1 Samuel 14:38 kjv
And Saul said, Draw ye near hither, all the chief of the people: and know and see wherein this sin hath been this day.
1 Samuel 14:38 nkjv
And Saul said, "Come over here, all you chiefs of the people, and know and see what this sin was today.
1 Samuel 14:38 niv
Saul therefore said, "Come here, all you who are leaders of the army, and let us find out what sin has been committed today.
1 Samuel 14:38 esv
And Saul said, "Come here, all you leaders of the people, and know and see how this sin has arisen today.
1 Samuel 14:38 nlt
Then Saul said to the leaders, "Something's wrong! I want all my army commanders to come here. We must find out what sin was committed today.
1 Samuel 14 38 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Sam 14:36 | "Let us go down after the Philistines by night... Saul said, 'Let us inquire of God.'..." | Saul's attempt to seek God's counsel. |
| Josh 7:1-12 | "But the Israelites committed a trespass regarding the devoted things... Israel cannot stand before their enemies... there is devoted thing among you." | Achan's sin caused defeat and divine silence. |
| Num 27:21 | "And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the LORD..." | Seeking divine will through the high priest. |
| Judg 20:23 | "And the people of Israel went up and wept before the LORD... 'Shall I go up again to battle against my kinsmen...?' And the LORD said, 'Go up against them.'" | Divine inquiry after setbacks. |
| Psa 66:18 | "If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened." | Sin hinders prayer and divine response. |
| Isa 59:2 | "but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you..." | Sin separates and causes God's hidden face. |
| Deut 29:29 | "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever..." | God reveals what needs to be known. |
| Lev 4:13 | "If the whole congregation of Israel commits a sin unintentionally and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly..." | Corporate sin, even hidden, needs atonement. |
| Ezra 10:1-3 | "...a very great assembly of men, women, and children, for the people wept bitterly. ...Let us make a covenant with our God to put away all these wives and their children..." | Uncovering and repenting from communal sin. |
| Job 34:21-22 | "For his eyes are on the ways of a man, and he sees all his steps. There is no gloom or deep darkness where evildoers may hide themselves." | God sees all sin, even hidden ones. |
| Prov 28:13 | "Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy." | Concealed sin brings no prosperity. |
| Num 32:23 | "But if you do not do so, behold, you have sinned against the LORD, and be sure your sin will find you out." | Sin is eventually exposed. |
| Gen 4:7 | "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.” | Sin is an active force. |
| Hos 4:6 | "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge..." | Lack of knowing divine law leads to ruin. |
| Matt 7:22-23 | "On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy...’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’" | Professed obedience without true knowledge of God. |
| Rom 13:1-2 | "Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God... For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad." | Rulers responsible for order and justice. |
| 1 Cor 11:29-30 | "For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died." | Corporate failure and consequences. |
| Heb 4:13 | "And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account." | All is exposed before God. |
| Gal 5:7-9 | "You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion is not from him who calls you... A little leaven leavens the whole lump." | One transgression can corrupt the whole. |
| Jam 4:17 | "So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin." | Knowing but not doing is sin. |
| 1 John 1:9 | "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." | Confession leads to forgiveness. |
| 2 Cor 13:5 | "Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves..." | Self-examination for spiritual health. |
1 Samuel 14 verses
1 Samuel 14 38 Meaning
Saul, having received no divine answer when consulting God through the Ark, concluded that a specific sin had been committed by someone among the people, preventing God from communicating with them. He gathered the key leaders to thoroughly investigate and uncover the precise transgression that had incurred God's displeasure and halted His guidance to Israel. This immediate response demonstrates his understanding of sin as a barrier between God and His people, impacting the outcome of battles.
1 Samuel 14 38 Context
This verse takes place during a critical battle against the Philistines. Saul had just imposed a rash oath on the entire army, forbidding anyone from eating until evening and the defeat of their enemies, on penalty of death. Unbeknownst to his father, Jonathan, Saul's son, tired from fighting, unknowingly ate some honey from a honeycomb found in the woods, violating the oath. Meanwhile, the exhausted Israelite army, when permitted to eat, sinned grievously by slaughtering animals and eating the meat with the blood still in it, a clear violation of Mosaic law (Lev 17:10-14). Saul, trying to bring order, commanded them to slaughter properly on a large stone which he declared an altar. When Saul then sought to inquire of God through the priest to continue the pursuit of the Philistines, he received no divine response, a terrifying sign that God's favor was withheld. This silence is the immediate catalyst for verse 38, as Saul recognizes it as evidence of unconfessed sin within the camp, causing the spiritual blockage and hindrance to victory. His determination to "know and see what sin has been committed today" is his attempt to reconcile with God and regain divine assistance in the war.
