Daily Text and Bible Reading: Sunday, March 29 [Press play below]

10.1 Samuel then took the flask of oil and poured it out on Saul’s head. He kissed him and said: “Has not Jehovah anointed you as a leader over his inheritance?
10.2 When you leave me today, you will find two men near the tomb of Rachel in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys that you went to look for have been found, but now your father has forgotten about the donkeys and is worried about you. He is saying: “What should I do about my son?”’
10.3 Go on from there until you come to the big tree of Tabor, where you will meet three men going up to the true God at Bethel, one carrying three young goats, one carrying three loaves of bread, and one carrying a large jar of wine.
10.4 They will ask about your welfare and give you two loaves, and you must accept the loaves from them.
10.5 After that you will come to the hill of the true God, where there is a garrison of the Philistines. When you come to the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place, and a stringed instrument and tambourine and flute and harp will be played ahead of them while they are prophesying.
10.6 The spirit of Jehovah will empower you, and you will prophesy along with them and be changed into a different person.
10.7 When these signs have taken place, do whatever your hand finds possible, because the true God is with you.
10.8 Then go down ahead of me to Gilgal, and I will go down to you there to offer up burnt sacrifices and communion sacrifices. You should wait for seven days until I come to you. Then I will let you know what you should do.”
10.9 As soon as Saul turned around to leave Samuel, God began changing his heart to be like that of someone else, and all these signs came true on that day.
10.10 So they went from there to the hill, and a group of prophets met him. At once the spirit of God empowered him, and he began to prophesy among them.
10.11 When all those who previously knew him saw him prophesying with the prophets, they said to one another: “What has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?”
10.12 Then a man from there said: “But who is their father?” So it became a saying: “Is Saul also among the prophets?”
10.13 When he finished prophesying, he came to the high place.
10.14 The brother of Saul’s father later said to him and to his attendant: “Where did you go?” At that he said: “To look for the donkeys, but we saw that they were not there, so we went to Samuel.”
10.15 Saul’s uncle asked: “Please tell me, what did Samuel say to you?”
10.16 Saul replied to his uncle: “He told us that the donkeys had already been found.” But Saul did not tell him what Samuel said about the matter of the kingship.
10.17 Samuel then called the people together to Jehovah at Mizpah
10.18 and said to the Israelites: “This is what Jehovah the God of Israel says: ‘It was I who brought Israel up out of Egypt and who rescued you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of all the kingdoms that were oppressing you.
10.19 But today you have rejected your God who was your Savior out of all your evils and distresses, and you said: “No, you should appoint a king over us.” Now take your stand before Jehovah by your tribes and by your thousands.’”
10.20 So Samuel had all the tribes of Israel draw near, and the tribe of Benjamin was selected.
10.21 Then he had the tribe of Benjamin draw near by its families, and the family of the Matrites was selected. Finally Saul the son of Kish was selected. But when they went to look for him, he was nowhere to be found.
10.22 So they inquired of Jehovah: “Has the man come here yet?” Jehovah answered: “There he is hiding himself among the luggage.”
10.23 So they ran and brought him from there. When he stood in the middle of the people, he was head and shoulders taller than all the other people.
10.24 Samuel said to all the people: “Do you see the one whom Jehovah has chosen, that there is none like him among all the people?” And all the people began to shout: “Long live the king!”
10.25 Samuel spoke to the people about the rightful due of kings and wrote it in a book and deposited it before Jehovah. Then Samuel sent all the people away, everyone to his house.
10.26 Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, accompanied by the warriors whose hearts Jehovah had touched.
10.27 But some worthless men said: “How will this one save us?” So they despised him, and they did not bring any gift to him. But he said nothing about it.

