Now the Lord had told Samuel the previous day,
Parallel translations
- WEB Now Yahweh had revealed to Samuel a day before Saul came, saying,
- KJV Now the LORD had told Samuel in his ear a day before Saul came, saying,
- BSB Now on the day before Saul’s arrival, the LORD had revealed to Samuel,
- NKJV Now the Lord had told Samuel in his ear the day before Saul came, saying,
- NASB Now a day before Saul’s coming, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel, saying,
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 narrator reveals that the LORD had told Samuel a day earlier that Saul would come.
Overview
God had prepared Samuel in advance for this exact meeting. This insight shows that the seemingly chance encounter was wholly planned by the LORD. It assures the reader that Saul's path was directed by divine purpose, not coincidence.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Acts 13:21Afterward they asked for a king, and God gave to them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.
- 1 Sam 15:1Samuel said to Saul, “Yahweh sent me to anoint you to be king over his people, over Israel. Now therefore listen to the voice of Yahweh’s words.
- 2 Sam 7:27For you, Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, have revealed to your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore your servant has found in his heart to pray this prayer to you.
- Job 33:16Then he opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction,
- Ps 25:14The friendship of Yahweh is with those who fear him. He will show them his covenant.
- Amos 3:7Surely the Lord Yahweh will do nothing, unless he reveals his secret to his servants the prophets.
- 1 Sam 20:2He said to him, “Far from it; you will not die. Behold, my father does nothing either great or small, but that he discloses it to me. Why would my father hide this thing from me? It is not so.”
- Mark 14:13–16He sent two of his disciples, and said to them, “Go into the city, and there you will meet a man carrying a pitcher of water. Follow him,
- Acts 27:23For there stood by me this night an angel, belonging to the God whose I am and whom I serve,
- 1 Sam 9:17When Samuel saw Saul, Yahweh said to him, “Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you! He will have authority over my people.”
- Mark 11:2–4and said to them, “Go your way into the village that is opposite you. Immediately as you enter into it, you will find a young donkey tied, on which no one has sat. Untie him, and bring him.
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 9:15 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.