When Saul mobilized them at Bezek, he found that there were 300,000 men from Israel and 30,000 men from Judah.
Parallel translations
- WEB He counted them in Bezek; and the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.
- KJV And when he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.
- BSB And when Saul numbered them at Bezek, there were 300,000 Israelites and 30,000 men of Judah.
- NKJV When he numbered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand.
- NASB He counted them in Bezek; and the sons of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah, thirty thousand.
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
Saul musters the army at Bezek, numbering Israel and Judah. The large response confirms that the nation has rallied.
Overview
The separate counting of Israel and Judah subtly anticipates the later division of the kingdom. The great numbers show God granting Saul a substantial force for the rescue. The muster at Bezek positions the army to cross the Jordan and relieve Jabesh Gilead.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- 2 Sam 24:9Joab gave up the sum of the counting of the people to the king: and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men who drew the sword; and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.
- Judg 1:4–5Judah went up, and Yahweh delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand. They struck ten thousand men in Bezek.
- 2 Chr 17:12–19Jehoshaphat grew great exceedingly; and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah.
- Judg 20:2The chiefs of all the people, even of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand footmen who drew sword.
- 1 Sam 13:15Samuel arose, and went from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. Saul counted the people who were present with him, about six hundred men.
- 1 Sam 15:4Saul summoned the people, and counted them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah.
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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 11:8 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
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