1 Samuel 16:21
in 1 Samuel 16When David came to Saul and entered his service, Saul admired him greatly, and David became his armor-bearer.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armorbearer.
KJV
And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 16
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The difficulty of reconciling this verse with 1Sa 17:55-58, is met thus: The words here are the ultimate sequence of David’s first visit to Saul, and of his skill in music, and are therefore placed here; but they did not really come to pass until after David’s victory over Goliath (see 1Sa 18:2). It is quite conceivable that if David had only played once or twice to Saul, and then returned to his father’s house for some months, Saul might not recognize him.
This site's exposition
Send me your son David, who is with the sheep
on 1 Samuel 16:19-21
Saul sends to Jesse by name, "Send me your son David, who is with the sheep," and Jesse sends bread, wine and a young goat with him. Saul admires David greatly and makes him his armor-bearer, a place at court that matters again in chapter 17, where Saul does not seem to know him. The narrator gives no explanation, and the two accounts are left to be read together.
This site's exposition
David became his armor-bearer
Albert Barnes treats Saul's admiration and the armor-bearer's post as the later outcome of David's first service, set here to finish the story. By his reading the post came after Goliath fell, at 18:2. A few times at the harp, Barnes adds, would leave Saul little memory of the young man.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And David came to Saul, etc. The Lord came to the hearts of the believing Jews through faith and stood before them with the indefatigable desire of that acknowledged and coveted sweetness. To those who loved him, he ministered abundant and invincible weapons of faith …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably? 5 And he said, Peaceably: I am come to sacrifice unto the L ORD : sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:96%@v4-5
And David came to Saul, and stood before him,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
David came to Saul--Providence thus prepared David for his destiny, by placing him in a way to become acquainted with the manners of the court, the business of government, and the general state of the kingdom. became his armour-bearer--This choice, as being an expression of the king's partiality, shows how honorable the office was held to be.
The words behind it
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיָּבֹ֤א | vaiyavo' | and he came | H935 → | 2568 times |
| דָוִד֙ | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| שָׁא֔וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| וַֽיַּעֲמֹ֖ד | vaiyaamod | and he stood | H5975 → | 521 times |
| לְפָנָ֑יו | lefanav | <to> before him | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וַיֶּאֱהָבֵ֣הֽוּ | vaiyeehavehu | and he loved him | H157 → | 211 times |
| מְאֹ֔ד | meod | exceedingly | H3966 → | 300 times |
| וַֽיְהִי־ | vayhi- | and he was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| ל֖וֹ | lo | of him | ||
| נֹשֵׂ֥א | nose' | bearer of | H5375 → | 656 times |
| כֵלִֽים׃ | khelim | armor<s> | H3627 → | 325 times |
וַיָּבֹ֤אand he came
vaiyavo'H935 →2568 times
דָוִד֙David
davidH1732 →999 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
שָׁא֔וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
וַֽיַּעֲמֹ֖דand he stood
vaiyaamodH5975 →521 times
לְפָנָ֑יו<to> before him
lefanavH6440 →2123 times
וַיֶּאֱהָבֵ֣הֽוּand he loved him
vaiyeehavehuH157 →211 times
מְאֹ֔דexceedingly
meodH3966 →300 times
וַֽיְהִי־and he was
vayhi-H1961 →3559 times
ל֖וֹof him
lo
נֹשֵׂ֥אbearer of
nose'H5375 →656 times
כֵלִֽים׃armor<s>
khelimH3627 →325 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
Proverbs 22:29Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will be stationed in the presence of kings; he will not stand before obscure men.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 11:28
Now Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor. So when Solomon noticed that the young man was industrious, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph.
- Matthew 25:21
His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master!’
- Proverbs 12:24
The hand of the diligent will rule, but laziness ends in forced labor.
- Ecclesiastes 9:10
Whatever you find to do with your hands, do it with all your might, for in Sheol, where you are going, there is no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.
- Matthew 25:23
His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master!’
- 1 Kings 11:28
Through
Psalms 146:3Put not your trust in princes, in mortal man, who cannot save.
it leads to
- Psalms 118:8–9
It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.
- Jeremiah 17:5–6
This is what the LORD says: “Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind, who makes the flesh his strength and turns his heart from the LORD.
- Isaiah 2:22
Put no more trust in man, who has only the breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he?
- Psalms 118:8–9
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonUnited MonarchyDavidSecond king of united Israel, shepherd-turned-monarch, ancestor of the Messiah, and traditional author of many Psalms.
- 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 Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Commentary on Samuel; Jamieson Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.