1 Samuel 21:7

7 And there [is] a man of the servants of Saul on that day detained before Jehovah, and his name [is] Doeg the Edomite, chief of the shepherds whom Saul hath.

1 Samuel 21:7 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 21:7

Now a certain man of the servants of Saul [was] there that
day
When David came to Nob, and asked bread of the priest, and had it, which this man was an eyewitness of, ( 1 Samuel 22:9 1 Samuel 22:10 ) ;

detained before the Lord;
either because it was sabbath day, and so he might not travel, at least no more than two thousand cubits; or by some vow of his, which he was obliged to stay and perform; or on account of some impurity he had contracted, which he came to be cleansed from; or this detention was voluntary, in order to offer sacrifice to the Lord, or pray unto him, or to study the law of God in the tabernacle, pretending to be a very religious man:

and his name [was] Doeg, an Edomite,
being by birth an Idumean, but a proselyte to the Jewish religion; or he was of the seed of Israel, but because he had dwelt in Edom, he was called an Edomite, as Kimchi thinks; just as Uriah is called for a like reason the Hittite:

the chiefest of the herdmen that [belonged] to Saul;
Saul had his herds and men to look after them, and this man was set over them all, to see that they faithfully discharged their trust. The same officer the Romans called the praefect, or master of the cattle ^F11; (See Gill on 1 Chronicles 27:29), and (See Gill on 1 Chronicles 27:31); though this man was not only over the king's cattle, but over those that kept them; and was in the same office as Phorbas was, under Laius king of Thebes ^F12, and Melanthius in Homer ^F13, and Faustulus to Amulius ^F14: but Abarbinel is of opinion that this is to be understood not of the keepers of herds and flocks, but of the shepherds or rulers of the people; and that this man was set over all the other magistrates and rulers of the people, hence said to be "set over the servants of Saul", ( 1 Samuel 22:9 ) ; and so Jarchi calls him "Ab Beth Din", or father of the sanhedrim, or great court of judicature; who was detained in the tabernacle to learn the law there, that he might be the better qualified for his office; but Kimchi interprets it as we do, the chief of the keepers of the herd, and both the Septuagint and Josephus ^F15 say that he fed the king's mules.

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FOOTNOTES:

F11 Vid. Pignorium de servis, p. 539.
F12 Senecae Oedipus, Act. 4. v. 815, 816, 839.
F13 Odyss. 20. ver. 21.
F14 Aurel. Victor. orig. Gent. Roman.
F15 Antiqu. l. 6. c. 12. sect. 1.

1 Samuel 21:7 In-Context

5 And David answereth the priest, and saith to him, `Surely, if women have been restrained from us as heretofore in my going out, then the vessels of the young men are holy, and it [is] a common way: and also, surely to-day it is sanctified in the vessel.'

6 And the priest giveth to him the holy thing, for there was no bread there except the bread of the Presence which is turned aside from the presence of Jehovah to put hot bread in the day of its being taken away.

7 And there [is] a man of the servants of Saul on that day detained before Jehovah, and his name [is] Doeg the Edomite, chief of the shepherds whom Saul hath.

8 And David saith to Ahimelech, `And is there not here under thy hand spear or sword? for neither my sword nor my vessels have I taken in my hand, for the matter of the king was urgent.'

9 And the priest saith, `The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou didst smite in the valley of Elah, lo, it is wrapt in a garment behind the ephod, if it thou dost take to thyself, take; for there is none other save it in this [place].' And David saith, `There is none like it -- give it to me.'