Swear now therefore unto me by the LORD, that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father’s house.
Parallel translations
- WEB Swear now therefore to me by Yahweh, that you will not cut off my offspring after me, and that you will not destroy my name out of my father’s house.”
- BSB So now, swear to me by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s house.”
- NKJV Therefore swear now to me by the Lord that you will not cut off my descendants after me, and that you will not destroy my name from my father’s house.”
- NASB So now swear to me by the Lord that you will not cut off my descendants after me, and that you will not eliminate my name from my father’s household.”
- NLT Now swear to me by the Lord that when that happens you will not kill my family and destroy my line of descendants!”
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 asks David to swear he will not wipe out his descendants. He seeks mercy for his house from the future king.
Overview
Aware that new dynasties often destroyed the previous king's family, Saul pleads for the preservation of his offspring and name. His request acknowledges David's coming rule and trusts David's proven character. David's later kindness to Mephibosheth shows he honored this oath, displaying covenant faithfulness that mirrors God's steadfast love.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Gen 21:23Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son: but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.
- 2 Sam 21:6–8Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD did choose. And the king said, I will give them.
- 1 Sam 20:14–17And thou shalt not only while yet I live shew me the kindness of the LORD, that I die not:
- Heb 6:16For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
- Gen 31:48And Laban said, This heap is a witness between me and thee this day. Therefore was the name of it called Galeed;
- Gen 31:53The God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge betwixt us. And Jacob sware by the fear of his father Isaac.
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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 24:21 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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