Bible Strands
1 Samuel 19:2
so he warned David, saying, “My father Saul intends to kill you. Be on your guard in the morning; find a secret place and hide there.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jonathan addresses David immediately after Saul commanded him and his servants to kill him. He instructs David to remain alert at dawn and secure a concealed location.
The words — The Hebrew מְבַקֵּשׁ (məḇaqēš) literally means "[is] seeking," while וַיַּגֵּד (va.yaggēḏ) conveys "he told" or "warned." These terms ground the warning in Saul's active pursuit rather than mere suspicion.
The thread — The verse fulfills the loyalty established in 1 Samuel 18:1 and illustrates Proverbs 17:17's principle that a brother is born for adversity. Covert assassination plots against a targeted figure recur in Acts 9:24.
Why it lands — The text requires immediate physical vigilance and tactical concealment when facing lethal intent. It forces the reader to acknowledge how protective counsel functions within an active, hostile power structure.
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 Jonathan Saul’s son delighted much in David: and Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father seeketh to kill thee: now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself until the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thyself:
Cross-references
- Proverbs 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
- Acts 9:24 but Saul learned of their plot. Day and night they watched the city gates in order to kill him.
- 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.
- 1 Samuel 20:2 “Far from it!” Jonathan replied. “You will not die. Indeed, my father does nothing, great or small, without telling me. So why would he hide this matter from me? This cannot be true!”
- Psalms 16:3 As for the saints in the land, they are the excellence in whom all my delight resides.
- Acts 23:16 But when the son of Paul’s sister heard about the plot, he went into the barracks and told Paul.
- 1 John 3:12 Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did Cain slay him? Because his own deeds were evil, while those of his brother were righteous.
- John 15:17 This is My command to you: Love one another.