Bible Strands
1 Samuel 23:22
Please go and prepare further. Investigate and watch carefully where he goes and who has seen him there, for I am told that he is extremely cunning.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Saul speaks to his officers after they locate David in the wilderness of Ziph. He commands them to resume the manhunt, acknowledging that his previous pursuit failed because David evaded capture.
The words — הָכִינוּ (ha.Khi.nu) = prepare; עוֹד (od) = still. The phrase הָכִינוּ עוֹד literally means "prepare still," indicating a continuation of the military operation.
The thread — The description of David as cunning echoes Job 5:13, which notes that God catches the wise in their craftiness. This creates a thematic tension between human strategy and divine sovereignty over David's fate.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that human intelligence-gathering and tactical preparation are necessary but insufficient without God's permission. It asks the reader to observe how Scripture treats human cunning not as inherently evil, but as a tool subject to higher purposes.
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
Go, I pray you, prepare yet, and know and see his place where his haunt is, and who hath seen him there: for it is told me that he dealeth very subtilly.
Cross-references
- Job 5:13 He catches the wise in their craftiness, and sweeps away the plans of the cunning.