1 Samuel 17:34

34 David replied to Saul, "I am a shepherd for my father's sheep. Whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock,

1 Samuel 17:34 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 17:34

And David said unto Saul
In answer to his objection of inability to encounter with one so superior to him; and this answer is founded on experience and facts, and shows that he was not so weak and inexpert as Saul took him to be:

thy servant kept his father's sheep;
which he was not ashamed to own, and especially as it furnished him with an stance of his courage, bravery, and success, and which would be convincing to Saul:

and there came a lion and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock;
not that they came together; though Kimchi so interprets it, "a lion with a bear"; but these are creatures that do not use to go together; and besides, both could not be said with propriety to take one and the same lamb out of the flock: to which may be added, that David in ( 1 Samuel 17:35 ) speaks only of one, out of whose mouth he took the lamb; wherefore the words may be rendered, "a lion or a bear" ^F6; and if the copulative "and" is retained, the meaning can only be, that at different times they would come and take a lamb, a lion at one time, and a bear at another.

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FOOTNOTES:

F6 (bwdh taw yrah) "leo vel ursus", V. L. "leo aut ursus", Junius & Tremellius, Bochart. Noldius, p. 271.

1 Samuel 17:34 In-Context

32 David told Saul, "No one should be discouraged because of this. I will go and fight this Philistine."

33 Saul responded to David, "You can't fight this Philistine. You're just a boy, but he's been a warrior since he was your age."

34 David replied to Saul, "I am a shepherd for my father's sheep. Whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock,

35 I went after it, struck it, and rescued the sheep from its mouth. If it attacked me, I took hold of its mane, struck it, and killed it.

36 I have killed lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them because he has challenged the army of the living God."