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1 Samuel
Chapter Thirty-one
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 31
This
chapter gives an account of the battle between the Philistines and the
Israelites
which had been preparing for
and the issue of it; in which Saul
his three sons
and his servants
were slain
upon which his army fled
and
several of his cities were taken
1 Samuel 31:1; what
the Philistines did with his body and his armour
1 Samuel 31:8; the
former of which
together with the bodies of his sons
the men of Jabeshgilead
rescued
and burnt them
and buried their bones under a tree at Jabesh
expressing great sorrow and concern
1 Samuel 31:11.
1 Samuel 31:1 Now the
Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the
Philistines
and fell slain on Mount Gilboa.
YLT
1And the Philistines are
fighting against Israel
and the men of Israel flee from the face of the
Philistines
and fall wounded in mount Gilboa
Now the Philistines fought against Israel
.... Being
come to Jezreel where Israel pitched
1 Samuel 29:1; they
fell upon them
began the battle:
and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines; at the first
onset
as it should seem:
and fell down slain in Mount Gilboa; which was near
and
whither fleeing they were pursued and slain
at least great numbers of them.
1 Samuel 31:2 2 Then
the Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons. And the Philistines
killed Jonathan
Abinadab
and Malchishua
Saul’s sons.
YLT
2and the Philistines follow
Saul and his sons
and the Philistines smite Jonathan
and Abinadab
and
Malchishua
sons of Saul.
And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul
.... Stuck to
him
pushed him close
bore hard upon him in that part of the army where he was
having a design upon his person:
and upon his sons; who were with him:
and the Philistines slew Jonathan; who is mentioned first
being the eldest son
and perhaps first slain; and this was so ordered by the
providence of God
that David's way to the throne might be more clear and easy;
for though Jonathan would not have opposed him himself
yet the people
fond of
him
would
at least many of them
been for setting him on the throne; and
though he would have refused it
knowing David was the Lord's anointed
and
have made interest for him
this would have looked as if he had made him king
and not the Lord:
and Abinadab and Malchishua
Saul's sons; these also
were slain; former of these is called Ishui
1 Samuel 14:49;
Ishbosheth either was not in the battle
being left at home
as unfit for war
or to take care of the kingdom; or else he fled with Abner
and others
and
escaped
and who was to be a trial to David.
1 Samuel 31:3 3 The
battle became fierce against Saul. The archers hit him
and he was severely
wounded by the archers.
YLT
3And the battle is hard
against Saul
and the archers find him -- men with bow -- and he is pained
greatly by the archers;
And the battle went sore against Saul
.... Pressed
heavy upon him; he was the butt of the Philistines
they aimed at his person
and life:
and the archers hit him; or "found him"F1וימצאהו "et inveserust cum"
Pagninus
Montanus.
; the place where was
and directed their arrows at him:
and he was sore wounded of the archers; or rather
"he was afraid" of them
as the Targum
for as yet he was not
wounded; and so the Syriac and Arabic versions render it
and is the sense
Kimchi and Ben Melech give of the word: he was not afraid of death
as
Abarbinel observes
he chose to die; but he was afraid he should be hit by the
archers in such a way that he should not die immediately
and should be taken
alive and ill used; the Philistines
especially the Cherethites
were famous
for archery; See Gill on Zephaniah 2:5.
1 Samuel 31:4 4 Then Saul said to his
armorbearer
“Draw your sword
and thrust me through with it
lest these
uncircumcised men come and thrust me through and abuse me.” But his armorbearer
would not
for he was greatly afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword and fell on
it.
YLT
4and Saul saith to the
bearer of his weapons
`Draw thy sword
and pierce me with it
lest they come
-- these uncircumcised -- and have pierced me
and rolled themselves on me;'
and the bearer of his weapons hath not been willing
for he is greatly afraid
and Saul taketh the sword
and falleth upon it.
Then said Saul unto his armourbearer
.... Who
the
JewsF2Hieron. Trad. Heb. in lib. Reg. fol. 77. B. say
was Doeg the
Edomite
promoted to this office for slaying the priests:
draw thy sword
and thrust me through therewith; for if he was
wounded
yet not mortally
and it is certain he did not so apprehend it. It is
much the sword of the armourbearer should be sheathed in a battle; but perhaps
he was preparing for flight
and so had put it up in its scabbard:
lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through
and abuse me; lest they
should not dispatch him at once
but put him to a lingering and torturing
death
and insult him
and mock at him
as they did Samson:
but his armourbearer would not
for he was sore afraid; to lay his
hand on the king the Lord's anointed
to take away his life
being more
scrupulous of doing that
if this was Doeg
than of slaying the priests of the
Lord; or he might be afraid of doing this
since should he survive this action
he would be called to an account by the Israelites
and be put to death for
killing the king:
therefore Saul took a sword
and fell upon it; or rather
"the sword"
the sword of his armourbearer
and so was a suicide: the
Jews endeavour to excuse this fact of Saul
because he knew he should die in
battle from the words of Samuel; and being pressed sore by the archers
he saw
it was impossible to escape out of their hands and therefore judged it better
to kill himself than to fall by the hands of the uncircumcised; but these
excuses will not do. JosephusF3Antiqu. 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.
