Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 7 Nov. 2021
Read my translation of the Passage: Meanwhile the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from the Philistine front and fell wounded upon Mount Gilboa. Presently, the Philistines engaged Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan and Abinidab and Melki-shua, Saul’s sons. Then while the fighting was heavy {upon} Saul, the men shooting with the bow found their mark on him, and he was severely wounded by the shooters. So Saul said to the guy who carried his gear, “Draw your sword and stab me with it; otherwise these uncircumcised men will come and stab and terrorize me.” But the guy who carried his gear would not, for he was too afraid. So Saul took his sword and fell upon it. And when the guy who carried his gear saw that Saul was dead, he also fell himself upon his sword and died with him. And so Saul died, along with three of his sons and the guy who carried his gear and all his bodyguards together on that day. Now, when the men of Israel who were across the valley and who were across the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned {their} cities and fled. Then the Philistines came and took up residence in them. Then it happened on the next day, when the Philistines came to strip down their victims, that they found Saul and three of his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. So they cut off his head and stripped off his weapons, and they sent around the circuit of the land of the Philistines to herald the news {before} their idols and their people. And they put his weapons in the temple of Astaroth, and they impaled his body on the wall of Beth Shan. Now, when the residents of Jabesh Gilead heard {} what the Philistines had done to Saul, all the militia men got up and walked all night and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan, and they came to Jabesh and burnt them there. Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk-tree in Jabesh, and they fasted seven days.
Thus ends the book of 1 Samuel,
partly because that’s all the text that the Septuagint translators could fit on a scroll, so they had to start another scroll to finish the account of the political transition from Judges to Kings, so it became a tradition to divide Samuel into two books.1
Another reason why the division is made here, is that 1 Samuel covers the life and times of King Saul and appropriately ends with his death, leaving 2 Samuel to focus on the high point of David’s kingship.
I plan to preach through at least the first part of 2 Samuel, so I’ll save David’s eulogy over Saul for another sermon, since that is the opening chapter of 2 Samuel, but for now, I want to focus on the themes of the justice of God’s judgment and the sanctity of life from this account of King Saul’s death in 1 Samuel 31. First let’s dive deeper into the text of the story.
While David is trying to rescue his family from the Amalekites down south, Saul is fighting for his life up in the north.
A large army of Philistines had camped in the Jezreel Valley, so Saul had brought his army to Mt. Gilboa on the southeast side of the valley. From here he had crossed the Jezreel valley by night to see the witch at Endor. The next morning, he brought his troops down the mountain into the valley to engage the Philistine army.
But they were no match for the Philistines, so the Israelite soldiers ended up running away from the battle,
many of them fled south with King Saul back up Mt. Gilboa, while the Philistines chased them and killed them.
Verse 7 seems to indicate that others of the Israelites, perhaps seeing that the Philistines were mostly chasing after Saul’s division up Mt. Gilboa, thought it would be safer to flee the opposite direction, so they fled out across the Jezreel valley North into Galilee as well as East toward the Jordan River.
Mt. Gilboa commanded a view north across the Jezreel valley toward the northern tribes of Israel as well as a view East across the Jordan valley to the transjordan tribes of Israel. Those tribes may or may not have participated in this war, but they could probably see a war going on and would have taken note of the Israelite soldiers running pell-mell in their direction to get away from the Philistines who were chasing them. These folks “across” the Jezreel valley and the Jordan valley were probably on the near side of those valleys relative to Mt. Gilboa, not the far sides of those valleys2, and they quickly evacuated their cities as they saw the Philistines coming, leaving the Philistines to take over those cities.
Cities on the opposite side of the Jordan River, such as Jabesh Gilead and Mahanaim (where Ishbosheth was crowned king) were far enough away that they weren’t threatened.
This phrase in v.6 “Saul… and all his men died” doesn’t mean that all the soldiers in the entire Israelite army died.
The book of 2 Samuel makes it obvious that there were Israelite soldiers who survived the battle.
In the Bible, often the word “all” is not intended to be interpreted universally but rather it has a limited meaning defined by its context.
In this case, we have a parallel account of the same battle in 1 Chronicles 10, which is almost word-for-word the same as 1 Samuel 31. And in the place where 1 Samuel 31 says “and all his men,” 1 Chron. 10, instead says “and all his house.” This narrows down the meaning of “Saul’s men” to his domestic servants or bodyguards or extended family who lived in his house. These all died, leaving everyone closely associated with Saul destitute.
Fleeing before their enemies was one of the covenantal curses in Lev. 26:15-17, where God said, “If you despise my statutes, and if your souls disdain my judgments, failing to do any of my commands such that y'all break my covenant... I will set my face regarding y'all, and y'all will be struck down before the faces of your enemies, and those who hate y'all will tyrannize you; y'all will flee...” (NAW) This was part of God’s judgment.
For the first time in Saul's life, he was losing badly in a battle. Saul was badly wounded3 from arrows that had been shot at him, and he watched the Philistines kill all three of his sons that he had brought into battle with him.
Now, this was only half of Saul’s sons. Saul had six sons, three by his wife Ahinoam, and three by his concubine Rizpah.
Jonathan and Malki shua, who died in this battle were two of the three sons Saul had with his wife Ahinoam.
The third son was Ishvi4, also known as Ishbosheth or Eshbaal, and he survived to claim his father’s throne.
Abinidab, who also died in this battle, was the son of Saul’s concubine Rizpah, and she had borne him two other sons (whom David put to death later).
Did these sons die merely as punishment to Saul for Saul’s sin? No.
Puritan commentator Andrew Willett answered this question well when he wrote that they were “not bearing his punishment, or suffering for their father’s sin: they had sins of their own, which God's judgments might work upon, which it pleased God should concur with the punishment of their father.”
A hundred years later, Matthew Henry wrote that “those who had followed [Saul] and served him in his sin went before him in his fall and shared with him in his plagues.”
In his dire straits, Saul felt it would be more honorable to be killed by a fellow Israelite than by the Philistines, so like the Judge Abimelek before him (Judges 9:54), Saul asked his armor-bearer to finish him off.
The fact that his armor-bearer’s sword is in its sheath – and would have to be “drawn” first – indicates that they had quit trying to fight and were just focused on fleeing.
There is a Jewish tradition5 that this companion was none other than Doeg the Edomite who had killed the priests at Nob.
Here is a case where it was right for a subordinate to disobey his authority. King Saul told his armor-bearer to kill him, but that would violate God’s law which commands us, “Do not murder.” So he disobeyed his king in order to obey God. He would not kill Saul. “Let the Philistines kill God’s anointed and take the consequences of God’s justice; I dare not risk the consequences of disobeying God!”
