Bible Strands
1 Kings 20:11
And the king of Israel replied, “Tell him: ‘The one putting on his armor should not boast like one taking it off.’”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The king of Israel speaks through his messengers to relay a response to Ben-hadad immediately after the Syrian commander boasts of total victory over Samaria.
The words — The Hebrew verb יִתְהַלֵּל (yit.ha.Lel) means “he boast,” paired with חֹגֵר (cho.Ger), “one who girds on” or puts on armor. The text states that the act of preparing for battle does not justify claiming victory before it occurs.
The thread — This theme of premature confidence intersects with Proverbs 27:1, which warns against boasting about tomorrow, and stands in direct contrast to the enemy’s threats recorded in 1 Samuel 17:44 and the observation in Ecclesiastes 9:11.
Why it lands — The passage demands that readers evaluate outcomes based on actual results rather than initial preparations or declarations. It requires restraint in claiming success until the event is complete.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.
Cross-references
- Proverbs 27:1 Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.
- 1 Samuel 17:44 “Come here,” he called to David, “and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”
- Ecclesiastes 9:11 I saw something else under the sun: The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong; neither is the bread to the wise, nor the wealth to the intelligent, nor the favor to the skillful. For time and chance happen to all.
- Isaiah 10:15 Does an axe raise itself above the one who swings it? Does a saw boast over him who saws with it? It would be like a rod waving the one who lifts it, or a staff lifting him who is not wood!
- 1 Samuel 14:6 Jonathan said to the young man bearing his armor, “Come, let us cross over to the outpost of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the LORD will work on our behalf. Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few.”
- 1 Samuel 14:12 So the men of the outpost called out to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, “Come on up, and we will teach you a lesson!” “Follow me,” Jonathan told his armor-bearer, “for the LORD has delivered them into the hand of Israel.”
- Matthew 26:33 Peter said to Him, “Even if all fall away on account of You, I never will.”
- Matthew 26:75 Then Peter remembered the word that Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.