1 Samuel 27:4
in 1 Samuel 27And when Saul learned that David had fled to Gath, he no longer searched for him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath: and he sought no more again for him.
KJV
And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath: and he sought no more again for him.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 27
Commentary
6 notes on this verseSought no more for him - At their meeting Saul's heart was deeply wounded, and he had said, "Return, my son David, Be with me as in time past." Nor have we the least proof, that he would have sought for him again, with any other design.
This site's exposition
even David with his two wives
on 1 Samuel 27:3-4
David settles at Gath with his household entire, even David with his two wives, and the text notes every man's family made the same crossing, more a clan on the move than a raiding band. Saul hears David has fled to Gath and lets the matter drop; Wesley reads Saul's own parting words to David, Return, my son, as proof the king never meant to hunt him past the border. Gill offers the plainer reading, that Saul kept spies out and simply saw no profit chasing an enemy into another king's country.
This site's exposition
he no longer searched for him
Matthew Henry reads the halt as a sin that left Saul before Saul left it. The king settled for David's banishment when he could no longer reach him. David's prediction at verse 1 comes true.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And Saul added no more to seek him. This signifies the present time of the Church; when the Jews, seeing it glorified among the nations, and also protected by the favor of secular kings, although they do not cease to hate it, have nevertheless lost …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
But, because he dares not come where he is, he resolves to let him alone. Thus many seem to leave their sins, but really their sins leave them; they would persist in them if they could. Saul sought no more for him, contenting himself with his banishment, since he could not have his blood, and hoping, it may be (as he had done, ch. xviii.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath,.... Who very probably had his spies out to watch his motions, and report to him where he was, and what he was doing: and he sought no more again for him; by which it seems as if he would have sought after him again, had he continued in the land of Israel; but now being gone, and in an enemy's country, and having nothing to fear from him while there, he laid aside all thoughts of seeking after him.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
Why should your servant remain… And be a burden to you. 2 Probably, Dovid did not want to live with idolaters and therefore asked in a diplomatic fashion, e.g., ‘Why should your servant be a burden to you,’ to settle in a separate city.
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. 6 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
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֻּגַּ֣ד | vaiyugad | and it was told | H5046 → | 370 times |
| לְשָׁא֔וּל | leshaul | to Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| כִּֽי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| בָרַ֥ח | varach | he had fled | H1272 → | 63 times |
| דָּוִ֖ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| גַּ֑ת | gat | Gath | H1661 → | 32 times |
| וְלֹֽא־ | velo'- | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יָסַ֥ף | yosaf | he repeated | H3254 → | 212 times |
| ע֖וֹד | od | again | H5750 → | 490 times |
| לְבַקְשֽׁוֹ׃ ס | levaksho | to seek him | H1245 → | 225 times |
וַיֻּגַּ֣דand it was told
vaiyugadH5046 →370 times
לְשָׁא֔וּלto Saul
leshaulH7586 →402 times
כִּֽי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
בָרַ֥חhe had fled
varachH1272 →63 times
דָּוִ֖דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
גַּ֑תGath
gatH1661 →32 times
וְלֹֽא־and not
velo'-H3808 →5168 times
יָסַ֥ףhe repeated
yosafH3254 →212 times
ע֖וֹדagain
odH5750 →490 times
לְבַקְשֽׁוֹ׃ סto seek him
levakshoH1245 →225 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
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 24:17
and said to David, “You are more righteous than I, for you have rewarded me with good, though I have rewarded you with evil.
- 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.
- Exodus 9:27
Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. “This time I have sinned,” he said. “The LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.
- Matthew 27:4
“I have sinned by betraying innocent blood,” he said. “What is that to us?” they replied. “You bear the responsibility.”
- 1 Samuel 15:30
“I have sinned,” Saul replied. “Please honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel. Come back with me, so that I may worship the LORD your God.”
- 1 Samuel 24:17
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 Bede, Commentary on Samuel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; 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.