Shemu’ĕl Aleph (1 Samuel) 18
18
1And it came to be, when he had ended speaking to Sha’ul, that the being of Yehonathan was knit to the being of Dawiḏ, and Yehonathan loved him as his own being.
2And Sha’ul took him that day, and would not let him return to his father’s house any more.
3And Yehonathan and Dawiḏ made a covenant, because he loved him as his own being.
4And Yehonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to Dawiḏ, and his garments, even to his sword and his bow and his girdle.
5And Dawiḏ went out wherever Sha’ul sent him. He acted wisely, and Sha’ul set him over the men of battle, and it was right in the eyes of all the people and also in the eyes of Sha’ul’s servants.
6And it came to be, as they came in, as Dawiḏ was returning from striking the Philistine, that the women came out from all the cities of Yisra’ĕl, singing and dancing, to meet Sha’ul the sovereign with tambourines, with joy, and with musical instruments.
7And the women sang as they danced, and said, “Sha’ul struck his thousands, and Dawiḏ his ten thousands.”
8And Sha’ul was very wroth, and this matter was evil in his eyes, and he said, “To Dawiḏ they have given ten thousands, and to me they have given thousands. So what more for him, except the reign?”
9And from that day on Sha’ul eyed Dawiḏ.
10And it came to be on the next day that an evil spirit from Elohim came upon Sha’ul, and he prophesied inside the house, while Dawiḏ was playing the lyre with his hand, as usual. And the spear was in the hand of Sha’ul.
11Then Sha’ul hurled the spear, for he said, “Let me strike Dawiḏ, even to the wall.” But twice Dawiḏ withdrew from his presence.
12And Sha’ul was afraid of Dawiḏ, because יהוה was with him, but from Sha’ul He had turned away.
13Sha’ul therefore removed him from his presence, and made him his commander over a thousand. And he went out and came in before the people.
14And Dawiḏ was acting wisely in all his ways, and יהוה was with him.
15And Sha’ul saw that he was acting very wisely, and was afraid of him.
16But all Yisra’ĕl and Yehuḏah loved Dawiḏ, as he went out and came in before them.
17And Sha’ul said to Dawiḏ, “See my older daughter Mĕraḇ! I give her to you as a wife. Only be brave for me, and fight the battles of יהוה.” For Sha’ul thought, “Let not my hand be against him, but let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”
18And Dawiḏ said to Sha’ul, “Who am I, and what is my life or my father’s clan in Yisra’ĕl, that I should be son-in-law to the sovereign?”
19And it came to be at the time when Mĕraḇ, Sha’ul’s daughter, should have been given to Dawiḏ, that she was given to Aḏri’ĕl the Meḥolathite as a wife.
20And Miḵal, Sha’ul’s daughter, loved Dawiḏ. And they told Sha’ul, and the matter was right in his eyes.
21And Sha’ul said, “Let me give her to him and let her be a snare to him, and the hand of the Philistines be against him.” So Sha’ul said to Dawiḏ a second time, “Become my son-in-law today.”
22And Sha’ul commanded his servants, “Speak to Dawiḏ gently, and say, ‘See, the sovereign has delighted in you, and all his servants have loved you. And now, be the sovereign’s son-in-law!’ ”
23And the servants of Sha’ul spoke those words in the hearing of Dawiḏ. And Dawiḏ said, “Does it seem to you a small matter to be a sovereign’s son-in-law, seeing I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed?”
24And the servants of Sha’ul told him, saying, “Dawiḏ has spoken according to these words.”
25And Sha’ul said, “Say to Dawiḏ, ‘The sovereign has no delight in any payment for the bride but one hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to take vengeance on the sovereign’s enemies.’ ” But Sha’ul intended to have Dawiḏ fall by the hand of the Philistines.
26And his servants declared these words to Dawiḏ, and it pleased Dawiḏ well to become the sovereign’s son-in-law. And the days had not expired,
27and Dawiḏ arose and went, he and his men, and struck two hundred men of the Philistines. And Dawiḏ brought their foreskins, and they set them before the sovereign, to become the sovereign’s son-in-law. And Sha’ul gave him Miḵal his daughter as a wife.
