Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 23 May 2021
READ PASSAGE: 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. Meanwhile, Saul drafted him on that day and did not give him [leave] to return to the house of his father. Jonathan also cut a covenant with David in his love for him as his own soul, 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. 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. 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. And the women sang antiphonally, laughing, and saying, “Saul struck down his thousands and David his tens-of-thousands!” And it was very inflammatory 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?!” So Saul started keeping an eye on David from that day and onward. 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, and Saul hurled his spear and said, “I will strike both David and the wall!” But David got away from his presence twice. Then Saul was afraid of David’s presence, because Yahweh was with him but had turned away from being with Saul. So Saul turned him away from being with him and positioned him for himself as a commander of a thousand. So David went out [on missions] and came [back] in the presence of the people, and he was prudent in execution in all his ways, for Yahweh was with him. When Saul saw that he was being so prudent in execution, then he became unsettled by his presence. Meanwhile, all Israel and Judah was loving David because he was going out [on missions] and coming [back] in their presence. (NAW)
Jonathan “had already ventured his life in the defense of God’s people,” (Willett) and when he saw the faith and courage which David showed in confronting Goliath, David won Jonathan’s immediate respect. (Jonathan had probably considered taking up Goliath's challenge himself!)
Aristotle, in his Ethics, observed that friendship requires:
First that both parties love each other (unrequited love is not a friendship),
and secondly that this mutual love be expressed between them (secret admiration is not a friendship),
then he adds that it must be altruistic: “to wish well unto a man, for his cause, not thine own”
Puritan commentator Andrew Willett added that “there is a further thing to be considered: that a friend is not to be loved for his own good, but propter deum, for God's cause.”
Such was the friendship of David and Jonathan:
both Jonathan and David respected and liked each other,
and they “professed this friendship by making a mutual league” or covenant…, and
Jonathan “yet favoured David… neglecting his own estate and the hope of the kingdome...” ~Willett
And such is the love commanded of us by Jesus and the apostles in the New Testament:
Matthew 22:37-40
And Jesus said... "'You shall love the Lord your God with your
whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole mind.'
This is the first and great commandment. And a second is similar to
it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' In these two
commandments is framed the whole law and the prophets.” (NAW)
Love God, and
love your neighbor as much as you love yourself.
1 Corinthians 13:1
If I make utterance in the languages of men – even of angels,
but I do not happen to have love, I have become noise-making brass
or a cymbal sounding off. 2 And if I have prophecy and happen to
know all the mysteries and every bit of knowledge, and if I have
every bit of faith – enough to change positions of mountains,
but I do not happen to have love, I am nothing. 3 And if I doled
out all my subsistence and if I delivered my body in order that I
might be burned up, but I do not happen to have love, I get not a
single advantage. 4 Love suffers long, Love practices kindness,
Love does not envy, It does not boast, It is not puffed up, 5 It is
not rude, It does not seek its own, It is not irritable, It does
not think the bad, 6 It does not rejoice upon unrighteousness, but
rejoices together in the truth, 7 It contains all things, It
believes all things, It hopes all things, It endures all things. 8
Love never falls down, even if prophecies will be put out of
commission, even if languages will cease, even if knowledge will be
put out of commission.” (NAW)
Love
is unselfish and kind,
so it can’t be jealous or think the worst.
James 2:8 “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’ you are doing well.” (ESV) How are you doing at that?
Verse 3 says that David and Jonathan “cut a covenant”
Covenants are what we might call “contracts” or “agreements” today; they are composed of words, but we have no words recorded here, so we don’t know what all the terms of this agreement were, but there was clearly friendship, brotherly-love (2 Sam. 1:26), loyalty, and trust communicated.
2 Samuel 9:1 suggests that part of their covenant was to “show kindness” to each other and to their descendants, and this is borne out in 2 Samuel 21:7, where it says, that David, “the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Saul's son Jonathan, because of the oath of the LORD that was between them, between David and Jonathan…” (ESV)
In other words, by formalizing their friendship into a covenant, they were thinking of the generations to come after they died, promising kindness to one another. Are you thinking that far ahead with your friendships?
