Bible Strands
1 Samuel 30:14
We raided the Negev of the Cherethites, the territory of Judah, and the Negev of Caleb, and we burned down Ziklag.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Egyptian slave speaks to David, detailing the geographic route taken by the Amalekite raiders. This occurs after David locates the slave abandoned in a field, not inside the already-burned city of Ziklag.
The words — The text employs פָּשַׁ֜טְנוּ (pa.Shat.nu), literally "we had made a raid," and נֶ֧גֶב (Ne.gev), meaning "the Negev" or southern territory. These terms specify the exact regions targeted before the destruction of Ziklag.
The thread — The designation כְּרֵתִי (ke.re.Ti) for "Cherethites" appears in 2 Samuel 8:18 and 1 Kings 1:38 as a military unit. These later references show the group evolving from a regional population into a specialized royal guard under David.
Why it lands — The verse demands precise geographic and tactical assessment of the enemy's movements. It requires the reader to separate factual report from emotional response before deciding on a course of action.
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
We made an invasion upon the south of the Cherethites, and upon the coast which belongeth to Judah, and upon the south of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 8:18 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were priestly leaders.
- 1 Kings 1:38 Then Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, along with the Cherethites and Pelethites, went down and set Solomon on King David’s mule, and they escorted him to Gihon.
- 1 Kings 1:44 And with Solomon, the king has sent Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, along with the Cherethites and Pelethites, and they have set him on the king’s mule.
- Ezekiel 25:16 therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I will stretch out My hand against the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites and destroy the remnant along the coast.
- Zephaniah 2:5 Woe to the dwellers of the seacoast, O nation of the Cherethites! The word of the LORD is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines: “I will destroy you, and no one will be left.”
- Joshua 14:13 Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance.
- Joshua 15:13 According to the LORD’s command to him, Joshua gave Caleb son of Jephunneh a portion among the sons of Judah—Kiriath-arba, that is, Hebron. (Arba was the forefather of Anak.)
- 1 Samuel 30:1 On the third day David and his men arrived in Ziklag, and the Amalekites had raided the Negev, attacked Ziklag, and burned it down.
- 1 Samuel 30:16 So he led David down, and there were the Amalekites spread out over all the land, eating, drinking, and celebrating the great amount of plunder they had taken from the land of the Philistines and the land of Judah.
- 1 Chronicles 18:17 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief officials at the king’s side.