וַיְהִי הַיּוֹם וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹנָתָן בֶּן שָׁאוּל אֶל הַנַּעַר נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו לְכָה וְנַעְבְּרָה אֶל מַצַּב פְּלִשְׁתִּים אֲשֶׁר מֵעֵבֶר הַלָּז וּלְאָבִיו לֹא הִגִּיד

It was on the day, Yonatan son of Saul said to the lad, the servant bearer of his armor: Come, let us cross to the Philistine garrison that is on the other side. But he did not tell his father.

וְשָׁאוּל יוֹשֵׁב בִּקְצֵה הַגִּבְעָה תַּחַת הָרִמּוֹן אֲשֶׁר בְּמִגְרוֹן וְהָעָם אֲשֶׁר עִמּוֹ כְּשֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת אִישׁ

While this was happening, Saul was staying at the edge of Giva beneath the pomegranate tree that was in Migron; and the people that were with him, who loyally remained with him, were some six hundred men.

ואֲחִיָּה בֶן אֲחִטוּב אֲחִי אִיכָבוֹד בֶּן פִּינְחָס בֶּן עֵלִי כֹּהֵן ה' בְּשִׁלוֹ נֹשֵׂא אֵפוֹד וְהָעָם לֹא יָדַע כִּי הָלַךְ יוֹנָתָן

With Saul was Ahiya son of Ahituv, who was a brother of Ikavod. Ikavod was the youngest son of Pinhas son of Eli the priest of the Lord in Shilo. Ikavod was born during the great defeat at the end of Eli’s lifetime (see chap. 4). His nephew Ahiya served as a priest in Saul’s camp and was bearer of an ephod, to which the breast piece, with the Urim and Tumim, was connected, through which divine instructions would be transmitted. The people did not know that Yonatan had gone, as he went on his own initiative, without asking for permission.

וּבֵין הַמַּעְבְּרוֹת אֲשֶׁר בִּקֵּשׁ יוֹנָתָן לַעֲבֹר עַל מַצַּב פְּלִשְׁתִּים שֵׁן הַסֶּלַע מֵהָעֵבֶר מִזֶּה וְשֵׁן הַסֶּלַע מֵהָעֵבֶר מִזֶּה וְשֵׁם הָאֶחָד בּוֹצֵץ וְשֵׁם הָאֶחָד סֶנֶּה

In the pass through which Yonatan sought to cross to the Philistine garrison, which was apparently in an elevated area, there was a rocky crag on the one side and a rocky crag on the other side; the difficult pass was between two sharp, stone cliffs. The name of the one crag was Botzetz and the name of the other was Seneh.

הַשֵּׁן הָאֶחָד מָצוּק מִצָּפוֹן מוּל מִכְמָשׂ וְהָאֶחָד מִנֶּגֶב מוּל גָּבַע

The one crag stood on the north opposite Mikhmas and the other to the south opposite Geva.

וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוֹנָתָן אֶל הַנַּעַר נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו לְכָה וְנַעְבְּרָה אֶל מַצַּב הָעֲרֵלִים הָאֵלֶּה אוּלַי יַעֲשֶׂה ה' לָנוּ כִּי אֵין לַה' מַעְצוֹר לְהוֹשִׁיעַ בְּרַב אוֹ בִמְעָט

Yehonatan said to the lad, the servant bearer of his armor: Come, let us cross to the garrison of these uncircumcised people, a derogatory nickname used in particular for the Philistines; perhaps the Lord will act on our behalf, will give us salvation; for nothing prevents the Lord from saving with many or with few.

וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו עֲשֵׂה כָּל אֲשֶׁר בִּלְבָבֶךָ נְטֵה לָךְ הִנְנִי עִמְּךָ כִּלְבָבֶךָ

His armor-bearer said to him: Do all that is in your heart; turn, you toward them; behold, I am with you after your heart, your will.

וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוֹנָתָן הִנֵּה אֲנַחְנוּ עֹבְרִים אֶל הָאֲנָשִׁים ונִגְלִינוּ אֲלֵיהֶם

Yehonatan said: Behold, we are passing over to the men, and we will necessarily be revealed to them, as they are above us, and we will have to cross between the cliffs down below. It is possible that Yonatan’s plan was to pretend that he was defecting to the enemy and revealing Saul’s plans to them.

אִם כֹּה יֹאמְרוּ אֵלֵינוּ דֹּמּוּ עַד הַגִּיעֵנוּ אֲלֵיכֶם וְעָמַדְנוּ תַחְתֵּינוּ וְלֹא נַעֲלֶה אֲלֵיהֶם

Like Gideon and many others, Yonatan employed a sign to determine his course of action: If they say to us so: Halt until we reach you, we will stand in our place and will not ascend to them to fight.

ואִם כֹּה יֹאמְרוּ עֲלוּ עָלֵינוּ וְעָלִינוּ כִּי נְתָנָם ה' בְּיָדֵנוּ וְזֶה לָּנוּ הָאוֹת

But if instead so they say: Come up to us, then we will ascend to fight, as the Lord has delivered them into our hand, and this will be the sign for us. The Philistines would see that they were only two men, and even if there was another man hiding, it was certainly not a large force. Consequently, there was no reason to worry that their invitation would be for tactical reasons. The type of response would therefore serve as the sign of whether to attack.

וַיִּגָּלוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם אֶל מַצַּב פְּלִשְׁתִּים וַיֹּאמְרוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים הִנֵּה עִבְרִים יֹצְאִים מִן הַחֹרִים אֲשֶׁר הִתְחַבְּאוּ שָׁם

They were both revealed to the Philistine garrison, and the Philistines said: Behold, Hebrews are emerging from the holes in which they hid.

וַיַּעֲנוּ אַנְשֵׁי הַמַּצָּבָה אֶת יוֹנָתָן וְאֶת נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו וַיֹּאמְרוּ עֲלוּ אֵלֵינוּ וְנוֹדִיעָה אֶתְכֶם דָּבָר וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹנָתָן אֶל נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו עֲלֵה אַחֲרַי כִּי נְתָנָם ה' בְּיַד יִשְׂרָאֵל

The men of the garrison spoke out, shouted, to Yonatan and his armor-bearer, and said menacingly and scornfully: Come up to us, and we will inform you of something, teach you a lesson. Yonatan said to his armor-bearer: Ascend after me, for this is the sign that the Lord has delivered them into the hand of Israel.

וַיַּעַל יוֹנָתָן עַל יָדָיו וְעַל רַגְלָיו וְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו אַחֲרָיו וַיִּפְּלוּ לִפְנֵי יוֹנָתָן וְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו מְמוֹתֵת אַחֲרָיו

Yonatan ascended on his hands and on his feet, as the ascent was very steep, and his armor-bearer went after him. When they reached the Philistine camp, the two began to fight; and they, the Philistines, fell before Yonatan, and his armor-bearer was slaying after him. Yonatan would deliver an initial stab to each of the first few Philistines they encountered, and his armor-bearer would immediately finish them off.

וַתְּהִי הַמַּכָּה הָרִאשֹׁנָה אֲשֶׁר הִכָּה יוֹנָתָן וְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו כְּעֶשְׂרִים אִישׁ כְּבַחֲצִי מַעֲנָה צֶמֶד שָׂדֶה

The first strike that Yonatan and his armor-bearer dealt was some twenty men. The Philistine soldiers sat on guard on the cliff and were not on high alert. They treated the two Hebrews who went out alone with disdain and probably astonishment. They did not take into account that Yonatan was an elite, sword-wielding warrior. Yonatan managed to kill about twenty men within a space of half a furrow of a pair in the field, the ground that a pair of cattle typically plows in a field. Yonatan continued to attack, and the Philistines did not realize what was happening, or they simply did not manage to organize their forces.