Now, whereas Saul’s love of David meant he “took” David for himself, Jonathan’s love for David meant that he “gave” of himself to David!
In v.4, Jonathan gives his robe and armor to David
“[T]he exchange of armour … seems to have been a common custom in very ancient times…” ~Keil & Delitzsch
In the Bible, the transfer of a garment symbolized:
a change in the priesthood from Aaron to Eleazar in Numbers 20:24ff,
a succession of prophets from Elijah to Elisha in 1 Kings 19:19ff,
and the replacement of a civil magistrate from Shebna to Eliakim in Isaiah 22:21,
so Jonathan may have intended this as a symbol of giving up his succession to the throne, but this is not stated explicitly, and it was not legally formalized. (Tsumura)
On the other hand, it may have merely been that Jonathan saw David in his shepherd’s gear and decided to give him an outfit that would be more proper for being a retainer in a king’s court and a warrior in the king’s army (M. Henry, John Gill).
Nevertheless, to give his own princely clothes and armor to David meant trusting David with his own reputation. If David did anything wrong in his personal life or said anything disrespectful to Saul, everybody would immediately assume that Jonathan approved of it, so this meant extending huge amounts of trust to David.
And for David, when he walked around wearing the prince’s uniform, it meant he was the best-equipped soldier in the army (remember that, at the end of chapter 13, Jonathan and Saul were the only Israelites who owned swords), and wearing Jonathan’s gear would associate him in people’s eyes with Jonathan; some folks might even mistake him for Jonathan!
The attitude that Jonathan had toward David can only be explained by a genuine trust in God.
He had to have wanted God’s will to be done, and he had to have believed that God wanted to exalt David.
He had to believe that the Messiah would come from David and would not be a descendant of his own.
He had to trust that God was with David and was not with his Dad. He had to believe that with all his heart and choose to support God and God’s revealed will at the expense of his own comfort and security and power.
I can’t help but be reminded of John the Baptizer, who found himself in a similar position with his cousin Jesus. In the Gospel of John, chapter 3, John’s disciples said, “Rabbi, you were the lead teacher, and that Jesus fellow was just along for the ride. You were THE Baptizer, but now He has entered into competition with you, and what’s worse, everybody is leaving you and going over to Him!” John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven… (Whatever notoriety I had, I didn’t earn, it just was a gift from God, and He is under no obligation to give me more.) I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him. (It’s not my place to seek glory; God is the one who should be glorified and we should just point people to Him! I’m not the star of this show!) The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. (I’m actually happy that my cousin is getting all the attention!) He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:28-30, ESV) I must decrease.
Jesus, in turn did a similar thing
Philippians 2 tells us that He stripped Himself down to be crucified for us,
and 2 Corinthians 8:9 says, “...you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”
There’s another important point about this friendship that Keil & Delitzsch noted in their commentary on this passage, namely that, without the friendship and encouragement of Jonathan, David might not have been quite as mighty a man of God. Jonathan’s friendship “not only helped David to bear the more easily all the enmity and persecution of the king when plagued by his evil spirit, but awakened and strengthened in his soul that pure feeling of unswerving fidelity towards the king himself, which amounted even to love of his enemy, and according to the marvellous counsel of the Lord, contributed greatly to the training of David for his calling to be a king after God’s own heart.” You never know what God might use your friendship to do in the lives of others and in His big scheme of things!
Love prioritizes God’s will over our advancement, implicitly trusting that what God wants is what we should get behind and support with our lives.
But Jonathan’s father did not grasp this. Saul’s response to God’s favor upon David was the polar opposite.
Vs. 5, 13, and 15 mention David “going out” on errands and missions for Saul, leading other men from the army, and then “coming” back home successful from each venture with those same men from the army, and it says that everybody who worked with David liked him.
Humble men are easy to get along with.
We saw at the close of chapter 17 that Saul was initially pleased to welcome David the giant-slayer into his court, but Saul’s thinking changed over time, and he got to the point where he wanted to kill David.
