1 Samuel 13:1-23
Konteks13:1 Saul was [thirty] 1 years old when he began to reign; he ruled over Israel for [forty] 2 years. 13:2 Saul selected for himself three thousand men from Israel. Two thousand of these were with Saul at Micmash and in the hill country of Bethel; 3 the remaining thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin. 4 He sent all the rest of the people back home. 5
13:3 Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost 6 that was at Geba and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul alerted 7 all the land saying, “Let the Hebrews pay attention!” 13:4 All Israel heard this message, 8 “Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel is repulsive 9 to the Philistines!” So the people were summoned to join 10 Saul at Gilgal.
13:5 For the battle with Israel the Philistines had amassed 3,000 11 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and an army as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Micmash, east of Beth Aven. 13:6 The men of Israel realized they had a problem because their army was hard pressed. So the army hid in caves, thickets, cliffs, strongholds, 12 and cisterns. 13:7 Some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan River 13 to the land of Gad and Gilead. But Saul stayed at Gilgal; the entire army that was with him was terrified. 13:8 He waited for seven days, the time period indicated by Samuel. 14 But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the army began to abandon Saul. 15
13:9 So Saul said, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings.” Then he offered a burnt offering. 13:10 Just when he had finished offering the burnt offering, Samuel appeared on the scene. Saul went out to meet him and to greet him. 16
13:11 But Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul replied, “When I saw that the army had started to abandon me 17 and that you didn’t come at the appointed time and that the Philistines had assembled at Micmash, 13:12 I thought, 18 ‘Now the Philistines will come down on me at Gilgal and I have not sought the Lord’s favor.’ So I felt obligated 19 to offer the burnt offering.”
13:13 Then Samuel said to Saul, “You have made a foolish choice! You have not obeyed 20 the commandment that the Lord your God gave 21 you. Had you done that, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever! 13:14 But now your kingdom will not continue! The Lord has sought out 22 for himself a man who is loyal to him 23 and the Lord has appointed 24 him to be leader over his people, for you have not obeyed what the Lord commanded you.”
13:15 Then Samuel set out and went up from Gilgal 25 to Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin. 26 Saul mustered the army that remained with him; there were about six hundred men. 13:16 Saul, his son Jonathan, and the army that remained with them stayed in Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin, while the Philistines camped in Micmash. 27 13:17 Raiding bands went out from the camp of the Philistines in three groups. One band turned toward the road leading to Ophrah by the land of Shual; 13:18 another band turned toward the road leading to Beth Horon; and yet another band turned toward the road leading to the border that overlooks the valley of Zeboim in the direction of the desert.
13:19 A blacksmith could not be found in all the land of Israel, for the Philistines had said, “This will prevent the Hebrews from making swords and spears.” 13:20 So all Israel had to go down to the Philistines in order to get their plowshares, cutting instruments, axes, and sickles 28 sharpened. 13:21 They charged 29 two-thirds of a shekel 30 to sharpen plowshares and cutting instruments, and a third of a shekel 31 to sharpen picks and axes, and to set ox goads. 13:22 So on the day of the battle no sword or spear was to be found in the hand of anyone in the army that was with Saul and Jonathan. No one but Saul and his son Jonathan had them.
13:23 A garrison of the Philistines had gone out to the pass at Micmash.
1 Samuel 13:15
Konteks13:15 Then Samuel set out and went up from Gilgal 32 to Gibeah in the territory of Benjamin. 33 Saul mustered the army that remained with him; there were about six hundred men.
1 Samuel 1:1-28
Konteks1:1 There was a man from Ramathaim Zophim, 34 from the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Elkanah. He was the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 1:2 He had two wives; the name of the first was Hannah and the name of the second was Peninnah. Now Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless.
1:3 Year after year 35 this man would go up from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh. It was there that the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phineas, served as the Lord’s priests. 1:4 Whenever the day came for Elkanah to sacrifice, he used to give meat portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters. 1:5 But he would give a double 36 portion to Hannah, because he especially loved her. 37 Now the Lord had not enabled her to have children. 38 1:6 Her rival wife used to upset her and make her worry, 39 for the Lord had not enabled her to have children. 1:7 Peninnah 40 would behave this way year after year. Whenever Hannah 41 went up to the Lord’s house, Peninnah 42 would upset her so that she would weep and refuse to eat. 1:8 Finally her husband Elkanah said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep and not eat? Why are you so sad? 43 Am I not better to you than ten 44 sons?”
