Shmuel Alef 14:13

13 And Yonatan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armor-bearer after him; and they fell before Yonatan; and his armorbearer slaughtered behind him.

Shmuel Alef 14:13 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 14:13

And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet
He did not attempt to go up the way or pass the Philistines kept, but turned aside and climbed up a precipice thought inaccessible, and came upon them unseen, and at unawares; for had he attempted to come up in any part where he was seen, they could easily have beat him down, and prevented his ascent; but though the place he climbed was so very steep and cragged, yet going on all four, as we say, he surmounted the difficulty; for he took this method of going on his hands and feet, not so much that he might not be seen; but because otherwise he could not have got up, not being able to stand on his feet; some think it was the precipice called Bozez he climbed, which, according to the Targum, had its name from its being lubricous and slippery:

and his armourbearer after him;
who clambered up in the same manner, in imitation of his master, and as taught and directed by him:

and they fell before Jonathan, and his armourbearer slew after him;
Jonathan, coming upon them at an unawares, knocked them down; or falling upon them, and laying about him with great dispatch, wounded them, and laid them prostrate to the ground; and his armourbearer following them, put them to death, dispatched them at once; and so between them both made quick riddance of them.

Shmuel Alef 14:13 In-Context

11 And both of them showed themselves unto the outpost of the Pelishtim (Philistines); and the Pelishtim said, Hinei, the Ivrim (Hebrews) come forth out of the chorim (holes) where they had hid themselves.

12 And the anashim of the outpost answered Yonatan and his armor-bearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will teach you a thing. And Yonatan said unto his armorbearer, Come up after me, for Hashem hath delivered them into the yad Yisroel.

13 And Yonatan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armor-bearer after him; and they fell before Yonatan; and his armorbearer slaughtered behind him.

14 And that first attack, which Yonatan and his armorbearer made, killed about esrim ish (twenty men), within an area of half a yoke [i.e., the area an oxen yoke could plow in one day, or rather, half of that].

15 And there was fearful panic in the machaneh, in the sadeh, and among kol haAm; the outpost, and the raiders, they also trembled, and ha’aretz quaked; so it was a cheredat Elohim (a panic from Elohim).