28And Sha’ul saw and knew that יהוה was with Dawiḏ, and Miḵal daughter of Sha’ul did love him.
29So then Sha’ul was still more afraid of Dawiḏ. And Sha’ul came to be an enemy of Dawiḏ all the days.
30And the princes of the Philistines went out to fight. And it came to be, whenever they went out, that Dawiḏ acted more wisely than all the servants of Sha’ul, so that his name came to be very precious.
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Shemu’ĕl Aleph (1 Samuel) 18: TS2009
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1 Samuel 18
18
David’s Love for Jonathan
1David finished talking to Saul. After that, Jonathan became David’s closest friend. He loved David as much as ⌞he loved⌟ himself. 2(From that day on Saul kept David ⌞as his servant⌟ and didn’t let him go back to his family.) 3So Jonathan made a pledge of mutual loyalty with David because he loved him as much as ⌞he loved⌟ himself. 4Jonathan took off the coat he had on and gave it to David along with his battle tunic, his sword, his bow, and his belt.
5David was successful wherever Saul sent him. Saul put him in charge of the fighting men. This pleased all the people, including Saul’s officials.
David’s Success Makes Saul Jealous
6As they arrived, David was returning from a campaign against the Philistines. Women from all of Israel’s cities came to meet King Saul. They sang and danced, accompanied by tambourines, joyful music, and triangles. 7The women who were celebrating sang,
“Saul has defeated thousands
but David tens of thousands!”
8Saul became very angry because he considered this saying to be insulting. “To David they credit tens of thousands,” he said, “but to me they credit ⌞only⌟ a few thousand. The only thing left for David is my kingdom.” 9From that day on Saul kept an eye on David.
10The next day an evil spirit from God seized Saul. He began to prophesy in his house while David strummed a tune on the lyre as he did every day. Now, Saul had a spear in his hand. 11He raised the spear and thought, “I’ll nail David to the wall.” But David got away from him twice.
12Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with David but had left Saul. 13So he kept David away. He made David captain of a regiment. David led the troops out ⌞to battle⌟ and back again. 14He was successful in everything he undertook because the Lord was with him. 15Saul noticed how very successful he was and became ⌞even more⌟ afraid of him. 16Everyone in Israel and Judah loved David, because he led them in and out ⌞of battle⌟.
17Finally, Saul said to David, “Here is my oldest daughter Merab. I will give her to you as your wife if you prove yourself to be a warrior for me and fight the Lord’s battles.” (Saul thought, “I must not lay a hand on him. Let the Philistines do that.”)
18“Who am I?” David asked Saul. “And how important are my relatives or my father’s family in Israel that I should be the king’s son-in-law?”
19But when the time came to give Saul’s daughter Merab to David, she was married to Adriel from Meholah. 20However, Saul’s daughter Michal fell in love with David. When Saul was told about it, the news pleased him. 21Saul thought, “I’ll give her to David. She will trap him, and the Philistines will get him.” So he said to David a second time, “You will now be my son-in-law.”
22Saul ordered his officers, “Talk to David in private. Tell him, ‘The king likes you, and all his officers are fond of you. Become the king’s son-in-law.’ ”
23When Saul’s officers made it a point to say this, David asked, “Do you think it’s easy to become the king’s son-in-law? I am a poor and unimportant person.”
24When the officers told Saul what David had said, 25Saul replied, “Tell David, ‘The king doesn’t want any payment for the bride except 100 Philistine foreskins so that he can get revenge on his enemies.’ ” In this way Saul planned to have David fall into the hands of the Philistines. 26When his officers told David this, David concluded that it was acceptable to become the king’s son-in-law. Before the time was up, 27David and his men went out and struck down 200 Philistines. David brought the foreskins, and they counted them out for the king so that David could become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal as his wife. 28Saul realized that the Lord was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David. 29Then Saul was even more afraid of David, and so Saul became David’s constant enemy.
30The Philistine generals still went out ⌞to fight Israel⌟. But whenever they went out ⌞to fight⌟, David was more successful than the rest of Saul’s officers. So David gained a good reputation.
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