1 Então tomou Samuel um vaso de azeite, e lho derramou sobre a cabeça, e beijou-o, e disse: Porventura não te ungiu o SENHOR por capitão sobre a sua herança?

2 Apartando-te hoje de mim, acharás dois homens junto ao sepulcro de Raquel, no termo de Benjamim, em Zelza, os quais te dirão: Acharam-se as jumentas que foste buscar, e eis que já o teu pai deixou o negócio das jumentas, e anda aflito por causa de vós, dizendo: Que farei eu por meu filho?

3 E quando dali passares mais adiante, e chegares ao carvalho de Tabor, ali te encontrarão três homens, que vão subindo a Deus a Betel; um levando três cabritos, o outro três bolos de pão e o outro um odre de vinho.

4 E te perguntarão como estás, e te darão dois pães, que tomarás das suas mãos.

5 Então chegarás ao outeiro de Deus, onde está a guarnição dos filisteus; e há de ser que, entrando ali na cidade, encontrarás um grupo de profetas que descem do alto, e trazem diante de si saltérios, e tambores, e flautas, e harpas; e eles estarão profetizando.

6 E o Espírito do Senhor se apoderará de ti, e profetizarás com eles, e tornar-te-ás um outro homem.

7 E há de ser que, quando estes sinais te vierem, faze o que achar a tua mão, porque Deus é contigo.

8 Tu, porém, descerás antes de mim a Gilgal, e eis que eu descerei a ti, para sacrificar holocaustos, e para oferecer ofertas pacíficas; ali sete dias esperarás, até que eu venha a ti, e te declare o que hás de fazer.

9 Sucedeu, pois, que, virando ele as costas para partir de Samuel, Deus lhe mudou o coração em outro; e todos aqueles sinais aconteceram naquele mesmo dia.

10 E, chegando eles ao outeiro, eis que um grupo de profetas lhes saiu ao encontro; e o Espírito de Deus se apoderou dele, e profetizou no meio deles.

11 E aconteceu que, como todos os que antes o conheciam viram que ele profetizava com os profetas, então disse o povo, cada um ao seu companheiro: Que é o que sucedeu ao filho de Quis? Está também Saul entre os profetas?

12 Então um homem dali respondeu, e disse: Pois quem é o pai deles? Pelo que se tornou em provérbio: Está Saul também entre os profetas?

13 E, acabando de profetizar, foi ao alto.

14 E disse-lhe o tio de Saul, a ele e ao seu moço: Aonde fostes? E disse ele: A buscar as jumentas, e, vendo que não apareciam, fomos a Samuel.

15 Então disse o tio de Saul: Declara-me, peço-te, o que vos disse Samuel?

16 E disse Saul a seu tio: Declarou-nos, na verdade, que as jumentas foram encontradas. Porém o negócio do reino, de que Samuel falara, não lhe declarou.

17 Convocou, pois, Samuel o povo ao Senhor, em Mizpá.

18 E disse aos filhos de Israel: Assim disse o Senhor Deus de Israel: Eu fiz subir a Israel do Egito, e livrei-vos da mão dos egípcios e da mão de todos os reinos que vos oprimiam.

19 Mas vós tendes rejeitado hoje a vosso Deus, que vos livrou de todos os vossos males e trabalhos, e lhe tendes falado: Põe um rei sobre nós. Agora, pois, ponde-vos perante o Senhor, pelas vossas tribos e segundo os vossos milhares.

20 Tendo, pois, Samuel feito chegar todas as tribos, tomou-se a tribo de Benjamim.

21 E, fazendo chegar a tribo de Benjamim pelas suas famílias, tomou-se a família de Matri; e dela se tomou Saul, filho de Quis; e o buscaram, porém não se achou.

22 Então tornaram a perguntar ao Senhor se aquele homem ainda viria ali. E disse o Senhor: Eis que se escondeu entre a bagagem.

23 E correram, e o tomaram dali, e pôs-se no meio do povo; e era mais alto do que todo o povo desde o ombro para cima.

24 Então disse Samuel a todo o povo: Vedes já a quem o Senhor escolheu? Pois em todo o povo não há nenhum semelhante a ele. Então jubilou todo o povo, e disse: Viva o rei!

