✝
← Bible
ARCBLIVREKJVVBL

1 Samuel 18

BLIVRE · Chapter 18/31

1E assim que ele acabou de falar com Saul, a alma de Jônatas se apegou à de Davi, e Jônatas o amou como à sua alma.

2E Saul o tomou naquele dia, e não o deixou voltar à casa de seu pai.

3E fizeram aliança Jônatas e Davi, porque ele lhe amava como a sua alma.

4E Jônatas despiu a roupa que tinha sobre si, e deu-a a Davi, e outras roupas suas, até sua espada, e seu arco, e seu cinto.

5E Davi saía para onde quer que Saul o enviasse, e portava-se prudentemente. Fê-lo, portanto, Saul capitão da gente de guerra, e era aceito aos olhos de todo o povo, e nos olhos dos criados de Saul.

6E aconteceu que quando voltavam eles, quando Davi voltou de matar ao filisteu, saíram as mulheres de todas as cidades de Israel cantando, e com danças, com tamboris, e com alegrias e adufes, a receber ao rei Saul.

7E cantavam as mulheres que dançavam, e diziam: Saul feriu seus milhares, E Davi seus dez milhares.

8E irou-se Saul em grande maneira, e desagradou esta palavra em seus olhos, e disse: A Davi deram dez milhares, e a mim milhares; não lhe falta mais que o reino.

9E desde aquele dia Saul olhou com desconfiança a Davi.

10Outro dia aconteceu que o espírito mau da parte de Deus tomou a Saul, e mostrava-se em sua casa com trejeitos de profeta: e Davi tocava com sua mão como os outros dias; e estava uma lança à mão de Saul.

11E lançou Saul a lança, dizendo: Encravarei a Davi na parede. E duas vezes se afastou dele Davi.

12Mas Saul se temia de Davi porquanto o SENHOR era com ele, e havia se afastado de Saul.

13Afastou-o, pois, Saul de si, e fez-lhe capitão de mil; e saía e entrava diante do povo.

14E Davi se conduzia prudentemente em todos seus negócios, e o SENHOR era com ele.

15E vendo Saul que se portava tão prudentemente, temia-se dele.

16Mas todos os de Israel e Judá amavam a Davi, porque ele saía e entrava diante deles.

17E disse Saul a Davi: Eis que eu te darei a Merabe minha filha maior por mulher: somente que me sejas homem valente, e faças as guerras do SENHOR. Mas Saul dizia: Não será minha mão contra ele, mas a mão dos filisteus será contra ele.

18E Davi respondeu a Saul: Quem sou eu, ou que é minha vida, ou a família de meu pai em Israel, para ser genro do rei?

19E vindo o tempo em que Merabe, filha de Saul, se havia de dar a Davi, foi dada por mulher a Adriel meolatita.

20Mas Mical a outra filha de Saul amava a Davi; e foi dito a Saul, o qual foi conveniente em seus olhos.

21E Saul disse: Eu a darei a ele, para que lhe seja por armadilha, e para que a mão dos filisteus seja contra ele. Disse, pois, Saul a Davi: Com a outra serás meu genro hoje.

22E mandou Saul a seus criados: Falai em secreto a Davi, dizendo-lhe: Eis que, o rei te ama, e todos seus criados te querem bem; sê, pois, genro do rei.

23E os criados de Saul falaram estas palavras aos ouvidos de Davi. E Davi disse: Parece-vos que é pouco ser genro do rei, sendo eu um homem pobre e de nenhuma estima?

24E os criados de Saul lhe deram a resposta dizendo: Tais palavras disse Davi.

25E Saul disse: Dizei assim a Davi: Não está o contentamento do rei no dote, mas sim em cem prepúcios de filisteus, para que seja tomada vingança dos inimigos do rei. Mas Saul pensava lançar a Davi em mãos dos filisteus.

26E quando seus criados declararam a Davi estas palavras, foi conveniente a coisa nos olhos de Davi, para ser genro do rei. E quando o prazo não era ainda cumprido,

27Levantou-se Davi, e partiu-se com sua gente, e feriu duzentos homens dos filisteus; e trouxe Davi os prepúcios deles, e entregaram-nos todos ao rei, para que ele fosse feito genro do rei. E Saul lhe deu a sua filha Mical por mulher.

28Porém Saul, vendo e considerando que o SENHOR era com Davi, e que sua filha Mical o amava,

29Temeu-se mais de Davi; e foi Saul inimigo de Davi todos os dias.

30E saíam os príncipes dos filisteus; e quando eles saíam, portava-se Davi mais prudentemente que todos os servos de Saul: e era seu nome muito ilustre.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Jonathan and David form a deep bond of friendship. David's success in battle stirs growing jealousy and hatred in Saul, who tries to kill him directly and then plots his death through marriage to his daughter Michal.

Explanation

The friendship between Jonathan and David, described with the intensity of 'the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David,' is remarkable because Jonathan, the natural heir to the throne, chooses to support the man God would choose in his place, showing a rare example of loyalty free of dynastic jealousy. The women's song — 'Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands' — ignites Saul's destructive jealousy, and from that moment on he sees David not as a valuable ally but as an existential threat to his own reign and legacy. Saul's plan to use marriage to his daughter Michal as a strategy to expose David to greater danger at the hands of the Philistines reveals how jealousy can corrupt even family relationships, turning a marital alliance into a calculated political weapon.

