1 Samuel 19:16

16 When the messengers entered, behold, the household idol was on the bed with the quilt of goats' hair at its head.

1 Samuel 19:16 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 19:16

And when the messengers were come in
To David's house, and into the room where he was supposed to lie:

behold, [there was] an image in the bed to their great surprise;
they expected to see David, but instead of him the teraphim, as in ( 1 Samuel 19:13 ) ; if they had been in the room before, and thought they had seen David in the bed, they might be the more surprised to find that it was only an image they saw:

with a pillow of goats' [hair] for his bolster;
(See Gill on 1 Samuel 19:13).

1 Samuel 19:16 In-Context

14 When Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, "He is sick."

15 Then Saul sent messengers to see David, saying, "Bring him up to me on his bed, that I may put him to death."

16 When the messengers entered, behold, the household idol was on the bed with the quilt of goats' hair at its head.

17 So Saul said to Michal, "Why have you deceived me like this and let my enemy go, so that he has escaped?" And Michal said to Saul, "He said to me, 'Let me go! Why should I put you to death?' "

18 Now David fled and escaped and came to Samuel at Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and stayed in Naioth.

Footnotes

• [a]. Heb "teraphim"