This chapter and the previous one don’t seem to be in strict chronological order, because it presents Saul’s favorable and unfavorable attitudes sometimes side-by-side, and in places, “the consequences which reached further than the facts that gave rise to them… are appended immediately to the facts themselves” (K&D), but the development of Saul’s animosity is clear.
At some point1, perhaps days - or even weeks - after David’s victory over Goliath, after the battle had been all mopped up, and the dead buried, and the wounded tended-to, and the camp packed up, and an army victory parade organized back to the palace in Gibeah, Saul heard a song that began to bother him.
It was sung by all the wives of the soldiers who were relieved to see their husbands returning in one piece. They danced in circles to the rhythm of percussion instruments, singing back-and-forth an antiphonal chorus about how their national heroes had struck down their enemies, “Saul slew by thousands, and David by the myriads.” (Tsumura)
What bothered Saul about this song was - not so much the truth of it as - that he felt he was being compared unfavorably with David, and he was too proud (or insecure) to handle it.
Matthew Henry commented, “Proud men cannot endure to hear any praised but themselves, and think all their honour lost that goes [to another]. It is a sign that the Spirit of God has departed from men if they be peevish in their resentment of affronts, envious and suspicious of all about them, and ill-natured in their conduct; for the wisdom from above makes us quite otherwise.”
David had risen in the eyes of Israel to be the second-most-popular, and there was only one step higher possible for him, and that was to become king. As Saul lamented that there was nothing left but the kingship for David, he must have come the realization that David must be the “neighbor” who was “better” than him that Samuel had prophecied in ch. 15 would replace him as king. (Tsumura) As a result, Saul’s sense of job security evaporated.
But he trained his “eye on David” rather than on God, continuing to compare himself to another man and believing that he was worth something only as long as he performed better than that other man.
He probably remembered that the people had supported his kingship because he was bigger and taller than everybody else, so he felt that he had to continue being better than everybody else in order to keep his status.
He did not seek after God, and so he could not rest in God’s love for him, and that landed him in an endless and futile competition with other men to prove his self-worth. No wonder he felt so threatened by David!
And the realization that he could not compete with David caused him to spiral downward into self-pity rather than repent and align himself with God’s will.
Notice what happened within a day of Saul thinking like this: the evil spirit came back! Self pity opened the door for the devil to wreak even more havoc in Saul!
And self pity can quickly do the same to you, so watch out for this dangerous trend in your own heart!
Jealousy and anger open opportunities for Satan to control you, so following the admonition of Ephesians 4:26-27 “...do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.” (ESV)
One of the things that evil spirits do - even today - is to plant false ideas in our minds2. When we do not recognize the falsehood of these thoughts, when we accept them instead of “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5, KJV), these thoughts become building blocks for more false thinking (especially assumptions about other people which are not true). These ideas and assumptions then foster resentment, bitterness, and hatred, often for no good reason at all.
Saul believed that David would not respect him as king; he believed that David was secretly plotting to overthrow him,
perhaps because Saul was projecting onto David what he himself would have done,
or perhaps the evil spirit had put those thoughts into his mind and he had not challenged them as false.
But if Saul had bothered to get to know David and understand David’s thinking, he would have seen that he had a faithful subject in David who would never dream of usurping Saul’s authority as king.
Please, husbands and wives, make time to talk about what’s on your hearts, and refuse to accept unproven suspicions about one another!
Parents and children, be sure to draw close and share what’s on your minds; don’t believe every intruding thought you think about each other!
Brothers and sisters and friends, guard your hearts from entertaining thoughts of one another that have not been tested by God’s word and words of love.
“Divide and conquer” is one of the enemy’s best strategies, and it works with relentless consistency, twisting people’s thoughts until we hate the very ones who are our best allies.
I think that this, by the way, explains the statement in v.10 about Saul “prophesying” or “raving,” or, as I translated it, “spoke unnaturally.”
In the Bible, true prophecy is a “speaking forth” of the words of God, whether by immediate inspiration or by quoting already-existing Scriptures.
