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Historical Books · WORLD ENGLISH BIBLE

1 Samuel 19

Samuel, Saul, and David mark Israel's transition from judges to monarchy.

Old Testament

1 Samuel 19

1Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they should kill David. But Jonathan, Saul’s son, greatly delighted in David.

2Jonathan told David, saying, “Saul my father seeks to kill you. Now therefore, please take care of yourself in the morning, live in a secret place, and hide yourself.

3I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will talk with my father about you; and if I see anything, I will tell you.”

4Jonathan spoke good of David to Saul his father, and said to him, “Don’t let the king sin against his servant, against David; because he has not sinned against you, and because his works have been very good toward you;

5for he put his life in his hand and struck the Philistine, and the LORD worked a great victory for all Israel. You saw it and rejoiced. Why then will you sin against innocent blood, to kill David without a cause?”

6Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan; and Saul swore, “As the LORD lives, he shall not be put to death.”

7Jonathan called David, and Jonathan showed him all those things. Then Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence as before.

8There was war again. David went out and fought with the Philistines, and killed them with a great slaughter; and they fled before him.

9An evil spirit from the LORD was on Saul as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand; and David was playing music with his hand.

10Saul sought to pin David to the wall with the spear, but he slipped away out of Saul’s presence; and he stuck the spear into the wall. David fled and escaped that night.

11Saul sent messengers to David’s house to watch him and to kill him in the morning. Michal, David’s wife, told him, saying, “If you don’t save your life tonight, tomorrow you will be killed.”

12So Michal let David down through the window. He went away, fled, and escaped.

13Michal took the teraphim and laid it in the bed, and put a pillow of goats’ hair at its head and covered it with clothes.

14When Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, “He is sick.”

15Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying, “Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may kill him.”

16When the messengers came in, behold, the teraphim was in the bed, with the pillow of goats’ hair at its head.

17Saul said to Michal, “Why have you deceived me like this and let my enemy go, so that he has escaped?” Michal answered Saul, “He said to me, ‘Let me go! Why should I kill you?’”

18Now David fled and escaped, and came to Samuel at Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. He and Samuel went and lived in Naioth.

19Saul was told, saying, “Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.”

20Saul sent messengers to seize David; and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as head over them, God’s Spirit came on Saul’s messengers, and they also prophesied.

21When Saul was told, he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they also prophesied.

22Then he also went to Ramah, and came to the great well that is in Secu: and he asked, “Where are Samuel and David?” One said, “Behold, they are at Naioth in Ramah.”

23He went there to Naioth in Ramah. Then God’s Spirit came on him also, and he went on, and prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah.

24He also stripped off his clothes. He also prophesied before Samuel and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Therefore they say, “Is Saul also among the prophets?”

READ IN CONTEXT

Before applying this chapter

Samuel, Saul, and David mark Israel's transition from judges to monarchy. Read 1 Samuel 19 within the complete 1 Samuel overview, and use the contextual Bible reading guide before forming a personal application. Chapter divisions aid navigation, but the literary unit may begin earlier or continue into the next chapter.

Observe first

Mark repeated words, changes of speaker, commands, promises, contrasts, questions, and the relationship between paragraphs.

Apply responsibly

Distinguish description from command and immediate audience from later readers before forming a personal application.

TEXT-DERIVED READING NOTES

What to notice in 1 Samuel 19

1 Samuel 19 contains 24 verses and about 637 words in this translation. These observations come from the chapter itself; they are prompts for close reading, not claims about its only possible meaning.

The opening movement

Verse 1 begins: “Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they should kill David. But Jonathan, Saul’s son, greatly delighted in David.” Ask what situation, voice, image, or argument this opening establishes for everything that follows.

The closing movement

Verse 24 closes: “He also stripped off his clothes. He also prophesied before Samuel and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Therefore they say, “Is Saul also among the…” Compare the ending with the opening and note what changed, resolved, intensified, or remained open.

Vocabulary worth tracing

Recurring or prominent content words include saul, david, jonathan, messengers, kill, went. Follow where each word appears and whether its meaning shifts with the speaker or setting.

COMMON QUESTIONS

About 1 Samuel 19

Which Bible translation is shown here?+

This page reproduces the World English Bible Protestant edition (WEBP), a modern-English translation dedicated to the public domain.

How should I cite a specific verse?+

Use the book, chapter, and verse—for example, 1 Samuel 19:1—and name the World English Bible if the wording matters. Each verse number above is a direct anchor link.

Does the chapter number define the complete literary unit?+

Not always. Chapter and verse numbers were added for navigation. Check the paragraphs, scenes, poetic stanzas, or argument before and after this chapter.

A SMALL NEXT STEP

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