Life is a gift from God and life is never to be taken without God's sanction. And the only time God says a life can be taken, is when the due process of a civil justice system has reached the conclusion that a death sentence is the just punishment for crimes worthy of death6. No individual is authorized to decide that for himself. So the armor-bearer did the right thing, but,
When the armor-bearer denied Saul’s request, Saul decided to commit suicide in order to avoid being found alive by the Philistines.
I believe 1 Samuel 31 gives us the true account of what happened, and that the account given by the Amalekite later in 2 Samuel was a fabrication7.
Saul said that he feared the ridicule and torture the Philistines would mete out to him if they found him alive, but not even that was a legitimate reason for self-murder.
Killing yourself is not a legitimate reason to avoid being made fun of!
Read the stories of Christian martyrs. Those valiant Christian witnesses didn't kill themselves when they knew that torture and death were imminent. They faced their enemies and testified of God’s glory while their enemies killed them. That is true valiance.
Stories from Foxe’s Book of Martyrs as well as the stories of the great reformers,
as well as those of more recent Christians who bravely faced death and survived, like Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand (in theaters right now), Corrie Ten Boom (in Nazi Germany), Brother Yun (in Communist China), and Negussie Selassie (in Marxist Ethiopia) can inspire us not to be afraid of persecution!
And often God delivered His people from their enemies at the last minute.
Think about how different the story of the prophet Daniel would have been if he had killed himself the night they threw him into the lion’s den. What kind of testimony would that have been to the Babylonians? What kind of influence could Daniel have been then? You may think the worst is going to happen, but you don’t know that.
As it turns out, Saul wasn’t even discovered by the Philistines until the next morning, so perhaps he might have escaped with his bodyguard if he had driven the thought of suicide from his mind.
In fact, somebody who was with them at the time did escape to became the information source for this story, because there are details like the conversation between Saul and his armor-bearer that only an eyewitness could have known!
Furthermore, it was a tradition to spare the life of a king in battle, just as Saul himself had spared King Agag (following tradition instead of God’s instruction). The Philistines had spared the lives of David and of Sampson, so Saul had no reason to believe he would be killed by the Philistines.
If Saul had, even at this late date, obeyed God, he might have proved the witch’s diabolical prophecy false, but he instead welcomed the despair of expecting imminent death, and he killed himself to make it come true, even though death wasn’t his only option.
“He that thinks to save his honour by sin will certainly lose it.” ~M. Henry
Also note that Saul’s action influenced his armorbearer to follow his example.
Leaders, whether you are the leader of a church, or a leader in civil government, or a leader of a household, think carefully about the example you set for your followers! Make sure that what you do, is what you want your followers to imitate!
The horror of realizing that some children or other vulnerable members of our community – not just might but – actually will commit suicide because their leader sets that before them as an example, should stop us in our tracks any time the idea of suicide suggests itself to us as a solution! That thought must be taken captive to the obedience of Christ; it must not be entertained but rejected and replaced with the prayer of the Psalmist: “I am yours, Lord, save me!”
What example are you setting for others to follow about how to deal with problems in your life? I guarantee somebody is watching and thinking of imitating you.
Suicide is a sin because it is a violation of God’s will expressed in the 10 Commandments, “Thou shalt not murder.” So, to all his other sins against God, Saul added the murder of himself and the influence upon his armorbearer to do the same. There was nothing heroic about this; he ended his life refusing to call upon God for salvation and adding more sin to his account. For these reasons, I don’t think we will see Saul in heaven8.
Andrew Willett commented on this, “by the whole course of the historie, by Saul's willful transgressions, his disobedience to the Prophet in not staying his coming, falsifying of the Lord’s word in sparing of Agag the king of Amalek: in putting to death the innocent Priests: in persecuting David, and breaking his oath and faith there given unto him, in consulting with a witch, and lastly in his desperate end, it is evident, that more arguments may be gathered of Saul's condemnation, than of his salvation.”
What about you, could more arguments be gathered of your condemnation than of your salvation?
The Roman Catholic church has taught that suicide is the unpardonable sin because you can’t confess it as a sin and show contrition after your death, but that is based on a false premise of how we are forgiven.
We are not forgiven on the basis or our confession and contrition;
we are forgiven by Jesus praying for us to be forgiven on the basis of His death on the cross paying the penalty for our sin.
I’ve known of multiple men who killed themselves after it was discovered that they had committed shameful sins. This unwillingness to face the shame of sin is also a false way of thinking about sin.
All of us have done things we’re ashamed of, and the only way to deal with that is by placing that shame by faith upon Jesus who was crucified to bear our shame in order that we might live free of guilt and shame before God.
Sure we will have to endure certain natural consequences for our sins in our earthly lives and human relationships but if we are Christ’s, those earthly things don’t define us any more, so we can deal with other people’s disgust and hate toward us as long as we know that God absolutely loves us, and the shame and disgust will go away with time, like the Apostle Paul said, “and such were some of you.”
At some point during the night, the Amalekite whose story we read in 2 Samuel, must have come across Saul’s body and stolen his crown and bracelet.
Then the next morning, the Philistines went to search the dead bodies of the Israelite soldiers for valuables, and discovered Saul and his sons dead up on Mt. Gilboa, so they cut off Saul’s head9 and displayed the bodies on the wall of the nearby town of Beth Shan, and displayed the armor/weapons in the temple of their goddess Ashtoreth/Astarte (possibly a goddess of war whom they thought would appreciate the swords) – and 1 Chronicles 10 adds that they also displayed Saul’s head in the temple of their god Dagon.
It is unclear from the Biblical accounts whether the temples of Astoreth and of Dagon were the same place or two different places, and whether they were in Beth Shan or back in the major Philistine coastal cities. Different commentators have different opinions on how it all shook out10,
but archaeologists have discovered two temples in the 11th century level of Beth Shan, one for a god and one for a goddess, so I think it was all in Beth Shan and that it was not body parts but messengers that were immediately dispatched to spread the news back in Gath and Ashdod and Ekron and all.
Remember back in chapter 5, when the Philistines had captured the ark of the covenant back in chapter 5, they took it on a tour “around” the five Philistine city states, displaying it in each of their temples. (That ark tour, of course, was interrupted halfway through its circuit of the Philistine cities!) But the wording is similar here, and it appears to have been the intent of the Philistines to do the same sort of tour with the body of their nemesis Saul, and the first stop on the tour was Beth Shan, right there in the Jezreel valley where they had fought the battle.
Judges 1:27 informs us that Beth Shan was one of the Canaanite towns allotted to the tribe of Manasseh, but the tribe of Manasseh never conquered it.
