1 Kings 11:32
in 1 Kings 11But one tribe will remain for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
(but he shall have one tribe, for my servant David’s sake and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel);
KJV
(But he shall have one tribe for my servant David’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:)
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This verse in 1 Kings 11
Commentary
5 notes on this verseIn the Gospel there is a proof of this mystery of unity, this inseparable bond of harmony, when the coat of the Lord Jesus Christ is not cut or rent at all. The garment is received whole and the coat taken into possession unspoiled and undivided by those who cast lots for Christ's garment, asking who should put on Christ. Holy Scripture says of this, "But for the coat, because it was not sewn but woven from the top throughout, they said to each other: Let us not rend it but casts lots for it, whose it shall be."
This site's exposition
one tribe will remain for the sake of My servant David
on 1 Kings 11:32-34
Ahijah names the gods, “Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites”. He twice gives David as the ground of mercy. With verses 12 and 13, the chapter states that reason four times, the most anywhere in Kings.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
Here God's mercy is absolutely evident. Even though he knew how wicked Jeroboam was, [God] appoints him king in order to show that, as far as it depends on him, his gifts are never denied but showered on everyone. Humans themselves, however, refuse them deliberately.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake,.... See Gill on 1Ki 11:13.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
He was a young man of talent and energy, who, having been appointed by Solomon superintendent of the engineering works projected around Jerusalem, had risen into public notice, and on being informed by a very significant act of the prophet Ahijah of the royal destiny which, by divine appointment, awaited him, his mind took a new turn.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהַשֵּׁ֥בֶט | vehashevet | and the tribe | H7626 → | 190 times |
| הָאֶחָ֖ד | haechad | <the> one | H259 → | 971 times |
| יִֽהְיֶה־ | yihyeh- | it will belong | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לּ֑וֹ | lo | to him | ||
| לְמַ֣עַן׀ | lemaan | for [the] sake of | H4616 → | 272 times |
| עַבְדִּ֣י | ʾavdi | servant my | H5650 → | 799 times |
| דָוִ֗ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| וּלְמַ֙עַן֙ | ulemaan | and for [the] sake of | H4616 → | 272 times |
| יְר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם | yerushalim | Jerusalem | H3389 → | 643 times |
| הָעִיר֙ | hair | the city | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| בָּחַ֣רְתִּי | bacharti | I have chosen | H977 → | 171 times |
| בָ֔הּ | vah | <in> it | ||
| מִכֹּ֖ל | mikol | from all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| שִׁבְטֵ֥י | shivtei | [the] tribes of | H7626 → | 190 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
וְהַשֵּׁ֥בֶטand the tribe
vehashevetH7626 →190 times
הָאֶחָ֖ד<the> one
haechadH259 →971 times
יִֽהְיֶה־it will belong
yihyeh-H1961 →3559 times
לּ֑וֹto him
lo
לְמַ֣עַן׀for [the] sake of
lemaanH4616 →272 times
עַבְדִּ֣יservant my
ʾavdiH5650 →799 times
דָוִ֗דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
וּלְמַ֙עַן֙and for [the] sake of
ulemaanH4616 →272 times
יְר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔םJerusalem
yerushalimH3389 →643 times
הָעִיר֙the city
hairH5892 →1090 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
בָּחַ֣רְתִּיI have chosen
bachartiH977 →171 times
בָ֔הּ<in> it
vah
מִכֹּ֖לfrom all
mikolH3605 →5413 times
שִׁבְטֵ֥י[the] tribes of
shivteiH7626 →190 times
יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃Israel
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Kings 14:21Meanwhile, Rehoboam son of Solomon reigned in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen from all the tribes…
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 12:13
Thus King Rehoboam established himself in Jerusalem. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen from all the tribes of…
- 1 Kings 11:36
I will give one tribe to his son, so that My servant David will always have a lamp before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put My Name.
- 1 Kings 14:31
And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the City of David; his mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite. And his son Abijam reigned in his place.
- 2 Chronicles 12:13
Through
1 Kings 11:13Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom away from him. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I…
it leads to
- 1 Kings 12:20
When all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they summoned him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah followed the house of David.
- Deuteronomy 12:11
then the LORD your God will choose a dwelling for His Name. And there you are to bring everything I command you: your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, and all…
- Psalms 132:13–14
For the LORD has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His home:
- Luke 1:32–33
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David,
- Deuteronomy 12:5
Instead, you must seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to establish as a dwelling for His Name, and there you must go.
- 1 Kings 12:20
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 1 Kings

Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Cyprian, Treatise I. On the Unity of the Church 7; Ishodad of Merv, BOOKS OF SESSIONS 1 KINGS 11:31; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Keil, The Books of the Kings.
