18:17 1 Then Saul said to David, “Here’s my oldest daughter, Merab. I want to give her to you in marriage. Only be a brave warrior 2 for me and fight the battles of the Lord.” For Saul thought, “There’s no need for me to raise my hand against him. Let it be the hand of the Philistines!”
18:18 David said to Saul, “Who am I? Who are my relatives or the clan of my father 3 in Israel that I should become the king’s son-in-law?” 18:19 When the time came for Merab, Saul’s daughter, to be given to David, she instead was given in marriage to Adriel, who was from Meholah.
18:20 Now Michal, Saul’s daughter, loved David. When they told Saul about this, it 4 pleased him. 18:21 Saul said, “I will give her to him so that she may become a snare to him and the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David, “Today is the second time for you to become my son-in-law.” 5
18:22 Then Saul instructed his servants, “Tell David secretly, ‘The king is pleased with you, and all his servants like you. So now become the king’s son-in-law.” 18:23 So Saul’s servants spoke these words privately 6 to David. David replied, “Is becoming the king’s son-in-law something insignificant to you? I’m just a poor and lightly-esteemed man!”
18:24 When Saul’s servants reported what David had said, 18:25 Saul replied, “Here is what you should say to David: ‘There is nothing that the king wants as a price for the bride except a hundred Philistine foreskins, so that he can be avenged of his 7 enemies.’” (Now Saul was thinking that he could kill David by the hand of the Philistines.)
18:26 So his servants told David these things and David agreed 8 to become the king’s son-in-law. Now the specified time had not yet expired 9 18:27 when David, along with his men, went out 10 and struck down two hundred Philistine men. David brought their foreskins and presented all of them to the king so he could become the king’s son-in-law. Saul then gave him his daughter Michal in marriage.
18:28 When Saul realized 11 that the Lord was with David and that his 12 daughter Michal loved David, 13 18:29 Saul became even more afraid of him. 14 Saul continued to be at odds with David from then on. 15 18:30 16 Then the leaders of the Philistines would march out, and as often as they did so, David achieved more success than all of Saul’s servants. His name was held in high esteem.
19:1 Then Saul told his son Jonathan and all his servants to kill David. But Saul’s son Jonathan liked David very much. 17 19:2 So Jonathan told David, “My father Saul is trying 18 to kill you. So be careful tomorrow morning. Find 19 a hiding place and stay in seclusion. 20
1 tc Much of the
2 tn Heb “son of valor.”
3 tn Heb “Who are my relatives, the clan of my father?” The term חַי (khay), traditionally understood as “my life,” is here a rare word meaning “family, kinfolk” (see HALOT 309 s.v. III חַי). The phrase “clan of my father” may be a scribal gloss explaining the referent of this rare word.
4 tn Heb “the matter.”
5 tc The final sentence of v. 21 is absent in most LXX
6 tn Heb “in the ears of.”
7 tn Heb “the king’s.”
8 tn Heb “and it was acceptable in the eyes of David.”
9 tn Heb “the days were not fulfilled.”
10 tn Heb “arose and went.”
11 tn Heb “saw and knew.”
12 tn Heb “Saul’s.” In the translation the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun for stylistic reasons.
13 tn Heb “him”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
14 tn Heb “of David.” In the translation the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun for stylistic reasons.
15 tc The final sentence of v. 29 is absent in most LXX
tn Heb “all the days.”
16 tc Verse 30 is absent in most LXX
17 tn Heb “delighted greatly in David.”
18 tn Heb “seeking.”
19 tn Heb “stay in.”
20 tn Heb “and hide yourself.”