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And Saul cast the spear, for he said, “I will pin David to the wall!” But David escaped his presence twice.
1 Samuel 18:11 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB and Saul threw the spear, for he said, “I will pin David even to the wall!” David escaped from his presence twice.
  • KJV And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice.
  • BSB and he hurled it, thinking, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.
  • NASB Then Saul hurled the spear, for he thought, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David escaped from his presence, twice.
  • NLT and he suddenly hurled it at David, intending to pin him to the wall. But David escaped him twice.

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 hurls his spear at David, intending to kill him, but David escapes twice. The king's hidden malice erupts into open attempted murder.

Overview

Saul throws his spear to pin David to the wall, but David twice evades the deadly attack. The Lord's protection of His anointed is evident in David's repeated escape. Saul's violent assault marks the open beginning of his murderous pursuit, while God preserves David, showing that none can thwart the purposes He has for His chosen one.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 8

  • 1 Sam 20:33Saul cast his spear at him to strike him. By this Jonathan knew that his father was determined to put David to death.
  • Isa 54:17No weapon that is formed against you will prevail; and you will condemn every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of Yahweh’s servants, and their righteousness is of me,” says Yahweh.
  • Luke 4:30But he, passing through the middle of them, went his way.
  • John 10:39They sought again to seize him, and he went out of their hand.
  • John 8:59Therefore they took up stones to throw at him, but Jesus was hidden, and went out of the temple, having gone through the middle of them, and so passed by.
  • Ps 37:32–33The wicked watches the righteous, and seeks to kill him.
  • Prov 27:4Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who is able to stand before jealousy?
  • 1 Sam 19:9–10An evil spirit from Yahweh was on Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand; and David was playing with his hand.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (7)

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 18:11YouTube · 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 18:11 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.