Bible Strands
1 Samuel 17:15
but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s sheep in Bethlehem.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrative pauses the battlefield confrontation to locate David in Bethlehem, moving between Saul’s camp and his family’s property. The verse marks his ordinary routine while the Philistine champion stages daily challenges.
The words — The Hebrew הֹלֵךְ וָשָׁב (ho-lekh va-shav) literally means "going and returning," denoting repeated travel. The verb לִרְעוֹת (li-re'ot) translates "to shepherd," specifying the task David performs for his father’s flock.
The thread — This location matches 1 Samuel 16:11, where Jesse names David as the youngest son tending the sheep, and 1 Samuel 16:19, where Saul orders Jesse to send David from that work. The verse re-anchors the story in David’s domestic sphere after the battlefield interruption.
Why it lands — The text states a daily routine without commentary, placing ordinary labor beside the forty-day standoff. It asks the reader to observe how the narrative shifts focus from public combat to private duty.
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
But David went and returned from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Beth–lehem.
Cross-references
- 1 Samuel 16:11 And Samuel asked him, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied, “but he is tending the sheep.” “Send for him,” Samuel replied. “For we will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”
- 1 Samuel 16:19 So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David, who is with the sheep.”