Its location was strategic as a stop along a major north-south highway through the Middle-east, and it was also a very fertile valley for farming, so it was prime real estate.
Being so close to the battle, it is entirely possible that whoever11 was living there evacuated Beth Shan (along with the Israelites that evacuated other cities across the valley) and that this was one of the towns immediately occupied by the victorious Philistines.
The Philistines put Saul's armor on display in one of their idolatrous temples and displayed Saul's dead, naked body on a city wall along with his three sons.
The news of this probably reached Jabesh Gilead on the other side of the Jordan River from Mt. Gilboa as Israelite soldiers fled there that evening for safety.
Remember, Jabesh Gilead was the city that Saul had delivered from the Ammonites back in chapter 11. Nahash, the king of the Amorites, had threatened to gouge out the right eye of every man in Jabesh, so every man in that town owed their very eyesight to Saul’s rescue. So they naturally wanted to do something to honor their hero Saul.
Every able-bodied man immediately got up and marched all night the 20-mile round trip12 to Beth Shan to grab the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall near the city gate and carry them back to Jabesh Gilead for a more respectful burial.
It seems odd that they would have cremated the bodies in Jabesh, since, in the Levitical law, burning a body was part of the judgment against particularly egregious sex-crimes (Lev. 20:14; 21:9). In my search for an explanation, I found multiple theories among commentators, but I like the theory found in the Targums and in Matthew Henry’s commentary the best, which cross-referenced the burial of King Asa in 2 Chronicles 16:14 “They buried him in his own tomb... in the bed which was filled with spices and various ingredients prepared in a mixture of ointments. They made a very great burning for him.” In other words, says Matthew Henry, “they burnt spices over them… thus … they... sweetened them… from [the smell of] putrefaction”13.
Then they buried the bones under a tamarisk tree.
Perhaps it was because Saul liked to sit under trees when he was alive (22:6).
Perhaps the tree served as a ready-made gravestone or monument to mark the place of burial (Henry),
Perhaps the Jews buried their dead under trees to remind themselves that just as the tree came to life every spring, so the dead will also be resurrected. (Gill)
Fasting was another thing Saul did a lot, and the men of Jabesh Gilead fasted for a week to mourn his death, that being a common custom of the time.14 Mourning the loss of a life is entirely appropriate.15
Saul was a brave defender of the Israelite nation in battle; he renewed the Jewish people’s resolve to drive out the Canaanites that God had commanded them to remove from the promised Land. And Saul had the remarkable leadership ability to unite the 12 fiercely independent tribes of Israel as its first king and hold that position for 40 years (Acts 13:21). These aspects of his life were worthy of mourning the loss of his life.
Stepping back out of the story, let’s look at some applications to the two grand themes of the Sanctity of Life and the Justice of God:
Sanctity of Life
All life is sacred, not because life itself is ultimate, but because God created life and told us to treat it as sacred. Therefore, when someone dies, there is something worth mourning over, even in the death of unrighteous men16.
Life should be preserved in honor of the God who created life, therefore, as God’s people, we don’t kill ourselves – we don’t even do risky things that foolishly endanger life, and we don’t to that to others either, whether a child in the womb, or another driver on the road, or an elderly person in the hospital, or a people group on the other side of the world.
And if someone else is using lethal force to kill people, we stop them with all the means at our disposal.
And if they are coming after us and we can’t stop them, we keep trusting God and asking God to save us.
And if we are exposed to shame, we don’t avoid it by suicide, we confess it and find forgiveness at the cross of Jesus and entrust ourselves to the God who “so loved the world.”
God’s
people do not love death, we love life, and
we look forward to eternal life without death, yet in this world
we grieve over death, even though we do not fear death.
God’s justice
All God's prophecies were fulfilled for Saul:
1 Sam. 2:30 “Those who honor me will be honored, but those who despise me will be lightly esteemed”
1 Sam. 12:14-15 “If y'all are respectful of Yahweh and serve Him and give heed to His voice and don't rebel against the mouthpeice of Yahweh, then y'all – both you and also the king who reigns over y'all – may continue following Yahweh your God. However, if y'all do not give heed to the voice of Yahweh – if y'all rebel against the mouthpeice of Yahweh, then the hand of Yahweh will be against y'all and against your {king}.”
1 Sam. 13:13-14 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, 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.”
1 Sam. 15:23 “Because you have rejected the word of Yahweh, Yahweh has also rejected you from being king.”
1 Sam. 28:19 “tomorrow Yahweh will give you, and your sons with you, and also the army-camp of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.” (NAW)
Because of his persistent disregard for God, God caused Saul and his best heir to lose their lives, thus losing his kingship and paving the way for David to become king. God's word will always be proved true.
The end of the parallel account in 1 Chronicles 10:13-14 contains an additional summary statement of the reasons for Saul’s death: “So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the LORD, because he did not keep the word of the LORD, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance. But he did not inquire of the LORD; therefore He17 killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.” (NKJV)
Puritan commentator Andrew Willett noted, “Herein God's justice appeareth, that as Saul's sword was turned against the innocent Priests, in putting them to death, and against David whom he unjustly persecuted, so now he himself should fall upon the edge thereof.”
And if Saul’s armorbearer was indeed Doeg, then it may have been by the very same sword which slew the priests of Nob, that Saul and his armor-bearer died (Gill, Jameison), and this would also be an apt fulfillment of David’s prophecy against Doeg in Psalm 52:3-5 “You love evil more than good, Lying rather than speaking righteousness. You love all devouring words... God shall likewise destroy you forever; He shall take you away, and pluck you out of your dwelling place, And uproot you from the land of the living.”
Whether Doeg was the bodyguard or not, God’s justice in punishing those who continue in rebellion against Him is a clear theme of this chapter.
God doesn’t wink at sin; He eventually brings home the sentence of death to every sinner – and eternal death to everyone whose sins are not forgiven by Jesus, not because God is mean, but because God is fair; He can’t stand injustice. This character of justice in God is extolled in passages like:
Exodus 34:6-7 And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children's children to the third and the fourth generation." (NKJV)
Nahum 1:2-3 “God is jealous, and the LORD avenges; The LORD avenges and is furious. The LORD will take vengeance on His adversaries, And He reserves wrath for His enemies; The LORD is slow to anger and great in power, And will not at all acquit the wicked. The LORD has His way...” (NKJV)
Hebrews 12:22-29 “Y'all have come ... to a Judge [who is] God of all... Keep watch so that y'all don't defer the One who is speaking, for, if those guys did not escape on earth after they deferred the [Divine] Informer, much more will we be those who are turned away [by] Him from the heavens... for indeed, our God is a consuming fire.” (NAW)
The only way for sinners – like we all are – to get right with a God who cannot be corrupted to overlook sin is to trust his Son Jesus to pay the price of eternal death for our sin.