וַתְּהִי חֲרָדָה בַמַּחֲנֶה בַשָּׂדֶה וּבְכָל הָעָם הַמַּצָּב וְהַמַּשְׁחִית חָרְדוּ גַּם הֵמָּה וַתִּרְגַּז הָאָרֶץ וַתְּהִי לְחֶרְדַּת אֱלֹהִים

However, after a short period of time the Philistines were terrified, and there was panic in the camp, in the field, and among all the people. The garrison and the raiders, they too panicked, and the earth quaked, and it became utter panic, a great terror.

וַיִּרְאוּ הַצֹּפִים לְשָׁאוּל בְּגִבְעַת בִּנְיָמִן וְהִנֵּה הֶהָמוֹן נָמוֹג וַיֵּלֶךְ וַהֲלֹם

Saul’s camp, which was much more fearful and cautious than that of the Philistines, had appointed watchmen. Saul’s sentinels in Givat Binyamin saw, and behold, the Philistine multitude was dissipating, and they were going and becoming confounded, or they rushed away. The watchmen saw the Philistines fleeing and retreating.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל לָעָם אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ פִּקְדוּ נָא וּרְאוּ מִי הָלַךְ מֵעִמָּנוּ וַיִּפְקְדוּ וְהִנֵּה אֵין יוֹנָתָן וְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו

Saul said to the people who were with him: Count yourselves now and see who went from among us. They counted and behold, Yonatan and his armor-bearer were not there.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל לַאֲחִיָּה הַגִּישָׁה אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים כִּי הָיָה אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל

Saul said to Ahiya the priest: Bring forth the Ark of God, to inquire via the Urim and the Tumim about our next moves, as the Ark of God was with the children of Israel on that day.

וַיְהִי עַד דִּבֶּר שָׁאוּל אֶל הַכֹּהֵן וְהֶהָמוֹן אֲשֶׁר בְּמַחֲנֵה פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיֵּלֶךְ הָלוֹךְ וָרָב וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל הַכֹּהֵן אֱסֹף יָדֶךָ

The ceremony of inquiring via the Urim and the Tumim took time. The Sages describe the process of this ceremony, which included the proper positioning of the one inquiring as well as the priest who would receive the question; the order of the questions, etc. It may be assumed that the priest’s preparation for this process took time as well. It was while Saul was speaking to the priest, and the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines was going and becoming greater, and Saul said to the priest: Withdraw your hand. We have no time for questions; now we must fight.

וַיִּזָּעֵק שָׁאוּל וְכָל הָעָם אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ וַיָּבֹאוּ עַד הַמִּלְחָמָה וְהִנֵּה הָיְתָה חֶרֶב אִישׁ בְּרֵעֵהוּ מְהוּמָה גְּדוֹלָה מְאֹד

Saul and all the people who were with him mobilized and came into the site of the battle, and behold, each man’s sword was against his neighbor, a very great panic. Since the Philistine soldiers did not know what was happening, some of them started to run, others tried to stop them, and all the chaos caused them to fight one another.

וְהָעִבְרִים הָיוּ לַפְּלִשְׁתִּים כְּאֶתְמוֹל שִׁלְשׁוֹם אֲשֶׁר עָלוּ עִמָּם בַּמַּחֲנֶה סָבִיב וגַם הֵמָּה לִהְיוֹת עִם יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר עִם שָׁאוּל וְיוֹנָתָן

And the Hebrews who had been with the Philistines, enslaved to them as previously, who had gone up with them to the camp all around, on the outskirts of the camp, as an auxiliary military force under Philistine command, they too went to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Yonatan. They took advantage of the commotion in the camp and the Israelite attack to switch to the Israelite side.

וְכֹל אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל הַמִּתְחַבְּאִים בְּהַר אֶפְרַיִם שָׁמְעוּ כִּי נָסוּ פְּלִשְׁתִּים וַיַּדְבְּקוּ גַם הֵמָּה אַחֲרֵיהֶם בַּמִּלְחָמָה

All the men of Israel who were hiding in the highland of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, and they too pursued them closely, chased and caught up to them, in the battle.

