Chapter One
David Hears About Saul’s and Jonathan's Death
1:1 After the death of Saul, when David had returned from striking down the Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag.
While David and his men were away in the north with the Philistines (see 1 Samuel 27:1-12; 29:1-11), the Amalekites went on a rampage through several cities including Ziklag, destroying much of the city and captured all family members that were living there (see 1 Samuel 30:1-15). When David returned, God granted him victory over the Amalekites and the captives were freed with none being harmed (see 1 Samuel 30:16-31). David and his men returned to and had been in Ziklag for two days. At this time David was not aware that Saul and Jonathan had died.
1:2 And on the third day, behold, a man came from Saul’s camp, with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. And when he came to David, he fell to the ground and paid homage. 3 David said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.”
The next day a man, who is identified by the author as coming from Saul’s camp, came to Ziklag. He is described as wearing torn clothes and dirt on his head. This description typically describes someone who has been in mourning or is currently mourning someone, however, the clothes being torn and dirt on the head could also be from escaping an enemy infested area. The man recognizes David and falls to the ground prostrate before him. David asks where did he come from and he tells David that he escaped from the camp of Israel, referring to the battle ground.
1:4 And David said to him, “How did it go? Tell me.” And he answered, “The people fled from the battle, and also many of the people have fallen and are dead, and Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead.” 5 Then David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” 6 And the young man who told him said, “By chance I happened to be on Mount Gilboa, and there was Saul leaning on his spear, and behold, the chariots and the horsemen were close upon him. 7 And when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’ 8 And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’ 9 And he said to me, ‘Stand beside me and kill me, for anguish has seized me, and yet my life still lingers.’ 10 So I stood beside him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the armlet that was on his arm, and I have brought them here to my lord.”
David asks the man how did the battle go, and he told him that the people fled, and that many had fallen and are dead. Then he adds that both Saul and Jonathan are dead. David next asks how how did he know that Saul and Jonathan were dead. This is where the account of Saul’s death varies from what was written in 1 Samuel 31:1-6, the man says that by chance he happened to be on Mount Gilboa and saw Saul leaning on his spear all while the Philistines were closing in on them on horses and chariots. When Saul spotted him he called the man over who then asked who he was and he answered that he was an Amalekite (many of the past-conquered people served as servants to the Israelites and some were employed to provide provisions to soldiers during war, he could have been, as he said, by chance near Saul on Mount Gilboa). Saul who was already mortally wounded, asked the man to kill him, which he tells David that he did. The man then took Saul’s crown and armlet (Hebrew ʾěṣ·‛ā·ḏāh’, an ornamental band or chain, a bracelet) off his body and brought them to David as evidence of Saul’s death.
But both accounts of Saul’s death cannot be true, either Saul fell on his sword as reported in 1 Samuel 31:4 or this man killed him. While some wrestle with the idea that there might be scenarios where both accounts could be true, it seems likely that this Amalekite was there on Mount Gilboa and was able to reach Saul before the Philistines came the following day (see 1 Samuel 31:8) and took off Saul’s crown and armlet and decided to find David thinking he could get rewarded for killing Saul, David’s adversary. As the distance of Ziklag and Mount Gilboa is approximately 120 miles which would require a minimum of three days to travel, and since we are not given a precise time of Saul’s demise, it is possible for a person to make such a trek in that time frame (of course he would have had to have known that David inhabited Ziklag).
1:11 Then David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and so did all the men who were with him. 12 And they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son and for the people of the LORD and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.
David and his men demonstrated their sorrow for the loss for Saul and Jonathan, and for God’s people, as they lost a king, and a valiant warrior in his son Jonathan, by tearing their clothes, crying, and fasted until evening.
1:13 And David said to the young man who told him, “Where do you come from?” And he answered, “I am the son of a sojourner, an Amalekite.” 14 David said to him, “How is it you were not afraid to put out your hand to destroy the LORD’s anointed?”
David again asks the man, “Where do you come from?” The man answered that he was the son of a sojourner, an Amalekite. David then asks him, how is it that he was not afraid to kill YHWH’s anointed. We are not given his response, perhaps he had none to offer. As a son of a foreign sojourner in Israel, one who knew about David’s situation regarding Saul, would have also likely have known about David’s attempts to avoid Saul, and not kill him, which he could have done on at least two occasions.
1:15 Then David called one of the young men and said, “Go, execute him.” And he struck him down so that he died. 16 And David said to him, “Your blood be on your head, for your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the LORD’s anointed.’ ”
David instructs one of his men to kill the man and he was killed. David pronounced that the man’s blood was on his head (that he is responsible for his own death), because he admitted to killing YHWH’s anointed. Even though the man lied about killing Saul, his own words condemned him. Instead of a reward, he was killed.
David Laments for Saul and Jonathan
1:17 And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and Jonathan his son, 18 and he said it should be taught to the people of Judah; behold, it is written in the Book of Jashar. He said:
David wrote a lamentation for Saul and Jonathan and said it should be taught to the people of Judah. We are told by the author that it is written in the book of Jashar (Hebrew yā·šār’, meaning straight, upright, just, right) thought to have been a collection of heroic acts of the Israelites (see below). Included in the Hebrew Masoretic Text between the words ‘Judah’ and ‘behold’, is the Hebrew word qā’·šěṯ, referring to a bow, the hunter’s weapon, the Aramaic word for bow can also be found in the Targum, but it is not in the Septuagint). Some English Bible translators include the word and refer to it as being the name of the song (CSB, LEB, NASB, NCV, NET, NIV, NKJV, NLT, NRSV, TLV), the ISV and KJV connect it to the people who should be taught the song (for example: “teach the children of Judah the use of the bow,” KJV). Others ignore the word and do not reference it at all (ESV, GNB, GW, NABRE, NEB).
