1 Samuel 18:21 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Saul thought, "Let me give her to him, that she may be a snare for him and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him." Therefore Saul said to David a second time, "You shall now be my son-in-law."

NIV: "I will give her to him," he thought, "so that she may be a snare to him and so that the hand of the Philistines may be against him." So Saul said to David, "Now you have a second opportunity to become my son-in-law."

NASB: For Saul thought, 'I will give her to him so that she may become a trap for him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.' Therefore Saul said to David, 'For a second time you may become my son-in-law, today.'

CSB: "I’ll give her to him," Saul thought. "She’ll be a trap for him, and the hand of the Philistines will be against him." So Saul said to David a second time, "You can now be my son-in-law."

NLT: Here’s another chance to see him killed by the Philistines!' Saul said to himself. But to David he said, 'Today you have a second chance to become my son-in-law!'

KJV: And Saul said, I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Wherefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this day be my son in law in the one of the twain.

NKJV: So Saul said, “I will give her to him, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” Therefore Saul said to David a second time, “You shall be my son-in-law today.”

After David killed Goliath (1 Samuel 17:50), Saul gave him a command, and David continued to fight the Philistines. The more he fought, the more he won. The more he won, the more he earned the adoration of the people. David's success made Saul feel so threatened that he wanted David dead. When his own attempts to kill David failed, Saul decided to let the Philistines do it on the battlefield (1 Samuel 18:6–16). But Saul can't technically force David to fight. Saul's offered reward for killing Goliath was the hand of his daughter, the exemption of taxes for David's father's family, and the exemption of forced servitude (1 Samuel 17:25). David is supposedly free to do as he pleases.

Ironically, Saul doesn't have to force David. Saul grossly underestimates David's loyalty to him as king. Saul also misunderstands David's zeal to obey God and rid the Promised Land of the cruel Philistines. Saul thinks it's necessary to coerce David into fighting. If David is Saul's son-in-law, David won't have a choice. Saul's jealousy and fear are so great, he's willing to exploit his daughter's love (1 Samuel 18:20) and scheme to make her a widow.

Saul tells David again he will be the king's son-in-law. David still needs some convincing. His clan is not well regarded, and they don't have a bride price worthy of a princess. Saul offers a deal: all David needs to do is kill one hundred Philistines (1 Samuel 18:22–25).

First Samuel 18:17–30 reveals the depths of King Saul's hatred toward David. When David killed Goliath, Saul thought he had a champion (1 Samuel 17). The moment they return from battle, however, the people's affections transfer to David, and the king grows furious. Saul's direct attempts to kill David fail (1 Samuel 18:6–16), so he uses his daughters to lure David into a fatal battle with the Philistines. Again, Saul's plan fails, and the king realizes God's protection over David is too great. Soon, Saul will watch as even his children favor David (1 Samuel 19).

Saul's son Jonathan becomes David's best friend. David succeeds in every military mission Saul sends him on. The people praise David as being even mightier than Saul. The king is furious and terrified that David will take his throne. After Saul's direct attempts to kill David fail, the king sends David to battle the Philistines using marriage to his daughter as bait. David not only survives, but he continues to prove himself to be a mightier warrior and leader than Saul. Saul knows the Lord is with David and not with him and cements himself as David's permanent enemy.

First Samuel 18 begins the story of how the changed work of the Holy Spirit on both Saul and David (1 Samuel 16:13–14) leads to the king's destruction and David's rise. David faithfully serves both Saul (1 Samuel 16:14–23) and Saul's kingdom (1 Samuel 17—18). But David wins the hearts of Saul's people and his children. Saul can't handle the competition (1 Samuel 19—20). Finally, David flees the royal court and raises his own army. He spends years fighting Israel's enemies from afar, patiently waiting until Saul dies in battle and the shepherd boy can take his rightful crown (1 Samuel 21—31).

First Samuel introduces the key figures who led Israel after the era of the judges. The books of 1 and 2 Samuel were originally part of a single text, split in certain translations shortly before the birth of Christ. Some of the Bible’s most famous characters are depicted in this book. These including the prophet Samuel, Israel’s first king, Saul, her greatest king, David, and other famous names such as Goliath and Jonathan. By the end of this book, Saul has fallen; the book of 2 Samuel begins with David’s ascension to the throne.