FIRST SAMUEL 13-18

An Exegetical Commentary by Nate Wilson, updated in the year of our Lord 2021

NAVIGATION: to chapters 1-6 | to chapters 7-12 | | to chapters 19-24 |to chapters 25-31

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I Samuel CHAPTER 13

Introduction

vs. 4-7 The Dire Situation

    1. Saul has won a victory against a Philistine outpost3,

    2. The Philistines are all riled up against Israel now (Literally, they think Israel “stinks”), and

    3. Saul is mobilizing an army at Gilgal.

vs. 8-12 The Impatient Deed

New Testament Excursus on Waiting Expectantly

vs. 13-14 The Consequences

1 Samuel 13 - Side-by side comparison of versionsA

Septuagint

Brenton

D-R

KJV

NAWB

MT/DSS

1

[uioVC eniautou Saoul en tw basileuein auton kai duo eth ebasileusen en Israhl]

Saul was a child of one year when he began to reign, and he reigned two years over Israel.

Saul reigned one yearD; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

Saul was of age when he began to reign, and he reigned two years over Israel.

בֶּן-שָׁנָהE, שָׁאוּל בְּמָלְכוֹ; וּשְׁתֵּי שָׁנִיםF, מָלַךְ עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל.

2

καὶ ἐκλέγεται Σαουλ ἑαυτῷ τρεῗς χιλιάδας ἀνδρῶν ἐκ τῶν ἀνδρῶν Ισραηλ καὶ ἦσαν μετὰ Σαουλ δισ­χίλιοι ἐν Μαχεμας καὶ ἐν τῷ ὄρει Βαιθ­ηλ χίλιοι ἦσαν μετὰ Ιωναθαν ἐν Γαβεε τοῦ Βενιαμιν καὶ τὸ κατάλοιπον τοῦ λαοῦ ἐξαπέστ­ειλεν ἕκαστον εἰς τὸ σκήνωμα αὐτοῦ

And Saul choos­es for himself 3,000 men of the men of Israel: and there were with Saul 2,000 who were in Mach­mas, and in mount Baeth­el, and 1,000 were with Jona­than in Gabaa of Benjamin: and he sent the rest of the people every man to his tent.

And Saul chose him three thous­and men of Israel: and two thousand were with Saul in Machmas, and in mount Bethel: and a thousand with Jonathan in Gabaa of Benja­min, and the rest of the people he sent back every man to their dwellings.

X Saul chose him three thous­and men of Israel; whereof two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in mount Bethel, and a thousand were with Jona­than in Gibeah of Benjamin: and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tentX.

Now, Saul chose for himself 3,000 men from Israel (of which 2,000 were with Saul in Mikmash - and on the hill of Bethel, and 1,000 were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin), and the rest of the people He discharged each to his tents.

וַיִּבְחַר-לוֹ שָׁאוּל שְׁלֹשֶׁת אֲלָפִים, מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל, וַיִּהְיוּ עִם-שָׁאוּל אַלְפַּיִם בְּמִכְמָשׂ וּבְהַר בֵּית-אֵל, וְאֶלֶף הָיוּ עִם-יוֹנָתָן בְּגִבְעַת בִּנְיָמִין; וְיֶתֶר הָעָם, שִׁלַּח אִישׁ לְאֹהָלָיוG.

3

καὶ ἐπάταξεν Ιωναθαν τὸν ΝασιβH τὸν ἀλλόφυλον τὸν ἐν τῷ βουνῷ καὶ ἀκούουσιν οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι καὶ Σαουλ σάλ­πιγγι σαλπίζει εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν λέγων ἠθετήκασιν οἱ δοῦλοιI

And Jonathan smote Nasib the PhilistineX that dwelt in the hill; and the Philistines hear of it, and Saul sounds the tru­mpet through all the land, saying, The servants have despised us.

And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines which was in Gabaa. And when the Philistines had heard of it, Saul sounded the trumpet over all the land, saying: Let the Hebrews hear.

And Jonathan smoteJ the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear.

Jonathan made a strike against the garrison of Philistines which is in Gebah, and the Philistines heard about it. So Saul blew on the horn throughout all of the land to say, “Hebrews, take heed!”

וַיַּךְ יוֹנָתָן, אֵת נְצִיב פְּלִשְׁתִּים אֲשֶׁר בְּגֶבַע, וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ, פְּלִשְׁתִּים; וְשָׁאוּל תָּקַע בַּשּׁוֹפָר בְּכָל- הָאָרֶץ לֵאמֹר, יִשְׁמְעוּ הָעִבְרִים.

4

καὶ πᾶς Ισραηλ ἤκουσεν λεγ­όντων πέπαικεν Σαουλ τὸν Νασιβ τὸν ἀλλόφυλονX καὶ ᾐσχύνθη­σαν Ισραηλ ἐν τοῗς ἀλλο­φύλοις καὶ ἀνε­βόησαν ὁ λαὸςK ὀπίσω Σαουλ ἐν Γαλγαλοις

And all Israel heard say, Saul has smitten Nasib the PhilistineX; now Israel had been put to shame before the Philistines; and the children [of Israel] went up after Saul in Galgala.

And all Israel heard this report: Saul hath smitten the garrison of the Philistines: and Israel took courage against the Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to Galgal.

And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel also was had in ab­omination withL the Philistines. And the people were called togetherM after Saul to Gilgal.

And all Israel heard it saying that Saul had made a strike against the garrison of the Philistines and also that Israel had made itself ob­noxious to the Phil­istines. When these things were an­nou­nced, the people got behind Saul at Gilgal.

וְכָל-יִשְׂרָאֵל שָׁמְעוּ לֵאמֹר, הִכָּה שָׁאוּל אֶת- נְצִיב פְּלִשְׁתִּים, וְגַם- נִבְאַשׁN יִשְׂרָאֵל בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים; וַיִּצָּעֲקוּO הָעָם אַחֲרֵי שָׁאוּל, הַגִּלְגָּל.

5

καὶ οἱ ἀλλό­φυλοι συνάγ­ονται εἰς πόλεμον ἐπὶ Ισραηλ [καὶ ἀναβαίνουσιν ἐπὶ Ισραηλ] τριάκοντα χιλιάδες ἁρμάτων καὶ ἓξ χιλιάδες ἱππέων καὶ λαὸς ὡς ἡ ἄμμος ἡ παρὰ τὴν θάλασσαν τῷ πλήθει καὶ ἀναβαίνουσιν καὶ παρεμβάλλουσιν ἐν Μαχεμας [ἐξ ἐναν­τίας] Βαιθων κατὰ νότου

And the Philis­tines gather to­gether to war with Israel; [and then come up against Israel] thirty thou­sand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand by the seashore for multitude: and they come up, and encamp in Machmas, [op­posite] Baethoron southward.

The Philistines also were assembled to fight against Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and [a multitude of] people besides, like the sand on the sea shore for number. And going up they camped in Machmas at the east of Bethaven.

And the Philis­tines gathered themselves to­getherP to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chari­ots, and six thousand horse­men, and people as the sand which is on the sea shore in multitudeQ: and they came up, and pitched in Michmash, eastward from Bethaven.

Meanwhile, the Philistines were assembling 30,000 chariots and 6,000 horses, and a horde as vast as the sand which is upon the shore of the sea for war against Israel, and they went up and took their positions in Mikmash east of Beth Aven.

וּפְלִשְׁתִּים נֶאֶסְפוּ לְהִלָּחֵם עִם-יִשְׂרָאֵל, שְׁלֹשִׁים אֶלֶף רֶכֶב וְשֵׁשֶׁת אֲלָפִים פָּרָשִׁים, וְעָם, כַּחוֹל אֲשֶׁר עַל-שְׂפַת-הַיָּם לָרֹב; וַיַּעֲלוּ וַיַּחֲנוּ בְמִכְמָשׂ, קִדְמַת בֵּית אָוֶן.

6

καὶ ἀνὴρ Ισραηλ εἶδεν ὅτι στενῶς αὐτῷ μὴ προσάγειν αὐτόνR καὶ ἐκρύβη ὁ λαὸς ἐν τοῗς σπηλαίοις καὶ ἐν ταῗς μάνδραις καὶ ἐν ταῗς πέτραις καὶ ἐν τοῗς βόθροις καὶ ἐν τοῗς λάκκοις

And the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait so that they could not draw nigh, and the peo­ple hid themselves in caves, and X sheepfolds, and X rocks, and X ditches, and X pits.

And when the men of Israel saw that they were straitened, (for the people were distressed,) X they X hid themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in dens, and in pits.

When the men of Israel saw that they were in a straitS, (for the people were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thicketsT, and in rocks, and in high placesU, and in pitsV.

Then each man of Israel saw that it was a crisis, for their army had been put in a strangle­hold, so the people hid themselves in the caves and in the brambles and in the rock-mountains and in the cellars and in the cisterns.

וְאִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל רָאוּ כִּי צַר-לוֹ, כִּי נִגַּשׂ הָעָם; וַיִּתְחַבְּאוּ הָעָם, בַּמְּעָרוֹת וּבַחֲוָחִים וּבַסְּלָעִים, וּבַצְּרִחִיםW, וּבַבֹּרוֹתX.

7

καὶ οἱ διαβαίνοντεςY διέβησαν τὸν Ιορδάνην εἰς γῆν Γαδ καὶ Γαλααδ καὶ Σαουλ ἔτι ἦν ἐν Γαλγαλοις καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ἐξέστηZ ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ

And they that went over went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Galaad: and Saul was yet in Galgala, and all the people followed after him in amazement.

And some of the Hebrews passed over the Jordan into the land of Gad and Galaad. And when Saul was yet in Galgal, all the people that followed him were greatly afraid.

And some of the Hebrews went overAA Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

Hebrews even crossed over the Jordan to the land of Gad (that is, Gilead). But as for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, though all the army following him was trembling,

וְעִבְרִים, עָבְרוּ אֶת-הַיַּרְדֵּן, אֶרֶץ גָּד, ABוְגִלְעָד; וְשָׁאוּל עוֹדֶנּוּ בַגִּלְגָּל, וְכָל-הָעָם חָרְדוּ אַחֲרָיו.

8

καὶ διέλιπεν ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας τῷ μαρτυρίῳAC ὡς [εἶπεν] Σαμουηλ καὶ οὐ παρεγένετο Σαμουηλ εἰς Γαλγαλα καὶ διεσπάρη ὁ λαὸς αὐτοῦ ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ

And he continued seven days for the appointed testimony, as Samuel [told him], and Samuel came not to Galgala, and his people were dispersed from him.

And he waited seven days according to the appointment of Samuel, I and Samuel came not to Galgal, and the people slipt away from him.

And he tarried seven days, ac­cording to the set time that Samuel [had appointed]: but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.

and he waited ex­pectantly for sev­en days, according to the meeting of which Samuel {had spoken}. But Sam­uel didn’t come to Gilgal, and the people scattered away from him.

וייחלAD שִׁבְעַת יָמִים, לַמּוֹעֵד אֲשֶׁר שְׁמוּאֵלAE, וְלֹא-בָא שְׁמוּאֵל, הַגִּלְגָּל; וַיָּפֶץ הָעָם, מֵעָלָיו.

9

καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ προσαγάγετε ὅπως [ποιήσω] ὁλοκαύτωσιν καὶ εἰρηνικάς καὶ ἀνήνεγκεν τὴν ὁλοκαύτωσιν

And Saul said, Bring hither victims, that I may offer whole-burnt-offerings and peace-offerings: and he offered the whole-burnt-offering.

Then Saul said: Bring me the holocaust, and the peace offerings. And he offered the holocaust.

And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering.

So Saul said, “Bring the whole-burnt-offering and the peace-offerings to me.” And he of­fered up the whole-burnt-offering.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל--הַגִּשׁוּ אֵלַי, הָעֹלָה וְהַשְּׁלָמִים; וַיַּעַל, הָעֹלָה.AF

10

καὶ ἐγένετο ὡς συνετέλεσεν ἀναφέρων τὴν ὁλοκαύτωσιν καὶ X Σαμουηλ παραγίνεται καὶ ἐξῆλθεν Σαουλ εἰς ἀπάντησιν αὐτῷ εὐλογῆσαι αὐτόν

And it came to pass when he had finished offering the whole-burnt-offering, that X Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to meet him, and to bless him.

And when he had made an end of offering the holocaust, X behold Samuel came: and Saul went forth to meet him and salute him.

And it came to pass, that as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him.

Then it happened as he finished of­fering up the whole-burnt-offering, that look, Samuel had arrived! So Saul went out to call out blessing to him.

וַיְהִי, כְּכַלֹּתוֹ לְהַעֲלוֹת הָעֹלָה, וְהִנֵּה שְׁמוּאֵל, בָּא; וַיֵּצֵא שָׁאוּל לִקְרָאתוֹ, לְבָרְכוֹAG.

11

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ τί πεποίηκας καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ ὅτι εἶδον ὡς διεσπάρη ὁ λαὸς ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ καὶ σὺ οὐ παρεγένου [ὡς διετάξω] ἐν τῷ μαρτυρίῳ τῶν ἡμερῶν καὶ οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι συνήχθησαν εἰς Μαχεμας

And Samuel said, What hast thou done? and Saul said, Because I saw how the peo­ple were scattered from me, and thou was not present [as thou purpos­edst] according to the set time of the days, and the Phil­istines were gath­ered to Machmas.

And Samuel said [to him]: What hast thou done? X Saul answered: Because I saw that the people slipt from me, and thou wast not come according to the days appointed, and the Philistines were gathered together in Machmas,

And Samuel said, What hast thou done? And Saul said, Because I saw that the peo­ple were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered them­selves together at Michmash;

But Samuel said, “What have you done?” Then Saul said, “When I saw that the people had scattered from me, and as for you, you had not come for a meet­ing during these days, and as for the Philistines, they were assemb­ling at Mikmash,

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, מֶה עָשִׂיתָ; וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל כִּי-רָאִיתִי כִי-נָפַץ הָעָם מֵעָלַי, וְאַתָּה לֹא- בָאתָ לְמוֹעֵד הַיָּמִים, וּפְלִשְׁתִּים, נֶאֱסָפִים AHמִכְמָשׂ.

12

καὶ εἶπα νῦν καταβήσονται οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι πρός με εἰς Γαλγαλα καὶ τοῦ προσώπου τοῦ κυρίου οὐκ ἐδεήθην καὶ ἐνεκρατευσάμην καὶ ἀνήνεγκα τὴν ὁλοκαύτωσινAI

Then I said, Now will the Philistines come down to me to Galgala, and I have not sought the face of the Lord: so I forced myself and offered the whole-burnt-offering.

X I said: Now will the Philistines come down upon me to Galgal, and I have not appeased the face of the Lord. Forced by necessity, I offered the holocaust.

Therefore said I, The Philistines will come down now upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made suppli­cation unto the X XAJ LORD: I forced myselfAK there­fore, and offered a burnt offering.

then I said, ‘The Philistines are going to come down on me now at Gilgal, yet I haven’t made re­quests before the face of Yahweh!’ So I re­strained myself and I offered up the whole-burnt-offering.”

וָאֹמַר, עַתָּה יֵרְדוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים אֵלַי הַגִּלְגָּל, וּפְנֵי יְהוָה, לֹא חִלִּיתִי; וָאֶתְאַפַּקAL, וָאַעֲלֶה הָעֹלָה. {ס}

13

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ πρὸς Σαουλ μεματαίωταίAM σοι [ὅτι] οὐκ ἐφύλαξας τὴν ἐντολήν [μου] ἣν ἐνετείλατό σοι κύριος X X ὡς νῦν ἡτοίμασεν κύριος τὴν βασιλείαν σου ἕως αἰῶνος ἐπὶ Ισραηλ

And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly; [for] thou hast not kept my command X, which the Lord X X commanded thee, as now the Lord would have confirmed thy kingdom over Israel for ever.

And Samuel said to Saul: Thou hast done foolishly, [and] hast not kept the command­ment[s] of the Lord thy God, which he com­manded thee. [And if thou hadst not done] thus, the Lord would now have established thy kingdom over Israel for ever.

And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever.

Then Samuel said to Saul, “You acted foolishly, for you did not keep the command of Yahweh your God which He com­manded, for it was at this time that Yahweh would have set up your kingship over Israel for time-out-of-mind,

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל אֶל-שָׁאוּל, נִסְכָּלְתָּ: ANלֹא שָׁמַרְתָּ, אֶת-מִצְוַת יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר צִוָּךְ, כִּי עַתָּה הֵכִין יְהוָה אֶת- מַמְלַכְתְּךָ אֶל- יִשְׂרָאֵל, עַד-עוֹלָם.

14

καὶ νῦν ἡ βασιλεία σου οὐ στήσεταιAO [καὶ] ζητήσει κύριος ἑαυτῷ ἄνθρωπον κατὰ τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐντελ­εῗται κύριος αὐτῷ εἰς ἄρχοντα ἐπὶ τὸν λαὸν αὐτοῦ ὅτι οὐκ ἐφύλαξας ὅσα ἐνετείλατό σοι κύριος

But now thy king­dom shall not stand [to thee, and] the Lord shall seek for him­self a man after his own heart; and the Lord shall appoint him to be a ruler over his people, because thou hast not kept all that the Lord commanded thee.

But X thy king­dom shall not con­tinue. The Lord hath sought him a man accord­ing to his own heart: and him hath the Lord commanded to be prince over his people, because thou hast not observed that which the Lord commanded Χ.

But now thy king­dom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the LORD hath com­manded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.

but now your kingdom will not go on. Yahweh has sought out for Himself a man [whose] heart is like His, and Yah­weh has comman­ded for him to preside over His people because you did not value what Yahweh commanded you.”

וְעַתָּה, מַמְלַכְתְּךָ לֹא-תָקוּם: בִּקֵּשׁ יְהוָה לוֹ אִישׁ כִּלְבָבוֹ, וַיְצַוֵּהוּ יְהוָה לְנָגִיד עַל-עַמּוֹ--כִּי לֹא שָׁמַרְתָּ, אֵת אֲשֶׁר-צִוְּךָ יְהוָה. {ס}

15

καὶ ἀνέστη Σαμ­ουηλ καὶ ἀπῆλθεν ἐκ Γαλγαλων [εἰς ὁδὸν αὐτοῦAP καὶ τὸ κατάλειμμα τοῦ λαοῦ ἀνέβη ὀπίσω Σαουλ εἰς ἀπάντη­σιν ὀπίσω τοῦ λαοῦ τοῦ πολεμιστοῦ αὐτῶν παραγεν­ομένων ἐκ Γαλγαλ­ων εἰς] Γαβαα Βεν­ιαμιν καὶ ἐπεσκέψ­ατο Σαουλ τὸν λαὸν τὸν εὑρεθέντα μετ᾽ αὐτοῦ ὡς ἑξακοσίους ἄνδρας

And Samuel arose, and departed from Galgala[, and the remnant of the people went after Saul to meet him after the men of war, when they had come out of Galgala] to Gabaa of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people that were found with him, about six hundred men.

And Samuel arose and went up from Galgal [to Gabaa of Benjamin. And the rest of the peo­ple went up after Saul, to meet the people who fought against them, go­ing from Galgal] to Gabaa [in the hill] of Benjamin. And Saul num­bered the people, that were found with him, about six hundred men.

And Samuel arose, and gat him up from Gilgal unto Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numberedAQ the people that were present with him, about six hundred men.

Then Samuel got up and went away from Gilgal, {but, the remainder of the people went up behind Saul to engage against the people of war. After they came along from Gil­gal} to Gibeah of Benjamin, Saul reviewed the troops found with him, and there were about 600 men.

וַיָּקָם שְׁמוּאֵל, וַיַּעַל מִן-הַגִּלְגָּלAR--גִּבְעַת בִּנְיָמִן; וַיִּפְקֹד שָׁאוּל, אֶת-הָעָם הַנִּמְצְאִים עִמּוֹ, כְּשֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת, אִישׁ.

16

καὶ Σαουλ καὶ Ιωναθαν υἱὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ ὁ λαὸς οἱ εὑρε­θέντες μετ᾽ αὐτῶν ἐκάθισαν ἐν Γαβεε Βενιαμιν [καὶ ἔκ­λαιον] καὶ οἱ ἀλλό­φυλοι παρεμβεβλή­κεισαν εἰς Μαχεμας

And Saul and Jon­athan his son, and the people that were found with them, halted in Gabaa, of Benjamin; [and they wept]: and the Phil­istines had encamp­ed in Machmas.

And Saul and Jonathan his son, and the people that were present with them, were in Gabaa of Benja­min: but the Phil­istines encamped in Machmas.

And Saul, and Jon­athan his son, and the people that were present with them, abode in Gibeah of Benja­min: but the Philis­tines encamped in Michmash.

So, Saul, and Jon­athan his son, and the people found with them were staying-put in Gib­eah of Benjamin, while the Philis­tines held position in Mikmash.

וְשָׁאוּל וְיוֹנָתָן בְּנוֹ, וְהָעָם הַנִּמְצָא עִמָּם, יֹשְׁבִים, בְּגֶבַעAS בִּנְיָמִן; וּפְלִשְׁתִּים, חָנוּ בְמִכְמָשׂ.

17

καὶ ἐξῆλθεν δια­φθείρων ἐξ ἀγροῦAT ἀλλοφύλων τρισὶν ἀρχαῗς ἡ ἀρχὴ ἡ μία ἐπιβλέπουσα ὁδὸν Γοφερα ἐπὶ γῆν Σωγαλ

And men came forth to destroy out of the land of the Philistines in three companies; one company turn­ing by the way of Gophera toward the land of Sogal,

And there went out of the camp of the Philistines three companies to plunder. One company went towards the way of Ephra to the land of Sual;

And the spoiler[s]AU came out of the camp of the Phil­istines in three com­panies: one com­pany turned unto the way [that lead­eth] to Ophrah, unto the land of Shual:

Then the destruc­tionAV went forth from the Philistine position. There were three capt­ains: One captain headed down the road to Ofrah in the land of Shual,

וַיֵּצֵא הַמַּשְׁחִית מִמַּחֲנֵה פְלִשְׁתִּים, שְׁלֹשָׁה רָאשִׁים: הָרֹאשׁ אֶחָד יִפְנֶה אֶל-דֶּרֶךְ עָפְרָה, אֶל-אֶרֶץ שׁוּעָל.

18

καὶ ἡ μία ἀρχὴAW ἐπιβλέπουσα ὁδὸν Βαιθωρων καὶ ἡ ἀρχὴ ἡ μία ἐπιβλέπουσα ὁδὸν Γαβεε τὴν εἰσκύπτουσαν ἐπὶ ΓαιAX τὴν Σαβιν XXAY

and an[other] company turning the way of Baethoron, and an[other] company turning by the way of Gabae that turns aside to Gai of Sabim XX.

And an[other] went by the way of Beth-horon, and the third X turned to the way of the border, X above the valley of Seboim towards the desert.

And an[other] com­pany turned the way to Beth­horon: and an [other] company turned to the way of the border that looketh to the val-ley of Zeboim to­ward the wilderness.

and one captain headed down the road to Beth Horon, and one captain headed down the border road which looks down over the ravine of Tseboiym toward the desertAZ.

וְהָרֹאשׁ אֶחָד יִפְנֶה, דֶּרֶךְ בֵּית חֹרוֹן; וְהָרֹאשׁ אֶחָד יִפְנֶה דֶּרֶךְ הַגְּבוּל, הַנִּשְׁקָף עַל-גֵּי הַצְּבֹעִים הַמִּדְבָּרָה. {ס}

19

καὶ τέκτων σιδήρου οὐχ εὑρίσκετο ἐν πάσῃ γῇ Ισραηλ ὅτι εἶπον οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι μὴ ποιήσωσιν οἱ Εβραῗοι ῥομφαίαν καὶ δόρυ

And there was not found a smith in all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, Lest the Hebrews make [themselves] sword or spear.

Now there was no smith to be found in all the land of Israel, for the Phil­istines had taken this precaution, lest the Hebrews should make [them] sword[s] or spear[s].

Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel: for the Philistines said, Lest the He­brews make [them] sword[s] or spear[s]:

Now, no black­smith was to be found in all the land of Israel, for the Philistines had said, “Otherwise those Hebrews would make a sword or a spear!”

וְחָרָשׁ לֹא יִמָּצֵא, בְּכֹל אֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל: כִּי-אָמַרBA פְלִשְׁתִּים--פֶּן יַעֲשׂוּ הָעִבְרִים, חֶרֶב אוֹ חֲנִית.

20

καὶ κατέβαινον πᾶς Ισραηλ εἰς [γῆν] ἀλλοφύλων χαλκεύ­ειν ἕκαστος τὸ θέρ­ιστρονBB αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸ σκεῦοςBC αὐτοῦ καὶ ἕκαστος τὴν ἀξίνην αὐτοῦ καὶ τὸ δρέπανονBD αὐτοῦ

And all Israel went down to the [Land] of the Philistines to forge every one his reaping-hook and his tool, and every one his axe and his sickle.

So all Israel went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his ploughshare, and his spade, and his axe, and his rake.

But all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his share, and his coulterBE, and his axe, and his mattockBF.

Each and every Israelite went down to the Philistines to do metalwork on his plowshare and his shovel and his axe and his hoe.

וַיֵּרְדוּ כָל-יִשְׂרָאֵל, הַפְּלִשְׁתִּים--לִלְטוֹשׁBG אִישׁ אֶת- מַחֲרַשְׁתּוֹ וְאֶת- אֵתוֹ, וְאֶת-קַרְדֻּמּוֹ, וְאֵת, מַחֲרֵשָׁתוֹ.

21

καὶ ἦν ὁ τρυγητὸςBH ἕτοιμος τοῦ θερίζειν τὰ δὲ σκεύη ἦν τρεῗς [σίκλοι] εἰς τὸν ὀδόντα καὶ τῇ ἀξίνῃ καὶ τῷ δρεπάνῳBI ὑπόστασις ἦν ἡ αὐτή

And it was near the time of vin­tage: and their tools were valued at three [shekels] for a plough-share, and there was the same rate for the axe and the sickle.

So that X their shares, and their spades, and X their forks, and their axes were blunt, even to the goad, which was to be mended.

Yet they had a file XBJ for the mattocks, and for the coulters, and X for the forks, and for the axes, and to sharpenBK the goad[s].

And the smithy-priceBL was a pim for plowshares and for shovels, and three for a pitchfork and for axes and to sharpen their goad.

וְהָיְתָה הַפְּצִירָה פִים, לַמַּחֲרֵשֹׁת וְלָאֵתִים, וְלִשְׁלֹשׁ קִלְּשׁוֹןBM, וּלְהַקַּרְדֻּמִּים; וּלְהַצִּיב, הַדָּרְבָן.

22

καὶ ἐγενήθη ἐν ταῗς ἡμέραις τοῦ πολέμου [Μαχεμας] καὶ οὐχ εὑρέθη ῥομφαία καὶ δόρυ ἐν χειρὶ παντὸς τοῦ λαοῦ τοῦ μετὰ Σαουλ καὶ μετὰ Ιωναθαν καὶ εὑρέθη τῷ Σαουλ καὶ τῷ Ιωναθαν υἱῷ αὐτοῦ

And it came to pass in the day[s] of the war [of Machmas], that there was not a sword or spear found in the hand of all the people, that were with Saul and Jonathan; but with Saul and Jonathan his son was there found.

And when the day of battle was come, there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan, except Saul and Jonathan his son X.

So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found.

So it was, that on the day of battle, not even a sword or a spear was to be found in the hand of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan, but such was found for Saul and for Jonathan his son.

וְהָיָה, בְּיוֹם מִלְחֶמֶת, וְלֹא נִמְצָא חֶרֶב וַחֲנִית בְּיַד כָּל-הָעָם, אֲשֶׁר אֶת-שָׁאוּל וְאֶת-יוֹנָתָן; וַתִּמָּצֵא לְשָׁאוּל, וּלְיוֹנָתָן בְּנוֹ.

23

καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἐξ ὑποστάσεως τῶν ἀλλοφύλων τὴν ἐν τῷ πέρανBN Μαχεμας.

And there went out some from the camp of the Phil­istines to the place beyond Machmas.

And the army of the Philistines went out in order to advance further in Machmas.

And the garrison of the Philistines went out to the passageBO of Michmash.

Then the standing-troop of the Philistines went out to the pass of Mikmash.

וַיֵּצֵא מַצַּב פְּלִשְׁתִּים, אֶל- מַעֲבַר מִכְמָשׂ. ס

 

I Samuel CHAPTER 14

INTRO: What is it that makes a person courageous?

What the World says

What God says

In the Bible, when God spoke to His man at the beginning of the book of Joshua, what did He say, “Be strong and of good courage, be not afraid, neither be dismayed... for if you look deep into yourself, and only trust your heart, you will find the strength to carry on?!?!” NO! “…For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go!” FOR THE LORD YOUR GOD! It is Biblical faith in God that gives strength and courage!

Introducing Jonathan

Let’s turn to First Samuel chapter 14 and look at a paragon of manliness in the Bible. This man had incredible courage. He was a warrior par excellence. He had amazing self-discipline. He was tough, and yet one of the things he is best known for is his loyalty in friendship. And this man had faith. First Samuel 14 gives us a brief glimpse into the life of Jonathan.

The Plight of Israel

The context of this chapter is that Jonathan’s Dad, Saul, had just been crowned the first king of the country of Israel two years ago. (Use Map) Up until now, the country of Israel was a weak federation of tribes living up in the hills, surrounded by other nations who were more cruel and powerful than they were. The biggest problem at this time was a people called the Philistines who had migrated from a superior culture base in the area of Greece and spread out along the flat coastal land between the central mountains of Israel and the Mediterranean Sea. The Philistines were a more advanced civilization—they knew how to make superior weapons out of iron, and they also had horse-drawn chariots, things the Israelites didn’t have. Militarily, the Israelites were at a disadvantage, stuck with inferior weapons and slower modes of transportation. The Philistines, however, were worried about the unification of Israel under one king; they didn’t want a powerful, united kingdom right next-door, so they made persistent attempts to divide and weaken the Israelites whenever they made attempts at unity.

Philistine Battle Plan

In Chapter 13, Saul made a quick trip from his capitol city hometown of Gibeah to the nearby area of Gilgal, where the great prophet Samuel was going to offer a sacrifice. Saul had called the people of Israel to come and join him for this solemn occasion. This expression of national unity worried the Philistines, so they marched an army of 30,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and more foot-soldiers than could be counted, straight through the middle of Israel and set up for battle at Michmash, fanning out across the middle of Israel to cut the Southern part of Israel off from the support of the Northern tribes. The only escape route was across the Jordan River in the other direction, and some people were doing just that. Others were finding hideouts in the caves along the Dead Sea coast.

Saul’s position in Gilgal placed him poorly on the opposite side of the Philistine army from the residential areas of central Israel on the other side of the Philistine front, leaving the Philistines free to raid the Israelite homes unopposed, so Saul moved to join Jonathan and his troops in Gibeah, which at least positioned the Israelite troops between the Philistines and the Judean hills settlements of Israel to the south. By this time, only 600 of the over 3,000 Israelite soldiers were left bravely standing by King Saul and Prince Jonathan.

Furthermore, they were weaponless. The Philistines, in a calculated effort to keep the Israelites from defending themselves militarily, had killed or deported all the Israelite blacksmiths so that they could not make weapons13. Jonathan and Saul were the only Israelites who had a sword or spear; the other 600 had nothing but clubs and garden tools to fight against the Philistines’ swords and spears. They were dead meat!

So, this is the context of one of the most amazing exercises of courage in the entire Bible. Jonathan and his bodyguard challenge a whole Philistine garrison, and they end up demolishing them and turning the tide of the war! Notice what it is that Jonathan attributes this kind of courage to. What gave him the guts to take on a whole bunker full of Philistine warriors?

The Source of Jonathan’s Courage

Look at verse 6: "Maybe Yahweh will work for us–nothing is impossible for Him, so He could win a battle if we are many or if we are few." “Yahweh is not restrained by many or by few.”

The lack of any sort of “restraint” is unique to God. There is no one who can put restraints on God. He is totally unlimited in His power, unlimited in His knowledge—He can do whatever He pleases, and nothing can hold Him back. Jonathan knew that as long as he was doing the will of a sovereign God, he had nothing to fear. “God can not only save us, but save by us... An active faith will venture far in God's cause upon an 'it may be.'” ~Matthew Henry

The Source of Fear

Now, the opposite of courage is fear, and the root of fear is the awareness of your limitations in the face of potential harm.

Jonathan’s Example of Courage

Now, if we know—as Jonathan knew—that we are accompanied by a God who knows no limitations because He is totally sovereign over all the things that threaten us, if we know that such a God loves us and will be our constant companion as we carry out His will, then we lose all grounds for fear, just like Jonathan did. This is Biblical courage, when we can no longer be intimidated by the things of this world which stand against God’s will.

This is Biblical courage, when we can no longer be intimidated by the things of this world which stand against God’s will. Jonathan knew that the inferiority of His Israelite army was not a limitation for God, for God could save “by many or by few.” Jonathan knew that it was God’s will that he defend his nation and preserve the people of God - from whom would come the Messiah. He knew it was God’s will that Israel not be wiped out yet, and he knew that the inferiority of his Israelite army was not a restraining factor for the sovereign Lord, so he no longer had grounds to be afraid of the Philistine army; he went after them!

The Philistine army in the valley apparently had an observation post on a high point on one side of the ravine at Mikmash, so they could see everything that was going on and give intelligence to the officers down on the ground. From the description, it sounds like it was about half an acre in area, and it was that observation post which Jonathan and his brave armor-bearer decided to attack. As the main body of Philistine troops moved west to engage Israel in battle, the Philistine presence on the east side would have grown thin, and it was there that Jonathan decided to penetrate (Tsumura). Jonathan chose an easily-defensible spot in the rocks that would give an advantage to a duo fighting against a mob. Then he crawled up to the Philistine fort with the sure faith that "God has given them into our hands!" And, wonder of wonders, they wasted the 20 Philistine warriors there! Perhaps Jonathan’s armor-bearer was carrying the sword, so Jonathan used a club to knock his enemies down, and the armor-bearer finished them off once they were on the ground. The Philistines may not have been able to see how many men were coming up to attack them, so, in their minds it may have been a whole army, which might have led to them panicking rather than standing their ground (K&D).

This caused no little consternation in the Philistine camp. ("We thought the Israelites had no swords!"). And now they didn’t have their observation post up on the high ground anymore, so they didn’t know what was going on. Then God followed up with an earthquake (literally a “trembling of God” which is a way of stating a superlative in Hebrew (“the greatest trembling possible” cf. 5:9), but also seems to have have had a supernatural origin, and it put the Philistines over the edge!14

Contrast with Saul

Now, back in the Israelite camp, Saul was not exercising this kind of Biblical faith, so he had no courage. He did not know God’s will, and he did not know God’s power, therefore he was afraid of the huge Philistine army that was threatening him. He was trying to exercise responsibility in his own strength. His eyes were on the men, watching the Philistine's movements and re-counting his men to see who else had left. If you don’t know how powerful God is, and you’re not sure what He wants, then you will never have true courage.

Example of C.T. Studd

C.T. Studd was a famous British athlete about a hundred years ago who took an amazing step of courage and faith to go to China and later Africa as a missionary, back when it was utterly foolhardy to do such a thing. There were no airplanes, no vaccines, no language training centers, no hostage mediation services, no telephones, none of that! The life expectancy of a missionary in Africa was less than 2 years. But Studd knew that it is God’s will that the Gospel be preached to the uttermost parts of the earth, and he knew that God’s power is limitless. Listen to what he said:

I am more than ever determined that no ring or limit shall be placed around us, other than that of our Lord Himself, ‘To the uttermost parts,’ ‘To every creature.’ I belong and will ever belong to ‘The Great God’ party. I will have naught to do with “The Little God’ party… Christ wants not nibblers of the possible, but grabbers of the impossible, by faith in the omnipotence, fidelity and wisdom of the Almighty Savior Who gave the command.

Is there a wall in our path? By our God we will leap over it! Are there lions and scorpions in our way! We will trample them under our feet! Does a mountain bar our progress? Saying, “be removed and cast into the sea,’; we will march on. Soldiers of Jesus! Never Surrender!”

C.T. Studd is one of the reasons why the Christians in China and in Africa far outnumber the Christians in the United States today. Like Jonathan, God granted Him success when he exercised Biblical faith and courage.

And when we look at the end of the Gospel of Mark, we see that Jesus set His disciples to expect this very thing: And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." (Mark 16:15-18, NKJV)

Blessings From Courage

Often, God is just waiting for His people to exercise faith in Him before He really does the impressive stuff, and this was the case in 1 Samuel 14. Once Jonathan took that bold step of faith and started fighting Philistines, God sent an earthquake to shake up the rest of them. This emboldened the traitors and slaves to break ranks with the enemy and start fighting them instead. And Jonathan's courage inspired all the men in hiding to come out of their caves and rout the Philistine army, even though it had seemed impossible up ‘till then. “There is no limitation with God to save by many or by few!”

The Challenge to Us Today

And there is no limitation with God in regards to the challenges He has set before us. Like Jonathan, we must exercise Biblical faith to find the strength and courage we need. We must believe that there are no limitations with God, and we must know what He has commanded us to do in the Bible. If we have these two things—confidence in the will of God, and confidence in the Sovereignty of God, we can face anything without fear! If we’re like Saul, who should have known what he was supposed to do, yet was unwilling to face it and trust in God, we will never have the courage we need.

Knowing God’s Will

It’s not that difficult to know what God’s will is for your life. There are only a few basic things. As a Christian you are to worship God alone, participate in the fellowship of the church, and confront the world with Christ. As a husband and father, you are to protect and nurture your wife and children. Anything you must do to fulfill these few things is God’s will. It’s really pretty simple—you don’t need to be like Saul and seek some kind of special direction from God. Jonathan didn’t need God to speak out of the sky and tell him to assault the Philistines; he already knew all he needed to know; that he was armed to defend the people of God and so he just did it the best way he could, and God blessed him for doing His will.

In Vocations

Some of us need courage simply to pursue our own vocations. If your job does not prevent you from worshiping God, does not prevent you from fellowship with Believers, does not prevent you from sharing the faith with others - and, men, if your job does provide income to protect and nurture your wife and children, then work that job with the confidence that you are doing God’s will and that He is sovereign enough to fulfill His purposes through it!

On the other hand, it can be a step of Biblical faith to leave the stable income of one job to gain greater ministry opportunities in another. For me personally, that has been the greatest test of my faith. Am I willing to work as a missionary and let God take care of the bills? That’s scary. I had to remind myself often that it is God’s will for His name to be declared among the nations and that God has more than enough resources to take care of my needs, and that has given me the courage to face situations which the world considers to be crazy.

In Child-rearing

In Witnessing

If you’re afraid to share your faith, you need to get a dose of Jonathan’s courage! 1 Peter 3:15 says, “Do not fear what they fear and do not be troubled, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you.” If it is God’s will for you to tell other people about Jesus, and if He knows everything—including every thought your evangelistic prospect is going to think, then what do we have to be afraid of? God will give us the words to say and will bless the exercise of our faith if we will just do it!

Conclusion

Do you get the idea? God calls us to courage. Jonathan was courageous because he knew what God wanted done and he trusted that God was big enough to enable him to do it. If there’s anything that strikes fear in your heart, anything you know you ought to do, but you feel you can’t do, you need to apply the same principles Jonathan did, know what God’s basic will is, remembering how powerful He is, and just do it! God will reward that kind of faith and courage!

Father, we want to do great things for You and see Your blessings poured out in our lives and in the lives of others, but we are afraid. Afraid of the dangers, afraid of poverty, afraid of ridicule, afraid of failure. Please strengthen our faith in You to believe that You are truly sovereign—that you are not limited in any way. Please give us the courage to trust You and obey Your word, no matter how scary it is to step out from what the rest of the world is doing. Dear God, give us faith and courage to do Your will. Amen.

Discussion Questions:

Appendix: Septuagint translations of the Hebrew verb yachal “wait”

Note that these are Septuagint chapter and verse numbers, not English references, so if you look these up in English, for instance in the Psalms, you might need to look forward one chapter or backward one verse to find the English match.

Vs. 24-26 - Saul’s “very thoughtless” revenge-curse

Vs. 27-30 - Jonathan’s critical attitude toward his father

Vs. 31-35 - Saul provides a merciful fix for the army’s sin of eating blood

Vs. 36-37 - Saul’s next-day Guidance fiasco

Vs. 38-45 Saul Tries to Kill Jonathan over breaking his fast

Vs. 47-52 – Saul Continues to Fight, but misses family members

Conclusion

Appendix: Genealogy of Saul

m. = married, c. = concubine, r. = raped

Squares = males, Circles = females

All the information comes from the Bible, but the salmon-colored names are in 1 Sam. 14.

FWIW, Merib-baal is the name of Jonathan’s son given in 1 Chron 8 instead of Mephibosheth.

1 Samuel 14 - Side-by side comparison of versionsBP

Septuagint

Brenton

D-R

KJV

NAW

MT/DSS

1 Καὶ γίνεται ἡμέρα καὶ εἶπεν Ιωναθαν υἱὸς Σαουλ τῷ παιδαρίῳ τῷ αἴροντι τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ Δεῦρο καὶ διαβῶμεν εἰς μεσσαβBQ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων τὴν ἐν τῷ πέραν ἐκείνῳ· καὶ τῷ πατρὶ αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἀπήγγειλεν.

1 And when a certain day arrived, Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man that bore his armour, Come, and let us go over to Messab of the Philistines that is on the other side yonder; but he told not his father.

1 Now it came to pass one day that Jonathan, the son of Saul, said to the young man that bore his armour: Come, and let us go over to the garrison of the Philistines, which is on the other side of yonder place. But he told not this to his father.

1 Now it came to pass upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said unto the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison, that is on the other side. But he told not his father.

1 So it was one day that Jonathan son of Saul said to the young man who carried his gear, “Come on and let’s cross over to the Philistines’ station which is across from here.But he did not communicate with his father.

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

2 καὶ Σαουλ ἐκάθητο ἐπ᾿ ἄκρου τοῦ βουνοῦ ὑπὸ τὴν ῥόαν τὴν ἐν Μαγδων, καὶ ἦσαν μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ ὡς ἑξακόσιοι ἄνδρες·

2 And Saul sat on the top of the hill under the pomegranate tree that is in Magdon, and there were with him about six hundred men.

2 And Saul abode in the uttermost part of Gabaa, under the pomegranate tree, which was in Magron: and the people with him were about six hundred men.

2 And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron: and the people that were with him were about six hundred men;

2 Now, Saul was staying on the edge of Gibeah under the pome­granate tree which is at the threshing floor. And the people who were with him were about 600 men.

2 וְשָׁאוּל יוֹשֵׁב בִּקְצֵה הַגִּבְעָהBR תַּחַת הָרִמּוֹן אֲשֶׁר בְּמִגְרוֹןBS וְהָעָם אֲשֶׁר עִמּוֹ כְּשֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת אִישׁ:

3 καὶ Αχια υἱὸς Αχιτωβ ἀδελφοῦ Ιωχαβηδ υἱοῦ Φινεες υἱοῦ Ηλι ἱερεὺς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν Σηλωμ αἴρων εφουδ. καὶ ὁ λαὸς οὐκ ᾔδει ὅτι πεπόρευται Ιωναθαν.

3 And Achia son of Achitob, the brother of Jochabed the son of Phinees, the son of Heli, was the priest of God in Selom wearing an ephod: and the people knew not that Jonathan was gone.

3 And Achias, the son of Achitob, brother of Ichabod the son of Phinees, the son of Heli, the priest of the Lord in Silo, wore the ephod. And the people knew not whither Jonathan was gone.

3 And Ahiah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the LORD'S priest in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone.

3 And Achijah, son of Achitub, Ichabod’s brother, son of Phinehas, son of Eli, priest of Yahweh at Shiloh, bore priestly-shoulder-gear. But the people did not know that Jonathan had gone.

3 וַאֲחִיָּהBT בֶן- אֲחִטוּב אֲחִי אִיכָבוֹד בֶּן- פִּינְחָס בֶּן- עֵלִי כֹּהֵן יְהוָה בְּשִׁלוֹ נֹשֵׂא אֵפוֹד וְהָעָם לֹא יָדַע כִּי הָלַךְ יוֹנָתָן:

4 καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον τῆς διαβάσεως, οὗ ἐζήτει Ιωναθαν διαβῆναι εἰς τὴν ὑπόστασιν τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, [καὶBU] ἀκρωτήριον πέτρας X ἔνθεν καὶ ἀκρωτήριον πέτρας X ἔνθεν, X ὄνομα τῷ ἑνὶ Βαζες καὶ ὄνομα τῷ ἄλλῳ Σεννα·

4 And in the midst of the passage whereby Jonathan sought to pass over to the encampment of the Philis­tines, there was [both] a sharp rock X on this side, and a sharp rock X on the other side: X the name of the one was Bases, and the name of the other Senna.

4 Now there were between the ascents, by which Jonathan sought to go over to the gar­rison of the Phil­istines, rocks standing up on both sides, and steep cliffs like teeth on the one side, and on the other, the name of the one was Boses, and the name of the other was Sene:

4 And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the Philistines' garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side, and a sharp rock on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

4 Now, between the crossings by which Jonathan sought to cross over to the Philistines’ station was a spire of rock out over this-way and a spire of rock out over that-way, and one’s name was Bozez, and one’s name was Senneh.

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

5 ὁδὸς ἡ μία X ἀπὸ βορρᾶ ἐρχομένῳ Μαχμας καὶ [ἡ ὁδὸς] ἡ ἄλλη ἀπὸ νότου ἐρχομένῳ Γαβεε.

