1 Samuel 17:31
in 1 Samuel 17Now David’s words were overheard and reported to Saul, who called for him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he sent for him.
KJV
And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul: and he sent for him.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 17
Commentary
3 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
Now David’s words were overheard and reported to Saul
on 1 Samuel 17:31-33
David's words travel up the chain of command because no one else in the camp is saying anything like them. Saul's objection is arithmetic, "You are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth," and by the camp's arithmetic Saul is right. The chapter is built to show that the camp's arithmetic is the wrong ledger.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
The words that David spoke have been heard, etc. The words spoken by Christ about the glory of the coming kingdom were trusted and spread by fame even to the leaders of the Judean empire. And when many of these also came in part to …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And when the words were heard which David spake,.... To one, and to another, and these reported to other persons, and so they went from one to another through many hands: they rehearsed them before Saul; coming to the ears of some of his courtiers and counsellors, or officers about him, they told him what such an one had said: and he sent for him; to his tent or pavilion where he was, to talk with him on this subject.
The words behind it
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְּשָּֽׁמְעוּ֙ | vaiyeshameu | and they were heard | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| הַדְּבָרִ֔ים | hadevarim | the words | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֖ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| דִּבֶּ֣ר | diber | he spoke | H1696 → | 1141 times |
| דָּוִ֑ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| וַיַּגִּ֥דוּ | vaiyagidu | and people told | H5046 → | 370 times |
| לִפְנֵֽי־ | lifnei- | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| שָׁא֖וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| וַיִּקָּחֵֽהוּ׃ | vaiyikachehu | and he sent for him | H3947 → | 966 times |
וַיְּשָּֽׁמְעוּ֙and they were heard
vaiyeshameuH8085 →1159 times
הַדְּבָרִ֔יםthe words
hadevarimH1697 →1440 times
אֲשֶׁ֖רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
דִּבֶּ֣רhe spoke
diberH1696 →1141 times
דָּוִ֑דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
וַיַּגִּ֥דוּand people told
vaiyagiduH5046 →370 times
לִפְנֵֽי־<to> before
lifnei-H6440 →2123 times
שָׁא֖וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
וַיִּקָּחֵֽהוּ׃and he sent for him
vaiyikachehuH3947 →966 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 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.
- Proverbs 10:4
Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.
- 1 Kings 11:28
Where this verse is studied
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Bede, Commentary on Samuel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Books of Samuel.