1 Samuel 22:16
in 1 Samuel 22But the king replied, “You will surely die, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house!”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father’s house.
KJV
And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father’s house.
⋯
This verse in 1 Samuel 22
Commentary
3 notes on this verseAnd the king said, thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech,.... He pronounces the sentence himself, without taking the opinion and advice of others, or further time; which was an act of arbitrary power, and upon an innocent person, which was an act of great injustice: thou, and all thy father's house; more unrighteous still; but God suffered him to do this to fulfil his will, and execute his threatenings against the house of Eli, which was this priest's father's house, for former wickedness; but this is no excuse for, nor extenuation of the sin of, Saul.
This site's exposition
Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech
on 1 Samuel 22:16-17
Saul pronounces the priests' death himself, without appeal to judge or prophet, and orders his own footmen to fall on the priests of the Lord for a hand with David that was never proved. The servants will not put forth their hand, and Henry calls it a command of a prince more honourably disobeyed than almost any other in Scripture, the footmen showing more sense and grace than their master. Their refusal is the last restraint standing between Saul and the massacre the next verse carries out.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
What could be more unjust? I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there, Eccl. iii. (1.) It was unjust that Saul should himself, himself alone, give judgment in his own cause, without any appeal to judge or prophet, to his privy council, or to a council of war.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
To the runners who stood near him. Referring to Avneir and Amoso.
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. 5 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
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֣אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ | hamelekh | the king | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| מ֥וֹת | mot | certainly <to die> | H4191 → | 839 times |
| תָּמ֖וּת | tamut | you will die | H4191 → | 839 times |
| אֲחִימֶ֑לֶךְ | ʾachimelekh | O Ahimelech | H288 → | 16 times |
| אַתָּ֖ה | ʾatah | you | H859 → | 1094 times |
| וְכָל־ | vekhol | and all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| בֵּ֥ית | beit | [the] house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| אָבִֽיךָ׃ | ʾavikha | father your | H1 → | 1212 times |
וַיֹּ֣אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְthe king
hamelekhH4428 →2525 times
מ֥וֹתcertainly <to die>
motH4191 →839 times
תָּמ֖וּתyou will die
tamutH4191 →839 times
אֲחִימֶ֑לֶךְO Ahimelech
ʾachimelekhH288 →16 times
אַתָּ֖הyou
ʾatahH859 →1094 times
וְכָל־and all
vekholH3605 →5413 times
בֵּ֥ית[the] house of
beitH1004 →2046 times
אָבִֽיךָ׃father your
ʾavikhaH1 →1212 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 28:15Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a helpless people.
it leads to
- Matthew 2:16
When Herod saw that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was filled with rage. Sending orders, he put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Peter 5:8
Be sober-minded and alert. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
- Matthew 2:16
Through
1 Kings 19:2So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like the lives of those…
it leads to
- 2 Kings 6:31
He announced, “May God punish me, and ever so severely, if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders through this day!”
- 1 Kings 20:10
Then Ben-hadad sent another message to Ahab: “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if enough dust remains of Samaria for each of my men to have a handful.”
- Ruth 1:17
Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.”
- Proverbs 27:1
Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.
- Exodus 10:28
“Depart from me!” Pharaoh said to Moses. “Make sure you never see my face again, for on the day you see my face, you will die.”
- 2 Kings 6:31
Through
Matthew 2:16When Herod saw that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was filled with rage. Sending orders, he put to death all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years…
it leads to
- Isaiah 59:7
Their feet run to evil; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are sinful thoughts; ruin and destruction lie in their wake.
- Isaiah 59:7
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.