5 The one way was northward to one coming to Machmas, and the other [way] was southward to one coming to Gabae.

5 One rock stood out toward the north, over against Machmas, and the other to the south, over against Gabaa.

5 The forefront of the one was situate north­ward over against Mich­mash, and the other southward over against Gibeah.

5 One spire narrowed from the North in front of Mikmash and one from South in front of Geba.

5 הַשֵּׁן הָאֶחָד מָצוּק מִצָּפוֹן מוּל מִכְמָשׂ וְהָאֶחָד מִנֶּגֶב מוּלBV גָּבַע: ס

6 καὶ εἶπεν Ιωναθαν πρὸς τὸ παιδάριον τὸ αἶρον τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ Δεῦρο διαβῶμεν εἰς μεσσαβ τῶν ἀπεριτμήτων τούτων, εἴ τι ποιήσαι ἡμῖν κύριος· ὅτι οὐκ ἔστιν τῷ κυρίῳ συνεχόμενονBW σῴζειν ἐν πολλοῖς ἢ ἐν ὀλίγοις.

6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armour, Come, let us go over to Messab of these uncircumcised, if peradventure the Lord may do something for us; for the Lord is not straitened to save by many or by few.

6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armour: Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised, it may be the Lord will do for us: because it is easy for the Lord to save either by many, or by few.

6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the LORD will work for us: for there is no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few.

6 Anyway, Jonathan said to the young man carrying his gear, “Come on and let’s cross over to the station of those uncircum­cised guys. Perhaps Yahweh will do something for us, for Yahweh is not constrained to save by many or by few!”

6 וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוֹנָתָן אֶל- הַנַּעַר נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו לְכָה וְנַעְבְּרָה אֶל- מַצַּב הָעֲרֵלִים הָאֵלֶּה אוּלַיBX יַעֲשֶׂה יְהוָה לָנוּ כִּי אֵין לַיהוָה מַעְצוֹר לְהוֹשִׁיעַ בְּרַב אוֹ בִמְעָטBY:

7 καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ Ποίει πᾶν, ὃ ἐὰν ἡ καρδία σου ἐκκλίνῃ· X ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ μετὰ σοῦ, ὡς ἡ καρδία σοῦ [καρδία μοῦ].

7 And his armour-bearer said to him, Do all that thine heart inclines toward: X behold, I am with thee, [my heart is] as thy heart.

7 And his armourbearer said to him: Do all that pleaseth thy mind: go [whither thou wilt], and I will be with thee wheresoever thou hast a mind.

7 And his armourbearer said unto him, Do all that is in thine heart: turn thee; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart.

7 And the guy carrying his gear said to him, “Do all that is in your heart! Stretch yourself! Look, I am with you, as [one with] your heart!”

7 וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו עֲשֵׂה כָּל- שֶׁר בִּלְבָבֶךָ נְטֵה לָךְ הִנְנִי עִמְּךָ כִּלְבָבֶךָ: ס

8 καὶ εἶπεν Ιωναθαν Ἰδοὺ ἡμεῖς διαβαίνομεν πρὸς τοὺς ἄνδρας καὶ κατακυλισθησόμεθαBZ πρὸς αὐτούς·

8 And Jonathan said, Behold, we will go over to the men, and will come down suddenly upon them.

8 And Jonathan said: Behold we will go over to these men. And when we shall be seen by them,

8 Then said Jonathan, Be­hold, we will pass over unto these men, and we will discover ourselves unto them.

8 So Jonathan said, “See, we will be crossing over toward the men, then we will reveal ourselves to them.

8 וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוֹנָתָן הִנֵּה אֲנַחְנוּ עֹבְרִים אֶל-הָאֲנָשִׁים וְנִגְלִינוּ אֲלֵיהֶם:

9 ἐὰν τάδε εἴπωσιν πρὸς ἡμᾶς Ἀπόστητε [ἐκεῖ] ἕως ἂν ἀπαγγείλωμενCA ὑμῖν, καὶ στησόμεθα ἐφ᾿ ἑαυτοῖς καὶ οὐ μὴ ἀναβῶμεν ἐπ᾿ αὐτούς·

9 If they should say thus to us, Stand aloof [there] until we shall send you word; then we will stand still by ourselves, and will not go up against them.

9 If they shall speak thus to us: Stay till we come to you: let us stand still in our place, and not go up to them.

9 If they say thus unto us, Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them.

9 If they they speak thus to us, ‘Halt until we approach y’all,’ then we will stand ourselves down and won’t go up to them.

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

10 καὶ ἐὰν τάδε εἴπωσιν πρὸς ἡμᾶς Ἀνάβητε πρὸς ἡμᾶς, καὶ ἀναβησόμεθα, ὅτι παραδέδωκεν αὐτοὺς κύριος εἰς τὰς χεῖρας ἡμῶν· τοῦτο ἡμῖν τὸ σημεῖον.

10 But if they should say thus to us, Come up to us; then will we go up, for the Lord has delivered them into our hands; this shall be a sign to us.

10 But if they shall say: Come up to us: let us go up, because the Lord hath delivered them into our hands, this shall be a sign unto us.

10 But if they say thus, Come up unto us; then we will go up: for the LORD hath delivered them into our hand: and this shall be a sign unto us.

10 But if they say thus, ‘Come up to us!” Then we will go up, for Yahweh has given them into our hand{s}, so this will be the sign for us.”

10 וְאִם-כֹּה יֹאמְרוּ עֲלוּ עָלֵינוּ וְעָלִינוּ כִּי-נְתָנָם יְהוָה בְּיָדֵנוּCB וְזֶה-לָּנוּ הָאוֹת:

11 καὶ εἰσῆλθον ἀμφότεροι εἰς μεσσαβ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων· καὶ λέγουσιν οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι Ἰδοὺ οἱ Εβραῖοι ἐκπορεύονται ἐκ τῶν τρωγλῶν αὐτῶν, οὗ ἐκρύβησαν ἐκεῖ.

11 And they both went in to Messab of the Philistines; and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of their Caves, where they had hidden themselves.

11 So both of them discovered themselves to the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said: Behold the Hebrews come forth out of the holes wherein they were hid.

11 And both of them discovered themselves unto the garrison of the Philistines: and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where they had hid themselves.

11 So the two of them revealed themselves to the Philistines’ station, and the Philistines said, “Look, Hebrews are coming out from the holes in which they hid themselves!”

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

12 καὶ ἀπεκρίθησαν οἱ ἄνδρες μεσσαβ πρὸς Ιωναθαν καὶ πρὸς τὸν αἴροντα τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ καὶ λέγουσιν Ἀνάβητε πρὸς ἡμᾶς, καὶ γνωριοῦμεν ὑμῖν ῥῆμα. καὶ εἶπεν Ιωναθαν πρὸς τὸν αἴροντα τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ Ἀνάβηθι ὀπίσω μου, ὅτι παρέδωκεν αὐτοὺς κύριος εἰς χεῖρας Ισραηλ.

12 And the men of Messab answered Jonathan and his armour-bearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing: and Jonathan said to his armour-bearer, Come up after me, for the Lord has delivered them into the hands of Israel.

12 And the men of the garrison spoke to Jonathan, and to his armour­bearer, and said: Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan said to his armour­bearer: Let us go up, follow me: for the Lord hath delivered them into the hands of Israel.

12 And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armourbearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan said unto his armourbearer, Come up after me: for the LORD hath delivered them into the hand of Israel.

12 And the men of the station responded to Jonathan and the guy carrying his gear and said, “Come up to us, and we will teach y’all a lesson!” So Jonathan said to the guy carrying his gear, “Come up behind me, for Yahweh has given them into the hand{s} of Israel!”

12 וַיַּעֲנוּ אַנְשֵׁי הַמַּצָּבָה אֶת-יוֹנָתָן וְאֶת-נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו וַיֹּאמְרוּ עֲלוּ אֵלֵינוּ וְנוֹדִיעָה אֶתְכֶם דָּבָר ף וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹנָתָן אֶל-נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו עֲלֵה אַחֲרַי כִּי-נְתָנָם יְהוָה בְּיַד יִשְׂרָאֵל:

13 καὶ ἀνέβη Ιωναθαν ἐπὶ τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπὶ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ καὶ ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύηCC αὐτοῦ μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ· καὶ ἐπέβλεψαν κατὰ πρόσωπον Ιωναθαν, [καὶ ἐπάταξεν αὐτούς], καὶ ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ ἐπεδίδουCD ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ.

13 And Jonathan went up on his hands and feet, and his armour-bearer with him; and they looked on the face of Jonathan, [and he smote them,] and his armour-bearer did smite them after him.

13 And Jonathan went up creeping on his hands and feet, and his armourbearer after him. And some fell before Jonathan, others his armourbearer slew as he followed him.

13 And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armourbearer after him: and they fell before Jonathan; and his armourbearer slew after him.

13 And Jonathan ascended using both his hands and his feet, and the guy carrying his gear was behind him, and they fell before Jonathan, and the guy carrying his gear put them to death behind him.

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

14 καὶ ἐγενήθη ἡ πληγὴ ἡ πρώτη, ἣν ἐπάταξεν Ιωναθαν καὶ ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ, ὡς εἴκοσι ἄνδρες ἐν βολίσιCE καὶ ἐν πετροβόλοις καὶ ἐν κόχλαξιν τοῦ πεδίου.

14 And the first slaughter which Jonathan and his armour-bearer effected was twenty men, with darts and slings, and pebbles of the field.

14 And the first slaughter which Jonathan and his armourbearer made, was of about twenty men, within half an acre of land, which a yoke [of oxen] is wont to plough in a day.

14 And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armourbearer made, was about twenty men, within as it were an half acre of land, which a yoke of oxen might plow.

14 And that first strike which Jonathan and the guy carrying his gear struck was about 20 men over about 20 yards.

14 וַתְּהִי הַמַּכָּה הָרִאשֹׁנָה אֲשֶׁר הִכָּה יוֹנָתָן וְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו כְּעֶשְׂרִים אִישׁ כְּבַחֲצִי מַעֲנָה צֶמֶדCF שָׂדֶה:

15 καὶ ἐγενήθη ἔκστασιςCG ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ [καὶ] ἐν ἀγρῷ, καὶ X πᾶς ὁ λαὸς οἱ ἐν μεσσαβ καὶ οἱ διαφθείροντες ἐξέστησαν, καὶ αὐτοὶ οὐκ ἤθελον ποιεῖν· καὶ ἐθάμβησεν ἡ γῆ, καὶ ἐγενήθη ἔκστασις παρὰ κυρίου.

15 And there was dismay in the camp, [and] in the field; and all the people in Messab, and the spoilers were amazed; and they would not act, and the land was terror-struck, and there was dismay from the lord.

15 And there was a miracle in the camp, in the field[s]: and X all the people of their garrison, who had gone out to plunder, were amazed, and the earth trembled: and it happened as a miracle from God.

15 And there was trembling in the host, in the field, and among all the people: the garrison, and the spoilers, they also trembled, and the earth quaked: so it was a very great trembling.

15 Then there was an earthquake throughout the army-camp, through the field and through all of the people. The army-station and the demolition-crewseven they quaked, and the ground shuddered, because it was a earthquake from God!

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

16 καὶ εἶδον οἱ σκοποὶ τοῦ Σαουλ ἐν Γαβεε Βενιαμιν καὶ ἰδοὺ ἡ παρεμβολὴ τεταραγμένη ἔνθεν καὶ ἔνθεν.

16 And the watchmen of Saul beheld in Gabaa of Benjamin, and, behold, the army was thrown into confusion on every side.

16 And the watchmen of Saul, who were in Gabaa of Benjamin looked, and behold a multitude overthrown, and fleeing this way and that.

16 And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeah of Benjamin looked; and, behold, the multitude melted away, and they went on beating down one another.CH

16 And Saul’s watchmen in Gibeah-of-Benjamin looked and saw the crowd dispersing and going here and there!

16 וַיִּרְאוּ הַצֹּפִים לְשָׁאוּל בְּגִבְעַת בִּנְיָמִן וְהִנֵּה הֶהָמוֹןCI נָמוֹג וַיֵּלֶךְ וַהֲלֹם: פ

17 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ τῷ λαῷ τῷ μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ Ἐπισκέψασθε δὴ καὶ ἴδετε τίς πεπόρευται ἐξ ὑμῶν· καὶ ἐπεσκέψαντο, καὶ ἰδοὺ οὐχ εὑρίσκετο Ιωναθαν καὶ ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ.

17 And Saul said to the people with him, Num­ber yourselves now, and see who has gone out from you: and they num­bered them­selves, and be­hold, Jonathan and his armour-bearer were not found.

17 And Saul said to the people that were with him: Look, and see who is gone from us. And when they had sought, it was found that Jonathan and his armourbearer were not there.

17 Then said Saul unto the people that were with him, Number now, and see who is gone from us. And when they had numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armourbearer were not there.

17 Then Saul said to the people who were with him, “Make an accounting now, and see who has gone from us. So they conducted an accounting, and discovered that Jonathan and the guy who carried his gear were not present.

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

18 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ τῷ Αχια ΠροσάγαγεCJ τὸ εφουδ·X ὅτι αὐτὸς ἦρεν τὸ εφουδ XCK ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐνώπιον XCL Ισραηλ.

18 And Saul said to Achia, Bring the ephod X; for he wore the ephod X in that day before X Israel.

18 And Saul said to Achias: Bring the arkCM of the Lord. (For the ark of God was there that day with the children of Israel.)

18 And Saul said unto Ahiah, Bring hither the ark of God. For the ark of God was at that time with the children of Israel.

18 Then Saul said to Achijah, “Bring near the ark of God” (for the ark of God was with the children of Israel at that time).

18 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל לַאֲחִיָּה הַגִּישָׁה אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים כִּי-הָיָה אֲרוֹן הָאֱלֹהִים בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וּבְנֵיCN יִשְׂרָאֵל:

19 καὶ ἐγενήθη ὡς ἐλάλει Σαουλ πρὸς τὸν ἱερέα, καὶ ὁ ἦχος ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων ἐπορεύετο πορευόμενος καὶ ἐπλήθυνεν· καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς τὸν ἱερέα Συνάγαγε τὰς χεῖρά[ς] σου.

19 And it came to pass while Saul was speaking to the priest, that the sound in the camp of the Philistines continued to increase greatly; and Saul said to the priest, Withdraw thy hand[s].

19 And while Saul spoke to the priest, there arose a great uproar in the camp of the Philistines: and it increased by degrees, and was heard more clearly. And Saul said to the priest: Draw in thy hand.

19 And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the noise that was in the host of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said unto the priest, Withdraw thine hand.

19 Now, when Saul spoke to the priest, all the while, the com­motion which was in the Philistine army-camp was continuing to go on and was increasing, so Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.”

19 וַיְהִי עַד דִּבֶּר שָׁאוּל אֶל-הַכֹּהֵן וְהֶהָמוֹן אֲשֶׁר בְּמַחֲנֵה פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיֵּלֶךְ הָלוֹךְ וָרָב ף וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל- הַכֹּהֵן אֱסֹף יָדֶךָCO:

20 καὶ ἀνεβόησεν Σαουλ καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔρχονται ἕως τοῦ πολέμου, καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγένετο ῥομφαία ἀνδρὸς ἐπὶ τὸν πλησίον αὐτοῦ, σύγχυσιςCP μεγάλη σφόδρα.

20 And Saul went up and all the people that were with him, and they come to the battle: and, behold, every man's sword was against his neighbour, a very great confusion.

20 Then Saul, and all the peo­ple that were with him, shout­ed together, and they came to the place of the fight: and be­hold every man's sword was turned upon his neighbour, and there was a very great slaughter.

20 And Saul and all the people that were with him assembled themselves, and they came to the battle: and, behold, every man's sword was against his fellow, and there was a very great discomfiture.

20 And Saul yelled for help - together with all the people who were with him, and they went toward the battle, and look, each man’s sword was [aimed] at his fellow! It was utterly huge pandemonium!

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

21 καὶ οἱ δοῦλοιCQ οἱ ὄντες ἐχθὲς καὶ τρίτην ἡμέραν μετὰ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων οἱ ἀναβάντες εἰς τὴν παρεμβολὴν ἐπεστράφησαν καὶ αὐτοὶ εἶναι μετὰ Ισραηλ τῶν μετὰ Σαουλ καὶ Ιωναθαν.

21 And the servants who had been before with the Philistines, who had gone up to the army, turned themselves also to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

21 Moreover, the Hebrews that had been with the Philistines yesterday and the day before, and went up with them into the camp, returned to be with the Israelites, who were with Saul and Jonathan.

21 Moreover the Hebrews that were with the Philistines before that time, which went up with them into the camp from the country round about, even they also turned to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan.

21 And the Hebrews, even those who were on the Philistines’ side as of yesterday and the day before, who had gone up with them into their army-camp, came around to be with the Israelites who were with Saul and Jonathan.

21 וְהָעִבְרִים הָיוּ לַפְּלִשְׁתִּים כְּאֶתְמוֹל שִׁלְשׁוֹם אֲשֶׁר עָלוּ עִמָּם בַּמַּחֲנֶה סָבִיב וְגַם-הֵמָּה לִהְיוֹת עִם- יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר עִם-שָׁאוּל וְיוֹנָתָן:

22 καὶ πᾶς Ισραηλ οἱ κρυπτόμενοι ἐν τῷ ὄρει Εφραιμ καὶ ἤκουσαν ὅτι πεφεύγασιν οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι, καὶ συνάπτουσιν καὶ αὐτοὶ ὀπίσω αὐτῶν εἰς πόλεμον.

22 And all the Israelites who were hidden in mount Ephraim heard also that the Philistines fled; and they also gather themselves after them to battle:

22 And all the Israelites that had hid themselves in mount Ephraim, hearing that the Philistines fled, joined themselves with their countrymen in the fight. And there were with Saul about ten thousand men.

22 Likewise all the men of Israel which had hid themselves in mount Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, even they also followed hard after them in the battle.

22 And all {} the Israelites who had hidden themselves in the hill-country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, and even they themselves joined ranks after them into the battle!

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

23 καὶ ἔσωσεν κύριος ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ τὸν Ισραηλ. Καὶ ὁ πόλεμος διῆλθεν τὴν ΒαιθωνCR, [καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ἦν μετὰ Σαουλ ὡς δέκα χιλιάδες ἀνδρῶν· καὶ ἦν ὁ πόλεμος διεσπαρμένος εἰς ὅλην τὴν πόλιν ἐν τῷ ὄρει Εφραιμ.]

and the Lord saved Israel in that day; and the war passed through Bamoth; [and all the people with Saul were about ten thousand men. 23 And the battle extended itself to every city in the mount Ephraim.]

23 And the Lord saved Israel that day. And the fight went on as far as Bethaven.

23 So the LORD saved Israel that day: and the battle passed over unto Bethaven.

23 So Yahweh saved Israel on that day, and the battle passed over Beth Aven. {And all the people with Saul were about 10,000 men.}

23 וַיּוֹשַׁע יְהוָה בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא אֶת- יִשְׂרָאֵל וְהַמִּלְחָמָה עָבְרָה אֶת- בֵּית אָוֶן:

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24 καὶ Σαουλ ἠγνόησεν ἄγνοι­αν μεγάλην ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ καὶ X ἀρᾶται τῷ λαῷ λέγων Ἐπικατάρ­ατος ὁ ἄνθρω­πος, ὃς φάγεται ἄρτον ἕως ἑσπέρας, καὶ ἐκδικήσωCS τὸν ἐχθρόν μου· καὶ οὐκ ἐγεύσατο πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ἄρτου.

24 And Saul committed a great trespass of ignorance in that day, and he lays a curse on the people, saying, Cursed is the man who shall eat bread before the evening; so I will avenge myself on my enemy: and none of the people tasted bread.

24 And the men of Israel were joined together that day: and Saul adjured the people, saying: Cursed be the man that shall eat food till evening, till I be revenged of my enemies. So none of the people tasted [any] food.

24 And the men of Israel were distressedCT that day: for Saul had adjuredCU the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be avenged on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted any food.

24 {And Saul made a very grave error} resulting in each Israelite being under more pressure on that day, for Saul had put the people under oath, saying, “Until evening, when I have gotten satisfaction from my enemies, the man who eats food will be cursed!” So all of the people didn’t eat food.

24 וְאִישׁ- יִשְׂרָאֵל נִגַּשׂCV בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וַיֹּאֶל שָׁאוּל אֶת-הָעָם לֵאמֹר אָרוּר הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר- יֹאכַל לֶחֶם עַד- הָעֶרֶב וְנִקַּמְתִּי מֵאֹיְבַי וְלֹא טָעַם כָּל-הָעָם לָחֶם: ס

25 καὶ πᾶσα ἡ γῆ ἠρίστα. καὶ ιααρCW [δρυμὸς] X ἦν μελισσῶνος κατὰ πρόσωπον τοῦ ἀγροῦ,

[, though all the land was dining] 25 And Jaal was [a wood abounding] in swarms of bees on the face of the ground.

25 And all the [common] peopleCX came into a forest, in which there was honey upon the ground.

25 And all they of the land came to a wood; and there was honey upon the ground.

25 And they went through all the land, but in the forest, there was some honey on the surface of ground.

25 וְכָל-הָאָרֶץ בָּאוּ בַיָּעַר וַיְהִי דְבַשׁ עַל-פְּנֵי הַשָּׂדֶה:

26 καὶ εἰσῆλθεν ὁ λαὸς εἰς τὸν μελισ­σῶνα, καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐπορεύετο λαλῶν,CY καὶ [ἰδοὺ] οὐκ ἦν ἐπιστρέφ­ων τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ, ὅτι ἐφοβήθη ὁ λαὸς τὸν ὅρκον [κυρίου].

26 And the people went into the place of the bees, and, behold, they continued speaking; and[, behold,] there was none that put his hand to his mouth, for the people feared the oath [of the Lord].

26 And when the people came into the forest, behold the honey dropped, but no man put his hand to his mouth. For the people feared the oath.

26 And when the people were come into the wood, behold, the honey dropped; but no man put his hand to his mouth: for the people feared the oath.

26 Yet, when the people went through the forest and saw there was honey coming out, there was not even one who reached his hand to his mouth, for the people were afraid of the oath.

26 וַיָּבֹא הָעָם אֶל-הַיַּעַר וְהִנֵּה הֵלֶךְCZ דְּבָשׁ וְאֵין-מַשִּׂיג יָדוֹ אֶל-פִּיו כִּי-יָרֵא הָעָם אֶת- הַשְּׁבֻעָה:

27 καὶ Ιωναθαν οὐκ ἀκηκόει ἐν τῷ ὁρκίζειν τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ τὸν λαόν· καὶ ἐξέτεινεν τὸ ἄκρον τοῦ σκήπτρου [αὐτοῦ]DA τοῦ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔβαψεν αὐτὸ εἰς τὸ κηρίονDB τοῦ μέλιτος καὶ ἐπέστρεψεν τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀνέβλεψανDC οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐτοῦ.

27 And Jonathan had not heard when his father adjured the people; and he reached forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and dipped it into the honeycomb, and returned his hand to his mouth, and his eyes recovered their sight.

27 But Jonathan had not heard when his father adjured the people: and he put forth the end of the rod, which he had in his hand, and dipt it in a honeycomb: and he carried his hand to his mouth, and his eyes were enlightened.

27 But Jonathan heard not when his father charged the people with the oath: wherefore he put forth the end of the rod that was in his hand, and dipped it in an honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his eyes were enlightened.

27 Jonathan, however, had not heard when his father had put the people under oath, so he reached out the end of his staff which was in his hand and dipped it into the honeycomb and brought back his hand to his mouth – and his eyes saw better!

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

28 καὶ ἀπεκρίθη εἷς ἐκ τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ εἶπεν Ὁρκίσας ὥρκισεν ὁ πατήρ σου τὸν λαὸν λέγων Ἐπικατάρ­ατος ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ὃς φάγεται ἄρτον σήμερον, καὶ ἐξελύθη ὁ λαός.

28 And one of the people answered and said, Thy father solemnly adjured the people, saying, Cursed is the man who shall eat bread to-day. And the people were very faint,

28 And one of the people answering, said: Thy father hath bound the people with an oath, saying: Cursed be the man that shall eat any food this day. (And the people were faint.)

28 Then answered one of the people, and said, Thy father straitly charged the people with an oath, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth any food this day. And the people were faint.

28 But one of the men from the people responded and said, “Your father put the people under solemn oath, saying, ‘Cursed is the man who eats food today.’ So the people are weary.”

28 וַיַּעַןDE אִישׁ מֵהָעָם וַיֹּאמֶר הַשְׁבֵּעַ הִשְׁבִּיעַ אָבִיךָ אֶת-הָעָם לֵאמֹר אָרוּר הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר- יֹאכַל לֶחֶם הַיּוֹם וַיָּעַף הָעָם:

29 [καὶ ἔγνω] Ιωναθαν καὶ εἶπεν Ἀπήλλαχεν ὁ πατήρ μου τὴν γῆν· ἰδὲ δὴ ὅτι εἶδον οἱ ὀφθαλμοί μου, ὅτι ἐγευσάμην βραχὺ τοῦ μέλιτος τούτου·

29 and Jonathan knew it, and said, My father has destroyed the land: see how my eyes have received sight now that I have tasted a little of this honey.

29 And Jonathan said: My father hath troubled the land: you have seen yourselves that my eyes are enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey:

29 Then said Jonathan, My father hath troubled the land: see, I pray you, how mine eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.

29 But Jonathan, {when he was informed}, nevertheless said, “My father has troubled the land! See now how my eyes have brightened because I tasted a little of this honey?

29 DF וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹנָתָן עָכַר אָבִי אֶת-הָאָרֶץDG רְאוּ-נָא כִּי-אֹרוּ עֵינַי כִּי טָעַמְתִּי מְעַט דְּבַשׁDH הַזֶּה:

Septuagint

Brenton

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30 ἀλλ᾿ ὅτιDI εἰ ἔφαγεν ἔσθων ὁ λαὸς σήμερον τῶν σκύλων τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτῶν, ὧν εὗρεν, ὅτι νῦν X [ἂν] μείζων ἦν ἡ πληγὴ ἐν τοῖς ἀλλοφύλοις.

30 Surely if the people had this day eaten freely of the spoils of their enemies which they found, the slaughter among the Philistines [would] X have been greater.

30 How much more if the people had eaten X of the prey of their enemies, which they found? had X there not been made a greater slaughter among the Philistines?

30 How much more, if haply the people had eaten freely to day of the spoil of their enemies which they found? for had there not been now a much great­er slaughter amo­ng the Philistines?

30 How much more I wish the people had eaten freely today from the plunder of its enemies which it found, for then the striking down of the Philistines would have been greater.”

30 אַף כִּיDJ לוּא אָכֹל אָכַל הַיּוֹםDK הָעָם מִשְּׁלַל אֹיְבָיו אֲשֶׁר מָצָא כִּי עַתָּה לֹאDL-רָבְתָה מַכָּה בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים:DM

31 καὶ ἐπάταξεν ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων ἐν Μαχεμας, X X καὶ ἐκοπίασεν ὁ λαὸς σφόδρα.

31 And on that day he smote some of the Philistines in Machmas X X; and the people were very weary.

31 So they smote that day the Philistines, from Machmas to Aialon. And the people were wearied exceedingly.

31 And they smote the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon: and the people were very faint.

31 Nevertheless, the people that day struck against the Philistines from Mikmash to Ajalon, even though they were very weary.

31 וַיַּכּוּDN בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים מִמִּכְמָשׂDO אַיָּלֹנָה וַיָּעַף הָעָם מְאֹד:

32 καὶ ἐκλίθη ὁ λαὸς εἰς τὰ σκῦ­λα,DP καὶ ἔλαβεν ὁ λαὸς ποίμνια καὶ βουκόλια καὶ τέκνα βοῶν καὶ ἔσφαξεν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἤσθιεν ὁ λαὸς σὺν τῷ αἵματι.

32 And the people turned to the spoil; and the people took flocks, and herds, and calves, and slew them on the ground, and the people ate with the blood.

32 And X falling upon the spoil[s], they took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground: and the people ate [them] with the blood.

32 And the people flewDQ upon the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground: and the people did eat them with the blood.

32 Then the people darted toward the plunder, and the people took sheep and oxen and calves and slaughtered them on the ground, and the people ate with the blood.

32 וַיַּעַשׂDR הָעָם אֶל-שָׁלָלDS וַיִּקְחוּDT צֹאן וּבָקָר וּבְנֵי בָקָר וַיִּשְׁחֲטוּDU-אָרְצָה וַיֹּאכַל הָעָם עַל-הַדָּם:

33 καὶ ἀπηγγέλη τῷ Σαουλ λέγοντες Ἡμάρτηκεν ὁ λαὸς τῷ κυρίῳ φαγὼν σὺν τῷ αἵματι. καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ ἐν ΓεθθεμDV Κυλίσατέ μοι λίθον ἐνταῦθα μέγαν.

33 And it was reported to Saul, saying, The people have sinned against the Lord, eating with the blood: and Saul said, Out of Getthaim roll a great stone to me hither.

33 And they told Saul that the people had sinned against the Lord, eating with the blood. And he said: You have transgressed: roll here to me now a great stone.

33 Then they told Saul, saying, Behold, the people sin against the LORD, in that they eat with the blood. And he said, Ye have trans­gressedDW: roll a great stone unto me this dayDX.

33 When they related it to Saul, saying, “Look, the people are sinning against Yahweh by eating with the blood!” He then said, “Y’all have committed treason. Roll a big stone over to me today.”

33 וַיַּגִּידוּDY לְשָׁאוּל לֵאמֹר הִנֵּה הָעָם חֹטִאים לַיהוָה לֶאֱכֹל עַל-הַדָּם וַיֹּאמֶר בְּגַדְתֶּם גֹּלּוּ-אֵלַי הַיּוֹם אֶבֶן גְּדוֹלָה:

34 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ Διασπάρητε ἐν τῷ λαῷ καὶ εἴπατε αὐτοῖς προσαγαγεῖν ἐνταῦθα ἕκαστος τὸν μόσχον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἕκαστος τὸ πρόβατον αὐτοῦ, καὶ σφαζέτω ἐπὶ τούτου X XDZ, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἁμάρτητε τῷ κυρίῳ τοῦ ἐσθίειν σὺν τῷ αἵματι· καὶ προσῆγεν πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ἕκαστος X τὸ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ X X καὶ ἔσφαζον ἐκεῖ.

34 And Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and tell them to bring hither every one his calf, and every one his sheep: and let them slay it on this [stone] X X and sin not against the Lord in eating with the blood: and the people brought each one X that which was in his hand X X, and they slew them there.

34 And Saul said: Disperse yourselves among the people, and tell them to bring me every man his ox and X his ram and slay them upon this [stone], and eat, and you shall not sin against the Lord, in eating with the blood. So all the people brought every man his ox with him X till the night: and slew them there.

34 And Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and say unto them, Bring me [hither] every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them X here, and eat; and sin not against the LORD in eating with the blood. And all the people brought every man his ox with him X that night, and slew them there.

34 Then Saul said, “Disperse yourselves among the people and say to them, ‘Each must bring his ox and each his sheep to me, then y’all may slaughter at this location and y’all may eat, thus you won’t be sinning against Yahweh by eating with the blood.” So that night, each and every one of the people brought his ox near by his own hand and they slaughtered it there.

34 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל פֻּצוּEA בָעָם וַאֲמַרְתֶּם לָהֶם הַגִּישׁוּ אֵלַי אִישׁ שׁוֹרוֹEB וְאִישׁ שְׂיֵהוּ וּשְׁחַטְתֶּם בָּזֶה וַאֲכַלְתֶּם וְלֹא-תֶחֶטְאוּ לַיהוָה לֶאֱכֹל אֶל-הַדָּם וַיַּגִּשׁוּ כָל-הָעָם אִישׁ שׁוֹרוֹ בְיָדוֹ הַלַּיְלָה וַיִּשְׁחֲטוּ-שָׁם:

35 καὶ ᾠκοδόμη­σεν [ἐκεῖ] Σαουλ θυσιαστήριον τῷ κυρίῳ· τοῦτο ἤρξ­ατο [Σαουλ] οἰκο­δομῆσαι θυσιασ­τήριον τῷ κυρίῳ.

35 And Saul built an altar [there] to the Lord: this was the first altar that [Saul] built to the Lord.

35 And Saul built an altar to the Lord: [and] he then first began to build an altar to the Lord.

35 And Saul built an altar unto the LORD: the same was the first altar that he built unto the LORD.

35 So Saul built an altar to Yahweh; it was what he began to build as an altar for Yahweh.

35 וַיִּבֶן שָׁאוּל מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהוָה אֹתוֹ הֵחֵל לִבְנוֹת מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהוָה: פ

Septuagint

Brenton

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KJV

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36 Καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ Καταβῶμεν ὀπίσω τῶν ἀλλο­φύλων τὴν νύκτα καὶ διαρπάσωμεν ἐν αὐτοῖς, ἕως διαφαύσῃ ἡ ἡμέρα, καὶ μὴ ὑπολίπωμεν ἐν αὐτοῖς ἄνδρα. καὶ εἶπαν Πᾶν τὸ ἀγαθὸν ἐνώπιόν σου ποίει. καὶ εἶπ­εν ὁ ἱερεύς Προσ­έλθωμεν ἐνταῦθα πρὸς τὸν θεόν.

36 And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philis­tines this night, and let us plunder among them till the day break, and let us not leave a man among them. And they said, Do all that is good in thy sight: and the priest said, let us draw nigh hither to God.

36 And Saul said: Let us fall upon the Philistines by night, and destroy them till the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And the [people] said: Do all that seemeth good in thy eyes. And the priest said: Let us draw near hither unto God.

36 And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philis­tines by night, and spoil them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatsoever seemeth good unto thee X. Then said the priest, Let us draw near hither unto God.

36 Then Saul said, “Let’s go down after the Philistines tonight and loot them until morning light, and let’s not leave a man to them!” And they said, “Do everything that is good in your eyes.” But the priest said, “Let’s draw near to God over here.”

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

37 καὶ ἐπηρώτησεν Σαουλ τὸν θεόν Εἰ καταβῶ ὀπίσω τῶν ἀλλοφύλων; εἰ παραδώσεις αὐτοὺς εἰς χεῖρα[ς] Ισραηλ; καὶ οὐκ ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῷ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ.

37 And Saul enquired of God, If I go down after the Philistines, wilt thou deliver them into the hand[s] of Israel? And he answered him not in that day.

37 And Saul consulted the Lord: Shall I pursue after the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into the hand[s] of Israel? And he answered him not that day.

37 And Saul asked [counsel]EC of God, Shall I go down after the Philis­tines? wilt thou deliver them into the hand of Israel? But he answered him not that day.

37 So Saul asked of God, “Shall I go down after the Philistines? Will you give them into the control of Israel?” But He did not answer him on that day.

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

38 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ Προσαγάγετε ἐνταῦθα πάσας τὰς γωνίαςED τοῦ Ισραηλ καὶ γνῶτε καὶ ἴδετε ἐν τίνι γέγονεν ἡ ἁμαρτία αὕτη σήμερον X·

38 And Saul said, Bring hither all the chiefs of Israel, and know and see by whom this sin has been committed this day.

38 And Saul said: Bring hither all the corners of the people: and know, and see by whom this sin hath happened to day.

38 And Saul said, Draw ye near hither, all the chiefXEE of the people: and knowEF and see whereinEG this sin hath been this day.

38 So Saul said, “Bring here all the cornerstones of the nation and let us know and see this day by whom this sin occurred,

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

39 ὅτι ζῇ κύριος ὁ σώσας τὸν Ισραηλ, ὅτι ἐὰν ἀποκριθῇ κατὰ Ιωναθαν τοῦ υἱοῦ μου, θανάτῳ ἀποθανεῖται. καὶ οὐκ ἦν ὁ ἀποκρινόμενος ἐκ παντὸς τοῦ λαοῦ.

39 For as the Lord lives who has saved Israel, if [answer] should be against my son Jonathan, he shall surely die. And there was no one that answered out of all the people.

39 As the Lord liveth, who is the Saviour of Israel, if it was [done] by Jonathan, my son, he shall surely die. In [this] none of X the people gainsayed him.

39 For, as the LORD liveth, which savethEH Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall sure­ly die. But there was not a man a­mong all the people that answered him.

39 for he shall surely be put to death - even if it is confirmed in my son JonathanEI - if Yahweh the Savior of Israel is alive.” But there was no one who would answer him from all the people.

39 כִּי חַי-יְהוָה הַמּוֹשִׁיעַ אֶת- יִשְׂרָאֵל כִּי אִם- יֶשְׁנוֹ בְּיוֹנָתָן בְּנִי כִּי מוֹת יָמוּת וְאֵין עֹנֵהוּ מִכָּל- הָעָם:

40 καὶ εἶπεν παντὶ Ισραηλ Ὑμεῖς ἔσεσθε εἰς δουλείαν X, καὶ ἐγὼ καὶ Ιωναθαν ὁ υἱός μου ἐσόμεθα εἰς δουλείαν X. καὶ εἶπεν ὁ λαὸς πρὸς Σαουλ Τὸ ἀγαθὸν ἐνώπιόν σου ποίει.

40 And he said to all the [men ofEJ] Israel, Ye shall be under subjection X, and I and Jonathan my son will be under subjection X: and the people said to Saul, Do that which is good in thy sight.

40 And he said to all Israel: Be you on one side and I, with Jonathan, my son, will be on the other side. And the people answered Saul: Do what seemeth good in thy eyes.

40 Then said he unto all Israel, Be ye on one side, and I and Jon­athan my son will be on the other side. And the people said unto Saul, Do what seemeth good unto X thee.

40 Then Saul said to all Israel, “Y’all be over on one side and Jonathan my son and I will be over on one side.” And the people said to Saul, “Do what is good in your eyes.”

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

41 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ X Κύριε ὁ θεὸς Ισραηλ, [τί ὅτι οὐκ ἀπεκρίθης τῷ δού­λῳ σου σήμερον; εἰ ἐν ἐμοὶ ἢ ἐν Ιων­α­θαν τῷ υἱῷ μου ἡ ἀδικία, κύριε ὁ θεὸς Ισραηλ, δὸς δήλους· καὶ ἐὰν τάδε εἴπῃς Ἐν τῷ λαῷ σου Ισ­ραηλ,] δὸς δὴ ὁσιό­τητα. καὶ κληροῦται Ιωναθαν καὶ Σαουλ, καὶ ὁ λαὸς ἐξῆλθεν.

41 And Saul said, O Lord God of Israel, [why hast thou not answered thy servant this day? is the iniquity in me, or in Jonathan my son? Lord God of Israel, give clear manifestations; and if [the lot] should declare this, [[give, I pray thee,EK]] to thy people of Israel,] give, I pray, holiness. And Jonathan and Saul are taken, and the people escaped.

41 And Saul said to the Lord: O [Lord] God of Israel, [give a sign, by which we may know, what the meaning is, that thou answerest not thy servant to day: If this iniquity be in me, or in my son Jonathan, give a proof: or if this iniquity be in thy people,] give holiness. And Jonathan and Saul were taken, and the people escaped.

41 Therefore Saul said unto the LORD God of Israel, Give a perfect lotEL. And Saul and Jonathan were taken: but the people escaped.

41 Then Saul said to Yahweh, the God of Israel, “{Why is it that You have not answered Your servant today? If the the iniquity is in me or in Jonathan my son, render Urim, and if this should say it’s in Your people,} render Thumim.” And Jonathan and Saul were selected, so the people escaped.

41 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל-יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵלEM הָבָה תָמִים וַיִּלָּכֵד יוֹנָתָן וְשָׁאוּל וְהָעָם יָצָאוּ:

v.42 Septuagint

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42 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ Βάλετε ἀνὰ μέσον ἐμοῦ καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον Ιωναθαν τοῦ υἱοῦ μου· [ὃν ἂν κατακληρώσηται κύριος, ἀποθανέτω. καὶ εἶπεν ὁ λαὸς πρὸς Σαουλ Οὐκ ἔστιν τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο. καὶ κατε­κράτησεν Σαουλ τοῦ λαοῦ, καὶ βάλλουσιν ἀνὰ μέσον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον Ιωναθαν τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ], καὶ κατα­κληροῦται Ιωναθαν.

42 And Saul said, Cast lots between me and my son Jonathan: [whomsoever the Lord shall cause to be taken by lot, let him die: and the people said to Saul, This thing is not [to be done]: and Saul prevailed against the people, and they cast lots between him and Jon­athan his son], and Jonathan is taken by lot.

42 And Saul said: Cast lots between me, and Jonathan, my son. And Jonathan was taken.

42 And Saul said, Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken.

42 Then Saul said, “Cast [the lot] between me and between my son Jonathan,” and Jonathan was selected.

42 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל הַפִּילוּ בֵּינִי וּבֵין יוֹנָתָן בְּנִי וַיִּלָּכֵד יוֹנָתָן:

43 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς Ιωναθαν Ἀπάγγειλόν μοι τί πεποίηκας. καὶ ἀπήγγειλεν αὐτῷ Ιωναθαν καὶ εἶπεν Γευσάμενος ἐγευσάμην ἐν ἄκρῳ τῷ σκήπτρῳ τῷ ἐν τῇ χειρί μου βραχὺ μέλι· ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἀποθνῄσκω.

43 And Saul said to Jonathan, Tell me what thou hast done: and Jonathan told him, and said, I did indeed taste a little honey, with the end of my staff that was in my hand, [andEN,] lo! I am to die.

43 And Saul said to Jonathan: Tell me what thou hast done. And Jonathan told him, and said: I did but taste a little honey with the end of the rod, which was in my hand, [and] behold I must die.

43 Then Saul said to Jonathan, Tell me what thou hast done. And Jonathan told him, and said, I did but taste a little honey with the end of the rod that was in mine hand, and, lo, I must die.

43 So Saul said to Jonathan, “Relate to me what you did!” And Jonathan related it to him and said, “I just tasted a little honey, using the tip of my staff which was in my hand. Look, must I die?”

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

44 καὶ εἶπεν [αὐτῷ] Σαουλ Τάδε ποιήσαι [μοι] ὁ θεὸς καὶ τάδε προσθείη, ὅτι θανάτῳ ἀποθανῇ σήμερον.

44 And Saul said [to him], God do so [to me], and more also, thou shalt surely die to-day.

44 And Saul said: May God do so and so [to me], and add still more: for dying thou shalt die, O Jonathan.

44 And Saul answered, God do so and more alsoEO: for thou shalt surely die, Jonathan.

44 Then Saul said, “You shall surely die, Jonathan. If [I don’t fulfill this oath] may God do so {to me} and may he add moreso.

44 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל כֹּה-יַעֲשֶׂהEP אֱלֹהִים וְכֹה יוֹסִףEQ כִּי-מוֹת תָּמוּת יוֹנָתָן:

45 καὶ εἶπεν ὁ λαὸς πρὸς Σαουλ Εἰ σήμερον θανατω­θήσεται ὁ ποιήσας τὴν σωτηρίαν τὴν μεγάλην ταύτην ἐν Ισραηλ; X ζῇ κύρ­ιος, εἰ πεσεῖται τῆς τριχὸς τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν· ὅτι ὁ λαὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐποίησεν τὴν ἡμέραν ταύτην. καὶ προσηύξατο ὁ λαὸς περὶ Ιωναθαν [ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ], καὶ οὐκ ἀπέθανεν. --

45 And the people said to Saul, Shall he that has wrought this great salvation in Israel be put to death this day? X As the Lord lives, there shall not fall to the ground one of the hair[s] of his head; for the people of God have wrought [successfully] this day. And the people prayed for Jona­than [in that day], and he died not.

45 And the people said to Saul: Shall Jonathan then die, who hath wrought this great salvation in Israel? this must not be: As the Lord liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground, for he hath wrought with God this day. So the people delivered Jonathan, that he should not die.

45 And the people said unto Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who hath wrought this great salvation in Israel? God forbidER: as the LORD liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground; for he hath wrought with God this day. So the people rescuedES Jonathan, that he died not.

45 But the people said to Saul, “Should Jonathan die? He who accomplished this great deliverance in Israel? Disgraceful! As Yahweh lives [may we be cursed] if a hair of his head falls earthward, for it was with God that he acted this day!” Thus the people ransomed Jonathan so that he did not die.

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

46 καὶ ἀνέβη Σαουλ ἀπὸ ὄπισθεν τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι [ἀπ]ῆλθον εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτῶν.

46 And Saul went up from following the Philistines; and the Philistines departed to their place.

46 And Saul went back, and [did not pursue] after the Philistines: and the Philistines went to their own place[s].

46 Then Saul went up from followingET the Philistines: and the Philistines went to their own place.

46 And Saul went home after pursuing the Philistines, and the Philistines went to their place.

46 וַיַּעַל שָׁאוּל מֵאַחֲרֵי פְּלִשְׁתִּים וּפְלִשְׁתִּים הָלְכוּ לִמְקוֹמָם:

47 Καὶ Σαουλ X X XEU [κατακληροῦται ἔργον] ἐπὶ Ισραηλ. καὶ ἐπολέμει κύκλῳ X πάντας τοὺς ἐχ­θροὺς αὐτοῦ, εἰς τὸν Μωαβ καὶ εἰς τοὺς υἱοὺς Αμμων καὶ εἰς [τοὺς υἱοὺς] Εδωμ [καὶ εἰς τὸν Βαιθ­εωρ] καὶ εἰς βασιλ­έαX Σουβα καὶ εἰς τοὺς ἀλλοφύλους·X X οὗ ἂν ἐστράφη, ἐσῴζετο.

47 And Saul received the kingdom, [by lot he inherits the office of ruling] over Israel: and he fought against all his enemies round about, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and against [the children of] Edom, [and against Baethaeor,] and against the kingX of Suba, and against the Philistines: X whi­thersoever he turned, he was victorious.

47 And Saul having his kingdom [established] over Israel, X fought a­gainst all his enemies round about, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and X Edom, and the kings of Soba, and X the Philistines: and whithersoever he turned himself, he overcame.

