1 Samuel 19:9

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

And an evil spirit from Jehovah was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand; and David was playing with his hand.

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וַתְּהִי֩ ר֨וּחַ יְהוָ֤ה ׀ רָעָה֙ אֶל־שָׁא֔וּל וְהוּא֙ בְּבֵית֣וֹ יוֹשֵׁ֔ב וַחֲנִית֖וֹ בְּיָד֑וֹ וְדָוִ֖ד מְנַגֵּ֥ן בְּיָֽד׃

Transliteration

And wattehî rûaḥ YHWH rāʿāh upon Šāʾûl, and he in his beḇêṯô yôšēḇ, and his waḥănîṯô in his beyāḏô; and Dāwid menaggēn with the beyāḏ.

Grammar Details

*wattehî*: waw-consecutive + Qal imperfect, 3rd feminine singular - 'and it was/came'
*rûaḥ*: noun, feminine singular construct - 'spirit of'
*YHWH*: proper noun - 'LORD'
*rāʿāh*: adjective, feminine singular - 'evil/harmful'
*Šāʾûl*: proper noun, masculine singular - 'Saul'
*beḇêṯô*: preposition + noun, masculine singular with 3rd masculine singular suffix - 'in his house'
*yôšēḇ*: Qal participle, masculine singular - 'sitting/dwelling'
*waḥănîṯô*: waw-conjunction + noun, feminine singular with 3rd masculine singular suffix - 'and his spear'
*beyāḏô*: preposition + noun, feminine singular with 3rd masculine singular suffix - 'in his hand'
*Dāwid*: proper noun, masculine singular - 'David'
*menaggēn*: Piel participle, masculine singular - 'playing [music]'
*beyāḏ*: preposition + noun, feminine singular - 'with/by hand'

Word Meanings

*wattehî*: came upon/fell upon/entered
*rûaḥ*: spirit/influence/disposition
*rāʿāh*: evil/harmful/troubling
*yôšēḇ*: sitting/staying/residing
*menaggēn*: playing music/playing an instrument/playing the lyre

ℹ️

About this Translation

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Formal EquivalenceSource: American Standard VersionBest for: Word studies and original-language research

🎯 Translation Approach

A highly literal, word-for-word translation (ASV, 1901) augmented with Strong's numbering to connect English words to underlying Hebrew and Greek terms for study.

Word-for-word

5/5

Readability

2/5

💎 Distinctive Features

Integrated Strong's numbering: Links English terms to underlying Hebrew and Greek words for deeper lexical study.
Formal equivalence: Prioritizes close alignment with source-language forms and structures.
Divine name rendering: Frequently renders the Tetragrammaton as Jehovah in the Old Testament, following ASV tradition.
Study-focused formatting: Optimized for reference and research rather than casual reading.

✅ Strengths

High fidelity to original languages
Includes Strong's numbers for precise word study
Consistent lexical choices aid exegesis
Stable, longstanding scholarly text

⚠️ Considerations

Archaic language reduces readability
Older textual basis compared to some modern translations
Strong's numbers are a concordance index, not full lexical definitions

👥 Who is this for?

Ideal for

Pastors and teachers
Seminary students
Serious Bible students
Readers conducting word studies
Those referencing Hebrew/Greek tools

Consider alternatives for

Casual readers
Children and early teens
ESL learners seeking simple English
Readers preferring contemporary language

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Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

1 Sam 16:14 : 14 Now the Spirit of Jehovah departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from Jehovah troubled him.
1 Sam 18:10-11 : 10 And it came to pass on the morrow, that an evil spirit from God came mightily upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as he did day by day. And Saul had his spear in his hand; 11 and Saul cast the spear; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall. And David avoided out of his presence twice.
1 Sam 16:16 : 16 Let our lord now command thy servants, that are before thee, to seek out a man who is a skilful player on the harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

