1 Samuel 18:20-30
New English Translation
20 Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. When they told Saul about this, it[a] pleased him. 21 Saul said, “I will give her to him so that she may become a snare to him and so the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “Today is the second time for you to become my son-in-law.”[b]
22 Then Saul instructed his servants, “Tell David secretly, ‘The king is pleased with you, and all his servants like you. So now become the king’s son-in-law.’” 23 So Saul’s servants spoke these words privately to[c] David. David replied, “Is becoming the king’s son-in-law something insignificant to you? I’m just a poor and lightly esteemed man!”
24 When Saul’s servants reported what David had said, 25 Saul replied, “Here is what you should say to David: ‘There is nothing that the king wants as a price for the bride except 100 Philistine foreskins, so that he can be avenged of his[d] enemies.’” (Now Saul was thinking that he could kill David by the hand of the Philistines.)
26 So his servants told David these things and David agreed[e] to become the king’s son-in-law. Now the specified time had not yet expired[f] 27 when David, along with his men, went out[g] and struck down 200 Philistine men. David brought their foreskins and presented all of them to the king so that he could become the king’s son-in-law. Saul then gave him his daughter Michal in marriage.
28 When Saul realized[h] that the Lord was with David and that his[i] daughter Michal loved David,[j] 29 Saul became even more afraid of him.[k] Saul continued to be at odds with David from then on.[l] 30 [m] The leaders of the Philistines would march out, and as often as they did so, David achieved more success than all of Saul’s servants. His name was held in high esteem.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Samuel 18:20 tn Heb “the matter.”
- 1 Samuel 18:21 tc The final sentence of v. 21 is absent in most LXX mss.
- 1 Samuel 18:23 tn Heb “in the ears of.”
- 1 Samuel 18:25 tn Heb “the king’s.”
- 1 Samuel 18:26 tn Heb “and it was acceptable in the eyes of David.”
- 1 Samuel 18:26 tn Heb “the days were not fulfilled.”
- 1 Samuel 18:27 tn Heb “arose and went.”
- 1 Samuel 18:28 tn Heb “saw and knew.”
- 1 Samuel 18:28 tn Heb “Saul’s.” In the translation the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun for stylistic reasons.
- 1 Samuel 18:28 tn Heb “him”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- 1 Samuel 18:29 tn Heb “of David.” In the translation the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun for stylistic reasons.
- 1 Samuel 18:29 tc The final sentence of v. 29 is absent in most LXX mss.tn Heb “all the days.”
- 1 Samuel 18:30 tc Verse 30 is absent in most LXX mss.
1 Samuel 18:20-30
Expanded Bible
20 Now Saul’s other daughter, Michal, loved David. When they told Saul, ·he was pleased [L the matter was right in his eyes]. 21 He thought, “I will ·let her marry [L give her to] David. ·Then […so that] she will be a ·trap [snare] for him, and the ·Philistines will defeat him [L hand of the Philistines will be against him].” So Saul said to David ·a second time, “You may [You have a second chance to] become my son-in-law.”
22 And Saul ordered his servants to talk with David ·in private [secretly] and say, “Look, the king ·likes [is delighted with] you. His servants love you. You should ·be [become] his son-in-law.”
23 Saul’s servants said these words ·to [L in the ears of] David, but David answered, “Do you think it is ·easy [L a small/trivial thing] to become the king’s son-in-law? I am poor and ·unimportant [have no position/reputation; C David cannot afford to pay the expected dowry].”
24 When Saul’s servants told him what David had said, 25 Saul said, “Tell David, ‘The king doesn’t want ·money [L a dowry/bride price] for the bride. All he wants is a hundred Philistine foreskins to get ·even with [revenge on] his enemies.’” Saul planned to let ·the Philistines kill David [L David fall at the hands of the Philistines].
26 When Saul’s servants told this to David, ·he was pleased [he was happy/delighted; L the thing was right in the eyes of David] to become the king’s son-in-law. [L So before the days were expired/fulfilled…] 27 He and his men went out and killed two hundred Philistines. David brought all their foreskins [L and counted them out] to ·Saul [the king] so he could be the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave him his daughter Michal for his wife. 28 Saul ·saw [realized; L saw and knew] that the Lord was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David. 29 So he grew even more afraid of David, and he was David’s enemy ·all his life [from then on; L all the days].
30 The Philistine commanders continued to go out to fight the Israelites, but every time, David was more ·skillful [successful; wise] than Saul’s officers. So he became ·famous [highly esteemed; L his name became extremely valuable].
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