1 Samuel 24:17
in 1 Samuel 24and said to David, “You are more righteous than I, for you have rewarded me with good, though I have rewarded you with evil.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I; for thou hast rendered unto me good, whereas I have rendered unto thee evil.
KJV
And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 24
Commentary
6 notes on this verseNot even this act of benevolence moved Saul, however. Again he gathered an army and again he set out in pursuit, until he was a second time apprehended by David in the cave where he more clearly revealed his own iniquity and made the virtue of David even more resplendent. Envy is the most savage form of hatred. Favors render those who are hostile to us for any other reason more tractable, but kind treatment shown to an envious and spiteful person only aggravates his dislike.
This site's exposition
Is that your voice, David my son
on 1 Samuel 24:16-17
Saul knows David's voice, and Wesley reads his weeping as grief over his sin against God as much as his cruelty to David. The confession goes only so far, and Henry marks the limit. Bad men will commonly own that others are better than they without owning their own wickedness.
This site's exposition
You are more righteous than I
Basil notes the change in Saul was brief. Saul gathered an army again, and David spared the king's life a second time in chapter 26. Basil calls envy the most savage form of hatred, and Saul had rewarded David's good with evil from the day of his jealousy at 18:9.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
He should have said, Thou are righteous, but I am wicked; but the utmost he will own is this: Thou art more righteous than I. Bad men will commonly go no further than this in their confessions; they will own they are not so good as some others are; there are those that are better than they, and more righteous.
David Spares Saul in the Cave. 1 And it came to pass, when Saul was returned from following the Philistines, that it was told him, saying, Behold, David is in the wilderness of Engedi.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:94%@v1-3
And he said to David, thou art more righteous than I,....
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| דָּוִ֔ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| צַדִּ֥יק | tzadik | [are] righteous | H6662 → | |
| אַתָּ֖ה | ʾatah | you | H859 → | 1094 times |
| מִמֶּ֑נִּי | mimeni | more than I | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| כִּ֤י | ki | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| אַתָּה֙ | ʾatah | you | H859 → | 1094 times |
| גְּמַלְתַּ֣נִי | gemaltani | you have dealt out to me | H1580 → | 37 times |
| הַטּוֹבָ֔ה | hatovah | <the> good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| וַאֲנִ֖י | vaani | and I | H589 → | 874 times |
| גְּמַלְתִּ֥יךָ | gemaltikha | I have dealt out to you | H1580 → | 37 times |
| הָרָעָֽה׃ | haraah | <the> evil | H7451 → | 662 times |
וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙and he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
דָּוִ֔דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
צַדִּ֥יק[are] righteous
tzadikH6662 →
אַתָּ֖הyou
ʾatahH859 →1094 times
מִמֶּ֑נִּיmore than I
mimeniH4480 →1188 times
כִּ֤יfor
kiH3588 →4482 times
אַתָּה֙you
ʾatahH859 →1094 times
גְּמַלְתַּ֣נִיyou have dealt out to me
gemaltaniH1580 →37 times
הַטּוֹבָ֔ה<the> good
hatovahH2896 →538 times
וַאֲנִ֖יand I
vaaniH589 →874 times
גְּמַלְתִּ֥יךָI have dealt out to you
gemaltikhaH1580 →37 times
הָרָעָֽה׃<the> evil
haraahH7451 →662 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
Matthew 5:44But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
it leads to
- Romans 12:14
Bless those who persecute you. Bless and do not curse.
- 1 Peter 3:9
Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.
- Luke 6:27–28
But to those of you who will listen, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
- Romans 12:20–21
On the contrary, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head.”
- Proverbs 25:21–22
If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.
- Romans 12:14
Through
1 Samuel 26:21Then Saul replied, “I have sinned. Come back, David my son. I will never harm you again, because today you considered my life precious. I have played the fool and have committed a grave…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 15:24
Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned; I have transgressed the LORD’s commandment and your instructions, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.
- 1 Samuel 15:24
Through
Exodus 9:27Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he said. “The LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.
it leads to
- Exodus 10:16
Pharaoh quickly summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “I have sinned against the LORD your God and against you.
- 2 Chronicles 12:6
So the leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The LORD is righteous.”
- Exodus 10:16
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies5
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Basil of Caesarea, CONCERNING ENVY; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.