1 Samuel 29:4

4 Certainly the princes of (the) Philistines were wroth against Achish, and they said to him, (Have) The man turn again, and abide he in his place, in which thou hast ordained him, and come he not down with us into battle, lest he be made (an) adversary to us, when we have begun to fight; for how may he please his lord in other manner, but in our heads? (for how can he please his lord in any other manner, but than with our heads?)

1 Samuel 29:4 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 29:4

And the princes of the Philistines were wroth with him
With Achish, for giving such a character of David, and taking his part, in order to detain him, if possible:

and the princes of the Philistines said unto him, make this fellow
return;
they speak of him with contempt, and insist on it that Achish order him to turn back, and go no further with them:

that he may go again to his place which thou hast appointed him;
to Ziklag, the place that Achish had given him for his residence, ( 1 Samuel 27:6 ) ; they did not desire to have him sent to his own country, and to Saul, since should a reconciliation be made between them, he would be of great service to Saul against them:

and let him not go down with us to battle;
into the valley of Jezreel, where the Israelites had pitched:

lest in the battle he be an adversary to us:
and fall upon them behind, being in the rear, while they were engaging in the front with Israel:

for wherewith should he reconcile himself unto his master?
to Saul he had offended, and fled from:

[should it] not [be] with the heads of these men?
the Philistines; or unless by the heads of these men ^F13; he had no other way of making his peace with his master but by cutting off the heads of the Philistines; and therefore he was a dangerous man to take with them into the battle.

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FOOTNOTES:

F13 (yvarb alh) "nisi per capita", Noldius, p. 257. No. 1147.

1 Samuel 29:4 In-Context

2 And soothly the princes of the Philistines went in companies of an hundred, and in thousands; but David and his men were in the last company with Achish. (And the princes of the Philistines led out their companies in units of a hundred, and of a thousand; and David and his men were in the last group with Achish.)

3 And the princes of Philistines said to Achish, What will these Hebrews to themselves? And Achish said to the princes of Philistines, Whether ye know not David, that was the servant of Saul, king of Israel? and he was with me many days, either years, and I found not in him anything of imagining to evil, from the day in which he fled to me unto this day. (And the princes of the Philistines said to Achish, What be these Hebrews doing here? And Achish said to the Philistine princes, Do ye not know David, who was the servant of Saul, the king of Israel? he hath been with me for many years, and I have found nothing of evil in him, from the day in which he fled to me until this day.)

4 Certainly the princes of (the) Philistines were wroth against Achish, and they said to him, (Have) The man turn again, and abide he in his place, in which thou hast ordained him, and come he not down with us into battle, lest he be made (an) adversary to us, when we have begun to fight; for how may he please his lord in other manner, but in our heads? (for how can he please his lord in any other manner, but than with our heads?)

5 Whether this is not David, to whom they sang in dances, and said, Saul smote in [his] thousands, and David smote in his ten thousands? (Is this not David, whom they sang about as they danced, and said, Saul struck down thousands, but David struck down tens of thousands?)

6 Therefore Achish called David, and said to him, (As) The Lord liveth; for thou art rightful (for thou art upright), and good in my sight, and thy going out and thy coming in is with me in [the] tents, and I have not found in thee anything of evil, from the day in which thou camest to me till to this day; but thou pleasest not the princes, or satraps.