2:8 He lifts the weak 1 from the dust;
he raises 2 the poor from the ash heap
to seat them with princes
and to bestow on them an honored position. 3
The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord,
and he has placed the world on them.
They replied, “The Philistine leaders number five. So send five gold sores and five gold mice, for it is the same plague that has afflicted both you and your leaders.
9:24 So the cook picked up the leg and brought it and set it in front of Saul. Samuel 5 said, “What was kept is now set before you! Eat, for it has been kept for you for this meeting time, from the time I said, ‘I have invited the people.’” So Saul ate with Samuel that day.
14:45 But the army said to Saul, “Should Jonathan, who won this great victory in Israel, die? May it never be! As surely as the Lord lives, not a single hair of his head will fall to the ground! For it is with the help of God that he has acted today.” So the army rescued Jonathan from death. 9
19:4 So Jonathan spoke on David’s behalf 10 to his father Saul. He said to him, “The king should not sin against his servant David, for he has not sinned against you. On the contrary, his actions have been very beneficial 11 for you.
20:3 Taking an oath, David again 12 said, “Your father is very much aware of the fact 13 that I have found favor with you, and he has thought, 14 ‘Don’t let Jonathan know about this, or he will be upset.’ But as surely as the Lord lives and you live, there is about one step between me and death!”
25:26 “Now, my lord, as surely as the Lord lives and as surely as you live, it is the Lord who has kept you from shedding blood and taking matters into your own hands. Now may your enemies and those who seek to harm my lord be like Nabal.
29:3 The leaders of the Philistines asked, “What about these Hebrews?” Achish said to the leaders of the Philistines, “Isn’t this David, the servant of King Saul of Israel, who has been with me for quite some time? 20 I have found no fault with him from the day of his defection until the present time!” 21
1 tn Or “lowly”; Heb “insignificant.”
2 tn The imperfect verbal form, which is parallel to the participle in the preceding line, is best understood here as indicating what typically happens.
3 tn Heb “a seat of honor.”
4 tn Heb “anoint.”
5 tn Heb “he” (also in v. 25); the referent (Samuel) has been specified in both places in the translation for clarity.
6 sn In the Hebrew text the pronoun you is plural, suggesting that Saul’s father was concerned about his son and the servant who accompanied him.
7 tn Heb “a thing.”
8 tn The perfect verbal form is used rhetorically here to express Jonathan’s certitude. As far as he is concerned, the victory is as good as won and can be described as such.
9 tn Heb “and he did not die.”
10 tn Heb “spoke good with respect to David.”
11 tn Heb “good.”
12 tc The LXX and the Syriac Peshitta lack the word “again.”
13 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
14 tn Heb “said,” that is, to himself. So also in v. 25.
15 tn Heb “send me.”
16 tn Heb “commanded.”
17 tn Heb “be released [from duty].”
18 tn Heb “uncovers my ear.”
19 tn Heb “the calling [one],” which apparently refers to a partridge.
20 tn Heb “these days or these years.”
21 tn Heb “from the day of his falling [away] until this day.”