47 So Saul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines: and whithersoever he turned himself, he vexedEV them.

47 So Saul was selected for the kingdom over Israel, and he fought against all its enemies round about: against Mo­ab, and against the descendants of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the king{} of Tso­bah, and against the Philistines, and in everything that he faced, he {brought deliverance}.

47 וְשָׁאוּל לָכַד הַמְּלוּכָה עַל- יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיִּלָּחֶם סָבִיב בְּכָל- אֹיְבָיו בְּמוֹאָב וּבִבְנֵיEW-עַמּוֹן וּבֶאֱדוֹם וּבְמַלְכֵיEX צוֹבָה וּבַפְּלִשְׁתִּים וּבְכֹל אֲשֶׁר-יִפְנֶה יַרְשִׁיעַEY:

v.48 Septuagint

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48 καὶ ἐποίησεν δύναμιν καὶ ἐπάταξεν τὸν Αμαληκ καὶ ἐξείλατο τὸν Ισ­ραηλ ἐκ χειρὸς τῶν καταπατούντων αὐτόν. --

48 And he wrought valiantly, and smote Amalec, and rescued Israel out of the hand of them that trampled on him.

48 And gathering together an army, he defeated Amalec, and delivered Israel from the hand of them that spoiled them.

48 And he gathered an hostEZ, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hand[s] of them that spoiledFA them.

48 He even did a valiant maneuver and struck Amelek and delivered Israel from its {tramplers}.

48 וַיַּעַשׂ חַיִל וַיַּךְ אֶת-עֲמָלֵק וַיַּצֵּל אֶת- יִשְׂרָאֵל מִיַּד שֹׁסֵהוּ:FB ס

49 καὶ ἦσαν υἱοὶ Σαουλ Ιωναθαν καὶ Ιεσσιου καὶ Μελχισα· καὶ ὀνόματα τῶν δύο θυγατέρων αὐτοῦ, ὄνομα τῇ πρωτοτόκῳ Μεροβ, καὶ ὄνομα τῇ δευτέρᾳ Μελχολ·

49 And the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Jessiu, and Melchisa: and these were the names of his two daughters, the name of the first-born Merob, and the name of the second Melchol.

49 And the sons of Saul, were Jonathan, and Jessui, and Melchisua: and the names of his two daughters, the name of the firstborn was Merob, and the name of the younger Michol.

49 Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishui, and Melchishua: and the names of his two daughters were these; the name of the firstborn Merab, and the name of the younger Michal:

49 And the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishvi, and Melki-shua. As for the naming of both of his daughters, the name of the firstborn was Merob, and the name of the younger was Michal.

49 וַיִּהְיוּ בְּנֵי שָׁאוּל יוֹנָתָן וְיִשְׁוִיFC וּמַלְכִּי-שׁוּעַ וְשֵׁם שְׁתֵּי בְנֹתָיו שֵׁם הַבְּכִירָה מֵרַב וְשֵׁם הַקְּטַנָּה מִיכַל:

50 καὶ ὄνομα τῇ γυναικὶ αὐτοῦ FDΑχινοομ θυγάτηρ Αχιμαας. καὶ ὄνομα τῷ ἀρχιστρατήγῳ Αβεννηρ υἱὸς Νηρ [υἱοῦ] οἰκείου Σαουλ·

50 And the name of his wife was Achinoom, the daughter of Achimaa: and the name of [hisFE] captain of the host was Abenner, the son of Ner, [son of] a kinsman of Saul.

50 And the name of Saul's wife was Achinoam, the daughter of Achimaas; and the name of the captain of his army was Abner, the son of Ner, the cousin german of Saul.

50 And the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz: and the name of the captain of his host was Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle.

50 And the name of Saul’s wife was Ahinoam, daughter of Ahimaaz. Also the name of the army general was Abner, son of Ner, Saul’s uncle.

50 וְשֵׁם אֵשֶׁת שָׁאוּל אֲחִינֹעַם בַּת-אֲחִימָעַץFF וְשֵׁם שַׂר-צְבָאוֹFG אֲבִינֵר בֶּן-נֵר דּוֹד שָׁאוּל:

51 καὶ Κις πατὴρ Σαουλ καὶ Νηρ πατὴρ Αβεννηρ [υἱὸς ΙαμινFH] υἱοῦ Αβιηλ. --

51 And Kis was the father of Saul, and Ner, the father of Aben[ez]er, [was son of Jamin,] son of Abiel.

51 For Cis was the father of Saul, and Ner, the father of Abner, was son of Abiel.

51 And Kish was the father of Saul; and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

51 And Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was son of Abiel.

51 וְקִישׁ אֲבִי-שָׁאוּל וְנֵר אֲבִי-אַבְנֵרFI בֶּן-אֲבִיאֵל: ס

52 καὶ ἦν ὁ πόλεμος κραταιὸς ἐπὶ τοὺς ἀλλο­φύλους πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας Σαουλ, καὶ ἰδὼν Σαουλ πάντα ἄνδρα δυνατὸν καὶ πάντα [ἄνδρα] υἱὸν δυνάμεως καὶ συν­ήγαγεν [αὐτοὺς] πρὸς αὐτόν.

52 And the war was vehement against the Philistines all the days of Saul; and when Saul saw any mighty man, and any valiant man, then he took them to himself.

52 And there was a great war against the Philistines all the days of Saul. For whomsoever Saul saw to be a valiant man, and X fit for war, he took him to himself.

52 And there was soreFJ war against the Philistines all the days of Saul: and when Saul saw any strong man, or any valiant man, he tookFK him unto him.

52 And there was heavy warfare against the Philis­tines all of Saul’s days, so when Saul saw any strong man or any son of valor, he would gather him to himself.

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

 

I Samuel CHAPTER 15

1 Samuel 15:1-23 – To Obey Is Better Than Sacrifice

Introduction: Having the Qualifications and Ethnic Backgrounds

Vs. 1-21) The story

Vs. 22-23) The moral

Application

  1. There was Saul, who valued his opinion above God’s and therefore failed to obey God in his mission.

  1. The second character who was a steward of God’s word was the Prophet Samuel.

Questions for further consideration:

1 Samuel 15:24-35 – The Glory of God in Judgment

1) God’s Judgment of Saul

      1. God said something contradictory and therefore at least one of the things God said is not true, making Him untrustworthy.

      2. Samuel was dishonest and falsely reported God as making contradictory statements, making Samuel and the Bible untrustworthy.

      3. Or the word nacham has more than one meaning such that it can be true for God to nacham in one sense but not nacham in another sense, both at the same time without there being a contradiction.

2) God’s Judgment of Agag

    1. The most ancient school of thought took the root to be the first three letters of the word מעד (“tremble”), that is the interpretation of the Aramaic Targums, the Greek Septuagint, and the Latin Vulgate. Modern English translations which carry on this interpretation are the NET Bible (“trembling”) and perhaps the NKJV, which rendered it as “cautiously.”47 The notes in the NET Bible say their translation “understands Agag to approach – not confidently but – in the stark realization that his death is imminent (‘Surely death is bitter!’).”

    2. The second school of thought (including Aquila, Symmachus, Matthew Henry, and Driver) took the root to be the second, third, and fourth letters עדן meaning soft/luxurious,” as it is in Psalm 29:17, thus the King James translated it as delicately,” in the early 1600’s (which the Puritan Andrew Willett explained in his commentary asapparelled and adorned as a king”48), and 21st century English versions like the NASB and ESV translated it ascheerfully” (which the great 19th century commentators Keil & Delitzsch49 explained as[in a] contented and joyous state of mind… because he thought that his life was to be granted to him”).

    3. The third school of thought on this word follows the great medieval Hebrew scholar David Kimchi, and is supported by the two main modern Hebrew lexicons by Brown Driver and Briggs and by William Holliday. They explain that the last two letters of the root underwent a transposition (as they did in Job 38:31), so the root is actually – not ‘adon but – עָנַד, which means "to bind around” (cf. Prov. 6:21) – thus the NIV and the American Jewish Version “in chains50.” In favor of this third interpretation, the ending of this Hebrew word is feminine plural, which matches the feminine plural noun “bonds” rather than the singular masculine man “trembling” or going “cheerfully.51

3) Conclusion: God’s Glory and You

1 Samuel 15 - Side-by side comparison of versionsFL

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1

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ πρὸς Σαουλ ἐμὲ ἀπέστειλεν κύριος χρῗσαί σε εἰς βασιλέα ἐπὶ X X X Ισραηλ καὶ νῦν ἄκουε τῆς φωνῆς X κυρίου

And Samuel said to Saul, The Lord sent me to anoint thee king over X X X Israel: and now hear the voice of the X X Lord.

And Samuel said to Saul: The Lord sent me to anoint thee king over his People XFM Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of X the Lord:

Samuel also said unto Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel: now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD.

Now Samuel said to Saul, “I am the one Yahweh commissioned to anoint you to be king over His people – over Israel, so give heed now to the voice of the words of Yahweh.

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, אֶל- שָׁאוּל, אֹתִי שָׁלַח יְהוָה לִמְשָׁחֳךָ לְמֶלֶךְ, עַל-עַמּוֹ עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל; וְעַתָּה שְׁמַע, לְקוֹל דִּבְרֵיFN יְהוָה. {ס}

2

τάδε εἶπεν κύριος σαβαωθ [νῦν] ἐκδικήσωFO ἃ ἐποίησεν Αμαληκ τῷ Ισραηλ ὡς ἀπήντησενFP αὐτῷ ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ ἀναβαίνοντος αὐτοῦ ἐξ Αἰγύπτου

Thus said the Lord of hosts, [Now] will I take vengeance for what Amalec did to Israel, when he met him in the way as he came up out of Egypt.

Thus saith the Lord of hosts: I have reckoned up [all] that Amalec hath done to Israel: how he op­posed them in the way when they came up out of Egypt.

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait forFQ him in the way, when he came up from Egypt.

2 Yahweh of armies spoke thus, ‘I will hold Amalek accountable for what it did to Israel – which was to set itself in the way when they came up out of Egypt.

כֹּה אָמַר, יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת, פָּקַדְתִּי, אֵת אֲשֶׁר-עָשָׂה עֲמָלֵק לְיִשְׂרָאֵל--אֲשֶׁר-שָׂם לוֹ בַּדֶּרֶךְ, בַּעֲלֹתוֹ מִמִּצְרָיִם.

3

καὶ νῦν πορεύου καὶ πατάξεις τὸν Αμαληκ καὶ Ιεριμ [καὶ πάντα τὰ αὐ­τοῦ καὶ οὐ περιποι­ήσῃ ἐξ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξολεθρεύσεις αὐ­τὸν καὶ ἀνα­θεμα­τι­εῗς αὐτὸν] καὶ πάν­τα τὰ αὐτοῦ καὶ οὐ φείσῃ ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀποκτεν­εῗς ἀπὸ ἀνδρὸς [καὶFR] ἕως γυναικὸς καὶ ἀπὸ νηπίου ἕως θηλάζ­οντος καὶ ἀπὸ μόσ­χου X ἕως προβά­του καὶ ἀπὸ καμ­ήλου X ἕως ὄνου

And now go, and thou shalt smite Am­alec and Hierim [and all that belongs to him, and thou shalt not save any­thing of him alive, but thou shalt utterly destroy him: and thou shalt devote him] and all his to destruction, and thou shalt spare no­thing belonging to him; and thou shalt slay both man and woman, and infant and suckling, and calf and sheep, and camel and ass.

Now therefore go, and smite Amalec, and utterly destroy all that he hath: X spare him not,[nor covet any thing that is his]: but slay both man and woman, child and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.

Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and sucklingFS, ox and sheep, camel and assFT.

3 So, go now and make a strike against Amalek, and devote to des­truction everything that belongs to it, and do not be spar­ing with it, {furthermore, don’t take into possession anything belonging to it,} and put to death both man and woman, both infant and nursing-toddler, both steer and sheep, both camel and donkey.’”

עַתָּהFU לֵךְ וְהִכִּיתָה אֶת-עֲמָלֵק, וְהַחֲרַמְתֶּם אֶת-כָּל-אֲשֶׁר-לוֹ, וְלֹא תַחְמֹל, עָלָיו; וְהֵמַתָּה מֵאִישׁ עַד-אִשָּׁה, מֵעֹלֵל וְעַד-יוֹנֵק, מִשּׁוֹר וְעַד-שֶׂה, מִגָּמָל וְעַד-חֲמוֹר. {ס}

4

καὶ παρήγγειλεν Σαουλ τῷ λαῷ καὶ ἐπισκέπτεται αὐτοὺς ἐν Γαλ­γαλοις τετρα­κοσίαςFV χιλιάδας ταγμάτωνFW καὶ τὸν Ιουδαν τριά­κοντα χιλιάδας ταγμάτων

And Saul sum­moned the people, and he numbered them in Galgala, four hundred thousand regular troops, and Juda thirty thousand regular troops.

So Saul com­manded the people, and numbered them as lambs: two hundred thous­and footmen, and ten thous­and of the men of Juda.

And Saul gathered the people together, and numberedFX them in Telaim, two hundred thousand foot­men, and ten thousand men of Judah.

4 So Saul had it announced to the people, and he made an accounting of them in Telaim: 200,000 foot-soldiers and 10,000 men of Judah.

וַיְשַׁמַּע שָׁאוּל, אֶת-הָעָם, וַיִּפְקְדֵם בַּטְּלָאִים, מָאתַיִם אֶלֶף רַגְלִי; וַעֲשֶׂרֶת אֲלָפִים, אֶת-אִישׁ יְהוּדָה.

5

καὶ ἦλθεν Σαουλ ἕως τῶν πόλεων Αμαληκ καὶ ἐνήδρευσεν ἐν τῷ χειμάρρῳFY

And Saul came to the citie[s] of Amalec, and laid wait in the valley.

And when Saul was come to the city of Amalec, he laid ambushes in the torrent.

And Saul came to a city of Amalek, and laid wait in the valleyFZ.

5 Then Saul went up to the city of Amalek and set up an ambush at the creek.

וַיָּבֹא שָׁאוּל, עַד-עִיר עֲמָלֵק; וַיָּרֶבGA, בַּנָּחַל.

6

καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς τὸν Κιναῗον X ἄπελθε καὶ ἔκκλινον ἐκ μέσου τοῦ Αμαληκίτου μὴ προσθῶGB σε μετ᾽ αὐτοῦ καὶ σὺ ἐποίησας ἔλεος μετὰ τῶν υἱῶν Ισραηλ ἐν τῷ ἀναβαίνειν αὐτοὺς ἐξ Αἰγύπτου καὶ ἐξέκλινεν ὁ Κιναῗος ἐκ μέσου Αμαληκ

And Saul said to the Kinite, Go, and depart X out of the midst of the Amal­ekites, lest I put thee with them; for thou dealedst mer­cifully with the children of Israel when they went up out of Egypt. So the Kinite departed from the midst of Amalec.

And Saul said to the Cinite: Go, depart and get ye down from Ama­lec: lest I destroy thee with him. For thou hast shewn kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. And the Cinite de­parted from the midst of Amalec.

And Saul said unto the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them: for ye shewed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt. So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.

6 Saul also said to the Kenites, “Y’all go, get away, go down from the midst of Amalek, otherwise I will do away with you along with it. But, as for you, you practiced lovingkindness with all the children of Israel when they went up out of Egypt.” So the Kenites got away from the midst of Amalek.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל-הַקֵּינִי לְכוּ סֻּרוּ רְדוּ מִתּוֹךְ עֲמָלֵקִי, פֶּן-אֹסִפְךָGC עִמּוֹ, וְאַתָּה עָשִׂיתָה חֶסֶד עִם-כָּל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, בַּעֲלוֹתָם מִמִּצְרָיִם; וַיָּסַר קֵינִי, מִתּוֹךְ עֲמָלֵק.

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καὶ ἐπάταξεν Σαουλ τὸν Αμαληκ ἀπὸ Ευιλατ ἕως X Σουρ X ἐπὶ προσώπου Αἰγύπτου

And Saul smote Amalec from Evilat to X Sur X fronting Egypt.

And Saul smote Amalec from Hevila, until thou comest to Sur, which is over against Egypt.

And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt.

7 Then Saul made a strike against Amalek, from Havilah as you go to Shur (which is on the level of Egypt).

וַיַּךְ שָׁאוּל, אֶת-עֲמָלֵק, מֵחֲוִילָה בּוֹאֲךָ שׁוּר, אֲשֶׁר עַל-פְּנֵי מִצְרָיִם.

8

καὶ συνέλαβεν τὸν Αγαγ βασιλέα Αμαληκ ζῶντα καὶ πάντα τὸν λαὸν [Ιεριμ] ἀπέκτεινενGD ἐν στόματι ῥομφαίας

And he took Agag the king of Amalec alive, and he slew all the people and Hierim with the edge of the sword.

And he took Agag the king of Amalec alive: but all the common people he slew with the edge of the sword.

And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly des­troyed all the people with the edge of the sword.

8 And he took into custody Agag, king of Amalek, alive, but all the people he devoted to destruction by the edge of the sword.

וַיִּתְפֹּשׂ אֶת-אֲגַג מֶלֶךְ-עֲמָלֵק, חָי; וְאֶת-כָּל-הָעָם, הֶחֱרִים לְפִי-חָרֶב.

9

καὶ περιεποιήσατο Σαουλ καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς τὸν Αγαγ [ζῶντα] καὶ τὰ ἀγαθὰ τῶν ποιμνίων καὶ τῶν βουκολίων καὶ τῶν ἐδεσμάτων καὶ τῶν ἀμπελών­ωνGE καὶ πάντων τῶν ἀγαθῶν καὶ οὐκ ἐβούλετο αὐτὰ ἐξολεθρεῦσαι καὶ πᾶν ἔργον ἠτιμω­μένονGF καὶ ἐξουδεν­ωμένονGG X ἐξωλέθρευσαν

And Saul and all the people saved Agag [alive], and the best of the flocks, and of the herds, and of the fruits, of the vineyards, and of all the good things; and they would not destroy them: but every worthless and refuse thing X they destroyed.

And Saul and the people spared Agag and the best of the [flocks of] sheep and of the herds, and the garments and the rams, and all that was beautiful, and would not des­troy them: but every thing that was vile and good for nothing, that they destroyed.

But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlingsGH, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vileGI and refuseGJ, that they destroyed utterly.

9 So, Saul was sparing with Agag – and so was the people, and also with the best of the flock and the herd and with the ones being fattened and with the lambs – that is, with everything that was good, they were indeed not willing to devote them to destruction, but every artifact that was undesirable or was falling-apart, those they devoted to destruction.

וַיַּחְמֹל שָׁאוּל וְהָעָם עַל-אֲגָג, וְעַל-מֵיטַב הַצֹּאן וְהַבָּקָר וְהַמִּשְׁנִיםGK וְעַל- הַכָּרִים וְעַל-כָּל- הַטּוֹב, וְלֹא אָבוּ, הַחֲרִימָם; וְכָל- הַמְּלָאכָה נְמִבְזָה וְנָמֵס, אֹתָהּ הֶחֱרִימוּ. {פ}

10

καὶ ἐγενήθη ῥῆμα κυρίου πρὸς Σαμουηλ λέγων

And the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying:

Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying,

10 Then the word of Yahweh happened to Samuel, saying,

וַיְהִי, דְּבַר-יְהוָה, אֶל-שְׁמוּאֵל, לֵאמֹר.

11

παρακέκλημαι ὅτι ἐβασίλευσα τὸν Σαουλ εἰς βασιλέα ὅτι ἀπέστρεψεν ἀπὸ ὄπισθέν μου καὶ τοὺς λόγους μου οὐκ ἐτήρησεν καὶ ἠθύμησενGL Σαμου­ηλ καὶ ἐβόησεν πρὸς κύριον ὅλην τὴν νύκτα

I have repented that I have made Saul to be king: for he has turned back from follow­ing me, and has not kept my wordX. And Samuel was grieved, and cried to the Lord all night.

It repenteth me that I have made Saul king: for he hath X forsaken me, and hath not executed my commandments. And Samuel was grieved, and he cried unto the Lord all night.

It repentethGM me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performedGN my com­mand­mentsGO. And it grievedGP Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.

11 “I have changed tactics since I made Saul reign as king, for he has turned back from following me, and he has not instituted my words.” And Samuel was incensed, and he cried out to Yahweh all that night.

נִחַמְתִּיGQ, כִּי-הִמְלַכְתִּי אֶת-שָׁאוּל לְמֶלֶךְ--כִּי-שָׁב מֵאַחֲרַי, וְאֶת-דְּבָרַי לֹא הֵקִים; וַיִּחַר, לִשְׁמוּאֵל, וַיִּזְעַק אֶל-יְהוָה, כָּל-הַלָּיְלָה.

12

καὶ ὤρθρισεν Σαμ­ουηλ καὶ ἐπορεύθη εἰς ἀπάντησιν Ισραηλ πρωί καὶ ἀπηγγέλη τῷ Σαμ­ουηλ λέγοντες ἥκει Σαουλ εἰς Κάρμη­λον καὶ X ἀνέστα­κεν αὐτῷ χεῗρα καὶ ἐπέστρεψεν [τὸ ἅρμα] καὶ κατέβη εἰς Γαλγαλα [πρὸς Σαουλ καὶ ἰδοὺ αὐτὸς ἀνέφερεν ὁλοκαύτωσιν τῷ κυρίῳ τὰ πρῶτα τῶν σκύλων ὧν ἤνεγκεν ἐξ Αμαληκ]

And Samuel rose early and went to meet Israel in the morning, and it was told Saul, saying, Samuel has come to Carmel, and X he has raised up help for himself: and he turned [his chariot], and came down to Galgala[ to Saul; and, behold, he was offer­ing up a whole-burnt-offering to the Lord, the chief of the spoils which he brought out of Amalec.]

And when Samuel rose early, to go to Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel X, that Saul was come to Carmel, and X had erected for himself a triumphant arch, and returning had passed on, and gone down to Galgal. [And Samuel came to Saul, and Saul was offering a holo­caust to the Lord out of the choic­est of the spoils which he had brought from Amalec.]

And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morn­ing, X it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to Car­mel, and, behold, he set him up a placeGR, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal.

12 Then Samuel got up early to call upon Saul in the morning, but it was communicated to Samuel saying, “Saul went to Carmel and there he erected for himself a monument, then he went around and crossed over and went down to Gilgal.” {So Samuel went to Saul, and there was Saul, offering up a whole-burnt-offering to Yahweh from the best of the loot which he had brought out of Amalek.}

וַיַּשְׁכֵּם שְׁמוּאֵל לִקְרַאת שָׁאוּל, בַּבֹּקֶר; וַיֻּגַּד לִשְׁמוּאֵל לֵאמֹר, בָּא-שָׁאוּל הַכַּרְמֶלָה וְהִנֵּה מַצִּיב לוֹ יָד, GSוַיִּסֹּב וַיַּעֲבֹר, וַיֵּרֶד הַגִּלְגָּל.

13

καὶ παρεγένετο Σαμουηλ πρὸς Σαουλ καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ Σαουλ εὐλογητὸς σὺ τῷ κυρίῳ ἔστησα [πάντα] ὅσα ἐλάλησεν κύριος

And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said to him, Blessed art thou of the Lord: I have performed [all] that the Lord said.

And when Samu­el was come to Saul, Saul said to him: Blessed be thou of the Lord, I have fulfilled the word of the Lord.

And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD.

13 And when Samuel came to Saul, Saul said to him, “May you be blessed before Yahweh! I have instituted the word of Yahweh!

וַיָּבֹא שְׁמוּאֵל, אֶל- שָׁאוּל; וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ שָׁאוּל, בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה לַיהוָה--הֲקִימֹתִי, אֶת-דְּבַר יְהוָה.

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καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ καὶ τίς ἡ φωνὴ τοῦ ποιμνίου τούτου ἐν τοῗς ὠσίν μου καὶ φωνὴ τῶν βοῶν ὧν ἐγὼ ἀκούω

And Samuel said, What then is the bleating of this flock in my ears, and the sound of the oxen which I hear?

And Samuel said: What [meaneth] then this bleating of the flock[s], [which soundeth] in my ears, and the lowing of the herds, which I hear?

And Samuel said, What [meaneth] then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?

14 But Samuel said, “Then why is there the sound of this flock in my ears – and the sound of the herd which I am hearing?”

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, וּמֶה קוֹל-הַצֹּאן הַזֶּה בְּאָזְנָי, וְקוֹל הַבָּקָר, אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי שֹׁמֵעַ.

15

καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ ἐξ Αμαληκ ἤνεγκαX αὐτά ἃ περιεποιή­σατο ὁ λαός τὰ κράτιστα τοῦ ποιμνίου καὶ τῶν βοῶν ὅπως τυθῇ τῷ κυρίῳ θεῷ σου καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ἐξωλέθρευσα

And Saul said, I have brought them out of Amalec, that which the people preserved, even the best of the sheep, and of the cattle, that it might be sacrificed to the Lord thy God, and the rest have I utterly destroyed.

And Saul said: They have brought them from Amalec: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the herd[s] that they might be sacri­ficed to the Lord thy God, but the rest we have slain.

And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.

15 And Saul said, “They brought them from the Amalekites! It’s what the people spared of the best of the flock and the herd in order to sacrifice to Yahweh your God, then the rest we devoted to destruction.”

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל מֵעֲמָלֵקִי הֱבִיאוּם, אֲשֶׁר חָמַל הָעָם עַל-מֵיטַב הַצֹּאן וְהַבָּקָר, לְמַעַן זְבֹחַ, לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ; וְאֶת-הַיּוֹתֵר, הֶחֱרַמְנוּ. {פ}

16

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ πρὸς Σαουλ ἄνεςGT καὶ ἀπαγγελῶ σοι ἃ ἐλάλησεν κύριος πρός με τὴν νύκτα καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ λάλησον

And Samuel said to Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the Lord has said to me this night: and he said to him, Say on.

And Samuel said to Saul: Suffer me, and I will tell thee what the Lord hath said to me this night. And he said to him: Speak.

Then Samuel said unto Saul, StayGU, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night. And he said unto him, Say on.

16 Then Samuel said to Saul, “Cool it, and let me communicate to you what Yahweh spoke to me last night.” And {he} said to him, “Speak on.”

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, אֶל- שָׁאוּל, הֶרֶף וְאַגִּידָה לְּךָ, אֵת אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְהוָה אֵלַי הַלָּיְלָה; ויאמרוGV לוֹ, דַּבֵּר.ס

17

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ [πρὸς Σαουλ] οὐχὶ μικρὸς σὺ εἶ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἡγούμενος X σκήπτρου φυλῆς Ισραηλ καὶ ἔχρισέν σε κύριος εἰς βασιλέα ἐπὶ Ισραηλ

And Samuel said [to Saul], Art thou not little in his eyes, though a leader of one of the tribes of Israel? and yet the Lord anointed thee to be king over Israel.

And Samuel said: When thou wast a little one in thy own eyes, wast thou [not made] the head of the tribes of Israel? And the Lord anointed thee to be king over Israel.

And Samuel said, When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou [not made] the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel?

So Samuel said, “Is it not so that you were the head of the tribes of Israel when you were small in your eyes? So Yahweh anointed you to reign over Israel.

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל--הֲלוֹא אִם-קָטֹןGW אַתָּה בְּעֵינֶיךָ, רֹאשׁ שִׁבְטֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אָתָּה; וַיִּמְשָׁחֲךָ יְהוָה לְמֶלֶךְ, עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל.

18

καὶ ἀπέστειλέν σε κύριος ἐν ὁδῷ καὶ εἶπέν σοι πορεύθητι καὶ ἐξολέθρευσον τοὺς ἁμαρτάνοντας [εἰς ἐμέ] τὸν Αμα­ληκ καὶ πολεμήσεις αὐτούς ἕως συντελέσῃς αὐτούς

And the Lord sent thee on a journey, and said to thee, Go, and utterly destroy: thou shalt slay the sinners [against me], even the Amalekites; and thou shalt war against them until thou have consumed them.

And the Lord sent thee on the way, and said: Go, and kill the sinners of Amalec, and thou shalt fight against them until thou hast utterly destroyed them.

And the LORD sent thee on a journeyGX, and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumedGY.

Then Yahweh commissioned you along the way and said to you, ‘Now devote to destruction the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight them until they are no more.’

וַיִּשְׁלָחֲךָ יְהוָה, בְּדָרֶךְ; וַיֹּאמֶר, לֵךְ וְהַחֲרַמְתָּה אֶת-הַחַטָּאִים אֶת-עֲמָלֵק, וְנִלְחַמְתָּ בוֹ, עַד כַּלּוֹתָםGZ אֹתָם.

19

καὶ ἵνα τί οὐκ ἤκουσας τῆς φωνῆς κυρίου ἀλλ᾽ ὥρμη­σας [τοῦ θέσθαι] ἐπὶ τὰ σκῦλα καὶ ἐποίη­σας τὸ πονη­ρὸν ἐνώπιον κυρίου

And why didst not thou hearken to the voice of the Lord, but didst haste [to fasten upon] the spoil[s], and didst that which was evil in the sight of the Lord?

Why then didst thou not hearken to the voice of the Lord: but hast turned to the prey, and hast done evil in the eyes of the Lord.

Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst flyHA upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD?

So, why didn’t you, Sir, give heed to the voice of Yahweh but instead you swooped toward the booty and did evil in the eyes of Yahweh?”

וְלָמָּה לֹא-שָׁמַעְתָּ, בְּקוֹל יְהוָה; וַתַּעַט, אֶל-הַשָּׁלָל, וַתַּעַשׂ הָרַע, בְּעֵינֵי יְהוָה. {ס}

20

καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς Σαμουηλ διὰ τὸ ἀκοῦσαί με τῆς φωνῆς τοῦ λαοῦ καὶ ἐπορεύθην ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ ᾗ ἀπέστειλέν με κύριος καὶ ἤγαγον τὸν Αγαγ βασιλέα Αμαληκ καὶ τὸν Αμαληκ ἐξωλέθρευσα

And Saul said to Samuel, Because I listened to the voice of the people: yet I went the way by which the Lord sent me, and I brought Agag the king of Amalec, and I destroyed Amalec.

And Saul said to Samuel: Yea I have hearkened to the voice of the Lord, and have walked in the way by which the Lord sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalec, and Amalec I have slain.

And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.

Then Saul said to Samuel, “What? I did heed the voice of Yahweh! In­deed, I went in the way that Yahweh sent me, and I brought Agag, King of Amalek and I devoted the Amalekites to destruction!”

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל- שְׁמוּאֵל, אֲשֶׁרHB שָׁמַעְתִּי בְּקוֹל יְהוָה, וָאֵלֵךְ, בַּדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר- שְׁלָחַנִי יְהוָה; וָאָבִיא, אֶת-אֲגַג מֶלֶךְ עֲמָלֵק, וְאֶת-עֲמָלֵק, הֶחֱרַמְתִּי.

21

καὶ ἔλαβεν ὁ λαὸς τῶν σκύλων ποίμνια καὶ βουκό­λια τὰ πρῶτα τοῦ ἐξολεθρεύματοςHC θῦσαι ἐνώπιον κυρίου θεοῦ μῶν ἐν Γαλγαλοις

But the people took of the spoils the best flocks and herds out of that which was des­troyed, to sacrifice before the Lord Xour God in Galgal.

But the people took of the spoil[s] sheep and oxen, as the firstfruits of those things that were slain, to offer sacrifice to the Lord their God in Galgal.

But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chiefHD of the things which should have been utterly destroyed, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal.

The people, however, took the first things from the booty of sheep and oxen devoted to destruction in order to sacrifice to Yahweh your God in Gilgal.”

וַיִּקַּח הָעָם מֵהַשָּׁלָל צֹאן וּבָקָר, רֵאשִׁית הַחֵרֶם, לִזְבֹּחַ לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָHE, בַּגִּלְגָּל.{ס}


LXX

Brenton

DRB

KJV

NAW

MT

22

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ εἰ θελητὸν τῷ κυρίῳ ὁλοκαυτώ­ματα καὶ θυσίαι ὡς τὸ ἀκοῦσαι φωνῆς κυρίου ἰδοὺ ἀκοὴ ὑπὲρ θυσίαν ἀγαθὴ [καὶ]ἐπακρόασις ὑπὲρ στέαρ κριῶν

And Samuel said, Does the Lord take pleasure in whole-burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in hearing the words of the Lord? behold, obedience is better than [a good] sacrifice, [and] hearkening than the fat of rams.

And Samuel said: Doth the Lord desire holocausts and victims, [and not rather] that the voice of the Lord should be obeyed? For obedience is bett­er than sacri­fice[s]: and to hearken rather than [to offer] the fat of rams.

And Samuel said, Hath the LORD [as great] delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacri­fice, and to heark­enHF than the fat of rams.

Then Samuel said, “Is there pleasure for Yahweh in whole-burnt-offerings and sacrifices, like there is [in] your giving heed to the voice of Yahweh? Look, to give heed is better than sacrifice; to be attentive [is better] than the fat of rams!

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, הַחֵפֶץ לַיהוָה בְּעֹלוֹת וּזְבָחִים, כִּשְׁמֹעַ, בְּקוֹל יְהוָה: הִנֵּה שְׁמֹעַ מִזֶּבַח טוֹב, לְהַקְשִׁיב מֵחֵלֶב אֵילִים.

23

ὅτι ἁμαρτία οἰώνισμάHG ἐστιν ὀδύνηνHH καὶ πόνουςHI X θεραφινHJ ἐπάγουσινHK ὅτι ἐξουδένωσας τὸ ῥῆμα κυρίου καὶ ἐξουδενώσει σε [κύριος] μὴ εἶναι βασιλέα [ἐπὶ Ισραηλ]

For sin is as divination; idols X bring on pain and grief. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, the [Lord] also shall reject thee from being king [over Israel].

Because it is like the sin of witch­craft, to rebel: and like the crime of idolatry, to refuse to obey. For­asmuch there­fore as thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, the [Lord] hath also rejected thee from being king.

For rebellion is as the sin of witch­craft, and stub­bornnessHL is as iniquityHM and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.

For the sin of witchcraft is rebellion, and iniquity and idols is pressure to compromise. Because you have rejected the word of Yahweh, {Yahweh} has also rejected you from being king.

כִּי חַטַּאת-קֶסֶםHN מֶרִי, וְאָוֶן וּתְרָפִים הַפְצַרHO: יַעַן, מָאַסְתָּ אֶת-דְּבַר יְהוָה, וַיִּמְאָסְךָHP, מִמֶּלֶךְ. {ס}

24

καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς Σαμουηλ ἡμάρτηκα ὅτι παρέβην τὸν λόγον κυρίου καὶ τὸ ῥῆμά σου ὅτι ἐφοβήθην τὸν λαὸν καὶ ἤκουσα τῆς φωνῆς αὐτῶν

And Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned, in that I have transgressed the word of the Lord and thy directionX; for I feared the people, and I hearkened to their voice.

And Saul said to Samuel: I have sinned because I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and thy words, X fearing the people, and obeying their voice.

And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressedHQ the commandment of the LORD, and thy words: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.

Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I overreached Yahweh’s limit - and your words - in that I was afraid of the people and gave heed to their voice.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל- שְׁמוּאֵל חָטָאתִי, כִּי-עָבַרְתִּי אֶת-פִּי- יְהוָה וְאֶת- דְּבָרֶיךָ: כִּי יָרֵאתִי אֶת-הָעָם, וָאֶשְׁמַע בְּקוֹלָם.

25

καὶ νῦν ἆρον δὴHR τὸ ἁμάρτημά μου καὶ ἀνάστρεψον μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ καὶ προσ­κυνήσω κυρίῳ [τῷ θεῷ σου]HS

And now remove, I pray thee, my sin, and turn back with me, and I will worship the Lord [thy God].

But now bear, I beseech thee, my sin, and return with me, that I may adore X the Lord.

Now therefore, I prayHT [thee], pardonHU my sin, and turn again with me, that I may worship XHV the LORD.

But now, please take away my sin and come back with me so I can worship before Yahweh.”

וְעַתָּה, שָׂאHW נָא אֶת- חַטָּאתִי; וְשׁוּב עִמִּי, וְאֶשְׁתַּחֲוֶה לַיהוָה.

26

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ πρὸς Σαουλ οὐκ ἀναστρέφω μετὰ σοῦ ὅτι ἐξουδένω­σαςHX τὸ ῥῆμα κυρ­ίου καὶ ἐξουδενώ­σειHY σε κύριος τοῦ μὴ εἶναι βασιλέα ἐπὶ τὸν Ισραηλ

And Samuel said to Saul, I will not turn back with thee, for thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord will reject thee from being king over Israel.

And Samuel said to Saul: I will not return with thee, because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.

And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee: for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.

Then Samuel said to Saul, “I will not go back with you, because you have rejected the word of Yahweh, and Yahweh has rejected you from being king over Israel.”

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל אֶל- שָׁאוּל, לֹא אָשׁוּב עִמָּךְ: כִּי מָאַסְתָּה, אֶת-דְּבַר יְהוָה, וַיִּמְאָסְךָ יְהוָה, מִהְיוֹת מֶלֶךְ עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל. {ס}

27

καὶ ἀπέστρεψεν Σαμ­ου­ηλ [τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ τοῦ] ἀπελθεῗν καὶ ἐκράτησεν [Σα­ουλ] τοῦ πτερυγίουHZ τῆς διπλοΐδοςIA αὐ­τοῦ καὶ διέρρηξεν [αὐτό]

And Samuel turned [his face] to depart, and Saul caught hold of the skirt of his garment, and tore [it].

And Samuel turned about to go away: but he laid hold upon the skirt of his mantle, and it rent.

And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid holdIB upon the skirtIC of his mantleID, and it rent.

As Samuel turned to go, Saul got a strong grip on a flap of his tunic, and it ripped.

וַיִּסֹּב שְׁמוּאֵל, לָלֶכֶת; וַיַּחֲזֵקIE בִּכְנַף-מְעִילוֹIF, וַיִּקָּרַעIG. {ס}

28

καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐ­τὸν Σαμουηλ διέρ­ρηξεν κύριος τὴν βασιλείαν IHΙσρα­ηλ ἐκ [χειρός] σου σήμερον καὶ δώσει αὐτὴν τῷ πλησίονII σου τῷ ἀγαθῷ ὑπὲρ σέ

And Samuel said to him, The Lord has rent [thy] kingdom [from] Israel out of thy[hand] this day, and will give it to thy neighbour who is better than thou.

And Samuel said to him: The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to thy neighbour who is better than thee.

And Samuel said unto him, The LORD hath rentIJ the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath giv­en it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou.

Then Samuel said to him, “Yahweh has ripped the kingship of Israel from your {hand} and has given it to your neighbor who is better than you,

וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו, שְׁמוּאֵל, קָרַע יְהוָה אֶת- מַמְלְכוּת יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵעָלֶיךָ, הַיּוֹםIK; וּנְתָנָהּ, לְרֵעֲךָ הַטּוֹב מִמֶּךָּ. {ס}

29

Καὶ X διαιρεθή­σε­ται Ισραηλ [εἰς δύο] καὶ οὐκ ἀπο­στρέψει οὐδὲ μετανοήσειIL ὅτι οὐχ [ὡς] ἄνθρω­πός ἐστιν τοῦ μετα­νοῆσαιIM αὐτός

And X Israel shall be divided [to two]: and God will not turn nor repent, for he is not [as] a man to repent.

But the triumpher in Israel will not spare, and will not be moved to repentance: for he is not a man that he should repent.

And also the StrengthIN of Israel will not lie nor repent: for he is not a man, that he should repentIO.

(and, what’s more, Israel shall be divided in two); He will not turn back and He will not switch tactics, for He is not a man to switch tactics.”

וְגַם נֵצַחIP יִשְׂרָאֵל, לֹא יְשַׁקֵּרIQ וְלֹא יִנָּחֵם: כִּי לֹא אָדָם הוּא, לְהִנָּחֵם.

30

καὶ εἶπεν [Σαουλ] ἡμάρτηκα ἀλλὰ δόξασόνIR με δὴ ἐνώπιον πρεσβυ­τέρων Ισραηλ καὶ ἐνώπιον λαοῦ μου καὶ ἀνάστρεψον μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ καὶ προσκυνήσω τῷ κυρίῳ θεῷ σου

And Saul said, I have sinned; yet honour me, I pray thee, before the elders of Israel, and before my people; and turn back with me, and I will worship X the Lord thy God.

Then he said: I have sinned: [yet] honour me now X before the ancients of my people, and before Israel, and return with me, that I may adore X the Lord thy God.

Then he said, I have sinned: [yet] honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and turn again with me, that I may worship XIS the LORD thy God.

Then {Saul} said, “I have sinned, {but} please honor me in front of the elders of my people, and in front of Israel and come back with me while I worship before your God.”

וַיֹּאמֶרIT חָטָאתִי--עַתָּהIU כַּבְּדֵנִי נָא נֶגֶד זִקְנֵי-עַמִּי, וְנֶגֶד יִשְׂרָאֵל; IVוְשׁוּב עִמִּי, וְהִשְׁתַּחֲוֵיתִי לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ.

31

καὶ ἀνέστρεψεν Σαμουηλ ὀπίσω Σαουλ καὶ προσεκύν­ησεν X τῷ κυρίῳ

So Samuel turned back after Saul, and he worshipped the Lord.

So Samuel turned again after Saul: and Saul adored the Lord.

So Samuel turned again after Saul; and Saul worshipped the LORD.

So Samuel went back after Saul while {he} worshiped before Yahweh.

וַיָּשָׁב שְׁמוּאֵל, אַחֲרֵי שָׁאוּל; וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ שָׁאוּלIW, לַיהוָה. ס

32

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ προσαγάγετέ μοι τὸν Αγαγ βασιλέα Αμαληκ καὶ προσῆλθεν πρὸς αὐτὸν Αγαγ τρέμωνIX καὶ εἶπεν Αγαγ εἰ οὕτως πικρὸς ὁ θάνατος

And Samuel said, Bring me Agag the king of Amalec: and Agag came to him trembling; and Agag said Is death thus bitter?

And Samuel said: Bring hitherto me Agag the king of Amalec. And Agag was presented to him very fat, and trembling. And Agag said: Doth bitter death separate in this manner?

Then said Samuel, Bring ye hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came unto him delicatelyIY. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is past.

Then Samuel said, “Present to me Agag, King of Amalec.” So Agag came to him trembling, but Agag said, “Surely the bitterness of death has turned away.”

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל, הַגִּישׁוּ אֵלַי אֶת-אֲגַג מֶלֶךְ עֲמָלֵק, וַיֵּלֶךְ אֵלָיו, אֲגַג מַעֲדַנֹּתIZ; וַיֹּאמֶר אֲגָג, אָכֵן סָר מַר-הַמָּוֶת. ס

33

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ [πρὸς Αγαγ] καθότι ἠτέκνωσεν γυναῗ­κας ἡ ῥομφαία σου οὕτως ἀτεκνωθή­σεται ἐκ γυναικῶν ἡ μήτηρ σου καὶ ἔσφαξενJA Σαμ­ουηλ [τὸν Αγαγ] ἐνώπιον κυρίου ἐν Γαλγαλ

And Samuel said [to Agag], As thy sword has bereaved women of their children, so shall thy mother be made childless among women: and Samuel slew Agag before the Lord in Galgal.

And Samuel said: As thy sword hath made women child­less, so shall thy mother be childl­ess among women. And Sam­uel hewed him in pieces before the Lord in Galgal.

And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women child­less, so shall thy mother be child­less among women. And Sam­uel hewedJB Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.

But Samuel said, “As when women were bereaved by your sword, so your mother will be bereaved among women.” And Samuel beheaded Agag before the face of Yahweh in Gilgal.

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל--כַּאֲשֶׁר שִׁכְּלָה נָשִׁים חַרְבֶּךָ, כֵּן-תִּשְׁכַּל מִנָּשִׁיםJC אִמֶּךָ; וַיְשַׁסֵּף שְׁמוּאֵל אֶת-אֲגָג לִפְנֵי יְהוָה, בַּגִּלְגָּל. {ס}

34

καὶ ἀπῆλθεν Σαμ­ουηλ εἰς Αρμαθαιμ καὶ Σαουλ ἀνέβη εἰς τὸν οἶκον αὐ­τοῦ εἰς ΓαβααJD X.

And Samuel departed to Armathaim, and Saul went up to his house at Gabaa X X.

And Samuel departed to Rama­tha: but Saul went up to his house in Gabaa X X.

Then Samuel wentJE to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul.

Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house at Gibeah {}.

וַיֵּלֶךְ שְׁמוּאֵל, הָרָמָתָה; וְשָׁאוּל עָלָה אֶל-בֵּיתוֹ, גִּבְעַת שָׁאוּלJF.

35

καὶ οὐ προσέθετο Σαμουηλ ἔτι ἰδεῗν τὸν Σαουλ ἕως ἡμέρας θανάτου αὐτοῦ ὅτι ἐπένθει Σαμουηλ ἐπὶ Σαουλ καὶ κύριος μετεμελήθη ὅτι ἐβασίλευσεν τὸν Σαουλ ἐπὶ Ισραηλ

And Samuel did not see Saul again till the day of his death, for Samuel mourned after Saul, and the Lord repented that he had made Saul king over Israel.

And Samuel saw Saul no more till the day of his death: nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, because the Lord repented that he had made him king over Israel.

And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death: neverthelessJG Sam­uel mournedJH for Saul: and the LORD repentedJI that he had made Saul king over Israel.

And Samuel did not take it upon himself to see Saul until the day of his death; Samuel did, however, mourn concerning Saul. And Yahweh switched tactics since he had caused Saul to reign over Israel.

