2 Samuel 1

1 ¹After the death of Saul, David returned from defeating the Amalekites and stayed in Ziklag two days. ²On the third day a man came from Saul's camp, clothes torn, dirt on his head. Reaching David, he fell to the ground and bowed.

³David asked him, "Where have you come from?" "I escaped from the camp of Israel," he replied.

⁴"What happened?" David asked. "Tell me." He said, "The people fled the battle. Many fell and died. Saul and his son Jonathan are dead too."

⁵David asked the young man who brought the news, "How do you know Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?"

⁶The young man said, "I happened onto Mount Gilboa, and there was Saul, leaning on his spear, the chariots and horsemen bearing down on him. ⁷He turned around, saw me, and called to me. I said, 'Here I am.' ⁸He asked me, 'Who are you?' I told him, 'I am an Amalekite.' ⁹He said to me, 'Stand over me and kill me; anguish has seized me, but I'm still alive.' ¹⁰So I stood over him and killed him, since I knew he wouldn't survive his fall. Then I took the crown from his head and the band on his arm, and brought them here to my lord."

¹¹Then David grabbed his own clothes and tore them, and so did all the men with him. ¹²They mourned, wept, and fasted until evening for Saul, his son Jonathan, our Father's people, and the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.

¹³David asked the young man who brought the news, "Where are you from?" He said, "I'm the son of a foreigner, an Amalekite."

¹⁴David said, "How were you not afraid to raise your hand to kill our Father's anointed? ¹⁵David called one of his young men and said, "Go, strike him down." He struck him, and he died." ¹⁶David had said to him, "Your blood is on your own head, for your own mouth testified against you when you said, 'I killed our Father's anointed.'"

How the Mighty Have Fallen

¹⁷Then David sang this lament over Saul and his son Jonathan, ¹⁸and ordered the people of Judah taught this lament, called The Bow; it is written in the Book of Jashar: ^a a v18 The Book of Jashar was an ancient Israelite collection of heroic poetry that has not survived. ¹⁹"Your glory, Israel, lies slain on your heights. How the mighty have fallen! ²⁰Don't tell it in Gath, don't proclaim it in the streets of Ashkelon, or the daughters of the Philistines will rejoice, the daughters of the uncircumcised will exult. ²¹Mountains of Gilboa, may you have no dew or rain, no fields yielding offerings. For there the shield of the mighty was defiled, the shield of Saul, no longer rubbed with oil. ^b b v21 Warriors regularly oiled their leather shields to keep them supple and battle-ready; an unoiled shield was ruined and useless. ²²From the blood of the slain, from the flesh of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan did not turn back, the sword of Saul did not return unsatisfied. ²³Saul and Jonathan, beloved and cherished in life, in death they were not parted. They were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions. ²⁴Daughters of Israel, weep for Saul, who clothed you in scarlet and finery, who adorned your garments with ornaments of gold. ²⁵How the mighty have fallen in the thick of battle! Jonathan lies slain on your heights. ²⁶I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan; you were very dear to me. Your love for me was wonderful, surpassing the love of women. ²⁷How the mighty have fallen! The weapons of war have perished."