וַיּוֹשַׁע ה' בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל וְהַמִּלְחָמָה עָבְרָה אֶת בֵּית אָוֶן

The Lord saved Israel on that day, and the battle passed Beit Aven. The battle was wide-ranging and disorganized.

וְאִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל נִגַּשׂ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וַיֹּאֶל שָׁאוּל אֶת הָעָם לֵאמֹר אָרוּר הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יֹאכַל לֶחֶם עַד הָעֶרֶב וְנִקַּמְתִּי מֵאֹיְבַי וְלֹא טָעַם כָּל הָעָם לָחֶם

The men of Israel were hard-pressed [nigas] from fasting on that day. Alternatively, this means they came forth [nigash] and gathered together someplace. Saul administered an oath to the people. In this small camp, Saul’s height was an advantage; he was conspicuous among the soldiers, and therefore it was easy for him to gather his troops. He then administered the oath, saying: Cursed is the man who will eat food until the evening, and I will be avenged of my enemies. Although the Philistines were fleeing, the battle was not decided yet. Saul was worried that if his men would stop to rest and eat something, the Philistines’ panic would subside and they would prepare for a counterattack. Israel would then lose their advantage. Therefore, they had to move quickly and assertively. And all the people did not taste food. They continued to fight, and put their efforts into defeating the Philistines.

וְכָל הָאָרֶץ בָּאוּ בַיָּעַר וַיְהִי דְבַשׁ עַל פְּנֵי הַשָּׂדֶה

All the people of the land, the Israelites, came into the forest on their way; and there was honey on the surface of the field. This honey may have come from beehives that were turned over or broken during the commotion, and the honey flowed from them.

וַיָּבֹא הָעָם אֶל הַיַּעַר וְהִנֵּה הֵלֶךְ דְּבָשׁ וְאֵין מַשִּׂיג יָדוֹ אֶל פִּיו כִּי יָרֵא הָעָם אֶת הַשְּׁבֻעָה

The people came into the forest, and behold, there was a seepage of honey, but there was no one who put his hand to his mouth to taste any of it, as the people feared the oath.

וְיוֹנָתָן לֹא שָׁמַע בְּהַשְׁבִּיעַ אָבִיו אֶת הָעָם וַיִּשְׁלַח אֶת קְצֵה הַמַּטֶּה אֲשֶׁר בְּיָדוֹ וַיִּטְבֹּל אוֹתָהּ בְּיַעְרַת הַדְּבָשׁ וַיָּשֶׁב יָדוֹ אֶל פִּיו וַתָּאֹרְנָה עֵינָיו

But Yonatan had not heard when his father administered the oath to the people, and he extended the end of the staff that was in his hand, and he dipped it in the honeycomb and returned his hand to his mouth, and his eyes brightened and he was invigorated, as honey provides immediate energy.

וַיַּעַן אִישׁ מֵהָעָם וַיֹּאמֶר הַשְׁבֵּעַ הִשְׁבִּיעַ אָבִיךָ אֶת הָעָם לֵאמֹר אָרוּר הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יֹאכַל לֶחֶם הַיּוֹם וַיָּעַף הָעָם

One of the people spoke up and said: Your father administered an oath to the people, saying: Cursed is the man who will eat food today, and everyone is adhering to the oath and not eating, and the people have wearied because of it.

וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹנָתָן עָכַר אָבִי אֶת הָאָרֶץ רְאוּ נָא כִּי אֹרוּ עֵינַי כִּי טָעַמְתִּי מְעַט דְּבַשׁ הַזֶּה

Yonatan said: My father has troubled, contaminated, or caused confusion to, the land. His move was mistaken; see now that my eyes have brightened because I tasted a bit of this honey.

אַף כִּי לוּא אָכֹל אָכַל הַיּוֹם הָעָם מִשְּׁלַל אֹיְבָיו אֲשֶׁר מָצָא כִּי עַתָּה לֹא רָבְתָה מַכָּה בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים

For certainly, had the people eaten today from the spoils of their enemies that they found, would there not have now been a greater blow against the Philistines? All the men should have eaten, as they would have then defeated the Philistines more soundly.

