1 Samuel 14:42 Made Simple

KJV ORIGINAL

And Saul said, Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken.

Close to the original. Clear modern English.

✦ MADE SIMPLE

Then Saul said, 'Cast lots to choose between me and my son Jonathan.' And Jonathan was chosen by the lot.

⚡ THE BOTTOM LINE

Saul used a method of divine selection to determine whether he or his son Jonathan had broken his oath, and Jonathan was selected.

📚 Historical Context

In the biblical narrative, King Saul and his army were engaged in battle against the Philistines, and Saul had made a rash oath that no one in his army could eat until the enemy was defeated. This oath led to exhaustion among the troops, and Saul's son Jonathan, unaware of the prohibition, ate some honey to regain strength during the fight. When Saul sought divine guidance through casting lots, a common ancient method to discern God's will, it unexpectedly pointed to Jonathan as the one who had inadvertently broken the oath.

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1 Samuel 14:8

Then Jonathan said, 'Look, we will go over to those men, and we will show ourselves to them.'

1 Samuel 13:2

Saul selected 3,000 men from Israel for his army. He kept 2,000 soldiers with him at Michmash and Mount Bethel, while his son Jonathan commanded 1,000 men at Gibeah in Benjamin. All the other people were sent back home to their families.

1 Samuel 20:30

Then Saul became furious with Jonathan and said to him, 'You son of a twisted, rebellious woman! Don't you think I know that you have chosen to side with David, bringing shame on yourself and dishonor to your mother?'

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