11.1 Then Nahash the Ammonite came up and camped against Jabesh in Gilead. All the men of Jabesh said to Nahash: “Make a covenant with us, and we will serve you.”
11.2 Nahash the Ammonite said to them: “I will make it with you on this condition: that all your right eyes be bored out. I will do this to humiliate all Israel.”
11.3 The elders of Jabesh replied to him: “Give us seven days’ time so that we can send messengers into all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to rescue us, we will surrender to you.”
11.4 In time the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and spoke these words in the hearing of the people, and all the people wept at the top of their voice.
11.5 But Saul was coming from the field behind the herd, and Saul said: “What is the matter with the people? Why are they weeping?” So they related to him the words of the men of Jabesh.
11.6 The spirit of God empowered Saul when he heard these words, and he burned with anger.
11.7 So he took a pair of bulls and cut them into pieces, and he sent these into all the territory of Israel by the hand of the messengers, who said: “Whoever does not follow Saul and Samuel should expect this to be done to his cattle!” And the fear of Jehovah fell upon the people, so that they came out with one accord.
11.8 Then he counted them in Bezek, and there were 300,000 Israelites and 30,000 men of Judah.
11.9 They now said to the messengers who had come: “This is what you should say to the men of Jabesh in Gilead, ‘Tomorrow when the sun gets hot, you will be saved.’” With that the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh, and they were overjoyed.
11.10 So the men of Jabesh said: “Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you may do to us whatever seems good to you.”
11.11 On the next day, Saul divided the people into three bands, and they made their way into the middle of the camp during the morning watch and struck down the Ammonites until the day grew hot. Those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together.
11.12 Then the people said to Samuel: “Who was saying, ‘Is Saul to be king over us?’ Hand the men over, and we will put them to death.”
11.13 However, Saul said: “Not a man should be put to death on this day, for today Jehovah has rescued Israel.”
11.14 Samuel later said to the people: “Come and let us go to Gilgal to reconfirm the kingship.”
11.15 So all the people went to Gilgal, and in Gilgal they made Saul king before Jehovah. Then they offered communion sacrifices there before Jehovah, and Saul and all the men of Israel celebrated with great joy.

12.1 Finally Samuel said to all Israel: “Here I have done all that you asked of me, and I appointed a king to reign over you.
12.2 Now here is the king who is leading you! As for me, I have grown old and gray, and my sons are here with you, and I have led you from my youth until this day.
12.3 Here I am. Testify against me before Jehovah and before his anointed one: Whose bull or whose donkey have I taken? Or whom have I defrauded or crushed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me look the other way? If I have, I will restore it to you.”
12.4 To this they said: “You have not defrauded us or crushed us or accepted anything at all from anyone’s hand.”
12.5 So he said to them: “Jehovah is a witness against you, and his anointed one is a witness this day that you have found nothing to accuse me of.” To this they said: “He is a witness.”
12.6 So Samuel said to the people: “Jehovah, who used Moses and Aaron and who brought your forefathers up out of the land of Egypt, is a witness.
12.7 And now take your positions, and I will judge you before Jehovah in view of all the righteous acts that Jehovah has done for you and for your forefathers.
12.8 “As soon as Jacob had come into Egypt and your forefathers began calling to Jehovah for help, Jehovah sent Moses and Aaron to lead your forefathers out of Egypt and to cause them to dwell in this place.
12.9 But they forgot Jehovah their God, and he sold them into the hand of Sisera the chief of the army of Hazor and into the hand of the Philistines and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them.
12.10 And they called to Jehovah for help and said, ‘We have sinned, for we have left Jehovah to serve the Baals and the Ashtoreth images; now rescue us out of the hand of our enemies so that we may serve you.’
12.11 Then Jehovah sent Jerubbaal and Bedan and Jephthah and Samuel and rescued you from the hand of the enemies all around you, so that you could live in security.
12.12 When you saw that Nahash, the king of the Ammonites, had come against you, you kept saying to me, ‘No, we are determined to have a king over us!’ even though Jehovah your God is your King.
12.13 Now here is the king whom you have chosen, the one you asked for. Look! Jehovah has appointed a king over you.
12.14 If you fear Jehovah and serve him and obey his voice and you do not rebel against the order of Jehovah, and both you and the king who reigns over you follow Jehovah your God, fine.
12.15 But if you do not obey the voice of Jehovah and you rebel against the order of Jehovah, the hand of Jehovah will be against you and your fathers.
12.16 Now take your positions and see this great thing that Jehovah is doing before your eyes.
12.17 Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call on Jehovah to make it thunder and rain; then know and understand what an evil thing you have done in the eyes of Jehovah in asking for a king for yourselves.”
12.18 At that Samuel called to Jehovah, and Jehovah made it thunder and rain on that day, so that all the people were greatly in fear of Jehovah and of Samuel.
12.19 And all the people said to Samuel: “Pray to Jehovah your God for your servants, as we do not want to die, for we have added to all our sins another evil by asking for a king.”
12.20 So Samuel said to the people: “Do not be afraid. You have indeed done all this evil. Only do not turn away from following Jehovah, and serve Jehovah with all your heart.
12.21 Do not turn away to follow the empty things, which are of no benefit and cannot rescue, because they are empty.
12.22 For the sake of his great name, Jehovah will not abandon his people, for Jehovah has taken it upon himself to make you his people.
12.23 As for me, it is unthinkable for me to sin against Jehovah by ceasing to pray in your behalf, and I will continue to instruct you in the good and right way.
12.24 Only fear Jehovah, and serve him faithfully with all your heart, for see what great things he has done for you.
12.25 But if you flagrantly do what is bad, you will be swept away, both you and your king.”