וַיַּכּוּ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים מִמִּכְמָשׂ אַיָּלֹנָה וַיָּעַף הָעָם מְאֹד

They smote the Philistines on that day from Mikhmas to Ayalon, and the people wearied greatly, to the point of exhaustion.

וַיַּעַט הָעָם אֶל הַשָּׁלָל וַיִּקְחוּ צֹאן וּבָקָר וּבְנֵי בָקָר וַיִּשְׁחֲטוּ אָרְצָה וַיֹּאכַל הָעָם עַל הַדָּם

The people pounced upon the spoils, and they took sheep and cattle and bullocks. Apparently, the Philistines had animals in their camp for food; presumably, some of them were previously plundered from Israel. And they, the people, slaughtered them to eat them, such that the blood flowed on the ground with the meat; and the people ate them over the blood. In their rush to eat, they did not allow the blood, whose consumption is forbidden, to be completely extracted. Another explanation is that they ate next to the spilled blood, in accordance with the pagan custom of spilling the blood of animals and eating next to it as a form of offering to the demons. This action thereby violated the prohibition recorded in Leviticus: “You shall not eat over the blood.”

וַיַּגִּידוּ לְשָׁאוּל לֵאמֹר הִנֵּה הָעָם חֹטִאים לַה' לֶאֱכֹל עַל הַדָּם וַיֹּאמֶר בְּגַדְתֶּם גֹּלּוּ אֵלַי הַיּוֹם אֶבֶן גְּדוֹלָה

They told Saul, saying: Behold, the people are sinning against the Lord by eating over the blood. Saul responded strongly. He said: You have been treacherous. Roll a large stone to me today, now.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל פֻּצוּ בָעָם וַאֲמַרְתֶּם לָהֶם הַגִּישׁוּ אֵלַי אִישׁ שׁוֹרוֹ וְאִישׁ שְׂיֵהוּ וּשְׁחַטְתֶּם בָּזֶה וַאֲכַלְתֶּם וְלֹא תֶחֶטְאוּ לַה' לֶאֱכֹל אֶל הַדָּם וַיַּגִּשׁוּ כָל הָעָם אִישׁ שׁוֹרוֹ בְיָדוֹ הַלַּיְלָה וַיִּשְׁחֲטוּ שָׁם

Saul said: Disperse among the people and say to them: Let each man bring his bull to me, and each man his sheep, and you shall slaughter them on this stone and eat, and you shall not sin against the Lord by eating over the blood. Supervise each other to make sure that none of you eat over the blood. Indeed, all the people brought each man his ox with him during the night, and they slaughtered there.

וַיִּבֶן שָׁאוּל מִזְבֵּחַ לַה' אֹתוֹ הֵחֵל לִבְנוֹת מִזְבֵּחַ לַה'

Saul built an altar to the Lord; with this one he commenced to build an altar to the Lord. This altar was the first one that Saul built. Alternatively, this means that the above stone was used to begin the construction of an altar, and all the animals were brought there as offerings to God.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל נֵרְדָה אַחֲרֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים לַיְלָה וְנָבֹזָה בָהֶם עַד אוֹר הַבֹּקֶר וְלֹא נַשְׁאֵר בָּהֶם אִישׁ וַיֹּאמְרוּ כָּל הַטּוֹב בְּעֵינֶיךָ עֲשֵׂה וַיֹּאמֶר הַכֹּהֵן נִקְרְבָה הֲלֹם אֶל הָאֱלֹהִים

After his men had eaten and recuperated, Saul said: Let us go down after the Philistines at night, and we will plunder them until the morning light; we shall not leave any man among them. Since the Philistines are fleeing, we can defeat them completely. They said: Do whatever is good in your eyes. The priest said: Let us approach there, to the Ark of God. Now we have time to inquire via the Urim and the Tumim.

