1 Samuel 9:2

9:2 He had a son named Saul, a handsome young man. There was no one among the Israelites more handsome than he was; he stood head and shoulders above all the people.

1 Samuel 11:15

11:15 So all the people went to Gilgal, where ¹  they established Saul as king in the Lord’s presence. They offered up peace offerings there in the Lord’s presence. Saul and all the Israelites were very happy.

1 Samuel 14:47

14:47 After Saul had secured his royal position over Israel, he fought against all their ²  enemies on all sides – the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. In every direction that he turned he was victorious. ³ 

1 Samuel 15:6

15:6 Saul said to the Kenites, “Go on and leave! Go down from among the Amalekites! Otherwise I will sweep you away ⁴  with them! After all, you were kind to all the Israelites when they came up from Egypt.” So the Kenites withdrew from among the Amalekites.

1 Samuel 16:1

Samuel Anoints David as King

16:1 The Lord said to Samuel, “How long do you intend to mourn for Saul? I have rejected him as king over Israel. ⁵  Fill your horn with olive oil and go! I am sending you to Jesse in Bethlehem, ⁶  for I have selected a king for myself from among his sons.” ⁷ 

1 Samuel 29:3

29:3 The leaders of the Philistines asked, “What about these Hebrews?” Achish said to the leaders of the Philistines, “Isn’t this David, the servant of King Saul of Israel, who has been with me for quite some time? ⁸  I have found no fault with him from the day of his defection until the present time!” ⁹ 

[11:15]  ¹ tn Heb “and there in Gilgal.”

[14:47]  ² tn Heb “his,” which could refer to Israel or to Saul.

[14:47]  ³ tc The translation follows the LXX (“he was delivered”), rather than the MT, which reads, “he acted wickedly.”

[15:6]  ⁴ tc The translation follows the Syriac Peshitta and Vulgate which assume a reading אֶסִפְךָ (’esfÿka, “I sweep you away,” from the root ספה [sfh]) rather than the MT אֹסִפְךָ (’osifÿka, “I am gathering you,” from the root אסף[’sf]).

[16:1]  ⁵ tc The Lucianic recension of the Old Greek translation includes the following words: “And the Lord said to Samuel.”

[16:1]  ⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.

[16:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “for I have seen among his sons for me a king.”

[29:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “these days or these years.”

[29:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “from the day of his falling [away] until this day.”