And Michal Saul’s daughter loved David: and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.
Parallel translations
- WEB Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David; and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.
- BSB Now Saul’s daughter Michal loved David, and when this was reported to Saul, it pleased him.
- NKJV Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. And they told Saul, and the thing pleased him.
- NASB Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. When they informed Saul, the thing was pleasing to him.
- NLT In the meantime, Saul’s daughter Michal had fallen in love with David, and Saul was delighted when he heard about it.
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's daughter Michal loves David, and the news pleases Saul. He sees her love as a fresh opportunity to ensnare David.
Overview
Michal's love for David gives Saul a new occasion, which he welcomes for his own ends. What might seem a happy development becomes a tool in Saul's renewed plotting. The verse sets up another scheme in which Saul will again seek David's death while feigning favor, underscoring the king's persistent treachery.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- 1 Sam 18:28And Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David, and that Michal Saul’s daughter loved him.
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 18:20 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.