1 Samuel 4:9

1 Samuel 4:9 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Be strong, and quit yourselves like men, O ye Philistines, that ye be not servants unto the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight.
• New International Version (NIV)Be strong, Philistines! Be men, or you will be subject to the Hebrews, as they have been to you. Be men, and fight!”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Take courage, and be men, O Philistines, lest you become slaves to the Hebrews as they have been to you; be men and fight."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Be strong and conduct yourselves like men, you Philistines, that you do not become servants of the Hebrews, as they have been to you. Conduct yourselves like men, and fight!”

Context of 1 Samuel 4:9

7They were afraid and they said, ‘Their gods have come to help them fight! We are in bad trouble. Nothing like this has happened to us before. 8This is terrible! Nobody can save us from those powerful gods. Those gods punished the Egyptians with many bad diseases in the desert. Philistine soldiers, you must be brave! You must fight as strong men! If not, we will become slaves of these Hebrew people, as they were once our slaves. So be ready to fight bravely!’ 10So the Philistines did fight strongly and they won again. They killed 30,000 Israelite soldiers in the battle. The other Israelite soldiers all ran home. 11The Philistines took God's Covenant Box for themselves. Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, also died.

1 Samuel 4:9 word by word

הִֽתְחַזְּק֞וּ וִֽהְי֤וּ לַֽאֲנָשִׁים֙ פְּלִשְׁתִּ֔ים פֶּ֚ן תַּעַבְד֣וּ לָעִבְרִ֔ים כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר עָבְד֖וּ לָכֶ֑ם וִהְיִיתֶ֥ם לַאֲנָשִׁ֖ים וְנִלְחַמְתֶּֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Be strongחָזַקchâzaq · to strengthen: strengthenH2388
• and quitהָיָהhâyâh · to beH1961
• yourselves like menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
• O ye Philistinesפְּלִשְׁתִּיpelishtîy · PhilistineH6430
• that ye be not servantsעָבַד‛âbad · to serveH5647
• unto the Hebrewsעִבְרִי‛ibrîy · HebrewH5680
• and fightלָחַםlâcham · to fightH3898

Cross-references for 1 Samuel 4:9

• 2 Samuel 10:12Be strong! We must be brave as we fight on behalf of our people and the cities of our God. The Lord will do what he decides is good.’
• 1 Corinthians 16:13Watch carefully for danger. Never stop trusting God. Continue to be brave and strong.
• Ephesians 6:10At the end of my letter, I want to say this to you: Be united with the Lord, so that you are strong. Then his great power will help you.
• Deuteronomy 28:47The Lord has given you many good things. But you have not agreed to serve the Lord your God with joy.
• Judges 10:7The Lord became angry with the Israelites. He put them under the power of the Ammonites and the Philistines.
• Judges 13:1The Israelites again did things that the Lord saw were evil. So he put them under the power of the Philistines for 40 years.
• Isaiah 14:2People of other nations will help Israel's people to return to their own country. When they are living again in the land that the Lord gave to them, foreign people will become their servants, both men and women. In that way, the people who made the Israelites prisoners will be prisoners themselves! The Israelites will rule over the people who had been cruel to them.
• Isaiah 33:1It will be very bad for you who destroy other nations. No other nation has destroyed you yet. It will be very bad for you who deceive other nations. No other nation has deceived you yet. But in the end, when you stop destroying, others will destroy you. When you stop deceiving, other nations will deceive you.

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 4:9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9Be strong, etc. - This was the address to the whole army, and very forcible it was. "If ye do not fight, and acquit yourselves like men, ye will be servants to the Hebrews, as they have been to you; and you may expect that they will avenge themselves of you for all the cruelty you have exercised towards them."Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-22The crisis with the ark of the covenant showed Israel needed Samuel's leadership. It also fulfilled prophecies about Eli and his sons (1 Samuel 3:11–14).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-93-9. Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of Shiloh unto us--Strange that they were so blind to the real cause of the disaster and that they did not discern, in the great and general corruption of religion and morals (1Sa 2:22-25; 7:3; Psa 78:58), the reason why the presence and aid of God were not extended to them. Their first measure for restoring the national spirit and energy ought to have been a complete reformation--a universal…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Samuel 4:9

• Aphek
• Ark
• Armies
• Hebrew

In the dictionaries

• Philistines
• Ark
• Glory
• Jew
• Mean
• Pain
• Tabernacle
• Tumult
• Ark of the Covenant
• Exodus, the Book of

Commentaries on 1 Samuel 4

• 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
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings