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Then came the messengers to Gibeah of Saul, and told the tidings in the ears of the people: and all the people lifted up their voices, and wept.
1 Samuel 11:4 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Then the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul, and spoke these words in the ears of the people, then all the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
  • BSB When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and relayed these words in the hearing of the people, they all wept aloud.
  • NKJV So the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the news in the hearing of the people. And all the people lifted up their voices and wept.
  • NASB Then the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and spoke these words in the hearing of the people, and all the people raised their voices and wept.
  • NLT When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the people about their plight, everyone broke into tears.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The messengers reach Gibeah of Saul and the people weep at the news. Israel feels the threat but lacks resolve until the Spirit moves Saul.

Overview

The people's tears show their distress and helplessness apart from God-given leadership. That the news comes to 'Gibeah of Saul' draws the new king into the crisis. Their weeping highlights the need for a deliverer and prepares for the dramatic empowerment of Saul that follows.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • 1 Sam 10:26And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched.
  • Judg 2:4And it came to pass, when the angel of the LORD spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
  • Judg 21:2And the people came to the house of God, and abode there till even before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore;
  • 1 Sam 15:34Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul.
  • 1 Sam 30:4Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep.
  • Gal 6:2Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
  • Heb 13:3Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.
  • 2 Sam 21:6Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD did choose. And the king said, I will give them.
  • 1 Sam 14:2And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron: and the people that were with him were about six hundred men;
  • Rom 12:15Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.
  • 1 Cor 12:26And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 1 Samuel videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 1 Samuel 11:4YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 1 SamuelMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

The rise of the anointed king after Israel's failed first choice points to the true Anointed One (Messiah means 'anointed'), the shepherd-king after God's own heart from Bethlehem.

How 1 Samuel 11:4 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.