KJV King James Version
And Saul’s servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you [a] light [thing] to be a king’s son in law, seeing that I [am] a poor man, and lightly esteemed?
VERSE STUDY • KJV
1 Samuel 18:23
And Saul’s servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you [a] light [thing] to be a king’s son in law, seeing that I [am] a poor man, and lightly esteemed?
Read it in 5 translations
BSB Berean Standard Bible
But when Saul’s servants relayed these words to David, he replied, “Does it seem trivial in your sight to be the son-in-law of the king? I am a poor man and lightly esteemed.”
WEB World English Bible
Saul’s servants spoke those words in the ears of David. David said, “Does it seems to you a light thing to be the king’s son-in-law, since I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed?”
ASV American Standard Version
And Saul’s servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you a light thing to be the king’s son-in-law, seeing that I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed?
YLT Young’s Literal Translation
And the servants of Saul speak in the ears of David these words, and David saith, ‘Is it a light thing in your eyes to be son-in-law to the king—and I a poor man, and lightly esteemed?’
Surrounding context — 1 Samuel 18
20 And Michal Saul’s daughter loved David: and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.
21 And Saul said, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Wherefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this day be my son in law in [the one of] the twain.
22 And Saul commanded his servants, [saying], Commune with David secretly, and say, Behold, the king hath delight in thee, and all his servants love thee: now therefore be the king’s son in law.
23 And Saul’s servants spake those words in the ears of David. And David said, Seemeth it to you [a] light [thing] to be a king’s son in law, seeing that I [am] a poor man, and lightly esteemed?
24 And the servants of Saul told him, saying, On this manner spake David.
25 And Saul said, Thus shall ye say to David, The king desireth not any dowry, but an hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king’s enemies. But Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines.
26 And when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well to be the king’s son in law: and the days were not expired.
Topics connected to this verse
Original-language word links
These Hebrew/Greek tokens are linked by Strong's number. Click one for its lexicon definition and other occurrences.
וַֽיְדַבְּר֞וּH1696 · da.varto speak: speakעַבְדֵ֤יH5650 · e.vedservant/slaveשָׁאוּל֙H7586 · sha.ulSaulבְּאָזְנֵ֣יH241 · o.zenearדָוִ֔דH1732 · da.vidDavidאֶת־H853 · et[Obj.]הַדְּבָרִ֖יםH1697 · da.varwordהָאֵ֑לֶּהH428 · el.lehtheseוַיֹּ֣אמֶרH559 · a.marto sayדָּוִ֗דH1732 · da.vidDavidהַֽנְקַלָּ֤הH7043 · qa.lalto lightenבְעֵֽינֵיכֶם֙H5869 · a.yineyeהִתְחַתֵּ֣ןH2859 · cho.tenrelativeבַּמֶּ֔לֶךְH4428 · me.lekhkingוְאָנֹכִ֖יH595 · a.no.khiIאִֽישׁ־H376 · ishmanרָ֥שׁH7326 · rushbe poorוְנִקְלֶֽה׃H7034 · qa.lahto dishonor
Cross-references
Psalm 119:141I [am] small and despised: [yet] do not I forget thy precepts.1 John 3:1Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.Proverbs 14:20The poor is hated even of his own neighbour: but the rich [hath] many friends.Proverbs 19:6-7Many will intreat the favour of the prince: and every man [is] a friend to him that giveth gifts.1 Samuel 9:21And Saul answered and said, [Am] not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou so to me?Ecclesiastes 9:15-16Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.
HISTORICAL INTERPRETATION
Compare classic commentaries on 1 Samuel 18:23
Put Matthew Henry, Adam Clarke, Calvin, Wesley, Barnes, Jamieson–Fausset–Brown, Aquinas’ Catena and other public-domain sources beside the passage.
Compare commentaries →