101 And Samuel taketh the vial of the oil, and poureth on his head, and kisseth him, and saith, 'Is it not because Jehovah hath appointed thee over His inheritance for leader? 2 In thy going to-day from me—then thou hast found two men by the grave of Rachel, in the border of Benjamin, at Zelzah, and they have said unto thee, The asses have been found which thou hast gone to seek; and lo, thy father hath left the matter of the asses, and hath sorrowed for you, saying, What do I do for my son? 3 'And thou hast passed on thence, and beyond, and hast come in unto the oak of Tabor, and found thee there have three men going up unto God to Beth-El, one bearing three kids, and one bearing three cakes of bread, and one bearing a bottle of wine, 4 and they have asked of thee of welfare, and given to thee two loaves, and thou hast received from their hand. 5 'Afterwards thou dost come unto the hill of God, where the garrison of the Philistines 'is', and it cometh to pass, at thy coming in thither to the city, that thou hast met a band of prophets coming down from the high place, and before them psaltery, and tabret, and pipe, and harp, and they are prophesying; 6 and prospered over thee hath the Spirit of Jehovah, and thou hast prophesied with them, and hast been turned to another man; 7 and it hath been, when these signs come to thee—do for thyself as thy hand findeth, for God 'is' with thee. 8 'And thou hast gone down before me to Gilgal, and lo, I am going down unto thee, to cause to ascend burnt-offerings, to sacrifice sacrifices of peace-offerings; seven days thou dost wait till my coming in unto thee, and I have made known to thee that which thou dost do.'
9 And it hath been, at his turning his shoulder to go from Samuel, that God turneth to him another heart, and all these signs come on that day, 10 and they come in thither to the height, and lo, a band of prophets—to meet him, and prosper over him doth the Spirit of God, and he prophesieth in their midst. 11 And it cometh to pass, all his acquaintance heretofore, see, and lo, with prophets he hath prophesied, and the people say one unto another, 'What 'is' this hath happened to the son of Kish? is Saul also among the prophets?' 12 And a man thence answereth and saith, 'And who 'is' their father?' therefore it hath been for a simile, 'Is Saul also among the prophets?' 13 And he ceaseth from prophesying, and cometh in to the high place, 14 and the uncle of Saul saith unto him, and unto his young man, 'Whither went ye?' and he saith, 'To seek the asses; and we see that they are not, and we come in unto Samuel.' 15 And the uncle of Saul saith, 'Declare, I pray thee, to me, what Samuel said to you?' 16 And Saul saith unto his uncle, 'He certainly declared to us that the asses were found;' and of the matter of the kingdom he hath not declared to him that which Samuel said.
17 And Samuel calleth the people unto Jehovah to Mizpeh, 18 and saith unto the sons of Israel, 'Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, I have brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I deliver you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all the kingdoms who are oppressing you; 19 and ye to-day have rejected your God, who 'is' Himself your saviour out of all your evils and your distresses, and ye say, 'Nay, but—a king thou dost set over us; and now, station yourselves before Jehovah, by your tribes, and by your thousands.' 20 And Samuel bringeth near the whole tribes of Israel, and the tribe of Benjamin is captured, 21 and he bringeth near the tribe of Benjamin by its families, and the family of Matri is captured, and Saul son of Kish is captured, and they seek him, and he hath not been found. 22 And they ask again at Jehovah, 'Hath the man yet come hither?' and Jehovah saith, 'Lo, he hath been hidden near the vessels.' 23 And they run and bring him thence, and he stationed himself in the midst of the people, and he is higher than any of the people from his shoulder and upward. 24 And Samuel saith unto all the people, 'Have ye seen him on whom Jehovah hath fixed, for there is none like him among all the people?' And all the people shout, and say, 'Let the king live!' 25 And Samuel speaketh unto the people the right of the kingdom, and writeth in a book, and placeth before Jehovah; and Samuel sendeth all the people away, each to his house. 26 And also Saul hath gone to his house, to Gibeah, and the force go with him whose heart God hath touched; 27 and the sons of worthlessness have said, 'What! this one doth save us!' and they despise him, and have not brought to him a present; and he is as one deaf.
111 And 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.' 2 And 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.' 3 And 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.' 4 And 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;
5 and 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. 6 And the Spirit of God doth prosper over Saul, in his hearing these words, and his anger burneth greatly, 7 and 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. 8 And he inspecteth them in Bezek, and the sons of Israel are three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. 9 And 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; 10 and 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.' 11 And 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.
