1 Samuel 31:2
in 1 Samuel 31The Philistines followed hard after Saul and his sons, and they killed Saul’s sons Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malchishua.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchi-shua, the sons of Saul.
KJV
And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchi–shua, Saul’s sons.
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This verse in 1 Samuel 31
Commentary
5 notes on this verseFollowed hard upon Saul and upon his sons - They, seeing the discomfiture of their troops, were determined to sell their lives as dear as possible, and therefore maintained the battle till the three brothers were slain.
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
The Philistines attacked Saul and his sons, etc. The surrounding nations attacked with full intention to destroy the kingdom of Judea and to remove the sons of that kingdom from their midst, and they corrupted the priests, Scribes, and Pharisees with their corruption, namely the …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
7 ), Who ever perished being innocent? God would hereby complete the vexation of Saul in his dying moments, and the judgment that was to be executed upon his house. If the family must fall, Jonathan, that is one of it, must fall with it.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number+unbalanced-parens
And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul,....
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
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
17 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּדְבְּק֣וּ | vaiyadbeku | and they pursued closely | H1692 → | |
| פְלִשְׁתִּ֔ים | felishtim | [the] Philistines | H6430 → | 287 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שָׁא֖וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| בָּנָ֑יו | banav | sons his | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| וַיַּכּ֣וּ | vaiyaku | and they struck down | H5221 → | 499 times |
| פְלִשְׁתִּ֗ים | felishtim | [the] Philistines | H6430 → | 287 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יְהוֹנָתָ֧ן | yehonatan | Jonathan | H3083 → | 81 times |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֲבִינָדָ֛ב | ʾavinadav | Abinadab | H41 → | 12 times |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מַלְכִּי־ | malki- | Malki- | H4444 → | 10 times |
| שׁ֖וּעַ | shua' | Shua | H4444 → | 10 times |
| בְּנֵ֥י | benei | [the] sons of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| שָׁאֽוּל׃ | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
וַיַּדְבְּק֣וּand they pursued closely
vaiyadbekuH1692 →
פְלִשְׁתִּ֔ים[the] Philistines
felishtimH6430 →287 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
שָׁא֖וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
בָּנָ֑יוsons his
banavH1121 →4930 times
וַיַּכּ֣וּand they struck down
vaiyakuH5221 →499 times
פְלִשְׁתִּ֗ים[the] Philistines
felishtimH6430 →287 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יְהוֹנָתָ֧ןJonathan
yehonatanH3083 →81 times
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
אֲבִינָדָ֛בAbinadab
ʾavinadavH41 →12 times
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
מַלְכִּי־Malki-
malki-H4444 →10 times
שׁ֖וּעַShua
shua'H4444 →10 times
בְּנֵ֥י[the] sons of
beneiH1121 →4930 times
שָׁאֽוּל׃Saul
shaulH7586 →402 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
Exodus 20:5You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth…
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 5:9
You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on their children to the third and fourth…
- Numbers 14:18
‘The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion, forgiving iniquity and transgression. Yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished; He will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon…
- Deuteronomy 4:24
For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
- Exodus 34:14
For you must not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
- Joshua 24:19
But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the LORD, for He is a holy God; He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your rebellion or your sins.
- Deuteronomy 5:9
Through
1 Chronicles 8:33Ner was the father of Kish, Kish was the father of Saul, and Saul was the father of Jonathan, Malchishua, Abinadab, and Esh-baal.
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 9:1
Now there was a Benjamite, a powerful man, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin.
- 1 Samuel 9:1
Through
1 Samuel 13:2He chose for himself three thousand men of Israel: Two thousand were with Saul at Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. And…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 10:26
Saul also went to his home in Gibeah, and the men of valor whose hearts God had touched went with him.
- 1 Samuel 10:26
Through
1 Samuel 14:49Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, Ishvi, and Malchishua. His two daughters were named Merab (his firstborn) and Michal (his younger daughter).
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 8:33
Ner was the father of Kish, Kish was the father of Saul, and Saul was the father of Jonathan, Malchishua, Abinadab, and Esh-baal.
- 1 Chronicles 8:33
About 1 Samuel
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonUnited monarchySaulIsrael's first king, head and shoulders above the people; began in humility, ended in rejection — sparing what God devoted, consul…
- PersonEarly monarchyJonathanSon of King Saul who climbed a cliff to rout a garrison on the conviction that nothing restrains Jehovah; cut a covenant of steadf…
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.