1:9 On one occasion in Shiloh, after they had finished eating and drinking, Hannah got up. 45 (Now at the time Eli the priest was sitting in his chair 46 by the doorpost of the Lord’s temple.) 1:10 She was very upset 47 as she prayed to the Lord, and she was weeping uncontrollably. 48 1:11 She made a vow saying, “O Lord of hosts, if you will look with compassion 49 on the suffering of your female servant, 50 remembering me and not forgetting your servant, and give a male child 51 to your servant, then I will dedicate him to the Lord all the days of his life. His hair will never be cut.” 52
1:12 As she continued praying to 53 the Lord, Eli was watching her mouth. 1:13 Now Hannah was speaking from her heart. Although her lips were moving, her voice was inaudible. Eli therefore thought she was drunk. 1:14 So he 54 said to her, “How often do you intend to get drunk? Put away your wine!”
1:15 But Hannah replied, “That’s not the way it is, 55 my lord! I am under a great deal of stress. 56 I have drunk neither wine nor beer. Rather, I have poured out my soul to 57 the Lord. 1:16 Don’t consider your servant a wicked woman, 58 for until now I have spoken from my deep pain and anguish.”
1:17 Eli replied, “Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant the request that you have asked of him.” 1:18 She said, “May I, your servant, find favor in your sight.” So the woman went her way and got something to eat. 59 Her face no longer looked sad.
1:19 They got up early the next morning and after worshiping the Lord, they returned to their home at Ramah. Elkanah had marital relations with 60 his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered 61 her. 1:20 After some time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, thinking, “I asked the Lord for him. 62
1:21 This man Elkanah went up with all his family to make the yearly sacrifice to the Lord and to keep his vow, 1:22 but Hannah did not go up with them. 63 Instead she told her husband, “Once the boy is weaned, I will bring him and appear before the Lord, and he will remain there from then on.”
1:23 So her husband Elkanah said to her, “Do what you think best. 64 Stay until you have weaned him. May the Lord fulfill his promise.” 65
So the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had weaned him. 1:24 Once she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with three bulls, an ephah 66 of flour, and a container 67 of wine. She brought him to the Lord’s house at Shiloh, even though he was young. 68 1:25 Once the bull had been slaughtered, they brought the boy to Eli. 1:26 She said, “Just as surely as you are alive, my lord, I am the woman who previously stood here with you in order to pray to the Lord. 1:27 I prayed for this boy, and the Lord has given me the request that I asked of him. 1:28 Now I dedicate him to the Lord. From this time on he is dedicated to the Lord.” Then they 69 worshiped the Lord there.
[13:1] 1 tc The MT does not have “thirty.” A number appears to have dropped out of the Hebrew text here, since as it stands the MT (literally, “a son of a year”) must mean that Saul was only one year old when he began to reign! The KJV, attempting to resolve this, reads “Saul reigned one year,” but that is not the normal meaning of the Hebrew text represented by the MT. Although most LXX
[13:1] 2 tc The MT has “two years” here. If this number is to be accepted as correct, the meaning apparently would be that after a lapse of two years at the beginning of Saul’s reign, he then went about the task of consolidating an army as described in what follows (cf. KJV, ASV, CEV). But if the statement in v. 1 is intended to be a comprehensive report on the length of Saul’s reign, the number is too small. According to Acts 13:21 Saul reigned for forty years. Some English versions (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT), taking this forty to be a round number, add it to the “two years” of the MT and translate the number in 2 Sam 13:1 as “forty-two years.” While this is an acceptable option, the present translation instead replaces the MT’s “two” with the figure “forty.” Admittedly the textual evidence for this decision is weak, but the same can be said of any attempt to restore sense to this difficult text (note the ellipsis marks at this point in NAB, NRSV). The Syriac Peshitta lacks this part of v. 1.
[13:2] 3 map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.
[13:2] 4 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[13:2] 5 tn Heb “each one to his tents.”
[13:3] 6 tn Or perhaps “struck down the Philistine official.” See the note at 1 Sam 10:5. Cf. TEV “killed the Philistine commander.”
[13:3] 7 tn Heb “blew the ram’s horn in.”
[13:4] 8 tn The words “this message” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[13:4] 9 tn Heb “stinks.” The figurative language indicates that Israel had become repulsive to the Philistines.
[13:4] 10 tn Heb “were summoned after.”
[13:5] 11 tn Many English versions (e.g., KJV, NASB, NRSV, TEV) read “30,000” here.
[13:6] 12 tn Or perhaps “vaults.” This rare term also occurs in Judg 9:46, 49. Cf. KJV “high places”; ASV “coverts”; NAB “caverns”; NASB “cellars”; NIV, NCV, TEV “pits”; NRSV, NLT “tombs.”
[13:7] 13 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
[13:8] 14 tn This apparently refers to the instructions given by Samuel in 1 Sam 10:8. If so, several years had passed. On the relationship between chs. 10 and 13, see V. P. Long, The Art of Biblical History (FCI), 201-23.
[13:8] 15 tn Heb “dispersed from upon him”; NAB, NRSV “began to slip away.”
[13:10] 16 tn Heb “to bless him.”
[13:11] 17 tn Heb “dispersed from upon me.”
[13:12] 19 tn Or “I forced myself” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV, CEV); NAB “So in my anxiety I offered”; NIV “I felt compelled.”
[13:13] 21 tn Heb “commanded.”
[13:14] 22 tn This verb form, as well as the one that follows (“appointed”), indicates completed action from the standpoint of the speaker. This does not necessarily mean that the Lord had already conducted his search and made his choice, however. The forms may be used for rhetorical effect to emphasize the certainty of the action. The divine search for a new king is as good as done, emphasizing that the days of Saul’s dynasty are numbered.
[13:14] 23 tn Heb “according to his heart.” The idiomatic expression means to be like-minded with another, as its use in 1 Sam 14:7 indicates.
[13:14] 24 tn Heb “commanded.”
[13:15] 25 tc The LXX and two Old Latin
[13:15] 26 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity (likewise in the following verse).
[13:16] 27 tn The juxtaposition of disjunctive clauses in v.16 indicates synchronic action.
[13:20] 28 tc The translation follows the LXX (“their sickle”) here, rather than the MT “plowshares,” which is due to dittography from the word earlier in the verse.
[13:21] 29 tn Heb “the price was.” The meaning of the Hebrew word פְּצִירָה (pÿtsirah) is uncertain. This is the only place it occurs in the OT. Some propose the meaning “sharpening,” but “price” is a more likely meaning if the following term refers to a weight (see the following note on the word “shekel”). See P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 238.
[13:21] 30 tn This word, which appears only here in the OT, probably refers to a stone weight. Stones marked פִּים (pim) have been found in excavations of Palestinian sites. The average weight of such stones is 0.268 ounces, which is equivalent to about two-thirds of a shekel. This probably refers to the price charged by the Philistines for the services listed. See P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 238; DNWSI 2:910; and G. I. Davies, Ancient Hebrew Inscriptions, 259.
[13:21] 31 tc Heb “and for a third, a pick.” The Hebrew text suffers from haplography at this point. The translation follows the textual reconstruction offered by P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 235.
[13:15] 32 tc The LXX and two Old Latin
[13:15] 33 tn Heb “at Gibeah of Benjamin.” The words “in the territory” are supplied in the translation for clarity (likewise in the following verse).
[1:1] 34 tc The translation follows the MT. The LXX reads “a man from Ramathaim, a Zuphite”; this is followed by a number of recent English translations. It is possible the MT reading צוֹפִים (tsofim) arose from dittography of the mem (מ) at the beginning of the following word.
[1:3] 35 tn Heb “from days to days.”
[1:5] 36 tn The exact sense of the Hebrew word אַפָּיִם (’appayim, “two faces”) is not certain here. It is most likely used with the preceding expression (“one portion of two faces”) to mean a portion double than normally received. Although evidence for this use of the word derives primarily from Aramaic rather than from Hebrew usage, it provides an understanding that fits the context here better than other suggestions for the word do. The meaning “double” is therefore adopted in the present translation. Other possibilities for the meaning of the word include the following: “heavily” (cf. Vulg., tristis) and “worthy” or “choice” (cf. KJV and Targum). Some scholars have followed the LXX here, emending the word to אֶפֶס (’efes) and translating it as “but” or “however.” This seems unnecessary. The translators of the LXX may simply have been struggling to make sense of the word rather than following a Hebrew text that was different from the MT here.
[1:5] 37 tn Heb “for Hannah he loved.” Repetition of the proper name would seem redundant in contemporary English, so the pronoun (“her”) has been used here for clarity. The translation also adds the adverb “especially” to clarify the meaning of the text. Without this addition one might get the impression that only Hannah, not Peninnah, was loved by her husband. But the point of the text is that Hannah was his favorite.
