them, Cursed be the man that touches food before evening comes; I must take full vengeance on my enemies! So none of them took any food; 25 even when the whole army passed through a glade where there was honey lying on the ground, 26 and they saw the honey oozing from its combs as they entered the glade, not one in the ranks put his hand to his mouth, such was their terror of the ban. 27 Jonathan had not heard his father bind the people so; and he, reaching forward and dipping the end of his staff into a honeycomb, took a mouthful from his hand; whereupon his eyesight grew clearer at once. 28 And what of the ban thy father laid on us, one of the men said to him, calling down a curse on anyone who should touch food to-day? But the Israelites were faint on their march, 29 and Jonathan said, It is an ill turn my father has done to his country; why, could you not see for yourselves how my eyes grew brighter for a mouthful of yonder honey? 30 Think what a blow we might have struck, if the men had eaten their fill when we came upon the plunder the enemy had left behind them!
24 Et viri Israël sociati sunt sibi in die illa: adjuravit autem Saul populum, dicens: Maledictus vir qui comederit panem usque ad vesperam, donec ulciscar de inimicis meis. Et non manducavit universus populus panem: 25 omneque terræ vulgus venit in saltum, in quo erat mel super faciem agri. 26 Ingressus est itaque populus saltum, et apparuit fluens mel, nullusque applicuit manum ad os suum: timebat enim populus juramentum. 27 Porro Jonathas non audierat cum adjuraret pater ejus populum: extenditque summitatem virgæ quam habebat in manu, et intinxit in favum mellis: et convertit manum suam ad os suum, et illuminati sunt oculi ejus. 28 Respondensque unus de populo, ait: Jurejurando constrinxit pater tuus populum, dicens: Maledictus vir qui comederit panem hodie. (Defecerat autem populus.) 29 Dixitque Jonathas: Turbavit pater meus terram: vidistis ipsi quia illuminati sunt oculi mei, eo quod gustaverim paululum de melle isto: 30 quanto magis si comedisset populus de præda inimicorum suorum, quam reperit? nonne major plaga facta fuisset in Philisthiim?
31 That day’s pursuit took the army all the way from Machmas to Aialon, and they were weary men indeed; 32 falling on the plunder they had recovered, they carried off sheep and ox and calf and slaughtered them there on the ground, eating them blood and all. 33 When complaint was made that his men had disobeyed the Lord’s command by eating meat with the blood in it, Saul told them, You have broken the law; find a great stone, and roll it up to where I stand. 34 Then he said, Go round and bid the folk bring ox and ram to me here, to slaughter their meat on this stone; sin no more by eating it with the blood in it. So, till late at night, each man brought his ox with him and slaughtered it there. 35 And Saul built an altar to the Lord there, the first he ever raised to him.
31 Percusserunt ergo in die illa Philisthæos a Machmis usque in Ajalon.Defatigatus est autem populus nimis: 32 et versus ad prædam tulit oves, et boves, et vitulos, et mactaverunt in terra: comeditque populus cum sanguine. 33 Nuntiaverunt autem Sauli dicentes quod populus peccasset Domino, comedens cum sanguine. Qui ait: Prævaricati estis: volvite ad me jam nunc saxum grande. 34 Et dixit Saul: Dispergimini in vulgus, et dicite eis ut adducat ad me unusquisque bovem suum et arietem, et occidite super istud, et vescimini, et non peccabitis Domino comedentes cum sanguine. Adduxit itaque omnis populus unusquisque bovem in manu sua usque ad noctem: et occiderunt ibi. 35 Ædificavit autem Saul altare Domino, tuncque primum cœpit ædificare altare Domino.
36 And now, cried Saul, let us attack the Philistines in the darkness, and harry them till day dawns, so that none is left alive. Do as thou seest best, the people answered; but the priest said, God is present with us, let us have recourse to him. 37 Saul, then, asked the Lord whether he should pursue the Philistines, whether Israel would be granted the victory; but that day no answer came. 38 Summon all the chieftains, cried Saul; we must have clear proof who it is has brought guilt on us this day. 39 As the Lord, Israel’s protector, is a living God, though it were Jonathan, my own son, that is answerable for it, he shall die without hope of reprieve. And no voice among them all said him nay. 40 Do you stand on one side, he told the men of Israel, I and my son Jonathan on the other. Do as thou seest best, the people answered. 41 And Saul prayed to the Lord God of Israel, Lord God of Israel, send us right guidance; tell us why it is thou wilt give me, thy servant, no answer this day. If the guilt lies with me, or with my son Jonathan, let the sign be Revelation; if with thy people, let the sign be Holiness. Thereupon Jonathan and Saul were convicted, and the people went clear.[2] 42 Then Saul bade them cast lots between himself and Jonathan, and the lot fell on Jonathan.
