1 Samuel 13:17

17 Three groups went out from the Philistine camp to make raids. One group went on the Ophrah road in the land of Shual.

1 Samuel 13:17 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 13:17

And the spoilers came out of the camp of the Philistines in
three companies
Saul not daring to come out to fight them, and there being none throughout the land to oppose them, they sent out three companies of soldiers to ravage and spoil the country; of so little use and service was a king to Israel, they were so extremely desirous of; and this was suffered, to convince them of their vain confidence in him, and that their trust ought to be in the Lord their God; never was their country more exposed to rapine and violence than now:

one company turned unto the way that leadeth to Ophrah;
a city in the land of Benjamin, of which see ( Joshua 18:23 ) and lay southwest from Michmash, where the army of the Philistines were:

unto the land of Shual:
which the Targum paraphrases,

``the land of the south;''

it seems to have had its name from the multitude of foxes in it, Shual signifying a fox.

1 Samuel 13:17 In-Context

15 Then Samuel left Gilgal and went to Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul counted the men who were still with him, and there were about six hundred.

16 Saul and his son Jonathan and the soldiers with him stayed in Gibeah in the land of Benjamin. The Philistines made their camp at Micmash.

17 Three groups went out from the Philistine camp to make raids. One group went on the Ophrah road in the land of Shual.

18 The second group went on the Beth Horon road. The third group went on the border road that overlooks the Valley of Zeboim toward the desert.

19 The whole land of Israel had no blacksmith because the Philistines had said, "The Hebrews might make swords and spears."