וְלֹא-יָסַף שְׁמוּאֵל לִרְאוֹת אֶת-שָׁאוּל, עַד-יוֹם מוֹתוֹJJ, כִּי- הִתְאַבֵּל שְׁמוּאֵל, אֶל-שָׁאוּל; וַיהוָה נִחָם, כִּי-הִמְלִיךְ אֶת- שָׁאוּל עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל. פ

 

I Samuel CHAPTER 16

1 Samuel 16:1-13 – God Looks At The Heart

1) Kingmaker Take Two

2) Sacrifices at Bethlehem

3) David Anointed

Three Applications

  1. Don’t pine too long over the loss of leaders; get involved in the discipleship of new, godly leaders:

  1. Consecrate yourself to be a worshipper of God

  1. Follow God’s word rather than human opinion


APPENDIX: Timing of the anointing of David in relation to the sacrifice

1 Samuel 16:13-23 – Walking In The Spirit

v.13 INTRO: The Spirit Goes and The Spirit Comes

vs. 14-15 An evil spirit from the Lord overwhelms/torments Saul

vs. 16-17 Soothing Psalms

v.18 An Impressive Job Reference for David

vs. 19-23 David’s Move Into Saul’s Court

APPLICATION:

  1. Practice walking in the Spirit

2. Draw upon the Holy Spirit to develop skill/cunning/knowledgeability/expertise in your craft, like David did with his lute and his fighting weapons.

1 Samuel 16 - Side-by side comparison of versionsJK


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Brenton

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1

καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς Σαμουηλ ἕως πότε σὺ πενθεῗς ἐπὶ Σαουλ κἀγὼ ἐξουδένωκαJL αὐτὸν μὴ βασιλεύειν ἐπὶ Ισραηλ πλῆσον τὸ κέρας σου ἐλαίου καὶ δεῦρο ἀποστεί­λω σε πρὸς Ιεσσαι [ἕως εἰς] Βηθλεεμ ὅτι ἑόρακα ἐν τοῗς υἱοῗς αὐτοῦ ἐμοὶ βασιλεύειν

And the Lord said to Samuel, How long dost thou mourn for Saul, whereas I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill thy horn with oil, and come, I will send thee to Jessae, [to] Bethleem; for I have seen among his sons a king for me.

And the Lord said to Samuel: How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, whom I have rejected from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and come, that I may send thee to Isai the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons.

And the LORD said unto Samuel, How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeingJM I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? fill thine horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Bethlehemite: for I have providedJN me a king among his sons.

Presently, Yahweh said to Samuel, “How long are you going to be mourning over Saul? Now, as for me, I have rejected him from reigning over Israel. Fill up your ram’s-horn with oil, and get going; I’m sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have noticed among his sons a king for myself!”

וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל- שְׁמוּאֵל, עַד-מָתַי אַתָּה מִתְאַבֵּל אֶלJO- שָׁאוּל, וַאֲנִי מְאַסְתִּיו, מִמְּלֹךְ עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל; מַלֵּא קַרְנְךָ שֶׁמֶן, וְלֵךְ אֶשְׁלָחֲךָ אֶל- יִשַׁי בֵּית-הַלַּחְמִי - כִּי- רָאִיתִי בְּבָנָיו לִי, מֶלֶךְ.

2

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ πῶς πορευθῶ καὶ ἀκούσεται Σαουλ καὶ ἀποκτενεῗ με καὶ εἶπεν κύριος δάμαλιν βοῶν λαβὲ ἐν τῇ χειρί σου καὶ ἐρεῗς θῦσαι τῷ κυρίῳ ἥκω

And Samuel said, How can I go? whereas Saul will hear of it, and slay me: and the Lord said, Take a heifer X in thine hand and thou shall say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.

And Samuel said: How shall I go? for Saul will hear of it, and he will kill me. And the Lord said: Thou shalt take with thee X a calf of the herd, and thou shalt say: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.

And Samuel said, How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will kill me. And the LORD said, Take an heifer X with theeX, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the LORD.

But Samuel said, “How can I go? When Saul hears, he will then put me to death!” And Yahweh said, “A heifer from the herd is what you shall take by your hand, and you shall say, ‘It’s to sacrifice to Yahweh that I have gone.’

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל אֵיךְ אֵלֵךְ, וְשָׁמַע שָׁאוּל וַהֲרָגָנִי; וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה, עֶגְלַת בָּקָר תִּקַּחJP בְּיָדֶךָ, וְאָמַרְתָּ, לִזְבֹּחַ לַיהוָה בָּאתִי.

3

καὶ καλέσεις τὸν Ιεσσαι εἰς τὴν θυσίαν καὶ γνωριῶ σοι ἃ ποιήσεις καὶ χρίσεις XJQ ὃν ἐὰν εἴπω πρὸς σέ

And thou shalt call Jessae to the sacrifice, and I will make known to thee what thou shalt do; and thou shalt anoint X him whom I shall mention to thee.

And thou shalt call Isai to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou art to do, and thou shalt anoint X him whom I shall shew to thee.

And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will shew thee what thou shalt do: and thou shalt anoint unto me him whom I nameJR unto thee.

And invite Jesse to the sacrifice. Then I myself will make known to you what you shall do, and you shall anoint for me the one whom I dictate to you.”

וְקָרָאתָ לְיִשַׁי, בַּזָּבַח; וְאָנֹכִי, אוֹדִיעֲךָ אֵת אֲשֶׁר-תַּעֲשֶׂה, וּמָשַׁחְתָּ לִי, אֵת אֲשֶׁר-אֹמַר אֵלֶיךָ.

4

καὶ ἐποίησεν Σαμ­ουηλ [πάντα] ἃ ἐλάλη­σεν [αὐτῷ] κύριος καὶ ἦλθεν εἰς Βηθλεεμ καὶ ἐξέστη­σανJS οἱ πρεσβύτεροι τῆς πόλεως τῇ ἀπαντή­σει αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπαν εἰρήνη ἡ εἴσ­οδός σου [ὁ βλέπων]

And Samuel did [all] that the Lord told [him]; and he came to Bethleem: and the elders of the city were amazed at meeting him, and X said, Dost thou come peaceably, [thou Seer]?

Then Samuel did as the Lord had said [to him]. And he came to Bethlehem, and the ancients of the city wondered, and meeting him, they said: Is thy coming hither peaceable[?]

And Samuel did that which the LORD spake, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and X said, Comest thou peaceably[?]

So Samuel did what Yahweh said and he went to Bethlehem. But the town elders were skittish about greeting him, and {they} said, “Is peace [the object] of your coming, {Seer?}”

וַיַּעַשׂ שְׁמוּאֵל, אֵת אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְהוָה, וַיָּבֹא, בֵּית לָחֶם; וַיֶּחֶרְדוּ זִקְנֵי הָעִיר, לִקְרָאתוֹ, וַיֹּאמֶרJT, שָׁלֹםJU בּוֹאֶךָJV.

5

καὶ εἶπεν εἰρήνη θῦσαι τῷ κυρίῳ ἥκω ἁγιάσθητε καὶ εὐφράνθητε μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ σήμερον καὶ ἡγίασεν τὸν Ιεσσαι καὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν θυσίαν

And he said, Peaceably: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord. Sanctify yourselves, and rejoice with me this day: and he sanctified Jessae and his sons, and he called them to the sacrifice.

And he said: It is peaceable: I am come to offer sacrifice to the Lord, be ye sanctified, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Isai and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

And he said, Peace­ably: I am come to sacrifice unto the LORD: sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

And he said, “Peace. It was to offer a sacrifice to Yahweh that I came. Sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice!” Then he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁלוֹם, לִזְבֹּחַ לַיהוָה בָּאתִי, הִתְקַדְּשׁוּJW, וּבָאתֶם אִתִּי בַּזָּבַחJX; וַיְקַדֵּשׁ אֶת-יִשַׁי וְאֶת-בָּנָיו, וַיִּקְרָא לָהֶם לַזָּבַח.

6

καὶ ἐγενήθη ἐν τῷ αὐτοὺς εἰσιέναι καὶ εἶδεν τὸν Ελιαβ καὶ εἶπεν ἀλλὰ καὶJY ἐνώπιον κυρίου χριστὸς αὐτοῦ

And it came to pass when they came in, that he saw Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.

X X And when they were come in, he saw Eliab, and said: Is the Lord's anointed before him?

And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD's anointed is before him.

So it was while they were coming that he looked at Eliab and said, “Surely the one for His anointing is in front of Yahweh!”

וַיְהִי בְּבוֹאָם, וַיַּרְא אֶת-אֱלִיאָב; וַיֹּאמֶר, אַךְ נֶגֶד יְהוָה מְשִׁיחוֹ. {ס}

7

καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς Σαμουηλ μὴ ἐπιβλέψῃς ἐπὶ τὴν ὄψιν αὐτοῦ μηδὲ εἰς τὴν ἕξιν μεγέθουςJZ αὐτοῦ ὅτι ἐξου­δένωκα αὐτόν ὅτι οὐχ ὡςKA ἐμβλέψεται ἄνθρωπος [ὄψεται ὁ θεός] ὅτι ἄνθρωπος ὄψεται εἰς πρόσω­πον ὁ δὲ θεὸς ὄψεται εἰς καρδίαν

But the Lord said to Samuel, Look not on his appearance, nor on XX his stature, for I have rejected him; for [God sees] not as man looks; for man looks at the [outward] appearance, but God looks at the heart.

And the Lord said to Samuel: Look not on his countenance, nor on the height of his stat­ure: because I have rejected him, X nor do [I judge] ac­cording to the look of man: for man seeth X those things that appear, but the Lord beholdeth X the heart.

But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stat­ure; because I have refusedKB him: for [the LORD seeth] not as man seeth; for man looketh on the [outward] appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

But Yahweh said to Samuel, “Don’t make observations based on his looks or based on his imposing height, because I have rejected him. For {God} doesn’t {see} the way man sees; man only sees to the extent of the eyes, but God sees to the extent of the heart.”

וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל- שְׁמוּאֵל, אַל-תַּבֵּט אֶל-מַרְאֵהוּ וְאֶל- גְּבֹהַּ קוֹמָתוֹ--כִּי מְאַסְתִּיהוּ: כִּי לֹא, אֲשֶׁר יִרְאֶה הָאָדָם --כִּיKC הָאָדָם יִרְאֶה לַעֵינַיִם, וַיהוָה יִרְאֶה לַלֵּבָב.

8

καὶ ἐκάλεσεν Ιεσ­σαι τὸν Αμιναδαβ καὶ παρῆλθεν κατὰ πρόσωπον Σαμουηλ καὶ εἶπεν οὐδὲ τοῦτον ἐξελέξατο κύριος

And Jessae called Aminadab, and he passed before Samuel: and he said, Neither has GodKD chosen this one.

And Isai called Abinadab, and brought him before Samuel. And he said: Neither hath the Lord chosen this.

Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this.

Then Jesse called to Abinadab and made him pass by in front of Samuel, but he said, “It’s the same with this one; Yahweh has not chosen him.”

וַיִּקְרָא יִשַׁי אֶל- אֲבִינָדָב, וַיַּעֲבִרֵהוּ לִפְנֵי שְׁמוּאֵל; וַיֹּאמֶר, גַּם-בָּזֶה לֹא-בָחַר יְהוָה.

9

καὶ παρήγαγεν Ιεσσαι τὸν Σαμα καὶ εἶπεν καὶ ἐν τούτῳ οὐκ ἐξελέξατο κύριος

And Jessae caused Sama to pass by: and he said, Neither has God chosen this one.

And Isai brought Samma, and he said [of him]: Neither hath the Lord chosen this.

Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this.

So Jesse made Sham­mah pass by, but he said, “It’s the same with this one; Yahweh has not chosen him.”

וַיַּעֲבֵר יִשַׁי, שַׁמָּה; וַיֹּאמֶר, גַּם-בָּזֶה לֹא-בָחַר יְהוָה.

10

καὶ παρήγαγεν Ιεσσαι τοὺς ἑπτὰ υἱοὺς αὐτοῦ ἐνώπ­ιον Σαμουηλ καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ X XKE οὐκ ἐξελέξατο κύριος ἐν τούτοις

And Jessae caused his seven sons to pass before Samuel: and Samuel said X X, the Lord has not chosen these.

Isai therefore brought his seven sons before Samu­el: and Samuel said to Isai: The Lord hath not chosen [any] one of these.

Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Sam­uel said unto Jesse, The LORD hath not chosen these.

So Jesse made seven of his sons pass by in front of Samuel, but Samuel said to Jesse, “Yahweh has not chosen these.”

וַיַּעֲבֵר יִשַׁי שִׁבְעַת בָּנָיו, לִפְנֵי שְׁמוּאֵל; וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל אֶל-יִשַׁי, לֹא-בָחַר יְהוָה בָּאֵלֶּה.

11

καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ πρὸς Ιεσσαι ἐκλε­λοίπασινKF τὰ παιδάρια καὶ εἶπεν ἔτι X ὁ μικρὸς X ἰδοὺ ποιμαίνει ἐν τῷ ποιμνίῳ καὶ εἶπεν Σαμουηλ πρὸς Ιεσσαι ἀπόστειλον καὶ λαβὲ αὐτόν ὅτι οὐ μὴ κατακλιθῶμενKG ἕως τοῦ ἐλθεῗν αὐτόν X

And Samuel said to Jessae, Hast thou no more sons? And [Jessae] said, There is yet a little one; X behold, he tends X the flock. And Samuel said to Jessae, Send and fetch him for we may not sit down till he comes X.

And Samuel said to Isai: Are here all thy sons? X He answered: There remaineth yet a young one, X X who keepeth X the sheep. And Samuel said to Isai: Send, and fetch him, for we will not sit down till he come hither.

And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth X the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither.

Finally Samuel said to Jesse, “Are your boys done?” And he said, “There is still the littlest one remaining, but, you see, he’s with the flock shepherding.” Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Please send someone to get him, because we’re not going to turn around until his arrival here!”

וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל אֶל- יִשַׁי, הֲתַמּוּ הַנְּעָרִים, וַיֹּאמֶר עוֹד שָׁאַר הַקָּטָן, וְהִנֵּה רֹעֶה בַּצֹּאן; וַיֹּאמֶר שְׁמוּאֵל אֶל-יִשַׁי שִׁלְחָה וְקָחֶנּוּ, כִּי לֹא -נָסֹבKH עַד-בֹּאוֹ פֹה.

12

καὶ ἀπέστειλεν καὶ εἰσήγαγεν αὐτόν καὶ οὗτος πυρράκης μετὰ κάλλους ὀφθαλμῶν καὶ ἀγα­θὸς ὁράσει κυρίῳ καὶ εἶπεν κύριος [πρὸς Σαμουηλ] ἀνάστα [καὶ ]χρῗσον τὸν [Δαυιδ] ὅτι οὗτος [ἀγαθός] ἐστιν

And he sent and fetched him: and he was ruddy, with beauty of eyes, and very goodly to behold. And the Lord said [to Samuel], Arise, [and] anoint [David], for he is good.

He sent therefore and brought him Now he was ruddy and beautiful to behold, and of a comely face. And the Lord said: Arise, [and] anoint him, for this is he.

And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenanceKI, and goodly to look to. And the LORD said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he.

So he sent and had him come. And he was ruddy, with handsome eyes, and was good looking. And Yahweh said, “Get up. Anoint him, for this is he.”

וַיִּשְׁלַח וַיְבִיאֵהוּ וְהוּא אַדְמוֹנִי, עִם- יְפֵה עֵינַיִם וְטוֹב רֹאִי; {פ}

וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה קוּם מְשָׁחֵהוּ, כִּי-זֶה הוּא.


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13

καὶ ἔλαβεν Σαμ­ου­ηλ τὸ κέρας τοῦ ἐλαίου καὶ ἔχρι­σεν αὐτὸν ἐν μέσῳ τῶν ἀδελφ­ῶν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐφήλατοKJ πνεῦμα κυρίου ἐπὶ Δαυιδ ἀπὸ τῆς ἡμέρας ἐκείνης καὶ ἐπάνω καὶ ἀνέστη Σαμ-ου­ηλ καὶ ἀπῆλθεν εἰς Αρμαθαιμ

And Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward: and Samuel arose, and departed to Armathaim.

Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward: and Samuel rose up, and went to Ramatha.

Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD cameKK upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

13 So Samuel took his animal-horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers. And the Spirit of Yahweh advanced on David from that day and onward. Samuel then got up and went to Ramah.

וַיִּקַּח שְׁמוּאֵל אֶת- קֶרֶן הַשֶּׁמֶן, וַיִּמְשַׁח אֹתוֹ בְּקֶרֶב אֶחָיו, וַתִּצְלַח רוּחַ- יְהוָה אֶל-דָּוִד, מֵהַיּוֹם הַהוּא וָמָעְלָה; וַיָּקָם שְׁמוּאֵל, וַיֵּלֶךְ הָרָמָתָה.

14

καὶ πνεῦμα κυρίου ἀπέστη ἀπὸ Σαουλ καὶ ἔπνιγενKL αὐτὸν πνεῦμα πονηρὸν παρὰ κυρίου

And the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him.

But the spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him.

But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evilKM spirit from the LORD troubledKN him.

14 And the Spirit of Yahweh went away from being with Saul, and an evil spirit from Yahweh overwhelmed him.

וְרוּחַ יְהוָה סָרָה, מֵעִם שָׁאוּל; וּבִעֲתַתּוּ רוּחַ-רָעָה , מֵאֵת יְהוָה.

15

καὶ εἶπαν οἱ παῗδες Σαουλ πρὸς αὐτόν ἰδοὺ δὴ πνεῦμα κυρίου πονηρὸν πνίγει σε

And Saul’s servants said to him, Behold now, an evil spirit from the Lord torments thee.

And the servants of Saul said to him: Behold now an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.

And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.

15 So the servants of Saul said to him, “Look, please, an evil spirit of God is overwhelming you;

וַיֹּאמְרוּ עַבְדֵי- שָׁאוּל, אֵלָיו: הִנֵּה- נָא רוּחַ-אֱלֹהִיםKO רָעָה, מְבַעִתֶּךָ.

16

KPX X εἰπάτωσαν δὴ οἱ δοῦλοί σου ἐνώπιόν σου [καὶ] ζητησάτωσαν [τῷ κυρίῳ ἡμῶν] ἄνδρα εἰδότα ψάλλειν ἐν κινύρᾳKQ καὶ ἔσται ἐν τῷ εἶναι πνεῦμα XKR πονηρὸν ἐπὶ σοὶ καὶ ψαλεῗ ἐν τῇ κινύρᾳ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀγαθόν σοι [ἔσται καὶ ἀναπαύσει σε]

Let now X X thy servants speak before thee, [and] let them seek [for our lord] a man skilled to play on the harp; and it shall come to pass when an evil spirit X X comes upon thee and he shall play on his harp, that thou shalt be well[, and he shall refresh thee].

Let our lord give orders, [and] thy servants who are before thee will seek out a man skillful in playing on the harp, that when the evil spirit from the Lord is upon thee, he may play with his hand, and thou mayest [bear it more] easily.

Let our lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a cunningKS player on an harpKT: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his handKU, and thou shalt be well.

16 please let our lord tell his servants before his face, ‘Seek out a man knowledgeable at strumming on the guitar, and it shall be when the evil spirit of God is upon you that he shall strum with his hand and it will be good for you!”

יֹאמַר-נָא אֲדֹנֵנוּ, עֲבָדֶיךָ לְפָנֶיךָ--יְבַקְשׁוּ, אִישׁ יֹדֵעַ מְנַגֵּן בַּכִּנּוֹר; וְהָיָה, בִּהְיוֹת עָלֶיךָ רוּחַ-אֱלֹהִים רָעָה--וְנִגֵּן בְּיָדוֹ, וְטוֹב לָךְ. {פ}

17

καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς τοὺς παῗδας αὐτοῦ ἴδετε δή μοι ἄνδρα ὀρθῶςKV ψάλ­λοντα καὶ εἰσαγάγ­ετε αὐτὸν πρὸς ἐμέ

And Saul said to his servants, Look now out for me a skillful player, and bring him to me.

And Saul said to his servants: Provide me then some man that can play well, and bring him to me.

And Saul said unto his servants, ProvideKW me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me.

17 So Saul said to his servants, “Please look for me for a man who has gotten good at strumming, and y’all bring him to me.”

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל, אֶל- עֲבָדָיו: רְאוּ-נָא לִי , אִישׁ מֵיטִיב לְנַגֵּן , וַהֲבִיאוֹתֶם, אֵלָי.

18

καὶ ἀπεκρίθη εἷς τῶν παιδαρίων αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπεν ἰδοὺ ἑόρακα υἱὸν τῷ Ιεσσαι Βηθλεε­μίτην καὶ αὐτὸν εἰδότα ψαλμόν καὶ ὁ ἀνὴρ συνετός καὶ ὁ ἀνὴρ πολεμ­ιστὴς καὶ σοφὸς λόγῳ καὶ ἀνὴρ [ἀγαθὸς] τῷ εἴδει καὶ κύριος μετ᾽ αὐτοῦ

And one of his servants answered and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jessae the Beth­leemite, and he understands playing on the harp, and the man is prudent, and a warrior, and wise in speech, and the man is handsome, and the Lord is with him.

And one of the servants answering, said: Behold I have seen a son of Isai the Bethlehemite, a skillful player, and one of great strength, and a man fit for war, and prudent in his words, and a comely person: and the Lord is with him.

Then answered one of the servants, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite, that is cunning in playing, and a mighty valiantKX man, and a man of war, and prudent in mattersKY, and a comelyKZ person, and the LORD is with him.

18 Then one of the servant-boys answered and said, “Look, I have seen a son belonging to Jesse the Bethlehem­ite who is knowledg­eable at strumming. He is also a mighty man of means and a man for battle and is insightful of speech, also a man who is in-shape, and Yahewh is with him.”

וַיַּעַן אֶחָד מֵהַנְּעָרִים וַיֹּאמֶר, הִנֵּה רָאִיתִי בֵּן לְיִשַׁי בֵּית הַלַּחְמִי, יֹדֵעַ נַגֵּן וְגִבּוֹר חַיִלLA וְאִישׁ מִלְחָמָה וּנְבוֹן דָּבָר, וְאִישׁ תֹּאַרLB; וַיהוָה, עִמּוֹ.

19

καὶ ἀπέστειλεν Σαουλ ἀγγέλους πρὸς Ιεσσαι λέγων ἀπόστειλον πρός με τὸν υἱόν σου Δαυιδ τὸν ἐν τῷ ποιμνίῳ [σου]

And Saul sent messengers to Jessae, saying, Send to me thy son David who is with [thy] flock.

Then Saul sent messengers to Isai, saying: Send me David thy son, who is in the pastures.

Wherefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, which is with the sheep.

19 So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Please send to me David your son who is among the flock.”

וַיִּשְׁלַח שָׁאוּל מַלְאָכִים, אֶל-יִשָׁי; וַיֹּאמֶר, שִׁלְחָה אֵלַי אֶת-דָּוִד בִּנְךָ אֲשֶׁר בַּצֹּאן.

20

καὶ ἔλαβεν Ιεσσαι γομορLC ἄρτων καὶ ἀσκὸν οἴνου καὶ ἔριφον αἰγῶν ἕνα καὶ ἐξαπέστειλεν ἐν χειρὶ Δαυιδ τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτοῦ πρὸς Σαουλ

And Jessae took a homer of bread, and a bottle of wine, and one kid of the goats, and sent them by the hand of his son David to Saul.

And Isai took an ass [laden with] bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid of the flock, and sent them by the hand of David his son to Saul.

And Jesse took an ass [laden with] bread, and a bottleLD of wine, and a kid X XLE, and sent them by X XLF David his son unto Saul.

20 So Jesse took a donkey-load of bread and a container of wine and one kid from the goats and sent them by the hand of David his son to Saul.

וַיִּקַּח יִשַׁי חֲמוֹר לֶחֶם, וְנֹאד יַיִן, וּגְדִי עִזִּים, אֶחָד; וַיִּשְׁלַח בְּיַד-דָּוִד בְּנוֹ, אֶל-שָׁאוּל.

21

καὶ εἰσῆλθεν Δαυιδ πρὸς Σαουλ καὶ παρειστήκει ἐνώπι­ον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἠγάπ­ησεν αὐτὸν σφόδρα καὶ ἐγενήθη αὐτῷ αἴρων τὰ σκεύηLG [αὐτοῦ]

And David went in to Saul, and stood before him; and he loved him greatly; and he became X his armour-bearer.

And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him exceedingly, and made him [his] armourbearer.

And David came to Saul, and stoodLH before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer.

21 Thus David came to Saul and stood before his face, and he really liked him and he was an armor bearer for him.

וַיָּבֹא דָוִד אֶל- שָׁאוּל, וַיַּעֲמֹד לְפָנָיו; וַיֶּאֱהָבֵהוּ מְאֹד, וַיְהִי-לוֹ נֹשֵׂא כֵלִיםLI.

22

καὶ ἀπέστειλεν Σαουλ πρὸς Ιεσ­σαι λέγων παρισ­τάσθω δὴ Δαυιδ ἐνώπιον ἐμοῦ ὅτι εὗρεν χάριν ἐν ὀφθαλμοῗς μου

And Saul sent to Jessae, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me, for he has found grace in my eyes.

And Saul sent to Isai, saying: Let David stand before me: for he hath found favour in my sight.

And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight.

22 Presently, Saul sent a message to Jesse to say, “Please let David keep standing before my face, for he has found favor in my eyes.”

וַיִּשְׁלַח שָׁאוּל, אֶל- יִשַׁי לֵאמֹר: יַעֲמָד- נָא דָוִד לְפָנַי, כִּי-מָצָא חֵן בְּעֵינָי.

23

καὶ ἐγενήθη ἐν τῷ εἶναι πνεῦμα πον­ηρὸνLJ ἐπὶ Σαουλ καὶ ἐλάμβανεν Δαυιδ τὴν κινύραν καὶ ἔψαλλεν ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀνέψυχενLK Σαουλ καὶ ἀγαθὸν αὐτῷLL καὶ ἀφίστατο ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ πονηρόν

And it came to pass when the evil spirit was upon Saul, that David took his harp, and played with his hand: and Saul was refreshed, and it was well with him, and the evil spirit departed from him.

So whensoever the [evil] spirit from the Lord was upon Saul, David took his harp, and played with his hand, and Saul was refreshed, and was better, for the evil spirit departed from him.

And it came to pass, when the [evil] spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

23 So it came to pass, when the {evil} spirit of God was upon Saul, that David would take his guitar and strum with his hand, and it was inspiring for Saul, and it was good for him, and the evil spirit would turn away from upon him.

וְהָיָה, בִּהְיוֹת רוּחַ-אֱלֹהִיםLM אֶל-שָׁאוּל, וְלָקַח דָּוִד אֶת-הַכִּנּוֹר, וְנִגֵּן בְּיָדוֹ; וְרָוַחLN לְשָׁאוּל וְטוֹב לוֹ, וְסָרָה מֵעָלָיו רוּחַ הָרָעָה. {פ}

 

I Samuel CHAPTER 17

1 Samuel 17:1-30 – Reconnaissance Of A Stalemate

Vs. 1-3 - Introduction

Vs. 4-11 - The Antagonist Introduced

Vs. 12-19 The Protagonist Introduced

Vs. 20-27 The Attitude The Breaks Stalemates

Well, I’m going to have to pause the story for now, but I hope you will consider the attitudes that David brought to the table to break the stalemate:

1 Samuel 17:31-59 – The Battle Belongs To The LORD

Vs. 31-33 Saul tries to talk David out of his resolve to fight Goliath

Vs. 34-37 David Talks Saul into it

    1. first, from his former experience, in that he had in the defense of his flocke83 slaine a Lyon and a beare:

    2. secondly, he buildeth upon God's covenant, he was circumcised, and so within God's covenant and protection; the other was uncircumcised, and so a straunger from the covenant:

    3. thirdly, from the sin and blasphemie of Goliath, for the which the Lord would be revenged of him.”

Vs. 38-40 Saul Tries to Loan David His Armor, But David Chooses 5 Stones

Vs. 41-44 Goliath’s Taunt-Speech to David

Vs. 45-47 David’s Taunt-Speech back to Goliath

Vs. 48-51 The Account of the Monomachy

Vs. 52-54 Israel’s Victory against the Philistines

Vs. 55-58 Saul Inquires after David and meets him.

Conclusion

1 Samuel 17 - Side-by side comparison of versionsLO


LXX

Brenton

DRB

KJV

NAW

MT

1

καὶ συνάγουσιν ἀλλόφυλοι τὰς παρεμβολὰς αὐτῶν εἰς πόλε­μον καὶ συνάγον­ται εἰς Σοκχωθ τῆς Ιουδαίας καὶ παρεμβάλλουσιν ἀνὰ μέσον Σοκχωθ καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον Αζηκα ἐν ΕφερμεμLP

And the Philistines gather their armies to battle, and gather themselves to Socchoth of Judaea, and encamp between Socchoth and Azeca Ephermen.

Now the Philistines gathering together their troops to battle, assembled at Socho of Juda, and camped between Socho and Azeca in the border[s] of Dommim.

Now the Philis­tines gathered together their ar­mies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitch­edLQ between Shoch­oh & Azekah, in Ephesdammim.

1 Presently, the Philistines mobilized their positions for combat, and they mobilized at Sokoh, which belongs to Judah, and they took a position between Sokoh and Azeqah, in Ephes-dammim.

וַיַּאַסְפוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים אֶת-מַחֲנֵיהֶם, לַמִּלְחָמָה, וַיֵּאָסְפוּ, שֹׂכֹהLR אֲשֶׁר לִיהוּדָה; וַיַּחֲנוּ בֵּין-שׂוֹכֹה וּבֵין-עֲזֵקָהLS, בְּאֶפֶס דַּמִּיםLT.

2

καὶ Σαουλ καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες Ισραηλ συνάγονται καὶ παρεμβάλλουσιν ἐν τῇ κοιλάδι αὐτοὶLU παρατάσ­σονται εἰς πόλε­μον ἐξ ἐναντίας X ἀλλοφύλων

And Saul and the men of Israel gather together, and they encamp in the valley X X, and set the battle in array against X the Philistines.

And Saul and the children of Israel being gath­ered together came to the valley of Terebinth, and they set the army in array to fight against the Philistines.

And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against XLV the Philistines.

2 So Saul and each man of Israel mobilized themselves and took a position in the valley of Elah, and they formed battle ranks to encounter the Philistines.

וְשָׁאוּל וְאִישׁ-יִשְׂרָאֵל נֶאֶסְפוּ, וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּעֵמֶק הָאֵלָה; וַיַּעַרְכוּ מִלְחָמָה, לִקְרַאת פְּלִשְׁתִּים.

3

καὶ ἀλλόφυλοι ἵστανται ἐπὶ τοῦ ὄρους ἐνταῦθα καὶ Ισραηλ ἵσταται ἐπὶ τοῦ ὄρους ἐνταῦθα καὶ ὁ αὐλὼνLW ἀνὰ μέσον αὐτῶν

And the Philistines stand on the mountain on one [side], and Israel stands on the mountain on the other [side], and the valley was between them.

And the Philis­tines stood on a mountain on the one [side], and Israel stood on a mountain on the other [side]: and there was a valley between them.

And the Philis­tines stood on a mountain on the one [side], and Israel stood on a mountain on the other [side]: and there was a valleyLX between them.

3 Now, the Philis­tines were standing at one slope from this [valley], and Israel was standing at that slope from this [valley], and the ravine was between them.

וּפְלִשְׁתִּים עֹמְדִים אֶל-הָהָר, מִזֶּה, וְיִשְׂרָאֵל עֹמְדִים אֶל-הָהָר, מִזֶּה; וְהַגַּיְאLY, בֵּינֵיהֶם

.

4

καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἀνὴρ δυνατὸςLZ ἐκ τῆς παρατάξεως τῶν ἀλλοφύλων Γολι­αθ ὄνομα αὐτῷ ἐκ Γεθ ὕψος αὐτοῦ τεσσάρωνMA πήχεων καὶ σπιθαμῆς

And there went forth a mighty man out of the army of the Phil­istines, Goliath, by name, out of Geth, his height was four cubits and a span.

And there went out a man baseborn from the camp of the Phil­istines named Goliath, of Geth, whose height was six cubits and a span:

And there went out a champion out of the campX of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.

4 Then the middle-man came out from the position of the Philistines. His name was Goliath from Gath. His height was {four} cubits plus a span,

וַיֵּצֵא אִישׁ-הַבֵּנַיִםMB מִמַּחֲנוֹתMC פְּלִשְׁתִּים, גָּלְיָת שְׁמוֹ מִגַּת: גָּבְהוֹ, שֵׁשׁMD אַמּוֹת וָזָרֶת.

5

καὶ περικεφαλαία XME ἐπὶ τῆς κεφ­αλ­ῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ θώ­ρακα ἁλυσι­δω­τὸνMF αὐτὸς ἐνδε­δυκώς καὶ ὁ σταθ­μὸς τοῦ θώρακος αὐτοῦ πέντε χιλιά­δες σίκλων χαλ­κοῦ [καὶ σιδήρου]MG

And he had a X helmet upon his head, and he wore a breastplate of chain armour; and the weight of his breastplate was five thousand shekels of brass [and iron].

And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clothed with a coat of mail with scales, and the weight of his coat of mail was five thousand sicles of brass:

And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armedMH with a coat of mailMI; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.

5 and a helmet of bronze was upon his head. With scale armor he was clad, and the weight of the body-armor was 5,000 shekels of bronze.

וְכוֹבַע נְחֹשֶׁת עַל-רֹאשׁוֹ, וְשִׁרְיוֹן קַשְׂקַשִּׂיםMJ הוּא לָבוּשׁ; וּמִשְׁקַל, הַשִּׁרְיוֹן--חֲמֵשֶׁת-אֲלָפִים שְׁקָלִים, נְחֹשֶׁת.MK

6

καὶ κνημῗδες χαλκαῗ ἐπάνω τῶν σκελῶν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀσπὶςML χαλκῆ ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ὤμων αὐτοῦ

And greaves of MMbrass were upon his legs, and a brazen target was between his shoulders.

And [he had] greaves of brass on his legs, and a buckler of brass [covered] his shoulders.

And [he had] greaves of brass upon his legs, and a targetMN of brass between his shoulders.

6 And there were bronze shin-guards on his legs, and a bronze javelin [slung] between his shoulders.

וּמִצְחַת נְחֹשֶׁת, עַל-רַגְלָיו; וְכִידוֹן נְחֹשֶׁתMO, בֵּין כְּתֵפָיו.

7

καὶ ὁ κοντὸςMP τοῦ δόρατος αὐτοῦ ὡσεὶ μέσακλονMQ ὑφαινόντων καὶ ἡ λόγχηMR αὐτοῦ ἑξακοσίων σίκ­λωνMS σιδήρου καὶ ὁ αἴρων τὰ ὅπλαMT αὐτοῦ προεπορεύ­ετο αὐτοῦ

And the staff of his spear was like a weaverXs beam, and the spear’s head was formed of six hundred shekels of iron; and his armour-bearer went before him.

And the staff of his spear was like a weaverX's beam, and the head of his spear weighed six hundred sicles of iron: and his armourbearer went before him.

And the staff of his spear was like a weaverX's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him.

7 Moreover, the shaft of his spear was furrowed like weavings, and the tip of his spear was 600 shekels of iron! There was also the man who carried his full-body-shield walking before him.

וחֵץMU חֲנִיתוֹ, כִּמְנוֹרMV אֹרְגִים, וְלַהֶבֶת חֲנִיתוֹ, שֵׁשׁ-מֵאוֹת שְׁקָלִים בַּרְזֶל; וְנֹשֵׂא הַצִּנָּה, הֹלֵךְ לְפָנָיו.

8

καὶ ἔστη καὶ ἀνε­βόησεν εἰς τὴν παράταξιν Ισραηλ καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῗς τί ἐκπορεύεσθε παρα­τάξασθαι πολέμῳ ἐξ ἐναντ­ίας [ἡμῶν] οὐκ ἐγώ εἰμι X ἀλλόφυλος καὶ ὑμεῗς Εβραῗοι MW τοῦ Σαουλ ἐκλέξασθε ἑαυτοῗς ἄνδραMX καὶ καταβήτω πρός με

And he stood and cried to the armyX of Israel, and said to them, Why are ye come forth to set your­selves in battle array against [us]? Am not I a Philis­tine, and ye Heb­rews of Saul? Choose for your­selves a man, and let him come down to me.

And standing he cried out to the bands of Israel, and said to them: Why are you come out prepared to fight? am not I a Philis­tine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose out a man of you, and let him come down [and fight hand] to hand.

And he stood and cried unto the armiesMY of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.

8 And he stood and called out to the ranks of Israel and said to them, “Why are y’all coming out to form battle ranks? Is it not so that I am The Philistine, and y’all are servants to Saul? Choose for yourselves a man, and led him come down to me.

וַיַּעֲמֹד, וַיִּקְרָא אֶל- מַעַרְכֹת יִשְׂרָאֵל, וַיֹּאמֶר לָהֶם, לָמָּה תֵצְאוּ לַעֲרֹךְ מִלְחָמָה: הֲלוֹאMZ אָנֹכִי NAהַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, וְאַתֶּם עֲבָדִים לְשָׁאוּל--בְּרוּ-לָכֶם אִישׁ, וְיֵרֵד אֵלָי.

9

καὶ ἐὰν δυνηθῇ πρὸς ἐμὲ πολεμῆ­σαιNB καὶ ἐὰν πατάξῃ με καὶ ἐσόμεθα ὑμῗν εἰς δούλους ἐὰν δὲ ἐγὼ δυνηθῶ X X καὶ πατάξω αὐτόν X ἔσεσθε ἡμῗν εἰς δούλους καὶ δουλεύσετε ἡμῗν

And if he shall be able to fight against me, and shall smite me, then will we be your servants: but if I should prevail X X and smite him, X ye shall be our servants, and serve us.

If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, X we will be servants to you: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, X you shall be X X servants, and shall serve us.

If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us.

9 If he is successful in combat with me – that is, if he strikes me down, then we shall become as servants to y’all, but if it’s me who is successful over him – that is, if I strike him down, then y’all shall become as servants to us, and y’all shall serve us!”

אִם-יוּכַל לְהִלָּחֵם אִתִּי, וְהִכָּנִי--וְהָיִינוּ לָכֶם, לַעֲבָדִים; וְאִם- אֲנִי אוּכַל-לוֹ, וְהִכִּיתִיו--וִהְיִיתֶם לָנוּ לַעֲבָדִים, וַעֲבַדְתֶּם אֹתָנוּ.

10

καὶ εἶπεν ὁ ἀλλό­φυλος [ἰδοὺ] ἐγὼ ὠνείδισα τὴν παρά­ταξιν Ισρα­ηλ σήμερον ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ταύτῃ δότε μοι ἄνδρα καὶ μονομαχήσομεν ἀμφότεροιNC

And the Philistine said, [Behold,] I have defied the armies of Israel this very day: give me a man, and we will both of us fight in single combat.

And the Philistine said: I have defied the bands of Israel X this day: Give me a man, and let him fight with [me hand to hand].

And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel X this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.

10 The Philistine also said, “As for me, I insult the ranks of Israel this day! Give me a man and let’s engage in combat together.”

וַיֹּאמֶר, הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, אֲנִי חֵרַפְתִּיND אֶת- מַעַרְכוֹת יִשְׂרָאֵל, הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה; תְּנוּ-לִי אִישׁ, וְנִלָּחֲמָה יָחַד.

11

καὶ ἤκουσεν Σαουλ καὶ πᾶς Ισραηλ τὰ ῥήμα­τα τοῦ ἀλλο­φύλου ταῦτα καὶ ἐξέστη­σαν καὶ ἐφοβήθη­σαν σφόδρα

And Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, and they were dismayed, and greatly terrified.

And Saul and all the Israelites hearing these words of the Philistine were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

11 When Saul and all Israel heard these words from the Philistine, then they became dismayed and they were very afraid.

וַיִּשְׁמַע שָׁאוּל וְכָל-יִשְׂרָאֵל, אֶת- דִּבְרֵי הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי הָאֵלֶּה; וַיֵּחַתּוּ וַיִּרְאוּ, מְאֹד. {פ}

12

NE

NF

Now David was the son of that Ephra­thite of Beth­lehem Juda [before mentioned], whose name was Isai, who had eight sons, and was an old man in the days of Saul, and of great age among men.

Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehemjudah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons: and the man went among menNG for an old man in the days of Saul.

12 Now, David was the son of a certain Ephrathite man from Bethlehem of Judah, and his name was Jesse. And he had eight sons, and, during the days of Saul he advanced among the men to be an elder.

וְדָוִד בֶּן-אִישׁ אֶפְרָתִי הַזֶּהNH, מִבֵּית לֶחֶם יְהוּדָה, וּשְׁמוֹ יִשַׁי, וְלוֹ שְׁמֹנָה בָנִיםNI; וְהָאִישׁ בִּימֵי שָׁאוּל, זָקֵן בָּא בַאֲנָשִׁיםNJ.

13



And his three eldest sons X X followed Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle, were Eliab the firstborn, and the second Abinadab, and the third Samma.

And the three eldest sons of Jesse went [and] followed Saul to the battle: and the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next unto him Abinadab, & the third Shammah.

13 And the three oldest sons of Jesse had gone and followed after Saul to the battle; the names of his three sons who went to the battle were: Eliab the firstborn, and Abinidab his second, and Sham­mah the third.

וַיֵּלְכוּ שְׁלֹשֶׁת בְּנֵי-יִשַׁי, הַגְּדֹלִים--הָלְכוּNK אַחֲרֵי-שָׁאוּל, לַמִּלְחָמָה; וְשֵׁם שְׁלֹשֶׁת בָּנָיו, אֲשֶׁר הָלְכוּ בַּמִּלְחָמָהNL --אֱלִיאָב הַבְּכוֹר וּמִשְׁנֵהוּ אֲבִינָדָב, וְהַשְּׁלִשִׁי שַׁמָּה.

14



But David X was the young­est. So the three eldest having followed Saul,

And David X was the youngest: and the three eldest followed Saul.

14 (But as for David, he was the young­est.) Anyway, the three oldest followed after Saul,

וְדָוִד, הוּא הַקָּטָן; וּשְׁלֹשָׁה, הַגְּדֹלִים, הָלְכוּ, אַחֲרֵי שָׁאוּל.ס

15



X David went, and returned from Saul, to feed his father's flock at Bethlehem.

But David went and returned from Saul to feedNM his father's sheep at Bethlehem.

15 but David was going and returning from attending Saul to shepherd his father’s flock at Bethlehem.

וְדָוִד הֹלֵךְ וָשָׁבNN, מֵעַל שָׁאוּל, לִרְעוֹת אֶת-צֹאן אָבִיו, בֵּית-לָחֶם.

16



Now the Philistine came out morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

And the Philistine drew nearNO morning and evening, and presented himselfNP forty days.

16 Meanwhile, for 40 days, the Philistine approached each morning and evening and took his station.

וַיִּגַּשׁ הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, הַשְׁכֵּם וְהַעֲרֵב; וַיִּתְיַצֵּב, אַרְבָּעִים יוֹם. {פ}

17



And Isai said to David his son: Take for thy brethren an ephi of X frumenty, and these ten loaves, and run to the camp to thy brethren.

And Jesse said unto David his son, Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched cornNQ, and these ten loaves, and runNR to the camp of thy brethren;

17 Presently, Jesse said to David his son, “Please take a bushel of this granola and ten of these bread-loaves, and run [them] over to the army-position for your brothers.

וַיֹּאמֶר יִשַׁי לְדָוִד בְּנוֹ, קַח-נָא לְאַחֶיךָ אֵיפַת הַקָּלִיא הַזֶּה, וַעֲשָׂרָה לֶחֶם, הַזֶּה; וְהָרֵץ הַמַּחֲנֶה, לְאַחֶיךָ.

18



And carry these ten little cheese[s] to the tribune X: and go see thy brethren, if they are well: and learn with whom they are placed.

And carry these ten X cheese[s] unto the captainNS of [their] thousand, and look how thy brethren fare, and take their pledgeNT.

18 Also bring these ten churns of milk to the officer over their thousand. And visit your brothers for peace, and get their good news.

וְאֵת עֲשֶׂרֶת חֲרִצֵי הֶחָלָבNU, הָאֵלֶּה, תָּבִיא, לְשַׂר-הָאָלֶף; וְאֶת-אַחֶיךָ תִּפְקֹד לְשָׁלוֹם, וְאֶת- עֲרֻבָּתָםNV תִּקָּח.

19



But Saul, and they, and all the children of Israel were in the valley of Terebinth fighting against the Philistines.

Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, were in the valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.

19 Now, Saul and they and all the men of Israel are in the Valley of Elah, at war with the Philistines.”

וְשָׁאוּל וְהֵמָּהNW וְכָל-אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל, בְּעֵמֶק הָאֵלָהNX; נִלְחָמִיםNY, עִם- פְּלִשְׁתִּים. {ס}

20



David therefore arose in the mor­ning, and gave the charge of the flock to the keep­er: and went away loaded as Isai had commanded him. And he came to the [place of] MagalaNZ, and to the army, which was going out to X fight, and shouted for the battle.

And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and tookOA, and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the trenchOB, as the host was going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battleOC.

20 Then David got up early in the morning and left the flock with a guardian and loaded up and went just as Jesse had commanded him, and he came to the circuit when the force was going out to the line and they were cheering about the battle.

וַיַּשְׁכֵּם דָּוִד בַּבֹּקֶר, וַיִּטֹּשׁ אֶת- הַצֹּאן עַל-שֹׁמֵר, וַיִּשָּׂא וַיֵּלֶךְ, כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוָּהוּ יִשָׁי; וַיָּבֹא, הַמַּעְגָּלָהOD, וְהַחַיִל הַיֹּצֵא אֶל- הַמַּעֲרָכָה, וְהֵרֵעוּ בַּמִּלְחָמָה.

21



For Israel had put themselves in array, and the Phili­stines who stood against them were prepared.

