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1 SAMUEL 13

PARAGRAPH DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

READING CYCLE THREE (see "Bible Interpretation Seminar")

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT THE PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects. Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

1. First paragraph
2. Second paragraph
3. Etc.

WORD AND PHRASE STUDY

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 13:1
  ¹Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-two years over Israel.

13:1 The MT has "Saul (was). . .years old when he became king and he was king over Israel two years." The UBS Text Project, p. 171, gives this an "A" rating but obviously a defective text.

Other translations add different numbers.

This verse is missing in the LXX. JPSOA assumes that the MT has lost two numbers.

1. Saul's age at coronation
2. how long he reigned; it was some number plus "2," as NASB's "32" or REB's "22"

Paul (quoting Jewish tradition, i.e., Josephus) gives the length of Saul's reign as "40 years" (cf. Acts 13:21).

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 13:2-4
  ²Now Saul chose for himself 3,000 men of Israel, of which 2,000 were with Saul in Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, while 1,000 were with Jonathan at Gibeah of Benjamin. But he sent away the rest of the people, each to his tent. ³Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. Then Saul blew the trumpet throughout the land, saying, "Let the Hebrews hear." ⁴All Israel heard the news that Saul had smitten the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel had become odious to the Philistines. The people were then summoned to Saul at Gilgal.

13:2 These were to be Israel's standing army, the rest were volunteers when needed.

▣ "to his tent" This was an idiom for "return home." It went back to the Exodus and Conquest period, or even before, in the Patriarchal Period.

13:3 Saul starts a war with the Philistines. He signals all Israel to muster to him for battle.

SPECIAL TOPIC: HORNS USED BY ISRAEL

The MT has the VERB (BDB 92, KB 107, Niphal PERFECT, NIDOTTE, vol. 1, pp. 580-581), which means "to smell bad" or "stink" (cf. 2 Sam. 10:6; 16:21).

The Peshitta translates it as parallel to the earlier VERB "had smitten" (BDB 645, KB 697, Hiphil PERFECT) but no ancient text supports this. Remember, the MT is not the original text.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 13:5-7
  ⁵Now the Philistines assembled to fight with Israel, 30,000 chariots and 6,000 horsemen, and people like the sand which is on the seashore in abundance; and they came up and camped in Michmash, east of Beth-aven. ⁶When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait (for the people were hard-pressed), then the people hid themselves in caves, in thickets, in cliffs, in cellars, and in pits. ⁷Also some of the Hebrews crossed the Jordan into the land of Gad and Gilead. But as for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

13:5 Notice how the Philistine army is contrasted to Saul's army (v. 2).

1. 30,000 chariots (LXX and NJB, 3,000; some scholars suggest 300)
2. 6,000 calvary
3. foot soldiers like the sand on the seashore (cf. Josh. 11:4; Jdgs. 7:12; 2 Sam. 17:11)

▣ "chariot" See SPECIAL TOPIC: CHARIOTS.

13:6-7 Israel reacted by

1. hiding in caves
2. hiding in thickets
3. hiding in cliffs
4. hiding in cellars
5. hiding in pits
6. running away to Gad
7. running away to Gilead

Josephus (Antiq. 6.6.1) says most of the Israelites fled across the Jordan to the tribal lands of Gad and Reuben.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 13:8-14
  ⁸Now he waited seven days, according to the appointed time set by Samuel, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattering from him. ⁹So Saul said, "Bring to me the burnt offering and the peace offerings." And he offered the burnt offering. ¹⁰As soon as he finished offering the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him and to greet him. ¹¹But Samuel said, "What have you done?" And Saul said, "Because I saw that the people were scattering from me, and that you did not come within the appointed days, and that the Philistines were assembling at Michmash, ¹²therefore I said, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not asked the favor of the Lord.' So I forced myself and offered the burnt offering." ¹³Samuel said to Saul, "You have acted foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you, for now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. ¹⁴But now your kingdom shall not endure. The Lord has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you."

