1 Samuele 14:15

15 E lo spavento si sparse nell’accampamento, nella campagna e fra tutto il popolo; la guarnigione e i guastatori furono anch’essi spaventati; il paese tremò; fu uno spavento di Dio.

1 Samuele 14:15 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 14:15

And there was trembling in the host in the field
Belonging to Michmash, where the army lay encamped:

and among all the people;
the inhabitants of Michmash, or that attended the army, and furnished them with provisions, trafficking with them; the common people, as distinguished from the soldiers:

the garrison;
those that were in it, who did not sally out, but perceiving a great slaughter made of their outer scouts, were seized with a panic:

and the spoilers they also trembled;
who had been about the country, ravaging and plundering it, and were returned with their booty; see ( 1 Samuel 13:17 )

and the earth quaked;
the inhabitants of it thereabout, or the earth itself literally; a real earthquake was caused at the same time, which increased the terror:

so that it was a very great trembling;
both with respect to the numbers that were affected with it throughout the camp and garrison, and the causes of it; the terrible apprehension they had of a large army just ready to rush upon them; the earth quaking and opening in various places, threatening to swallow them up; and perhaps suspicions of treachery among themselves, they consisting of various nations, and some among them Hebrews; hence they fell upon and slew one another, ( 1 Samuel 14:20 1 Samuel 14:21 ) , or "a trembling of God" ^F21; either in the same sense to which we translate it, as cedars of God, flame of God that is, large and great ones; or which came from God; it was he that sent this trembling among them, struck their minds with fear and dread, so that they were in the utmost consternation, and knew not what to do, nor which way to take, and had no heart to oppose the enemy, and defend themselves.

---

FOOTNOTES:

F21 (Myhla tdrxl) "in trepidationem Dei", Montanus, Drusius, Vatablus.

1 Samuele 14:15 In-Context

13 Gionathan salì, arrampicandosi con le mani e coi piedi, seguito dal suo scudiero. E i Filistei caddero dinanzi a Gionathan; e lo scudiero dietro a lui dava loro la morte.

14 In questa prima disfatta, inflitta da Gionathan e dal suo scudiero, caddero circa venti uomini, sullo spazio di circa la metà di un iugero di terra.

15 E lo spavento si sparse nell’accampamento, nella campagna e fra tutto il popolo; la guarnigione e i guastatori furono anch’essi spaventati; il paese tremò; fu uno spavento di Dio.

16 Le sentinelle di Saul a Ghibea di Beniamino guardarono ed ecco che la moltitudine si sbandava e fuggiva di qua e di là.

17 Allora Saul disse alla gente ch’era con lui: "Fate la rassegna, e vedete chi se n’è andato da noi". E, fatta la rassegna, ecco che mancavano Gionathan e il suo scudiero.