EasyEnglish Bible 2018
1 Samuel 9:2
2Kish had a son whose name was Saul. Saul was a handsome young man. No other Israelite was more handsome than he was. When Saul stood with other people, you could see his head above everyone else.
1 Samuel 9:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly: and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people.
- New International Version (NIV)Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And he had a son whose name was Saul, a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
- New King James Version (NKJV)And he had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul. There was not a more handsome person than he among the children of Israel. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people.
Context of 1 Samuel 9:2
1Kish was an important man from the tribe of Benjamin. He was the son of Abiel. Abiel was the son of Zeror. Zeror was the son of Becorath. Becorath was the son of Aphiah. Aphiah was a descendant of Benjamin. Kish had a son whose name was Saul. Saul was a handsome young man. No other Israelite was more handsome than he was. When Saul stood with other people, you could see his head above everyone else. 3Some of Kish's donkeys had run away. Kish said to Saul, ‘Go and look for my donkeys. Take one of the servants with you.’ 4So Saul and the servant travelled through the hill country of Ephraim. They went across Shalisha region. But they did not find the donkeys there. Then they went to Shaalim region. The donkeys were not there either. They travelled through all the tribe of Benjamin's land. They still did not find the donkeys anywhere.
Read all of 1 Samuel 91 Samuel 9:2 word by word
וְלוֹ־הָיָ֨ה בֵ֜ן וּשְׁמ֤וֹ שָׁאוּל֙ בָּח֣וּר וָט֔וֹב וְאֵ֥ין אִ֛ישׁ מִבְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל ט֣וֹב מִמֶּ֑נּוּ מִשִּׁכְמ֣וֹ וָמַ֔עְלָה גָּבֹ֖הַּ מִכָּל־הָעָֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And he had a sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- whose nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
- Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
- a choice young manבָּחוּרbâchûr bâchûr · youthH970
- and a goodlyטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
- not among the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- personאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- than he: from his shouldersשְׁכֶםshekem · shoulderH7926
- and upwardמַ֫עַלma‛al · aboveH4605
- higherגָּבֹהַּgâbôhha gâbôhha · highH1364
- than any of the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
Cross-references for 1 Samuel 9:2
- 1 Samuel 16:7But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look at how handsome or how tall Eliab is. I have not chosen him. The Lord does not look at people in the way that people do. People look at the face and body of a person. But the Lord sees what they are like inside.’
- Genesis 6:2The sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful. They chose for themselves any of them that they wanted to become their wives.
- 2 Samuel 14:25Everyone in Israel praised Absalom. They all thought that he was the most handsome man in the whole country. His body was perfect, from head to toe.
- Jeremiah 9:23The Lord says, ‘Wise people should not be proud of their wisdom. Powerful people should not be proud of their power. And rich people should not be proud that they are rich.
- 1 Samuel 10:23So they ran to find Saul. They brought him out from there. When Saul stood among the people, you could see his head above everyone else.
- 1 Samuel 17:4The Philistines had a strong, brave soldier. His name was Goliath and he came from a town called Gath. He was nearly three metres tall!
- Numbers 13:33We also saw descendants of the Nephilites there. And we felt like very small insects when we looked at them. And we seemed like very small insects to them too.’ (The descendants of Anak are also descendants of the Nephilites.)
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 9:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2From his shoulders and upwards - It was probably from this very circumstance that he was chosen for king; for, where kings were elective, in all ancient times great respect was paid to personal appearance.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2Saul's looks, choice and handsome, without equal among the Israelites, made people loyal to him (see 1 Samuel 10:23; compare 16:12; 2 Samuel 14:25–26).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly--He had a fine appearance; for it is evident that he must have been only a little under seven feet tall. A gigantic stature and an athletic frame must have been a popular recommendation at that time in that country.Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Samuel 9:2
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 9
- 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
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