Ezek. 18:32 “‘For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,’ says the Lord GOD. ‘Therefore turn and live! ... 33:11 As I live,' says the Lord GOD, 'I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?'” (NKJV)
Hebrews 12:22-29 “Rather, y'all have come to the mountain of Zion and to the city of the Living God – to the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in a festival, 23 and to a church of firstborns who have been registered in heaven, and to a Judge [who is] God of all, and to the spirits of righteous persons who have been made perfect, 24 and to the mediator of a new covenant, Jesus, and to the blood of sprinkling which utters a better thing than Abel... 28 Therefore, since we are receiving an unshakeable kingdom, let us continue to be grateful, by means of which we may minister most-acceptably to God with reverence and devotion, 29 for indeed, our God is a consuming fire.” (NAW)
Rahlf’s LXX |
Brenton |
Douay |
KJV |
NAW |
MT |
MTB |
1 Καὶ οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι ἐπολέμουν ἐπὶ Ισραηλ, καὶ ἔφυγον οἱ ἄνδρες Ισραηλ ἐκ προσώπου τῶν ἀλλοφύλων, καὶ πίπτουσιν τραυματίαι ἐν τῷ ὄρει τῷ Γελβουε. |
1 And the Philistines fought with Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and they fall down wounded in the mountain in Gelbue. |
1 And the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gelboe. |
1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slainC in mount Gilboa. |
1 Meanwhile the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from the Philistine front and fell wounded upon Mount Gilboa. |
1 וּפְלִשְׁתִּים נִלְחָמִים בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל וַיָּנֻסוּ אַנְשֵׁי יִשְׂרָאֵל מִפְּנֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיִּפְּלוּ חֲלָלִיםD בְּהַר הַגִּלְבֹּעַ: |
א וּפְלִשְׁתִּים נִלְחֲמוּ בְיִשְׂרָאֵל וַיָּנָסx אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל מִפְּנֵי פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיִּפְּלוּ חֲלָלִים בְּהַר xגִּלְבֹּעַ. |
2 καὶ συνάπτουσινE ἀλλόφυλοι τῷ Σαουλ καὶ τοῖς υἱοῖς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τύπτουσιν ἀλλόφυλοι τὸν Ιωναθαν καὶ τὸν Αμιναδαβ καὶ τὸν Μελχισα υἱοὺς Σαουλ. |
2 And the Philistines press closely on Saul and his sons, and the Philistines smite Jonathan, and Aminadab, and Melchisa son of Saul. |
2 And the Philistines fell upon Saul, and upon his sons, and they slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Melchisua, the sons of Saul. |
2 And the Philistines followed hard uponF Saul and [upon] his sons; and the Philistines slewG Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, Saul's sons. |
2 Presently, the Philistines engaged Saul and his sons, and the Philistines struck down Jonathan and Abinidab and Melki-shua, Saul’s sons. |
2 וַיַּדְבְּקוּH פְלִשְׁתִּים אֶת- שָׁאוּל וְאֶת- בָּנָיו וַיַּכּוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים אֶת- יְהוֹנָתָן וְאֶת- אֲבִינָדָב וְאֶת- מַלְכִּי- שׁוּעַ בְּנֵי שָׁאוּל: |
ב וַיַּדְבְּקוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים אַחֲרֵי שָׁאוּל וְאַחֲרֵי בָנָיו וַיַּכּוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים אֶת יוֹנָתָן וְאֶת אֲבִינָדָב וְאֶת מַלְכִּי שׁוּעַ בְּנֵי שָׁאוּל. |
3
καὶ βαρύνεται
ὁ πόλεμος ἐπὶ
Σαουλ, καὶ
εὑρίσκουσιν
αὐτὸν οἱ ἀκοντισταίI,
ἄνδρες τοξόται,
καὶ ἐτραυματίσθη
X
|
3
And the battle prevails
against Saul, and the shooters with arrows, even the archers find
him, and he was wounded
under the |
3 And the [whole] weight of the battle was turned upon Saul: and the archers overtook him, and he was grievously wounded by the archers. |
3 And the battle went soreK against Saul, and the archersL hitM him; and he was sore wounded of the archers. |
3 Then while the fighting was heavy {upon} Saul, the men shooting with the bow found their mark on him, and he was severely wounded by the shooters. |
3 וַתִּכְבַּד הַמִּלְחָמָה אֶלN- שָׁאוּל וַיִּמְצָאֻהוּ הַמּוֹרִים אֲנָשִׁים בַּקָּשֶׁת וַיָּחֶלO מְאֹד מֵהַמּוֹרִים: |
ג וַתִּכְבַּד הַמִּלְחָמָה עַל שָׁאוּל וַיִּמְצָאֻהוּ הַמּוֹרִיxxxxx בַּקָּשֶׁת וַיָּחֶל xxx מִן הַיּוֹרִים. |
4 καὶ εἶπεν Σαουλ πρὸς τὸν αἴροντα τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ Σπάσαι τὴν ῥομφαίαν σου καὶ ἀποκέντησόν με ἐν αὐτῇ, μὴ ἔλθωσιν οἱ ἀπερίτμητοι οὗτοι καὶ ἀποκεντήσωσίν με καὶ ἐμπαίξωσίνP μοι. καὶ οὐκ ἐβούλετο ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύηQ αὐτοῦ, ὅτι ἐφοβήθη σφόδρα· καὶ ἔλαβεν Σαουλ τὴν ῥομφαίαν καὶ ἐπέπεσεν ἐπ᾿ αὐτήν. |
4 And Saul said to his armour-bearer, Draw thy sword and pierce me through with it; lest these uncircumcised come and pierce me through, and mock me. But his armour-bearer would not, for he feared greatly: so Saul took his sword and fell upon it. |
4 Then Saul said to his armourbearer: Draw thy sword, and kill me X X: lest these uncircumcised come, and slay me, and mock at me. And his armourbearer would not: for he was [struck with exceeding] great fear. Then Saul took his sword, and fell upon it. |
4
Then said Saul unto his armourbearer, Draw thy sword, and thrustR
me through
therewith; lestS
these uncircumcised come and thrust
me through,
and abuseT
me. But his armourbearer
would not; for he was sore
afraid. Therefore Saul took |
4 So Saul said to the guy who carried his gear, “Draw your sword and stab me with it; otherwise these uncircumcised men will come and stab and terrorize me.” But the guy who carried his gear would not, for he was too afraid. So Saul took his sword and fell upon it. |
