1 Samuel 25:43
in 1 Samuel 25David had also married Ahinoam of Jezreel. So she and Abigail were both his wives.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel; and they became both of them his wives.
KJV
David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel; and they were also both of them his wives.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 25
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
In the list of David’s wives Ahinoam is mentioned first 2Sa 3:2; 1Ch 3:1. But this may be only because her son was the first-born. David’s now taking two wives was an indication of his growing power and importance as a chieftain. The number was increased to six when he reigned in Hebron 1Ch 3:1, and still further when he became king of all Israel 2Sa 5:12-13. See 1Sa 1:2 note. Of Jezreel - Not the well-known city of Samaria, which gave its name to the plain of Esdraelon, but a town of Judah, near Carmel (marginal reference).
This site's exposition
David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel
on 1 Samuel 25:43-44
David takes a second wife, Ahinoam of Jezreel, alongside Abigail, and the text sets his growing household beside Saul's own move against him, for Michal, David's actual wife, has been given by her father to Phalti the son of Laish. Two claims on David's marriage now stand unresolved in the narrative at once, and Scripture keeps both on record until David demands Michal back by name at 2 Sam 3:14, treating Saul's gift of her to Phalti as no divorce at all. John Gill notes that plural marriage, though never commanded and against the law's own pattern, was a custom good men of that age gave into without Scripture commending it.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
David had two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelite, and Abigail, whom he took later. The first was somewhat severe, the other full of mercy and graciousness, a kindly and generous soul who saw the Father with face unveiled, gazing on his glory. She received that heavenly dew of the grace of the Father, as her name is interpreted.
The Medieval Church1 voice
But David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel, etc. Ahinoam means brother's beauty, Jezreel is interpreted as seed of God. Therefore, the Lord chose not only from the synagogue of the Jews those whom He would join to Himself with internal love, but also graciously took …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel,.... A city in the tribe of Judah, Jos 15:56; that is, he took her to wife, and as it seems before Abigail became his wife; see 2Sa 3:2, and they were also both of them his wives; polygamy, though not agreeably to the law of nature, nor the law of God, was a custom which prevailed in those times, which good men gave into, though not to be commended for it.
The loss is the more grievous at this juncture when Saul has grown so outrageous and David is driven from his country; never more need of Samuel than now, yet now he is removed. We will hope that the Israelites lamented Samuel's death the more bitterly because they remembered against themselves their own sin and folly in rejecting him and desiring a king.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
David also took Ahinoam - Many think that this was his wife before he took Abigail; she is always mentioned first in the list of his wives, and she was the mother of his eldest son Ammon. Of Jezreel - There were two places of this name; one in the tribe of Issachar, the other in the tribe of Judah.
The words behind it
10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֲחִינֹ֛עַם | ʾachinoam | Ahinoam | H293 → | 7 times |
| לָקַ֥ח | lakach | he had taken | H3947 → | 966 times |
| דָּוִ֖ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| מִֽיִּזְרְעֶ֑אל | miyizreel | from Jezreel | H3157 → | 36 times |
| וַתִּהְיֶ֛יןָ | vatihyeina | and they became | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| גַּֽם־ | gam- | also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| שְׁתֵּיהֶ֥ן | sheteihen | both of them | H8147 → | 768 times |
| ל֖וֹ | lo | of him | ||
| לְנָשִֽׁים׃ ס | lenashim | <into> wives | H802 → | 781 times |
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
אֲחִינֹ֛עַםAhinoam
ʾachinoamH293 →7 times
לָקַ֥חhe had taken
lakachH3947 →966 times
דָּוִ֖דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
מִֽיִּזְרְעֶ֑אלfrom Jezreel
miyizreelH3157 →36 times
וַתִּהְיֶ֛יןָand they became
vatihyeinaH1961 →3559 times
גַּֽם־also
gam-H1571 →769 times
שְׁתֵּיהֶ֥ןboth of them
sheteihenH8147 →768 times
ל֖וֹof him
lo
לְנָשִֽׁים׃ ס<into> wives
lenashimH802 →781 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
1 Samuel 30:5David’s two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel, had been taken captive.
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 25:42–43
So Abigail hurried and got on a donkey, and attended by five of her maidens, she followed David’s messengers and became his wife.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- 2 Samuel 2:2
So David went there with his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel.
- 1 Samuel 27:3
David and his men settled in Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal.
- 1 Samuel 1:2
He had two wives, one named Hannah and the other Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none.
- 2 Samuel 3:2–3
And sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam of Jezreel;
- 1 Samuel 25:42–43
Through
2 Samuel 3:2And sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon, by Ahinoam of Jezreel;
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 3:1–4
These were the sons of David who were born to him in Hebron: The firstborn was Amnon by Ahinoam of Jezreel; the second was Daniel by Abigail of Carmel;
- Genesis 49:3–4
Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, excelling in honor, excelling in power.
- 1 Chronicles 3:1–4
Through
1 Samuel 27:3David and his men settled in Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal.
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 25:18–35
Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five butchered sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs. She…
- 1 Samuel 25:18–35
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
3 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.
- PersonEarly monarchyAbigailNabal's wife, a woman of good understanding whose swift intercession kept David from avenging himself with his own hand — and who…
- PlaceNorthern IsraelJezreelAhab's summer capital beside Naboth's vineyard; the city of the dogs' prophecy, where Jezebel fell and Jehu's wheels rolled.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Ambrose of Milan, Letter 34; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.