New Living Translation
1 Samuel 13:22
22So on the day of the battle none of the people of Israel had a sword or spear, except for Saul and Jonathan.
1 Samuel 13:22 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan: but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found.
- New International Version (NIV)So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them.
- English Standard Version (ESV)So on the day of the battle there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people with Saul and Jonathan, but Saul and Jonathan his son had them.
- New King James Version (NKJV)So it came about, on the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan. But they were found with Saul and Jonathan his son.
Context of 1 Samuel 13:22
20So whenever the Israelites needed to sharpen their plowshares, picks, axes, or sickles, they had to take them to a Philistine blacksmith. 21The charges were as follows: a quarter of an ounce of silver for sharpening a plowshare or a pick, and an eighth of an ounce for sharpening an ax or making the point of an ox goad. So on the day of the battle none of the people of Israel had a sword or spear, except for Saul and Jonathan. 23The pass at Micmash had meanwhile been secured by a contingent of the Philistine army.
Read all of 1 Samuel 131 Samuel 13:22 word by word
וְהָיָה֙ בְּי֣וֹם מִלְחֶ֔מֶת וְלֹ֨א נִמְצָ֜א חֶ֤רֶב וַחֲנִית֙ בְּיַ֣ד כָּל־הָעָ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֶת־שָׁא֖וּל וְאֶת־יוֹנָתָ֑ן וַתִּמָּצֵ֣א לְשָׁא֔וּל וּלְיוֹנָתָ֖ן בְּנֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- So it came to pass in the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- of battleמִלְחָמָהmilchâmâh · battleH4421
- that there was neither swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- nor spearחֲנִיתchănîyth · spearH2595
- foundמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
- in the handיָדyâd · handH3027
- of any of the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
- with Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
- and Jonathanיוֹנָתָןyônâthân · JonathanH3129
- his sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
Cross-references for 1 Samuel 13:22
- 1 Samuel 17:47And everyone assembled here will know that the Lord rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the Lord’s battle, and he will give you to us!”
- Judges 5:8When Israel chose new gods, war erupted at the city gates. Yet not a shield or spear could be seen among forty thousand warriors in Israel!
- Zechariah 4:6Then he said to me, “This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
- 1 Corinthians 1:27Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful.
- 2 Corinthians 4:7We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 13:22
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 22In the day of battle - these was neither sword nor spear - But if the Israelites enjoyed such profound peace and undisturbed dominion under Samuel, how is it that they were totally destitute of arms, a state which argues the lowest circumstances of oppression and vassalage? In answer to this we may observe, that the bow and the sling were the principal arms of the Israelites; for these they needed no smith: the most barbarous nations, who have never seen…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 22This seems to be mentioned here, in anticipation of the narrative in the next chapter, to enhance the victory gained, through God‘s help 1 Samuel 14:23, by the comparatively unarmed Israelites over their enemies. What with occasional skirmishes with the Philistines, the necessity of using their arms for domestic purposes, accidental losses, and the ordinary wear and tear, coupled with the impossibility of renewing their arms from the want of smiths and…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-23Verses 15-23 See how politic the Philistines were when they had power; they not only prevented the people of Israel from making weapons of war, but obliged them to depend upon their enemies, even for instruments of husbandry. How impolitic Saul was, who did not, in the beginning of his reign, set himself to redress this. Want of true sense always accompanies want of grace. Sins which appear to us very little, have dangerous consequences. Miserable is a…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19-22no blacksmith: The Philistines prevented the Israelites from having weapons by controlling all the iron needed to make them. Iron technology was new in Canaan. It likely developed in the Aegean region and was brought to Canaan by seafaring people, like the Philistines.Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Samuel 13
- 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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries