1 Samuel 18
18
1After David finished speaking with Saul, Jonathan became great friends with David. He loved David as he loved himself. 2From that time on Jonathan had David work for him and would not let him go back home. 3Jonathan made a solemn agreement with David because he loved him as he loved himself. 4Jonathan took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, together with his tunic, his sword, his bow, and his belt.#18:4. These actions were a way of confirming the agreement.
5David was successful in doing everything Saul asked him to do, so Saul made him an officer in the army. This pleased everyone, including Saul's other officers.
6When the soldiers returned home after David had killed the Philistine, the women of all the towns of Israel came out singing and dancing to meet King Saul, happily celebrating with tambourines and musical instruments. 7As they danced the women sang, “Saul has killed his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.”
8What they were singing made Saul very angry as he didn't think it was right. He said to himself, “They've given David credit for killing tens of thousands, but only thousands to me. All that's left is to give him the kingdom!” 9From that time on Saul viewed David with suspicion.
10The following day an evil spirit from God came on Saul with power, and he was ranting#18:10. “Ranting”: the word is normally translated “prophesying,” (see for example 10:10 when it is applied to Saul), but the main function of a true prophet of God was to deliver messages from God. That the source was “an evil spirit” does not fit such a picture, even if the evil spirit “came from God.” inside the house while David played the harp as he regularly did. Saul happened to be holding a spear, 11and he threw it at David, saying to himself, “I'll pin David to the wall.” But David managed to escape him twice.
12Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with David, but he had given up on Saul. 13So Saul sent David away and made him a commander of a thousand soldiers, leading them out and back as part of the army.
14David was very successful in everything he did, because the Lord was with him. 15When Saul saw how successful David was, he was even more afraid of him. 16But everyone in Israel and Judah loved David, because of his leadership in the army.
17One day Saul told David, “Here's my oldest daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage, but only if you prove to me you're a brave warrior and fight the battles of the Lord.” For Saul was thinking, “I don't need to be the one to kill him—let the Philistines do it!”
18“But who am I, and what status does my family have in Israel, for me to become the son-in-law of the king?” David replied.#18:18. David may have been concerned at the cost of providing a dowry, especially as this is a condition of marriage mentioned later in verse 25.
19However, when the time came to give Merab, Saul's daughter, to David, she was given in marriage to Adriel of Meholah instead.
20Meanwhile Saul's daughter Michal had fallen in love with David, and when Saul was told, he was happy about it. 21“I'll give her to David,” Saul thought. “She can be the bait so the Philistines can trap him.” So Saul said to David, “This is the second time you can become my son-in-law.”
22Saul gave these instructions to his servants, “Talk with David in private and tell him, ‘Look, the king is very happy with you, and all of us love you. Why not become the king's son-in-law?’”
23Saul's servants spoke privately to David, but he replied, “Do you think it's nothing to become the king's son-in-law? I'm a poor man, and I'm not important.”
24When Saul's servants explained to him what David had said, 25Saul told them, “Tell David, ‘The only dowry the king wants for the bride is one hundred foreskins of dead Philistines as a way of taking revenge on his enemies.’” Saul's plan was to have David be killed by the Philistines.
26When the servants reported what the king had said back to David, he was happy to become the king's son-in-law. While there was still time, 27David set off with his men and killed two hundred Philistines, and brought back their foreskins. They counted them all out before the king so that David could become the king's son-in-law. So Saul gave him his daughter Michal in marriage.
28Saul realized that the Lord was with David and that his daughter Michal was in love with David, 29and so he became even more afraid of David, and was David's enemy for the rest of his life.
30Whenever the Philistine commanders attacked, David was more successful in battle than all of Saul's officers, so that his reputation grew rapidly.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
I Samuel 18
18
Saul Resents David
1Now when he had finished speaking to Saul, #1 Sam. 17:12the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, #Gen. 44:30and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. 2Saul took him that day, #Deut. 13:6; 1 Sam. 20:17; 2 Sam. 1:26and would not let him go home to his father’s house anymore. 3Then Jonathan and David made a #1 Sam. 17:15covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. 4And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.
