=The Great Victory Over the Philistines.= Saul and his warriors on the heights to the south looked across the ravine and saw the tumult among the Philistines. With his characteristic impetuosity the king, without even waiting to consult the divine oracle, rushed in pursuit of the Philistines and was soon joined by the Hebrews who had fled for refuge to the rocky hills and valleys of Ephraim. The territory was well adapted to the fierce guerilla warfare in which the Hebrews were skilled, and the Philistines, accustomed to manœuvring upon the open plain, were caught at a disadvantage. The pursuit swept down through the valleys to the west, through the pass of Beth-horon, and thence southward to Ajalon, which was the chief western gateway of the hill country. =Saul's Wars.= The victory was so complete that for several years the Philistines appear to have left Saul undisturbed. This opportunity he improved to develop his army and to organize his kingdom, which probably did not extend far beyond the Plain of Esdraelon to the north. His capital, Gibeah, was really a military camp, for he was exposed to constant attack on every side. In the south he made a campaign against the Bedouin Amalekites. From the southeast came the attacks of the Edomites, and from the east the Ammonites were seeking to push their bounds farther westward. In this stern school, under the leadership of a bold, warlike king, the Israelites learned not only to fight bravely, but unitedly and therefore effectively. [Illustration: THE HEBREW EMPIRE UNDER DAVID] XVI THE SCENES OF DAVID'S EXPLOITS