1 Samuel 21:11

1 Samuel 21:11 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?
• New International Version (NIV)But the servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Isn’t he the one they sing about in their dances: “ ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands’?”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the servants of Achish said to him, "Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing to one another of him in dances, 'Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands'?"
• New King James Version (NKJV)And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of him to one another in dances, saying: ‘Saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands’?”

Context of 1 Samuel 21:11

9The priest replied, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here, wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want to take it for yourself, then take it, for there isn’t another one here.” “There’s none like it!” David said. “Give it to me.” 10David fled that day from Saul’s presence and went to King Achish of Gath. But Achish’s servants said to him, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Don’t they sing about him during their dances: Saul has killed his thousands, but David his tens of thousands?” 12David took this to heart and became very afraid of King Achish of Gath, 13so he pretended to be insane in their presence. He acted like a madman around them, scribbling on the doors of the city gate and letting saliva run down his beard.

1 Samuel 21:11 word by word

וַיֹּ֨אמְר֜וּ עַבְדֵ֤י אָכִישׁ֙ אֵלָ֔יו הֲלוֹא־זֶ֥ה דָוִ֖ד מֶ֣לֶךְ הָאָ֑רֶץ הֲל֣וֹא לָזֶ֗ה יַעֲנ֤וּ בַמְּחֹלוֹת֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר הִכָּ֤ה שָׁאוּל֙ בַּאֲלָפָ֔יו וְדָוִ֖ד בְּרִבְבֹתָֽיו׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the servantsעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• of Achishאָכִישׁ'âkîysh · AchishH397
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• not this Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
• the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• of the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• did they not singעָנָה‛ânâh · to singH6030
• one to another of himזֶהzeh · thisH2088
• in dancesמְחוֹלָהmechôlâh · danceH4246
• Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
• hath slainנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• his thousandsאֶ֫לֶף'eleph · thousandH505
• his ten thousandsרְבָבָהrebâbâh · myriadH7233

Cross-references for 1 Samuel 21:11

• Psalms 56:1Be gracious to me, God, for a man is trampling me; he fights and oppresses me all day long.
• 1 Samuel 16:1The Lord said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem because I have selected for myself a king from his sons.”
• 1 Samuel 18:7As they danced, the women sang: Saul has killed his thousands, but David his tens of thousands.
• 1 Samuel 29:5Isn’t this the David they sing about during their dances: Saul has killed his thousands, but David his tens of thousands?”

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 21:11

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11The king of the land - The Philistines gave him the title which their own lords bore.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-15Verses 10-15 God's persecuted people have often found better usage from Philistines than from Israelites. David had reason to put confidence in Achish, yet he began to be afraid. His conduct was degrading, and discovered wavering in his faith and courage. The more simply we depend on God, and obey him, the more comfortably and surely we shall walk through this troublesome world.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11king of the land: David’s reputation as a powerful warrior had become even greater than King Saul’s (see 1 Samuel 18:7). Because of this, people outside Israel began to speak of David as if he were already Israel’s king.Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Samuel 21:11

• Achish
• Dancing
• David
• Deception
• Gath
• Philistines

In the dictionaries

• David
• Saul
• Paul, Saul
• Abimelech
• Achish
• Judges, Book of
• Manner
• Require
• Ezekiel
• Games

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 21

• 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