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the Philistines fought against Israel. The men of Israel were overwhelmed and fled before them, and many fell on Mount Gilboa. 2 The Philistines pressed hard after Saul and his sons, and they killed his sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua. 3 The battle grew fierce around Saul, and when the archers caught up to him, they severely wounded him.
4 Then Saul said to his armour-bearer, “Draw your sword and run me through with it, or these uncircumcised men will come and run me through and abuse me.”
But his armour-bearer was terrified and he would not do it, so Saul took his own sword and fell on it. 5 When his armour-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword and died with him. 6 Thus Saul died, and his three sons, his armour-bearer, and all his men died together that same day.
7 When the men of Israel on the other side of the valley and across the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled, and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their cities and fled; and the Philistines came and occupied them.
8 The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa, 9 so they cut off his head and stripped off his armour. Then they sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the good news in the temple of their idols and among their people. 10 Then they put his armour in the temple of the Ashtoreths, and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.
11 When the people of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all their valiant men set out and journeyed all night to Beth-shan. They took down the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and they went to Jabesh and burned them there. 13 Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and fasted seven days.