But David said, “No, my brothers! Don’t be selfish with what the Lord has given us. He has kept us safe and helped us defeat the band of raiders that attacked us.
Parallel translations
- WEB Then David said, “Do not do so, my brothers, with that which Yahweh has given to us, who has preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand.
- KJV Then said David, Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which the LORD hath given us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the company that came against us into our hand.
- BSB But David said, “My brothers, you must not do this with what the LORD has given us. He has protected us and delivered into our hands the raiders who came against us.
- NKJV But David said, “My brethren, you shall not do so with what the Lord has given us, who has preserved us and delivered into our hand the troop that came against us.
- NASB But David said, “You must not do so, my brothers, with what the Lord has given us, for He has protected us and handed over to us the band of raiders that came against us.
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
David refuses the greedy demand, insisting the victory and spoil are gifts from the LORD. He reframes the plunder as grace, not earnings.
Overview
David calls the grumblers 'my brothers' and corrects them by pointing to God as the one who preserved them and gave the enemy into their hand. Because the victory is the LORD's gift, it cannot be hoarded as a reward for the deserving. This gospel-shaped logic, that what is received by grace is to be shared in grace, undercuts all self-righteous claims to merit.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Deut 8:18But you shall remember Yahweh your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth; that he may establish his covenant which he swore to your fathers, as it is today.
- Ps 121:7–8Yahweh will keep you from all evil. He will keep your soul.
- Ps 44:2–7You drove out the nations with your hand, but you planted them. You afflicted the peoples, but you spread them abroad.
- Gen 19:7He said, “Please, my brothers, don’t act so wickedly.
- Deut 8:10You shall eat and be full, and you shall bless Yahweh your God for the good land which he has given you.
- Judg 19:23The man, the master of the house, went out to them, and said to them, “No, my brothers, please don’t act so wickedly; since this man has come into my house, don’t do this folly.
- 1 Sam 2:7Yahweh makes poor, and makes rich. He brings low, he also lifts up.
- Acts 22:1“Brothers and fathers, listen to the defense which I now make to you.”
- Num 31:49–54They said to Moses, “Your servants have taken the sum of the men of war who are under our command, and there lacks not one man of us.
- Acts 7:2He said, “Brothers and fathers, listen. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,
- 1 Sam 30:8David inquired of Yahweh, saying, “If I pursue after this troop, will I overtake them?” He answered him, “Pursue; for you will surely overtake them, and will without fail recover all.”
- 1 Chr 29:12–14Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all! In your hand is power and might! It is in your hand to make great, and to give strength to all!
- Hab 1:16Therefore he sacrifices to his net, and burns incense to his dragnet, because by them his life is luxurious, and his food is good.
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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 30:23 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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