And when the messengers entered, there was the idol in the bed with the quilt of goats’ hair on its head.
Parallel translations
- WEB When the messengers came in, behold, the teraphim was in the bed, with the pillow of goats’ hair at its head.
- KJV And when the messengers were come in, behold, there was an image in the bed, with a pillow of goats’ hair for his bolster.
- NKJV And when the messengers had come in, there was the image in the bed, with a cover of goats’ hair for his head.
- NASB When the messengers entered, behold, the household idol was on the bed with the quilt of goats’ hair at its head.
- NLT But when they came to carry David out, they discovered that it was only an idol in the bed with a cushion of goat’s hair at its head.
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 messengers enter and find only the idol in the bed with the goats' hair at its head.
Overview
The ruse is discovered, but by now David has safely escaped. The empty bed testifies that Saul's scheme has again been thwarted. The Lord, who watches over his anointed, has used Michal's stratagem to grant David the time he needed to flee.
Cross-references & the web
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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 19:16 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
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