וַיִּשְׁאַל שָׁאוּל בֵּאלֹהִים הַאֵרֵד אַחֲרֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים הֲתִתְּנֵם בְּיַד יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלֹא עָנָהוּ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא

Saul inquired of God: Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will You deliver them into the hand of Israel? But He did not answer him on that day.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל גֹּשׁוּ הֲלֹם כֹּל פִּנּוֹת הָעָם וּדְעוּ וּרְאוּ בַּמָּה הָיְתָה הַחַטָּאת הַזֹּאת הַיּוֹם

Saul was sure that the lack of an answer was due to the guilt of one of the warriors. Saul said: Approach here, all the chiefs of the people, the commanders and individuals of senior status; and know and see concerning what was this sin today.

כִּי חַי ה' הַמּוֹשִׁיעַ אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל כִּי אִם יֶשְׁנוֹ בְּיוֹנָתָן בְּנִי כִּי מוֹת יָמוּת וְאֵין עֹנֵהוּ מִכָּל הָעָם

He added an oath with an expression of exaggeration: For, as the Lord, who delivers Israel, lives, even if it, the guilt, is with Yonatan, my beloved son and heir, he shall be put to death. But there was no one answering him among all the people. Some knew that Yonatan had tasted from the honey, but they hid this fact from Saul.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל אַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ לְעֵבֶר אֶחָד וַאֲנִי וְיוֹנָתָן בְּנִי נִהְיֶה לְעֵבֶר אֶחָד וַיֹּאמְרוּ הָעָם אֶל שָׁאוּל הַטּוֹב בְּעֵינֶיךָ עֲשֵׂה

He, Saul, said to all Israel: You will be on one side, and I and Yonatan my son will be on another side, and we will draw lots to determine on which side the fault is, the people or the leadership. The people said to Saul: Do that which is good in your eyes. You are the king and the commander-in-chief; we cannot refuse you. Apparently, they were not enthusiastic about the lottery since they knew the result.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל ה' אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הָבָה תָמִים וַיִּלָּכֵד יוֹנָתָן וְשָׁאוּל וְהָעָם יָצָאוּ

Saul said to the Lord, God of Israel: Give forth that which is flawless [tamim], cast a true lot. Alternatively: Bring the Tumim, in order to inquire of God and receive His answer. Yonatan and Saul were indicated, and the people were cleared.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל הַפִּילוּ בֵּינִי וּבֵין יוֹנָתָן בְּנִי וַיִּלָּכֵד יוֹנָתָן

Saul said: Cast between me and Yonatan my son; clearly one of us is guilty. Perhaps Saul still felt uncomfortable for not having listened to Samuel, and he was worried that he was the guilty one. And Yonatan was indicated.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל יוֹנָתָן הַגִּידָה לִּי מֶה עָשִׂיתָה וַיַּגֶּד לוֹ יוֹנָתָן וַיֹּאמֶר טָעֹם טָעַמְתִּי בִּקְצֵה הַמַּטֶּה אֲשֶׁר בְּיָדִי מְעַט דְּבַשׁ הִנְנִי אָמוּת

Saul said to Yonatan: Tell me what you did; confess your deeds. Yonatan told him, and he said: I tasted a bit of honey with the end of the staff that was in my hand. Here I am, I will die, I am ready to die.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל כֹּה יַעֲשֶׂה אֱלֹהִים וְכֹה יוֹסִף כִּי מוֹת תָּמוּת יוֹנָתָן

Saul said in the words of an oath: So may God do and so may He add, for you shall die, Yonatan, because you violated the oath and are responsible for the fact that God is not answering Israel.

וַיֹּאמֶר הָעָם אֶל שָׁאוּל הֲיוֹנָתָן יָמוּת אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה הַיְשׁוּעָה הַגְּדוֹלָה הַזֹּאת בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל חָלִילָה חַי ה' אִם יִפֹּל מִשַּׂעֲרַת רֹאשׁוֹ אַרְצָה כִּי עִם אֱלֹהִים עָשָׂה הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה וַיִּפְדּוּ הָעָם אֶת יוֹנָתָן וְלֹא מֵת

The people said to Saul: Shall Yonatan die, who performed this great salvation in Israel? Due to him we have won the war against all odds. Far be it, as the Lord lives, surely not a hair of his head will fall to the ground, as he acted heroically with God this day. His actions were favorable to God, and he certainly has no guilt. The people redeemed Yonatan, and he did not die. It is unclear what exactly they did in order to redeem him. Perhaps every one of them gave a sum of money to redeem Yonatan’s life, or gave their life instead of his in some other symbolic form.

