1 Samuel 11:1-10

1 About a month later, King Nahash of Ammon led his army against the Israelite town of Jabesh-gilead. But all the citizens of Jabesh asked for peace. “Make a treaty with us, and we will be your servants,” they pleaded.

2 “All right,” Nahash said, “but only on one condition. I will gouge out the right eye of every one of you as a disgrace to all Israel!”

3 “Give us seven days to send messengers throughout Israel!” replied the elders of Jabesh. “If no one comes to save us, we will agree to your terms.”

4 When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the people about their plight, everyone broke into tears.

5 Saul had been plowing a field with his oxen, and when he returned to town, he asked, “What’s the matter? Why is everyone crying?” So they told him about the message from Jabesh.

6 Then the Spirit of God came powerfully upon Saul, and he became very angry.

7 He took two oxen and cut them into pieces and sent the messengers to carry them throughout Israel with this message: “This is what will happen to the oxen of anyone who refuses to follow Saul and Samuel into battle!” And the LORD made the people afraid of Saul’s anger, and all of them came out together as one.

8 When Saul mobilized them at Bezek, he found that there were 300,000 men from Israel and 30,000 men from Judah.

9 So Saul sent the messengers back to Jabesh-gilead to say, “We will rescue you by noontime tomorrow!” There was great joy throughout the town when that message arrived!

10 The men of Jabesh then told their enemies, “Tomorrow we will come out to you, and you can do to us whatever you wish.”

1 Samuel 11:1-10 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 11

This chapter relates the distress the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead were in on account of the Ammonites, 1Sa 11:1-3 upon which they sent messengers to Saul, whose spirit was immediately stirred up to help them, 1Sa 11:4-6, and prepared for it, and came up soon enough for their relief, and slew their enemies, 1Sa 11:7-11, which gained him much honour and reputation among the people, and occasioned the renewal of the kingdom to him, 1Sa 11:12-15.

Footnotes

• [a]. As in Dead Sea Scroll 4QSam and Greek version; Masoretic Text lacks About a month later.
• [b]. Dead Sea Scrolls and Greek version read 70,000.