1 Samuel 31:12

12 all their valiant men marched through the night to Beth Shan. They took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan and went to Jabesh, where they burned them.

1 Samuel 31:12 in Other Translations

12 All the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Bethshan, and came to Jabesh, and burnt them there.

12 all the valiant men arose and went all night and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan, and they came to Jabesh and burned them there.

12 all their mighty warriors traveled through the night to Beth-shan and took the bodies of Saul and his sons down from the wall. They brought them to Jabesh, where they burned the bodies.

12 Their valiant men sprang into action. They traveled all night, took the corpses of Saul and his three sons from the wall at Beth Shan, and carried them back to Jabesh and burned off the flesh.

12 all their brave men set out, journeyed all night, and retrieved the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan. When they arrived at Jabesh, they burned the bodies there.

1 Samuel 31:12 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 31:12

All the valiant men arose
Of the city of Jabeshgilead, fired with indignation at the Philistines' ill usage of Saul and the bodies of his sons:

and went all night;
not only for secrecy, but for haste:

and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of
Bethshan, and came to Jabesh;
brought them with them thither, the Philistines either having no knowledge of it, or not daring to oppose them:

and burnt them there:
that is, the flesh of them, for the bones they buried, as in ( 1 Samuel 31:13 ) ; and this they did, contrary to the common usage of the country, which was not to burn; but this they did, that if the Philistines should come to recover them, they would not be able to do it: though the Targum is,

``they burnt over them, as they burn over their kings there;''

they made a burning for them of spices over them; or of their beds, and other household goods, as Kimchi and Ben Melech observe, though they prefer the other sense; see ( 2 Chronicles 16:14 ) ( 21:19 ) perhaps the true reason might be, because they were putrid and infectious.

1 Samuel 31:12 In-Context

10 They put his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths and fastened his body to the wall of Beth Shan.

11 When the people of Jabesh Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,

12 all their valiant men marched through the night to Beth Shan. They took down the bodies of Saul and his sons from the wall of Beth Shan and went to Jabesh, where they burned them.

13 Then they took their bones and buried them under a tamarisk tree at Jabesh, and they fasted seven days.

Cross References

• 1. Psalms 76:5
• 2. S Genesis 38:24; 2 Samuel 2:4-7; 2 Chronicles 16:14; Amos 6:10