Berean Standard Bible
1 Samuel 17:44
44“Come here,” he called to David, “and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”
1 Samuel 17:44 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.
- New International Version (NIV)“Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!”
- English Standard Version (ESV)The Philistine said to David, "Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the field."
- New King James Version (NKJV)And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”
Context of 1 Samuel 17:44
42When the Philistine looked and saw David, he despised him because he was just a boy, ruddy and handsome. 43“Am I a dog,” he said to David, “that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. “Come here,” he called to David, “and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” 45But David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand. This day I will strike you down, cut off your head, and give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the creatures of the earth. Then the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.
Read all of 1 Samuel 171 Samuel 17:44 word by word
וַיֹּ֥אמֶר הַפְּלִשְׁתִּ֖י אֶל־דָּוִ֑ד לְכָ֣ה אֵלַ֔י וְאֶתְּנָה֙ אֶת־בְּשָׂ֣רְךָ֔ לְע֥וֹף הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וּלְבֶהֱמַ֥ת הַשָּׂדֶֽה׃ סRead the interlinear
- Comeהָלַךְhâlak · to go: comeH1980
- Comeאֶל'êl 'el · to(wards)H413
- hereפְּלִשְׁתִּיpelishtîy · PhilistineH6430
- he calledאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
- and I will giveנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- ·אֵת'êth · [Obj.]H853
- your fleshבָּשָׂרbâώâr · fleshH1320
- to the birdsעוֹף‛ôph · birdH5775
- of the airשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064
- and the beastsבְּהֵמָהbehêmâh · animalH929
- of the fieldשָׂדֶהώâdeh ώâday · land: countryH7704
Cross-references for 1 Samuel 17:44
- 1 Kings 20:10Then Ben-hadad sent another message to Ahab: “May the gods deal with me, and ever so severely, if enough dust remains of Samaria for each of my men to have a handful.”
- Proverbs 18:12Before his downfall a man’s heart is proud, but humility comes before honor.
- Ecclesiastes 9:11I saw something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong; neither is the bread to the wise, nor the wealth to the intelligent, nor the favor to the skillful. For time and chance happen to all.
- Jeremiah 9:23This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.
- Ezekiel 28:2“Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre that this is what the Lord GOD says: Your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god; I sit in the seat of gods in the heart of the sea.’ Yet you are a man and not a god, though you have regarded your heart as that of a god.
- Ezekiel 39:17And as for you, son of man, this is what the Lord GOD says: Call out to every kind of bird and to every beast of the field: ‘Assemble and come together from all around to the sacrificial feast that I am preparing for you, a great feast on the mountains of Israel. There you will eat flesh and drink blood.
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 17:44
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 44Come to me, and I will give thy flesh - He intended, as soon as he could lay hold on him, to pull him to pieces.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 40-47Verses 40-47 The security and presumption of fools destroy them. Nothing can excel the humility, faith, and piety which appear in David's words. He expressed his assured expectation of success; he gloried in his mean appearance and arms, that the victory might be ascribed to the Lord alone.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 44A body left for scavengers like birds and wild animals was considered severely cursed (see Deuteronomy 21:23; 28:26).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 42-4742-47. the Philistine said ... said David to the Philistine--When the two champions met, they generally made each of them a speech, and sometimes recited some verses, filled with allusions and epithets of the most opprobrious kind, hurling contempt and defiance at one another. This kind of abusive dialogue is common among the Arab combatants still. David's speech, however, presents a striking contrast to the usual strain of these invectives. It was full…Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Samuel 17:44
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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