The Berean Pursuit
Now in those days the Philistines gathered their forces for warfare against Israel. So Achish said to David, "You must understand that you and your men are to go out to battle with me."
David replied, "Then you will come to know what your servant can do."
"Very well," said Achish. "I will make you my bodyguard for life."
Now by this time Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. And Saul had removed the mediums and spiritists from the land.
The Philistines came together and camped at Shunem, while Saul gathered all Israel and camped at Gilboa. When Saul saw the Philistine army, he was afraid and trembled violently. He inquired of the LORD, but the LORD did not answer him by dreams or Urim or prophets.
Then Saul said to his servants, "Find me a woman who is a medium, so I can go and consult her."
"There is a medium at Endor," his servants replied.
So Saul disguised himself by putting on different clothes, and he set out with two of his men. They came to the woman at night, and Saul said, "Consult a spirit for me. Bring up for me the one I name."
But the woman replied, "Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has killed the mediums and spiritists in the land. Why have you set a trap to get me killed?"
Then Saul swore to her by the LORD: "As surely as the LORD lives, no punishment shall come upon you for this."
"Whom shall I bring up for you?" the woman asked.
"Bring up Samuel," he replied.
But when the woman saw Samuel, she cried out in a loud voice and said to Saul, "Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!"
"Do not be afraid," the king replied. "What do you see?"
"I see a god coming up out of the earth," the woman answered.
"What does he look like?" asked Saul.
"An old man is coming up," she replied. "And he is wearing a robe."
So Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed facedown in reverence.
Then Samuel said to Saul, "Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?"
"I am deeply distressed," replied Saul. "The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has turned away from me. He no longer answers me, either by prophets or by dreams. So I have called on you to tell me what to do."
"Why do you consult me," asked Samuel, "since the LORD has turned away from you and become your enemy? He has done exactly what He spoke through me: The LORD has torn the kingship out of your hand and given it to your neighbor David. Because you did not obey the LORD or carry out His burning anger against Amalek, the LORD has done this to you today. Moreover, the LORD will deliver Israel with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. And the LORD will deliver the army of Israel into the hand of the Philistines."
Immediately Saul fell flat on the ground, terrified by the words of Samuel. And his strength was gone, because he had not eaten anything all that day and night.
When the woman came to Saul and saw how distraught he was, she said to him, "Look, your maidservant has obeyed your voice. I took my life in my hands and did as you told me. Now please listen to your servant and let me set a morsel of bread before you so you may eat and have the strength to go on your way."
Saul refused, saying, "I will not eat." But his servants joined the woman in urging him, and he heeded their voice. He got up from the ground and sat on the bed.
The woman had a fattened calf at her house, and she quickly slaughtered it. She also took flour, kneaded it, and baked unleavened bread. She served it to Saul and his servants, and they ate. And that night they got up and left.
Now the Philistines brought all their forces together at Aphek, while Israel camped by the spring in Jezreel. As the Philistine leaders marched out their units of hundreds and thousands, David and his men marched behind them with Achish.
Then the commanders of the Philistines asked, "What about these Hebrews?"
Achish replied, "Is this not David, the servant of King Saul of Israel? He has been with me all these days, even years, and from the day he defected until today I have found no fault in him."
But the commanders of the Philistines were angry with Achish and told him, "Send that man back and let him return to the place you assigned him. He must not go down with us into battle only to become our adversary during the war. What better way for him to regain the favor of his master than with the heads of our men? Is this not the David about whom they sing in their dances:
'Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands'"
So Achish summoned David and told him, "As surely as the LORD lives, you have been upright in my sight, and it seems right that you should march in and out with me in the army, because I have found no fault in you from the day you came to me until this day. But you have no favor in the sight of the leaders. Therefore turn back now and go in peace, so that you will not do anything to displease the leaders of the Philistines."
"But what have I done?" David replied. "What have you found against your servant, from the day I came to you until today, to keep me from going along to fight against the enemies of my lord the king?"
Achish replied, "I know that you are as pleasing in my sight as an angel of God. But the commanders of the Philistines have said, 'He must not go into battle with us.' Now then, get up early in the morning, along with your master's servants who came with you, and go as soon as it is light."
So David and his men got up early in the morning to return to the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.
So all Israel was recorded in the genealogies written in the Book of the Kings of Israel. But Judah was exiled to Babylon because of their unfaithfulness.
Now the first to resettle their own property in their cities were Israelites, priests, Levites, and temple servants.
These were some of the descendants of Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh who lived in Jerusalem:
Uthai son of Ammihud, the son of Omri, the son of Imri, the son of Bani, a descendant of Perez son of Judah.
From the Shilonites:
Asaiah the firstborn and his sons.
From the Zerahites:
Jeuel and 690 relatives.
From the Benjamites:
Sallu son of Meshullam, the son of Hodaviah, the son of Hassenuah;
Ibneiah son of Jeroham;
Elah son of Uzzi, the son of Michri;
Meshullam son of Shephatiah, the son of Reuel, the son of Ibnijah;
and 956 of their relatives according to their genealogy. All these men were heads of their families.
From the priests:
Jedaiah, Jehoiarib, and Jachin;
Azariah son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, the chief official of God's temple;
Adaiah son of Jeroham, the son of Pashhur, the son of Malchijah;
Maasai son of Adiel, the son of Jahzerah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Meshillemith, the son of Immer;
and 1,760 of their relatives, the heads of their families, able men for the work of the service of the house of God.
From the Levites:
Shemaiah son of Hasshub, the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, a descendant of Merari;
Bakbakkar, Heresh, Galal, and Mattaniah son of Mica, the son of Zichri, the son of Asaph;
Obadiah son of Shemaiah, the son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun;
and Berechiah son of Asa, the son of Elkanah, who lived in the villages of the Netophathites.
