1 Samuel 17:38
in 1 Samuel 17Then Saul clothed David in his own tunic, put a bronze helmet on his head, and dressed him in armor.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Saul clad David with his apparel, and he put a helmet of brass upon his head, and he clad him with a coat of mail.
KJV
And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mail.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 17
Commentary
7 notes on this verseWe sometimes see a bad example drawn from good things. For if someone presumes to do the same things but not with the same disposition and orientation or with unlike virtue, he easily falls into the snares of deception and death on account of those very things from which others acquire the fruits of eternal life.
This site's exposition
Then Saul clothed David in his own tunic
on 1 Samuel 17:38-39
Saul dresses David in his own tunic and armor, the only way Saul knows to fight a giant, and David takes them off with a workman’s reason, that "I am not accustomed to them" yet. Saul’s way of meeting Goliath is Goliath’s way, bronze against bronze, and it has kept him on his hillside for forty days. David goes with what God has proved in his hand.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And Saul clothed David with his garments, etc. The people of the Jews applied to the incarnate Lord the figures of legal observations, by circumcising him on the eighth day, then carrying him to the temple on the thirty-third day, offering a sacrifice for him, …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Those that aim at things above their education and usage, and covet the attire and armour of princes, forget that that is the best for us which we are fit for and accustomed to; if we had our desire, we should wish to be in our own coat again, and should say, "We cannot go with these;" we had therefore better go without them.
armour - With armour taken out of his armoury. He seems to speak of some military vestments which were then used in war, and were contrived for defense; such as buff-coats are now.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
And Saul armed David with his armour,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Saul armed David - He knew that although the battle was the Lord’s, yet prudent means should be used to secure success.
The words behind it
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּלְבֵּ֨שׁ | vaiyalbesh | and he clothed | H3847 → | 110 times |
| שָׁא֤וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| דָּוִד֙ | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| מַדָּ֔יו | madav | garments his | H4055 → | 11 times |
| וְנָתַ֛ן | venatan | and he put | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| ק֥וֹבַע | koa' | a helmet of | H6959 → | |
| נְחֹ֖שֶׁת | nechoshet | bronze | H5178 → | 140 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| רֹאשׁ֑וֹ | rosho | head his | H7218 → | 599 times |
| וַיַּלְבֵּ֥שׁ | vaiyalbesh | and he clothed | H3847 → | 110 times |
| אֹת֖וֹ | ʾoto | <obj.> him | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שִׁרְיֽוֹן׃ | shiryon | body armor | H8302 → | 9 times |
וַיַּלְבֵּ֨שׁand he clothed
vaiyalbeshH3847 →110 times
שָׁא֤וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
דָּוִד֙David
davidH1732 →999 times
מַדָּ֔יוgarments his
madavH4055 →11 times
וְנָתַ֛ןand he put
venatanH5414 →2011 times
ק֥וֹבַעa helmet of
koa'H6959 →
נְחֹ֖שֶׁתbronze
nechoshetH5178 →140 times
עַל־on
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
רֹאשׁ֑וֹhead his
roshoH7218 →599 times
וַיַּלְבֵּ֥שׁand he clothed
vaiyalbeshH3847 →110 times
אֹת֖וֹ<obj.> him
ʾotoH853 →10935 times
שִׁרְיֽוֹן׃body armor
shiryonH8302 →9 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
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 Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; John Cassian, CONFERENCE 24.8.1-2; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and W. G. Blaikie, The First Book of Samuel (Expositor's Bible).