4 וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל Vלְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו שְׁלֹף חַרְבְּךָ וְדָקְרֵנִיW בָהּ פֶּן- יָבוֹאוּ הָעֲרֵלִים הָאֵלֶּה וּדְקָרֻנִי וְהִתְעַלְּלוּX-בִי וְלֹא אָבָה נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו כִּי יָרֵא מְאֹד וַיִּקַּח שָׁאוּל אֶת- הַחֶרֶב וַיִּפֹּל עָלֶיהָ: |
ד וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו שְׁלֹף חַרְבְּךָ וְדָקְרֵנִי בָהּ פֶּן יָבֹאוּ הָעֲרֵלִים הָאֵלֶּה xxxxxx וְהִתְעַלְּלוּ בִי וְלֹא אָבָה נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו כִּי יָרֵא מְאֹד וַיִּקַּח שָׁאוּל אֶת הַחֶרֶב וַיִּפֹּל עָלֶיהָ. |
5 καὶ εἶδεν ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ ὅτι τέθνηκεν Σαουλ, καὶ ἐπέπεσεν καὶ αὐτὸς ἐπὶ τὴν ῥομφαίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀπέθανεν μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ. |
5 And his armour-bearer saw that Saul was dead, and he fell also himself upon his sword, and died with him. |
5 And when his armourbearer saw this, to wit, that Saul was dead, he also fell upon his sword and died with him. |
5 And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead, he fell likewise upon his sword, and died with him. |
5 And when the guy who carried his gear saw that Saul was dead, he also fell himself upon his sword and died with him. |
5 וַיַּרְא נֹשֵׂא-כֵלָיו כִּי מֵת שָׁאוּל וַיִּפֹּל גַּם-הוּא עַל-חַרְבּוֹ וַיָּמָת עִמּוֹ: |
ה וַיַּרְא נֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו כִּי מֵת שָׁאוּל וַיִּפֹּל גַּם הוּא עַל הַחֶרֶב וַיָּמֹת xxx. |
6 καὶ ἀπέθανεν Σαουλ καὶ οἱ τρεῖς υἱοὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ὁ αἴρων τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ X X X X ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ κατὰ τὸ αὐτόY. |
6 So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armour-bearer X X X X, in that day together. |
6 So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armourbearer, and all his men that same day together. |
6 So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armourbearer, and all his men, that same day together. |
6 And so Saul died, along with three of his sons and the guy who carried his gear and all his bodyguards together on that day. |
6 וַיָּמָת שָׁאוּל וּשְׁלֹשֶׁת בָּנָיו וְנֹשֵׂא כֵלָיו גַּם כָּל- אֲנָשָׁיוZ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא יַחְדָּו: |
ו וַיָּמָת שָׁאוּל וּשְׁלֹשֶׁת בָּנָיו xxxx xxxx וְכָל בֵּיתוֹxxxx xxxx יַחְדָּו מֵתוּ. |
7 καὶ εἶδον οἱ ἄνδρες Ισραηλ οἱ ἐν τῷ πέραν τῆς κοιλάδος καὶ οἱ ἐν τῷ πέραν τοῦ Ιορδάνου ὅτι ἔφυγον οἱ ἄνδρες Ισραηλ καὶ ὅτι τέθνηκεν Σαουλ καὶ οἱ υἱοὶ αὐτοῦ, καὶ καταλείπουσιν τὰς πόλεις [αὐτῶν] καὶ φεύγουσιν· καὶ ἔρχονται οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι καὶ κατοικοῦσιν ἐν αὐταῖς. -- |
7 And the men of Israel who were on the other side of the valley, and those beyond Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead; and they leave their cities and flee: and the Philistines come and dwell in them. |
7
And the men of Israel, that were beyond
the valley, and beyond
the Jordan, seeing that the Israelites were fled, and that Saul
w |
7 And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were on the other sideAA Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsookAB the cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them. |
7 Now, when the men of Israel who were across the valley and who were across the Jordan saw that the men of Israel had fled and that Saul and his sons had died, they abandoned {their} cities and fled. Then the Philistines came and took up residence in them. |
7 וַיִּרְאוּ אַנְשֵׁי- יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר- בְּעֵבֶר הָעֵמֶק וַאֲשֶׁר בְּעֵבֶרAC הַיַּרְדֵּן כִּי-נָסוּ אַנְשֵׁי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְכִי-מֵתוּ שָׁאוּל וּבָנָיו וַיַּעַזְבוּ אֶת-הֶעָרִיםAD וַיָּנֻסוּ וַיָּבֹאוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיֵּשְׁבוּ בָּהֶן: ס |
ז וַיִּרְאוּ כָּל אִישׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר בָּxxx xעֵמֶק xxxx xxxx xxxxx כִּי נָסוּ xxxxx xxxx וְכִי מֵתוּ שָׁאוּל וּבָנָיו וַיַּעַזְבוּ xx עָרֵיהֶם וַיָּנֻסוּ וַיָּבֹאוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים וַיֵּשְׁבוּ בָּהֶם. |
8
καὶ ἐγενήθη
τῇ ἐπαύριον καὶ
ἔρχονται οἱ
ἀλλόφυλοι
ἐκδιδύσκειν
τοὺς |
8 And it came to pass on the morrow that the Philistines come to strip the dead, and they find Saul and his three sons fallen on the mountain[s] of Gelbue. |
8
And on the morrow X
the
Philistines came to strip the slain,
and they found Saul and his three sons |
8 And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen in mount Gilboa. |
8 Then it happened on the next day, when the Philistines came to strip down their victims, that they found Saul and three of his sons fallen on Mount Gilboa. |
8 וַיְהִי מִמָּחֳרָת וַיָּבֹאוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים לְפַשֵּׁט אֶת- הַחֲלָלִים וַיִּמְצְאוּ אֶת-שָׁאוּל וְאֶת- שְׁלֹשֶׁת בָּנָיו נֹפְלִים בְּהַר הַגִּלְבֹּעַ: |
ח וַיְהִי מִמָּחֳרָת וַיָּבֹאוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים לְפַשֵּׁט אֶת הַחֲלָלִים וַיִּמְצְאוּ אֶת שָׁאוּל וְאֶת xxxx בָּנָיו נֹפְלִים בְּהַר xגִּלְבֹּעַ. |
9
καὶ |
9
And they
|
9
And they cut
off [Saul's]
head, and stripped him of his armour, and sent into the land of
the Philistines
