And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him.
Parallel translations
- WEB The people answered him in this way, saying, “So shall it be done to the man who kills him.”
- BSB The people told him about the offer, saying, “That is what will be done for the man who kills him.”
- NKJV And the people answered him in this manner, saying, “So shall it be done for the man who kills him.”
- NASB The people answered him in agreement with this statement, saying, “This is what will be done for the man who kills him.”
- NLT And these men gave David the same reply. They said, “Yes, that is the reward for killing him.”
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 people simply repeat the promised reward to David. Their response confirms the offer but reveals their continued passivity.
Overview
Rather than engaging David's God-centered concern, the men only restate the king's reward. Their reply underscores that the army remains fixed on earthly incentives and fear. The contrast prepares the reader to see that David's coming action springs from faith in God, not from the rewards that left everyone else unmoved.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- 1 Sam 17:25And the men of Israel said, Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to defy Israel is he come up: and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father’s house free in Israel.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 17:27 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.