וַיַּעַל שָׁאוּל מֵאַחֲרֵי פְּלִשְׁתִּים וּפְלִשְׁתִּים הָלְכוּ לִמְקוֹמָם

Saul withdrew from pursuing the Philistines; since he had not received instructions to continue the battle, he refrained from pursuing the Philistines any further, and the Philistines went to their own place.

וְשָׁאוּל לָכַד הַמְּלוּכָה עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיִּלָּחֶם סָבִיב בְּכָל אֹיְבָיו בְּמוֹאָב וּבִבְנֵי עַמּוֹן וּבֶאֱדוֹם וּבְמַלְכֵי צוֹבָה וּבַפְּלִשְׁתִּים וּבְכֹל אֲשֶׁר יִפְנֶה יַרְשִׁיעַ

An intermediate summary of Saul’s reign is given: And following his victory over the Philistines, Saul secured the kingship over Israel, and he fought against all his enemies all around: against Moav, against the children of Amon, against Edom, against the kings of Tzova, and against the Philistines. Although he previously had not taken the offensive, now he initiated wars against all the enemies that bordered Israel, thereby strengthening the kingdom. Wherever he turned in war, he would inspire terror in their hearts, or would harm the wicked.

וַיַּעַשׂ חַיִל וַיַּךְ אֶת עֲמָלֵק וַיַּצֵּל אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל מִיַּד שֹׁסֵהוּ

He was successful, and he smote Amalek, as is related in the next chapter, and he rescued Israel from the hand of its plunderers.

וַיִּהְיוּ בְּנֵי שָׁאוּל יוֹנָתָן וְיִשְׁוִי וּמַלְכִּי שׁוּעַ וְשֵׁם שְׁתֵּי בְנֹתָיו שֵׁם הַבְּכִירָה מֵרַב וְשֵׁם הַקְּטַנָּה מִיכַל

The sons of Saul at the time were Yonatan, the firstborn, and Yishvi and Malki Shua, though more sons were born to him later. And the names of his two daughters: The name of the elder was Merav, and the name of the younger, Mikhal.

וְשֵׁם אֵשֶׁת שָׁאוּל אֲחִינֹעַם בַּת אֲחִימָעַץ וְשֵׁם שַׂר צְבָאוֹ אֲבִינֵר בֶּן נֵר דּוֹד שָׁאוּל

And the name of Saul’s wife, the mother of his sons, was Ahino’am daughter of Ahimaatz. It is related below that he also had at least one concubine, from whom he had sons as well. And the name of the loyal commander of his army was Aviner son of Ner, who was Saul’s uncle.

וקִישׁ אֲבִי שָׁאוּל וְנֵר אֲבִי אַבְנֵר בֶּן אֲבִיאֵל

Other members of Saul’s family included Kish, who was the father of Saul, and was apparently involved in the kingdom as well, and Ner, who was the father of Avner, who is the same as the Aviner mentioned in the previous verse, and Ner was also the son of Aviel. These were the core members of Saul’s staff, which grew over time.

וַתְּהִי הַמִּלְחָמָה חֲזָקָה עַל פְּלִשְׁתִּים כֹּל יְמֵי שָׁאוּל וְרָאָה שָׁאוּל כָּל אִישׁ גִּבּוֹר וְכָל בֶּן חַיִל וַיַּאַסְפֵהוּ אֵלָיו

The war against the Philistines was intense all the days of Saul. Perhaps if the first battle against them had been decided definitively this would not have been the situation. Given the current conditions, Saul saw any mighty man or any man of valor, and he recruited him to him to join his permanent army. Saul ensured that his men would be the best of Israel.