round about, to publish
it in the temple |
9 And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to publish it in the house of their idols, and among the people. |
9 So they cut off his head and stripped off his weapons, and they sent around the circuit of the land of the Philistines to herald the news {before} their idols and their people. |
9 וַיִּכְרְתוּ אֶת- רֹאשׁוֹAG וַיַּפְשִׁיטוּ אֶת-כֵּלָיו וַיְשַׁלְּחוּ בְאֶרֶץ-פְּלִשְׁתִּים סָבִיבAH לְבַשֵּׂרAI בֵּית עֲצַבֵּיהֶם וְאֶת-הָעָם: |
ט xxxxx וַיַּפְשִׁיטֻהוּ וַיִּשְׂאוּ אֶת רֹאשׁוֹ וְאֶת כֵּלָיו וַיְשַׁלְּחוּ בְאֶרֶץ פְלִשְׁתִּים סָבִיב לְבַשֵּׂר אֶתxxx עֲצַבֵּיהֶם וְאֶת הָעָם. |
10 καὶ ἀνέθηκαν τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ εἰς τὸ ἈσταρτεῖονAJ καὶ τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ κατέπηξαν ἐν τῷ τείχει Βαιθσαν. |
10 And they set up his armour at the temple of Astarte, and they fastened his body on the wall of Baethsam. |
10 And they put his armour in the temple of Astaroth, but his body they hung on the wall of Bethsan. |
10 And they put his armour in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Bethshan. |
10 And they put his weapons in the temple of Astaroth, and they impaled his body on the wall of Beth Shan. |
10 וַיָּשִׂמוּ אֶת- כֵּלָיו בֵּית עַשְׁתָּרוֹת וְאֶת-גְּוִיָּתוֹ תָּקְעוּ בְּחוֹמַת בֵּית שָׁןAK: |
י וַיָּשִׂימוּ אֶת כֵּלָיו בֵּית אֱלֹהֵיהֶם וְאֶת גֻּלְגָּלְתּוֹAL תָקְעוּ xxxxx בֵּית דָּגוֹןAM. |
11 καὶ ἀκούουσιν X X οἱ κατοικοῦντες Ιαβις τῆς Γαλααδίτιδος ἃ ἐποίησαν οἱ ἀλλόφυλοι τῷ Σαουλ. |
11 And the inhabitants of Jabis Galaad hear X X what the Philistines did to Saul. |
11 Now when the inhabitants of Jabes Galaad had heard X X [all] that the Philistines had done to Saul, |
11 And when the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead heard of that which the Philistines had done to Saul; |
11 Now, when the residents of Jabesh Gilead heard {} what the Philistines had done to Saul, |
11 וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ אֵלָיוAN יֹשְׁבֵי יָבֵישׁ גִּלְעָדAO אֵת אֲשֶׁרAP-עָשׂוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים לְשָׁאוּל: |
יא וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ כֹּל xxxx יָבֵישׁ גִּלְעָד אֵת כָּל אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ פְלִשְׁתִּים לְשָׁאוּל. |
12
καὶ ἀνέστησαν
πᾶς ἀνὴρ δυνάμεωςAQ
καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν
ὅλην τὴν νύκτα
καὶ ἔλαβον τὸ
σῶμα Σαουλ
καὶ τὸ σῶμα
[Ιωναθαν]
τοῦ υἱοῦX
αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τείχους
Βαιθσαν
καὶ |
12
And they rose up, [even]
every man of might, and marched
all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodyX
of [Jonathan]
his sonX
from the wall of Baethsam; and they |
12 All the [most] valiant men arose, and walked all the night, and took the body of Saul, and the bodies of his sons, from the wall of Bethsan: and they came to Jabes [Galaad], and burnt them there. |
12 All the valiant men arose, and wentAR all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Bethshan, and came to Jabesh, and burnt them there. |
12 all the militia men got up and walked all night and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth Shan, and they came to Jabesh and burnt them there. |
12 וַיָּקוּמוּ כָּל- אִישׁ חַיִל וַיֵּלְכוּ כָל-הַלַּיְלָה וַיִּקְחוּ אֶת-גְּוִיַּת שָׁאוּל וְאֵת גְּוִיֹּת בָּנָיו מֵחוֹמַת בֵּית שָׁן וַיָּבֹאוּ יָבֵשָׁה וַיִּשְׂרְפוּ אֹתָם שָׁם: |
יב וַיָּקוּמוּ כָּל אִישׁ חַיִל xxxx xx xxxxx וַיִּשְׂאוּ אֶת גּוּפַת שָׁאוּל וְאֵת גּוּפֹת בָּנָיו xxxxx xxx xx וַיְבִיאוּם יָבֵישָׁה xxxxxx xxx xx |
13 καὶ λαμβάνουσιν τὰ ὀστᾶ αὐτῶν καὶ θάπτουσιν ὑπὸ τὴν ἄρουρανAS τὴν Ιαβις καὶ νηστεύουσιν ἑπτὰ ἡμέρας. |
13
And they take their bones, and bury them |
13
And they took their bones, and buried them |
13
And they took their bones, and buried them
under |
13 Then they took their bones and buried them under the tamarisk-tree in Jabesh, and they fasted seven days. |
13 וַיִּקְחוּ אֶת- עַצְמֹתֵיהֶם וַיִּקְבְּרוּ תַחַת-הָאֶשֶׁל בְּיָבֵשָׁה וַיָּצֻמוּ שִׁבְעַת יָמִים: פ |
xxxxx וַיִּקְבְּרוּ אֶת עַצְמוֹתֵיהֶם תַּחַת הָאֵלָה בְּיָבֵשׁ וַיָּצוּמוּ שִׁבְעַת יָמִים. |
1although it didn’t pass into Jewish tradition until 1516 AD. (Goldman, Intro)
2See footnote AD for more detail.
3Although Gill cites the Targums, Arabic, and Syriac traditions which say he was not wounded but rather just “afraid.”
4There is some question whether Ishvi was another name for Malchishua, or another name for Ishbosheth, but the number of sons is not disputed.
5Gill traced it to Hieron. Trad. Heb. in lib. Reg. fol. 77. B.
6The Hebrew language has one word for “murder” and a different word for “kill,” and the word in the 10 Commandments is “murder,” leaving open the legitimate function of civil government to put to death criminals duly convicted.
7“Josephus (Antiqu. l. 6. c. 14. sect. 7) denies he killed himself; that though he attempted it, his sword would not pierce through him, and that he was killed by the Amalekite, and that that was a true account he gave to David in the following chapter; though it seems rather to be a lie, to curry favour with David, and that Saul did destroy himself… Saul was dead By his own hands, and not by the hands of the Amalekite, which the armour bearer would scarcely have suffered...” ~John Gill
8Willet was in agreement with me when he wrote his commentary. Henry refused to conjecture. The rest didn’t go there.
