Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Samuel 17:55
And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son [is] this youth? And Abner said, [As] thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.
55 58. Saul’s inquiry concerning David’s parentage
55. he said unto Abner ] This section is not found in the Septuagint (B). On the difficulty of reconciling it with ch. 16 see Note VI. P. 241.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Whose son … – See the marginal reference note.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Whose son is this youth?
Quest. How could David be unknown to Saul, with whom he had lived? 1Sa 16:21.
Answ. That might well be, for divers reasons, because David was not constantly with him, nor, as it seems, used by him, but upon extraordinary occasions, and desperate fits of melancholy; from which possibly he had been free for a good while, by Gods special providence and care for his people Israel, that so he might be capable of governing and protecting them against the Philistines, who watched all opportunities against them, and at last broke forth into an open war. Thus David had been for some considerable time dismissed from Sauls court, and was returned home; and therefore it is not strange, if Saul had for the present forgotten David; for kings, because of the encumbrance of public business, and the multitude of persons who come to them on several occasions, may easily forget some persons; yea, such as have frequently been with them, especially their servants, whom they do not use to observe with so much attention and care as they do others. Add to this, that the distemper of Sauls mind might make him forgetful; and that David might now be much changed, both in his countenance and in his habit, from what he had before; and it is apparent, that the change of habits makes so great a difference, that it oft keeps us from the knowledge of those persons whom in other habits we very well know. Some give this answer, That this was the first time that Saul had seen David; and that Davids exploit here recorded was performed before that which is recorded 1Sa 17:15, though it be placed after it; but that is confuted by comparing 1Sa 18:1-3.
I cannot tell; which is not strange, because Abners conversation and employment was generally in the camp, when David was at the court; and when Abner was there, he took little notice of a person so much inferior to him as David was.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
55-58. Saul . . . said unto Abner .. . whose son is this youth?A young man is more spoken of inmany Eastern countries by his father’s name than his own. The growthof the beard, and other changes on a now full-grown youth, preventedthe king from recognizing his former favorite minstrel [1Sa16:23].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine,…. Set out to meet him, and engage with him, as he might from the side of the mountain, where he was encamped:
he said unto Abner, the captain of the host; his own cousin, whom he had raised to this high post in the army, 1Sa 14:50;
Abner, whose son [is] this youth? it is thought strange by many that Saul should not know who he was, when he had been often at his court, and served him as a musician, and had been very useful to him, and he loved him, and made him his armourbearer, and even had just now conversed with him about encountering with the Philistine, and had clothed him with his own armour: to get rid of the former part of the objection, some have supposed that this event happened before David was his musician and armourbearer, and is by anticipation spoken of in
1Sa 16:14, but that the connection with this and the following chapter will not admit of; and besides, before this event, David is said to return home from Saul, 1Sa 17:15; so that it is certain he had been at Saul’s court, and in his presence before: but to remove this seeming difficulty it may be observed, that Saul, having laboured under a disorder of body and mind, might easily forget David, and his serving him in the above capacity; and to which the multiplicity of business, and of persons in a court, might greatly contribute; and what with the distance of time, and the different habits in which David appeared, sometimes as a musician, and sometimes as a shepherd, and at other times as a soldier, and always as a servant, it is no wonder the king should not know him again; though after all it is not about his person that he inquires, but whose son he was, what was his father’s name, and from what family he sprung; for though Saul was made acquainted with this in the time of his disorder, and therefore sent to his father Jesse for him, and afterwards desired leave for his continuance; yet this might slip out of his memory in a course of time, he having had no personal knowledge of Jesse, nor any correspondence with him, but just at that time; and it behoved him to know the pedigree of David, since, if he was victorious, he was not only to be enriched by him, but to have his daughter for wife, and his family ennobled:
and Abner said, [as] thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell; he swore by the life of Saul, as Joseph by the life of Pharaoh, that he knew nothing of him; which need not at all seem strange, that a general of an army, always employed in military affairs, and often abroad, should know nothing of a domestic servant of Saul’s, under the character of a musician, and not always at court either; and still less that he should be ignorant of his family, and know nothing of his father, who lived in obscurity in Bethlehem, and was an old man in those days.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Jonathan’s friendship. – 1Sa 17:55-58. The account of the relation into which David was brought to Saul through the defeat of Goliath is introduced by a supplementary remark, in 1Sa 17:55, 1Sa 17:56, as to a conversation which took place between Saul and his commander-in-chief Abner concerning David, whilst he was fighting with the giant. So far, therefore, as the actual meaning is concerned, the verbs in 1Sa 17:55 and 1Sa 17:56 should be rendered as pluperfects. When Saul saw the youth walk boldly up to meet the Philistine, he asked Abner whose son he was; whereupon Abner assured him with an oath that he did not know. In our remarks concerning the integrity of this section we have already observed, with regard to the meaning of the question put by Saul, that it does not presuppose an actual want of acquaintance with the person of David and the name of his father, but only ignorance of the social condition of David’s family, with which both Abner and Saul may hitherto have failed to make themselves more fully acquainted.
