Bible Strands
1 Samuel 13:23
And a garrison of the Philistines had gone out to the pass at Michmash.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator describes the military posture on the eve of battle, noting that Saul’s troops lack weapons while a Philistine garrison deploys to the pass at Michmash.
The words — The Hebrew מַצַּב (maṣṣāḇ) designates a military garrison or outpost, and מַעֲבָר (maʿăḇār) denotes a narrow pass or strategic crossing point.
The thread — The location reappears in Isaiah 10:28 as a staging point for Assyrian invasion and in 1 Samuel 14:1–4 as the target of Jonathan’s solo raid.
Why it lands — The verse establishes a tactical imbalance that forces Saul’s army into concealment and sets the immediate stage for Jonathan’s independent assault against a fortified enemy position.
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 garrison of the Philistines went out to the passage of Michmash.
Cross-references
- Isaiah 10:28 Assyria has entered Aiath and passed through Migron, storing their supplies at Michmash.
- 1 Samuel 14:1 One day Jonathan son of Saul said to the young man bearing his armor, “Come, let us cross over to the Philistine outpost on the other side.” But Jonathan did not tell his father.
- 1 Samuel 14:4 Now there were cliffs on both sides of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine outpost. One was named Bozez and the other Seneh.
- 1 Samuel 13:2 He chose for himself three thousand men of Israel: Two thousand were with Saul at Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. And the rest of the troops he sent away, each to his own home.
- 1 Samuel 13:5 Now the Philistines assembled to fight against Israel with three thousand chariots, six thousand horsemen, and troops as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Michmash, east of Beth-aven.
- 2 Samuel 23:14 At that time David was in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was at Bethlehem.