1 Samuel 30:20 - Printer Friendly

ESV: David also captured all the flocks and herds, and the people drove the livestock before him, and said, "This is David 's spoil."

NIV: He took all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock, saying, "This is David’s plunder."

NASB: So David had captured all the sheep and the cattle which the people drove ahead of the other livestock, and they said, 'This is David’s plunder.'

CSB: He took all the flocks and herds, which were driven ahead of the other livestock, and the people shouted, "This is David’s plunder!"

NLT: He also recovered all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock. 'This plunder belongs to David!' they said.

KJV: And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drave before those other cattle, and said, This is David's spoil.

NKJV: Then David took all the flocks and herds they had driven before those other livestock, and said, “This is David’s spoil.”

First Samuel 30:16–31 records yet another battles between David and Amalekites. He and his men had raided Amalekite cities, leaving no survivors (1 Samuel 27:8–11). David's men returned from a trip and learned different Amalekites had taken their families and destroyed their city. The men quickly catch up and rescue their wives and children. David will give some of the Amalekites' loot to elders in Judah, his home tribe. Far north, Saul and his sons die in battle against the Philistines (1 Samuel 31). The elders of Judah will declare David their king (2 Samuel 2:1–4).

David and his men return home to find their city burned and their families gone. Amalekite raiders have taken them captive. The mood is dark, but David insists on trusting the Lord's promise that their people will be rescued. After being revived from near-starvation, an Egyptian slave abandoned by the Amalekites leads David and his men to the raiders. David’s wives and all the families are rescued, and David sends of the massive plunder the Amalekites had acquired to the people of the cities of Judah.

David and his men return from the ranks of the Philistine troops gathering for war (1 Samuel 29). They find their city is burnt and all their people are gone. David and his men attack the raiders, rescue their families alive, and kill every enemy except for 400 who escape on camelback. David sends some of the plunder to the cities of Judah. Meanwhile, King Saul dies in battle (1 Samuel 31). Before long, the leaders of Judah will anoint David king (2 Samuel 2:1–4).

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 10/28/2025 3:57:16 PM