False prophets spoke from the inspiration of evil spirits, such as the “lying spirit” which inspired the false prophets of Micaiah’s day (1 Kings 22),
whether from the incipient thoughts planted in their minds which resulted in them believing lies and making false accusations and threats,
or perhaps even directly, as we see occasionally in the gospels when Jesus and the apostles carried on brief conversations with unclean spirits who spoke through the mouths of men and women they possessed.
This tends to agree with most Bible commentators who explained Saul’s prophecy as “madness”3
Consider your own feelings of jealousy or envy:
What triggers these feelings in you? Take the time to identify them precisely, because this will define the mental battleground for you.
The things you value which are threatened by the actions of other people are either
idols that you need to destroy in your life,
or they are areas where you don’t trust God and where you need to grow in faith.
When that co-worker always gets the awards and promotions and recognition (or, in my world, when I compare myself to preachers who are vastly more popular), if we idolize human affirmation, we will become envious and bitter and angry,
because we are valuing the wrong thing,
we are sinning by coveting what God has not given us,
we are loving human attention more than we love God.
Or, perhaps we can handle someone else getting the affirmation, but we are frightened by the practical results:
Without raises or recognition for my work, I might loose my job and not be able to support my family.
Or, without the full attention of that guy or gal, you might have to face another lonely night and miss the chance of finding true love, and so fear and resentment and despair can set in.
The antidote is faith in God, truly believing that He will not allow us to perish, that He is our good shepherd, that He will provide our daily bread and satisfy us with His goodness as we submit to Him and do His will.
When someone else’s relationship with a person we love threatens to diminish our relationship with that person we love, maybe by using up their relational time so there is less time for me, or maybe that person you love is giving to another person deeper signs of relationship than they are giving you, that dysfunctional jealous thinking can kick in.
I’ve struggled in the past with how my children take away from my relationship with my wife,
and many wives struggle with how work or ministry takes away from their relationship with their husband.
I’ve also seen brothers and sisters struggle with feelings of loss when a sibling moves out of the house or gets married.
We need to take our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ, destroy idols and fortify faith.
Is my desire for that person’s attention inordinate?
Is it seeking to control them towards my purposes rather than loving what is best for them?
Does it interfere with my love for God?
Am I coveting something God has not seen fitting to give me?
Am I trusting God to comfort me and fulfill my personal relational needs? Can I trust Him to do that?
The vocabulary chosen by the author of 1 Samuel shows a progression in Saul’s thinking
from being “afraid” of David in v.12
to being “in awe/dread/unsettled” around him in v.15,
to being “yet more afraid” in v.29,
and finally in giving the orders for his assassination at the beginning of the next chapter. (Goldman)
The contrast in v.10 between what was “in the hands” of our main characters is interesting:
Unfortunately the ESV followed the NIV in omitting the first occurrence in v.10 of the word “hand” in the Greek and Hebrew text, where it refers to David strumming on his harp/guitar,
but all the English versions mention the “hand” of Saul fondling a spear.
The spear seems to have been Saul’s symbol of rule that he carried with him at all times, much as other kings carried a scepter.
But it is the Psalms of David’s that have won the hearts of God’s people for the last three thousand years and more.
At any rate, David had to duck or “get away” from Saul’s spear-tip on more than one occasion, but his loyalty was such that he didn’t fight back, and he didn’t stop serving Saul.4
But after that attempt on David’s life, Saul’s apprehensions must have increased all the more, because now he surely imagined David would take revenge and attempt an assassination of his own upon Saul – a completely-unfounded fear, but one which would have seemed reasonable in Saul’s state of mind. (Gill)
Saul apparently had lucid moments when he realized that murdering David could be political suicide for himself, so he took the step of making David an army captain.
I think we can infer that it was mostly to remove David from personal interaction with him. It would get David out of the palace so Saul wouldn’t have to see and hear David every day, and it would put Abner between him and David in all matters of business, for Abner was the army general, and David would now be under Abner.5
Furthermore, it would be a good political move, because it would appear to honor David for what he was good at. (And it probably made David happier too.)
Plus, as we’ll see later in the chapter, Saul wanted to expose David to greater risk of death in hopes that he would be killed (a lesson David unfortunately learned and tried on Uriah later on, but that’s another story).
In the summary verses that close our passage in verses 15-16, we see that Jonathan and all Israel loved David for his success, but Saul dreaded David’s success. Two opposite responses to the same situation: love based on unselfish trust in God, and fear based on selfish pride.
Saul did not want to get right with God, and since David was right with God, Saul didn’t want to be around David either.
When you look at your life, are there people you avoid because you don’t want to get right with God?
Are there people you are quick to think the worst of, whose motives you constantly question, whose successes make you look bad by comparison?
Can you discern what it is that makes you feel threatened by them and repent of that idolatry and turn your eyes upon Jesus with renewed trust in Him?
On the other hand, do you have friendships like the one between Jonathan and David?
Rabbi Goldman in his Soncino commentary on 1 Samuel eulogized: “There is not in the Bible a human relationship more beautiful than the love of Jonathan for David, and no character more noble in his selflessness and disinterestedness. David requited his love in full measure, but his love for Jonathan did not have to contend with the strains and conflicts which tested and proved Jonathan’s love – the clash of loyalties to father and friend, the willing surrender of royal station, the unenvying recognition of the greater brilliance and popularity of the friend who was to stand in his place. By all the rules of human nature, Jonathan should have envied and hated David even more than did Saul; yet he loved him more than he loved himself.”
Will you follow Jonathan’s example and
love others as much as you love yourself,
express your friendship covenantally, giving thought to its longevity and even to successive generations,
will you give of yourself generously to your friends
and rejoice in their successes, trusting God to take care of you and trusting that His will is best?
May God bless you all with such friendships in marriage, across generations of your family, and within the church!
Septuagint |
Brenton |
DRB |
KJV |
NAW |
MT |
[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 נִקְשְׁרָהC בְּנֶפֶשׁ דָּוִד וַיֶּאֱהָבוֹD 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 Eno [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: |
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[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 garmentsF, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdleG. |
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: |
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[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 wiselyH: and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was acceptedI 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 וַיֵּצֵאJ דָוִד בְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁלָחֶנּוּ שָׁאוּל Kיַשְׂכִּיל 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
|
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 |
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 tabretsL, with joy, and with instruments of musickM. |
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 לָשׁוֹרN וְהַמְּחֹלוֹת לִקְרַאת שָׁאוּל הַמֶּלֶךְ בְּתֻפִּים בְּשִׂמְחָהO וּבְשָׁלִשִׁיםP: |
7 καὶ ἐξῆρχον αἱ γυναῖκες XQ καὶ ἔλεγον Ἐπάταξεν Σαουλ ἐν χιλιάσιν αὐτοῦ καὶ Δαυιδ ἐν μυριάσινR αὐτοῦ. |
7
And the women began
[ |
7 And the women sung as they played, and they said: Saul slew his thousands, and David his ten thousands. |
7 And the women answeredS one another as they playedT, 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 הַמְשַׂחֲקוֹתU וַתֹּאמַרְןָ הִכָּה שָׁאוּל בַּאֱלְפוֹV 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 wrothW, and the saying displeased X X X him; and he said, They have ascribedX 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 עָוֶןY 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 |
10
And it came to pass on the morrowZ,
that the evilAA
spirit from God cameAB
upon Saul, and he prophesiedAC
in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at
|
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 וַתִּצְלַחAF רוּחַ אֱלֹהִים רָעָהAG אֶל-שָׁאוּל וַיִּתְנַבֵּאAH בְתוֹךְ- הַבַּיִתAI וְדָוִד מְנַגֵּן בְּיָדוֹ כְּיוֹם בְּיוֹם וְהַחֲנִית בְּיַדAJ-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
|
11 And Saul cast the javelin; for he saidAK, I will smiteAL David even toAM the wall with it. And David avoidedAN 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 alarmedAO 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 madeAP him his captainAQ 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 a commander of a thousand. 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 συνίωνAR, 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 waysAS; andAT 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 εὐλαβεῖτοAU 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 wiselyAV, X he was afraidAW 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 |
1Gill alone, out of the many commentators I read, placed this event after some later battle and not after the battle described in chapter 17.