25 E declarou Samuel ao povo o direito do reino, e escreveu-o num livro, e pô-lo perante o Senhor; então despediu Samuel a todo o povo, cada um para sua casa.

26 E foi também Saul à sua casa, em Gibeá; e foram com ele do exército aqueles cujos corações Deus tocara.

27 Mas os filhos de Belial disseram: É este o que nos há de livrar? E o desprezaram, e não lhe trouxeram presentes; porém ele se fez como surdo.

1 Then Samuel took the bottle of oil, and put the oil on his head and gave him a kiss and said, Is not the Lord with the holy oil making you ruler over Israel, his people? and you will have authority over the people of the Lord, and you will make them safe from the hands of their attackers round about them, and this will be the sign for you:

2 When you have gone away from me today, you will see two men by the resting-place of Rachel's body, in the land of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, The asses which you went in search of have come back, and now your father, caring no longer for the asses, is troubled about you, saying, What am I to do about my son?

3 Then you are to go on from there, and when you come to the oak-tree of Tabor, you will see three men going up to God to Beth-el, one having with him three young goats and another three cakes of bread and another a skin full of wine:

4 They will say, Peace be with you, and will give you two cakes of bread, which you are to take from them.

5 After that you will come to Gibeah, the hill of God, where an armed force of the Philistines is stationed: and when you come to the town, you will see a band of prophets coming down from the high place with instruments of music before them; and they will be acting like prophets:

6 And the spirit of the Lord will come on you with power, and you will be acting like a prophet with them, and will be changed into another man.

7 And when these signs come to you, see that you take the chance which is offered you; for God is with you.

8 Then you are to go down before me to Gilgal, where I will come to you, for the offering of burned offerings and peace-offerings: go on waiting there for seven days till I come to you and make clear to you what you have to do.

9 And it came about, that when he went away from Samuel, God gave him a changed heart: and all those signs took place that day.

10 And when they came to Gibeah, a band of prophets came face to face with him; and the spirit of God came on him with power and he took his place among them as a prophet.

11 Now when Saul's old friends saw him among the band of prophets, the people said to one another, What has come to Saul, the son of Kish? Is even Saul among the prophets?

12 And one of the people of that place said in answer, And who is their father? So it became a common saying, Is even Saul among the prophets?

13 Then going away from the prophets, he came to the house.

14 And Saul's father's brother said to him and his servant, Where have you been? And he said, Searching for the asses: and when we saw no sign of them, we came to Samuel.

15 Then he said, And what did Samuel say to you?

16 And Saul, answering him, said, He gave us word that the asses had come back. But he said nothing to him of Samuel's words about the kingdom.

17 Then Samuel sent for the people to come together before the Lord at Mizpah;

18 And he said to the children of Israel, The Lord, the God of Israel, has said, I took Israel out of Egypt, and made you free from the hands of the Egyptians and from all the kingdoms which kept you down:

19 But today you are turned away from your God, who himself has been your saviour from all your troubles and sorrows; and you have said to him, Put a king over us. So now, take your places before the Lord by your tribes and by your thousands.

20 So Samuel made all the tribes of Israel come near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken.

21 Then he made the tribe of Benjamin come near by families, and the family of the Matrites was taken: and from them, Saul, the son of Kish, was taken: but when they went in search of him he was nowhere to be seen.

22 So they put another question to the Lord, Is the man present here? And the answer of the Lord was, He is keeping himself from view among the goods.

23 So they went quickly and made him come out; and when he took his place among the people, he was taller by a head than any of the people.

24 And Samuel said to all the people, Do you see the man of the Lord's selection, how there is no other like him among all the people? And all the people with loud cries said, Long life to the king!

25 Then Samuel gave the people the laws of the kingdom, writing them in a book which he put in a safe place before the Lord. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.

26 And Saul went to Gibeah, to his house; and with him went the men of war whose hearts had been touched by God.

27 But certain good-for-nothing persons said, How is this man to be our saviour? And having no respect for him, they gave him no offering.