12 And 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.' 13 And Saul saith, 'There is no man put to death on this day, for to-day hath Jehovah wrought salvation in Israel.' 14 And Samuel saith unto the people, 'Come and we go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there;' 15 and 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.
121 And Samuel saith unto all Israel, 'Lo, I have hearkened to your voice, to all that ye said to me, and I cause to reign over you a king, 2 and now, lo, the king is walking habitually before you, and I have become aged and gray-headed, and my sons, lo, they 'are' with you, and I have walked habitually before you from my youth till this day. 3 'Lo, here 'am' I; testify against me, over-against Jehovah, and over-against His anointed; whose ox have I taken, and whose ass have I taken, and whom have I oppressed; whom have I bruised, and of whose hand have I taken a ransom, and hide mine eyes with it?—and I restore to you.' 4 And they say, 'Thou hast not oppressed us, nor hast thou crushed us, nor hast thou taken from the hand of any one anything.' 5 And he saith unto them, 'A witness 'is' Jehovah against you: and a witness 'is' His anointed this day, that ye have not found anything in my hand;' and they say, 'A witness.'
6 And Samuel saith unto the people, 'Jehovah—He who made Moses and Aaron, and who brought up your fathers out of the land of Egypt! 7 and, now, station yourselves, and I judge you before Jehovah, with all the righteous acts of Jehovah, which He did with you, and with your fathers. 8 'When Jacob hath come in to Egypt, and your fathers cry unto Jehovah, then Jehovah sendeth Moses and Aaron, and they bring out your fathers from Egypt, and cause them to dwell in this place, 9 and they forget Jehovah their God, and He selleth them into the hand of Sisera, head of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fight against them, 10 and they cry unto Jehovah, and say, We have sinned, because we have forsaken Jehovah, and serve the Baalim, and Ashtaroth, and now, deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we serve Thee. 11 'And Jehovah sendeth Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivereth you out of the hand of your enemies round about, and ye dwell confidently. 12 'And ye see that Nahash king of the Bene-Ammon hath come against you, and ye say to me, Nay, but a king doth reign over us; and Jehovah your God 'is' your king! 13 And, now, lo, the king whom ye have chosen—whom ye have asked! and lo, Jehovah hath placed over you a king. 14 'If ye fear Jehovah, and have served Him, and hearkened to His voice, then ye do not provoke the mouth of Jehovah, and ye have been—both ye and the king who hath reigned over you—after Jehovah your God. 15 'And if ye do not hearken to the voice of Jehovah—then ye have provoked the mouth of Jehovah, and the hand of Jehovah hath been against you, and against your fathers.
16 'Also now, station yourselves and see this great thing which Jehovah is doing before your eyes; 17 is it not wheat-harvest to-day? I call unto Jehovah, and He doth give voices and rain; and know ye and see that your evil is great which ye have done in the eyes of Jehovah, to ask for you a king.' 18 And Samuel calleth unto Jehovah, and Jehovah giveth voices and rain, on that day, and all the people greatly fear Jehovah and Samuel; 19 and all the people say unto Samuel, 'Pray for thy servants unto Jehovah thy God, and we do not die, for we have added to all our sins evil to ask for us a king.' 20 And Samuel saith unto the people, 'Fear not; ye have done all this evil; only, turn not aside from after Jehovah—and ye have served Jehovah with all your heart, 21 and ye do not turn aside after the vain things which do not profit nor deliver, for they 'are' vain, 22 for Jehovah doth not leave His people, on account of His great name; for Jehovah hath been pleased to make you to Him for a people. 23 'I, also, far be it from me to sin against Jehovah, by ceasing to pray for you, and I have directed you in the good and upright way; 24 only, fear ye Jehovah, and ye have served Him in truth with all your heart, for see that which He hath made great with you; 25 and if ye really do evil, both ye and your king are consumed.'
37 And it came to pass on the next day, they having come down from the mount, there met him a great multitude, 38 and lo, a man from the multitude cried out, saying, 'Teacher, I beseech thee, look upon my son, because he is my only begotten; 39 and lo, a spirit doth take him, and suddenly he doth cry out, and it teareth him, with foaming, and it hardly departeth from him, bruising him, 40 and I besought thy disciples that they might cast it out, and they were not able.' 41 And Jesus answering said, 'O generation, unstedfast and perverse, till when shall I be with you, and suffer you? bring near hither thy son;' 42 and as he is yet coming near, the demon rent him, and tore 'him' sore, and Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the youth, and gave him back to his father.
