1 Samuel 1:5

1:5 But he would give a double ¹  portion to Hannah, because he especially loved her. ²  Now the Lord had not enabled her to have children. ³ 

1 Samuel 3:19-20

3:19 Samuel continued to grow, and the Lord was with him. None of his prophecies fell to the ground unfulfilled. ⁴  3:20 All Israel from Dan to Beer Sheba realized that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the Lord.

1 Samuel 8:15

8:15 He will demand a tenth of your seed and of the produce of your vineyards and give it to his administrators ⁵  and his servants.

1 Samuel 13:20

13:20 So all Israel had to go down to the Philistines in order to get their plowshares, cutting instruments, axes, and sickles ⁶  sharpened.

1 Samuel 14:35

14:35 Then Saul built an altar for the Lord; it was the first time he had built an altar for the Lord.

1 Samuel 14:42

14:42 Then Saul said, “Cast the lot between me and my son Jonathan!” ⁷  Jonathan was indicated by lot.

1 Samuel 16:6

16:6 When they arrived, Samuel ⁸  noticed ⁹  Eliab and said to himself, ¹⁰  “Surely, here before the Lord stands his chosen king!” ¹¹ 

1 Samuel 17:30

17:30 Then he turned from those who were nearby to someone else and asked the same question, ¹²  but they ¹³  gave him the same answer as before.

1 Samuel 17:32

17:32 David said to Saul, “Don’t let anyone be discouraged. ¹⁴  Your servant will go and fight this Philistine!”

1 Samuel 18:16

18:16 But all Israel and Judah loved David, for he was the one leading them out to battle and back.

1 Samuel 20:18

20:18 Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, for your seat will be empty.

1 Samuel 22:23--23:1

22:23 Stay with me. Don’t be afraid! Whoever ¹⁵  seeks my life is seeking your life as well. You are secure with me.”

David Delivers the City of Keilah

23:1 They told David, “The Philistines are fighting in Keilah and are looting the threshing floors.”

1 Samuel 23:15

23:15 David realized ¹⁶  that Saul had come out to seek his life; at that time David was in Horesh in the desert of Ziph.

1 Samuel 24:14

24:14 Who has the king of Israel come out after? Who is it that you are pursuing? A dead dog? A single flea?

[1:5]  ¹ tn The exact sense of the Hebrew word אַפָּיִם (’appayim, “two faces”) is not certain here. It is most likely used with the preceding expression (“one portion of two faces”) to mean a portion double than normally received. Although evidence for this use of the word derives primarily from Aramaic rather than from Hebrew usage, it provides an understanding that fits the context here better than other suggestions for the word do. The meaning “double” is therefore adopted in the present translation. Other possibilities for the meaning of the word include the following: “heavily” (cf. Vulg., tristis) and “worthy” or “choice” (cf. KJV and Targum). Some scholars have followed the LXX here, emending the word to אֶפֶס (’efes) and translating it as “but” or “however.” This seems unnecessary. The translators of the LXX may simply have been struggling to make sense of the word rather than following a Hebrew text that was different from the MT here.

[1:5]  ² tn Heb “for Hannah he loved.” Repetition of the proper name would seem redundant in contemporary English, so the pronoun (“her”) has been used here for clarity. The translation also adds the adverb “especially” to clarify the meaning of the text. Without this addition one might get the impression that only Hannah, not Peninnah, was loved by her husband. But the point of the text is that Hannah was his favorite.

[1:5]  ³ tn Heb “and the Lord had closed her womb.” So also in v. 6. The disjunctive clause provides supplemental information that is pertinent to the story.

[3:19]  ⁴ tn Heb “and he did not cause to fall from all his words to the ground.”

[8:15]  ⁷ tn Or “eunuchs” (so NAB); NIV “officials”; KJV, NASB, NRSV, NLT “officers.”

[13:20]  ¹⁰ tc The translation follows the LXX (“their sickle”) here, rather than the MT “plowshares,” which is due to dittography from the word earlier in the verse.

[14:42]  ¹³ tc The LXX includes the following words: “Whomever the Lord will indicate by the lot, let him die! And the people said to Saul, ‘It is not this word.’ But Saul prevailed over the people, and they cast lots between him and between Jonathan his son.”

[16:6]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Samuel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:6]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “saw.”

[16:6]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “said”; the words “to himself” are implied, given the secrecy surrounding Samuel’s mission to Bethlehem (v. 2).

[16:6]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “his anointed one.”

[17:30]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and spoke according to this word.”

[17:30]  ²⁰ tn Heb “the people.”

[17:32]  ²² tn Heb “Let not the heart of a man fall upon him.” The LXX reads “my lord,” instead of “a man.”

[22:23]  ²⁵ tn Or “the one who.” This may refer specifically to Saul, in which case David acknowledges that Abiathar’s life is endangered because of his allegiance to David. The translation assumes that the statement is more generalized, meaning that any enemy of Abiathar is an enemy of David. In other words, David promises that he will protect Abiathar with his very own life.

[23:15]  ²⁸ tn Heb “saw.”