1 Samuel 24:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the men of David said to him, "Here is the day of which the Lord said to you, ‘Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.’" Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul 's robe.

NIV: The men said, "This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’ " Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.

NASB: Then David’s men said to him, 'Behold, this is the day of which the Lord said to you, ‘Behold; I am about to hand your enemy over to you, and you shall do to him as it seems good to you.’?' Then David got up and cut off the edge of Saul’s robe secretly.

CSB: so they said to him, "Look, this is the day the Lord told you about: ‘I will hand your enemy over to you so you can do to him whatever you desire.’" Then David got up and secretly cut off the corner of Saul’s robe.

NLT: Now’s your opportunity!' David’s men whispered to him. 'Today the Lord is telling you, ‘I will certainly put your enemy into your power, to do with as you wish.’' So David crept forward and cut off a piece of the hem of Saul’s robe.

KJV: And the men of David said unto him, Behold the day of which the Lord said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe privily.

NKJV: Then the men of David said to him, “This is the day of which the Lord said to you, ‘Behold, I will deliver your enemy into your hand, that you may do to him as it seems good to you.’ ” And David arose and secretly cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.

First Samuel 24:1–4 describes how David "harms" King Saul for the first and only time. Twice, David and his men have barely escaped Saul and his army (1 Samuel 23). Saul unknowingly enters the cave where David and his men are hiding. David's men want him to kill the king. David uses stealth to cut a piece from Saul's robe, instead. Even this, he immediately regrets as harm to God's anointed. After Saul leaves, David will confront him from a distance, reminding Saul of his loyalty. Saul will agree David is more righteous and return home (1 Samuel 24:5–22).

David is faced with a moment of decision. As he and his men hide in a cave, Saul comes in alone to relieve himself. David refuses to kill Saul, as his men want him to, insisting that it would be a crime against the Lord to harm His anointed one. David does confront Saul outside the cave, holding up a corner of his robe to show he could have killed Saul but did not. Saul agrees David has been righteous and he has been evil. He admits that David will become king over Israel.

God again protects David from fighting his earthly King. David has fled a city that would have betrayed him to Saul. He has run from the wilderness where the locals did, in fact, do so (1 Samuel 23). Yet again, nearby people warn Saul where David is. David has the chance to kill Saul, but refuses, and Saul admits David is more righteous than he. Next, Nabal the fool dishonors David, and David marches for revenge. Nabal's wife, Abigail, saves David from murdering her innocent servants, and Nabal dies of natural—or godly—causes. In return, David marries Abigail (1 Samuel 25). During these events, the prophet Samuel dies.

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.