1 Samuel 24:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He said to David, "You are more righteous than I, for you have repaid me good, whereas I have repaid you evil.

NIV: "You are more righteous than I," he said. "You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly.

NASB: And he said to David, 'You are more righteous than I; for you have dealt well with me, while I have dealt maliciously with you.

CSB: and said to David, "You are more righteous than I, for you have done what is good to me though I have done what is evil to you.

NLT: And he said to David, 'You are a better man than I am, for you have repaid me good for evil.

KJV: And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil.

NKJV: Then he said to David: “You are more righteous than I; for you have rewarded me with good, whereas I have rewarded you with evil.

First Samuel 24:16–22 relates King Saul's momentary change of heart. He's been hunting David and at least twice has almost captured him (1 Samuel 23). At one point, Saul took a break to relieve himself in a cave. Walking back toward his army, David calls out to him. David was in the cave and could have killed him (1 Samuel 24:1–15). He shows the piece of cloth David cut from Saul's own robe—absolute proof that he could have slaughtered Saul easily. Saul is shamed by David's honor and righteousness and agrees to go home. Shortly after, Samuel, the last of the judges and mentor to both Saul and David, will die. All of Israel will mourn (1 Samuel 25:1).

David is faced with a moment of decision. As he and his men hide in a cave, Saul comes in alone to relieve himself. David refuses to kill Saul, as his men want him to, insisting that it would be a crime against the Lord to harm His anointed one. David does confront Saul outside the cave, holding up a corner of his robe to show he could have killed Saul but did not. Saul agrees David has been righteous and he has been evil. He admits that David will become king over Israel.

God again protects David from fighting his earthly King. David has fled a city that would have betrayed him to Saul. He has run from the wilderness where the locals did, in fact, do so (1 Samuel 23). Yet again, nearby people warn Saul where David is. David has the chance to kill Saul, but refuses, and Saul admits David is more righteous than he. Next, Nabal the fool dishonors David, and David marches for revenge. Nabal's wife, Abigail, saves David from murdering her innocent servants, and Nabal dies of natural—or godly—causes. In return, David marries Abigail (1 Samuel 25). During these events, the prophet Samuel dies.

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.

Accessed 10/19/2025 4:20:37 PM