1 Samuel 31:1
in 1 Samuel 31Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them, and many fell slain on Mount Gilboa.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa.
KJV
Now the Philistines fought against Israel: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 31
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThe best of the troops were put into disorder, and multitudes slain, probably those whom Saul had employed in pursuing David. Thus those who had followed him and served him in his sin went before him in his fall and shared with him in his plagues.
This site's exposition
fought against Israel
on 1 Samuel 31:1-2
The rout at Gilboa is where the king Israel asked for goes down in full view, on the same hillside where he had gone the night before to consult the dead because the LORD would no longer answer him at Endor. Jonathan dies with his brothers Abinadab and Malchi-shua, ending at the sword the covenant he had made with David at the throne's own door; the dirge David sings over him waits for the next chapter and is not drawn forward here. Wesley reads a mercy folded into the loss: of Saul's sons Jonathan alone stood fairest for the crown, and his death clears the road David's anointing had already marked.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
And the men of Israel fled before the face of the Philistines, etc. They who seemed strong in contemplating the will of God, which the name Israel signifies, were deceived when they imprudently followed the works and teachings of the Gentiles, and they perished corrupted …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Now the Philistines fought against Israel,.... Being come to Jezreel where Israel pitched, 1Sa 29:1; they fell upon them, began the battle: and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines; at the first onset, as it should seem: and fell down slain in Mount Gilboa; which was near, and whither fleeing they were pursued and slain, at least great numbers of them.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Now the Philistines fought - This is the continuation of the account given in 1Sa 29:1-11. The men of Israel fled - It seems as if they were thrown into confusion at the first onset, and turned their backs upon their enemies.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
The Philistines were battling with Yisroel. As a person saying, 'Let us go back to the earlier topic.'
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
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּפְלִשְׁתִּ֖ים | ufelishtim | and [the] Philistines | H6430 → | 287 times |
| נִלְחָמִ֣ים | nilchamim | [were] fighting | H3898 → | 177 times |
| בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל | beyisrael | against Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| וַיָּנֻ֜סוּ | vaiyanusu | and they fled | H5127 → | 159 times |
| אַנְשֵׁ֤י | ʾanshei | [the] men of | H582 → | 566 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| מִפְּנֵ֣י | mipenei | from before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| פְלִשְׁתִּ֔ים | felishtim | [the] Philistines | H6430 → | 287 times |
| וַיִּפְּל֥וּ | vaiyipelu | and they fell | H5307 → | 435 times |
| חֲלָלִ֖ים | chalalim | slain | H2491 → | 94 times |
| בְּהַ֥ר | behar | on [the] mountain of | H2022 → | 546 times |
| הַגִּלְבֹּֽעַ׃ | hagilboa' | <the> Gilboa | H1533 → | 8 times |
וּפְלִשְׁתִּ֖יםand [the] Philistines
ufelishtimH6430 →287 times
נִלְחָמִ֣ים[were] fighting
nilchamimH3898 →177 times
בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑לagainst Israel
beyisraelH3478 →2507 times
וַיָּנֻ֜סוּand they fled
vaiyanusuH5127 →159 times
אַנְשֵׁ֤י[the] men of
ʾansheiH582 →566 times
יִשְׂרָאֵל֙Israel
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
מִפְּנֵ֣יfrom before
mipeneiH6440 →2123 times
פְלִשְׁתִּ֔ים[the] Philistines
felishtimH6430 →287 times
וַיִּפְּל֥וּand they fell
vaiyipeluH5307 →435 times
חֲלָלִ֖יםslain
chalalimH2491 →94 times
בְּהַ֥רon [the] mountain of
beharH2022 →546 times
הַגִּלְבֹּֽעַ׃<the> Gilboa
hagilboa'H1533 →8 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 12:25But if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away.”
it leads to
- Joshua 24:20
If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, He will turn and bring disaster on you and consume you, even after He has been good to you.”
- Hosea 10:3
Surely now they will say, “We have no king, for we do not revere the LORD. What can a king do for us?”
- 1 Samuel 31:1–5
Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them, and many fell slain on Mount Gilboa.
- Isaiah 3:11
Woe to the wicked; disaster is upon them! For they will be repaid with what their hands have done.
- Joshua 24:20
Through
1 Samuel 28:4The Philistines came together and camped at Shunem, while Saul gathered all Israel and camped at Gilboa.
it leads to
- Joshua 19:18
Their territory included Jezreel, Chesulloth, Shunem,
- 2 Kings 4:8
One day Elisha went to Shunem, and a prominent woman who lived there persuaded him to have a meal. So whenever he would pass by, he would stop there to eat.
- Joshua 19:18
Through
2 Samuel 1:21O mountains of Gilboa, may you have no dew or rain, no fields yielding offerings of grain. For there the shield of the mighty was defiled, the shield of Saul, no longer anointed with…
it leads to
- Isaiah 21:5
They prepare a table, they lay out a carpet, they eat, they drink! Rise up, O princes, oil the shields!
- 1 Samuel 10:1
Then Samuel took a flask of oil, poured it on Saul’s head, kissed him, and said, “Has not the LORD anointed you ruler over His inheritance?
- Isaiah 21:5
About 1 Samuel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Samuel; 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.