Bible Strands
1 Samuel 30:17
And David struck them down from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man escaped, except four hundred young men who fled, riding off on camels.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator reports David's pursuit and destruction of the Amalekite raiders immediately after locating them scattered and feasting over their plunder. This action concludes the night following his arrival at Ziklag and precedes the recovery of all stolen property and persons.
The words — The verb וַיַּכֵּם (va-yakkehem) literally renders "and he struck them down," denoting decisive military force. The noun הַנֶּשֶׁף (ha-neShef) specifies "twilight," marking the exact starting point of the extended engagement.
The thread — Complete pursuit and elimination recur in 1 Samuel 11:11, Psalms 18:42, and Judges 4:16, where opposing forces are driven down without survivors. This verse aligns with that biblical motif of total eradication preceding restoration.
Why it lands — The text records a factual account of exhaustive action required to recover what was taken, noting that only four hundred men fled on camels. It presents the operational reality of securing recovery without offering moral commentary or emotional appeal.
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 David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day: and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, which rode upon camels, and fled.
Cross-references
- 1 Samuel 11:11 The next day Saul organized the troops into three divisions, and during the morning watch they invaded the camp of the Ammonites and slaughtered them, until the hottest part of the day. And the survivors were so scattered that no two of them were left together.
- Psalms 18:42 I ground them as dust in the face of the wind; I trampled them like mud in the streets.
- Judges 4:16 Then Barak pursued the chariots and army as far as Harosheth-hagoyim, and the whole army of Sisera fell by the sword; not a single man was left.
- 1 Samuel 15:3 Now go and attack the Amalekites and devote to destruction all that belongs to them. Do not spare them, but put to death men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”
- 1 Kings 20:29 For seven days the armies camped opposite each other, and on the seventh day the battle ensued, and the Israelites struck down the Arameans—a hundred thousand foot soldiers in one day.