This was their song: “Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands!”
Parallel translations
- WEB The women sang to one another as they played, and said, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.”
- KJV And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.
- BSB And as the women danced, they sang out: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.”
- NKJV So the women sang as they danced, and said: “Saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands.”
- NASB The women sang as they played, and said, “Saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands.”
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 women sing that Saul slew thousands but David ten thousands. The popular song exalts David above the king and stirs Saul's jealousy.
Overview
In their song the women credit David with greater victories than Saul, ranking him higher in the people's esteem. The refrain, though celebratory, dangerously elevates David over the reigning king. This public acclaim becomes the spark for Saul's bitter envy, setting in motion the long conflict between the rejected king and the Lord's anointed.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- 1 Sam 21:11The servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David the king of the land? Didn’t they sing to one another about him in dances, saying, ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?’”
- 1 Sam 29:5Isn’t this David, of whom people sang to one another in dances, saying, ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands?’”
- Exod 15:21Miriam answered them, “Sing to Yahweh, for he has triumphed gloriously. The horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”
- Ps 24:7–8Lift up your heads, you gates! Be lifted up, you everlasting doors, and the King of glory will come in.
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 18:7 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.