9“a particular reproach to Saul, who was taller by the head than other men (which perhaps he was wont to boast of), but was now shorter by the head.” ~Matthew Henry
10Willett suggested that the body was displayed in the temple of Ashtoreth and the head in the temple of Dagon in Beth Shan. Goldman suggested that the head and armor were displayed in the temple of Astarte in Ashkelton. Jamieson suggested that the armor went to the temple of Ashtaroth, the bodies to the temple of Shen, and the heads to the temple of Dagon, “thus dividing the glory among their several deities.” K&D similarly wrote, “sent... heads and weapons as trophies into the land of the Philistines (to which McCarter and Driver agreed but to which Jameison and Tsumura objecting, saying that what was “sent” was “messengers” not body parts)... deposited their weapons... in the Astarte-houses. But the [headless] corpses they fastened to the town-wall of Beth-shean…”
11Beth Shan is known to have been occupied by the Egyptians (from whom it got this name “house of the sun”) and by the Philistines in earlier history, but if it were under Philistine control at this time, one would expect it to have been mentioned as a headquarters for this Philistine campaign, and since it isn’t, the impression the reader gets is that it was not under Philistine control immediately before this battle.
12This is the estimation of the BibleWorks Map software. Gill estimated at 16 miles round trip, Jamieson at 20 miles, and Goldman at 40. Jamieson estimated it would take an hour and a half travel time each way.
13Willett’s explanation (following Kimchi and later adopted by Gill and by K&D) for burning the flesh off the bones was because the flesh was decaying and because the Philistines would be less likely to mess with the bones (the latter of which was Jamieson’s and Tsumura’s explanation). I didn’t find these to be as convincing.
14Willett (following Kimchi) suggested that the seven days was “in memorie of the seven days of truce, which sometime Nahash the king of Ammon gave them, within which time Saul came and delivered them.” Henry & Gill both noted that such fasts were traditionally only during daylight hours, with eating & drinking at night, like the Ramadan fast of the Muslims. Tsumura noted that “a ritual of seven days… is also attested in the Ugaritic funerary ritual preserved in KTU 1.161.”
15Matthew Henry quoted Prov. 11:10 “‘When the wicked perish there is shouting’ (that is, it is to be hoped a better state of things will ensue, which will be matter of joy), yet humanity obliges us to show a decent respect to dead bodies, especially those of princes.”
16cf. Revelation 18:10-24 Lament over Babylon
17Note that even though Saul killed himself, the account says that God killed him, a testimony to the mysterious relationship of human will and divine will which can be such that both man and God can be responsible at the same time.
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 31 is 4Q51Samuela, which
contains fragments of vs. 1-4 and which has been dated between 50-25
B.C. Where the DSS is legible and matches the MT, the MT is colored
purple. Where the DSS (or Vulgate and Syriac) support 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}.
B1 Chronicles 10 is so similar to 1 Samuel 31 that I added it for comparison. No DSS of 1 Chronicles are known, so this is just the MT of 1 Chron 10. I have colored synonyms in grey, added a grey x to indicate letters found in 1 Sam 31 but not 1 Chron 10, and overlined text found in 1 Chron 10 but not 1 Sam 31. Within the first 6 verses are an average of 3 textual variants per verse, but they are all so minor that there is no difference in meaning. For the most part 1 Chron 10 appears to be a slightly-condensed edition of 1 Sam 31.
CAll the English versions (including the KJV) render this same word “wounded” in v. 3, then “slain” again in v.8 (with the exception of the NIV which renders it “dead” in v.8). The root meaning of the Hebrew word is to be “pierced through,” which could result in death, but not necessarily.
Dcf. 17:52 when the same happened to the Philistines before the victorious Israelite army previously.
Ecf. Aquila’s translation into Greek a few hundred years later: ekollhqhsan (“were brought close together”)
FNASB, ESV = “overtook,” NIV = “pressed hard after”
GNASB, NIV = “killed,” ESV is closer to the central meaning of this Hebrew (and Greek) word with “struck down.”
HCf the only other instance of this verb in 1 Samuel at 1 Sam. 14:22.
ILit. “those who shoot” This root is only used in the LXX here and in 1 Sam. 20:20 & 36. Some later Greek versions used a less-obscure synonym: Aquila = roizounteV (“attackers”), Theodotian = toxotai (“archers”). At the end of this verse, the MT uses the same word, so Aq. and Theod. and Sym. (the latter of whom used the LXX word akontistwn “shooters” here) repeated at the end of the verse the same words they used here, but at the end of the verse, the LXX switched inexplicably to θποχονδρια (in the crushing-under”).
JAll the later Greek versions corrected to the MT with sfodra apo (“very from”).
Kcf. NASB (which has the most literal rendering) = “went heavily,” NIV = “grew fierce,” ESV = “pressed hard.”
LIn Hebrew & Greek, literally “the men who shoot with the bows”
MESV follows the Hebrew (& Greek) most literally with “found,” NIV = “overcame,” Goldman = “got him in range”
NDSS reads על ("upon"), and the LXX corresponds better with the DSS than the MT with επι. Multiple other Hebrew manuscripts also support the DSS, including the MT of 1 Chron. 10. The meaning is not significantly different, however.
OTargums, Syriac, & Arabic versions render “afraid” instead of MT & LXX “wounded.” This would make Saul’s fear of death all the more irrational if he had not actually been wounded, as Gill, Kimchi, & Ben Melech believed was the case. Keil & Delitzsch also vouched for “alarmed” writing, “the verb חָלַל or חָלָה cannot be proved to be ever used in the sense of wounding.” Most Bible scholars, however, instead consider the root to be חיל which finds space for “wound” in its root meaning of “writhe” (cf. Prov. 26:10 which also speaks of archers “wounding” using this verb).
Pcf. Aq. enallaxousin (“leap in opposition”)
Qcf. Symmachus oploforoV “armor-carrier” In v.9 he also renders “armor” as oplo instead of the LXX σκευη.
RNASB = “pierce,” NIV= “run”
SNASB = “otherwise,” NIV = “or”
TNASB = “make sport of,” ESV = “mistreat”
UAlthough the possessive pronoun “his” is not explicitly in the Greek or Hebrew text, the word “sword” has a definite article (“the”) which often serves as a possessive pronoun. This could also point there being only one sword between them.
VInstead of the abbreviated prepositional prefix, DSS uses the full stand-alone form of this preposition אל, and the LXX and Vulgate seem to support that with stand-alone prepositions. It makes no difference in meaning, though.
WThis is the same request made by the Judge Abimelek in Judges 9:54.
