1 Samuel 19:22

22 Fed up, Saul went to Ramah himself. He came to the big cistern at Secu and inquired, "Where are Samuel and David?" A bystander said, "Over at Naioth in Ramah."

1 Samuel 19:22 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 19:22

Then went he also to Ramah
That is, Saul; his messengers not returning to him, when he sent one after another to take David, at length he set out himself from Gibeah to Ramah:

and came to a great well that [is] in Sechu;
which was either the name of a man, the owner of the well, or a place near to which the well was, and is commonly thought to be the same with Shochoh, ( 1 Samuel 17:1 ) ; at such places there was generally a concourse of people at certain times, to fetch water for the inhabitants of the place, and for the watering of flocks and herds, and so a proper place to stop at, and ask the following questions:

and he asked and said, where [are] Samuel and David?
for his messengers not returning to him, he could not be sure where they now were, though he had heard they were at Naioth:

and [one] said, behold, [they be] at Naioth in Ramah;
at the house of doctrine, or school in Ramah, as the Targum; thus one at the well replied, in answer to his question, who had seen them go there, or knew they were there.

1 Samuel 19:22 In-Context

20 He immediately sent his men to capture him. They saw a band of prophets prophesying with Samuel presiding over them. Before they knew it, the Spirit of God was on them, too, and they were ranting and raving right along with the prophets!
21 That was reported back to Saul, and he dispatched more men. They, too, were soon prophesying. So Saul tried a third time - a third set of men - and they ended up mindlessly raving as well!
22 Fed up, Saul went to Ramah himself. He came to the big cistern at Secu and inquired, "Where are Samuel and David?" A bystander said, "Over at Naioth in Ramah."
23 As he headed out for Naioth in Ramah, the Spirit of God was on him, too. All the way to Naioth he was caught up in a babbling trance!
24 He ripped off his clothes and lay there rambling gibberish before Samuel for a day and a night, stretched out naked. People are still talking about it: "Saul among the prophets! Who would have guessed?"
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.