9:22 Then Samuel brought 2 Saul and his servant into the room and gave them a place at the head of those who had been invited. There were about thirty people present.
1 tn Heb “to all Israel.”
2 tn Heb “took and brought.”
3 tn Heb “and he drove the spear into the wall.”
4 tn Heb “fled and escaped.”
4 tn Here “the spear” almost certainly refers to Saul’s own spear, which according to the previous verse was stuck into the ground beside him as he slept. This is reflected in a number of English versions: TEV, CEV “his own spear”; NLT “that spear.” Cf. NIV, NCV “my spear,” in which case Abishai refers to his own spear rather than Saul’s, but this is unlikely since (1) Abishai would probably not have carried a spear along since such a weapon would be unwieldy when sneaking into the enemy camp; and (2) this would not explain the mention of Saul’s own spear stuck in the ground beside him in the previous verse.
5 tn Heb “let me strike him with the spear and into the ground one time.”