1 Samuel 14 38 Word analysis
- Then:
Vayetahiy(וַיְהִי - conjunction "and it was"). Connects directly to the previous events – God's silence when Saul inquired through the Ark (1 Sam 14:37). It signifies immediate, cause-and-effect progression, emphasizing Saul's urgent reaction to the divine non-response. - Saul:
Sha'ul(שָׁאוּל - "asked of God"). The king of Israel, exercising his authority. His leadership, while intending to honor God, often led to flawed decisions. - said:
vayomer(וַיֹּאמֶר - "and he said"). Standard Hebrew verb for speaking. - "Come here":
G’shu halom(גְּשׁוּ הֲלֹם - literally "Draw near here"). A command, an imperative, signaling an urgent summons for immediate proximity and attention. It implies an impending investigation or crucial assembly. - all you chiefs of the people:
kol rā'šê hāʿām(כָּל־רָאשֵׁי הָעָם - "all the heads of the people"). This refers to the military leaders, tribal elders, or officers of the various Israelite divisions. Saul convenes the top hierarchy, implying the gravity of the matter and a need for collective involvement in discovery and resolution, pointing to a potentially corporate sin or one from a prominent person. This assembly is akin to a legal or religious inquiry body. - and know and see:
w’də‘ū urə’u(וּדְעוּ וּרְאוּ - "and know and see/perceive"). Two imperatives linked. "Know" (יָדַע -yada') signifies discerning and understanding. "See" (רָאָה -ra'ah) implies visually identifying or discovering, like seeing evidence or finding the culprit. It's a demand for thorough investigation and revelation. - what sin:
ma hachata’ah(מַה הַחַטָּאת - "what is the sin").chata’ah(חַטָּאָה) means "sin," "offering for sin," or "guilt." Here, it points to a specific offense or transgression against God. Saul believes a definitive sin has provoked God's silence, rather than a general spiritual malaise. - has been committed today:
naʿǎsēta hāyôm(נַעֲשׂתָה הַיּוֹם - "it has been done today"). Emphasizes the recency and immediacy of the transgression. It points to an event directly related to their current predicament (the lack of divine guidance). Saul links their present state (stalled progress, God's silence) directly to a very recent act of sin.
1 Samuel 14 38 Bonus section
- Urim and Thummim: Though not explicitly mentioned in this verse, the Ark of God was the vessel used for consulting God through the Urim and Thummim, sacred objects that the High Priest used to receive yes/no answers or specific guidance from God. God's silence when these were consulted was the gravest sign of divine displeasure and unconfessed sin.
- Corporate Responsibility: Saul's summons to "all the chiefs of the people" highlights the concept of corporate responsibility, where the sin of an individual, especially a leader, could affect the entire community (e.g., Achan in Joshua 7). This necessitated a communal reckoning and often a collective ritual of purification or judgment.
- Saul's Flawed Piety: While Saul demonstrates zeal for removing sin, his methods and previous actions (the rash oath) highlight his human-centered rather than truly God-centered piety. He is focused on achieving victory and removing obstacles, even if his own rashness caused the "sin." This sets a stage for further examples of his character and why his kingship would ultimately fail.
- Discovery through Lots: The very next verses (1 Sam 14:39-42) reveal that the method Saul intends to use for "knowing and seeing" this hidden sin is casting lots, a divinely sanctioned method for discerning God's will and identifying a hidden offender in ancient Israel (cf. Prov 16:33).
1 Samuel 14 38 Commentary
In 1 Samuel 14:38, Saul confronts a dire theological reality: God's silence. Having attempted to consult the Lord through the high priest and the Ark (which held the Urim and Thummim), and receiving no answer, Saul immediately concluded that an unaddressed sin lay within the Israelite camp. This reflected a foundational Israelite belief that sin caused separation from God and forfeited His blessing, particularly in warfare (cf. Deut 28, Josh 7).
His command to "come here, all you chiefs of the people, and know and see what sin has been committed today" reveals several things about his leadership and the Israelite understanding of divine judgment. Firstly, he did not hesitate to identify the problem as spiritual. For Saul, God’s favor was paramount for victory. Secondly, he knew this required a formal, public inquiry involving the "heads of the people" (ro'shei ha'am). This indicated the sin might be corporate, or committed by a significant figure. Thirdly, the imperative verbs "know" and "see" demanded a rigorous, definitive discovery process, suggesting he was prepared to use methods like casting lots (as seen in 1 Sam 14:41-42) to pinpoint the offender, affirming the role of divine revelation in jurisprudence. Saul's action, while showing a zeal for God's presence, also foreshadows his legalistic, rather than genuinely obedient, approach to his kingship, setting the stage for the revelation of Jonathan's innocent transgression against his father's flawed oath, rather than a willful act against God.