Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why then have you brought him to me?
Parallel Translations
-
Then Achish said to his servants, “Look, you see the man is insane. Why then have you brought him to me?
-
Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore then have ye brought him to me?
-
(21-15) Then said Achish unto his servants: 'Lo, when ye see a man that is mad, wherefore do ye bring him to me?
Cross-references (1)
Passages linked to 1 Samuel 21:14 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Ecclesiastes 7:7 Surely extortion makes the wise man foolish; and a bribe destroys the understanding.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (7 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
Saved on this device only — never synced or sent anywhere.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 1Sa 21:14 Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo,…
1Sa 21:14 Then said Achish unto his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad: wherefore [then] have ye brought him to me?
Ver. 14. Lo, ye see the man is mad.] Ay, or else you are infatuated to dismiss him for mad, to your further ruth {grief} and utter ruin.
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 Ye see the man is mad; and so were…
Ye see the man is mad; and so were Achish and his men too, to be so soon cheated. But this must be ascribed to the wise and powerful providence of God, who, in answer to David’s prayer now made, which is recorded Psa 34; Psa 61, did infatuate them, as he hath done many others in like cases.
Wherefore then have ye brought him to me? what service can I expect from him? or what cause have I to fear him?
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 Then said Achish to his servants, lo, you see…
Then said Achish to his servants, lo, you see the man is mad,.... Which he said, as willing his servants should think so, and therefore rather the object of their pity than of their rage and malice; or as really believing he was so, which he and they might conclude not merely from these his actions, before described, which they might judge real and not feigned; but they might suppose this was truly his case, brought upon him by the ill usage of Saul, who pursuing him from place to place, and sending after him to take away his life, had really brought him to distraction; and this they might rather conclude from his coming to Gath, an enemy's country, and whose champion he had slain, and many others of them; which it might be thought no man in his senses would have done:
wherefore then have ye brought him to me? for if he was brought to be employed in his service, he seemed very unfit for it, whether in the camp, or in the court; and if to be tried and condemned as an enemy, since he was a madman, he was rather to be pitied.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 14. The man is mad — “A sort of…
14. The man is mad — “A sort of respect for persons thus afflicted, as if they were under some kind of supernatural influence, has always existed, and does now exist, in the East; so that David knew his personal safety, and even his freedom, were guaranteed by the belief in his madness.” — Kitto.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (14) Then said Achish . . . the man…
(14) Then said Achish . . . the man is mad.—The Philistine king would look with peculiar sorrow and repulsion on a madman if, as according to Jewish tradition (see Philippson), his own wife and daughter were insane.
The device, however, succeeded, as David hoped it would, and he was suffered to depart in safety—nay, was even hurried out of the Philistine country. In old times, as now, in many parts of the East, the insane are looked upon as persons in some peculiar way possessed by, and therefore under the more immediate protection of, Deity. The life then of the hunted fugitive was perfectly safe from the moment the Philistines considered him mad.
Read full note →
There is a curious legend in the Talmud in which several events recorded in the Biblical account are confused. Part of it apparently refers to this strange choice of his of Phillstia as a place of refuge. “One day Satan appeared to him (David) in the shape of a gazelle, which, eluding his pursuit, decoyed him into the land of the Philistines. ‘Ah!’ said Ishbi-benob, when he caught sight of him, ‘art thou the man that slew my brother, Goliath?’ So saying, he seized and bound him.”—Treatise Sanhedrin, fol. 95, cols 1, 2. The wild legend goes on to explain how, partly by miracle, partly with the aid of Abishai, David slew Ishbi-benob and escaped.
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 Vers. 14, 15. The man is mad. Achish supposes…
Vers. 14, 15. The man is mad. Achish supposes that David"s madness was real, and "drove him away" (Psalm 34., title). Here we have only his contemptuous words, declaring that he had madmen enough of his own, and needed no more. As madmen were looked upon in old time as possessed by the Deity, and therefore as persons who must not be interfered with, they probably presumed upon the liberty granted them, and gave much annoyance. In my presence. Rather, "against me." Achish feared personal injury. Shall this fellow come into my house? A strong negative taking the form of a question. It means, David shall not enter into my service (comp. Psalm 34., title). The whole psalm bears witness to the deep perturbation of David"s spirit, and helps to explain his strange conduct.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Why have you brought him to me?
Why have you brought him to me?
Possible meanings are 1) Achish demands that his servants explain why they have brought David to him or 2) Achish is scolding them with a rhetorical question. AT: "You should have known not to bring him to me." (See: Rhetorical Question)
Read full note →
Do I lack madmen, so that you have brought this fellow to behave like one in my presence?
This rhetorical question is a rebuke. AT: "There are enough madmen here who waste my time. You should not have brought this fellow to behave like one in my presence." (See: Rhetorical Question and Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
Will this fellow really come into my house?
This rhetorical question can be translated as a statement. AT: "Do not allow this fellow to enter my house." (See: Rhetorical Question)
translationWords
servant
house
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.