1 Samuel 2:2

2:2 No one is holy¹ like the Lord!

There is no one other than you!

There is no rock² like our God!

1 Samuel 1:2

1:2 He had two wives; the name of the first was Hannah and the name of the second was Peninnah. Now Peninnah had children, but Hannah was childless.

1 Samuel 3:1

The Call of Samuel

3:1 Now the boy Samuel continued serving the Lord under Eli’s supervision.³ Word from the Lord was rare in those days; revelatory visions were infrequent.

1 Samuel 10:14

10:14 Saul’s uncle asked him and his servant, “Where did you go?” Saul⁴ replied, “To look for the donkeys. But when we realized they were lost,⁵ we went to Samuel.”

1 Samuel 14:17

14:17 So Saul said to the army that was with him, “Muster the troops and see who is no longer with us.” When they mustered the troops,⁶ Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.

1 Samuel 17:50

17:50 ⁷David prevailed over the Philistine with just the sling and the stone. He struck down the Philistine and killed him. David did not even have a sword in his hand.⁸

1 Samuel 30:4

30:4 Then David and the men⁹ who were with him wept loudly¹⁰ until they could weep no more.¹¹

1 Samuel 21:9

David Goes to Gath

21:9 The priest replied, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the valley of Elah, is wrapped in a garment behind the ephod. If you wish, take it for yourself. Other than that, there’s nothing here.” David said, “There’s nothing like it! Give it to me!”

1 Samuel 9:7

9:7 So Saul said to his servant, “All right,¹² we can go. But what can we bring the man, since the food in our bags is used up? We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?”

1 Samuel 10:24

10:24 Then Samuel said to all the people, “Do you see the one whom the Lord has chosen? Indeed, there is no one like him among all the people!” All the people shouted out, “Long live the king!”

1 Samuel 11:3

11:3 The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Leave us alone for seven days so that we can send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. If there is no one who can deliver us, we will come out voluntarily to you.”

1 Samuel 14:6

14:6 Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come on, let’s go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will intervene¹³ for us. Nothing can prevent the Lord from delivering, whether by many or by a few.”

1 Samuel 18:25

18:25 Saul replied, “Here is what you should say to David: ‘There is nothing that the king wants as a price for the bride except a hundred Philistine foreskins, so that he can be avenged of his¹⁴ enemies.’” (Now Saul was thinking that he could kill David by the hand of the Philistines.)

1 Samuel 20:2

20:2 Jonathan¹⁵ said to him, “By no means are you going to die! My father does nothing¹⁶ large or small without making me aware of it.¹⁷ Why would my father hide this matter from me? It just won’t happen!”

1 Samuel 21:1

21:1 (21:2) David went to Ahimelech the priest in Nob. Ahimelech was shaking with fear when he met¹⁸ David, and said to him, “Why are you by yourself with no one accompanying you?”

1 Samuel 21:4

21:4 The priest replied to David, “I don’t have any ordinary bread at my disposal. Only holy bread is available, and then only if your soldiers¹⁹ have abstained from sexual relations with women.”²⁰

1 Samuel 27:1

David Aligns Himself with the Philistines

27:1 David thought to himself,²¹ “One of these days I’m going to be swept away by the hand of Saul! There is nothing better for me than to escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of searching for me through all the territory of Israel and I will escape from his hand.”

1 Samuel 24:11

24:11 Look, my father, and see the edge of your robe in my hand! When I cut off the edge of your robe, I didn’t kill you. So realize and understand that I am not planning²² evil or rebellion. Even though I have not sinned against you, you are waiting in ambush to take my life.

¹sn In this context God’s holiness refers primarily to his sovereignty and incomparability. He is unique and distinct from all other so-called gods.

²tn The LXX has “and there is none righteous like our God.” The Hebrew term translated “rock” refers to a rocky cliff where one can seek refuge from enemies. Here the metaphor depicts God as a protector of his people. Cf. TEV “no protector like our God”; CEV “We’re safer with you than on a high mountain.”

³tn Heb “before Eli.”

⁵tn Heb “he”; the referent (Saul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶tn Heb “And we saw that they were not.”

⁷tn Heb “and they mustered the troops, and look!”

⁹tc Most LXX mss lack v. 50.

¹⁰tn Verse 50 is a summary statement; v. 51 gives a more detailed account of how David killed the Philistine.

¹¹tn Heb “people.”

¹²tn Heb “lifted up their voice and wept.”

¹³tn Heb “until there was no longer in them strength to weep.”

¹³tn Heb “look.”

¹⁵tn Heb “act.”

¹⁷tn Heb “the king’s.”

¹⁹tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jonathan) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

²⁰tc The translation follows the Qere, many medieval Hebrew mss, and the ancient versions in reading “he will not do,” rather than the Kethib of the MT (“do to him”).

²¹tn Heb “without uncovering my ear.”

²¹tn Heb “trembled to meet.”

²³tn Heb “servants.”

²⁴tn Heb “have kept themselves from women” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); TEV “haven’t had sexual relations recently”; NLT “have not slept with any women recently.”

²⁵tn Heb “said to his heart.”

²⁷tn Heb “there is not in my hand.”