1:19 “Your glory, O Israel, is slain on your high places! How the mighty have fallen! 20 Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon, lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised exult.
David exclaimed, “Your glory, O Israel, is slain on your high places! How the mighty have fallen!” The Hebrew word translated here as ‘glory’ is ṣᵉḇîy’, can be translated either as beauty, glory, glorious, splendor, or gazelle, which is why this verse has a number of interpretations. The CSB may offer some clarity to David’s perspective, “The splendor of Israel lies slain on your heights. How the mighty have fallen!” He further instructs that this song of lamentation not be shared with those in Gath or Ashkelon giving the Philistines a reason to celebrate.
1:21 “You mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew or rain upon you, nor fields of offerings! For there the shield of the mighty was defiled, the shield of Saul, not anointed with oil.
David curses the mountains of Gilboa (referring to the range of mountains around Mount Gilboa) that there would be no dew or rain, that the fields that once produced so abundantly would no longer be harvested and offered to God. For the shield (Hebrew mā·ḡēn’, indicates some form of protection, literal or figurative) of the mighty was defiled (Hebrew niḡ·ʿǎl’, to detest, abhor), the shield of Saul not anointed with oil. This last half of the verse is often interpreted as being the physical metal shield that was not rubbed down with oil (the literal translation of the word ‘anointed’), but since David often spoke about Saul being God’s anointed, it likely refers to the anointing Saul received many years earlier (see 1 Samuel 10:1), and that the protection offered by that anointing was detested and therefore defiled, and was killed.
1:22 “From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan turned not back, and the sword of Saul returned not empty.
David refers to the blood of the slain and the fat of the mighty that Jonathan and Saul were successful in battle, that the bow of Jonathan was relentless and the sword of Saul was never empty of victims. The mixed use of the Hebrew masculine and feminine words in this verse indicate that David was possibly more concerned for Hebrew form and symmetry than accuracy.
1:23 “Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely! In life and in death they were not divided; they were swifter than eagles; they were stronger than lions.
David notes that both Saul and Jonathan were both loved and lovely (Hebrew nᵉî·mim’, pleasant, delightful, agreeable). “They were together in life and in death. They were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.” (2 Samuel 1:23b, NLT)
1:24 “You daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you luxuriously in scarlet, who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.
In sharp contrast to the mention of the daughters of the Philistines that were rejoicing (see verse twenty), David calls for the daughters of Israel to weep over Saul. He states that Saul clothed them luxuriously and put ornaments on their apparel, a reference to how through their success in battles allowed the people of Israel peace and prosperity.
1:25 “How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle! “Jonathan lies slain on your high places. 26 I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan; very pleasant have you been to me; your love to me was extraordinary, surpassing the love of women. 27 “How the mighty have fallen, and the weapons of war perished!”
David repeats “How the mighty have fallen,” (see verse nineteen) and then in closing his lament, focuses on Jonathan. His extraordinary friendship is expressed as a love beyond that of a marriage. Many have tried to connect overtones of homosexuality to this and similar verses, there is no connection, implication, or even a hint of a relationship that is anything other than a deep caring relationship.
There is not the slightest hint that David and Jonathan expressed their love in a sexual way. They had a deep, godly love for each other—but not a sexual love. Our modern age often finds it difficult to believe that love can be deep and real without it having a sexual aspect.[1]
The phrase, “How the mighty have fallen,” is stated again, followed by a reference to the “weapons of war” perishing, which appears to be a metonym for the deaths of Saul and Jonathan.
This lament provides an unusual insight into the deepest feelings and thoughts of David at a crucial turning point in his life. Even though Saul had waged a long-standing vendetta against him, and in spite of the fact that Saul had even sought to take his life, David showed no vindictiveness toward him when he learned of his death. Instead of spiteful recriminations for the abuse he had suffered at Saul’s hands, and instead of any expression of elation at his demise, David showed only respect and honor for the person whom he continued to recognize as the Lord’s anointed, notwithstanding his abuse of the office with which he was entrusted. In all of this David showed himself to be a person worthy of the royal office to which he, too, had already been anointed.[2]
Considerations
The Book of Jashar
Also known as the “book of Jasher,” the “book of the Upright One,” the “book of the Righteous,” and the “book of the Just Man.” It is a lost book, but is not considered a lost book of the canon (the accepted list of books that are considered as being truly inspired by God). This is the second reference to the book in the Bible, the first appearance is in Joshua 10:13 (click here to read the commentary).
Poetic Passages
A significant amount of the Bible is presented in poetic form. One type of Hebrew poetry is lyrical, referring to, or associated with, singing. Most Bible readers can relate to poetry in the Psalms, but there are several other passages that were meant to be sung, including the Song of Moses (see Exodus 15); the Song of Deborah (see Judges 5); the Song of Hannah (see 1 Samuel 2); and now this lament by David, which is the first of four in this book (see 2 Samuel 19:1; 22:2-51; 23:1-7).
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[1] Guzik, D. (2013). 2 Samuel (2 Sa 1:19–27). David Guzik.
[2] Vannoy, J. R. (2009). Cornerstone Biblical Commentarya: 1-2 Samuel (Vol. 4, p. 271). Tyndale House Publishers.