XDSS does not have the sureq letter ending on this verb, making the verb singular instead of the MT’s plural form, and it doesn’t have space for all the characters found in the MT of the previous word, so it too might be singular. It appears that the DSS says ודקר והתעלל בי “and he will stab and desecrate me,” as though there is one particular Philistine king out to get him. It is not much different from the MT, but the LXX and Vulgate and 1 Chron. 10 support the MT with plural verbs. The only other time this verb appears in 1 Samuel is 6:6, but King Zedekiah also expresses this same fear of it in Jeremiah 38:19. This verb is used to describe what God did to Egypt during the plagues as well as to describe sexual abuse by evil men.
Ycf. synonym in Aq. omou “the same”
ZThis phrase “and all his men” was apparently not in the Hebrew manuscript which the authors of the Septuagint, Vaticanus, and even the Lucian Rescription were looking at. Curiously, the phrase is rendered “and all his house” in 1 Chron. 10, so it is clearly affirmed as God’s word, and the meaning of “all his men” is made more clear as being limited to those of his household, not every man in Israel.
AANASB = “beyond,” NIV = “across,” Gill = “on that side/around,” Junius & Tremellius, Picator = “circa”
ABNASB, NIV, ESV = “abandoned”
ACMt.
Gilboa commanded a view north across the Jezreel valley toward the
northern tribes of Israel as well as a view East across the Jordan
valley to the transjordan tribes of Israel. Those tribes may not
have participated in this war, but they could see a war going on and
would have taken note of the Israelite soldiers running pell-mell in
their direction to get away from the Philistines who were chasing
them.
Willett explained that “across” doesn’t
mean “on the opposite side of” in this case, but “on
the near side of”: “[T]he meaning then is, that they
which were on this side Jordan, toward the Philistims, fled away:
for begheber, in transitu, indifferently signifieth, on
either side, this, or the other.”
K&D concurred,
“עֵמֶק
עֵבֶר is
the country to the west of the valley of Jezreel, and הַיַּרְדֵּן
עֵבֶר the
country to the west of the Jordan, i.e., between Gilboa and the
Jordan.”
This would explain why Jabesh on the east side
of the Jordan River did not evacuate. Tsumura, in the NICOT
commentary, however maintained that bavr meant “on the
other side of.”
ADLXX, Vulgate, and 1 Chron 10 all add a third plural pronoun “their” to this word “cities.” The definite article which prefixes this word in the MT of 1 Sam. 31 here can also be interpreted this way, so the meaning is the same either way.
AESymmachus corrected to the MT kai ekoyan thn kefalhn autou “and they cut off his head.”
AFRahlf’s edition of the LXX includes this pronoun “their,” but the Vaticanus does not, and it is not in the MT.
AGThis phrase is not in 1 Chron. 10 or in the LXX (incl. Vaticanus) or the Vulgate. There are no known Dead Sea Scrolls containing this verse either in 1 Chron. or 1 Sam. for comparison. Furthermore, there is no further mention of Saul’s head as being separate from his body, but rather his body appears to have remained whole, unless, as Tsumura maintained, goyyat specifically means “headless corpse.” On the other hand, it’s hard for me to see why turning Saul’s body over (which is the reading of the LXX) would be so significant that it would be reported in this account. The context rules out translating it “interred” or “returned.”
AHcf. 1 Sam. 5, where the same was done with the captured ark, and the verbal form of this same root (“around”) is used in 5:8 & 10 to describe it being brought in a circuit to be displayed in the 5 Philistine city-states (although the tour of the ark was interrupted halfway through that tour!)
AIcf. 1 Samuel 4:17 And the herald answered saying, "Israel fled before the Philistine front, and our people experienced a massive rout, and, what's more, both of your sons – Hophni and Phinehas – died, and the ark of God was taken." (NAW)
AJAquila followed the MT spelling more closely with Astarwq, but it’s the same thing.
AKJudges 1:27 informs us that Beth Shan was one of the Canaanite towns allotted to the tribe of Manasseh, but the tribe of Manasseh never conquered it. Being so close to the battle, it is entirely possible that whoever had been living there evacuated Beth Shan like the Israelites had evacuated their cities further across the valley and that this was one of the towns immediately occupied by the victorious Philistines. Its location was strategic as a stop along a major north-south highway through the middle-east, and it was also a very fertile valley for farming.
ALThis word denotes a “skull” (cf. “Golgotha” in the NT), whereas the word in 1 Samuel 31 denotes the whole “body,” including the skeletal structure, sometimes referring to dead bodies, sometimes to the bodies of living beings. The verb is used for Laban “pitching up” a tent, Psalmists “clapping” hands in worship, Proverbial “shaking” hands to make a bargain, Ehud “stabbing” Eglon with a sword, Jael “driving” a tent peg through Sisera’s head, and Joab “thrusting” darts into Absolom, but over half of the uses of this verb are to denote “blowing” a trumpet. What is described appears to be Saul’s body impaled on a spike sticking out of the wall. If the head was still attached, it could have been the only part of the body impaled; if the head had been cut off, it could have been impaled separately from the body on the same wall, and in both cases there would be no conflict between the 1 Sam. 31 and the 1 Chron 10 account.
AMThis is the most significant variant between 1 Chron. 10 and 1 Sam 31, but the likelihood of it not being a contradiction is high because plural “gods” are mentioned in 1 Chron. 10. Dagon is the only god explicitly mentioned in 1 Chron. 10, but the temple could have been for both Dagon and Ashtoreth, or the tour circuit could have included one stop at Ashtoreth’s temple (mentioned in 1 Sam. 31) and then another stop at Dagon’s temple in Beth Shan (mentioned in 1 Chron. 10).
ANAlthough rescensions of the Greek text include this MT phrase (“to/concerning him/it”), the original Greek, Syriac and Vulgate do not include it, nor does 1 Chron. 10. (1 Chron. 10 substitutes “all” for “inhabitants of,” but means basically the same thing.)
AOJabesh Gilead was the city that Saul had delivered from the Ammonites back in chapter 11. The men of Jabesh had both their eyes because Saul rescued them from Nahash. So they naturally wanted to do something to honor their hero Saul.
APTsumura called this an “adverbial accusative” translating it “...that is, about what….”
AQcf. synonyms in later versions by Aquila = euporoV (“wealthy”) and Symmachus iscuroV (“strong”)
ARNASB = “walked,” NIV = “journeyed” The Hebrew word’s meaning is centered simply on “going.”
AScf. synonyms in later versions: Aq. = dendrwna (“tree”), S. = futon (“growing plant”), Q. druV (“dew”?).
ATNASB, NIV, ESV = “tamarisk tree”