2I recommend Jim Logan’s book, Reclaiming Surrendered Ground on this topic.
3Viz. 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.
4“[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
5“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
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. The only known Dead Sea
Scroll containing 1 Samuel 18 is 4Q51Samuela, which
contains fragments of vs. 4 & 5 (highlighted in purple), and
which has been dated between 50-25 B.C. 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}.
Bvs. 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]
CTsumura = “attached,” K&D = “bound itself (lit. chained itself; cf. Gen 44:30)” see also Isa. 8:12, where it is translated “conspiracy”
DQere 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.”
ENASB, NIV, ESV = “return,” which is closer to the literal meaning of the Hebrew verb
FNASB, ESV = “armor,” NIV = “tunic” (The Hebrew word is plural, but apparently singular in Greek.)
GNASB, NIV, ESV = “belt”
HNASB
= “prospered,” NIV = “successfully”
also in vs. 14 & 15
INASB = “pleasing,” NIV = “pleased,” ESV (which is the most literal) = “good”
JM.
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”
KDSS 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.
LNASB, NIV, ESV = “tambourines”
MTargum & LXX = “cymbals,” Kimchi, Tsumura, McCarter, NIV = “lutes,” for others, see P below.
NQere 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.
OSeveral 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.”
PThis 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”
QOther Greek versions render ai coreuousai (“the chorus line dancers”) or paizousai (“playing/dancing”)
RSymmachus added idia (“of his own”)
S“Answered” is the literal translation of this Hebrew word, but the NASB, NIV, ESV = “sang,” Tsumura combined the two with “sang antiphonally”
TNIV = “danced,” ESV = “celebrated,” Goldman, Tsumura = “made merry/merry-making”
U“The women who ‘sported’ … i.e. performed mimic dances, sang in alternate choruses (‘answered,’ as in Ex. 15:21)” ~K&D
VThe 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!”
WNASB, NIV, ESV = “angry”
XNIV = “credited,” Literally = “given”
YQere (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”
ZNASB, NIV, ESV = “the next day”
AATsumura = “spirit for evilness,” ESV = “harmful,” cf. 16:14
ABNASB = “came mightily,” NIV = “came forcefully,” ESV = “rushed”
ACNASB, ESV = “raved”
ADNASB, NIV = “as usual,” ESV translated the most literally “as [he did] day by day”
AEIn 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.
AFcf. 10:6-10 & 11:6 (previous instances of this verb referred to the Holy Spirit, not the evil spirit)
AGcf. 16:15-16
AHcf. 10:10, and 19:24, when Saul prophecied with the band of prophets
AIThe 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.
AJThe contrast of what the two main characters had “in hand” is poetic.
AKWillett, NASB & NIV follow the Vulgate with “thinking,” but the Greek and Hebrew read, “said.”
ALNASB, NIV, ESV = “pin,” but this is the verb they translated “strike down” elsewhere. The KJV is more literal here.
AMK&D went with the literal interpretation of this word “and”
ANNASB = “escaped,” NIV = “eluded,” ESV = “evaded,” AJV = “stepped aside” The variety in the versions is surprising.
AOThe Greek word is the standard one for “afraid,” so it seems odd that Brenton would have chosen a more specialized word in English.
APNASB = “appointed,” NIV = “gave,” Literally = “put”
AQNASB, NIV, ESV = “commander”
ARcf. A. episthmwn (“upstanding”)
ASKJV’s
rendering is the most literal. NIV is “thingX he did,”
ESV = “undertakings”
ATNASB, NIV, ESV and others translate this as a causal conjunction “for/because”
AUAquila and Symmachus used a synonym upestelleto (“withdrew”)
AVNASB = “prospering,” NIV, ESV = “success[ful]) same as vs.5 & 14
AWTsumura, 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.