Bible Strands
1 Samuel 10:14
Now Saul’s uncle asked him and his servant, “Where did you go?” “To look for the donkeys,” Saul replied. “When we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Saul’s uncle questions Saul and his servant immediately after Saul finishes prophesying and returns from the high place. Saul replies that they went to locate his father’s lost donkeys and, upon failing, sought out the prophet Samuel.
The words — The Hebrew דּוֹד (Dod) literally means “uncle,” identifying the relative who initiates the inquiry. The verb הֲלַכְתֶּ֑ם (halakhtem) translates directly as “did you go,” framing the uncle’s direct question about their recent movements.
The thread — The donkey search originates in 1 Samuel 9:3 when Kish dispatches Saul to retrieve them. The uncle’s follow-up in 1 Samuel 10:15 continues this immediate dialogue, while the pattern of a superior asking a subordinate “where have you been?” parallels the exchange in 2 Kings 5:25.
Why it lands — The text records a mundane family errand intersecting with prophetic activity without embellishment. It requires the reader to acknowledge that divine appointment frequently emerges through ordinary obligations rather than staged spiritual moments.
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 Saul’s uncle said unto him and to his servant, Whither went ye? And he said, To seek the asses: and when we saw that they were no where, we came to Samuel.
Cross-references
- 1 Samuel 14:50 His wife’s name was Ahinoam daughter of Ahimaaz. The name of the commander of his army was Abner, the son of Saul’s uncle Ner.
- 1 Samuel 9:3 One day the donkeys of Saul’s father Kish wandered off, and Kish said to his son Saul, “Take one of the servants and go look for the donkeys.”
- 2 Kings 5:25 When Gehazi went in and stood before his master, Elisha asked him, “Gehazi, where have you been?” “Your servant did not go anywhere,” he replied.