43 And they were all amazed at the greatness of God, and while all are wondering at all things that Jesus did, he said unto his disciples,
44 'Lay ye to your ears these words, for the Son of Man is about to be delivered up to the hands of men.' 45 And they were not knowing this saying, and it was veiled from them, that they might not perceive it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
46 And there entered a reasoning among them, this, Who may be greater of them? 47 and Jesus having seen the reasoning of their heart, having taken hold of a child, set him beside himself, 48 and said to them, 'Whoever may receive this child in my name, doth receive me, and whoever may receive me, doth receive Him who sent me, for he who is least among you all—he shall be great.'
49 And John answering said, 'Master, we saw a certain one in thy name casting forth the demons, and we forbade him, because he doth not follow with us;' 50 and Jesus said unto him, 'Forbid not, for he who is not against us, is for us.'
51 And it came to pass, in the completing of the days of his being taken up, that he fixed his face to go on to Jerusalem, 52 and he sent messengers before his face, and having gone on, they went into a village of Samaritans, to make ready for him, 53 and they did not receive him, because his face was going on to Jerusalem. 54 And his disciples James and John having seen, said, 'Sir, wilt thou 'that' we may command fire to come down from the heaven, and to consume them, as also Elijah did?' 55 and having turned, he rebuked them, and said, 'Ye have not known of what spirit ye are; 56 for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives, but to save;' and they went on to another village.
57 And it came to pass, as they are going on in the way, a certain one said unto him, 'I will follow thee wherever thou mayest go, sir;' 58 and Jesus said to him, 'The foxes have holes, and the fowls of the heaven places of rest, but the Son of Man hath not where he may recline the head.' 59 And he said unto another, 'Be following me;' and he said, 'Sir, permit me, having gone away, first to bury my father;' 60 and Jesus said to him, 'Suffer the dead to bury their own dead, and thou, having gone away, publish the reign of God.' 61 And another also said, 'I will follow thee, sir, but first permit me to take leave of those in my house;' 62 and Jesus said unto him, 'No one having put his hand on a plough, and looking back, is fit for the reign of God.'
(Read Luke 9:37-42)
How deplorable the case of this child! He was under the power of an evil spirit. Disease of that nature are more frightful than such as arise merely from natural causes. What mischief Satan does where he gets possession! But happy those that have access to Christ! He can do that for us which his disciples cannot. A word from Christ healed the child; and when our children recover from sickness, it is comfortable to receive them as healed by the hand of Christ.
(Read Luke 9:43-50)
This prediction of Christ's sufferings was plain enough, but the disciples would not understand it, because it agreed not with their notions. A little child is the emblem by which Christ teaches us simplicity and humility. What greater honour can any man attain to in this world, than to be received by men as a messenger of God and Christ; and to have God and Christ own themselves received and welcomed in him! If ever any society of Christians in this world, had reason to silence those not of their own communion, the twelve disciples at this time had; yet Christ warned them not to do the like again. Those may be found faithful followers of Christ, and may be accepted of him, who do not follow with us.
(Read Luke 9:51-56)
The disciples did not consider that the conduct of the Samaritans was rather the effect of national prejudices and bigotry, than of enmity to the word and worship of God; and through they refused to receive Christ and his disciples, they did not ill use or injure them, so that the case was widely different from that of Ahaziah and Elijah. Nor were they aware that the gospel dispensation was to be marked by miracles of mercy. But above all, they were ignorant of the prevailing motives of their own hearts, which were pride and carnal ambition. Of this our Lord warned them. It is easy for us to say, Come, see our zeal for the Lord! and to think we are very faithful in his cause, when we are seeking our own objects, and even doing harm instead of good to others.
(Read Luke 9:57-62)
Here is one that is forward to follow Christ, but seems to have been hasty and rash, and not to have counted the cost. If we mean to follow Christ, we must lay aside the thoughts of great things in the world. Let us not try to join the profession of Christianity, with seeking after worldly advantages. Here is another that seems resolved to follow Christ, but he begs a short delay. To this man Christ first gave the call; he said to him, Follow me. Religion teaches us to be kind and good, to show piety at home, and to requite our parents; but we must not make these an excuse for neglecting our duty to God. Here is another that is willing to follow Christ, but he must have a little time to talk with his friends about it, and to set in order his household affairs, and give directions concerning them. He seemed to have worldly concerns more upon his heart than he ought to have, and he was willing to enter into a temptation leading him from his purpose of following Christ. No one can do any business in a proper manner, if he is attending to other things. Those who begin with the work of God, must resolve to go on, or they will make nothing of it. Looking back, leads to drawing back, and drawing back is to perdition. He only that endures to the end shall be saved.
