1 Samuel 14:21

21 Some Hebrews, who had been on the Philistine side and had gone with them to the camp, changed sides again and joined Saul and Jonathan.

1 Samuel 14:21 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 14:21

Moreover, the Hebrews that were with the Philistines before
that time
Who either were their servants and bondsmen they brought along with them, or such in whose cities they dwelt, or had taken as they came along, and forced into their army; or it may be some of them were renegades from the Israelites, deserters, who for safety and subsistence betook themselves to them as the stronger party. The Greek version reads,

``the servants that were with the Philistines:''

which went up with them into the camp [from the country] round about;
either willingly or by force; the words, "from the country", are not in the text, wherefore some observe, as Kimchi and Abarbinel, that this respects their being round about the camp, and that they were not within it, but without it, that if possible they might escape fighting against the Israelites:

even they also turned to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and
Jonathan;
who were now joined; when they saw the dread and confusion in the camp of the Philistines, and them destroying one another, and the Israelites prevailing over them, victorious and pursuing, they took part with them, and assisted them in completing the victory.

1 Samuel 14:21 In-Context

19 As Saul was speaking to the priest, the confusion in the Philistine camp kept getting worse, so Saul said to him, "There's no time to consult the Lord!"

20 Then he and his men marched into battle against the Philistines, who were fighting each other in complete confusion.

21 Some Hebrews, who had been on the Philistine side and had gone with them to the camp, changed sides again and joined Saul and Jonathan.

22 Others, who had been hiding in the hills of Ephraim, heard that the Philistines were running away, so they also joined in and attacked the Philistines,

23 fighting all the way beyond Bethaven. The Lord saved Israel that day.

Footnotes

• [a]. [Some ancient translations] changed sides again; [Hebrew] around also.