The Philistines Possess the Towns
When the Israelites in the valley see the army gone and Saul dead, they leave their cities, and the Philistines move in. Defeat on the mountain becomes loss across the land.
W7hen all the Israelites in the valley saw that the army had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned their cities and ran away. So the Philistines came and occupied their cities.
The Philistines find Saul and his sons among the dead, strip Saul, and broadcast the victory through their temples and people. His body and armor are used to honor Philistine gods.
8The next day, when the Philistines came to strip the dead, they found Saul and his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. 9They stripped Saul, cut off his head, took his armor, and sent messengers throughout the land of the Philistines to proclaim the news in the temple of their idols and among their people. 10They put his armor in the temple of their gods and hung his head in the temple of Dagon.