1 Samuel 18
1 After David had finished speaking with Saul, the souls of Jonathan and David were knit together, and Jonathan loved him as himself.
After David finished talking with Saul, [he met Saul’s son, Jonathan.] Jonathan [immediately] liked David; in fact, he began to love/like him as much as he loved/liked himself.
2 And from that day Saul kept David with him and did not let him return to his father’s house.
From that day, Saul kept David with him, and did not let him return home.
3 Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.
Because Jonathan loved David so much, he made a solemn agreement with David. [They promised each other that they would always be loyal friends].
4 And Jonathan removed the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, along with his tunic, his sword, his bow, and his belt.
Jonathan took off his own outer robe and gave it to David. He also gave David his soldier’s tunic, his sword, his bow [and arrows], and his belt.
5 So David marched out and prospered in everything Saul sent him to do, and Saul set him over the men of war. And this was pleasing in the sight of all the people, and of Saul’s officers as well.
[David went wherever Saul sent him. And] whatever Saul told him to do, David did it very successfully. As a result, Saul appointed David to be a commander in the army. All the officers and other men in the army (approved of/were very pleased with) that.
6 As the troops were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs, and with tambourines and other instruments.
But, when the men in the army were returning home after David had killed Goliath, the women came out from many [HYP] towns in Israel to meet/greet King Saul. They were singing and dancing very joyfully, playing tambourines and lyres.
7 And as the women danced, they sang out: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.”
As they danced, they sang this song to each other: “Saul has killed 1,000 [enemy soldiers], But David has killed 10,000 [of them].”
8 And Saul was furious and resented this song. “They have ascribed tens of thousands to David,” he said, “but only thousands to me. What more can he have but the kingdom?”
[When] Saul [heard them singing that, he] did not like it. He became very angry. He said [to himself], “They are saying that David [killed] 10,000 men, but that I [have killed] only 1,000. Soon they will want to make him their king!” [RHQ]
9 And from that day forward Saul kept a jealous eye on David.
From that time, Saul watched David very closely because he was suspicious [that David would try to become king].
10 The next day a spirit of distress sent from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied inside the house while David played the harp as usual. Now Saul was holding a spear,
The next day, an evil spirit sent by God suddenly took control of Saul. He began to act like a madman, inside his house. David was playing the lyre for him, as he did every day. Saul was holding a spear in his hand,
11 and he hurled it, thinking, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.
and he hurled it [at David], saying to himself, “I will fasten David to the wall with the spear!” He did that two times, but David jumped aside [both times].
12 So Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with David but had departed from Saul.
Because [it became evident that] Yahweh had abandoned Saul but [that] he was helping David, Saul was afraid of David.
13 Therefore Saul sent David away and gave him command of a thousand men. David led the troops out to battle and back,
So he appointed David as a commander of 1,000 soldiers and sent David away from him, [hoping that David would be killed in a battle]. But when David led his soldiers [in their battles],
14 and he continued to prosper in all his ways, because the LORD was with him.
he always had great success, because Yahweh was helping him.
15 When Saul saw that David was very successful, he was afraid of him.
When Saul heard that David [and his soldiers were] very successful, he became more afraid of David.
16 But all Israel and Judah loved David, because he was leading them out to battle and back.
But all the people of Israel and of Judah loved David, because he led the soldiers very successfully [in the battles].
17 Then Saul said to David, “Here is my older daughter Merab. I will give her to you in marriage. Only be valiant for me and fight the LORD’s battles.” But Saul was thinking, “I need not raise my hand against him; let the hand of the Philistines be against him.”
One day Saul said to David, “I am ready to give you my oldest daughter, Merab, to be your wife. I will do that if you serve me bravely by fighting battles for Yahweh [against the Philistines]”. He said that because he thought, “I will not try to get rid of David by myself. I will allow the Philistines to do that.”
18 And David said to Saul, “Who am I, and what is my family or my father’s clan in Israel, that I should become the son-in-law of the king?”
But David said to Saul, “I am not [RHQ] a very important person, and my family is not very important, and my clan is not a very important Israeli clan. So I do not deserve to become your son-in-law.” [RHQ]
19 So when it was time to give Saul’s daughter Merab to David, she was given in marriage to Adriel of Meholah.
So, when it was time for Merab to be given to David to become his wife, instead, Saul gave her to a man named Adriel, from Meholah [town].
20 Now Saul’s daughter Michal loved David, and when this was reported to Saul, it pleased him.
But Saul’s other daughter, Michal, fell in love with David. When they told Saul about that, he was pleased.
21 “I will give her to David,” Saul thought, “so that she may be a snare to him, and the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “For a second time now you can be my son-in-law.”
He thought, “I will let Michal marry him, in order that she may trap him, and the Philistines will be able to kill him.” So he said to David, [“You can marry Michal],” and by saying that, he indicated for the second time that David would become his son-in-law.
22 Then Saul ordered his servants, “Speak to David privately and tell him, ‘Behold, the king is pleased with you, and all his servants love you. Now therefore, become his son-in-law.’”
Saul told his servants, “Talk to David privately, and say to him, ‘Listen, the king is pleased with you, and all of us his servants love you. So now [we think that] you should [marry Michal and] become the king’s son-in-law.’”
23 But when Saul’s servants relayed these words to David, he replied, “Does it seem trivial in your sight to be the son-in-law of the king? I am a poor man and lightly esteemed.”
So they told that to David. But David said, “It would be a great honor [RHQ] to become the king’s son-in-law. But [I do not think that I should do that, because] I am only a poor and insignificant man.”
24 And the servants told Saul what David had said.
When the servants told Saul what David had said,
25 Saul replied, “Say to David, ‘The king desires no other dowry but a hundred Philistine foreskins as revenge on his enemies.’” But Saul intended to cause David’s death at the hands of the Philistines.
Saul replied, “Go and say to David, ‘[In order for] the king [to allow you to marry Michal, he] wants [you to kill] 100 Philistines [and cut off] their foreskins [and bring the foreskins to him to prove that you have killed them]. In that way he will get revenge on his enemies.’” But what Saul wanted was that the Philistines would kill David [while David was trying to kill them].
26 When the servants reported these terms to David, he was pleased to become the king’s son-in-law. Before the wedding day arrived,
When the servants told that to David, he was very pleased that he could become the king’s son-in-law [by doing that. The king had said how many days he would allow for David to do that]. But before that time ended,
27 David and his men went out and killed two hundred Philistines. He brought their foreskins and presented them as payment in full to become the king’s son-in-law. Then Saul gave his daughter Michal to David in marriage.
David and his men went and killed, [not 100, but] 200 Philistines! He brought their foreskins to Saul, and counted them [while Saul was watching], in order to prove that he had [done what the king required so that he could become Saul’s son-in-law. So then Saul was obligated] to allow David to marry his daughter Michal.
28 When Saul realized that the LORD was with David and that his daughter Michal loved David,
But when Saul realized that Yahweh was helping David, and that his daughter loved David,
29 he grew even more afraid of David. So from then on Saul was David’s enemy.
he became more afraid of David. So, as long as Saul lived, he was David’s enemy.
30 Every time the Philistine commanders came out for battle, David was more successful than all of Saul’s officers, so that his name was highly esteemed.
The Philistine armies repeatedly came to fight the Israelis, but every time they fought, David and his soldiers were more successful than any of Saul’s other army commanders. As a result, David became very famous.