Fun facts

  • The demand for a hundred Philistine foreskins as a 'dowry' to marry Michal (v.25) was a gruesome but historically plausible proof of war, used to confirm the deaths of uncircumcised enemies in battle.
  • Saul's jealousy, expressed in the words 'what can he have more but the kingdom?' (v.8), shows that he already instinctively recognized, even before any concrete threat from David, that he had lost God's favor to another.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. 1 Samuel 18:1The friendship between Jonathan and David is born the very instant David finishes speaking with Saul — an instant, intense bond that becomes one of the most striking relationships in the whole Bible.
  2. 1 Samuel 18:2Saul brings David permanently into the court from this moment on — what had been occasional service as armor-bearer in chapter 16 now becomes permanent.
  3. 1 Samuel 18:3Making a formal “covenant” between the two, not just an informal friendship, was a solemn commitment with lasting implications — this covenant will be recalled and renewed more than once in the chapters ahead.
  4. 1 Samuel 18:4Handing over his own robe, weapon, and belt, symbols of his position as crown prince, is a gesture loaded with meaning: Jonathan is, in effect, transferring to David the very insignia that marked the heir to the throne.
  5. 1 Samuel 18:5David’s rapid rise, from personal armor-bearer to military commander, shows both his competence and the initial trust Saul still placed in him before the jealousy began.
  6. 1 Samuel 18:6Popular celebration, with spontaneous music and dancing, was the traditional way of marking military victories in Israel — but the disproportionate enthusiasm for David will cause the problem in the next verse.
  7. 1 Samuel 18:7The song directly compares the two men, and the simple math — ten times more for David — is exactly the kind of public comparison no insecure king would want to hear about a subordinate.
  8. 1 Samuel 18:8Saul’s reaction reveals the real fear behind the jealousy: he already sees David as a potential political rival, not just a popular military hero.
  9. 1 Samuel 18:9This is the explicit turning point in the relationship: from here on, everything David does will be seen by Saul through the lens of suspicion.
  10. 1 Samuel 18:10The scene repeats the pattern from chapter 16, music calming the evil spirit, but now with a weapon in Saul’s hand — the same remedy that once brought relief now becomes the setting for danger.
  11. 1 Samuel 18:11This is the first direct attempt on David’s life — and the fact it happens twice suggests it was not an isolated burst of anger, but a pattern that would repeat.
  12. 1 Samuel 18:12Saul’s fear is not only of losing popularity, but of recognizing, even without openly admitting it, that God’s presence had shifted from one man to the other.
  13. 1 Samuel 18:13Removing David from personal closeness, while giving him a military command, was Saul’s way of trying to get rid of the direct threat without losing David’s military value to the kingdom.
  14. 1 Samuel 18:14The phrase “the Lord was with him,” used again here after verse 12, keeps reinforcing the constant contrast between David’s success and Saul’s spiritual decline.
  15. 1 Samuel 18:15Paradoxically, the better David did at everything, the more afraid Saul became — someone else’s success, instead of reassuring him, only fed the king’s paranoia further.
  16. 1 Samuel 18:16David’s popularity among the common people contrasts more and more with the growing rejection he faces inside the palace itself.
  17. 1 Samuel 18:17Saul uses marriage as a trap disguised as an honor: by sending David into more wars, he secretly hoped the Philistines themselves would do the dirty work of eliminating him.
  18. 1 Samuel 18:18David’s humble response about his modest origins echoes Saul’s own reaction to being chosen king back in chapter 9 — an initial humility that marks both men before power changes each of them in different ways.
  19. 1 Samuel 18:19Saul breaks his own promise, giving Merab to another man — one more maneuver that leaves David without the promised reward, despite having done his part in the wars.
  20. 1 Samuel 18:20Unlike with Merab, it is now Michal’s own feelings for David that open a new opportunity — and Saul, always calculating, already sees how to turn the situation to his advantage.
  21. 1 Samuel 18:21“That she may be a snare to him” openly reveals Saul’s intention: to use Michal’s very marriage as bait to expose David to more military danger, a trap disguised as generosity.
  22. 1 Samuel 18:22Using go-betweens to quietly pressure David, instead of speaking directly, shows Saul’s careful manipulation as he tries to look kind while setting another trap.
  23. 1 Samuel 18:23David’s response shows genuine hesitation, not strategy: he lacks the financial means to pay the dowry expected of a royal son-in-law, a practical detail that opens the door to Saul’s next demand.
  24. 1 Samuel 18:24Reporting David’s answer back gives Saul exactly the information he needed to formulate the cruel demand of the next verse.
  25. 1 Samuel 18:25Asking for a hundred Philistine foreskins as the bride price was at once a dowry (the suitor paid something to the bride’s father) and a proof of war: Saul wanted a number that could only be gotten by killing enemies in hand-to-hand combat, hoping David would die trying.
  26. 1 Samuel 18:26David accepts the offer despite the obvious risk of the mission Saul demanded — the note that “the days were not expired” suggests a set deadline for completing the task.
  27. 1 Samuel 18:27David delivers two hundred foreskins, double what was asked — exceeding the agreed price was a way of making clear he had not just survived the trap but had beaten it with room to spare.
  28. 1 Samuel 18:28Despite every attempt to eliminate him, Saul keeps witnessing firsthand the two things that troubled him most: God’s favor on David and his own family’s growing affection for him.
  29. 1 Samuel 18:29This verse marks the definitive turning point: from here on, Saul’s hostility stops being a passing episode and becomes a permanent condition for the rest of his reign.
  30. 1 Samuel 18:30Even surrounded by danger inside the palace itself, David keeps standing out in every new military campaign — his public success grows in step with Saul’s private hostility.

Chapters

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031

Our apps

Our apps →

Bible in Stories

The Bible told as a story, with audio and videos.

📱 Get the app

World in Stories

True stories of humanity that sound made up.

App StoreGoogle Play

Feito! Pequenas Vitórias

A light daily routine for people who lose track of the day.

App StoreGoogle Play