1 Samuel 9:17
in 1 Samuel 9When Samuel saw Saul, the LORD told him, “Here is the man of whom I spoke; he shall rule over My people.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And when Samuel saw Saul, Jehovah said unto him, Behold, the man of whom I spake to thee! this same shall have authority over my people.
KJV
And when Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said unto him, Behold the man whom I spake to thee of! this same shall reign over my people.
⋯
This verse in 1 Samuel 9
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
there was Samuel coming toward them
on 1 Samuel 9:14-17
Samuel meets Saul because the LORD told him, “At this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin”. The words “Here is the man of whom I spoke” set God's choice beside the crowd's choice at 10:24.
This site's exposition
When Samuel saw Saul
The LORD names Saul at the moment Samuel first sees him. Adam Clarke reads the exchange as the mark of a constant familiarity between Samuel and God. The promise of verse 16 is kept to the hour.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church2 voices
And when Samuel looked at Saul, the Lord said to him, etc. When John saw Jesus coming to him, instructed by the Holy Spirit, he understood him to be the Lamb of God, the one who takes away the sins of the world, the one …
A commentator
Gregory the DialogistCommentary on 1 Kings, Book 4, Chapter 4 · Written before 604.
proposed
In this passage it must be noted that when a pastor is chosen in the holy Church, sometimes he is ordained for himself and for the people; sometimes neither for the people nor for himself; sometimes for himself, not for the people; and sometimes indeed for the people, not for himself. For himself and the people, when a chosen preacher is given to chosen subjects: because from the very thing by which the multitude of subjects is led to the eternal homeland, gifts of merits are heaped upon the good pastor.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
23 And Samuel said unto the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee, Set it by thee. 24 And the cook took up the shoulder, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said, Behold that which is left! set it before thee, and eat: for unto this time hath it been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
And when Samuel saw Saul,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Behold the man whom I spake to thee of - What an intimate communion must Samuel have held with his God! A constant familiarity seems to have existed between them.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
Will rule over My people. Will restrain [=will rule], similar to 'restrained [ עָצוּר ] and let free.' 9 Devarim:36. This is the function of the ruler, to restrain the people during war, that they not scatter or spread out one from another, and.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 6 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּשְׁמוּאֵ֖ל | ushemuel | and Samuel | H8050 → | 141 times |
| רָאָ֣ה | raah | he saw | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שָׁא֑וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| וַיהוָ֣ה | vayahweh | and Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| עָנָ֔הוּ | ʾanahu | he answered him | H6030 → | 331 times |
| הִנֵּ֤ה | hineh | here! | H2009 → | 843 times |
| הָאִישׁ֙ | haish | the man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | whom | H834 → | 5497 times |
| אָמַ֣רְתִּי | ʾamarti | I spoke | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֵלֶ֔יךָ | ʾeleikha | to you | H413 → | 5510 times |
| זֶ֖ה | zeh | this [one] | H2088 → | 1180 times |
| יַעְצֹ֥ר | ya'tzor | he will rule | H6113 → | 47 times |
| בְּעַמִּֽי׃ | beami | over people my | H5971 → | 1873 times |
וּשְׁמוּאֵ֖לand Samuel
ushemuelH8050 →141 times
רָאָ֣הhe saw
raahH7200 →1300 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
שָׁא֑וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
וַיהוָ֣הand Yahweh
vayahwehH3068 →6520 times
עָנָ֔הוּhe answered him
ʾanahuH6030 →331 times
הִנֵּ֤הhere!
hinehH2009 →843 times
הָאִישׁ֙the man
haishH376 →1663 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwhom
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
אָמַ֣רְתִּיI spoke
ʾamartiH559 →5305 times
אֵלֶ֔יךָto you
ʾeleikhaH413 →5510 times
זֶ֖הthis [one]
zehH2088 →1180 times
יַעְצֹ֥רhe will rule
ya'tzorH6113 →47 times
בְּעַמִּֽי׃over people my
beamiH5971 →1873 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
Acts 13:21Then the people asked for a king, and God gave them forty years under Saul son of Kish, from the tribe of Benjamin.
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 10:1
Then Samuel took a flask of oil, poured it on Saul’s head, kissed him, and said, “Has not the LORD anointed you ruler over His inheritance?
- 1 Samuel 15:1
Then Samuel said to Saul, “The LORD sent me to anoint you king over His people Israel. Now therefore, listen to the words of the LORD.
- 1 Samuel 11:15
So all the people went to Gilgal and confirmed Saul as king in the presence of the LORD. There they sacrificed peace offerings before the LORD, and Saul and all the Israelites rejoiced greatly.
- 1 Samuel 12:12–19
But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was…
- 1 Samuel 10:1
Through
Nehemiah 13:19When the evening shadows began to fall on the gates of Jerusalem, just before the Sabbath, I ordered that the gates be shut and not opened until after the Sabbath. I posted some of…
it leads to
- Leviticus 23:32
It will be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you shall humble yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to keep your…
- Exodus 31:14–17
Keep the Sabbath, for it is holy to you. Anyone who profanes it must surely be put to death. Whoever does any work on that day must be cut off from among his people.
- Leviticus 23:32
Through
Hosea 13:11So in My anger I gave you a king, and in My wrath I took him away.
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 10:19
But today you have rejected your God, who saves you from all your troubles and afflictions, and you have said to Him, ‘No, set a king over us.’ Now therefore present yourselves before the…
- 1 Samuel 16:1
Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending…
- 1 Samuel 10:19
Where this verse is studied
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonJudges to monarchySamuelAsked of God by Hannah and lent to the LORD at Shiloh; the last judge and first of the prophets after Moses, who anointed both Sau…
- PersonUnited monarchySaulIsrael's first king, head and shoulders above the people; began in humility, ended in rejection — sparing what God devoted, consul…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; Gregory the Dialogist, Commentary on 1 Kings, Book 4, Chapter 4; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and W. G. Blaikie, The First Book of Samuel (Expositor's Bible).