These were the gatekeepers:
Shallum, Akkub, Talmon, Ahiman, and their relatives.
Shallum was their chief; he was previously stationed at the King's Gate on the east side. These were the gatekeepers from the camp of the Levites. Shallum son of Kore, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, and his relatives from the Korahites were assigned to guard the thresholds of the Tent, just as their fathers had been assigned to guard the entrance to the dwelling of the LORD.
In earlier times Phinehas son of Eleazar had been in charge of the gatekeepers, and the LORD was with him.
Zechariah son of Meshelemiah was the gatekeeper at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
The number of those chosen to be gatekeepers at the thresholds was 212. They were registered by genealogy in their villages. David and Samuel the seer had appointed them to their positions of trust.
So they and their descendants were assigned to guard the gates of the house of the LORD-the house called the Tent. The gatekeepers were stationed on the four sides: east, west, north, and south. Their relatives came from their villages at fixed times to serve with them for seven-day periods. But the four chief gatekeepers, who were Levites, were entrusted with the rooms and the treasuries of the house of God. They would spend the night stationed around the house of God, because they were responsible for guarding it and opening it every morning.
Some of them were in charge of the articles used in worship, to count them whenever they were brought in or taken out. Others were put in charge of the furnishings and other articles of the sanctuary, as well as the fine flour, wine, oil, frankincense, and spices. And some of the sons of the priests mixed the spices.
A Levite named Mattithiah, the firstborn son of Shallum the Korahite, was entrusted with baking the bread. Some of their Kohathite brothers were responsible for preparing the rows of the showbread every Sabbath.
Those who were musicians, the heads of Levite families, stayed in the temple chambers and were exempt from other duties because they were on duty day and night. All these were heads of Levite families, chiefs according to their genealogies, and they lived in Jerusalem.
Jeiel the father of Gibeon lived in Gibeon. His wife's name was Maacah.
Abdon was his firstborn son, then Zur, Kish, Baal, Ner, Nadab, Gedor, Ahio, Zechariah, and Mikloth.
Mikloth was the father of Shimeam. They too lived alongside their relatives in Jerusalem.
Ner was the father of Kish, Kish was the father of Saul, and Saul was the father of Jonathan, Malchishua, Abinadab, and Esh-baal.
The son of Jonathan:
Merib-baal, who was the father of Micah.
The sons of Micah:
Pithon, Melech, Tahrea, and Ahaz.
Ahaz was the father of Jarah; Jarah was the father of Alemeth, Azmaveth, and Zimri; and Zimri was the father of Moza. Moza was the father of Binea. Rephaiah was his son, Elasah his son, and Azel his son.
And Azel had six sons, and these were their names:
Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan. These were the sons of Azel.
While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the interior and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?"
"No," they answered, "we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."
"Into what, then, were you baptized?" Paul asked.
"The baptism of John," they replied.
Paul explained: "John's baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the One coming after him, that is, in Jesus."
On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. There were about twelve men in all.
Then Paul went into the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God. But when some of them stubbornly refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way, Paul took his disciples and left the synagogue to conduct daily discussions in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This continued for two years, so that everyone who lived in the province of Asia, Jews and Greeks alike, heard the word of the Lord.
God did extraordinary miracles through the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and the diseases and evil spirits left them.
Now there were some itinerant Jewish exorcists who tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those with evil spirits. They would say, "I bind you by Jesus, whom Paul proclaims." Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.
Eventually, one of the evil spirits answered them, "Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?" Then the man with the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. The attack was so violent that they ran out of the house naked and wounded.
This became known to all the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, and fear came over all of them. So the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. Many who had believed now came forward, confessing and disclosing their deeds. And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books and burned them in front of everyone. When the value of the books was calculated, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. So the word of the Lord powerfully continued to spread and prevail.
After these things had happened, Paul resolved in the Spirit to go to Jerusalem after he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia. "After I have been there," he said, "I must see Rome as well." He sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed for a time in the province of Asia.
About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way. It began with a silversmith named Demetrius who made silver shrines of Artemis, bringing much business to the craftsmen.
Demetrius assembled the craftsmen, along with the workmen in related trades. "Men," he said, "you know that this business is our source of prosperity. And you can see and hear that not only in Ephesus, but in nearly the whole province of Asia, Paul has persuaded a great number of people to turn away. He says that man-made gods are no gods at all. There is danger not only that our business will fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited and her majesty deposed-she who is worshiped by all the province of Asia and the whole world."
When the men heard this, they were enraged and began shouting, "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" Soon the whole city was in disarray. They rushed together into the theatre, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul's traveling companions from Macedonia.
Paul wanted to go before the assembly, but the disciples would not allow him. Even some of Paul's friends who were officials of the province of Asia sent word to him, begging him not to venture into the theatre.
Meanwhile the assembly was in turmoil. Some were shouting one thing and some another, and most of them did not even know why they were there. The Jews in the crowd pushed Alexander forward to explain himself, and he motioned for silence so he could make his defense to the people. But when they realized that he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!"
Finally the city clerk quieted the crowd and declared, "Men of Ephesus, doesn't everyone know that the city of Ephesus is guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? Since these things are undeniable, you ought to be calm and not do anything rash. For you have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed our temple nor blasphemed our goddess.
So if Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open and proconsuls are available. Let them bring charges against one another there. But if you are seeking anything beyond this, it must be settled in a legal assembly. For we are in jeopardy of being charged with rioting for today's events, and we have no justification to account for this commotion."
After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.