For Israel and the Philistines had put the battle in array, army against X army.

21 Then Israel formed ranks, and the Philistines matched rank to rank.

וַתַּעֲרֹךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל וּפְלִשְׁתִּים, מַעֲרָכָה לִקְרַאת מַעֲרָכָה.

22



And David leaving the vessels which he had brought, under the care of the keeper of the baggage, ran to the place of the battle and asked if [all things] went well with his brethren.

And David left his carriage in the hand of the keeper of the carriageOE, and ran into the armyOF, and came and salutedOG his brethren X X.

22 David, meanwhile, left the supplies that were on him in the hand of the supplies-guard and ran toward the line and came and asked for peace to his brothers.

וַיִּטֹּשׁ דָּוִד אֶת- הַכֵּלִים מֵעָלָיו, עַל- יַד שׁוֹמֵר הַכֵּלִים, וַיָּרָץ, הַמַּעֲרָכָה; וַיָּבֹאOH, וַיִּשְׁאַל לְאֶחָיו לְשָׁלוֹם.

23



And as he talked with them, that baseborn man whose name was Goliath, the Philistine, of Geth, shewed [himself] coming up from the camp of the Philistines: and he spoke according to the same words, and David heard them.

And as he talked with them, X behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the armies of the Philis­tines, and spake according to the same words: and David heard them.

23 Now, while he was speaking with them, look, the middle-man (His name was Goliath the Philistine) from Gath was coming up out of the ranks of the Philistines, and he said those same words, and David heard.

וְהוּא מְדַבֵּר עִמָּם, וְהִנֵּה אִישׁ הַבֵּנַיִםOI עוֹלֶה גָּלְיָת הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי שְׁמוֹ מִגַּת ממערותOJ פְּלִשְׁתִּים, וַיְדַבֵּר, כַּדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה; וַיִּשְׁמַע, דָּוִד.

24



And all the X Israelites when they saw the man, X fled from his face, X fearing him exceedingly.

And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, X fled from him X, and were sore afraid.

24 And when everybody from Israel saw the man, then they fled from his presence and they were very frightened.

וְכֹל אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל, בִּרְאוֹתָם אֶת-הָאִישׁ; וַיָּנֻסוּ, מִפָּנָיו, וַיִּירְאוּ, מְאֹד.

25



And some one of Israel said: Have you seen this man that is come up, for he is come up to defy Israel. And the man that shall slay him, the king will enrich with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and will make his father's house free [from tribute] in Israel.

And the men of Israel said, Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Israel is he come up: and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house freeOK in Israel.

25 And each man of Israel said, “Have y’all seen this man coming up? For sure, he’s coming up in order to insult Israel! But it’s going to happen that the man who strikes him down, the king will give him the great­est wealth and will give [in marriage] his daughter to him, and he will make his father’s house free in Israel.

וַיֹּאמֶר אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל, הַרְּאִיתֶם הָאִישׁ הָעֹלֶה הַזֶּה -כִּי לְחָרֵףOL אֶת-יִשְׂרָאֵל, עֹלֶה; וְהָיָה הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר-יַכֶּנּוּ יַעְשְׁרֶנּוּ הַמֶּלֶךְ עֹשֶׁר גָּדוֹל, וְאֶת- בִּתּוֹ יִתֶּן-לוֹ, וְאֵת בֵּית אָבִיו, יַעֲשֶׂה חָפְשִׁיOM בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל. {פ}

26



And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying: What shall be given to the man that shall kill this Philistine, and shall take away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?

And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproachON from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defyOO the armies of the living God?

26 So David spoke to the men standing with him, saying, “What is going to be done about the man who is going to strike this Philistine and turn away insult from upon Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should insult the ranks of the Living God?”

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד, אֶל- הָאֲנָשִׁים הָעֹמְדִים עִמּוֹ לֵאמֹר, מַה- יֵּעָשֶׂה לָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יַכֶּה אֶת-הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי הַלָּז, וְהֵסִיר חֶרְפָּה מֵעַל יִשְׂרָאֵל: כִּי מִי, הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי הֶעָרֵל הַזֶּה, כִּי חֵרֵף, מַעַרְכוֹת אֱלֹהִים חַיִּים.

27



And the people answered him the same words saying: These things shall be given to the man that shall slay him.

And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him.

27 And the people spoke to him according to this statement, saying, “Thus it shall be done for the man who strikes him down.”

וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ הָעָם, כַּדָּבָר הַזֶּה לֵאמֹר: כֹּה יֵעָשֶׂה, לָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יַכֶּנּוּ.

28



Now when Eliab his eldest brother heard this, when he was speaking with others, X he was angry with David, and said: Why camest thou hither? and why didst thou leave those few sheep in the desert? I know thy pride, and the wickedness of thy heart: that thou art come down to see the battle.

And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy prideOP, and the naughtinessOQ of thine heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle.

28 But Eliab, his oldest brother, heard it while he was talking to the men, and Eliab’s anger blazed toward David, and he said, “For what reason did you come down? And with whom did you leave that little flock in the wilderness? As for me, I know your insolence and the badness belonging to your heart, for it was in order to see the combat that you came down!”

וַיִּשְׁמַע אֱלִיאָב אָחִיו הַגָּדוֹל, בְּדַבְּרוֹ אֶל- הָאֲנָשִׁים; וַיִּחַר- אַף אֱלִיאָב בְּדָוִד וַיֹּאמֶר לָמָּה-זֶּה יָרַדְתָּ, וְעַל-מִי נָטַשְׁתָּ מְעַט הַצֹּאן הָהֵנָּה בַּמִּדְבָּר--אֲנִי יָדַעְתִּי אֶת- זְדֹנְךָ וְאֵת רֹעַ לְבָבֶךָ, כִּי לְמַעַן רְאוֹת הַמִּלְחָמָה יָרָדְתָּ.

29



And David said: What have I done? is there not cause to speak?

And David said, What have I now done? Is there not a causeOR?

29 Yet David said, “What have I done now? Isn’t this the issue?”

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד, מֶה עָשִׂיתִי עָתָּה; הֲלוֹא, דָּבָר הוּא.

30



And he turned a little aside from him to another: and said the same word. And the people answered him X as X before.

And he turned from him toward another, and spake after the same manner: and the people answered him X again after the former manner.

30 Then he stepped around from being next to him to get in front of another, and he talked about this statement, and the people repeated a statement like the first statement.

וַיִּסֹּב מֵאֶצְלוֹ אֶל- מוּל אַחֵר, וַיֹּאמֶר כַּדָּבָר הַזֶּה; וַיְשִׁבֻהוּ הָעָם דָּבָר, כַּדָּבָר הָרִאשׁוֹן.


LXX

Brenton

DRB

KJV

NAW

MT

31



And the words which David spoke were heard, and were rehearsed before Saul. 32 And when he was brought to him,

And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsedOS them before Saul: and he sent for him.

31 Now, the words which David had spoken were overheard and communicated in front of Saul, so he recruited him.

וַיִּשָּׁמְעוּ, הַדְּבָרִים, אֲשֶׁר, דִּבֶּר דָּוִד; וַיַּגִּדוּ לִפְנֵי-שָׁאוּל, וַיִּקָּחֵהוּOT.

32

καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ πρὸς Σαουλ μὴ [δὴ] συμπεσέτω ἡ καρ­δία τοῦ κυρίουOU [μου] ἐπ᾽ αὐτόν ὁ δοῦλός σου πορεύ­σεται καὶ πολεμή­σει μετὰ τοῦ ἀλλο­φύλου τούτου

And David said to Saul, Let not,[ I pray thee], the heart of [my] lord be dejected within him: thy servant will go, and fight with this Philistine.

X he said to him: Let not any man's heart be dismayed in him: I thy servant will go, and will fight against the Philistine X.

And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.

32 Then David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of him! Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אֶל- שָׁאוּל, אַל-יִפֹּל לֵב-אָדָם עָלָיו; עַבְדְּךָ יֵלֵךְ, וְנִלְחַם עִם- הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי הַזֶּה.

33

καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς Δαυιδ οὐ μὴ δυνήσῃ πορευθῆ­ναι πρὸς τὸν ἀλλό­φυλον τοῦ πολεμεῗν μετ᾽ αὐ­τοῦ ὅτι παιδάριον εἶ σύ καὶ αὐτὸς ἀνὴρ πολεμιστὴς ἐκ νεότητος αὐτοῦ

And Saul said to David, Thou wilt not in anywise be able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for thou art a mere youth, and he a man of war from his youth.

And Saul said to David: Thou art not able to withstand this Philistine, nor to fight against him: for thou art but a boy, but he is a warrior from his youth.

And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.

33 But Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to start a fight with him because you are a youth. whereas he has been a man of war since his youth!”

וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל- דָּוִד, לֹא תוּכַל לָלֶכֶת אֶל- הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי הַזֶּה, לְהִלָּחֵם, עִמּוֹ: כִּי-נַעַר אַתָּה, וְהוּא אִישׁ מִלְחָמָה מִנְּעֻרָיו.ס

34

καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ πρὸς Σαουλ ποιμαίνων ἦν ὁ δοῦλός σου τῷ πατρὶ αὐτοῦ ἐν τῷ ποιμνίῳ καὶ ὅταν ἤρχετο ὁ λέων καὶ ἡ ἄρκος καὶ ἐλάμ­βανεν πρόβατον ἐκ τῆς ἀγέλης

And David said to Saul, Thy servant was tending the flock for his father; and when a lion came and a she-bear, and took a sheep out of the flock,

And David said to Saul: Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, or a bear, and took a ram out of the midst of the flock:

And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

34 Then David said to Saul, “Your servant has been a shepherd for his father with his flock. When the lion came (or the bear) and picked up a sheep from the group,

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אֶל- שָׁאוּל, רֹעֶה הָיָה עַבְדְּךָ לְאָבִיוOV בַּצֹּאן; וּבָא הָאֲרִי וְאֶת- הַדּוֹב, וְנָשָׂא שֶׂהOW מֵהָעֵדֶר.

35

καὶ ἐξεπορευ­όμην ὀπίσω αὐ­τοῦ καὶ ἐπάταξα αὐτὸν καὶ ἐξέσ­πασα ἐκ τοῦ στό­ματος αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰ ἐπανίστατο ἐπ᾽ ἐμέ καὶ ἐκράτησα τοῦ φάρυγγοςOX αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπά­ταξα καὶ ἐθανάτωσα αὐτόν

then I went forth after him, and smote him, and drew the spoil out of his mouth: and as he rose up against me, then I caught hold of his throat, and smote him, and slew him.

And I pursued after them, and struck them, and delivered it out of their mouth: and they rose up against me, and I caught them by the throat, and I strangled and killed them.

And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.

35 I then went out after it and struck it and rescued it from its mouth, and when it reared up over me, I gripped it by its mane and I struck it down and killed it!

וְיָצָאתִי אַחֲרָיו וְהִכִּתִיו, וְהִצַּלְתִּיOY מִפִּיו; וַיָּקָם עָלַי—וְהֶחֱזַקְתִּי OZ בִּזְקָנוֹ, וְהִכִּתִיו וַהֲמִיתִּיו.

36

καὶ τὴν ἄρκον ἔτυπ­τεν ὁ δοῦλός σου καὶ τὸν λέοντα καὶ ἔσται ὁ ἀλλόφυλος X ὁ ἀπερί­τμητος ὡς ἓν τούτων οὐχὶ πορεύσομαι καὶ πατάξω αὐτὸν καὶ ἀφελῶ σήμερον ὄνειδος ἐξ Ισραηλ διότι τίς ὁ ἀπερίτμη­τος οὗτος ὃς ὠνεί­δισεν παράταξιν θεοῦ ζῶντος

Thy servant smote both the lion and the bear, and the X uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them: shall I not go and smite him, and remove this day a reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised one, who has defied the armyX of the living God?

[For I] thy servant have killed both a lion and a bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be [also] as one of them. I will go now, and take away the reproach of the people: for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, who hath dared to curse the armyX of the living God?

Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeingPA he hath defied the armies of the living God.

36 Your servant has struck down both the lion and the bear, and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them! {Shall I not go and strike him down today and get rid of the insult against Israel? For who is this uncircumcised man who} has insulted the ranks of the living God?!”

גַּם אֶת-הָאֲרִי גַּם-הַדֹּב, הִכָּה עַבְדֶּךָ; וְהָיָה הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי הֶעָרֵל הַזֶּה, כְּאַחַד מֵהֶם, כִּי חֵרֵף, מַעַרְכֹת אֱלֹהִים חַיִּים. {ס}

37

X X X κύριος ὃς ἐξείλατό με ἐκ χειρὸς τοῦ λέον­τος καὶ ἐκ χειρὸς τῆς ἄρκου αὐτὸς ἐξελεῗταί με ἐκ χειρὸς τοῦ ἀλλο­φύλου [τοῦ ἀπερ­ιτμήτου] τούτου καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς Δαυιδ πορ­εύου καὶ ἔσται κύριος μετὰ σοῦ

X X X The Lord who delivered me out of the paw of the lion and out the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this [uncircumcised] Philistine. And Saul said to David, Go, and the Lord shall be with thee.

And David said: The Lord who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said to David: Go, and the Lord be with thee.

David said moreover, The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the Lord be with thee.

37 Moreover, David said, “Yahweh, who rescued me from the control of the lion and from the control of the bear, He Himself will rescue me from the control of this Philistine.” So Saul said to David, “Go, and may Yahweh be with you!”

וַיֹּאמֶר, דָּוִד, יְהוָה אֲשֶׁר הִצִּלַנִי מִיַּד הָאֲרִי וּמִיַּד הַדֹּב, הוּא יַצִּילֵנִי מִיַּד הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי הַזֶּה; {ס} וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל-דָּוִד לֵךְ,PB וַיהוָה יִהְיֶה עִמָּךְ.

38

καὶ ἐνέδυσεν Σαουλ τὸν Δαυιδ μανδύανPC καὶ περικεφαλαίαν χαλκῆν περὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν αὐτοῦ X X X X

And Saul clothed David with a military coat, and put his brazen helmet on his head X X X X.

And Saul clothed David with his garments, and put a helmet of brass upon his head, and armed him with a coat of mail.

And Saul armed David with his armourPD, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mailPE.

38 And Saul outfitted David with his own uniform and gave him a bronze helmet upon his head and outfitted him with a breastplate.

וַיַּלְבֵּשׁ שָׁאוּל אֶת- דָּוִד מַדָּיוPF, וְנָתַן קוֹבַע נְחֹשֶׁת עַל- רֹאשׁוֹ; וַיַּלְבֵּשׁ אֹתוֹ, שִׁרְיוֹןPG.

39

καὶ ἔζωσενPH τὸν Δαυιδ τὴν ῥομφαί­αν αὐτοῦ ἐπάνω τοῦ μανδύου αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐκοπία­σενPI περιπατήσας ἅπαξ καὶ δίς καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ πρὸς Σαουλ οὐ μὴ δύνωμαι πορευθῆ­ναι ἐν τούτοις ὅτι οὐ πεπείραμαι καὶ ἀφαιροῦσιν αὐτὰ ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ

And he girt David with his sword over his coat: and he made trial walking with them once and again: and David said to Saul, I shall not be able to go with these, for I have not proved them: so they remove them from him.

And David having girded his sword upon his armour, began to try if he [could] walk [in armour:] for he was not accustomed to it. And David said to Saul: I cannot go thus, for I am not used to it. And he laid them off X,

And David girdedPJ his sword upon his armour, and he assayedPK to go; for he had not provedPL it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him.

39 Then David strapped on his sword over his uniform and he made a trial of walking, for he had not tested them out, but David said to Saul, “I’m not able to walk in these because I have not tested them out.” So David declined from them being on him,

וַיַּחְגֹּר דָּוִד אֶת- חַרְבּוֹ מֵעַל לְמַדָּיו וַיֹּאֶלPM לָלֶכֶת, כִּי לֹא- נִסָּה, וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אֶל-שָׁאוּל לֹא אוּכַל לָלֶכֶת בָּאֵלֶּה, כִּי לֹא נִסִּיתִי; וַיְסִרֵם דָּוִד, מֵעָלָיו.

40

καὶ ἔλαβεν τὴν βακτηρίαν αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξελέξατο ἑαυτῷ πέντε λίθους λείους ἐκ τοῦ χειμάρρουPN καὶ ἔθετο αὐτοὺς ἐν τῷ καδίῳPO τῷ ποιμενικῷ τῷ ὄντι αὐτῷ εἰς συλλογ­ὴνPP καὶ σφενδόνην αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ προσῆλ­θεν πρὸς τὸν ἄνδρα τὸν ἀλλόφυλον

And he took his staff in his hand, and he chose for himself five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in the shepherd’s scrip which he had for his store, and his sling was in his hand; and he approached the Philistine.

And he took his staff, [which he had always] in his hand[s]: and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them into the shepherd's scrip, which he had with him, and [he took] a sling in his hand, and went forth against the Philistine.

And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, even in a scripPQ; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew nearPR to the Philistine.

40 and he took his staff in his hand. Then he chose for himself five smooth stones from the creek, and he placed them in the shepherds gear which was on him – that is, in his yalqut, and his sling was in his hand, and he approached toward the Philistine.

וַיִּקַּח מַקְלוֹ בְּיָדוֹ, וַיִּבְחַר-לוֹ חֲמִשָּׁה חַלֻּקֵי-אֲבָנִים מִן-הַנַּחַל וַיָּשֶׂם אֹתָם בִּכְלִי הָרֹעִים אֲשֶׁר-לוֹ PSוּבַיַּלְקוּטPT--וְקַלְעוֹ בְיָדוֹ; וַיִּגַּשׁ, אֶל- הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי.

41

PU


And the Philistine came on, and drew nigh against David, and his armourbearer before him.

And the Philistine came on and drew near unto David; and the man that bare the shield [went] before him.

41 Meanwhile the Philistine kept walk­ing and drew near to David (along with the man carrying the full-body-shield in front of him),

וַיֵּלֶךְ, הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, הֹלֵךְ וְקָרֵב, אֶל- דָּוִד; וְהָאִישׁ נֹשֵׂא הַצִּנָּה, לְפָנָיו.

42

καὶ εἶδεν Γολιαδ X X τὸν Δαυιδ καὶ ἠτίμασενPV αὐτόν ὅτι αὐτὸς ἦν παιδάριον καὶ αὐτὸς πυρράκης μετὰ κάλλους ὀφθαλμῶν

And Goliath saw X X David, and despised him; for he was a lad, and ruddy, with a fair countenance.

And when the Philistine looked, and beheld David, he despised him. For he was a young man, ruddy, and of a comely countenance.

And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was [but] a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.

42 and the Philistine peered and saw David, and he despised him because he was a youth and ruddy with a handsome look.

וַיַּבֵּט הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי וַיִּרְאֶה אֶת-דָּוִד, וַיִּבְזֵהוּ: כִּי-הָיָה נַעַר, וְאַדְמֹנִי עִם-יְפֵה מַרְאֶהPW.

43

καὶ εἶπεν ὁ ἀλλό­φυλ­ος πρὸς Δαυιδ [ὡσεὶ] κύων ἐγώ εἰμι ὅτι σὺ ἔρχῃ ἐπ᾽ ἐμὲ ἐν ῥάβδ [καὶ λίθοις καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ οὐχί ἀλλ᾽ ἢ χείρω κυνός] καὶ κατηράσατοPX ὁ ἀλ­λόφυλος τὸν Δαυ­ιδ ἐν τοῗς θεοῗς αὐτοῦ

And the Philistine said to David, Am I [as] a dog, that thou comest against me with a staffX [and stones? and David said, Nay, but worse than a dog.] And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

And the Philistine said to David: Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with a staffX? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with stavesPY? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

43 So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog that you come to me with staves?!” and the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

וַיֹּאמֶר הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, אֶל-דָּוִד, הֲכֶלֶב אָנֹכִי, כִּי-אַתָּה בָא-אֵלַי בַּמַּקְלוֹת; וַיְקַלֵּל הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי אֶת-דָּוִד, בֵּאלֹהָיו.

44

καὶ εἶπεν ὁ ἀλλόφυλος πρὸς Δαυιδ δεῦρο πρός με καὶ δώσω τὰς σάρκας σου τοῗς πετεινοῗς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τοῗς κτήνεσιν τῆς γῆς

And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth.

And he X said to David: Come to me, and I will give thy flesh to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth.

And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

44 And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the heavens and to the beasts of the {earth}!

וַיֹּאמֶר הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, אֶל-דָּוִד: לְכָה אֵלַי--וְאֶתְּנָה אֶת- בְּשָׂרְךָ, לְעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וּלְבֶהֱמַת הַשָּׂדֶהPZ. {ס}

45

καὶ εἰπεν Δαυιδ πρὸς τὸν ἀλλόφυ­λον σὺ ἔρχῃ πρός με ἐν ῥομφαίᾳ καὶ ἐν δόρατι καὶ ἐν ἀσπίδι κἀγὼ πορ­εύομαι πρὸς σὲ ἐν ὀνόματι κυρίου σαβαωθ θεοῦ παρατάξεως Ισρα­ηλ ἣν ὠνείδισας [σήμερον]

And David said to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with sword, and with spear, and with shield; but I come to thee in the name of the Lord God of hosts of the army of Israel, which thou hast defied [this day].

And David said to the Philistine: Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which thou hast defied.

Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shieldQA: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.

45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You are coming to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I am coming to you with the name of Yahweh of hosts, the God of the ranks of Israel, whom you have insulted.

וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד, אֶל- הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, אַתָּה בָּא אֵלַי, בְּחֶרֶב וּבַחֲנִית וּבְכִידוֹן; וְאָנֹכִי בָא-אֵלֶיךָ, בְּשֵׁם יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת, אֱלֹהֵי מַעַרְכוֹת יִשְׂרָאֵל, אֲשֶׁר חֵרַפְתָּ.

46

καὶ ἀποκλείσει σε κύριος σήμερον εἰς τὴν χεῗρά μου καὶ ἀποκτενῶ σε καὶ ἀφελῶ τὴν κεφαλήν σου ἀπὸ σοῦ καὶ δώσω τὰ κῶλά [σου καὶ τὰ κῶλα] παρεμβο­λῆς ἀλλοφύλων ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῗς πετεινοῗς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τοῗς θηρίοις τῆς γῆς καὶ γνώσεται πᾶσα ἡ γῆ ὅτι ἔστιν θεὸς ἐν Ισραηλ

And the Lord shall deliver thee this day into my hand; and I will slay thee, and take away thy head from off thee, and will give [thy limbs and] the limbs of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky, and to the wild beasts of the earth; and all the earth shall know that there is a God in Israel.

This day, and the Lord will deliver thee into my hand, and I will slay thee, and take away thy head from thee: and I will give the carcasses of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth: that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the airQB, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

46 This day, Yahweh will enclose you in my hand, and I will strike you down, and I will remove your head from off of you, and I will give the corpse of the Philistine position this day to the birds of the sky and to the beasts of the earth, and all the earth will know that there is a God who belongs to Israel.

הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה יְסַגֶּרְךָ יְהוָה בְּיָדִי וְהִכִּיתִךָ, וַהֲסִרֹתִי אֶת- רֹאשְׁךָ מֵעָלֶיךָ, וְנָתַתִּי פֶּגֶרQC מַחֲנֵה פְלִשְׁתִּים הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה, לְעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וּלְחַיַּת הָאָרֶץ; וְיֵדְעוּ, כָּל- הָאָרֶץ, כִּי יֵשׁ אֱלֹהִים, לְיִשְׂרָאֵל.

47

καὶ γνώσεται πᾶσα ἡ ἐκκλησία αὕτη ὅτι οὐκ ἐν ῥομφαίᾳ καὶ δόρατι σῴζει κύριος ὅτι τοῦ κυρίου ὁ πόλεμος καὶ παραδώσει κύριος ὑμᾶς εἰς χεῗραςQD ἡμῶν

And all this assembly shall know that the Lord delivers not by sword or spear, for the battle is the Lord’s, and the [Lord] will deliver you into our hand[s].

And all this assembly shall know, that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for it is his battle, and he will deliver you into our hand[s].

And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hand[s].

47 And all this assembly will know that it is not with sword or spear that Yahweh saves, for the battle belongs to Yahweh, and He will give y’all into our hands.”

וְיֵדְעוּ כָּל-הַקָּהָל הַזֶּה, כִּי-לֹא בְּחֶרֶב וּבַחֲנִית יְהוֹשִׁיעַ יְהוָה: כִּי לַיהוָה הַמִּלְחָמָה, וְנָתַן אֶתְכֶם בְּיָדֵנוּ. ס

48

καὶ X X ἀνέστη ὁ ἀλλόφυλος καὶ ἐπορεύθη X X εἰς συνάντησιν Δαυιδ X X X X X X

And X X the Philistine arose and went X X to meet David. X X X X X X

And when the Philistine arose and was coming, and drew nigh to meet David, David made haste, and ran to the fight to meet the Philistine.

And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came, and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.

48 So it was that the Philistine got ready and came and got close enough to engage David, while David hurried and ran toward the ranks to engage the Philistine.

וְהָיָה כִּי-קָםQE הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, וַיֵּלֶךְ וַיִּקְרַב לִקְרַאת דָּוִד; וַיְמַהֵר דָּוִד, וַיָּרָץ הַמַּעֲרָכָהQF לִקְרַאת הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי.

49

καὶ ἐξέτεινεν Δαυιδ τὴν χεῗρα αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸ κάδιον καὶ ἔλαβ­εν ἐκεῗθεν λίθον ἕνα καὶ ἐσφενδόνη­σεν καὶ ἐπάταξεν τὸν ἀλλόφυλον ἐπὶ τὸ μέτωπον αὐτοῦ καὶ διέδυ ὁ λίθος [διὰ τῆς περικεφαλ­αί­ας] εἰς τὸ μέτω­πον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔπε­σεν ἐπὶ πρόσ­ωπον αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν

And David stretched out his hand to his scrip, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine on his forehead, and the stone penetrated [through the helmet] into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the ground.

And he put his hand into his scrip, and took a stone X X, and cast it [with the sling], and [fetching it about] struck the Philistine in the forehead: and the stone was fixed in his forehead, and he fell on his face upon the earth.

And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

49 Then David reached his hand into his gear and got a stone out of it, and he slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead. And the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the ground.

וַיִּשְׁלַח דָּוִד אֶת- יָדוֹ אֶל-הַכֶּלִי, וַיִּקַּח מִשָּׁם אֶבֶן וַיְקַלַּע, וַיַּךְ אֶת- הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, אֶל- מִצְחוֹ; וַתִּטְבַּע הָאֶבֶן בְּמִצְחוֹ, וַיִּפֹּל עַל-פָּנָיו אָרְצָה.

50

kai ekrataiw­sen Dauid uper ton allofulon en th sfendonh kai en tw liqw kai epa­taxen ton allo­fulon, kai eqan­twsen auton kai romfaia ouk hn en ceiri Dauid.QG

And David prevailed over the Philistine with the sling and with the stone, and he struck the Philistine and killed him, and no sword was in David’s hand.QH

And David prevailed over the Philistine, with a sling and a stone, and he struck, and slew the Philistine. And as David had no sword in his hand,

So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.

50 (So David was deadlier than the Philistine with the sling and with the stone, since he struck down the Philistine and killed him – there wasn’t even a sword in David’s hand!)

וַיֶּחֱזַק דָּוִד מִן- הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי בַּקֶּלַע וּבָאֶבֶן, וַיַּךְ אֶת-הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי וַיְמִתֵהוּQI; וְחֶרֶב, אֵין בְּיַד-דָּוִד.

51

καὶ ἔδραμεν Δαυ­ιδ καὶ ἐπέστη ἐπ᾽ αὐ­τὸν καὶ ἔλαβεν τὴν ῥομφαίαν αὐ­τοῦ X X X X X X καὶ ἐθανά­τωσεν αὐτὸν καὶ ἀφεῗλεν τὴν κεφ­αλὴν αὐ­τοῦ X X καὶ εἶδον οἱ ἀλλό­φυλοι ὅτι τέθνηκεν ὁ δυνα­τὸς αὐτῶν καὶ ἔφυγον

And David ran, and stood upon him, and took his sword, X X X X X X and slew him, and cut off his head X X: and the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, and they fled.

X He ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath, and slew him, and cut off his head X X. And the Philistines seeing that their champion was dead, fled away.

Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philis­tines saw their championQJ was dead, they fled.

51 Anyway, David ran forward and stood {over} the Philistine and grabbed his sword and drew it out from its sheath and killed him, that is, he cut off his head {}. And when the Philistines saw that their mighty-man was dead, they fled.

וַיָּרָץ דָּוִד וַיַּעֲמֹד אֶלQK-הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי וַיִּקַּח אֶת-חַרְבּוֹ וַיִּשְׁלְפָהּ מִתַּעְרָהּ, וַיְמֹתְתֵהוּ, וַיִּכְרָת- בָּהּ, אֶת-רֹאשׁוֹ; וַיִּרְאוּ הַפְּלִשְׁתִּים כִּי-מֵת גִּבּוֹרָם, וַיָּנֻסוּ.

52

καὶ ἀνίστανται ἄνδρες Ισραηλ καὶ Ιουδα καὶ ἠλάλαξ­αν καὶ κατεδίωξαν X X ὀπίσω αὐτῶν ἕως εἰσόδου Γεθ καὶ ἕως τῆς πύλης Ἀσκαλῶνος καὶ ἔπεσαν τραυμα­τίαι τῶν ἀλλο­φύλων ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ τῶν πυλῶνQL καὶ ἕως Γεθ καὶ ἕως Ακκαρων

And the men of Israel and Juda arose, and shouted and pursued them X as far as the entrance to Geth, and as far as the gate of Ascalon: and the slainQM men of the Philis­tines fell in the way of the gates, both to Geth, and to Accaron.

And the men of Israel and Juda rising up X shouted, and pursued [after] the Philistines till they came to the valley and to the gates of Accaron, and there fell [many] wounded of the Philistines in the way of Saraim, and as far as Geth, and as far as Accaron.

And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shout­ed, and pursued the Philis­tines, until thou come to the valleyQN, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell downQO by the way to Shaar­aim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron.

52 Meanwhile, the men of Israel and Judah got up and cheered and hun­ted down the Phil­istines from their entrance to the ravine even to the gates of Ekron, such that wounded Philistines fell along the road to Shaaraim, and also as far as Gath and as far as Ekron.

וַיָּקֻמוּ אַנְשֵׁי יִשְׂרָאֵל וִיהוּדָה וַיָּרִעוּ, וַיִּרְדְּפוּ אֶת-הַפְּלִשְׁתִּים, עַד-בּוֹאֲךָ גַיְא, וְעַד שַׁעֲרֵי עֶקְרוֹן; וַיִּפְּלוּ חַלְלֵיQP פְלִשְׁתִּים, בְּדֶרֶךְ שַׁעֲרַיִםQQ, וְעַד- גַּת, וְעַד-עֶקְרוֹן.

53

καὶ ἀνέστρεψαν ἄνδρες Ισραηλ ἐκκλίνοντεςQR ὀπίσω τῶν ἀλλο­φύλων καὶ κατε­πάτουνQS τὰς παρ­εμβολὰς αὐτῶν

And the men of Israel returned from pursuing after the Philistines, and they destroyed their campX.

And the children of Israel returning, after they had pursued X the Philistines, X fell uponQT their campX.

And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they spoiled their tents.

53 And when the sons of Israel returned from hotly-pursuing after the Philistines, they plundered their army-camps.

וַיָּשֻׁבוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, מִדְּלֹק אַחֲרֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים; וַיָּשֹׁסּוּ, אֶת- מַחֲנֵיהֶם.

54

καὶ ἔλαβεν Δαυιδ τὴν κεφαλὴν τοῦ ἀλλοφύλου καὶ ἤνεγκεν αὐτὴν εἰς Ιερουσαλημ καὶ τὰ σκεύηQU αὐτοῦ ἔθηκεν ἐν τῷ σκηνώματι αὐτοῦ

And David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armour in his tent.

And David taking the head of the Philistine X brought it to Jerusalem: but his armour he put in his tent.

And David took the head of the Philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armour in his tent.

54 Eventually, David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his gear into his own tent.

וַיִּקַּח דָּוִד אֶת- רֹאשׁ הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, וַיְבִאֵהוּ יְרוּשָׁלִָם; וְאֶת-כֵּלָיו, שָׂם בְּאָהֳלוֹ. {ס}

55

QV


Now at the time that Saul saw David going out against the Philis­tines, he said to Abner the captain of the army: Of what family is this young man [descended], Abner? And Abner said: As thy soul liveth, O king, I know not.

And when Saul saw David go forth against X the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.QW

55 Now, when Saul had watched David go out to encounter the Philistine, he had said to Abner, the general of the army, “Whose son is this young man, Abner?” And Abner had said, “May your soul live, O king! [Damned] if I know.”

וְכִרְאוֹת שָׁאוּל אֶת-דָּוִד, יֹצֵא לִקְרַאת הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, אָמַר אֶל-אַבְנֵר שַׂר הַצָּבָאQX, בֶּן-מִי-זֶה הַנַּעַר אַבְנֵר; וַיֹּאמֶר אַבְנֵר, חֵי-נַפְשְׁךָ הַמֶּלֶךְ אִם-יָדָעְתִּי.

56



And the king said: Inquire thou, whose son this man is.

And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the striplingQY is.

56 And the king had said, “Ask whose son this youngster is yourself!”

וַיֹּאמֶר, הַמֶּלֶךְ: שְׁאַל אַתָּה, בֶּן- מִי-זֶה הָעָלֶםQZ. ס

57



And when David was returned, after the Philistine was slain, Abner took him, and brought him in before Saul, with the head of the Philistine in his hand.

And as David returned from the slaughterRA of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.

57 So, as David had returned from striking down the Philistine, Abner had gotten him and brought him before the face of Saul, while the head of the Philistine was in his hand,

וּכְשׁוּב דָּוִד, מֵהַכּוֹת אֶת- הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, וַיִּקַּח אֹתוֹ אַבְנֵר, וַיְבִאֵהוּ לִפְנֵי שָׁאוּל; וְרֹאשׁ הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי, בְּיָדוֹ.

58



And Saul said to him: Young man, of what family art thou? And David said: I am the son of thy servant Isai the Bethlehemite.

And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.

58 and Saul had said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David had said, “The son of your servant Jesse, the Bethlehemite.”

וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו שָׁאוּל, בֶּן-מִי אַתָּה הַנָּעַר; וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד, בֶּן-עַבְדְּךָ יִשַׁי בֵּית הַלַּחְמִי.

 

I Samuel CHAPTER 18

1 Samuel 18:1-16 - Friendship & Jealousy

vs. 1-4 - The Friendship of David and Prince Jonathan

vs. 5-13 – The Jealousy of King Saul Towards His Faithful Captain

vs. 14-16 Fear vs. Love

1 Samuel 18:17-30 – To Be The King’s In-Law

vs. 17-19 Merab’s Hand in Marriage

v.17 Offered by Saul with impure motives

v.18 Humbly Declined by David

v.19 Denied David by giving to Adriel

vs. 20-27 Michal’s Hand in Marriage

v. 20 Desired by Michal’s love

vs. 21-22 Offered to David by Saul with malice

vs. 23-24 David decided to Humbly decline Saul’s second offer as well.

vs. 25-26 Dowry re-negotiated and agreed upon by David

vs. 27 Dowry paid and marriage consumated

vs. 28-30 An Epilogue: David Blessed, Saul Afraid

  1. He was gracious and humble.

  1. David behaved wisely and obeyed God.

  1. David avoided the snares

1 Samuel 18 - Side-by side comparison of versionsRB

Septuagint

Brenton

DRB

KJV

NAW

MT

RC

[1. And it came to pass when he had finished speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.]

1 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking to Saul, X the soul of Jon­a­than was knit with the soul of David, and Jona­than loved him as his own soul.

1 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

1 And it happened that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, as he finished speaking to Saul, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

1 וַיְהִי כְּכַלֹּתוֹ לְדַבֵּר אֶל- שָׁאוּל וְנֶפֶשׁ יְהוֹנָתָן נִקְשְׁרָהRD בְּנֶפֶשׁ דָּוִד וַיֶּאֱהָבוֹRE יְהוֹנָתָן כְּנַפְשׁוֹ:


[2. And Saul took him in that day and did not suffer him to return to his father’s house.]

2 And Saul took him that day, and would not let him return to his father's house.

2 And Saul took him that day, and would let him go RFno [more home] to his father's house.

2 Meanwhile, Saul drafted him that day and did not give him [leave] to return to the house of his father.

2 וַיִּקָּחֵהוּ שָׁאוּל בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וְלֹא נְתָנוֹ לָשׁוּב בֵּית אָבִיו:

[... agapwntoV kata thn yuchn autou.]

[3. And Jonathan and David made a covenant because he loved him as his own soul.]

3 And David and Jonathan made a covenant, for he loved him as his own soul.

3 Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul.

3 Jonathan also cut a covenant with David in his love for him as his own soul,

3 וַיִּכְרֹת יְהוֹנָתָן וְדָוִד בְּרִית בְּאַהֲבָתוֹ אֹתוֹ כְּנַפְשׁוֹ:


[4. And Jonathan stripped himself of X X his upper garment, and gave it to David and his mantleX and all he had upon him, even to his sword and to his bow, and to his girdle.]

4 And Jonathan stripped himself of the coat with which he [was clothed], and gave it to David, and the [rest of] his garments, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.

4 And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garmentsRG, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdleRH.

4 and Jonathan stripped himself of the tunic which was on him, and he gave it to David along with his uniform and even his sword and his bow and his belt.

4 וַיִּתְפַּשֵּׁט יְהוֹנָתָן אֶת- הַמְּעִיל אֲשֶׁר עָלָיו וַיִּתְּנֵהוּ לְדָוִד וּמַדָּיו וְעַד-חַרְבּוֹ וְעַד-קַשְׁתּוֹ וְעַד-חֲגֹרוֹ:


[5 And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, [and] acted wisely, and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was pleasing in the eyes of all the people ,and also in the eyes of the servants of Saul.]

5 And David went out to whatsoever [business] Saul sent him, [and] he behaved himself prudently: and Saul set him over the soldiers X, and he was acceptable in the eyes of all the people, and especially in the eyes of Saul's servants.

5 And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wiselyRI: and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was acceptedRJ in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants.

5 And David carried out everything on which Saul commissioned him, {and} he was prudent in execution, so Saul put him over the men of war, and it was good in the eyes of all the people and also in the eyes of Saul’s servants.

5 וַיֵּצֵאRK דָוִד בְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁלָחֶנּוּ שָׁאוּל RLיַשְׂכִּיל וַיְשִׂמֵהוּ שָׁאוּל עַל אַנְשֵׁי הַמִּלְחָמָה וַיִּיטַב בְּעֵינֵי כָל-הָעָם וְגַם בְּעֵינֵי עַבְדֵי שָׁאוּל: פ

6 X X X X X X X X X X X X Καὶ ἐξῆλθον αἱ χορεύουσαι εἰς συνάντησιν Δαυιδ ἐκ πασῶν πόλεων Ισραηλ ἐν τυμπάνοις [καὶ] ἐν χαρμοσύνῃ καὶ ἐν κυμβάλοις,

6 X X X X X X X X X X X X And there came out women in dances to meet David out of all the cities of Israel, with timbrels, [and] with rejoicing, and with cymbals.

6 X X X X Now when David returned, after he slew the Philistine, X the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with timbrels of joy, and cornets.

6 And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabretsRM, with joy, and with instruments of musickRN.

6 Now, it happened when they were on parade - when David was returning from striking down the Philistine, that the wom­en from all the towns of Israel came out to sing and circle-dance to greet King Saul with tambourines {and} with cheering and with triangles.

6 וַיְהִי בְּבוֹאָם בְּשׁוּב דָּוִד מֵהַכּוֹת אֶת-הַפְּלִשְׁתִּי וַתֵּצֶאנָה הַנָּשִׁים מִכָּל-עָרֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לָשׁוֹרRO וְהַמְּחֹלוֹת לִקְרַאת שָׁאוּל הַמֶּלֶךְ בְּתֻפִּים בְּשִׂמְחָהRP וּבְשָׁלִשִׁיםRQ:

7 καὶ ἐξῆρχον αἱ γυναῖκες XRR καὶ ἔλεγον Ἐπάταξεν Σαουλ ἐν χιλιάσιν αὐτοῦ καὶ Δαυιδ ἐν μυριάσινRS αὐτοῦ.

7 And the women began [the strain], and said, Saul has smitten his thousands, and David his ten thousands.

7 And the women sung as they played, and they said: Saul slew his thousands, and David his ten thousands.

7 And the women answeredRT one another as they playedRU, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.

7 And the women sang antiphonally, laughing, and saying, “Saul struck down his thousands and David his tens-of-thousands!”

7 וַתַּעֲנֶינָה הַנָּשִׁים הַמְשַׂחֲקוֹתRV וַתֹּאמַרְןָ הִכָּה שָׁאוּל בַּאֱלְפוֹRW וְדָוִד בְּרִבְבֹתָיו:

8 καὶ X X X πονηρὸν ἐφάνη [τὸ ῥῆμα] ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς Σαουλ [περὶ] τοῦ λόγου τούτου, καὶ εἶπεν Τῷ Δαυιδ ἔδωκαν τὰς μυριάδας καὶ ἐμοὶ ἔδωκαν τὰς χιλιάδας.

8 And X X X it seemed evil in the eyes of Saul [concerning] this matter, and he said, To David they have given ten thousands, and to me they have given thousands.[And what more can he have but the kingdom?]

8 And XSaul was exceeding angry, and this word was displeasing in his eyes, and he said: They have given David ten thousands, and to me they have given [but] a thousandX, X what can he have more but the kingdom?

8 And X Saul was very wrothRX, and the saying displeased X X X him; and he said, They have ascribedRY unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?

8 And it was very inflamatory toward Saul, and, in his eyes, this ditty was wrong, and he said, “They attributed tens of thousands to David, but to me they attributed the thousands. What more can there be for him except the kingdom?!”

8 וַיִּחַר לְשָׁאוּל מְאֹד וַיֵּרַע בְּעֵינָיו הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה וַיֹּאמֶר נָתְנוּ לְדָוִד רְבָבוֹת וְלִי נָתְנוּ הָאֲלָפִים וְעוֹד לוֹ אַךְ הַמְּלוּכָה:

9 καὶ ἦν Σαουλ ὑποβλεπόμενος τὸν Δαυιδ ἀπὸ τῆς ἡμέρας ἐκείνης καὶ ἐπέκεινα.

[9 And Saul eyed David from that day and onward.]

9 And Saul [did not look] on David [with a good] eye from that day and forward.

9 And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.

9 So Saul started keeping an eye on David from that day and onward.

9 וַיְהִי שָׁאוּל עָוֶןRZ אֶת-דָּוִד מֵהַיּוֹם הַהוּא וָהָלְאָה: ס

[kai egenhqh apo thV epaurion...]

[10 And it came to pass on the morrow that an evil spirit from God fell upon Saul, and he pro­ph­esied in the midst of [his] house. And David was playing [on the harp] with his hand, according to [his] daily [custom]. And Saul’s spear was in his hand.]

10 And X the day after, X the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of [his] house. And David played with his hand as at other times. And Saul held a spear in his hand,

10 And it came to pass on the morrowSA, that the evilSB spirit from God cameSC upon Saul, and he prophesiedSD in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other timesSE: and there was a javelinSF in Saul's hand.

10 Then it was the next day that an evil spirit from God advanced upon Saul, and he spoke unnaturally inside {his} house. Meanwhile, David was strumming with his hand as [he had done] day by day. Now in the hand of Saul was his spear,

10 וַיְהִי מִמָּחֳרָת וַתִּצְלַחSG רוּחַ אֱלֹהִים רָעָהSH אֶל-שָׁאוּל וַיִּתְנַבֵּאSI בְתוֹךְ- הַבַּיִתSJ וְדָוִד מְנַגֵּן בְּיָדוֹ כְּיוֹם בְּיוֹם וְהַחֲנִית בְּיַדSK-שָׁאוּל:


[11 And Saul took his spear and said, I will smite David even to the wall. But David escaped twice from his presence.]

11 And X threw it X, X thinking to nail David X to the wall: and David stept aside out of his presence twice.

11 And Saul cast the javelin; for he saidSL, I will smiteSM David even toSN the wall with it. And David avoidedSO out of his presence twice.

11 and Saul hurled his spear and said, “I will strike both David and the wall!” But David got away from his presence twice.

11 וַיָּטֶל שָׁאוּל אֶת-הַחֲנִית וַיֹּאמֶר אַכֶּה בְדָוִד וּבַקִּיר וַיִּסֹּב דָּוִד מִפָּנָיו פַּעֲמָיִם:

12 καὶ ἐφοβήθη Σαουλ ἀπὸ προσ­ώπου Δαυιδ [oti hn PIPI met’ autou, kai apo Saoul apesth]

12 And Saul was alarmedSP on account of David [because Yahweh was with him and had departed from Saul].

12 And Saul feared David, because the Lord was with him, and was departed from Saul [himself].

12 And Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him, and was departed from Saul.

12 Then Saul was afraid of David’s presence, because Yahweh was with him but had turned away from being with Saul.

12 וַיִּרָא שָׁאוּל מִלִּפְנֵי דָוִד כִּי-הָיָה יְהוָה עִמּוֹ וּמֵעִם שָׁאוּל סָר:

13 καὶ X ἀπέστησεν αὐτὸν ἀπ᾿ αὐτοῦ καὶ κατέστησεν αὐτὸν ἑαυτῷ χιλίαρχον, καὶ ἐξεπορεύετο καὶ εἰσεπορεύετο ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ λαοῦ.

13 And X he removed him from him, and made him a captain of a thousand for himself; and he went out and came in before the people.

