1 Samuel 10:21
in 1 Samuel 10Then he had the tribe of Benjamin come forward by its clans, and the clan of Matri was selected. Finally, Saul son of Kish was selected. But when they looked for him, they could not find him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he brought the tribe of Benjamin near by their families; and the family of the Matrites was taken; and Saul the son of Kish was taken: but when they sought him, he could not be found.
KJV
When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was taken, and Saul the son of Kish was taken: and when they sought him, he could not be found.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 10
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The family of Matri - This name occurs nowhere else among the families of Benjamin, or in the genealogy of Saul. (See 1Sa 9:1 note.)
This site's exposition
the tribe of Benjamin was taken
on 1 Samuel 10:20-22
The lot narrows in three steps, tribe, then family, then man, and lands on Saul though God had already named him to Samuel privately at 9:15-17. The public casting of lots does not choose Saul; it discloses a choice already made, so that Israel receives by a method it trusts a king it did not otherwise select. When Saul cannot be found, the LORD is enquired of further and answers that he has hid himself among the stuff, the first time in these two books that anyone enquires of the LORD and receives a direct answer, a pattern that runs through both books until Saul's own last enquiry at 28:6 gets silence instead.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
Gregory the DialogistCommentary on 1 Kings, Book 4, Chapter 5 · Written before 604.
proposed
34. He made them all stand by tribes and families, so that he might consider them all, and having considered all, might choose the more suitable one. But since he himself had already known the king by the Lord's revelation, and had anointed him as ruler at His command, why is it that he is still sought out as one to be chosen through tribes and families? But the king had been found by the prophet alone. Therefore, the one already found is sought, so that he who had not been found by the people might be found by them.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
When the tribe of Benjamin was taken, they might easily foresee that they were setting up a family that would soon be put down again; for dying Jacob had, by the spirit of prophecy, entailed the dominion upon Judah. Judah is the tribe that must rule as a lion;
And when he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
As it was of the utmost importance that the appointment should be under the divine direction and control, the determination was made by the miraculous lot, tribes, families, and individuals being successively passed until Saul was found.
When they sought him, he could not be found - Through modesty or fear he had secreted himself.
The words behind it
15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּקְרֵ֞ב | vaiyakrev | and he brought near | H7126 → | 280 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שֵׁ֤בֶט | shevet | [the] tribe of | H7626 → | 190 times |
| בִּנְיָמִן֙ | binyamin | Benjamin | H1144 → | 166 times |
| לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֔יו | lemishpechotov | to families its | H4940 → | 303 times |
| וַתִּלָּכֵ֖ד | vatilakhed | and it was taken by lot | H3920 → | 121 times |
| מִשְׁפַּ֣חַת | mishpachat | [the] clan of | H4940 → | 303 times |
| הַמַּטְרִ֑י | hamatri | <the> Matri | H4309 → | |
| וַיִּלָּכֵד֙ | vaiyilakhed | and he was taken by lot | H3920 → | 121 times |
| שָׁא֣וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| קִ֔ישׁ | kish | Kish | H7027 → | 21 times |
| וַיְבַקְשֻׁ֖הוּ | vayvakshuhu | and they sought him | H1245 → | 225 times |
| וְלֹ֥א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נִמְצָֽא׃ | nimtza' | he was found | H4672 → | 455 times |
וַיַּקְרֵ֞בand he brought near
vaiyakrevH7126 →280 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
שֵׁ֤בֶט[the] tribe of
shevetH7626 →190 times
בִּנְיָמִן֙Benjamin
binyaminH1144 →166 times
לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֔יוto families its
lemishpechotovH4940 →303 times
וַתִּלָּכֵ֖דand it was taken by lot
vatilakhedH3920 →121 times
מִשְׁפַּ֣חַת[the] clan of
mishpachatH4940 →303 times
הַמַּטְרִ֑י<the> Matri
hamatriH4309 →
וַיִּלָּכֵד֙and he was taken by lot
vaiyilakhedH3920 →121 times
שָׁא֣וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
קִ֔ישׁKish
kishH7027 →21 times
וַיְבַקְשֻׁ֖הוּand they sought him
vayvakshuhuH1245 →225 times
וְלֹ֥אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
נִמְצָֽא׃he was found
nimtza'H4672 →455 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Gregory the Dialogist, Commentary on 1 Kings, Book 4, Chapter 5; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.