36 Et dixit Saul: Irruamus super Philisthæos nocte, et vastemus eos usque dum illucescat mane, nec relinquamus ex eis virum. Dixitque populus: Omne quod bonum videtur in oculis tuis, fac. Et ait sacerdos: Accedamus huc ad Deum. 37 Et consuluit Saul Dominum: Num persequar Philisthiim? si trades eos in manus Israël? Et non respondit ei in die illa. 38 Dixitque Saul: Applicate huc universos angulos populi: et scitote, et videte per quem acciderit peccatum hoc hodie. 39 Vivit Dominus salvator Israël, quia si per Jonathan filium meum factum est, absque retractione morietur. Ad quod nullus contradixit ei de omni populo. 40 Et ait ad universum Israël: Separamini vos in partem unam, et ego cum Jonatha filio meo ero in parte altera. Responditque populus ad Saul: Quod bonum videtur in oculis tuis, fac. 41 Et dixit Saul ad Dominum Deum Israël: Domine Deus Israël, da indicium: quid est quod non responderis servo tuo hodie? si in me, aut in Jonatha filio meo, est iniquitas hæc, da ostensionem: aut si hæc iniquitas est in populo tuo, da sanctitatem. Et deprehensus est Jonathas et Saul: populus autem exivit. 42 Et ait Saul: Mittite sortem inter me et inter Jonathan filium meum. Et captus est Jonathas.
43 Tell me, said Saul to Jonathan, what it is thou hast done. So Jonathan told him; Touch food I did, but what food? A little honey picked up on the end of the staff I carried, and for that I must die. 44 And Saul answered, Due punishment the Lord give me, Jonathan, and more than due, if thy life is not forfeited! 45 But the people cried out to Saul, What, shall he die, Jonathan, who has won such a victory for Israel? As the Lord is a living God, that were great wrong. Never a hair shall fall from his head; this day he has done good service, God speeding him. So it was that the people, that day, saved Jonathan’s life. 46 And Saul halted, not continuing his pursuit of the Philistines, who now went back to their own country.
43 Dixit autem Saul ad Jonathan: Indica mihi quid feceris. Et indicavit ei Jonathas, et ait: Gustans gustavi in summitate virgæ quæ erat in manu mea, paululum mellis, et ecce ego morior. 44 Et ait Saul: Hæc faciat mihi Deus, et hæc addat, quia morte morieris, Jonatha. 45 Dixitque populus ad Saul: Ergone Jonathas morietur, qui fecit salutem hanc magnam in Israël? hoc nefas est: vivit Dominus, si ceciderit capillus de capite ejus in terram, quia cum Deo operatus est hodie. Liberavit ergo populus Jonathan, ut non moreretur. 46 Recessitque Saul, nec persecutus est Philisthiim: porro Philisthiim abierunt in loca sua.
47 Once he was firmly established on the throne of Israel, Saul carried war into the territory of his enemies, Moab, Ammon, Edom, the kings of Soba, and the Philistines; and everywhere he won victories. 48 He, too, it was that mustered an army and defeated Amalec, putting an end to their forays against Israel. 49 Saul had three sons, Jonathan, Jessui and Melchisua, and two daughters, the elder called Merob and the younger Michol. 50 His wife’s name was Achinoam, daughter to Achimaas. And he put his army under the command of his cousin Abner, son of Ner; 51 like Cis, Saul’s father, Ner was son of Abiel. 52 As long as Saul lived, there was bitter war against the Philistines, and wherever he found a brave man or a skilful fighter, Saul would attach him to his own person.
47 Et Saul, confirmato regno super Israël, pugnabat per circuitum adversum omnes inimicos ejus, contra Moab, et filios Ammon, et Edom, et reges Soba, et Philisthæos: et quocumque se verterat, superabat. 48 Congregatoque exercitu, percussit Amalec, et eruit Israël de manu vastatorum ejus. 49 Fuerunt autem filii Saul, Jonathas, et Jessui, et Melchisua: et nomina duarum filiarum ejus, nomen primogenitæ Merob, et nomen minoris Michol. 50 Et nomen uxoris Saul Achinoam filia Achimaas: et nomen principis militiæ ejus Abner filius Ner, patruelis Saul. 51 Porro Cis fuit pater Saul, et Ner pater Abner, filius Abiel. 52 Erat autem bellum potens adversum Philisthæos omnibus diebus Saul. Nam quemcumque viderat Saul virum fortem, et aptum ad prælium, sociabat eum sibi.
[1] According to the Septuagint Greek, it was not the ark but the sacred mantle (Ex. 25.7) that was here used for divination.
[2] In this verse, the Septuagint Greek differs widely from the Hebrew text, and the Latin version from both. This last probably means us to understand that Saul obtained an oracle by means of the sacred burse (Ex. 28.30); although the operative words here used (Revelation and Holiness) are not the same as those used in the description of the burse (Wisdom and Truth).