[1:5] 38 tn Heb “and the
[1:6] 39 tn Heb “and her rival wife grieved her, even [with] grief so as to worry her.”
[1:7] 40 tn The MT has a masculine form of the verb here יַעֲשֶׂה (ya’aseh, “he used to do”); the subject in that case would presumably be Elkanah. But this leads to an abrupt change of subject in the following part of the verse, where the subject is the rival wife who caused Hannah anxiety. In light of v. 6 one expects the statement of v. 7 to refer to the ongoing actions of the rival wife: “she used to behave in this way year after year.” Some scholars have proposed retaining the masculine form but changing the vocalization of the verb so as to read a Niphal rather than a Qal (i.e., יֵעֲשֶׂה, ye’aseh, “so it used to be done”). But the problem here is lack of precedent for such a use of the Niphal of this verb. It seems best in light of the context to understand the reference to be to Hannah’s rival Peninnah and to read here, with the Syriac Peshitta, a feminine form of the verb (“she used to do”). In the translation the referent (Peninnah) has been specified for clarity.
[1:7] 41 tn Heb “she”; the referent (Hannah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[1:7] 42 tn Heb “she”; the referent (Peninnah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[1:8] 43 tn Heb “why is your heart displeased?”
[1:8] 44 sn Like the number seven, the number ten is sometimes used in the OT as an ideal number (see, for example, Dan 1:20, Zech 8:23).
[1:9] 45 tc The LXX adds “and stood before the Lord,” but this is probably a textual expansion due to the terseness of the statement in the Hebrew text.
[1:9] 46 tn Or perhaps, “on his throne.” See Joüon 2:506-7 §137.f.
[1:10] 47 tn Heb “she [was in] bitterness of soul.”
[1:10] 48 tn Heb “and weeping, she was weeping.” The infinitive absolute emphasizes the extent of her sorrow. The imperfect verbal form emphasizes the continuation of the action in past time.
[1:11] 49 tn Heb “if looking you look.” The expression can refer, as here, to looking favorably upon another, in this case with compassion.
[1:11] 50 tn Heb “handmaid.” The use of this term (translated two more times in this verse and once each in vv. 16, 17 simply as “servant” for stylistic reasons) is an expression of humility.
[1:11] 51 tn Heb “seed of men.”
[1:11] 52 tn Heb “a razor will not go up upon his head.”
[1:12] 53 tc Heb “before.” Many medieval Hebrew manuscripts read “to.”
[1:14] 54 tn Heb “Eli.” The pronoun (“he”) has been used in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style.
[1:15] 56 tn Heb “I am a woman difficult of spirit.” The LXX has “for whom the day is difficult,” apparently mistaking the Hebrew word for “spirit” רוּחַ (ruakh) to be the word for “day” יוֹם (yom).
[1:16] 58 tn Heb “daughter of worthlessness.”
[1:18] 59 tc Several medieval Hebrew
[1:19] 60 tn Heb “Elkanah knew his wife.” The Hebrew expression is a euphemism for sexual relations.
[1:19] 61 sn The Lord “remembered” her in the sense of granting her earlier request for a child. The Hebrew verb is often used in the OT for considering the needs or desires of people with favor and kindness.
[1:20] 62 tn Heb “because from the
[1:22] 63 tn The disjunctive clause is contrastive here. The words “with them” have been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[1:23] 64 tn Heb “what is good in your eyes.”
[1:23] 65 tn Heb “establish his word.” This apparently refers to the promise inherent in Eli’s priestly blessing (see v. 17).
[1:24] 66 sn The ephah was a standard dry measure in OT times; it was the equivalent of one-tenth of the OT measure known as a homer. The ephah was equal to approximately one-half to two-thirds of a bushel.
[1:24] 67 tn The Hebrew term translated “container” may denote either a clay storage jar (cf. CEV “a clay jar full of wine”) or a leather container (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV “a skin of wine”; NCV “a leather bag filled with (full of TEV) wine.”
[1:24] 68 tc Heb “and the boy was a boy.” If the MT is correct the meaning apparently is that the boy was quite young at the time of these events. On the other hand, some scholars have suspected a textual problem, emending the text to read either “and the boy was with them” (so LXX) or “and the boy was with her” (a conjectural emendation). In spite of the difficulty it seems best to stay with the MT here.
[1:28] 69 tn Heb “he,” apparently referring to Samuel (but cf. CEV “Elkanah”). A few medieval manuscripts and some ancient versions take the verb as plural (cf. TEV, NLT).
