He quickly called his armorbearer. He told him, “Take your sword and kill me! I don’t want anyone to say, ‘A woman killed Abimelech.’ ” His armorbearer did as he said, so Abimelech died.
Then all the troops went to Gilgal, and there in the Lord’s presence, they confirmed Saul as their king. There they sacrificed fellowship offerings to the Lord. Saul and all of Israel’s soldiers celebrated.
Isn’t the wheat being harvested today? I will call on the Lord, and he’ll send thunder and rain. Then you will realize what a wicked thing you did in the Lord’s presence when you asked for a king.”
I solemnly swear, as the Lord lives,” David added, “the Lord will strike him. Either his time will come when he’ll die ⌞naturally⌟, or he’ll go into battle and be swept away.
For the same reasons the Lord will hand you and Israel over to the Philistines. Tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. And then the Lord will hand Israel’s army over to the Philistines.”
When the people of Israel on the other side of the valley and across the Jordan River saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities. So the Philistines came to live in these cities.