1 Samuel 31:5 5 And when his armorbearer
saw that Saul was dead
he also fell on his sword
and died with him.
YLT
5And the bearer of his
weapons seeth that Saul [is] dead
and he falleth -- he also -- on his sword
and dieth with him;
And when his armourbearer saw that Saul was dead
.... By his
own hands
and not by the hands of the Amalekite
which the armour bearer would
scarcely have suffered:
he fell likewise upon his sword
and died with him; some think
that Saul
and his armourbearer
died by the same sword
which was the
armourbearer's; and if he was Doeg
they fell probably by the same sword with
which the priests of the Lord were murdered at Nob
1 Samuel 22:18; and
it is observed by an historianF4Sucton. Vit. Caesar. c. 89.
that
the murderers of Julius Caesar slew themselves with the same dagger they
destroyed him.
1 Samuel 31:6 6 So Saul
his three sons
his armorbearer
and all his men died together that same day.
YLT
6and Saul dieth
and three
of his sons
and the bearer of his weapons
also all his men
on that day
together.
So Saul died
and his three sons
and his armourbearer
.... Only with
this difference
his three sons died honourably in the field of battle
but he
and his armourbearer destroyed themselves. Josephus saysF5Antiqu. l.
6. c. 14. sect. 9. he reigned eighteen years in the life of Samuel
and after
his death twenty two years
which make the forty years the apostle ascribes to
him
Acts 13:21;
EupolemusF6Apud Euseb. Praepar. Evangel. l. 9. c. 3. p. 447.
an
Heathen writer
makes him to reign twenty one years; but of the years of his
reign
both before and after the death of Samuel
chronologers are not agreed
see 1 Samuel 25:1; and
See Gill on Acts 13:21
and all his men that same day together; not all the
soldiers in his army; for many of them fled and escaped
and even Abner the
general of the army
but his household servants
or those that were near his
person
his bodyguards.
1 Samuel 31:7 7 And when the men of Israel
who were on the other side of the valley
and those who were
on the other side of the Jordan
saw that the men of Israel had fled and that
Saul and his sons were dead
they forsook the cities and fled; and the
Philistines came and dwelt in them.
YLT
7And they see -- the men of
Israel
who [are] beyond the valley
and who [are] beyond the Jordan -- that
the men of Israel have fled
and that Saul and his sons have died
and they
forsake the cities and flee
and Philistines come in
and dwell in them.
And which the men of Israel that were on the other side of
the valley
.... The valley of Jezreel; of which See Gill on Hosea 1:5
and they that were on the other side Jordan; or rather
"on that side"; for the phrase will bear to be rendered either way
and so may mean that side of Jordan on which the battle was fought; for as for
the other side
or that beyond it
the Israelites there could not be in such
fear of the Philistines
nor do we ever read of their inhabiting any cities
there; though as the phrase is used of the valley
as well as of the river
it
may be rendered "about the valley
and about Jordan"F7בעבר העמק־בעבר הירדן "circa convellem illiam--circa Jordanem"
Junius & Tremellius
Picator; so Noldius
p. 295. No. 936.
and so
describes such that dwelt near to each of them:
saw that the men of Israel fled
and that Saul and his sons were
dead; that is
had information and intelligence of those facts
for it
is not to be supposed they saw them with their eyes:
they forsook
the cities
and fled; fearing they should be
put to the sword
or carried captive:
and the Philistines came and dwelt them; having
nothing more to do than to come and take possession.
1 Samuel 31:8 8 So it happened the next
day
when the Philistines came to strip the slain
that they found Saul and his
three sons fallen on Mount Gilboa.
YLT
8And it cometh to pass on
the morrow
that the Philistines come to strip the wounded
and they find Saul
and his three sons fallen on mount Gilboa
And it came to pass on the morrow
.... The day after the
battle
which perhaps was fought till night came on:
when the Philistines came to strip the slain; of their
clothes
and take from them whatever was valuable
as their booty:
that they found Saul and his sons fallen in Mount Gilboa; to which they
had betaken themselves
when the battle went against them in the valley; of
which see 1 Samuel 28:4.
1 Samuel 31:9 9 And they cut off his head
and stripped off his armor
and sent word throughout the land of the
Philistines
to proclaim it in the temple of their idols and among the
people.
YLT
9and they cut off his head
and strip off his weapons
and send into the land of the Philistines round
about
to proclaim tidings [in] the house of their idols
and [among] the
people;
And they cut off his head
.... And fastened it in
the temple of Dagon
1 Chronicles 10:10;
perhaps that which was at Ashdod
one of the principalities of the Philistines
1 Samuel 5:1
and stripped off his armour; or vesselsF8את כליו "vasa ejus"
Munster
Montanus.
his clothes as well as his armour
and what he had about
him; as for his crown on his head
and the bracelet on his arm
the Amalekite
took them before the Philistines came
2 Samuel 1:10
and sent into the land of the Philistines round about: not his head
and his armour
for they were placed in the temple of their idols; unless we
can suppose these were first carried about for show
and as proofs of the
victory: but rather messengers
who were sent express with the news:
to publish it in the house of their idols
and among the
people; that so they might be glad and rejoice
and give praise to their
idols
to whom they ascribed the success they had.
