- An Ephraimite, Elkanah, had 2 wives, Peninnah & Hannah, but Hannah was barren. Though Elkanah comforted Hannah, she wept bitterly before the priest Eli at the temple in Shiloh, vowing to devote her son to the Lord. She bares a son, Samuel, & brings offerings to the temple. #1Sam1
- Hannah offers a moving prayer to the Lord. Samuel’s parents gird him with a linen ephod to minister under Eli. Eli’s sons are evil, violating offerings & laying with women at the tabernacle. A man of God tells Eli in his old age that his sons will die & his line will end. #1Sam2
- Samuel ministers unto the Lord at the tabernacle of the ark of God. While trying to sleep, Samuel is called 3 times, thinking it is Eli. Eli tells him that it is the Lord, and to say Speak, Lord, thy servant heareth. The Lord tells Samuel that Eli’s house will be judged. #1Sam3
- After being defeated in a battle against the Philistines, Israel brings the ark of the covenant from Shiloh. The Philistines triumph in the next battle, the ark is captured & Eli’s sons are killed. On learning this, Eli dies, as does his daughter-in-law while giving birth. #1Sam4
- The Philistines take the ark of God to the temple of Dagon in Ashdod. Dagon’s statue falls and breaks before the ark. The people of Ashdod get tumors. They move the ark to Gath and then Ekron, but each time the people are afflicted with death. They blame the God of Israel. #1Sam5
- After 7 months in Philistine lands, the priests ask diviners what to do with the ark. They are told to make gold models of 5 emerods & 5 rats, load it & the ark onto a cart with unyoked cows, & release the cart. It goes to Bethshemesh. The Lord smites many who saw the ark. #1Sam6
- The ark is taken to Kiriath Jearim, where it remains for 20 years. Israel puts away its Baals and Ashtoreths, serving the Lord only. The Lord helps Israel defeat the Philistines, take Ekron & Gath, and restore lands. Samuel was the judge in these days, living in Ramah. #1Sam7
- Samuel wishes for his sons to become Israel’s judges, but they are evil. The people demand a king. The Lord tells Samuel that the king will take their sons & servants & 10% of their flocks, vineyards, & grain. They will become slaves to him. The people still demand a king. #1Sam8
- Saul, a tall handsome Benjaminite, goes with his servant to find some lost donkeys. After a long search, they ask the seer, Samuel, for help. The Lord had told Samuel to expect a man who would be captain over Israel. Upon seeing Saul, Samuel invites him to eat & commune. #1Sam9
- Samuel anoints Saul, telling him that the donkeys are safe, that he will meet men with food, and join a procession of prophets. All these things happen, causing people to ask, Is Saul also among the prophets? Samuel assembles the tribes, who choose Saul to be king. #1Sam10
- Nahash the Ammonite besieges the men of Jabesh-Gilead, demanding submission & their right eyes gouged out. The elders ask for a respite, sending messengers to Saul in Gibeah. He musters an army of Israelites & slays the Ammonites. The people go to Gilgal & make Saul king. #1Sam11
- Samuel, now old, says to Israel, have I in any way defrauded you? And they said, Thou hast not. He warns them to follow the Lord or suffer his wrath, & tells them their wickedness is great in asking for a king. Samuel summons thunder & rain. Fear the Lord, and serve him. #1Sam12
- Saul commands 3000 men & his son Jonathan 2000. Jonathan attacks a Philistine outpost, causing them to muster a large force. Many Hebrews flee in fear. Saul offers a sacrifice without waiting for Samuel, so is rebuked. Saul still has 600 men, but without swords or spears. #1Sam13
- Jonathan leaves Saul’s garrison &, with his armor-bearer, attacks & kills 20 Philistines. The Philistines flee & Saul’s army, now with Jonathan, chase them. Against Saul’s order, Jonathan eats honey & many of his men eat meat with blood. Saul relents to punish Jonathan. #1Sam14
- The Lord has Samuel tell Saul to utterly destroy the Amalekites. Saul does so & captures king Agag, but his men do not kill the best livestock. The Lord & Samuel are angered: Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings as much as obedience? Saul repents, & Samuel kills Agag. #1Sam15