1 Sam 18:9-13
5 verses
91%
9And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.
10And it came to pass on the morrow, that an evil spirit from God came mightily upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as he did day by day. And Saul had his spear in his hand;
11and Saul cast the spear; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall. And David avoided out of his presence twice.
12And Saul was afraid of David, because Jehovah was with him, and was departed from Saul.
13Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people.
1 Sam 16:22-23
2 verses
87%
22And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favor in my sight.
23And it came to pass, when the [evil] spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took the harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.
1 Sam 19:10
80%
10And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the spear; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the spear into the wall: and David fled, and escaped that night.
1 Sam 16:13-19
7 verses
79%
13Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of Jehovah came mightily upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.
14Now the Spirit of Jehovah departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from Jehovah troubled him.
15And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.
16Let our lord now command thy servants, that are before thee, to seek out a man who is a skilful player on the harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.
17And Saul said unto his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me.
18Then answered one of the young men, and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is skilful in playing, and a mighty man of valor, and a man of war, and prudent in speech, and a comely person; and Jehovah is with him.
19Wherefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, who is with the sheep.
1 Sam 19:7-8
2 verses
76%
7And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan showed him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as beforetime.
8And there was war again: and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter; and they fled before him.
1 Sam 19:19-20
2 verses
73%
19And it was told Saul, saying, Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.
20And Saul sent messengers to take David: and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as head over them, the Spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied.
1 Sam 17:31
73%
31And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he sent for him.
1 Sam 14:19
73%
19And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased: and Saul said unto the priest, Withdraw thy hand.
1 Sam 11:6
72%
6And the Spirit of God came mightily upon Saul when he heard those words, and his anger was kindled greatly.
1 Sam 22:6
72%
6And Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him: now Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk-tree in Ramah, with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him.
1 Sam 19:1
72%
1And Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should slay David. But Jonathan, Saul's son, delighted much in David.
1 Sam 17:37
72%
37And David said, Jehovah that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and Jehovah shall be with thee.
1 Sam 17:57
71%
57And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.
1 Sam 19:15
71%
15And Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying, Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him.
1 Sam 20:33
71%
33And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him; whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to put David to death.
1 Sam 18:29
70%
29And Saul was yet the more afraid of David; and Saul was David's enemy continually.
1 Sam 17:50
70%
50So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.
1 Sam 24:9
70%
9And David said to Saul, Wherefore hearkenest thou to men's words, saying, Behold, David seeketh thy hurt?
1 Sam 31:3
70%
3And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers overtook him; and he was greatly distressed by reason of the archers.
1 Chr 10:3
70%
3And the battle went sore against Saul, and the archers overtook him; and he was distressed by reason of the archers.
1 Sam 26:12
70%
12So David took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul's head; and they gat them away: and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither did any awake; for they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from Jehovah was fallen upon them.
1 Sam 23:9
70%
9And David knew that Saul was devising mischief against him; and he said to Abiathar the priest, Bring hither the ephod.
1 Sam 26:22
70%
22And David answered and said, Behold the spear, O king! let then one of the young men come over and fetch it.
1 Sam 28:5
69%
5And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly.
1 Sam 21:10
69%
10And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.
1 Sam 26:17
69%
17And Saul knew David's voice, and said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And David said, It is my voice, my lord, O king.
2 Kgs 3:15
69%
15But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of Jehovah came upon him.
1 Sam 22:13
69%
13And Saul said unto him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?
2 Sam 1:14
69%
14And David said unto him, How wast thou not afraid to put forth thy hand to destroy Jehovah's anointed?
1 Sam 18:15
69%
15And when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he stood in awe of him.
1 Sam 19:23
69%
23And he went thither to Naioth in Ramah: and the Spirit of God came upon him also, and he went on, and prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah.
1 Sam 18:5-6
2 verses
69%
5And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, [and] behaved himself wisely: and Saul set him over the men of war, and it was good in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants.
6And it came to pass as they came, when David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with timbrels, with joy, and with instruments of music.
1 Sam 19:5
69%
5for he put his life in his hand, and smote the Philistine, and Jehovah wrought a great victory for all Israel: thou sawest it, and didst rejoice; wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause?
1 Sam 10:26
69%
26And Saul also went to his house to Gibeah; and there went with him the host, whose hearts God had touched.
1 Sam 10:10
69%
10And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a band of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came mightily upon him, and he prophesied among them.
2 Sam 22:1
69%
1And David spake unto Jehovah the words of this song in the day that Jehovah delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul: