When David came to Saul and entered his service, Saul admired him greatly, and David became his armor-bearer.
Parallel translations
- WEB David came to Saul, and stood before him. He loved him greatly; and he became his armor bearer.
- KJV And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer.
- NKJV So David came to Saul and stood before him. And he loved him greatly, and he became his armorbearer.
- NASB Then David came to Saul and attended him; and Saul greatly loved him, and he became his armor bearer.
- NLT So David went to Saul and began serving him. Saul loved David very much, and David became his armor bearer.
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
David enters Saul's service, wins his affection, and becomes his armor-bearer. David is brought into close, trusted proximity to the king.
Overview
Saul comes to love David and makes him his armor-bearer, a position of intimacy and trust near the throne. The very king destined to be replaced cherishes his successor, a poignant irony. God places David where he can be prepared and proven for the kingship to come.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Gen 41:46Now Joseph was thirty years old when he entered the service of Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph left Pharaoh’s presence and traveled throughout the land of Egypt.
- Prov 22:29Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will be stationed in the presence of kings; he will not stand before obscure men.
- Ps 146:3Put not your trust in princes, in mortal man, who cannot save.
- Ps 118:9It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.
- Deut 10:8At that time the LORD set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to serve Him, and to pronounce blessings in His name, as they do to this day.
- Ps 62:9Lowborn men are but a vapor, the exalted but a lie. Weighed on the scale, they go up; together they are but a vapor.
- Deut 1:38Joshua son of Nun, who stands before you, will enter it. Encourage him, for he will enable Israel to inherit the land.
- 1 Kgs 10:8How blessed are your men! How blessed are these servants of yours who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom!
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 16:21 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.