1 Samuel 28:25
in 1 Samuel 28She served it to Saul and his servants, and they ate. And that night they got up and left.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and she brought it before Saul, and before his servants; and they did eat. Then they rose up, and went away that night.
KJV
And she brought it before Saul, and before his servants; and they did eat. Then they rose up, and went away that night.
⋯
This verse in 1 Samuel 28
Commentary
6 notes on this verseThey rose up, and went away that night - The transactions of this chapter occupy one night only. 1. Saul came by night to En-dor, 1Sa 28:8. 2. He consulted the woman, and had his conference with Samuel the same night; for no time whatever appears to have been lost after his arrival at En-dor. 3. He was overcome by the heavy tidings which he heard; and which for a time appear to have deprived him of all power. 4. The woman kills a calf; dresses a part; makes and bakes bread; and Saul and his servants eat. And,
This site's exposition
put my life in my hand
on 1 Samuel 28:21-25
The woman who kept the craft Saul's own law had outlawed is the one who feeds him when no one from his own camp is present to do it, and he refuses to eat until his servants join her in persuading him. She kills the fatted calf and bakes it unleavened only for want of time to let bread rise, not for any ceremony, and Matthew Henry recalls that Josephus praised her courtesy toward a stranger who could do nothing for her in return. The chapter ends as it began, in darkness, with Saul and his two men going away that night the way they had come.
This site's exposition
that night they got up and left
Adam Clarke counts the chapter's events and finds that they all fit within one night, from Saul's arrival at Endor to the meal. John Gill explains why they left in the dark. Saul had to get back past the Philistines to his camp without being seen.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Perhaps, indeed, now that rage and envy possessed him to the uttermost, he was the better reconciled to his hard fate, being told that his sons, and Jonathan among the rest, whom he hated for his affection to David, should die with him. If he must fall, he cared not what desolations of his family and kingdom accompanied his fall, hoping it would be the worse for his successor.
2 And David said to Achish, Surely thou shalt know what thy servant can do. And Achish said to David, Therefore will I make thee keeper of mine head for ever. 3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
And she brought it before Saul, and before his servants, and they did eat,.... Of the fatted calf, and unleavened bread, which she set upon a table before them, in the best manner she could: then they rose up, and went away that night; that it might not be seen in what house they had been, and that they might get to the camp without being discovered by the Philistines, or known by the Israelites that they had been out.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתַּגֵּ֧שׁ | vatagesh | and she brought [them] near | H5066 → | 125 times |
| לִפְנֵֽי־ | lifnei- | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| שָׁא֛וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| וְלִפְנֵ֥י | velifnei | and <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| עֲבָדָ֖יו | ʾavadav | servants his | H5650 → | 799 times |
| וַיֹּאכֵ֑לוּ | vaiyokhelu | and they ate | H398 → | 810 times |
| וַיָּקֻ֥מוּ | vaiyakumu | and they arose | H6965 → | 628 times |
| וַיֵּלְכ֖וּ | vaiyelekhu | and they went | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| בַּלַּ֥יְלָה | balaylah | on the night | H3915 → | 233 times |
| הַהֽוּא׃ פ | hahu' | <the> that | H1931 → | 1879 times |
וַתַּגֵּ֧שׁand she brought [them] near
vatageshH5066 →125 times
לִפְנֵֽי־<to> before
lifnei-H6440 →2123 times
שָׁא֛וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
וְלִפְנֵ֥יand <to> before
velifneiH6440 →2123 times
עֲבָדָ֖יוservants his
ʾavadavH5650 →799 times
וַיֹּאכֵ֑לוּand they ate
vaiyokheluH398 →810 times
וַיָּקֻ֥מוּand they arose
vaiyakumuH6965 →628 times
וַיֵּלְכ֖וּand they went
vaiyelekhuH1980 →1546 times
בַּלַּ֥יְלָהon the night
balaylahH3915 →233 times
הַהֽוּא׃ פ<the> that
hahu'H1931 →1879 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.