13 Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him X X a captain over a thousand [men], and he went out and came in before the people.

13 Therefore Saul removed him from him, and madeSQ him his captainSR over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people.

13 So Saul turned him away from being with him and positioned him for himself as an officer over a thousand [troops]. So David went out [on missions] and came [back] in the presence of the people,

13 וַיְסִרֵהוּ שָׁאוּל מֵעִמּוֹ וַיְשִׂמֵהוּ לוֹ שַׂר-אָלֶף וַיֵּצֵא וַיָּבֹא לִפְנֵי הָעָם: פ

14 καὶ ἦν Δαυιδ ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτοῦ συνίωνSS, καὶ κύριος μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ.

14 And David was prudent in all his ways, and the Lord was with him.

14 And David behaved wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him.

14 And David behaved himself wisely in all his waysST; andSU the LORD was with him.

14 and he was prudent in execution in all his ways, for Yahweh was with him.

14 וַיְהִי דָוִד לְכָל-דָּרְכָו מַשְׂכִּיל וַיהוָה עִמּוֹ:

15 καὶ εἶδεν Σαουλ ὡς αὐτὸς συνίει σφόδρα, καὶ εὐλαβεῖτοSV ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ.

15 And Saul saw that he was very wise, and he was afraid of him.

15 And Saul saw that he was exceeding prudent, and began to beware of him.

15 Wherefore [when] Saul saw that he behaved himself very wiselySW, X he was afraidSX of him.

15 When Saul saw that he was being so prudent in execution, then he became unsettled by his presence.

15 וַיַּרְא שָׁאוּל אֲשֶׁר-הוּא מַשְׂכִּיל מְאֹד וַיָּגָר מִפָּנָיו:

16 καὶ πᾶς Ισραηλ καὶ Ιουδας ἠγάπα τὸν Δαυιδ, ὅτι αὐτὸς ἐξεπορεύ­ετο καὶ εἰσεπορ­εύετο πρὸ προσ­ώπου τοῦ [λαοῦ].

16 And all Israel and Juda loved David, because he came in and went out before the [people].

16 But all Israel and Juda loved David, for he came in and went out before them.

16 But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them.

16 Meanwhile, all Israel and Judah was loving David because he was going out [on missions] and coming [back] in their presence.

16 וְכָל-יִשְׂרָאֵל וִיהוּדָה אֹהֵב אֶת-דָּוִד כִּי-הוּא יוֹצֵא וָבָא לִפְנֵיהֶם: פ

SY

[17 And Saul said to David, Behold my elder daughter Merob, I will give her to thee to wife, only be thou to me a mighty man and fight the wars of the Lord. And Saul said, Let not my hand be upon him, but the hand of the Philistines shall be upon him.]

17 And Saul said to David: Behold my elder daughter Merob, her will I give thee to wife: only be X X a valiant man, and fight the battles of the Lord. Now Saul said [within himself]: Let not my hand be upon him, but let the hands of the Philistines be upon him.

17 And Saul said to David, BeholdSZ my elder daughter Merab, her will I give thee to wife: only be thou valiant for me, and fight the LORD'S battles. For Saul said, Let not mine hand be uponTA him, but let the hand of the Philistines be upon him.

17 Then Saul said to David, “Look at my oldest daughter Merab; I will give her to you to be your wife. Just be an army guy for me, and fight Yahweh’s battles.” Meanwhile, Saul said, “It won’t be my hand that’s against him; rather, let hand of the Philistines be against him!”

17 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל-דָּוִד הִנֵּה בִתִּי הַגְּדוֹלָה מֵרַב אֹתָהּ אֶתֶּןTB-לְךָ לְאִשָּׁה אַךְ הֱיֵה- לִּי לְבֶן-חַיִלTC וְהִלָּחֵם מִלְחֲמוֹת יְהוָה וְשָׁאוּל אָמַר אַל-תְּהִי יָדִי בּוֹ וּתְהִי-בוֹ יַד-פְּלִשְׁתִּים: ס


[18 And David said to Saul, Who am I, and what is the life of my father’s family in Israel, that I should be the king’s son-in-law?]

18 And David said to Saul: Who am I, or what is my life, [orTD] my father's family in Israel, that I should be son in law of the king?

18 And David said unto Saul, Who am I? and what is my lifeTE, or my father's familyTF in Israel, that I should be son in law to the king?

18 But David said to Saul, “Who am I? And what are the lives of the family of my father in Israel that I should become an in-law to the king?”

18 וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אֶל-שָׁאוּל מִי אָנֹכִי וּמִי חַיַּי מִשְׁפַּחַת אָבִי בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל כִּי-אֶהְיֶה חָתָןTG לַמֶּלֶךְ:


[19 But it came to pass at the time [when] Merob Saul’s daughter [should have been] given to David, that she was given to Israel the Mothulathite to wife.]

19 And it came to pass at the time [when] Merob, the daughter of Saul, [should have been] given to David, that she was given to Hadriel, the Molathite, to wife.

19 But it came to pass at the time [when] Merab Saul's daughter [should have been] given to David, that she was given unto Adriel the Meholathite toTH wife.

19 But when it was time to give Merab the daughter of Saul to David, she instead was given to Adriel the Mecholatite to be his wife.

19 וַיְהִי בְּעֵת תֵּת אֶת-מֵרַב בַּת-שָׁאוּל לְדָוִד וְהִיא נִתְּנָה לְעַדְרִיאֵלTI הַמְּחֹלָתִי לְאִשָּׁה:

20 Καὶ ἠγάπησεν Μελχολ ἡ θυγάτηρ Σαουλ τὸν Δαυιδ, καὶ ἀπηγγέλη Σαουλ, καὶ ηὐθύνθηTJ X ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς αὐτοῦ.

20 And Melchol the daughter of Saul loved David; and it was told Saul, and [the thing] was pleasing in his eyes.

20 But Michol, the [other] daughter of Saul, loved David. And it was told Saul, and X it pleased X X him.

20 And Michal Saul's daughter loved David: and they told Saul, and the thing pleasedTK X X him.

20 Now, Saul’s daughter Michal loved David, and {this was} related to Saul, and {it} was right in his eyes.

20 וַתֶּאֱהַב מִיכַל בַּת-שָׁאוּל אֶת-דָּוִד וַיַּגִּדוּ לְשָׁאוּל וַיִּשַׁר הַדָּבָרTL בְּעֵינָיו:

21 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ Δώσω αὐτὴν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἔσται αὐτῷ εἰς σκάνδαλον. καὶ ἦν ἐπὶ Σαουλ χεὶρ ἀλλοφύλων· [kai eipen Saoul proV Dauid ef’ airesei esh gambroV moi X]TM

21 And Saul said, I will give her to him, and she shall be a stumbling-block to him. Now the hand of the Philistines was against Saul. X X X X X X X X X X


21 And Saul said: I will give her to him, that she may be a stumbling­block to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be upon him. And Saul said to David: In two things thou shalt be my son in law this day.

21 And Saul saidTN, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philis­tines may be against him. Where­fore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this dayTO be my son in law in the one of the twainTP.

21 So Saul said, “I shall give her to him, and she will become a snare for him while the hand of the Philistines is against him!” And Saul said to David, “For a second time you may become an in-law to me today!”

21 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶתְּנֶנָּה לּוֹ וּתְהִי-לוֹ לְמוֹקֵשׁ וּתְהִי-בוֹ יַד- פְּלִשְׁתִּים וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל-דָּוִד בִּשְׁתַּיִםTQ תִּתְחַתֵּן בִּי הַיּוֹם:

22 καὶ ἐνετείλατο Σαουλ τοῖς παισὶν αὐτοῦ [λέγων] Λαλήσατε ὑμεῖς λάθρᾳ τῷ Δαυιδ λέγοντες Ἰδοὺ ὁ βασιλεὺς θέλειTR ἐν σοί, καὶ πάντες οἱ παῖδες αὐτοῦ ἀγαπῶσίν σε, καὶ σὺTS ἐπιγάμβρευ­σον τῷ βασιλεῖ.

22 And Saul charged X his [servants, saying,] Speak ye privately to David, saying, Behold, the king delights in thee, and all his servants love thee, and do thou becomes the king's son-in-law.

22 And Saul commanded his servants to speak to David privately, saying: Behold, thou pleasest the king, and all his servants love thee. Now, therefore be the king's son in law.

22 And Saul com­manded his ser­vants, saying, CommuneTT with David secretlyTU, and say, Behold, the king hath de­light in thee, and all his servants love thee: now therefore be the king's son in law.

22 Then Saul commanded his servants, “Speak to David on the sly, saying, ‘See, the king is delighted with you, and all his servants love you, so make yourself an in-law to the king!’”

22 וַיְצַו שָׁאוּל אֶת-עֲבָדָוTV דַּבְּרוּ אֶל-דָּוִד בַּלָּט לֵאמֹר הִנֵּה חָפֵץ בְּךָ הַמֶּלֶךְ וְכָל-עֲבָדָיו אֲהֵבוּךָ וְעַתָּה הִתְחַתֵּן בַּמֶּלֶךְ:

23 καὶ ἐλάλησαν οἱ παῖδες Σαουλ εἰς τὰ ὦτα Δαυιδ τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα, καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ Εἰ κοῦφονTW ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ὑμῶν ἐπιγαμβρεῦσαι βασιλεῖ; κἀγὼ ἀνὴρ ταπεινὸςTX καὶ οὐχὶ ἔνδοξοςTY.

23 And the servants of Saul spoke these words in the ears of David; and David said, Is it a light thing in your eyes to become son-in-law to the king? Whereas I am an humble man, an not honourable?

23 And the servants of Saul spoke [all] these words in the ear of David. And David said: Doth it [seem] to you X a small matter to be the king's son in law? But I am a poor man, and of small ability.

23 And Saul's ser­vants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, [Seem­eth] it to you X a light thing to be a king's son in law, seeing that I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed?TZ

23 So Saul’s servants spoke these words in David’s ears, but David said, “Is it insignificant in y’all’s eyes to be an in-law with the king? I am but a poor man and insignificant.”

23 וַיְדַבְּרוּ עַבְדֵי שָׁאוּל בְּאָזְנֵי דָוִד אֶת-הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד הַנְקַלָּהUA בְעֵינֵיכֶם הִתְחַתֵּן בַּמֶּלֶךְ וְאָנֹכִי אִישׁ-רָשׁ וְנִקְלֶה:

24 καὶ ἀπήγγειλαν οἱ παῖδες Σαουλ αὐτῷ X κατὰ τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα, [] ἐλάλησεν Δαυιδ.

24 And the servants of Saul reported to him X according to these words, [which] David spoke.

24 And the servants of Saul told him, saying: Such words as these hath David spoken.

24 And the servants of Saul told him, saying, On this man­nerXUB spake David.

24 So Saul’s servants related it to him saying, “David spoke along the lines of these words...”

24 וַיַּגִּדוּ עַבְדֵי שָׁאוּל לוֹ לֵאמֹר כַּדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה דִּבֶּר דָּוִד: פ

25 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ Τάδε ἐρεῖτε τῷ Δαυιδ Οὐ βούλεται ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐν δόματι ἀλλ᾿ ἢ ἐν ἑκατὸν ἀκροβυσ­τίαις ἀλλοφύλων ἐκδικῆσαι εἰς ἐχθροὺς τοῦ βασιλέως· καὶ Σαουλ ἐλογίσατο αὐτὸν ἐμβαλεῖν εἰς χεῖρας τῶν ἀλλοφύλων.

25 And Saul said, Thus shall ye speak to David, The king wants no gift but a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to avenge himself on the kings enemies. Now Saul thought to cast him into the hands of the Philistines.

25 And Saul said: Speak thus to David: The king desireth not any dowry, but only a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies. Now Saul thought to deliver David into the hands of the Philistines.

25 And Saul said, Thus shall ye say to David, The king desireth not any dowryUC, but an hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies. But Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines.

25 Then Saul said, “Speak thus to Dav­id, ‘There would be nothing more delightful to the king for a dowry than a hundred Philistine foreskins – to get revenge on the king’s enemies!” (Now, this was Saul’s scheme to cause David to fall by the hand of Philistines.)

25 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל כֹּה-תֹאמְרוּ לְדָוִד אֵין-חֵפֶץ לַמֶּלֶךְ בְּמֹהַר כִּי בְּמֵאָה עָרְלוֹת פְּלִשְׁתִּים לְהִנָּקֵם בְּאֹיְבֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ וְשָׁאוּל חָשַׁב לְהַפִּיל אֶת-דָּוִד בְּיַד-פְּלִשְׁתִּים:

26 καὶ ἀπαγγέλλ­ουσιν οἱ παῖδες Σαουλ τῷ Δαυιδ τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα, καὶ εὐθύνθη ὁ λόγος ἐν ὀφθαλ­μοῖς Δαυιδ ἐπι­γαμβρεῦσαι τῷ βασιλεῖ.XXXXXUD

26 And the servants of Saul report these words to David, and X X X David was well pleased to become the son-in-law to the king. X X X X X

26 And when his servants had told David theX words [that Saul had said], the word was pleas­ing in the eyes of David to be the king's son in law. 27 And after a few days

26 And when his servants told David these words, it pleased X X David well to be the king's son in law: and the days were not expired.

26 Well, his servants related these words to David, and the deal was right in the eyes of David to become an in-law to the king, and the time-limits had not been surpassed,

26 וַיַּגִּדוּ עֲבָדָיו לְדָוִד אֶת-הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה וַיִּשַׁר הַדָּבָר בְּעֵינֵי דָוִד לְהִתְחַתֵּן בַּמֶּלֶךְ וְלֹא מָלְאוּ הַיָּמִיםUE:

27 καὶ ἀνέστη Δαυιδ καὶ ἐπορεύ­θη αὐτὸς καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπάταξεν ἐν τοῖς ἀλλοφύλοις ἑκατὸνXUF ἄνδρας καὶ ἀνήνεγ­κεν X τὰς ἀκρο­βυστίας αὐτῶν X X XUG τῷ βασιλεῖ καὶ ἐπιγαμβρεύ­εται τῷ βασιλεῖ, καὶ XUH δίδωσιν αὐτῷ τὴν Μελχολ θυγατέρα αὐτοῦ αὐτῷ εἰς γυναῖκα.

27 And David arose, and went, he and his men, and smote among the Philistines a hundred men: and X he brought their foreskins X X X X XUI, and he becomes the king's son-in-law, and [Saul] gives him Melchol his daughter to wife.

X David rose up, and went X with the men [that were under] him, and he slew of the Phil­istines 200 men, and X brought their foreskins and numbered them out to the king, that he might be his son in law. Saul therefore gave him Michol, his daughter, to wife.

27 Wherefore David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines two hundred men;and David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full taleUJ to the king, that he might be the king's son in law. And Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife.

27 so David got up and went, and he struck down 200 men among the Philistines. Then {he} brought their foreskins, and he and his men gave them in fulfillment to the king in order he might become an in-law to the king. So Saul gave his daughter Michal to him to be his wife.

27 וַיָּקָם דָּוִד וַיֵּלֶךְ הוּא וַאֲנָשָׁיו וַיַּךְ בַּפְּלִשְׁתִּים מָאתַיִם אִישׁ וַיָּבֵא דָוִדUK אֶת-עָרְלֹתֵיהֶם וַיְמַלְאוּםUL לַמֶּלֶךְ לְהִתְחַתֵּן בַּמֶּלֶךְ וַיִּתֶּן-לוֹ שָׁאוּל אֶת-מִיכַל בִּתּוֹ לְאִשָּׁה: ס

28 καὶ εἶδενUM Σαουλ X X ὅτι κύριος μετὰ Δαυιδ καὶ πᾶς Ισραηλ UNἠγάπα αὐτόν,

28 And Saul saw X X that the Lord was with David, and that all Israel loved him.

28 And Saul saw, and understood that the Lord was with David. And Michol, the daughter of Saul, loved him.

28 And Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David, and that Michal Saul's daughter loved him.

28 When Saul saw and understood that Yahweh was with David and that Michal-bat-Shaul loved him,

28 וַיַּרְא שָׁאוּל וַיֵּדַע כִּי יְהוָה עִם-דָּוִד וּמִיכַל בַּת-שָׁאוּל אֲהֵבַתְהוּ:

29 καὶ προσέθετο X εὐλαβεῖσθαι ἀπὸ Δαυιδ ἔτι. [kai egeneto Saoul ecqrainwn ton Dauid pasaV taV hmeraV]

29 And he was yet more afraid of David. X X X X X X X X X

29 And Saul began to fear David more: and Saul became David's enemy continually.

29 And Saul was yet the more afraid of David; and Saul became David's enemy continually.

29 Saul grew in fear from the presence of David still more, so Saul was an enemy to David all his days.

29 וַיֹּאסֶףUO שָׁאוּל לֵרֹא מִפְּנֵי דָוִד עוֹד וַיְהִי שָׁאוּל אֹיֵב אֶת-דָּוִד כָּל-הַיָּמִים: ס

[30 kai exhlqon oi arconteV twn allofulwn kai egeneto af’ ikanou thV exodou autwn, kai Dauid sunhken para pantaV touV doulouV Saoul kai etimhqh to onoma autou sfodra.]

[30 And the chiefs of the Philistines went forth, and it came to pass that from the sufficiency of their expedition David acted wisely above all the servants of Saul; and his name was honoured exceedingly.]

30 And the princes of the Philistines went forth: and from the beginning of their going forth, David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul, and his name became very famous.

30 Then the prin­cesUP of the Phil­istines went forthUQ: and it came to pass, afterUR they went forth, that David behaved himself more wiselyUS than all the ser­vants of Saul; so that his name was much set byUT.

30 Still, the Philistine army-officers came out, but as often as they came out, David was more prudent in execution than all of Saul’s servants, so his name became very popular.

30 וַיֵּצְאוּ שָׂרֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיְהִי מִדֵּי צֵאתָם שָׂכַלUU דָּוִד מִכֹּל עַבְדֵי שָׁאוּל וַיִּיקַר שְׁמוֹ מְאֹד: ס

 

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1[T]he Masoretic text that has come down to us... cannot possibly be rendered... “Saul had been king for a year,” or “Saul reigned one year,” but can only mean “Saul was a year old when he became king.” ... there is an error in the text, namely, that between בֶּן and שָׁנָה the age has fallen out...” ~Keil & Delitzsch, 1891 AD (Tsumura’s NICOT commentary agreed, citing McCarter, Grayson, and Buccellati in support)

2Antiquities vol. 6. c. 14. sect. 9 “Now Saul, when he had reigned 18 years while Samuel was alive, and after his death two,to which his translator, William Whiston added “[and 20]to square with the Acts account.

3An alternate translation of nasib is that of the LXX, Goldman, Gill, and Tsumuah, indicating a single person – in other words, the assassination of a Philistine prefect/governor/tax-collector.

4So Henry, Jamieson, and Gill, despite K&D to the contrary.

5Judges 6:2 ...Because of the Midianites, the children of Israel made for themselves the dens [המנהרות], the caves [המערות], and the strongholds [המצדות] which are in the mountains.” (NKJV)

6NASB: Job 13:15; Psa. 31:24; 33:18,22; 38:15; 42:5,11; 43:5; 71:14; 119:49; 130:5,7; 131:3; Lam. 3:21,24; Eze. 13:6; 19:5 (plus a half dozen more in the KJV).

7Some commentators, such as Gill and K&D, interpreted this passage to mean that qualified priests who were with Saul offered the sacrifice and that this was not part of the offense against God.

8“...a piece of presumption which king Uzziah [also] paid dearly for [in] 2 Chronicles 26:16” (Henry)

9See Appendix for more information.

10“[T]his is not spoken in respect of God’s immutable decree, but in regard of the outward possibilitie and likelihood, which Saul had to hold the kingdome.” ~Andrew Willett, 1607 AD

11[H]e wished to rule as an autocrat, who possessed absolute power both in civil and sacred things~Robert Jamieson, 1871 AD

12“It is not sinning that ruins men, but sinning and not repenting” ~Matthew Henry

13In addition to this being a lesson about contemporary gun control, parallels could also be drawn to the folly of Christians allowing any sector of society, such as civil government, mass media, education, or even the church, to be controlled by those whose worldview is hostile to ours.

14cf. Matthew Henry's commentary: “We must take notice of the goodness of God in restraining the Philistines... from falling upon that little handful...whom they would easily have swallowed up at once. It is an invisible power that sets bounds to the malice of the church's enemies and suffers them not to [act]...”

15Some Bible scholars (Rashi, K&D), following the LXX, suggested that instead he called for the ephod, but the MT text says “ark.” Kiriath-jearim where we last heard of the ark being kept wouldn't have been very far away. Tsumurah commented in the New International Commentary on the Old Testament: “It may be that Saul's use of the verb 'bring near' hints at his careless attitude toward the ark of God, which symbolizes the presence of the Lord; it is man who should go before His holy presence not the other way around... Instead of inquiring of the priest, Saul commands him to do specific things, which are primarily under the authority of the priesthood.”

16“He pretendeth a good ende, to be avenged of his enemies, but he useth two evill meanes, the interdiction of foode, and the binding of it with an oath... he did it of his owne head, without any warrant from God... rashly and unaduisedly…” ~Andrew Willett

17Tsumura (NICOT) estimated it at over 20 miles, Beitzel (Moody Atlas) at over 15 miles, Goldman (Soncino) at 15 miles, John Gill at 12 miles, and Keil & Delitzsch (who must have been thinking of a different location) at 3 miles!

18Commentators who also held forth this position include: Ben Gersom, Abarbinel, Goldman, and K&D.

19K&D, and most English versions, however call it the “first,” even though the Hebrew word is not related to the number one, and the LXX translation is a form of αρχομαιbegin,” not ‘ενfirst.”

21Josephus, Goldman (Soncino), John Gill, Keil & Delitzsch, and Matthew Henry

23Unless, as Kimchi, Josephus, Kirkpatrick, Willett, Gill, and K&D propose, he is the same as Ishvi, in which case we don’t know who was the mother of Eshbaal/Ishboseth, the son of Saul mentioned in 1 Chron. 8:33

24Syriac and some LXX, supported by the DSS

25Source: https://www.castlereport.us/geopolitical-disaster/

26This is in fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant: "...those who bless you, I will bless, and those who curse you, I will curse..." The Amalekites had been a curse to Israel, so they got wiped out. The Kenites had been a blessing to Israel, so they were protected.

27Hobab was also called a Midianite, but apparently, Kenites included Midianites, as well as Jews in Caleb's line (1 Chr. 2:55), and even the merchants who brought Joseph from his brothers (Gen. 37:28).

28Num. 31:2, 25:17, Judg. 6-7, 1 Chron. 4:43.

29Numbers 24:20-22 "Amalek was first among the nations, But shall be last until he perishes… Firm is [the Kennites] dwelling place, And your nest is set in the rock; Nevertheless Kain shall be burned. How long until Asshur carries you away captive?" (NKJV)!

30This divine command is not a justification for engaging in retaliatory war today. Tsumura, in the NICOT commentary, pointed relevantly to the New Testament commands for no-holds-barred spiritual warfare, however, in Ephesians 6:12.

31Much has been made by commentators of the fact that “Telaim” means “lamb,” with various conjectures about lambs in the numbering of the troops, but I think it was just the name of a town. In an area known for sheep-herding it is not surprising that a town would have a name like that.

32Willett suggested (based on Num. 24:21) that Kennites lived in the mountains (סלע) and Amalekites down in the valley. The Kennites were also nomadic tent-dwellers, so it was not a great upset for them to move out of the battle zone.

33“It is dangerous being found in the company of God’s enemies… The Jews have a saying, ‘Woe to the wicked man, and woe to his neighbour.’” ~Matthew Henry

34So Goldman in the Soncino Commentary. Keil & Delitzsch’s commentary asserted that it was the “Arabian… desert of Jifar… which borders upon Egypt... (Gen. 16:7). Havilah, the country of the Chaulotoeans, on the border of Arabia Petraea towards Yemen… (Gen. 10:29).”

35“Saul… ‘set up this place for himself’ … seeking his own honour more than the honour of God… and also… marched in great state to Gilgal, for this seems to be intimated in the manner of expression: ‘He has gone about and passed on and gone down,’ with great deal of pomp and parade.” ~Matthew Henry

36“Men’s preferment, instead of releasing them from their obedience to God, obliges them so much the more to it… God’s favours to us lay strong obligations upon us to be obedient to Him.” ~Matthew Henry, 1714 AD

37Gen. 19:3, 9; 33:11; Jdg. 19:7; 2 Ki. 2:17; 5:16

38K. van der Toorn, “The Nature of the Biblical Teraphim in the Light of the Cuneiform Evidence” (1990)
T. J. Lewis, “The Ancestral Estate… in 2 Samuel 14:16” (1991).

39This Hebrew root is translated into Greek with the thelw root, but this is not used of God in the NT.

40McCarter commented insightfully, “Democracy is no more acceptable a replacement for prophetic theocracy than is monarchy!”

41I’m indebted to Tsumura for pointing this out in his NICOT commentary.

42quotes based off the NASB

43Willett, Henry, cf. Gill “he did not in order to worship with Saul... but rather the contrary; but that Saul might not be despised by the people, and his authority lessened, while he continued king; and that he might do what Saul had neglected to do, destroy Agag.cf. K&D: “...not merely for the purpose of preserving the outward order until a new king should take his place, but also to carry out the ban upon Agag...”

44Wycliffe and the NET Bible being exceptions which use a combination: “certis the ouercomere [Preeminent One] in Israel schal not spare, and he schal not be bowid bi repentaunce [go back on his word or change his mind].”

45יכזב – a synonym for יְשַׁקֵּר in the MT of 1 Sam 15

46God... is... the unchangeable One, in whom Israel can trust, since He does not lie or deceive, or repent of His purposes. These words are spoken θεοπρεπῶς (theomorphically), whereas in 15:11 and other passages, which speak of God as repenting, the words are to be understood ἀνθρωποπαθῶς (anthropomorphically)...~Keil & Delitzsch

47BDB also cites P. de Lagarde and H.P. Smith.

48cf. Henry: “in a stately manner, to show that he was a king, and therefore to be treated with respect, or in a soft effeminate manner, as one never used to hardship

49With which Lange and also Tsumura agreed in their commentaries.

50cf. McCarter “in bands/fetters”

51Gesenius, in his classic Hebrew grammar called it a “substantive adverb... describing an external state.”

52Other speculations include: “cleaved him as wood is cleaved” (Ben Gersom), “divided him into four parts” (Rashi), “may perhaps mean no more than ‘executed’ (Kirkpatrick)” (Goldman).

53The Hebrew is the word carov “nearness,” prefixed with the beth locative or associative preposition. If the author had intended “privately, away from his brothers,” he would have used the mem ablative prefix as the preposition instead. Goldman commented, “This can only mean ‘in the presence of his brethren.’” There is, nevertheless, a tradition from Kimchi and Abarbinel to Patrick and Gill and Jamieson that it should be interpreted “away from the presence of this brothers.”

54Isaiah 7 is the only other mention of it, and that doesn’t have to do with sacrifice, only farming. However, Lev. 3:1 states a “female” of the “herd” could be offered as a peace offering, although ‘eglat/heifer is not explicitly stated there.

55Goldman, following the Targum and Rashi, instead rendered “meet him eagerly,” but even the AJV reads “trembling.”

56“As Samuel must be the subject to the verb וַיֹּאמֶר in vs. 8-10, we may assume that he had communicated the object of his coming to Jesse… In all probability Samuel said nothing [to David] at the time [of his anointing], since, according to v.2 he had good reason for keeping the matter secret, not only on his own account, but still more for David's sake; so that even the brethren of David who were present knew nothing about the meaning and object of the anointing, but may have imagined that Samuel merely intended to consecrate David as a pupil of the prophets.” ~Keil & Delitzsch

571 Chron. 2:15 lists David as the 7th son of Jesse, whereas this passage says that Jesse showed Samuel 7 sons before it says that he brought David in. The Bible itself doesn’t give further clarification, but this apparent discrepancy can be reconciled in a number of ways: 1) I suggest that the number seven is the sum total - including David, used anachronistically in the story. If you read the wording of this passage carefully, it doesn’t actually say that Jesse had 8 sons or that David was not the 7th. (It appears that McCarter and Tsumura also came to this conclusion.) 2) Another possibility might be that a son was lost between this time and the writing of 1 Chronicles. This was John Gill’s position:the fourth we nowhere read of; perhaps he died quickly after this, was an obscure person, and of no fame and note, or might be by another woman” (Tsumura cites Baldwin and Bergen as supporting this position also), 3) or the total could include a family member technically called a son, but not in the sense that modern Westerners would consider it: the eighth is supposed to have been one of the elder brother’s sons, maybe Jonadab the son of Shammah... for in the Hebrew phrase, nephews were called sons.” ~Andrew Willett

58That’s my interpretation of the paragogic he at the end of the word “send.”

59Seder Olam Rabba (c. 13. p. 36) estimated David at 29 years old (which doesn’t leave enough time for all David’s sojournings between his anointing and Saul’s death), Lightfoot estimated him at 25 years old, Andrew Willett at 23 years old, Gill “hardly... more than 20,” Matthew Henry at 20, and Jamieson at 15. Josephus’ claim that David was fewer than 10 years old seems too young for the military exploits he pulls off soon thereafter.

60cf. Ezekiel 36:25-28Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God.” (NKJV)

61Tsumura suggested this was an Akkadian borrow-word denoting the amount that a donkey could carry, that is 80-160 liters, arguing that a mere loaf represented by an Omer would not be enough to give as a gift to a king.

6299% of the 664 times this Hebrew word occurs in the Old Testament, the NKJV does not translate it “distressing,” and the ESV does not translate it “harmful.” Clearly those translators wanted to avoid the translation “evil” in this passage.

63NKJV renders ruach ra’ah as “a spirit of ill-will,” but the word “will” is not there in the Hebrew

64his word was “suffered”

65cf. Matthew 12:43-45 Jesus said, “Now, whenever an unclean spirit goes out from a man, it goes through waterless places, seeking – yet not finding – rest. Then it says, ‘I will go back into my house from which I went out!’ And when it has come, it finds [the house] unoccupied, swept and decorated. Then it goes and takes with itself seven other spirits more evil than itself and, upon entering, they take up residence there, and that man's last [state of affairs] become worse than the first. Thus it will be also to this evil generation.” (NAW)

66Based on an e-Sword search of the KJV which yielded 2601 hits on H430, 188 hits on H430-“God” and 4 hits on H430+“judges.”

67There is a Jewish tradition that it was Doeg the Edomite. John Gill’s commentary argued against it, but gave the following references for this tradition: “T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 93. 2. So in Hieron. Trad. Heb in lib. Reg. fol. 76. C.

68See the respect with which Saul's servants laid out a request to Saul? How much more respectfully should we approach the God of the universe in prayer!

69“Music cannot work upon the devil, but it may shut up the passages by which he has access to the mind.” ~M. Henry

70Joshua 11:22 NKJV “None of the Anakim were left in the land of the children of Israel; they remained only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod.”

71This was Andrew Willett’s computation of the total. His estimate of the kashkashim breastplate alone was 156 lb, 4 oz. Gill passed on an estimate of over 272 pounds. Tsumura estimated 126 pounds.

72The Geneva Bible computed it at 18.3 quarters

73Head to foot

74Such as Numbers 21:34, Deut. 3:2, & Josh. 10:8, & 11:6

75Such as ערץ in Deut. 1:29; 7:21; 20:3; & 31:6; & Josh. 1:9

76Andrew Willett was surprisingly outspoken against monomachy, saying it came from the “Gentiles” and was “much displeasing to God.” “Those detestable solemnities… which they call tournaments, we forbid to be held, in the which soldiers use to be hired, and to make ostentation of their strength, do rashly encounter together, whereupon followeth the slaughter and deaths of men... they sin against God in their presuming upon their strength, against their brethren, in seeking their destruction, and against themselves, in putting their life willingly into danger, being forced thereunto by no necessitie at all.”

77Rashi, Targum

78According to Goldman. Tsumura concurred on p.437 that it was 14 miles, and then on p.448 stated that it was 12 miles. Gill must have been mistaken when he estimated it at 4 miles.

79According to Gill, who added “this was wheat or barley dried in a furnace or oven, and ground into meal, and being mixed with water, or milk, or butter, or honey, or oil, was eaten, and reckoned very delicious; and besides this, there was another sort of ‘kali’, the word here used, which was parched pulse, as beans, peas, &c. parched...”

80This is the position Willett held, and he quoted Chrysostom in favor of it saying, “David was not won with these promises.” Gill also seems to agree, writing, “he asked not for the sake of the reward, but to observe the necessity there was of some man's engaging with him, and killing him, or otherwise it would be a reproach to Israel, and to signify that he had an inclination to attempt it”

81Keil & Delitzsch saw the same issue: “Eliab sought for the splinter in his brother's eye, and was not aware of the beam in his own. The very things with which he charged his brother - presumption and wickedness of heart - were most apparent in his scornful reproof.”

82Tsumura acknowledges this, “could be a rhetorical question: ‘Isn’t it a matter of importance?’ … Bergen paraphrases: ‘What have I done to offend you now? I happen to have been asking about a very important matter.’”

83Consider what this says of the character of David, “He could not see a lamb in distress but he would venture his life to rescue it. This temper made him fit to be a king, to whom the lives of subjects should be dear and their blood precious (Psalm 72:14), and fit to be a type of Christ, the good Shepherd, who gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them in his bosom (Isaiah 40:11), and who not only ventured, but laid down his life for his sheep.” ~Matthew Henry

84Willett argued that this was not a rash judgment of Saul, nor mere formality, but a recognition that God was with this lad and that “If Saul had stayd David from going forward, he had sinned.”

85so Josephus, Pellican, & Goldman, but this seems unlikely due to Saul’s unusual height and David’s youthfulness

86so Osiander, Martyr, Henry, & Gill

87John Gill: “some say about fourteen or sixteen years of age, but very probably about twenty, and no more”

88cf. Matthew Henry, “fearing that the contemptibleness of the champion he contended with would lessen the glory of his victory”

89A claim denied by the Targum, Kimchi, Jamieson, and Henry

90The only comment I’ve seen on this is Rashi’s, that God caused Goliath to fall that way to make it easier for David to cut off his head, but that still doesn’t explain it to me.

91John Gill claimed that Psalm 9 was written about this victory, although I would want more proof.

92Antiquities of the Jews l. 6. c. 9. sect. 5.

93K&D argued unconvincingly against this point

94“He brought the head of the Philistine to Jerusalem, to be a terror to the Jebusites, who held the strong-hold of Sion” cf. Gill: “the stronghold of Zion was possessed by the Jebusites; and it is generally thought that it was to the terror of them that the head of Goliath was carried there”

95So Josephus, Willett, Goldman, Gordon, & Klein

96Although there were commentators like Abarbinel who thought otherwise.

97So Kimchi, Driver, Goldman, Jamieson, K&D, Gill, & Tsumura

98K&D cited De Wette, Thenius, Ewald, Bleek, & Stähelin

99So Osiander, Jamieson, & Zhodiates

100So Vatabulus, Martyr, Pellican, Willett, Henry, & Gill

101Gill alone, out of the many commentators I read, placed this event after some later battle and not after the battle described in chapter 17.

102I recommend Jim Logan’s book, Reclaiming Surrendered Ground on this topic.

103Viz. Targums, Peter Martyr, Jamieson, Gill. Some, however, like Andrew Willett and S. Goldman, suggested instead that it was called prophecy, not because Saul was actually relaying messages from the spirit world but merely because his behavior looked similar to the behavior of mediums who actually did so. Abarbinel suggested that it was actual prophecy, while Matthew Henry suggested it was “affected” to trick David off his guard, but I think the history would have recorded that if it were the case.

104“[I]t is lawfull for us, to decline and avoid violence and daunger intended, as David did twice at this instant, but not to offer violence and revenge againe.” ~Willett, quoting Osiander

105“He made him captain over 1000, that he might be from under his eye, because he hated the sight of him; and that he might not secure the interest of the courtiers.” ~M. Henry
“partly that he might be out of his sight... and partly that he might be safer from any designs of his upon his life... not out of respect to him... but partly to cover his malice, and please the people, and partly in hope that he might be slain by the enemy at the head of his troop” ~Gill “ intended to be an honorable exile” ~Jamieson
“Whether the elevation of David into a captain over a thousand was a higher promotion than his appointment over the men of war, or the latter expression is to be taken as simply a more general or indefinite term, denoting his promotion to the rank of commander-in-chief, is a point which can hardly be determined with certainty.” ~Keil & Delitzsch

106Full disclosure, I did not find any other commentator who interpreted Saul’s words this way.

107Another possible interpretation is that Merob and David didn’t have mutual interest in each other, so they let the marriage prospect die quietly.

108"When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; and he who invited you and him come and say to you, 'Give place to this man,' and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher.' Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." Luke 14:8-11 NKJV

109Gill agreed with me on this.

110Depending on whether you count David among the 8 sons of Jesse as I do, or whether you count 8 sons before David.

111“[M]ost interpreters understand it, that he was obliged to this by promise, on account of David's slaying Goliath (1Sam. 17:25), but Abarbinel is of another mind...” ~John Gill, 1766 AD. In 1891, Keil & Delitzsch reiterated this.

112Josephus seems to have gone a bit overboard with his poetic license by claiming that David killed 600 Philistines and brought back their heads. (Antiqu. l. 6. c. 10. sect. 3)

113John Gill made the following analogy: “David's marriage of the younger sister, when upon various considerations it might have been expected that he should have married the elder, may be an emblem of Christ's espousing the Gentile church, when the Jewish church, her elder sister, is neglected by him, she having rejected him.”

AMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. There is no known Dead Sea Scroll containing any part of 1 Samuel 13. Where I believe that the LXX text is superior to the MT, I have highlighted with yellow the LXX and its translation into English, and where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with {pointed brackets}.

BThis is my translation (Nathan A Wilson)

CSymmachus adds “approximately” ‘ως

DLXX omits. NASB/NIV = “ was thirty years old when he began to reign/became king,” ESV = “lived for one year [and then] became king X” Syriac combined the 1 with the 2 later in the verse to make “21.”

EAlthough the manuscripts are not in agreement about this verse, its pattern is consistent with the pattern of giving the age of a king at the beginning of his reign (lit. “son of x years in his reign”) and the number of years he reigned over Israel. However, there appears to be a word missing in the MT because Saul couldn't have begun his reign at age one. Viz. * Ishbosheth in 2 Sam. 2:10 בֶּן־אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה אִישׁ־בֹּשֶׁת בֶּן־שָׁאוּל בְּמָלְכוֹ עַל־יִשְׂרָאֵל * David in ‎2 Sam. 5:4 בֶּן־שְׁלֹשִׁים שָׁנָה דָּוִד בְּמָלְכוֹ אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה מָלָךְ׃ * Rehoboam in ‎1 Ki. 14:21בֶּן־אַרְבָּעִים וְאַחַת שָׁנָה רְחַבְעָם בְּמָלְכוֹ וּשֲׁבַע עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה מָלַךְ בִּירוּשָׁלִַם * Jehoshaphat in ‎1 Ki. 22:42 יְהוֹשָׁפָט בֶּן־שְׁלֹשִׁים וְחָמֵשׁ שָׁנָה בְּמָלְכוֹ וְעֶשְׂרִים וְחָמֵשׁ שָׁנָה מָלַךְ בִּירוּשָׁלִָם * Same with Jehoram (‎2 Ki. 8:17/ 2 Chr. 21:5), Ahazian (‎2 Ki. 8:26/2 Chr. 22:2), Jehoash (2 Ki. 12:1 / 2 Chr. 24:1), Amaziah in ‎(2 Ki. 14:2/ 2 Chr. 26:3), Azariah (2 Kin. 15:2), Jotham (2 Ki. 15:33/ 2 Chr. 27:8), Ahaz (2 Ki. 16:2/2 Chr. 28:1), Hezekiah (2 Ki. 18:2), Manasseh (2 Ki. 21:1/2 Chr. 33:1), Amon (2 Ki. 21:19/2 Chr. 33:21), Josiah (2 Ki. 22:1/2 Chr. 34:1), Jehoahaz (2 Ki. 23:31/2 Chr. 36:2), Jehoiakim (2 Ki. 23:36/2 Chr. 36:5), Jehoiachin (2 Ki. 24:8/2 Chr. 36:9), Zedekiah (2 Ki. 24:18/2 Chr. 36:11)

FK&D’s supposition that a dropped-out number here was penned as an alphanumeric instead of as a morpheme has been challenged by A. Millard, who claimed that individual letters representing numbers weren’t used until the Hellenistic period.

GThere are some manuscript variants over whether the word “tent” is singular or plural. The MT, LXX, Vulgate, and NIV read plural, whereas the Syriac, KJV, and NASB went with singular. Apparently Targums go both ways. It makes no difference in meaning. “[A]s no other summoning together of the people has been mentioned before, except to the war upon the Ammonites at Jabesh... it was there at Gilgal, after the renewal of the monarchy, that Saul formed the resolution at once to make war upon the Philistines, and selected 3000 fighting men for the purpose out of the whole number that were collected together, and then dismissed the remainder to their homes.” ~Keil & Delitzsch

HLXX translators transliterated this Hebrew word as though it were a proper name rather than translating it “garrison.” Aquila and Symmachus corrected it to uposthma/ekstasin (station/outpost)

ILXX translators seem to have mistaken the MT ישׁמעו העברים for ישׁטמו העבדים . Later Greek translators corrected the Greek to the MT: A = akousatwsan 'oi 'Ebraioi, S = akousatwsan oi en tw peran (interpreting “Hebrews” as “those who have crossed over,” which was the original meaning but came to be a designation for the Jewish people) Some ancient Latin manuscripts contain both the LXX and the MT run together, indicating both variants were around at that time: audiant Haebrei dereliquerunt servi, but the Vulgate supports the MT.

JNASB, NIV = “attacked,” ESV = “defeated” - same in v.4

KThe Vaticanus, the oldest-known manuscript reads 'οι υιοι Ισραελ, which was followed by Brenton.

Lcf. NASB =had become repulsive to,” NIV = “has become obnoxious to,” and ESV = “had become a stench to”

MNASB, NIV = “summoned”

NLiterally “stink,” but used in this political sense in Gen. 34:30; Exod. 5:21; 1 Sam. 27:12; 2 Sam. 10:6; & 16:21.

OLit. “were cried out,” cf. 10:17. Note this verb is plural, whereas “the people” is singular. I suggest that this verb could be referring to the two things that were announced listed immediately prior, and that “the people” could be the subject of the subsequent clause. Something about the wording of the LXX makes me think that if we had a DSS manuscript of this verse, it would say what the LXX says, but without objective proof I will keep the MT reading.

PESV = “mustered” - Same in v.11.

QNASB = “abundance,” NIV = “numerous”

RLXX reads as though the Hebrew were לו נגש להם instead of כי נגש העם

SNASB & ESV = “in trouble,” NIV = “critical”

TNASB = “crevasses,” ESV = “holes”

UNASB = “crypts,” NIV = “pits,” ESV = “tombs”

VCf. NIV & ESV = “cisterns”

WThis word only occurs here and in Judges 9:46-49, where a fire is built over the top of an underground hiding place.

XThe plural form consistently denotes cisterns (Gen. 37:20; Deut. 6:11; 2 Chr. 26:10; Neh. 9:25; Jer. 2:13).

YSymmachus unnecessarily rendered the Hebrew more literalistically oi ek tou peran (“those from the other side”).

ZAquila translated with the synonym exeplagh (“struck senseless”), but Symmachus attempted to edit by changing to a smoother reading, giving a verb hkolouqhse (“followed”) for the adverb “after” to modify.

AANASB, NIV, ESV = “crossed the” (ESV inexplicably adds “the fords of”)

ABTsumura called this copula a “waw explicative (which is),” noting that “the lands of Gad and Reuben made up Gilead, the Israelite lands east of the Jordan (see Josh. 13:24-28).”

ACcf. synonyms in Aquila & Symmachus’ versions (peri/anemeinen... eiV suntaghn) and Theodotian’s (...kairon). Notably, most removed the “said” to conform to the MT.

ADMasorite scribes lengthened the stem on one letter to change it from Niphal to Hiphil (וַיּוֹחֶל), to match Samuel’s command in chapter 10, but there is no difference in meaning between the two stems, and although the Hiphil is more common, the Niphal also appears at Gen. 8:12 & Ezek. 19:5.

AEThere appears to be a verb missing in the MT, which all the English versions attempt to supply. The oldest-known manuscripts are Latin and Greek versions which do have a verb, and there are Chaldee and Hebrew manuscripts with the verb אמר, so perhaps the LXX is accurate to the original.

AFThe only other occurrences of עלה העלה in 1. Sam are 6:14-15; 7:9-10; & 10:8. Cf. “the priest shall...” Lev. 1:9 & 14:20

AG“Calling” and “blessing” occasionally occur together in greeting: Gen. 5:2; 28:1; 48:16; Num. 24:10; Ruth 4:14; 2 Sam. 18:28; 2 Ki. 10:15; 2 Chr. 20:26; Isa. 51:2

AHSeveral Hebrew manuscripts - as well as the Syriac version - insert a beth preposition at the beginning of this word, reflected in the LXX eis, and the insertion of the word “at” in English versions.

AIcf. synonymous verbs and additional pronoun (underlined) in S = litaneusw, kai biasqeiV anhnegka thn olokautwsin sou. “I will offer supplication and be forced to offer up your burnt offering”

AJNASB, NIV, and ESV = “asked/sought the favor [lit. ‘face’] of”

AKNASB = “worked up the courage,” NIV = “felt compelled”

ALThe other hithpael instances of this verb are at Gen. 43:31 & 45:1 (Joseph restrained himself around his brothers); Est. 5:10 (Haman restrained himself around Mordecai); Isa. 42:14; 63:15; 64:11 (God restraining Himself from mercy or people restraining themselves from heartfelt worship of God).

