King James Version · The united kingdom
1 Samuel 24
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And it came to pass, when was returned from following the , that it was told him, saying, Behold, is in of En–gedi. Then took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats. And he came to the sheepcotes by , where was a cave; and went in to cover his feet: and and his men remained in the sides of the cave. And the men of said unto him, Behold the day of which said unto thee, Behold, I will thine enemy into thine hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then arose, and the of ’s robe privily. And it came to pass afterward, that ’s smote him, because he had ’s . And he said unto his men, forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, ’s , to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is of . So stayed his servants with these words, and suffered them not to rise against . But rose up out of the cave, and went on his way. also arose afterward, and went out of the cave, and cried after , saying, My the king. And when looked behind him, stooped with to the earth, and bowed himself. And said to , Wherefore hearest thou men’s words, saying, Behold, seeketh thy hurt? Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that had thee to day into mine hand in the cave: and some bade me kill thee: but mine eye spared thee; and I said, I will not put forth mine hand against my ; for he is ’s . Moreover, , see, yea, see the of thy robe in my hand: for in that I the of thy robe, and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor in mine hand, and I have not against thee; yet thou huntest to take it. judge between me and thee, and me of thee: but mine hand shall not be upon thee. As saith the of the ancients, Wickedness proceedeth from : but mine hand shall not be upon thee. After whom is the king of Israel come out? after whom dost thou pursue? after a dog, after a flea. therefore be judge, and judge between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause, and me out of thine hand. And it came to pass, when had made an end of speaking these words unto , that said, Is this thy voice, my son ? And lifted up his voice, and wept. And he said to , Thou art more than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil. And thou hast shewed this day how that thou hast dealt well with me: forasmuch as when had me into thine hand, thou killedst me not. For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? wherefore reward thee good for that thou hast done unto me this day. And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that of Israel shall be established in thine hand. now therefore unto me by , that thou wilt not my after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of ’s house. And sware unto . And went home; but and his men gat them up unto the hold.
The 1611 translation, public domain. Its original printing included the Apocrypha, which is why the deuterocanonical books can be read here. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · The united kingdom, 1050 BC to 931 BC ›
Saul, David, and Solomon. A rare window when both Egypt and Mesopotamia are weak, which is how a small kingdom in the corridor between them could briefly become a regional power.
- The power vacuum
- This is the whole political explanation for the united kingdom. Egypt is fragmented, Assyria is recovering but still local, the Hittites are gone, and nobody is in a position to object to a strong state in the corridor. It lasts about a century, and Israel's golden age fits exactly inside it.
- Phoenicia
- Tyre under Hiram is the commercial power of the coast, and supplies the cedar, the craftsmen, and the shipping for Solomon's building programme. The alliance is trade, not charity: Israel had grain and a land route, Tyre had timber and ships.
- Egypt
- Weak enough that a pharaoh gives a daughter in marriage to an Israelite king, which is the opposite of Egyptian practice in stronger centuries. Late in the era it recovers under a new house, and Shishak will invade within five years of Solomon's death.
- Further afield
- Greece is still in its dark age but beginning to recover, and will adopt the Phoenician alphabet within a century or two. Carthage is founded by settlers from Tyre by tradition in 814 BC. In the Americas the Olmec centre shifts to La Venta.