While Saul talked to the priest, the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased; and Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand!”
Parallel Translations
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While Saul talked to the priest, the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased; and Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand!”
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And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the noise that was in the host of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said unto the priest, Withdraw thine hand.
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And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased; and Saul said unto the priest: 'Withdraw thy hand.'
Cross-references (6)
Passages linked to 1 Samuel 14:19 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Numbers 27:21 He shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before Yahweh. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation.”
- 1 Samuel 14:24 The men of Israel were distressed that day; for Saul had adjured the people, saying, “Cursed is the man who eats any food until it is evening, and I am avenged of my enemies.” So none of the people tasted food.
- Joshua 9:14 The men sampled their provisions, and didn’t ask counsel from Yahweh’s mouth.
- 1 Samuel 13:11 Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul said, “Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you didn’t come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines assembled themselves together at Michmash;
- Psalms 106:13 They soon forgot his works. They didn’t wait for his counsel,
- Isaiah 28:16 Therefore the Lord Yahweh says, “Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone of a sure foundation. He who believes shall not act hastily.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (13 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Let the Ephod alone: for I have no leisure…
Let the Ephod alone: for I have no leisure now to ask counsel of God, Num. 27:21.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 1Sa 14:19 And it came to pass, while Saul…
1Sa 14:19 And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the noise that [was] in the host of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said unto the priest, Withdraw thine hand.
Ver. 19. Withdraw thine hand.] Words of profane impiety: q.d., it is now no time to consult with God, for we know well enough what we have to do, and will take our opportunity.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Trouble not thyself in putting on the breastplate, with…
Trouble not thyself in putting on the breastplate, with the ephod, to inquire of God; for I now plainly discern the matter; the business calls not for prayer, but for action. But if it did so, there was the more need of God’s direction and blessing, that they might act with more success. Herein therefore he shows his impatience in waiting upon God; his hypocrisy, in pretending to religion; and yet his profaneness, in neglecting and despising it.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And it came to pass, while Saul talked with…
And it came to pass, while Saul talked with the priest,.... With Ahiah about bringing the ark, and inquiring before it:
that the noise that was in the host of the Philistines went on, and increased; the shrieks and cries of those that were beat down and trampled upon, and were bruised and wounded; and indeed the cry of the whole host, being alarmed with the enemy being upon them, or among them; and it seems that not only their motions could be seen, but the noise of them heard at this distance:
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and Saul said unto the priest, withdraw thine hand; from putting on the ephod, or opening the breastplate of Urim and Thummim, or placing the ark in a proper position, to inquire before it, or from lifting up both hands in prayer for direction. Saul by the noise he heard concluded the army of the Philistines was routed, and therefore there was no need to consult the Lord, and he had no leisure for it; no time was to be lost, the advantage was to be taken directly, and the enemy pursued, to complete the victory. The Jews look upon this as a piece of profaneness in Saul, as no doubt it was, and reckon it one of the sins for which his kingdom was not prolonged (o).
(o) Vajikra Rabba & Midrash Tillim apud Abarbinel in loc.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Withdraw - Trouble not thyself to inquire; for I…
Withdraw - Trouble not thyself to inquire; for I now plainly discern the matter.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 19. While Saul talked unto the priest] Before…
Verse 19. While Saul talked unto the priest] Before he had made an end of consulting him, the increasing noise of the panic-struck Philistines called his attention; and finding there was no time to lose, he immediately collected his men and fell on them.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Withdraw thine hand - i. e., “Desist from what…
Withdraw thine hand - i. e., “Desist from what thou art about.” Saul in his impatience to join the battle would not wait for the answer from God, which he had desired Ahijah to inquire for; just as later 1Sa 14:35 he would not wait to finish the altar which he had begun to build. Had he now waited he would doubtless have avoided the error into which he fell.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Hand. He prayed with his hands extended. Saul believed…
Hand. He prayed with his hands extended. Saul believed that God had sufficiently intimated his will, by affording such a favourable opportunity. "The best of omens is to revenge our country’s wrongs." (Hector. Iliad.) (Menochius) --- Optimis auspiciis ea geri, quæ pro Reip. salute fierent, was the observation of Q. F. Maximus. Senect. (Calmet) --- Saul did not wait for God’s answer, and therefore had nearly lost his son by a rash vow, and by too eager zeal. (Worthington)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain Withdraw thine hand--The priest, invested with the ephod, prayed…
Withdraw thine hand--The priest, invested with the ephod, prayed with raised and extended hands. Saul perceiving that the opportunity was inviting, and that God appeared to have sufficiently declared in favor of His people, requested the priest to cease, that they might immediately join in the contest. The season for consultation was past--the time for prompt action was come.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 19. While Saul talked unto the priest — The…
19. While Saul talked unto the priest — The increasing noise and consternation of the enemy led Saul to countermand his order to Ahiah, and hasten on to the battle.
Withdraw thine hand — Desist from doing what I have told thee. The people must not linger now to inquire of Jehovah.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 19. Withdraw thine hand] Desist from the inquiry. With…
19. Withdraw thine hand] Desist from the inquiry. With characteristic impatience Saul would not wait for God’s answer.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (19) Withdraw thine hand.—The instinct of the general, as…
(19) Withdraw thine hand.—The instinct of the general, as we should expect from the character of Saul, soon got the better of his first desire for some Divine guidance. His watchful eye saw that the confusion in the Philistine camp was increasing; now was the moment for his little compact force to throw itself into the melée; so he at once bids Ahijah, the priest of the Lord, to put up the Urim and Thummim, and no longer to seek higher counsel, for the hour was come to fight rather than to pray. This has been the general interpretation of Saul’s action here. Wordsworth quotes Bishop Andrewes, saying, “There are some who with Saul will call for the Ark, and will presently cry ‘Away with it !’ that is, will begin their prayers, and break them off in the midst on every occasion.” And Bishop Hall: “Saul will consult the Ark; hypocrites, when they have leisure, will perhaps be holy. But when the tumult was aroused, Saul’s piety decreased. ‘Withdraw thine hand,’ he said; the Ark must give place to arms.’”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Withdraw thine hand. Saul, impatient of delay, cannot wait…
Withdraw thine hand. Saul, impatient of delay, cannot wait till the will of God is made known to him. There would have been no real loss of time, and he might have been saved from the errors which marred the happiness of the deliverance. But this precipitancy very well shows the state of Saul"s mind.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.