1 Samuel 31:10 10 Then they put his armor in
the temple of the Ashtoreths
and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth
Shan.[a]
YLT
10and they place his weapons
[in] the house of Ashtaroth
and his body they have fixed on the wall of
Beth-Shan.
And they put his armour in the house of Ashtaroth
.... A temple
dedicated to their deities
called by this name; of which See Gill on Judges 2:13;
Nothing was more common with the Gentiles than to place in their temples the
arms they took from their enemies
as is strongly expressed by HomerF9 τευχεα συλησας
Iliad. 7. ver. 83. and
VirgilF11"Multaque praeterea sacris in postibus arma"
&c. Aeneid. 7. ver. 183. So Persius
Satyr. 6. ver. 45. ; and indeed the Jews
did the same
as appears by the sword of Goliath being laid up in the
tabernacle
1 Samuel 21:9. Here
also the HeathensF12Messal. Corvin. de August. Progen. hung up their
own arms when the war was ended:
and they fastened his body to the wall of Bethshan; which
JosephusF13Ut supra
(Antiqu. l. 6. c. 14.) l. 8. says is the same
which in his time was called Scythopolis
from the Scythians that possessed it
before called Nysa
according to PlinyF14Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 18.
Vid. Solin. Polyhistor. c. 49. : it was given to the tribe of Manasseh
but
they could not drive out the inhabitants of it
so that it was always in the
possession of others
Joshua 17:11; where
it is called Bethshean; to the wall of the city they fastened the body of Saul
with nails
as it is commonly understood; but it is more likely they hung it on
a gibbet without
and near the walls of the city; so the Targum
they hung his
body; or
as JosephusF15Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 6. c. 14. l. 8.)
they crucified it there; and so they did also the bodies of his sons
as
appears from 1 Samuel 31:12.
1 Samuel 31:11 11 Now when the inhabitants
of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul
YLT
11And they hear regarding it
-- the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead -- that which the Philistines have done to
Saul
And the inhabitants of Jabeshgilead
.... Who lived on the
other side Jordan
about eight miles from Bethshan
according to FullerF16Pisgah-Sight
of Palestine
b. 2. ch. 2. p. 82. :
heard of that which the Philistines had done to Saul; not only that
they had got the victory over him
and routed his army
but had abused his
body
and hung it up by way of reproach and ignominy; which they could not bear
to hear of
remembering with gratitude the kindness he had shown to them
in
delivering them out of the hands of Nahash the Ammonite
1 Samuel 11:1.
1 Samuel 31:12 12 all the valiant men arose
and traveled 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 burned them there.
YLT
12and all the men of valour
arise
and go all the night
and take the body of Saul
and the bodies of his
sons
from the wall of Beth-Shan
and come in to Jabesh
and burn them there
All the valiant men arose
.... Of the city of
Jabeshgilead
fired with indignation at the Philistines' ill usage of Saul and
the bodies of his sons:
and went all night; not only for secrecy
but for haste:
and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall
of Bethshan
and came to Jabesh; brought them with them thither
the
Philistines either having no knowledge of it
or not daring to oppose them:
and burnt them there: that is
the flesh of
them
for the bones they buried
as in 1 Samuel 31:13; and
this they did
contrary to the common usage of the country
which was not to
burn; but this they did
that if the Philistines should come to recover them
they would not be able to do it: though the Targum is
"they
burnt over them
as they burn over their kings there;'they made a burning for
them of spices over them; or of their beds
and other household goods
as
Kimchi and Ben Melech observe
though they prefer the other sense; see 2 Chronicles 16:14
perhaps the true reason might be
because they were putrid and infectious.
1 Samuel 31:13 13 Then they took their bones
and buried them under the tamarisk tree at Jabesh
and fasted seven
days.
YLT
13and they take their bones
and bury [them] under the tamarisk in Jabesh
and fast seven days.
And they took their bones
and buried them under a tree at
Jabesh
.... For though they burned the bodies
yet so as to preserve the
bones; and these
together with the ashes of the parts burnt
they gathered up
and buried under a tree near this city; this tree is said to be an oak
1 Chronicles 10:12;
so Deborah
the nurse of Rebekah
was buried under an oak
Genesis 35:8. The
Jews generally interred their dead under some oak
as aforementioned writer
observesF17Pisgah-Sight of Palestine b. 2. ch. 2. p. 82. ; pleased
perchance with the parallel
as he expresses it
that as these plants
seemingly dead in winter
have every spring an annual resurrection
so men's
dry bones shall have new sap put into them at the day of judgment:
and fasted seven days; not that they ate and
drank nothing all that time
but they fasted every day till evening
as the
Jews used to do; so long it seems a man may live without eating
but not
longer; See Gill on Exodus 24:18 and
see Gill on 1 Kings 19:8; this
they did
as Kimchi thinks
in memory of the seven days Nahash the Ammonite gave
them for their relief
in which time Saul came and saved them
1 Samuel 11:3.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)