1 Samuel 31

1The Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before the Philistines and fell slain on Mount Gilboa.

2The Philistines pressed close to Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul.

3The battle grew heavy against Saul, and bowmen—archers—hit him, and he writhed greatly because of the archers.

4Saul said to his armor-bearer, "Draw your sword and pierce me with it, lest these uncircumcised come and pierce me and mistreat me!" But his armor-bearer refused, for he was greatly afraid, so Saul took the sword and fell on it.

5When his armor bearer saw that Saul was dead, he too fell on his sword and died with him.

6Saul died that same day together with his three sons, his armor bearer, and all his men as well.

7When men of Israel beyond the valley and beyond the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned the cities and fled; the Philistines came and settled in them.

8The next day the Philistines came to strip the slain and found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.

9They cut off his head and stripped off his armor, and sent them throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim it to the house of their idols and to the people.

10They placed his armor in the house of Ashtaroth and fastened his corpse to the wall of Beth-shan.

11When the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard about what the Philistines had done to Saul,

12All the warriors arose and traveled all night, recovered Saul's body and his sons' bodies from Beth-shan's wall, arrived at Jabesh, and burned them there.

13They took their bones and buried them beneath the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.