1 Samuel 24:5

5 And afterward David's heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul's skirt.

1 Samuel 24:5 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 24:5

And it came to pass afterward, that David's heart smote him,
&c.] His conscience accused him, and he repented of what he had done:

because he had cut off Saul's skirt;
which though less than what his servants put him upon, and he might have thoughts of doing, yet was considered by him as a great indignity to his sovereign, and therefore sat uneasy on his mind.

1 Samuel 24:5 In-Context

3 And he came to the sheepfolds by the way, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave.

4 And the men of David said to him, "Here is the day of which the LORD said to you, 'Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.'" Then David arose and stealthily cut off the skirt of Saul's robe.

5 And afterward David's heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul's skirt.

6 He said to his men, "The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD'S anointed, to put forth my hand against him, seeing he is the LORD'S anointed."

7 So David persuaded his men with these words, and did not permit them to attack Saul. And Saul rose up and left the cave, and went upon his way.