1 Samuel 14:12

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

1 Samuel 14:12 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 14:12

And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his
armourbearer
The guards that were set to watch the garrison, who descrying them, called to them, and said:

come up to us, and we will show you a thing;
we have something to say to you, a pretty thing to show you, when you shall pay dear for your boldness and impudence, in daring to come so near; not imagining that they could come, or would dare to attempt to come any further:

and Jonathan said unto his armourbearer, come up after me;
follow me, and never fear but we will find a way to come up to them, however difficult it may be:

for the Lord hath delivered them into the hand of Israel;
he knew by their language that God had given them a spirit of fear, that they durst not come out of their hold, and come down to them; and that he had cast them into a spirit of security and vain confidence, that they could never come at them, and give them any trouble; and from thence he concluded deliverance was at hand for the people of Israel, he seeking not his own private interest and glory, but the public good; and which he was ready to ascribe not to his own valour and courage, but to the power, kindness, and goodness of God.

1 Samuel 14:12 In-Context

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

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

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

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

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