- Samuel grieves for Saul, but the Lord sends Samuel to see Jesse in Bethlehem to anoint one of his 8 sons. The youngest, David, is called from tending sheep & anointed. Saul is filled with an evil spirit, but David becomes his armor-bearer and calms him by playing the lyre. #1Sam16
- The Philistines gather. Goliath, a giant with armor & sword, challenges an Israelite to fight him. David hears & accepts. Goliath asks Am I a dog that you would come at me with sticks? David replies, I come with the Lord. He slays Goliath with a sling & cuts off his head. #1Sam17
- Saul fears & resents David, but son Jonathan & daughter Michal love him. Saul sends David to fight the Philistines, but David always prevails, as the Lord is with him. To wed Michal, Saul tells David he must bring back the foreskins of 100 Philistines. He brings back 200. #1Sam18
- Though Saul tells Jonathan he won’t kill David, an evil spirit enters Saul & he tries to spear David. Michal helps him escape using a teraphim to trick Saul. David goes to Samuel at Ramah & prophesies. Saul sends men to kill David & goes himself, but joins in prophesying. #1Sam19
- David suspects that Saul will again try to kill him. Jonathan & David make a covenant affirming eternal friendship. To test Saul, David does not join in the feast of the new moon. Saul’s anger shows his desire to kill him. Jonathan signals with arrows the danger to David. #1Sam20
- David flees, telling priest Ahimelek of Nob that Saul has sent him on private business. David asks for bread, but only hallowed bread is available & is given to him. He is also given the sword of Goliath. David then flees to Gad and feigns madness before King Achish. #1Sam21
- David flees to Moab with about 400 men, & then to Judah. Saul summons Ahimelek to find out what he knows, but he & his 85 fellow priests are unaware of the affair. Still, Saul wants them dead. Doeg the Edomite, who was at Nob, kills them & then destroys Nob & its people. #1Sam22
- David & his men slay the Philistines at Keilah but depart upon learning that Saul is coming. They go to the Wilderness of Ziph, & Jonathan reaffirms their bond. They go on to the wilderness of Maon, are trapped by Saul, but he is called back by a Philistine invasion. #1Sam23
- David & some of his men are staying in a cave where Saul goes to relieve himself. David cuts off a piece of Saul’s robe, & confronts him as he leaves, saying he could have killed him, but Saul is the Lord’s anointed. Saul weeps, saying that you are more righteous than I. #1Sam24
- Samuel dies & is buried at Marah. David’s men meet Nabal, a rich man, near Carmel, & request provisions but are insulted. David wants to kill Nabal & his men but Nabal’s wife Abigail brings gifts & begs forgiveness. David relents, Nabal dies, & Abigail becomes his wife. #1Sam25
- Saul & 3000 select troops under Abner search for David in the desert of Ziph. David & Abishai sneak into Saul’s camp & steal his sword & water jug while they are sleeping, but David refuses to kill the Lord’s anointed. David shouts at Abner & Saul what they have done. #1Sam26
- David settles in Philistine lands of Achish at Ziklag with his family & wives Ahinoam Jezreel & Abigail Carmen to escape Saul’s wrath (Saul gave Michal to another man). There, David raids the Kenites, Amalekites & other tribes, taking their livestock & killing the people. #1Sam27
- David joins the Philistines to attack Israel. Saul had expelled mediums & spiritualists, but upon learning of the Philistine advance, finds a female witch. She conjures Samuel who tells Saul that because he did not obey the Lord, the Philistines will prevail over Israel. #1Sam28
- The Philistines gather at Aphek, and the Israelites at the valley of Jezreel. David wants to fight with the Philistines, as he has been loyal to Achish, but the Philistine leaders do not trust David, and he and his 600 men are sent home. #1Sam29
- David & his men return to Ziklag to find the Amalekites had taken the women & children captive & destroyed the city. Guided by an Egyptian slave, David’s men kill all Amalekites except for 400 young men who flee on camels. The wives, children, & plunder are recovered. #1Sam30
- The Philistines prevail against the Israelites under Saul at Mt. Gilboa. Arrows wound Saul. Rather than be captured, he falls on his sword. Three of his sons also die. His head is cut off & body taken to the Temple of Ashtoreth, but recovered by men of Jabesh-Gilead. #1Sam31
