1 Samuel 18:12-22

12 And Saul dreaded David, (or feared him,) for the Lord was with David, and had gone away from him.
13 Then Saul removed David from himself (Then Saul removed David from his household), and made him (a) chieftain upon a thousand men; and David went out and he came in before the people.
14 And David did wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him;
15 and so Saul saw that David was full prudent/was full wise, and he began to beware of David.
16 And all Israel and Judah loved David; for he went in and out before them.
17 And Saul said to David, Lo! mine elder daughter Merab, I shall give her (for a) wife to thee; only be thou a strong man, and fight thou the Lord's battles. Forsooth Saul areckoned, and said, Mine hand be not in him, but the hand of Philistines be on him (But Saul reckoned, and said to himself, My hand shall not be upon him, but the hands of the Philistines shall be upon him).
18 And David said to Saul, Who am I, either what is my life, either (what is) the family of my father in Israel, that I (should) be made the son-in-law of the king?
19 And when the time came that Merab, the daughter of Saul, should have been given wife to David, she was given wife to Adriel Meholathite. (But when the time came that Merab, Saul's daughter, should have been given for a wife to David, instead she was given for a wife to Adriel the Meholathite.)
20 Forsooth David loved Michal, the [tother] daughter of Saul; and it was told to Saul, and it pleased him.
21 And Saul said, I shall give her to him, that it be to him into cause of stumbling, and the hand of Philistines be upon him. Therefore Saul said to David, In (wedding one of my) two daughters thou shalt be my son-in-law today. (And Saul said, I shall give her to him, so that she shall become a cause of stumbling to him, and so that the hands of the Philistines shall be upon him. And so Saul said to David, By wedding my younger daughter, on that day thou shalt become my son-in-law.)
22 And Saul commanded to his servants, (and said,) Speak ye privily to David, as if it were me unwitting (Speak ye privately to David, as if I did not know it), and say ye to him, Lo! thou pleasest the king, and all his servants love thee; now therefore be thou [the] husband of the king's daughter.

1 Samuel 18:12-22 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST SAMUEL 18

This chapter gives an account of the respect shown to David by Saul and Jonathan, by the servants of Saul, and all the people, and of what was said in his praise in the songs of the women, 1Sa 18:1-7; which latter gave Saul a great offence, and upon which he envied him, and eyed him, and indeed sought his life, and removed him from him; and yet still he continued the darling of the people, behaving wisely among them, which greatly embarrassed Saul, that be knew not what to do, 1Sa 18:8-16; he proposed his eldest daughter to him in marriage, which he had a claim to by killing the Philistine, and then he cheated him by giving her to another, 1Sa 18:17-19; and then he offered his youngest daughter to him, on condition that he would bring him an hundred foreskins of the Philistines, execution of which he thought his life would be exposed to danger, which yet he performed, 1Sa 18:20-27; and having the affection of his wife, and the good esteem of the servants of Saul, Saul was more afraid of him, and became his enemy, 1Sa 18:28-30.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.