AMcf. synonyms A. hgnwmonhsaV (“ignorantly). S. hfronhsaV (“thoughtlessly).

ANMany Hebrew manuscripts have “for” or “and” here, and almost all the ancient versions do too, including Septuagint, Latin, Vulgate, and Syriac.

AOVaticanus, the oldest LXX manuscript (which doesn’t always agree with the majority of Septuagint manuscripts compiled by Rahlf) adds σοι, hence my bracketed phrase in Brenton’s translation. This could be explained by ditography, although there is no copula in the Masoretic Hebrew or in the Latin (or, I presume, in the Syriac) to translate as και or mistake as σοι.

APThis un-highlighted first phrase in the brackets “into his way” is not in the oldest-known Greek manuscript (or in the ancient Latin versions), so it’s not in Brenton’s translation of the Greek (or in Douay’s translation of the Latin), or in any other English translation I’ve found.

AQCf. NASB & NIV = “counted”

ARThe Greek and Latin manuscripts which predate all the surviving Hebrew manuscripts of this verse, contain an additional clause about a remnant of men joining Saul in the battle, which is why it’s in Wycliffe’s version as well as the ESV, CEV, and NLT. This seems to be a pretty clear case of an MT copyist’s eye leaving the text after the first instance of “Gibeah” and returning to the second instance of “Gibeah” in the verse, not realizing that he had missed a clause inbetween. It would be hard to explain the addition of a whole clause otherwise.

ASThis place is spelled differently in both the Greek and Hebrew from the Gibeah mentioned in the previous verse. NASB and Goldman, McCarter, & Tsumurah interpret this as Gebah, a point closer to Mikmash (within a mile or two) where Jonathan had previously sacked a garrison of Philistines. Others, such as KJV, NIV, AJV, interpret it as a variant spelling of the same Gibeah mentioned in v.15. In 14:2, the MT and LXX and Targums all read Gibeah again, and Tsumura seems to reverse position to advocate for that (explaining that Gibeah would still be less than 4 miles from Mikmash and that Saul could have posted sentries inbetween to relay information) or for translating it “the hill” instead of transliterating it.

ATSymmachus and Theodotion corrected the LXX to the MT “army-camp” parembolhV

AUNASB, NIV, ESV = “raiders”This word is singular in Hebrew, and elsewhere is almost always translated “destroy-”

AV“Destroy” is how this word is translated in almost every other instance of this word outside of 1 Sam. in almost every English translation. I’ve been noticing that the farmers around me sent out tractors in the early spring to remove all the trees and branches from the through-paths that connect their fields across creeks and treelines; I assume that this is so that they can drive their planters and harvesters easily from field to field. Considering how many chariots the Philistines had brought in, and considering the hills and trees they would encounter in Israelite territory, I wonder if these Philistines captains were destroying trees and underbrush and rocks to build chariotways through the strategic points they wanted to control in the war. Alternately, they may have been terrorizing non-combattant citizens and raiding Israelite homes – since most of the Israelite men were hiding, and the rest were on the other side of the Philistine army front and couldn’t defend those homes. Whatever the case, it is interesting that the Philistines employ a similar three-pronged attack to that which Saul used against the Amonites in 11:11.

AWAquila used a synonym more like the MT: kefalhhead/captain”

AXAquilla & Symmachus rendered this faragga (“ravine”)

AYLXX interprets “border” and “valley” as though they were proper nouns, while Theodotion inexplicably appears to have translated it “stomach of the gazelle.” Symmachus translated “Beth Horon” as though it were not a proper noun (ou oriou tou uperkeimenou “the mountain of dwelling”); he also corrected the LXX to the MT by adding “into the desert” at the end of the verse.

AZOprah is north of Mikmash, Beth-horon is West, and the road overlooking the wilderness would go South. The main force went East. Curiously, the story pauses for 4 suspenseful verses for a lengthy explanation on weapons. The reason for there being no blacksmiths isn’t given: perhaps the Philistines singled them out and killed them. Limits on the manufacture and marketing of weapons are the strategems of despots afraid of being overthrown.

BAThe Philistine nation is treated as a singularity and given a singular verb in the MT. The Masorite scribes suggested in the qere notes that the verb be plural (אָמְרוּ) for proper grammar.

BBcf. A. Q. arotron (“plough”), S. unin (?)

BCS = skafion (“shovel)

BDS = dikellan (“grader?”)

BENASB, NIV, ESV = “mattock” - repeated in v.21

BFKeil & Delitzsch: “The fact that the word is connected with קרדם, the axe or hatchet, favours the idea that it signifies a hoe or space rather than a sickle.” NASB = “hoe,” NIV & ESV = “sickle[s]” in the next verse these three agree on “plowshares/plow points”

BGUsed only here and Gen. 4:22 (what Tubalcain did to metalworkers); Job 16:9 (What God’s eyes did to Job); Ps. 7:13 (what God does with his sword to prepare to execute wrath); 52:4 (describing a deceitful tongue).

BHLXX translates פציר as though it were בציר there is significant visual similarity, and the Hebrew word is used nowhere else in scripture, (Aquila attempted to reconcile it to the Hebrew with prosbolwsiV stomata throwing the mouth toward” - as though the Hebrew word were פי instead of פים), but it’s just as possible that the Hebrew word was miscopied and the LXX reads the original.

BIAquila lists the implements as toiV arotroiV, kai toiV rixin, kai taiV triskelisin, kai taiV axinaiV, kai tou sterewsai to boukentron

BJNAS, NIV, ESV = the price/charge was a pim (2/3 shekel)

BKNASB = “fix,” NIV = “repointing,” ESV = “setting”

BLThis verse has a lot of very unique words in it which make it hard to translate. For instance, at the beginning of the verse, the word translated “charge/price” by the NAS,NIV, NKJV, and ESV is translated “Grape harvest” by the Septuagint, “Blunt” by the Vulgate, and “file” by the KJV. If the word means “price,” then it appears that what was paid was called a “peem.” John Gill wrote that archaeologists recent to his time in the mid-1700’s had “found a stone inscribed with this word [peem]. Also they found a stone inscribed with the word ‘shekel’. Hence they deduced that the word was really a weight of measure equal to about one third of a shekel.” Apparently other archaeologists by the late 1900’s had decided it was actually worth twice that much, so that’s why the NAS, NIV, and ESV read “two thirds of a shekel.” It seems clear that most of the verse is detailing specific iron-age tools. The most important detail is that the Philistine removal of blacksmiths and price-gouging the Israelites for metalwork also appears to have meant that the Philistines kept the Hebrews from even owning a sword or a spear.

BMThis is the second word in this verse which is used nowhere else in the Hebrew Bible, and the last word in this verse is found only one other place: Eccl. 12:11.

BNQ = diabasin = where one “goes through”

BONASB = “gorge,” NIV, ESV = “pass,” LXX = “opposite side”

BPMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scrolls containing any part of 1 Sa. 14 are 4Q51Sam­uela, which contains fragments of vs. 24-51 and which has been dated between 50-25 B.C. and 4Q52, containing verses 41-42 dated to the 250’s B.C. Text in the MT which agrees with legible text from these Dead Sea Scrolls is colored purple.Where the DSS supports the LXX with omissions or text not in the MT, I have highlighted with yellow the LXX and its translation into English, and where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with {pointed brackets}.

BQSecond- 4th century Greek translators corrected the LXX from a transliteration of the Hebrew word to a translation Aquila = thn upostasin (the outpost), Symmachus = to susthma (the rendezvous point?), and Theodotian = thn stasin (the station)

BRcf. 3:15-16

BSTsumura recommends translating “threshing floor” rather than transliterating “Migron” due to the ancient Near East tradition of visiting kings sitting on the threshing floor at the gate of a city to judge. (citing 1 Ki. 22:10 as well as Assyrian and Ugaritic texts, and the archaeological discovery of a chair in the threshing floor at the city gate of Tel Dan.

BT“Ahiah is generally supposed to be the same person as Ahimelek, the son of Ahitub (ch. 22:9 sqq.)...” ~K&D

BUSome Hebrew, Syriac & Latin manuscripts have this conjunction here, but it doesn’t change the meaning.

BVIn both instances of this word in this verse, the Cairo Geniza manuscripts (which date about a century older than the Masoretic ones) spell this word lw{m instead of מוּל but it’s just a spelling difference, not a difference of meaning.

BWAquila & Symmachus used the preposition επι- “upon” instead of syn- (“together”) in their translations.

BXPerhaps is not a sign of Jonathan's doubt in God's ability, but rather a confession that God is not required to act for them.” ~Tsumura, NICOT

BYcf. Gideon's 300

BZAq. & Theod. corrected to the MT = apokalufqhsomeqa reveal ourselves”

CAΑquila corrected to the MT = siwphsate ewV tou eggisai hmaV proV umaV “stay till until we are near to you”

CBMany Hebrew manuscripts read plural “hands” בְּיָדֵינוּ, which is what the LXX and Vulgate also say.

CCSymmachus offered a compound term for “armor-bearer” = oploforoV but the LXX follows the MT closer with two words, one for “armor” and the other for “bear/carry.”

CDLiterally “gave upon” like we’d say “dished it out” cf. S. anhrei (“did away with/dispatched”) MT is literally “killed”

CETheodotion rendered the MT כְּבַחֲצִי literally wV epi hmisu as upon half”

CFTargum and Vulgate as well as a couple of Hebrew manuscripts add rqb “of oxen” - Driver estimated the distance at 15-20 yards.

CGcf. synonym from Aquila = ekplhxiV (strike out/dumbstrickenness)

CHNASB = “went here and there.NIV = “X in all directions.”

CIThat is, of the Philistines (Targum, Lucian rescription)

CJcf. synonyms Aq. & Symm = proselqe (“bring”), Theodotion = eggison (“bring near”)

CKAq, Symm, and Theod all correct to the MT “ark of God” th kibwtw tou qeou

CLAq. & Symm. add ‘υιος back in to match MT “sons/children of”.

CMThere are apparently some old Latin manuscripts which read “ephod” instead of “ark”

CNMost versions (Syriac, Targum, LXX, Vulgate, English) translate the conjunction prefix as a preposition like “with”

COSome Hebrew manuscripts read plural “hands” iydy like the LXX and old Latin versions do.

CPAq. = fagedaina

CQAquila corrected to the MT oi Ebraioi – Philistines would have called Israelites “Hebrews” but the LXX explains further the relationship of these Israelites among the Philistines to the Philistines as being slaves.

CRLucian rescription reads Baiqwrwn

CSS. timwrhsomai (“punish for myself)

CTNASB, ESV = “were hard-pressed” cf. Gill & K&D who commented that the pressure was from hunger, contra Jewish Rabbis Rashi & Abarbinel who commented that this was speaking of impressment into military service by Saul. But the oldest manuscripts instead say instead, “Saul was thoughtless with great thoughtlesness.”

CUNASB/NIV/ESV = “put/bound/laid under oath” When these versions render v.27 & 28 with the same English phrase, it is a different Hebrew word (בְּהַשְׁבִּיעַ ... הַשְׁבֵּעַ הִשְׁבִּיעַ)

CVAlthough the Syriac & Vulgate support the MT here, the more-ancient DSS, LXX, and Old Latin manuscripts support a different reading, followed by the NRSV, ESV, and McCarter. All that is legible of the DSS of this part of the verse is a shin followed by an alpha, which doesn’t match any of the MT for this verse, but could be matched with the LXX text as follows: ושאול שגג שגגה גדול.

CWYa’ar means “forest” in Hebrew, but the LXX renders it twice, first as a transliteration then as a translation. I don’t know why Brenton rendered it with an “l” ending instead of “r,” but those two letters are of the same liquid class and are frequently interchanged in languages like Mandarin and Lugandan.

CXThe difficult word “land” in the original Greek and Hebrew was explained in the Targums to mean “the people,” thus the ESV used “people,” and the Vulgate added “vulgus.” This was not necessarily wrong, because “people” is used as a synonym in the very next verse.

CYSymmachus (S) corrected the LXX to kai efanh reon to meli (“and there appeared a flow of honey”).

CZMatthew Henry suggested that the Philistines passing by earlier may have broken up the hives, leaving them to ooze.

DACf. synonyms for “rod/staff” in: A. (thV) bakthriaV. S. ( thV) rabdou

DBS = thn aporroian (“the flow” - from v. 26)

DCAquila corrected to the qere tradition with efwtisqhsan “were enlightened.” See next note.

DDThe Masorite scribes offered an alternative word here: וַתָּאֹרְנָה based on אור "light” rather than on ראה "see.” (Tsumura’s suggestion that both spellings could come from the same root is not convincing to me, although the difference is a mere transposition of two subsequent letters.) “Enlighten” is the explanation of the Targums and was carried on in the Syriac and Vulgate and most English versions. This alternate word shows up as a synonym in the next verse, so it is not wrong. Most commentators interpreted this figuratively in terms of remedying “hunger & fatigue” (Goldman), “nourishment & refreshment” (Gill), “invigoration” (K&D), but Tsumura suggested it could be taken literally if Jonathan had hypoglycemia, which literally dims vision when blood sugar is low.

DEGoldman: “spoke up”

DFAlthough this part of the verse is missing in the DSS manuscript, there is nevertheless extra space which would support the extra word in the LXX.

DGTargum explains “land” as the “people” of the land

DHThe DSS הדבש confirms the LXX in making “honey” definite, but there is no difference in meaning.

DIאַף כִּי lit. “moreover that/if,” LXX = “instead that,” S = posw mallon (“how much more”), Theodotion = plhn oti (except that”)

DJaph chi, signifieth 'yea/because/not/how much more,' and Lu is utinam, a term of wishing, not, 'if.'” ~Willett K&D “not to mention how much more” Tsumora (NICOT): “How much more so”

DKThe DSS has the word “the people” immediately following the verb “eating,” followed by an illegible section large enough to contain the rest of the words in the MT in the first half of this verse, including the word “today.” Interestingly, the LXX also places “the people” immediately following the verb “eating,” and after the word “today,” simply transposing the word order, as if the original Hebrew text it followed read “the people today” rather than “today the people,” which would fit perfectly with what we see in the DSS. Since the DSS and LXX predate the MT by almost a thousand years, this word order seems likely to be original, although it does nothing to change the meaning.

DLThe DSS does not have the “not,” and it has a different spelling for the next word (with a perfect tense and a masculine subject instead of the MT’s imperfect tense with a feminine subject). The DSS reads רבה המכה with obliterated space on each side that is just enough room for the words “for now” before it and “Philistines” after it. The LXX agrees with the DSS against the MT, so that may be the original. Either way the grammar is not ideal Hebrew. The LXX/DSS variant requires interpreting a perfect verb as an imperfect with comparative force (“would have been greater”), which could explain the insertion of a negative particle in the MT and a change from perfect to imperfect tense in spelling, which required a different word division, pulling the definite article He off of the prefix to makah and using it as a suffix to rabah. This change in the word division would also force macah to no longer be able to be a masculine participle and would force a change of spelling to the verb rabah, changing the he to the visually-similar tav as we see it in the MT -‎ לֹא־רָבְתָה מַכָּה. But as usual, it makes no difference in the meaning of the verse!

DM...the negative particle in the last clause, lo, is not to be read here interrogatively: 'had there not beene a greater slaughter?' but, causally, as giving a reason of his wish: 'I would the people had eaten, because there was no greater slaughter to day.'” ~Willett (RV, NAS, Goldman, and Tsumura agree) However, Rashi, AJV, NIV, ESV, KJV, Gill, and K&D end the verse with a question mark.

DNNeither the DSS nor the LXX spell this verb with the extra vav at the end to indicate a plural subject. The DSS spelled it singular correctly, for the subject is either the singular Jonathan (as Brenton interpreted it), who was the speaker in the previous verse, or the subject is the singular “people,” cited later in this verse.

DOThe amount of illegible space in the DSS at this point supports the “toward Aijalon” in the MT, which is missing in the LXX, but actually supports even more words not found in either the MT or the LXX (although the extra space in the DSS could just be the equivalent of a paragraph break).

DPCf. Symmachus: etraph tou arpazeinput the spoil on the table/menu”

DQNASB = “rushed greedily,” NIV = “pounced”

DRThe MT has “the people acted/did/made,” but Masoretic editors suggested in the qere וַיַּעַט ("the people darted" – a root otherwise used in 1 Sam. 15:19 & 25:14 and nowhere else in the Bible), and that is the meaning picked up in the LXX, Vulgate, and most English versions. Compare with 15:19 which recaps this event using both verbs in the original MT: וַתַּעַט אֶל־הַשָּׁלָל וַתַּעַשׂ הָרַע "but darted upon the spoil and did evil.”

DSQere is definite הַשָּׁלָל, and so is the LXX, but it’s indefinite in the DSS & MT Kethib. The DSS also uses a different (but similar) preposition "upon" (על), while the LXX (εἰς τὰ σκῦλα) supports the preposition "to" (אל) in the MT. There is, however, no real difference in meaning between "to the spoil" vs. "upon spoil."

DTThe LXX repeats the subject here (“the people”), and there is so much extra space between legible sections of this verse in the DSS, that it too must have had more words than the terse reading of the MT.

DUThe Cairo Geniza hebrew manuscript supports the consonantal text of the MT which came a hundred or more years later, but occasionally has vowel differences, which are a matter of editorial interpretation. Here it spells the word wfjv^yw as though the final vav were a pronoun (and [the people] slaughtered it”) instead of a plural indicator for the verb “they slaughtered”). The Vulgate and the Septuagint, however, interpreted it the way the MT did, yet it wouldn’t make a difference in meaning because almost all the English versions supply “it” to their translation anyway!

DVThe LXX translators mistook this word for a proper noun, which happened every once in a while when they encountered an unusual or unexpected Hebrew word. (This root occurs 38 other times in the OT, but only in Jer. 3:23 in this form.)

DWNASB = “acted treacherously,” NIV =”broken faith”

DXThis is the literal translation of the Hebrew, however, the NIV went with the Vulgate nunc “at once,” and the ESV went with the LXX “here.”

DYContrary to the NIV, it was a plurality of messengers – the same commanded in the next verse to disperse themselves among the people with Saul’s message.

DZSyriac also has this omission. Unfortunately, the DSS is too obliterated at this point for comparison.

EAThe DSS spells this word נפצו, which is no different in meaning whether the root is פוץ or נפץ (although the former might connote more reflexivity - “disperse yourselves”). The LXX didn’t go with a reflexive translation, though. The Cairo, however is the same consonantal spelling as the MT, but with different vowels (wxp{).

EBIt’s curious that Saul uses different words for oxen/cattle/calves than the words his messengers used in the previous verse.

ECNASB, ESV = “inquired”

EDCf. synonyms from S = touV megalouV (“great ones”) and Q = to klitoV (“prominent?”)

EEThis word is plural in Hebrew and Greek. It’s translated “leaders” by the NIV & ESV, “princes” by Rashi, “heads” by K&D (following Targums), and tribes” by Abarbinel. It literally means “faces,” but is applied to gemstones and cornerstones of buildings.

EF“Know” is the root meaning of this Hebrew word. Cf. NASB = “investigate,” NIV = “find out”

EGNASB & ESV = “how,” NIV = “what”

EHNASB = delivers,” NIV = “rescues”

EISingling out Jonathan doesn’t seem to be an accident; Saul seems to suspect him, already knowing his disrespect and his earlier absence, but a death sentence from which there could be no ransom is irrationally-harsh for receiving a delay of less than a day in an answer to prayer! Sadly, these rages become characteristic of Saul.

EJThis addition, although offering no change to the meaning, is in the Vaticanus, but not in the majority text of the LXX.

EKThis repetition of the imperative “give” is in the Vaticanus, the oldest-known manuscript of the LXX, but not in the majority of LXX manuscripts.

ELNIV = “[the] right [answer]” ESV follows LXX & Vulgate with “ [why have you not answered your servant this day? If this guilt is in me or in Jonathan my son, O LORD, God of Israel, give Urim. But if this guilt is in your people Israel,] give Thummim." Making for a neat explanation of the use of the Urim & Thummim lot-casting device in the priest’s ephod, but perhaps a little too neat?

EMBoth the LXX and the Vulgate have extra text which is rendered in the NET Bible, the ESV and the 2011 edition of the NIV. Ewald and Thenius and Tsumura supported this extra text in their commentaries, but Keil & Delitzsch argued against it on the basis that 1)לכד & הפיל are nowhere else used of the Urim and Thummim and 2) The Urim & Thummim never gave either/or answers anywhere else, neither of which are decisively compelling. But the DSS hadn’t been discovered when they wrote. There is clearly room for the extra text in the DSS, and the surviving legible characters support “or in” in the phrase “in me or in Jonathan my son.”

ENAlthough there is no “and” in the Hebrew or in the majority of LXX texts, it is in the Vulgate and in the oldest-known Greek manuscript, the Vaticanus. It doesn’t make a difference in meaning, though.

EONIV = “ever so severely”

EPMany Hebrew manuscripts add לי to me” and it’s also in the Vulgate, Syriac, Septuagint, and Targums.

EQJohn Gill: “...evils greater than he chose to mention” Matthew Henry noted that these curses fell back on Saul’s head when he was later killed in battle.

ERNASB = “Far from it,” NIV = “Never!” NAW = “It would be a disgrace.”

ESESV = “ransomed”

ETNASB, NIV, ESV = “pursuing”

EUThe Hebrew phrase “received the kingdom” is missing in the majority LXX edition used here, but it is found in the Vaticanus, which reads ελαχε του βασιλευειν. Since Brenton translated from the Vaticanus, the phrase appears in his English version. The next phrase about receiving the office by inheritance/lot is in both the Vaticanus and Rahlfs’ edition of the LXX, but not in the Hebrew. The DSS becomes legible again after this phrase, so it is not available for comparison.

EVNASB, NIV = “inflicted punishment,” ESV = “routed” The most ancient manuscripts, however read “brought salvation.”

EWThe Cairo Geniza mss omits the preposition “with/against” but the parallel construction implies it at the least.

EXThe MT is plural (“kings”), but the DSS (ובמלך), Syriac, and LXX all read singular.

EYThe DSS is obliterated at this point, but the LXX, Syriac, Old Latin, and Vulgate (followed by Gordon and McCarter) all read as though the Hebrew word were יושיע instead of the Masoretic ירשיע. Luther followed the MT and translated it “inflicted punishment, which K&D, NASB, & NIV followed. Tsumura, however, thought that the original was ישריע (“surge over”) but that, when the lector in the scriptorium said that word, the scribes spelled what they heard wrongly as ירשיע (lit. “did evil to” which was interpreted as “vexed/punished”).

EZNASB, NIV, ESV “and he acted/fought/did valiantly” K&D = “he acquired power” [by beating the Amalekites]

FANASB, NIV, ESV = “plundered”

FBThe MT spelling of this last word fits the formula of Judges 2:13-16 “They forsook the LORD and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel. So He delivered them into the hands of plunderers who despoiled them [ביד־שׁסים וישׁסו]; and He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that they could no longer stand before their enemies. Wherever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for calamity, as the LORD had said, and as the LORD had sworn to them. And they were greatly distressed. Nevertheless, the LORD raised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them.[ויושׁיעום מיד שׁסיהם](NKJV) However, the DSS spells this word סיו[], replacing the MT he with a yod (which would merely change the participle from a singular to a plural form), and the LXX and Vulgate (and most English versions) “just happen” to translate that participle as plural even though it is singular in the MT! But there’s more; the LXX reads “trampled” instead of “plundered,” which leads me to believe that the missing letter at the beginning of the word in the DSS was beth, not shin (So the MT שסהו means “they who trample it” and the DSS בסיו means “he who plunders it”) – not greatly different in meaning, but it demonstrates the integrity of the LXX.

FCThe first letter in this name in the DSS is an aleph, but the rest of the name is obscured. There is too much space for the short name in the MT. It appears to support the name Ishba’al found in the Syriac and in some Greek manuscripts. Could it be that scribes changed the name to make Saul look better?

FDThe DSS supports Saul’s name (as the MT has it) rather than a pronoun (as the LXX has it).

FEThe Vaticanus inserts autou here (which comports with the MT), but it is not in Rahlfs’ edition of the Septuagint (which sides with the DSS).

FFSaul also had a concubine, by whom he had 2 children (2Sa. 21:8). Willett regarded this as “worse” than having 2 wives!

FGThe DSS reads “the host” (הצבא) instead of “his host” – not a significant difference in meaning, though.

FHThis name does not occur in the LXX elsewhere in relation to Abner or Abiel. It is only mentioned in Gen. 36:24; 46:10; Exod. 6:15; Num. 26:12, 28; Jos. 17:7; 1 Sam. 14:51; 2 Ki. 25:14; 1 Chr. 2:27; 4:24.

FIAlthough the DSS is obliterated at this point, there does not appear to be enough space between legible section to support the extra name inserted in the LXX.

FJNASB = “severe,” NIV = “bitter,” ESV = “hard”

FKNASB, ESV = “Attached”

FLMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scrolls containing any part of 1 Samuel 15 are 4Q51 Samuela, which contains fragments of vs. 20-32, and which has been dated between 50-25 B.C. and 4Q52 which contains a snippet of v.18, dated as early as 250 B.C. Legible text in these which matches the MT is colored purple. Where the DSS supports the LXX with omissions or text not in the MT, I have highlighted with yellow the LXX and its translation into English; where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with {pointed brackets}.

FMThere are some Hebrew manuscripts which also omit the second “over”

FNThere are Hebrew manuscripts which read singular “word”

FOHebrew pqd can denote personal reckoning (LXX cf. “NASB & NIV “punish”), or the accountability of overseeing (Aquila = epeskeyamhn cf. ESV = “noted”). Seeing as the same verb is used in v.4 to describe what Saul did to the people of Israel, it's probably more consistent to go with the latter interpretation.

FPThe Hebrew sim is translated more literally by Symmachus (Σ.) epeqeto (“put/set upon”) Theodotian (Q.) also sought to improve over the LXX “greeted” with a word showing clear animosity epataxen (“struck”), which goes beyond the MT.

FQNASB = “obstructed,” NIV = “waylaid,” ESV = “opposed”

FRSyriac and Targum support the extra “and” not in the MT. It doesn't make a difference in meaning, though.

FSNASB, NIV, and ESV = “child & infant”

FTNASB, NIV, ESV = “donkey”

FULXX, Buxtorf Targum, and Vulgate, as well as several Hebrew manuscripts, start this verse with “and.”

FVMost of the later Greek translations read “two” instead of “four,” matching the MT, but the Alexandrinus reads “ten.” Josephus supports the LXX with his 40K from Israel and 30K from Judah.

FWMost other Greek translations read pezwn (footmen) like the MT.

FXNASB = “counted,” NIV = “mustered”

FYAquila = φαραγγι (“ravine”)

FZNASB = “wadi,” NIV = “ravine”

GAMcCarter explained that if it were a misspelled Hiphal, it could be translated “prepared an ambush” (as the DR, NASB, and NIV rendered it) but Tsumura dismissed that possibility.

GBAq. sussurw (“drag away together”)

GCThere seems to be some controversy over whether the root of this word is שסף (“gather”) or סףה (“take away”), but the meanings are not different enough to change the gist of the message.

GD“Hierim” is a transliteration of the Hebrew word “devote to destruction.” Later Greek versions dropped the transliteration and used a Greek word like apekteinen or exwloqreusen (S. cf. LXX v.9) meaning what the Hebrew word means.

GEThe Hebrew word כּרם means vineyard, but the plural would be spelled כרמים (differently than the MT כרים).

GFcf. Symmachus (S.) euteleV (“good-for-nothing”?) and Theotodion (Q.) exoudenwmenon (“abominable”)

GGcf. Aquila (Aq.) tethgmenon (“melted down?”)

GHNASB = “more valuable animals,” NIV & ESV = “fat[tened] calves”

GINASB/NIV/ESV = “despicable/despised”

GJNASB/NIV = “weak,” ESV = “worthless”

GKThe root of this word is labeled by the etymologists as שנ two/double,” but a transposition of the first two letters (which sometimes occurs for euphonic reasons) yields שמן fat/oil” – which most English versions (+NICOT) follow. The LXX “food” might be in line with that. Willet, Kimchi, K&D, AJV, and Goldman, however, stuck with “second-born animals”.

GLGreek translations run the same gamut of meaning as English versions: S. eluphqh (“pained”) Q. orgilon (“angered”)

GMNASB/NIV/ESV = “I regret”

GNNASB/NIV = “carried out” I suggest “enforced” as a closer translation of the Hiphil stem of qum. Same with v.13.

GOLit. “words” cf. NIV “instructions” Same in v.13

GPNASB = “furious,” NIV = “angry”

GQOn the theology of God “repenting/relenting/changing mind” see http://ctrchurch-mhk.org/sermondetail/does-god-change-his-mind-jonah-310/

GRLit. “a hand,” NASB, NIV = “monument”

GSCairo Geniza manuscripts dating about a century before the MT have slightly different vowel pointing and read Hiphil instead of Qal, but this doesn’t really change the meaning.

GTcf. A. S. afeV. Q. eason (both of which mean “let it go”)

GUNASB = “Stop,” NIV = “Enough”

GVThe original Masoretic text reads “they said” but Masorite scribes corrected it in the Keri to וַיֹּאמֶרand he said,” and the translations generally follow that. However, there is no reason why a king would not have had a court and spokesmen to answer for him, so it doesn’t change the story.

GWThis is reminiscent of Saul’s words about himself in 9:21

GXNASB, NIV, ESV = “mission” Lit. “way/road” Same in v.20, except KJV renders it “way” there.

GYNASB = “eliminated,” NIV = “wiped out”

GZThe 3rd person masculine plural suffix on this infinitive is interpreted by the LXX, Syriac, Targums, and NIV as a second plural subject for the verb. It might, on the other hand, be interpreted as the object, in which case the last word would make the object emphatic “them themselves.”

HANASB = “loudly rushed,” NIV/ESV = “pounce”

HBאשר serving, like כי, to introduce the reply: here it is used in the sense of asseveration, utique, yea.” ~K&D

HCcf. synonymous phrasing in Aq. and others A. kefalaion (tou anaqematoV). Oi loipoi aparchn tou anaqematoV.

HDNASB = “choicest,” NIV/ESV = “best”

HEThe variety of variants makes tcalls this pronoun into question. It’s obliterated in the DSS, but some Greek manuscripts read “Iof Israel” most read “our” and the Vulgate reasds “their”

HFNASB = “pay attention,” NIV = “heed,” ESV = “listen”

HGAq & Sym. used synonym for consulting mediums = manteiaV

HHAq. = parapikrasmoV (“bitter revolt”), S. = proserizein (“present turmoil”)

HILXX = “toil,” Aq. = anwfeleV (“breach of obligation”), Sym. = anomia (“lawlessness”)

HJLXX “Therafin” is a transliteration of the Hebrew word for “idols.” Aq. translated it morfwmatwn (“shapes”) and S. eidwlwn (“idols”)

HKA. ekbibasmoV (“going astray?”), S. apeiqein (“unbelief”)

HLNASB = “insubordination,” NIV = “arrogance,” ESV = “presumption”

HMNASB = “false [religion],” NIV = “evil”

HNCairo Geniza mss pointed these vowels as a participle rather than as a noun, but it doesn’t make a difference in meaning.

HOThis word is used only half a dozen other times in the Hebrew OT (Gen. 19:3, 9; 33:11; Jdg. 19:7; 2 Ki. 2:17; 5:16), and every time it speaks of putting social pressure on someone to force them to make a compromise.

HPSeveral Hebrew manuscripts and even Targums insert the word “LORD” here, like the LXX, but even without the insertion, it is clear that the subject is the LORD, so it makes no difference in meaning.

HQNASB, NIV = “violated”

HRcf. Symmachus = “properly” axiw

HSThe DSS does not support this extra phrase.

HTNASB, ESV = “please”

HUNIV = “I beg you, forgive”

HVESV = “bow before”

HWAndrew Willett: “ Some read, fer, porta, ‘beare my sin’ (Syriac, Latin, Vulgate)… others read, ‘remit’ (Chaldee), ‘forgive’ (Junius)... the best reading is, ‘take away.’”

HXcf. synonym from Theodotion “pushed aside” apwsw

HYcf. synonym from Symmachus: “cast away” apebaleto

HZcf. Symm. “corner” akrou

IALXX connotes a 2-piece outfit. A. endumatoV (clothing). S. peribolaiou (wrap/shawl). Q. imatiou (garment)

IBNASB = “grasped,” NIV “caught hold,” ESV = “seized”

ICNASB = “edge,” NIV = “hem”

IDNASB, NIV, ESV = “robe”

IEDSS supports the LXX insertion of “Saul” [שאול] as the subject here. This pre-empts the Jewish rabbins who, by omitting this word in the MT, suggested that Samuel tore Saul’s tunic.

IFThis is the same word “tunic” used in 2:19 of the priestly garb Samuel’s mom would make for him as a boy.

IGAlthough this part of the verse is obliterated in the DSS, there is room for a couple of extra words not in the MT. The extra word “it” at the end of the verse in the LXX would use only part of that space. The only other clue we have is Symmachus’ insertion of the extra word κρασπεδου (He grasped the corner of the “hem/tassleof…). These aren’t substantial changes to the story, though.

IHVaticanus inserts σου απο, which doesn’t make sense, but is the reason for the strange reading of Brenton, and is a literal translation of the MT, as differentiated from the DSS which doesn’t have the extra ablative prepositional prefix in the MT before “kingdom.”

IIAq., Symm. = etairw (“companion/friend”)

IJNASB, NIV = “torn”

IKIn a surprising turn, the DSS has a much more terse reading than the MT. Where the MT reads “from the kingdom of Israel from upon you today,” the DSS reads “kingdom of Israel [from you/r hand]” (the bracketed part being obliterated, but could support either the LXX reading or the MT reading).

IL2nd Century Hebrew-to-Greek translator Aquila rendered these two verbs yeusetai (“lie”)... metamelh- (“change intent”), which is closer to the Hebrew MT.

IMAq. metamelhqhnai (“change intent”), Q. paraklhqhnai (“be exhorted”)

INNASB, NIV, ESV = “the Glory” Arabic = “holy,” Syriac = “noble,” but the oldest-known manuscripts have a different reading.

IONASB, NIV = “change mind,” ESV = “have regret,” NKJV = “relent” cf. v.35 where NASB, NIV, ESV, NKJV = “regret”

IPDSS is obliterated here, but LXX reads “ripped apart” as though it were rendering the word יחצה, and adds the phrase “in two.” There is too much space in the obliterated text of the DSS to support the reading of the MT without that extra phrase, so the DSS supports the LXX reading. The Vulgate supports the MT, however. Willet, commenting on the MT: “...netzach, is by the most here translated, victoria, fortitudo, victorie, strength... some referring it unto God, who gave Israel power and victorie over their enemies: some to the people, that God would not faile them, of their former strength. But seeing netzach signifieth also eternitie, as Psal. 49.20... ‘for ever’: that sense is more fit here: because it is more agreeable to the eternitie and constancie of God, not to lie or repent, then properly an effect of his power… it is better referred to both the infallible purpose of God in electing of David, as in the rejecting of Saul.”

IQDSS reads ישוב "turn back,” supporting the LXX and Vulgate instead of the MT.

IR4th century Hebrew-to-Greek translator Symmachus rendered with the synonym for “honor” timhson

ISESV more accurately translates “bow before” here and in the next verse

ITAlthough DSS is obliterated here, there is too much space between legible words to support the MT; there is just enough space to support the LXX reading which inserts “Saul.”

IUThe DSS reads ו instead of this word, thus it supports the LXX which reads with a conjunction rather than with νυν (which would be the proper translation of the word in the MT). The presence of this conjunction in other Hebrew manuscripts and in the Vulgate also lends support to the LXX reading. The NIV carries this DSS reading, but KJ and NASB, carry the MT reading. It doesn’t make any real difference in meaning, however.

IVThere is no conjunction here in the DSS. The DSS reading without the conjunction is preserved in the NIV, whereas the MT reading is preserved in the KJV and NASB, but, as you can see, it makes no difference in meaning.

IWThis word “Saul” is not in the DSS or the LXX of this verse, so it might not be original. It doesn’t make a difference in meaning, though.

IXAq. apo truferiaV (“delicately”), S. abroV (“bound?”)

IYNASB, ESV = “cheerfully,” NIV = “in chains,” NKJV = “cautiously”

IZG tremwn, taking the root to be dum (“tremble”), as did Targums, and Vulgate. Others took the root to be /du soft/luxurious,” thuspleasantly” (Geneva), “delicately” (KJV),apparelled and adorned as a king” (Willett), and Aquila. Still others, most notably BDB & Holliday, have suggested that the last two letters be switched to make עָנַד "bound” – thus the NIV “in chains.”

JAAq. & S. = diespasen (“tear apart” – closer to the MT word’s meaning), Q. ebasanisen (“tortured”). The range of translations is understandable of this hapex legomenon (שסף).

JBNASB= “cut,” ESV = “hacked.” No form of this word is used anywhere else in the Hebrew Bible.

JCמִנָּשִׁים is to be understood as a comparative: more childless than (other) women, i.e., the most childless of women, namely, because her son was the king.~K&D

JDAq. eiV ton bounon (“the hill”)

JENIV follows LXX Vulgate with “departed/left” instead of the MT “went,” but the meaning is not significantly different.

JF“of Saul” is not to be found in the oldest manuscripts – Vaticanus or Vulgate or other LXX, nor apparently in Aquila, Symmachus, etc. Unfortunately, there is no extant manuscript of this verse among the Dead Sea Scrolls.

JGNASB, NIV = “though,” ESV = “but”

JHESV = “grieved over”

JINASB, NIV, ESV = “regretted”

JJThere is only one more encounter between Samuel and Saul, initiated by Saul, not Samuel, and that is in chapter 19, and it is not a friendly one. Possibly Samuel could have died later that day; the next mention of Samuel is in chapter 25, where it is merely said that he was dead.
“How it is said [that] Samuel came no more to see Saul untill the day of his death, seeing he saw him againe afterward, chap. 19.22? Some expound it thus, that Samuel came not to Saul, any more, though Saul came where Samuel was (Genevens), but it is rather understood of the ende and manner of Samuel’s comming, then of the act of comming and going: that Samuel came not to visit and see Saul, as he had used to do before time, to consult with him about the affaires of the kingdome... and to give him direction from God… The meaning therefore is, that Samuel had no conference with Saul, as before, to give him instruction and direction… Samuel did not pray for the restoring of the kingdom to Saul… he lamented the hardness of Saul’s impenitent heart, going on in his sin without remorse” ~Willett

JKMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scroll containing any part of this passage is 4Q52, containing parts of verses 1-11, and dated to around 250 B.C. I have colored purple the text of the MT which corraborates with that DSS and highlighted with yellow the LXX and Vulgate where they agree with the DSS over against the MT. Where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I marked my translation with {pointed brackets}.

JLcf. Symmachus’ synonym apedokimasa “disregarded”

JMNASB, NIV, ESV = “since” The Hebrew is merely a vav conjunction.

JNNASB = “selected,” NIV = “chosen,” but the Hebrew and Greek words are actually “seen”

JOSome Hebrew and Aramaic manuscripts read עלover” (cf. Greek epi, which also means “over”)

JPThe DSS does not have the tav prefix to this word, agreeing with the LXX that it was imperative. The MT changed it to a second person imperfect, which makes no difference in English translation.

JQDSS is obliterated at this point in the verse, but there is plenty of space between the characters which are legible to include the extra letters in the MT Hebrew which spell “for me.”

JRNASB = “designate,” NIV = “indicate, “ESV = “declare,” Lit. “say’”

JSSecond and third-century AD Jewish translations by Aquila (Aq.) and Symmachus (S.) made to correct the Septuagint read with the synonym exeplaghsan (“struck outof their senses – astounded, overwhelmed) less likely to be confused with “ecstatic.” But all the Greek versions clearly interpreted the literal physical “trembling” from the Hebrew word charad as figuratively describing an emotional state.

JTTranslations from first to last (including Targums, LXX, Syriac, Vulgate, and practically every English version) plus many Hebrew manuscripts render this verb plural (“they [the elders] said”), although the MT is singular (“he [Samuel] said”). The DSS is obliterated here, but there is room for the extra vav character which the plural would require. John Gill and Keil & Delitzsch advocated for the singular, suggesting that the elders were represented by one spokesman (perhaps Jesse himself) who voiced this concern. Tsumura suggested that the singular spelling could actually, by a trick of syntax, represent the plural, as equivalent to an infinitive, citing Driver who equivocated it with a participle and Rendsburg who wrote of it as a colloquialism. Whatever the case, it makes no difference to the story whether the elders spoke together or through a spokesman.

JUAlthough there is no explicit marker in the MT of this being a question, it has been interpreted as such to the point that some Hebrew manuscripts prefix this word with an interrogative -ה. For what it’s worth, there is room in the obliterated part of the DSS containing this verse for that extra interrogative character.

JVDSS ends this verse with the word harh, matching the LXX “seer,” and making it clear that the previous verb “said” should be plural, not singular as the MT has it.

JWOther instances of this word are Num. 11:18; Jos. 3:5; 7:13; 1 Chr. 15:12; 2 Chr. 5:11; 29:5; 30:3, 17. All describe ceremonial preparations to be in God’s special presence, including washing clothes, body-washing, and avoiding contact with dead or unclean animals or body fluids for a day.

JXLXX reads differently( but not in such a way as to really change the story). The Lucian rescription corrects to the MT with eiV thn qusian , and other ancient versions support the MT (Targum, Syriac, Vulgate). DSS is illegible here.

JYThe LXX is literally “but and,” meaning “surely” as Brenton’s translation bears out. Other expressions have been suggested (A.,Q. plhn, S. ara), but they mean pretty much the same thing.

JZThe Vaticanus, perhaps the oldest-known manuscript of the LXX, drops this word out, but it’s in the MT, and Aquila and Theodotian included it in their Greek translations: tou uyouV metewrothta (“height of greatest measure”). Except for intensifying the idea of height, it doesn’t really change the story. The NIV followed the Vaticanus here.

KASyriac and Targums also support a comparative translation (“as”) of what would normally be an indefinite pronoun (“what”) in Hebrew. The NIV stands alone in translating it as a pronoun.

KBNASB, NIV, ESV = “rejected”

KCThere is more room in this obliterated section of the DSS than the MT has words for, supporting an extra “God sees that,” the omission of which could easily be explained by dittography since “man sees” is also found before this phrase in the verse.

KDThe Vaticanus here reads theos, so Brenton correctly translated “God,” but the majority of LXX manuscripts according to Rohlf read kurios (“Lord”), which is consistent with the MT’s Yahweh. In the next verse, however, the Vaticanus agrees with Rohlf’s majority text of the LXX with kurios, yet Brenton accidentally carried over the “God” from this verse, perhaps because the verses are so similar otherwise. Since, however, “God” and “Lord” refer to the same entity, there is no real difference in meaning or application.

KEAlthough the DSS is obliterated at this point, there’s the right amount of space between the legible sections to include the phrase “to Jesse,” which is in the MT but which is omitted in the LXX.

KFAq. eteleiwqhsan = done” – closer to the word in the MT, but still fairly synonymous

KGThis word, in Greek culture, describes preparing to eat a meal, as does the synonym chosen by Aq. anapeswmen. Matthew Henry also interpreted it as “sitting down to meat” but see next note on the Hebrew word:

KHThis verb literally has to do with “going around.” If, as the other versions suggest, this meant “sitting/lying down” to eat a meal, I would expect a different verb such as yashub. The last time this sbb verb occurred was to describe Samuel “turning around” to walk away from Saul (1 Sam. 15:27), and, before that, it was used to speak of Samuel “making the circuit” of the villages for his judging and priestly duties (1 Sam. 7:16), so I suspect this verb here has more to do with “leaving and going elsewhere.” However, in the Soncino commentary, Goldman commented (albeit without proof), “The Hebrew verb denotes ‘sitting down to a meal,’ and the reference is to the sacrificial feast.” And Keil & Delitzsch explain סָבַב as “to surround... the table, upon which the meal was arranged.” But nowhere else in scripture is sbb associated with eating, and in the one verse where it occurs with the verb for eating (1Kings 21:4), it describes Ahab NOT eating because he had “turned around,” so I remain skeptical. Tsumura came to the same conclusion independently, translating it “leave.”

KILiterally “eyes” (NASB), NIV = “appearance”

KJAs we’ve seen earlier in 1 Samuel, this more-specialized Hebrew word has a wider range of opinions among Greek translators as to how to render it: Aq. enhulisqh (“lodged within”), S. wrmhsen (“roar?”), Q. epefanen (“appeared”).

KKNASB, NIV = “came mightily,” ESV = “rushed”

KLcf. synonymous verbs by later translators: Aquila: eqambei (“surprised”), Symmachus (S.) suneicen (“possessed”)

KMESV = “harmful” NKJV = “distressing,” same in v.15 and following

KNNASB = “terrorized” Same in v.15 and following

KOSeveral Hebrew manuscripts read hwhy like the LXX and old Latin versions, but it’s speaking of the same God.

KPSymmachus corrected the LXX to the MT by adding kurie hmwn.

KQLater Greek translators rendered “harp” with different synonyms: S. & Q. kiqara. A. yalthrionsame in v.23.

KRThe old Latin and Syriac versions apparently support this omission; the Lucian rescention adds it back in to match the MT. It doesn’t change the meaning, however, because the omitted phrase occurs before and after, so it is not negated.

KSAll other English versions but the NIV render this “skillful;” the NIV strangely renders it “can.” Also in v.18.

KTNIV, ESV = “lyre”

KUStrangely, the NIV and ESV omit the Hebrew phrase “with his hand.” The Greek reads “on his harp” as though the Hebrew read בכנורו instead of בידו.

KVLater Greek translators corrected the LXX “right” to the MT “good” (S. kalwV. Q. agaqwV)

KWThe Hebrew and Greek words have to do with “looking” rather than with “providing” (KJV, NASB, ESV) or “finding” (NIV). The same verb is translated “seen” by all the English versions in the next verse.