13:8 Saul was to wait for Samuel seven days (cf. 1 Sam. 10:8).

13:11 "What have you done?" The problem was twofold.

1. did not obey Samuel's (i.e., YHWH's) word (v. 13)
2. offered a sacrifice when he was not authorized (cf. 2 Chr. 26:18)

He surely had good reason based on the situation but it showed a lack of faith in YHWH.

The MT has the VERB (BDB 67, KB 80 II, Hiphil IMPERFECT with waw) which denotes someone who

1. restrains oneself
2. feels compelled

This is Saul's first of many excuses why he disobeyed YHWH's expressed will.

13:13 "You have acted foolishly" This VERB (BDB 698, KB 754, Niphal PERFECT) in the Niphal stem is also used in 2 Chr. 16:9).

SPECIAL TOPIC: FOOLISH PEOPLE (terms)

13:14 This is the first of several reasons why Saul is rejected as king.

1. disobedient to YHWH's word through Samuel
2. disobedient to YHWH by offering a sacrifice
3. disobedient by not killing all of the Amalekites and their flocks (1 Samuel 15)
4. slaughter of the priests at Nob (1 Samuel 22)
5. seeking direction from the witch of Endor (1 Samuel 28)

▣ YHWH was seeking a king who was obedient to His commands. A man with a "whole heart" (cf. Acts 13:22). When one reads the life of David, this surely does not mean "sinless" or "without faithless acts"!

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 13:15-18
  ¹⁵Then Samuel arose and went up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And Saul numbered the people who were present with him, about six hundred men. ¹⁶Now Saul and his son Jonathan and the people who were present with them were staying in Geba of Benjamin while the Philistines camped at Michmash. ¹⁷And the raiders came from the camp of the Philistines in three companies: one company turned toward Ophrah, to the land of Shual, ¹⁸and another company turned toward Beth-horon, and another company turned toward the border which overlooks the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 13:19-23
  ¹⁹Now no blacksmith could be found in all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, "Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears." ²⁰So all Israel went down to the Philistines, each to sharpen his plowshare, his mattock, his axe, and his hoe. ²¹The charge was two-thirds of a shekel for the plowshares, the mattocks, the forks, and the axes, and to fix the hoes. ²²So it came about on the day of battle that neither sword nor spear was found in the hands of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan, but they were found with Saul and his son Jonathan. ²³And the garrison of the Philistines went out to the pass of Michmash.

13:19-22 This clearly shows the superior metallurgical knowledge of the Philistines. They had "blacksmiths" (BDB 360) but Israel had none (1 Sam. 13:22); only Saul and Jonathan had an iron weapon.

13:20 All of Israel's agricultural implements had to be sharpened by Philistines.

1. plowshares (BDB 361)
2. mattock (BDB 88 III)
3. axe (BDB 899)
4. goad (BDB 201)
5. forks (BDB 887, v. 21)

The MT has a FEMININE NOUN, which occurs only here. Its meaning is uncertain

1. KB 954 ‒ "charge," "fee"
2. BDB 823 ‒ "bluntness" (NASB)

The next word (see next item) supports #1.

The word in the MT (BDB 804, KB 921) is found only here. The root appears on some stones used for commerce scales in Canaan. The weight of these stones equals about "two-thirds" of a shekel.

The KB calls the root letters (KB 922 II) "thin plate of metal" (cf. Exod. 39:3; Num. 17:3).

Here, it seems to refer to the price the Philistine smiths charged to sharpen the Israeli agricultural implements. The NET footnote suggests the root may mean "price" and not the specific weight or cost of the service. Apparently the Philistine smiths charged a large sum!

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.

1. Why such discrepancy associated with the years of 1 Sam. 13:1?
2. Why the unusual name "Hebrews" in 1 Sam. 13:3?
3. Why do modern historians think the number "30,000" is too large?
4. Why did the men of Israel run from the Philistine army?
5. What was Saul's great sin?
6. Explain the implication of 1 Sam. 13:19-22.

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