5So David went out wherever Saul sent him, and behaved wisely. And Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul’s servants. 6Now it had happened as they were coming home, when David was returning from the slaughter of the Philistine, that #1 Sam. 20:8–17the women had come out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with joy, and with musical instruments. 7So the women #Ex. 15:20, 21; Judg. 11:34; Ps. 68:25; 149:3sang as they danced, and said:
#Ex. 15:21“Saul has slain his thousands,
And David his ten thousands.”
8Then Saul was very angry, and the saying #1 Sam. 21:11; 29:5displeased him; and he said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed only thousands. Now what more can he have but #Eccl. 4:4the kingdom?” 9So Saul eyed David from that day forward.
10And it happened on the next day that #1 Sam. 15:28the distressing spirit from God came upon Saul, #1 Sam. 16:14and he prophesied inside the house. So David #1 Sam. 19:24; 1 Kin. 18:29; Acts 16:16played music with his hand, as at other times; #1 Sam. 16:23but there was a spear in Saul’s hand. 11And Saul #1 Sam. 19:9, 10cast the spear, for he said, “I will pin David to the wall!” But David escaped his presence twice.
12Now Saul was #1 Sam. 19:10; 20:33afraid of David, because #1 Sam. 18:15, 29the Lord was with him, but had #1 Sam. 16:13, 18departed from Saul. 13Therefore Saul removed him from his presence, and made him his captain over a thousand; and #1 Sam. 16:14; 28:15he went out and came in before the people. 14And David behaved wisely in all his ways, and #Num. 27:17; 1 Sam. 18:16; 29:6; 2 Sam. 5:2the Lord was with him. 15Therefore, when Saul saw that he behaved very wisely, he was afraid of him. 16But #Gen. 39:2, 3, 23; Josh. 6:27; 1 Sam. 16:18all Israel and Judah loved David, because he went out and came in before them.
David Marries Michal
17Then Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab; #Num. 27:16, 17; 1 Sam. 18:5; 2 Sam. 5:2; 1 Kin. 3:7I will give her to you as a wife. Only be valiant for me, and fight #1 Sam. 14:49; 17:25the Lord’s battles.” For Saul thought, #Num. 32:20, 27, 29; 1 Sam. 25:28“Let my hand not be against him, but let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”
18So David said to Saul, #1 Sam. 18:21, 25; 2 Sam. 12:9“Who am I, and what is my life or my father’s family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?” 19But it happened at the time when Merab, Saul’s daughter, should have been given to David, that she was given to #1 Sam. 9:21; 18:23; 2 Sam. 7:18Adriel the #2 Sam. 21:8Meholathite as a wife.
20#Judg. 7:22; 2 Sam. 21:8; 1 Kin. 19:16Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. And they told Saul, and the thing pleased him. 21So Saul said, “I will give her to him, that she may be a snare to him, and that #1 Sam. 18:28the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” Therefore Saul said to David a second time, #1 Sam. 18:17“You shall be my son-in-law today.”
22And Saul commanded his servants, “Communicate with David secretly, and say, ‘Look, the king has delight in you, and all his servants love you. Now therefore, become the king’s son-in-law.’ ”
23So Saul’s servants spoke those words in the hearing of David. And David said, “Does it seem to you a light thing to be a king’s son-in-law, seeing I am a poor and lightly esteemed man?” 24And the servants of Saul told him, saying, “In this manner David spoke.”
25Then Saul said, “Thus you shall say to David: ‘The king does not desire any #1 Sam. 18:26dowry but one hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to take #Gen. 34:12; Ex. 22:17vengeance on the king’s enemies.’ ” But Saul #1 Sam. 14:24thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines. 26So when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well to become the king’s son-in-law. Now #1 Sam. 18:17the days had not expired; 27therefore David arose and went, he and #1 Sam. 18:21his men, and killed two hundred men of the Philistines. And #1 Sam. 18:13David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full count to the king, that he might become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him Michal his daughter as a wife.
28Thus Saul saw and knew that the Lord was with David, and that Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved him; 29and Saul was still more afraid of David. So Saul became David’s enemy continually. 30Then the princes of the Philistines #2 Sam. 3:14went out to war. And so it was, whenever they went out, that David #2 Sam. 11:1behaved more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so that his name became highly esteemed.
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.