KXNIV = “brave” The KJV translated it “mighty man of power” when the same phrase occurred in 9:1.

KYThe Hebrew word dbr can be translated “matters/things,” but is usually translated “word,” and here it is translated “speech” by practically all the other English versions.

KZNASB = “handsome,” NIV = “fine-looking,” ESV = “of good presence”

LAKish was described in these words in 9:1 “mighty man of means” Depending on context, khiyl can mean wealth, weapons, soldiers, strength, mighty deeds, or valor.

LBRachel, Joseph, Abigail, Adonijah, and Esther are all described as “fair/good form/shape,” but Isaiah prophecied that the Messiah would not have such good “form” in 52:14 & 53:2.

LCLXX transliterates the Hebrew, which sounds like the unit of measure “homer” (and frankly makes more sense than “a donkey of bread”), and McCarter followed that interpretation, but everywhere else that this unit of measure occurs, it is spelled חמר not חמור as it is here. Kimchi and Ben Melech interpreted this asheap” of bread, but the Lucian rescention of the LXX corrected it to the MT “donkey.”

LDNASB = “jug,” NIV & ESV = “skin”

LEThe Hebrew and Greek read literally “one kid from the goats” NASB & NIV read “a young goat”

LFThe Hebrew, Greek, and Latin all read “by the hand/agency of David...”

LGcf. synonym from S. oploforoV

LHcf. NASB = “attended,” NIV & ESV render very loosely “entered his service” Literally the Hebrew reads “stood before his face” Same in the next verse, except NASB abandons “attend” for “stand”

LIGoldman: “One of his personal attendants, like the Squire of the Middle Ages.”

LJOther Greek translators and the Lucian rescention rendered pneuma qeou, following the MT.

LKInstead of an upward motion of the “soul,” Aquila brought it closer to the MT with anepnee, an upward motion of the “spirit” (or breath – as in a sigh?).

LLSymmachus paraphrased a bit: euforoV egeneto (“he became euphoric”).

LMJoseph (Gen. 41:38), Bezalel (Ex. 31:3), Baalam (Num. 24:2), Saul (10:10, 11:6, 19:23), and the prophet Azariah (2 Chron. 15:1) are all cited as having this same rouach elohim in a positive sense for prophecy. The omission of the word “evil” at this point in the narrative in Hebrew was problematic for many translators and editors, although the fact that it was “evil” is obvious from the end of the verse. The Septuagint substituted “evil” for “from God,” some Hebrew manuscripts as well as the Syriac, Vulgate, and Targum simply added the word “evil.”

LNAll but one of the previous instances of this word denoted “smelling” Gen. 8:21; 27:27; Exod. 30:38; Lev. 26:31; Deut. 4:28. The other indicates “burning” Jdg. 16:9.

LOMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scroll containing any part of this passage is 4Q51, containing parts of verses 3-8 & 40-41, and dated to around 50 B.C. I have colored purple the text of the MT which corraborates with that DSS and highlighted with yellow the LXX and Vulgate where they agree with the DSS over against the MT. Where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I marked my translation with {pointed brackets}.

LPSymmachus supported the LXX, as though the Hebrew were אפר מימ (“dust of water”), but Aquila supported the MT: en perati Domeim (“in the border of Domeim”). The Hebrew word Ephes Damim literally means “border of blood” (or “bleeding edge”), appropriate for a national boundary contested by war! Aquila (and Jerome) went halfway, translating the first word and transliterating the second word.

LQThis is the literal meaning of the verb, but all other English versions = “camped” Same in v.2.

LR“The name Socoh (swkh) appears in Paleo-Hebrew script on a royal stamped jar handle... in the British Museum.” ~Tsumura

LSLachish ostracon #4 mentions Asekah (Tsumura)

LT“which, by an apocope of the first letter, is called Pasdammim, 1Chron. 11:13 which the Jews say had this name because there blood ceased (Midrash Ruth, fol. 48. 2. Kimchi in loc.)” ~John Gill

LUThe Hebrew word “Elah” can also mean “these,” and the LXX interpreted it that way, but Later Greek translators all understood it to refer to the “stoutelah-tree, transliterating the Hebrew as Ηλα (Eusebius, Symmachus) or translating it as δρυος (Aquila, Theodotion).

LVThe Hebrew literally means “to call,” NASB = “to encounter,” NIV = “to meet”

LWMost other Greek translations rendered “valley” with the synonym faragxravine” which, according to Goldman is closer to the MT.

LXIn both Hebrew and Greek, the words for “mountain” and “valley” are definite = “the” not “a”

LYGoldman = “ravine” noting that this is a different word than the one in the previous verse for “valley”

LZAquila translated more like the MT with o mesazwn (“the middle-man”)

MAThe Dead Sea Scrolls from 50BC and Josephus from 100AD (lib. 6. de antiquit. c. 10), and presumably Aquila from 150 AD, as well as the Vaticanus manuscript from the 300’s AD and the Lucian rescription of the LXX all concur with “4 cubits,” but Symmachus (Σ.) edited his Greek version in the 300’s AD to “6 cubits,” which is the reading of the Masoretic tradition, the oldest manuscript of which is in the 900’s AD. Cairo Geniza manuscripts from the late 800’s AD follow the MT.

MBVulgate (spurius) translated as though it were a derrogative form of בן (“son”), and LXX (δυνατος) (and Syriac?) translated as though it were not there (“[mighty] man”), but it seems rather to be a form of the preposition בין (“between”) (Targum?), as in a “middle-man” (Aquilla) or “mediator.” Willett commented: “he is called habenaim, that is, duellator, because he challenged any hand to hand, that the combate might be betweene two... so the Sept. give the sense... the word benaim, beeing of the masculine gender, can not agree with machanoth, armies, or campes, beeing of the feminine: and the article set before habenaim, noteth some speciall description of the man” (Gill was much to the same effect.) Goldman: “the man of the [space] between [two armies]”

MCLXX interprets this word with the same Greek word it used to interpret “array” a couple of verses earlier. Jerusalem Jebamot supports the LXX with the Hebrew word for “array” instead of the Hebrew word for “camp,” but the practical difference is not important.

MDThe DSS (ubra) and every other manuscript previous to the 4th century reads “four.” A Greek manuscript has been found that reads “five” and a Latin manuscript dating to the 1400’s has been found that reads “sixteen.”

MEOther Greek versions supply the word for “brass/bronze” from the MT here: calkh.

MFcf. Ex. 28:22, and synonyms A. folidwton (with holes, i.e. scales – more like the MT than the LXX “ring/chain-mail”), S. & Q. aspidwton (serpentine? Like reptile scales.)

MGThe DSS does not have this additional text.

MHNASB (“clothed”) and NIV (“wore”) follow the more literal meaning of this Hebrew word.

MINASB & NIV = “scale armor”

MJOnly here and Lev. 11:9-12, Deut. 14:9-10 (describing the scales of fish), and Ezek. 29:4.

MKThis fact must have been established after Goliath’s defeat. It’s easy to imagine the Israelite soldiers disposing of Goliath’s decapitated body and exclaiming over how heavy the body armor was and weighing it to see exactly how heavy it was, then telling the story over campfires for the rest of their lives!

MLThis is the word normally translated “asp” or poisonous snake… Willet noted that later in “v. 45. David saith to Goliath, thou commest to me with a speare, and chidon; if it had been the shoulder piece, that was not in David's sight, he would rather have spoken of his brigandine or brestplate, that was before him, and in his view. Therefore I rather prefer the reading of the Chaldee [Targums] which calleth it a spear or javelin of brass: both because the word is so taken, Josh. 8.18. where Joshua lift up his spear for a sign, & Job 41.19. where it is said, that the Leviathan of the sea laugheth at the shaking of chidon, the speare: Josephus also saith, he carried his spear between his shoulders. It seemeth therefore that he had both a spear or lance in the one hand, and a javelin or trunchin of brass, which he carried between his shoulders with the other.”

MMEarly electronic editions of Brenton read “grass” instead of “brass,” but the word in the Vaticanus is the word for “brass,” and the original print editions of Brenton read “brass.” Later electronic editions corrected the earlier publisher’s error.

MNLuther, Geneva, Wycliffe, JFB = “shield” (cf. Targum, LXX, Vulgate, Rashi, and Gill, describing armor “in the form of a spear worn between the helmet and the coat of mail for the defence of the neck, supposed to weigh thirty pounds”), Josephus, Willett, RV, ASV, NASB, NIV, ESV, NET = “javelin [slung]”. Tsumura (NICOT) called it a “dagger,” and McCarter called it a “scimitar.” K&D noted that, “Goliath had no need of any shield to cover his back, as this was sufficiently protected by the coat of mail” (and, I might add, the helmet).

MOThere is not enough room between the legible words on each side of this obliterated section of the DSS to contain all the words that the MT has. Omitting the second “of bronze” would make the rest fit, and “of bronze” could be supplied by ellipsis resulting in no change of meaning.

MPOnly here and Ezek. 39:9 in the Greek Bible.

MQAq., Q. (wV) antion (“backup?”), S. (wV) istoV (“stand?”).

MRAq., Q. flox doratoV (“flame of the spear”), S. aicmh (“capture-device/Carrier/Leader”?)

MSA. = stathrwn Arndt & Gingrich defined this as a 4-drachma silver coin.

MTcf. other stabs at the meaning in other Greek versions: Q. aspida (“snake” cf. “target” v.6), S. ton qureon (“full-body-shield” – this is probably most like the meaning of the Hebrew word in the MT.)

MUThe Qere and other Hebrew manuscripts read וְעֵץ “and the tree/lumber of” which works, but doesn’t seem necessary. The MT is a regularly-used word for arrow-shafts.

MVThis word generally translated “beam” only occurs in the Bible in descriptions of Philistine warlord’s spears. (cf. 2 Sam. 21:19; 1 Chron. 11:23, & 20:5) Its root, according to BDB is “to till furrows,” which makes me wonder if it is speaking of some sort of rifling.

MWLater Greek versions corrected to the MT δουλοι (“servants”). In Hebrew, “slaves” (עבדימ) and “Hebrews” (עברימ) look very similar. How would we know whether the error was in the LXX or the MT? Either word works: “Hebrews” would parallel “Philistine” better, but “slaves” is a more-insulting epithet in keeping with Goliath’s reviling speech.

MXSymmachus (eiV to monomachsai) seems to have been reading the same text Jerome (ad singulare certamen) was reading, adding “for single-combat.”

MYNASB, NIV, ESV = “ranks”

MZTsumura supported my translation with “Isn’t it [true] that…?”

NAWillett comments on the definite article in Hebrew “THE Philistine” that it is unlikely that he was the Philistine who claimed the ark from Eli’s sons 40 years before, for he had a brother who was fighting 40 years later at the end of David’s reign (2 Sam. 21:19), rather “ Vatablus readeth well, ‘Am not I, Pelisteus ille, that Philistim:’ and as the Chaldee interpreteth, ‘Am not I Goliath the Philistim:’ that is, that famous Philistim, which hath done so many great exploits among them?”

NBS. perigenhtai (“overcome”)

NCCf. later translators’ simpler forms for “together”: A. omou. Q. ama which are closer to the MT.

NDGill = “reproach,” K&D = “mocked,” Tsumura = “challenge,” McCarter = “not only defiance and provocation but also open contempt”

NEThe next verse in the Septuagint is v.32. It appears that Lucian back-translated the Masoretic text to provide Greek text for verses 12-32, but no manuscript earlier than about 400AD contains these verses, so their origin is uncertain. There is an Alexandrian Greek text which contains these verses.

NFThe Brenton translation skips to verse 32 because these verses are not in the Vaticanus, however the missing verses are in Brenton’s appendix, translated from the Alexandrinus.

NGThe Hebrew is a little hard to understand. KJV follows it literally (albeit omitting the definite article in the MT), NASB reads “advanced in years among men,” NIV omits the phrase, ESV (following McCarter?) = “[already… and] advanced in years.” Tsumura = “become a senior… that is, he had reached the age where he was exempted from civil and military services...”

NHSeveral commentators I read (K&D, Henry, Gill?) saw in this demonstrative pronoun a link back to chapter 16 which introduced Jesse as an Ephrathite. Tsumura, on the other hand stated that “the demonstrative pronoun is used as a relative pronoun (“who”) like Ugaritic hnd…,” but I’m skeptical of the authority of that statement.

NISee notes on 16:6ff regarding the 8 sons.

NJcf. the Lucian rescension of the LXX and the Syriac (followed by the ESV), which read “in days” rather than “among men.” The Targum seems to be off-base stating the opposite that Jesse was “numbered among the young men.” I think it has to do with no longer being obligated to field-work (both farming and war) but rather coming among the elders who sat at the gate or in their houses (2 Kings 6:32, Ezekiel 20:1).
Goldman commented, “Rabbinic interpretation is ‘honoured in the company of men.’ Jesse’s age is noted to account for this absence form the army.”
Gill: “the phrase, "among men", either signifies that he was ranked among old men, infirm and unfit for war, and so excused, and his sons went in his room, so Kimchi; or he was reckoned among men of the first rank, men of esteem, credit, and reputation, so Jarchi and R. Isaiah, with which agrees the Targum; or whenever he went abroad, he was attended by many men, had a large retinue, which sense Abarbinel mentions, and is that of Ben Gersom, and agrees with the Talmud; but the Syriac and Arabic versions read "stricken in years", which seems most agreeable.”
K&D strangely rendered it “come among the weak”

NK"הָלְכוּ, which appears superfluous after the foregoing וַיֵּלְכוּ, has been defended by Böttcher, as necessary to express the pluperfect, which the thought requires, since the imperfect consec. וַיֵּלְכוּ, when attached to a substantive and participial clause, merely expresses the force of the aorist. Properly, therefore, it reads thus: ‘And then (in Jesse's old age) the three eldest sons followed, had followed, Saul;’ a very ponderous construction indeed, but quite correct, and even necessary, with the great deficiency of forms, to express the pluperfect.” ~K&D
Tsumura, on the other hand, declared that “the phrase here seems to be inserted to slow down the flow of discourse.”

NLThe beth preposition pictures “entering into” but some Hebrew manuscripts use a lamed preposition instead picturing coming up “to” the battle, and Greek, Latin Vulgate, and Aramaic Targum versions follow the latter.

NMNASB & NIV = “tend”

NNMost English versions interpret David’s coming and returning as frequentive, going back and forth, and the participles certainly support that, but Willett commented that the story wouldn’t work if David had already been to the army camp many times before; he proposes instead that Saul sent David home from the palace when Saul went to the battle, and that makes sense to me.

NONASB, NIV, and ESV = “came forward”

NPNASB, NIV, & ESV = “took his stand”

NQNASB, NIV = “roasted grain”

NRNIV = “hurry,” ESV = “carry quickly”

NSNASB, NIV, ESV = “commander”

NTNASB = “news,” NIV = “assurance,” ESV & NICOT = “token”

NUThis is the Hebrew word for “milk;” nowhere else in the Bible is chelev translated “cheese.” But what is a “cut” of “milk”? Perhaps a milk churn? K&D rendered it “cuts of soft cheese”

NV“The word... here properly signifieth a pledge: of the same signification, with the Hebrew word herabon, Gen. 38.17. where the word arrhabon, a pledge or earnest penie, seemeth to be derived.... And they which take it for a pledge, some expound it of the token, which he received to go in and out to his brethren in the armie without suspition... but the fittest interpretation is, that he should bring some token or pledge from them, as a sign of their welfare… the Chald. paraphrast interpreteth, ‘thou shalt bring their welfare,’ that is, bring tidings how they fare: or bring commendations from them.” ~Andrew Willett
The root ערב seems to have four basic meanings: darkness, pleasantness, mixture, and guarantee. K&D go with the latter, “a pledge that they are alive and well.” cf. Tsumura “proof of well-being of the brothers”

NWMost English versions interpret this third plural pronoun as referring to David’s brothers from the previous verse. It is redundant in meaning to “all Israel” so it is omitted in some Hebrew manuscripts and in the Syriac version.

NXThe valley was named after the trees that grew there. Of these trees Willett noted: “there is great uncertentie what kind of tree Elah should signifie, some taking it for the Terebinth or turpentine tree, as Hierome, some for the chesnut tree, some for Ilex the holme tree, some for an oake, Iun. and Vatab.”

NY“seeing the Israelites fled away at the sight of Goliath, and he for the space of 40 days together vaunted himself, it is not like that the armies had yet met, or that they skirmished together, as Osiander thinketh: but only had set their battell in aray, the one against the other, v. 21. therefore the better reading is, that they were bellantes, Iun. or belligerantes, Vatab. or ineuntes bellum, Chal. they were warring rather then fighting: for the word lacham signifieth both.” ~Willett

NZThis is a transliteration of the Hebrew word rather than a translation.

OANASB added “the supplies” (cf. ESV “the provisions”) since the Hebrew word indicates “carrying” something. I prefer the NIV “loaded up,” which doesn’t add words, but gets the idea across better than the KJV.

OBVulgate: Proper name, KJV: trench, NICOT: entrenchment or circumvallation, Targum/NIV/ESV: camp/tents, NASB: outer circle/perimeter of the camp, Willett: the parking lot for carts, where goods were stored safely away from the battlefront and where Saul slept (1 Sam. 26:5), K&D = wagon rampart (the carts themselves forming the outer barricade).

OCKJV has the literal translation. NASB, NIV, and ESV are a bit paraphrastic with “X shouting X the war [cry]” although K&D also weighed in with “lit. to make a noise in war, i.e. to raise a war-cry”

ODGoldman: “The Hebrew word ma’galah is found as a military term only here and in 26:5-7. It means ‘something rounded,’ and may refer either to an entrenchment or barricade around the camp, or (Kimchi) to the camp itself, which may have been circular in formation.”

OENASB = “baggage,” NIV = “things… supplies”

OFNASB, NIV = “battle-line,” ESV = “ranks”

OGNASB = “to greet,” NIV = “ask how they were,” Lit: “inquire concerning wellbeing”

OHThis extra “and he went” is not found in the Greek, Syriac, or Vulgate manuscripts. It doesn’t add new information, though.

OITranslated in v.4 into Greek by the LXX as “mighty-man” and by Aquilla as “mediator” here, the Greek translation cited by Kittel is αμεσσαιος “the non-mediator”!

OJThe Masorite compilers of this Hebrew text suggested in their Kere notes that the text they were copying was missing a “c” towards the end of the word, seeing as there is no such Hebrew root as מער, and should be spelled מִמַּעַרְכוֹת This is the general trend of translations, although the Greek and Syriac (followed by the NASB) modified the Hebrew plural to a singular, matching the instance of the same word in the previous verse. K&D noted that “if [what was written] were the proper reading, it would suggest and Arabic word signifying a crowd of men,” a meaning not far removed from the Kere.

OKNIV = “exempt [from taxes]”

OLThe Cairo Geniza manuscript of this verse, dating about a century before the earliest-known MT manuscript, uses the same consonantal spellings, but changes the vowel pointing on this infinitive to render it [r)jl Qal instead of Piel, but that doesn’t really change the meaning. K&D render “insult” here.

OMWillett: “enfranchising his house: as in setting it free from taxes and other impositions (Genevens) and so advancing it to the state of nobilitie (Chaldee).”

ONNIV = “disgrace”

OONASB = “taunt”

OPNASB = “insolence,” NIV = “how conceited,” ESV = “presumption”

OQNASB, NIV = “wickedness,” ESV = “evil”

ORNASB = “question,” NIV = “I speak,” ESV (and K&D) followed the more literal meaning of the Hebrew = “word”
Targum explains it as, “Isn’t this what everybody is saying?”
Willett wrote: “dabhar is better here translated, matter, cause, or busines: and so David excuseth himself because he came about his fathers business”
K&D: “a very allowable inquiry certainly”

OSNASB = “told,” NIV = “reported,” ESV = “repeated

OTSome Hebrew and Greek manuscripts read “they got [him]” (wjqyw)/whwjqyw/kai paresthsan auton)

OULXX reads as though the Hebrew were אדני instead of אדם

OVSome Hebrew manuscripts (and the Syriac) omit the last letter, changing the pronoun to first person “my father” which just makes it more like a quote, but still referring the pronoun to David, so no difference in meaning.

OW"זה which we find in most of the editions since the time of Jac. Chayim, 1525, is an error in writing, or more correctly in hearing, for שֶׂה, a sheep.” ~K&D

OXOther early Greek translators after the LXX, such as Aquila (A.) & Symmachus (Σ.) rendered pwgwnoV (which I assume is closer to the MT “beard/mane”)

OY“the sheep” is the understood object (spelled out in the ESV), and several Hebrew manuscripts (followed by the Syriac and Targums) actually add an extra vav stroke at the end of the word to supply the object as the pronoun “him,” which doesn’t change the meaning.

OZ"זָקָן, beard and chin, signifies the bearded chin” ~K&D

PANASB= “since,” NIV = “because,” ESV = “for”

PB“here disjunctive waw functions as expressing the reason why he says ‘go!’ (imperative)” ~David Tsumura (NICOT)

PCHere and in the next verse, LXX transliterated rather than translated the Hebrew phrase. Aq. = enduthn (“clothing”)

PDNASB = “garments” (then “armor” in v.29), NIV = “tunic” This word is plural, and it seems to be used of clothing which is typical for a particular vocation, such as the outfit/uniform/garb/attire of a priest (Lev. 6:3), of a judge (Jdg. 5:10), or of a soldier (1 Sam. 4:12).

PENASB = “armor”

PF“signifies probably a peculiar kind of clothes which were worn under the armour, a kind of armour-coat to which the sword was fastened.” ~K&D

PGCf v.5 – Goliath wore the same kind of “brass helmet” and “breastplate/armor/coat of mail”

PHOther Greek translators (presumably Aq. & Symmachus) eneduse (“clothed”)

PILucian Rescription ecwlainen and S. eskaxen apeiroV made it more like the MT reading.

PJNIV = “fastened,” ESV = “strapped”

PKMost all other English versions translate with a form of the English word “try”

PLNASB = “tested,” NIV = “used” and so in the next instance

PMAll other places this verb occurs (except for Joel 1:8, where it is translated “wail”), this verb means “to swear” or “take an oath” (Jdg. 17:2; 1 Sam. 14:24; 1 Ki. 8:31; 2 Chr. 6:22; Hos. 4:2; 10:4).

PNS. Q. faraggoV (“ravine”)

POAq. & Sym. translated it skeuei (“utensil”), which is more like the MT.

PPA. analekthriw, S. phra (“knapsack”)

PQNASB, NICOT = “pouch,” NIV = “bag,” ESV omits, Goldman = “wallet,” Gill mentions a curious Ethiopic tradition (Apud Ludolf. Lexic. Ethiop. p. 84) that it was “that piece of the leather in the midst of the sling, in which the slingers used to put the stones”

PRNASB, NIV, ESV = “approached”

PSTsumura, in the New International Commentary on the Old Testament, citing D. W. Baker, labels this a “waw explicativum,” translating it “namely”

PTHapex Legomenon from a verb that means “to glean”

PUThe antiquity of v.41 is established by its presence in the DSS, even though it is not in the LXX. It does not add any new information, however, only a greater sense of drama in the telling. It is in the Alexandrian Greek text, of which Brenton provided an English translation in his appendix.

PVOther Greek versions = exoudenwsen (“made nothing of him”), but the LXX is closer to the MT.

PWSeveral Hebrew manuscripts read more closely to the LXX with <ynyu (“eyes”), but it means practically the same thing.

PXS. eloidorei (“reviled”)

PYNASB, NIV, ESV = “sticks”

PZThe Greek translation of this Hebrew word would normally be αγρος (“field”), but multiple Hebrew manuscripts (and some Targums) instead read הארץ, supporting the LXX γης and Vulgate terrae (“earth”), which can still be synonyms.

QANASB, NIV, ESV = “javelin” KJV translated this “target” in v.6, which see.

QBNASB = “birds of the sky”

QCMany sources more ancient than the MT tradition make this word plural: LXX, Targums, Symmachus, and Syriac.

QDThe Syriac and some Hebrew manuscripts support the plural “hands” over against the MT.

QETsumura called this an inchoative verb, citing F.W. Dobbs-Allsopp’s paper on the “Ingressive qwm in Biblical Hebrew”

QFcf. Syriac & Targum and Greek (parataxin) support the MT against the Vulgate ad pugnam

QGThis is Theodotian’s version, not in the LXX – perhaps a back-translation from the MT? There is apparently also an Alexandrian greek of this verse, but I don’t have access to it.

QHThis is my translation. Brenton skipped this verse following the Vaticanus.

QIBy this redundancy, “the narrator apparently wishes to convey that Goliath did not die as a result of the blow from the stone…” ~Goldman (Soncino)

QJThe Hebrew word is different here from the one in vs. 4 & 23, which the KJV also translated “champion.” The word here means “mighty man,” and in the former places it meant “the man in the middle.” Like the KJV, the LXX also translated both Hebrew words with the same Greek word “strong-man.”

QKSome Hebrew mss. render עלover” instead of אלto,” and the Greek, Syriac, Chaldee, and Latin versions rendered with prepositions more like “over” than “to,” but this Hebrew word has a wide range of meaning that can include “over.”

QLThe LXX translated the Hebrew word “shaarim” (which means “gates”) instead of transliterating it like other versions did. Tsumura made the “conjecture that there was a double gate (where a Philistine garrison may have been) at the junction where the road to Gath and the road to Ekron met… Any Philistine soldiers would try to escape westward toward this place...”

QMThe Greek word here is “wounded/traumatized” rather than “killed,” more like the MT “pierced.”

QNGill accepted the KJV “valley,” but McCarter, NIV, & ESV follow the LXX here with “Gath,” the first half of which is spelled the same as “valley” in Hebrew. Ehrlich, AJV, Goldman, & Tsumura also considered it a place name, but went with the actual spelling “Gai.” K&D translated it “valley” but noted that it was mighty “suspicious” and could well be “Gath” misspelled. This doesn’t make much difference in meaning because, as Tsumura noted, “the Gai Valley seems to refer to the valley which leads to Gath.”

QONASB = “lay” (which would be a different Hebrew word שכב), NIV translates the Qal as though it were Niphal “were strewn”

QPLiterally “pierced” K&D = “wounded”

QQThis place is mentioned in Josh. 15:36.

QRSymmachus: apo tou diwgmou (“from the pursuit”)

QSOther Greek versions are more like the MT with dihrpasan (“plundered”)

QTposuit

QUThe LXX noun has a wide range of meaning; Symmachus specified “armor” opla

QVkai wV eiden Saoul- apo tou pataxai ton allofulon “And as Saul saw – from the striking down of the Philistine” Perhaps this is from the Alexandrinus or the Lucian Rescention which contain these verses despite their absence in the Vaticanus and Rohlf’s edition of the Septuagint.

QWNASB, NIV, ESV = “know” which is more literally what the MT says

QXThe Lucian Rescention of the LXX, as well as the Syriac and Targums add a 3ms pronoun here (“his”), but it makes no difference to the story , for context makes it clear that it’s the same army, whether it is called “Saul’s army” or “the army.”

QYNASB = “youth,” NIV = “young man,” ESV = “boy” The KJV “stripling” connotes slender height rather than “hiddenness” as the Hebrew ‘elah denotes, but it is of about the same unusualness for English as ‘elah is for Hebrew, and besides, it makes a great rhyme for “Kipling” in the Take 6 a cappella song about David & Goliath!

QZThe only other place in the Bible this word is used is in 1 Sam 20:22, which is also in parallel with the word na’ar, so it must be a synonym for a servant boy/young man

RANASB, NIV = “killing,” ESV = “striking down” (the latter is the more literal translation of the Hebrew)

RBMy original chart includes the NASB and NIV, but their copyright restrictions have forced me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. I have included the ESV in footnotes when it employs a word not already used by the KJV, NASB, or NIV. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scrolls containing any part of 1 Samuel 18 are 4Q51 Samuela, which contains fragments of vs. 4-5, dated between 50-25 B.C., and 1Q7, which contains fragments of vs. 17-18, dated around 60A.D. Where the DSS consonants are legible and agree with the MT, I have colored the MT text purple. Where the DSS supports the LXX with omissions or text not in the MT, I have highlighted with yellow the LXX and its translation into English, and where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with {pointed brackets}.

RCvs. 1-6, 8-19, and 30 are not in Rahlf’s edition of the LXX or in the Vaticanus Greek manuscript which Brendon used for his English translation, but Brenton supplied a translation of the Alexandrinus in his appendix, which I have copied and marked with [square brackets]

RDTsumura = “attached,” K&D = “bound itself (lit. chained itself; cf. Gen 44:30)” see also Isa. 8:12, where it is translated “conspiracy”

REQere recommended adding a he between the last two letters of this word (וַיֶּאֱהָבֵהוּ) to make it more clear that this was not “they loved” but rather “he loved him” but this is not absolutely necessary. K&D suggested that the vav be translated causatively “because.”

RFNASB, NIV, ESV = “return,” which is closer to the literal meaning of the Hebrew verb

RGNASB, ESV = “armor,” NIV = “tunic” (The Hebrew word is plural, but apparently singular in Greek.)

RHNASB, NIV, ESV = “belt”

RINASB = “prospered,” NIV = “successfully” also in vs. 14 & 15

RJNASB = “pleasing,” NIV = “pleased,” ESV (which is the most literal) = “good”

RKM. Henry: “that is, he presided in the business of his country, civil as well as military”
K&D “i.e. he carried out military enterprises”

RLDSS adds w, and the Greek and Latin and English versions followed that rather than the MT which has no “and.” It doesn’t change the meaning, though.

RMNASB, NIV, ESV = “tambourines”

RNTargum & LXX = “cymbals,” Kimchi, Tsumura, McCarter, NIV = “lutes,” for others, see P below.

ROQere spells this לָשִׁיר (to make more clear that this isn’t related to the root שור which denoted “watch, dominate, surround, travel” instead of “sing”), although the MT isn’t necessarily a wrong spelling.

RPSeveral other Hebrew manuscripts put a vav (“and”) in front of this word, and so do many ancient versions (Greek, Syrias, Aramaic), and the NIV followed their tradition, although it transposed the order of “joy” and “tambourines.”

RQThis word is used nowhere else of a noisemaker in the OT. Most other instances refer to a third-rank army officer, and a couple refer to a large container. Percussion instruments such as the triangle (K&D, McClintock) or sistrum have been suggested, or some sort of strummed instrument with three strings or three frets or three corners (NIV). Gill thought it was “pipes or flutes, which they both blew with their mouths, and played on with their hands,” Ben Gersom = “principal songs”

RROther Greek versions render ai coreuousai (the chorus line dancers”) or paizousai (“playing/dancing”)

RSSymmachus added idia (“of his own”)

RT“Answered” is the literal translation of this Hebrew word, but the NASB, NIV, ESV = “sang,” Tsumura combined the two with “sang antiphonally”

RUNIV = “danced,” ESV = “celebrated,” Goldman, Tsumura = “made merry/merry-making”

RV“The women who ‘sported’ … i.e. performed mimic dances, sang in alternate choruses (‘answered,’ as in Ex. 15:21)” ~K&D

RWThe Qere suggests an additional letter be inserted between the last two letters of this word (בַּאֲלָפָיו) to make clear that this word is plural, but it is discernible as plural as it is. Tsumura had an interesting take on the suffix being an adverb indicator rather than a 3ms pronoun, which allowed the beth preposition to come through in translation, “Saul slew by thousands and David by ten thousands!”

RXNASB, NIV, ESV = “angry”

RYNIV = “credited,” Literally = “given”

RZQere (followed by several Hebrew manuscripts) suggested that a yod be inserted (עוֹיֵן) to make it more clear that this is the root for “eye” not the root for “iniquity.” cf. K&D “looking askance”

SANASB, NIV, ESV = “the next day”

SBTsumura = “spirit for evilness,” ESV = “harmful,” cf. 16:14

SCNASB = “came mightily,” NIV = “came forcefully,” ESV = “rushed”

SDNASB, ESV = “raved”

SENASB, NIV = “as usual,” ESV translated the most literally “as [he did] day by day”

SFIn ch. 17, the KJV translated this word “spear,” and “spear” is what the NASB, NIV, and ESV translated it here and in the next verse.

SGcf. 10:6-10 & 11:6 (previous instances of this verb referred to the Holy Spirit, not the evil spirit)

SHcf. 16:15-16

SIcf. 10:10, and 19:24, when Saul prophecied with the band of prophets

SJThe LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate all read as though there were originally a vav at the end of this word, denoting a 3ms pronoun. The NIV & ESV followed this tradition. It is not outside of the possible meaning of the definite article already prefixing this word, however, so it is not necessarily a change in the wording to render it “his” house instead of “the” house, nor would it change the narrative, seeing as it is speaking of Saul’s “house” either way.

SKThe contrast of what the two main characters had “in hand” is poetic.

SLWillett, NASB & NIV follow the Vulgate with “thinking,” but the Greek and Hebrew read, “said.”

SMNASB, NIV, ESV = “pin,” but this is the verb they translated “strike down” elsewhere. The KJV is more literal here.

SNK&D went with the literal interpretation of this word “and”

SONASB = “escaped,” NIV = “eluded,” ESV = “evaded,” AJV = “stepped aside” The variety in the versions is surprising.

SPThe Greek word is the standard one for “afraid,” so it seems odd that Brenton would have chosen a more specialized word in English.

SQNASB = “appointed,” NIV = “gave,” Literally = “put”

SRNASB, NIV, ESV = “commander”

SScf. A. episthmwn (“upstanding)

STKJV’s rendering is the most literal. NIV is “thingX he did,” ESV = “undertakings”

SUNASB, NIV, ESV and others translate this as a causal conjunction “for/because”

SVAquila and Symmachus used a synonym upestelleto (“withdrew”)

SWNASB = “prospering,” NIV, ESV = “success[ful]) same as vs.5 & 14

SXTsumura, NASB = “dreaded,” ESV and AJV were a bit more wordy with “stood in [fearful] awe” – it is the word for being a “camper” or a “tenant,” not having a secure place to live.

SYHere again the Vaticanus and Rahlf’s edition of the Septuagint have no text, but these verses do appear in the Alexandrinus Greek manuscript (and also in Theodotian’s version), and the translation in [brackets] is Brenton’s translation of the Alexandrine text from his appendix.

SZNASB, NIV, ESV = “Here is”

TANASB, NIV, ESV = “against”

TB“The term will give (impf.) is not a performative utterance (e.g., Gen. 15:18 <pf.> = “I (hereby) give,” which is usually in perfect; see on 17: 10). The Hebrew of if only you become… is an imperative clause…” ~David Tsumura, 2007 AD

TCAll the places where this Hebrew phrase ben chaiyl occur seem to indicate a task force, usually of soldiers: Deut. 3:18 (militia), Judges 18:2 (spies), 21:10 (militia), 1 Samuel 14:52 (draft), 2 Sam. 2:7, 13:28 (revolutionaries in a coup), 17:10, 1 Kings 1:52 (usurper), 2 Kings 2:16 (prophets), 1 Chronicles 5:18 (able to be in army), 8:40 (archers), 26:7-9 & 30-32, 26:17 (priests), 28:6 (soldiers).

TDThe Syriac supports this added conjunction, but it’s not in the Greek or Hebrew.

TE“Life” (plural) is the literal rendering of this word, but NIV = “family” and ESV = “relatives.”
Gill took it to mean “lifestyle” i.e. that of a shepherd, and Keil & Delitzsch agreed: “Gesenius (Thes. p. 471) and Böttcher give the meaning ‘people’ for חַיִּים, and Ewald (Gramm. §179, b.) the meaning ‘family.’ But neither of these meanings can be established. חַיִּים seems evidently to signify the condition in life...”
Goldman commented: “Better, as R.V. margin, ‘who are my kinsfolk,’ the Hebrew noun for life being identical with the Arabid chayy, denoting ‘a group of families united by blood-ties.’”

TFNIV, ESV = “clan”

TGThis word is translated "bridegroom" in Ex. 4:25, Isa. 62:5, Jer. 7:34 etc, and Joel 2:16, “father-in-law” in Ex. 18:5, and “son-in-law” in Judges 15:6, so it seems to denote “being related by marriage.” The verbal forms also bear this out, as Gen. 34:9 and Deut. 7:3 refer to both daughters and sons being given in marriage and therefore relating the two families. Willett translated “contract affinitie”

THNASB, ESV = “for,” NIV = “in marriage”

TIThe Syriac and several Hebrew manuscripts support the Greek with a (visually-similar) zayin instead of a daleth for the third letter (luyrzul). (There are multiple English letters which could have been chosen to represent the sound of the first Hebrew letter, so Brenton’s choice of the English letter “I” instead of “A” to transliterate the opening vowel does not actually reflect a lexical difference.) However, that spelling occurs nowhere else in the Bible, and it wouldn’t make meaningful sense, anyway (“upon is my help”). With the zayin substitution, one would expect an aleph instead of an ayin in the penultimate syllable (“God is my help”), which is a name mentioned twice among the chiefs of Manasseh and Zebulun in 1Ch 5:24 & 27:19. Tsumura suggested that Adriel could just be the Aramaic form of the Hebrew name Azriel. However, it being a proper name, the spelling is not terribly important, except to make identification of the person consistent. The only other place he is mentioned is 2 Samuel 21:8, where the LXX has the same variation in spelling as it does here. There, the additional information is given that Adriel was “the son of Barzillai.” There is a Barzillai mentioned in 2 Sam. 19:33, an 80-year-old man from Gilead who escorted David across the Jordan when he returned after Absolom’s coup. Later, this Barzillai married his daughters to some Levites and then adopted them as his sons, so they lost their priestly status in Ezra’s reconstruction genealogies (Ezra 2:61). But this Barzillai and Adriel were Mehulites, and the closest place name to that in the Bible is Abel-Mehula, which is on the opposite side of the Jordan River from Gilead, so this must be a different Barzillai, kept distinct as being from Mehula (that is, Abel-Mehula - Goldman) rather than the Barzillai from Gilead. This guy was nowhere near as significant to Biblical history as was David, and his five sons were hanged for violating a treaty.

TJThe LXX word has to do with “cheering up” whereas the MT word has more to do with “being right” Symmachus offered the translation hdu egeneto (“became pleasant”).

TKNASB = “was agreeable” (NIV omitted “the thing” following the ancient Greek and Latin manuscripts)

TLTwo Hebrew manuscripts omit “the thing,” as did the Greek, Latin, & NIV. This doesn’t change the sense of the verse, though. In v.26, David reaches agreement, and the Greek, Latin, and Hebrew manuscripts are agreed that “the thing” is present in the wording there.

TMcf. Aquila: numfeuseiV en emoi shmeron (“you shall be a bridegroom for me today”). Theodotian: epi taiV dusin epigambreuseiV moi (agreeing with the LXX in omitting “today”).

TNNASB, NIV, and ESV read “thought,” but “said” is the more central meaning of this Hebrew word; there is a different Hebrew word which would more directly denote “thought.”

TOThe Hebrew is literally “today,” NIV & ESV = “now,” NICOT = “this time”

TPNASB, NIV, ESV = “[a] second [time],” AJV = “through one of the twain”

TQ[B]y ‘two,’ is here meant the second, the cardinal number, taken for the ordinal: as 2 Ki. 15.32... Saul meaneth that by the twaine, that is, the second of his daughters” ~Andrew Willett (Gordon concurred, and Goldman seemed to agree). Gill: “by marrying one of his two daughters”
Keil & Delitzsch: “‘In a second way’ (בִּשְׁתַּיִם, as in Job 33:14)”
Tsumura (NICOT): “for the second time”

TRThe Hebrew word could be translated “wants” as the LXX did, or “is pleased” as Symmachus did (eudokei).

TSThe Hebrew word translated “now/therefore” (עתה) looks a lot like the Hebrew word for “you” (אתה).

TTThe Hebrew word is the standard one for “speak,” thus NASB, NIV, ESV.

TUNIV/ESV = “privately/in private”

TVThe ancient consonantal spelling of this word requires a singular interpretation (“his servant”), but the LXX (“all those belonging to him”) and Vulgate (servis suis) read plural, and the Masorites pointed the consonants with the vowels that would go with a plural, making a note that it should be edited by adding a yod before the last letter to spell it properly as a plural, as it is spelled later in the verse. At the beginning of the next verse, it is a plurality of servants who obey the command.

TWSymmachus chose a synonym (elafron) with a range of meaning closer to the Hebrew word.

TXcf. A.S. aporoV (“uncertain”), Q. penhV (“poor”), compared to the LXX which denotes “lowly” and the MT “poor”

TYA. eutelhV (“not well-ended”), S. atimoV (“dishonorable”)

TZDavid uses the same Hebrew word to describe himself and to describe what the servants thought of him marrying royalty, The KJV brings this over into English commendably, but most English translations use two different words: NASB = “trivial… lightly esteemed,” NIV = “small matter… little known," ESV = “little thing… no reputation” (The ESV followed the LXX rather than the MT in this.)

UAThe MT pointing (from manuscripts in the late 900’s AD) is for a Niphal participle; the Cairo Geniza manuscripts from the 800’s AD pointed it as a Niphal perfect (hl#q~nh), but that doesn’t really change the meaning. Such inconsequential vowel variants are typical in comparing the MT with the Cairo manuscripts.

UBNASB rendered more literally “according to these words,” NIV omitted the phrase, and the ESV rendered very paraphrastically “thus and so.”

UCNIV = “price for the bride,” ESV = “bride-price”

UDIn the first few centuries AD, translators included the final phrase in their versions: A.Q. kai ouk eplhrwqhsan ai hmerai (“and the days were not fulfilled”), S. kai mh dielqouswn (twn) hmerwn (“and the days had not gone by).

UEThis phrase is used of reaching term in pregnancy, fulfilling a vow by doing the action for the promised amount of time, reaching the end of one’s life, reaching the end of God’s mercy and being punished, but in two cases which seem most appropriate, it refers to preparation for marriage: Genesis 29:21 Then Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her." and Esther 2:12 “Each young woman's turn came to go in to King Ahasuerus after she had completed twelve months' preparation, according to the regulations for the women, for thus were the days of their preparation apportioned: six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with perfumes and preparations for beautifying women.” (NKJV)

UFMost other Greek translations read diakosiouV (“200”) conforming to the MT. If David slew 200, then he did slay 100. It’s curious that he doubled the dowry. In 2 Sam. 3:14, he says he bought her for 100, so perhaps the other hundred was technically not part of the dowry, since 100 was the agreement.

UGAquila and Theodotian filled in the words from the Hebrew which are missing in the LXX: kai eplhrwsen autaV (“and made fulfillment with them”)

UHThe other Greek versions supply the subject Saoul here, in conformance with the MT.

UIBrenton apparently forgot to translate the phrase “to the king,” which is in the Greek versions.

UJNKJV = “full count,” NASB = “full number,” NIV = “presented the full number,” but the ESV solved the problem of it being a plural verb by ignoring the MT active Piel pointing and interpreting it as passive Niphal “which were given in full number.” The original consonants (before the Masorite scribes added vowel pointings in the 800’s AD or so) could be interpreted Qal, Piel, or Niphal.

UKDavid’s name is not in any mss of the LXX or Vulgate, nor, as best I can tell, was it suggested by any later Greek versionist such as Aquila or Symmachus. NIV followed this tradition. This might suggest that it was added later for clarity by Hebrew editors, but the subject is the same whether stated or unstated, so this does not change the verse at all. Unfortunately there is no legible copy of this verse among the Dead Sea Scrolls for comparison.

ULThe word for “foreskin,” oddly enough, is feminine, but the pronominal object of this verb is masculine. Most commentators chose to ignore this difficulty. In the New International Commentary on the Old Testament, David Tsumura suggested that the masculine word “days” should instead be supplied by ellipsis from three sentences previous at the end of v.26, rendering it, “[the days] were fulfilled to the king to become the king’s son-in-law,” which works, but I think is an unlikely grammar construction considering the style of the author of 1 Samuel. Tsumura admitted that it would “not” be “impossible” for a masculine pronoun (“them”) in Hebrew to refer to a feminine antecedent (“foreskins”), which presents another possible solution to the difficulty, but I think there is a simpler solution which uses a nearer antecedent which matches in number and gender, and that is the phrase “men of the Philistines,” to which the previous pronoun also referred. Saul wasn’t as interested in the foreskins as he was interested in eradicating enemies. Each foreskin represented one man who had been killed (for each man has only one), so my solution to the difficulty is synecdoche: 200 men were presented before the king as dead by the presentation of 200 foreskins.

UMThe other Greek versions supply the second verb “and knew” (kai egnw), which is in the MT.

UNThe MT בת-שרול is only somewhat similar to what the LXX would have had to read (כל-ישראל) to get the translation it did. The Lucian rescension corrected closer to the MT with kai Melcol h qugathr autou (“and Melchol his daughter” – changing “Saul’s” to “his”). Another explanation could be that the phrase from v.16 was supplied by memory to the LXX scribe.

UOCairo Geniza manuscript reads pointed as a participle ([s)ay@w) instead of the MT Hiphil Imperfect, but that doesn’t really change anything. Some other Hebrew manuscripts removed the aleph to make clear that the root was not אסף (“gathering”) but יסף (“adding”) e.g. [swyw or [syw.

UPNASB, NIV = “commanders”

UQNASB, NIV, and ESV add the explanatory phrase “to battle,” but it is not in the Hebrew or Greek or Latin.

URNASB, NIV, and ESV = “as often as” - the Hebrew word has to do with periodicity

USNIV, ESV = “more success”

UTNASB & ESV = “highly esteemed,” NIV = “well known”

UUcf. this word in Psa 101:2a “I will behave wisely in a perfect way. Oh, when will You come to me?”
Some commentators make much of the Mosaic law that a man should not go to war in his first year of marriage, suggesting that the Philistines must have invaded during the first year of David’s marriage in order to take advantage of Israel while David was out-of-commission, but the Biblical account says nothing of this, and it is an assumption that the Philistines knew of this law, and it is an assumption that the invasions referred-to in this verse happened during David’s first year of marriage, and it is an assumption that David broke that law, which makes it a tenuous proposition.