(Note: The common solutions of this apparent discrepancy, such as that Saul pretended not to know David, or that his question is to be explained on the supposition that his disease affected his memory, have but little probability in them, although Karkar still adheres to them.)
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Saul’s Suspicions, vs. 55-58
There is an apparent difficulty here in that it seems Saul did not know David, although he had been his court musician and even served for a time as his armor-bearer (1Sa 16:21). Furthermore it is found even in chapter 17 (v. 15) that David had returned home from Saul’s court before the Philistine conflict had been resumed. It would further seem that Abner should have remembered David as Saul’s musician, since he was a part of the king’s council.
The suggestion that Saul’s demented condition made him forget about David seems hardly worthy of note and comment. Saul was certainly not that devoid of mind, since he was still leading his army. It would seem that the question must be associated with Saul’s anxiety over the pronouncement of Samuel that he would lose the kingdom. He was doubtless on the lookout for any possible contender for his throne. Though his suspicions may not yet have been fully aroused they were certainly so aroused very shortly thereafter (1Sa 18:6-9).
So the inquiry into the identity of this instant hero was for the purpose of learning his standing in Israel, whether he might be considered a potential king. Learning that his father was Jesse who was only a poor shepherd of Bethlehem, may have alleviated his fears briefly.
Many lessons could be, and have been, garnered from this popular chapter of the Bible. Some worth repeating are 1) the devil stands as a challenge against the Lord’s people today; 2) it ill becomes all of God’s people who will not oppose Satan; 3) one can always be found with courage and faith to withstand Satan, knowing the victory is sure; 4) there is a cause for Christians to speak out, and it should never be neglected; 5) the enemy can be overcome by use of the tried and true weapons of God’s Word; 6) the battle is the Lord’s, and He will deliver Satan into the hand of His children; 7) the Lord takes the obscure and makes them worthy in His service.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
Saul Inquires About Davids Background. 1Sa. 17:55-58
55 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.
56 And the king said, Inquire thou whose son the stripling is.
57 And 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.
58 And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.
21.
Why did Saul seemingly fail to recognize David? 1Sa. 17:55-58
This does not necessarily mean that Saul did not know David as the young man that played the harp for him when he was under the spell of the evil spirit. The fact that he had asked no questions along this line when David first appeared before him indicates that he knew who he was. Otherwise it would be hard to understand how he was so ready to trust him. What he did not know was the standing of Davids family. It was the story of David concerning his family that seemed to have a strong appeal to Jonathan and led him to make the gift of his armor.
If Saul was going to make Jesses house free in Israel, he would have to know more about the house. He may have inquired as to the number of sons in the home of Jesse. Furthermore, if David were to become the son-in-law of the king, Saul would want to know his background to make sure that he was of proper Israelite ancestry. It would also be necessary for Saul to find out more about Davids family in order to know what kind of gifts to make for this daring deed of patriotism. David did surely more than to answer Sauls question. He must have gone into some little bit of explanation of his humble origins; because when he concluded speaking with Saul, Jonathans soul was knit to that of David (1Sa. 18:1).
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(55) Whose son is this youth?A grave difficulty, at first sight, indisputably exists here. It is briefly this. In the preceding chapter (1Sa. 17:18-23), David, the son of Jesse, is chosen to play before the mentally sick king; his playing relieved the sufferer, who became attached to the young musician, and in consequence appointed him to a position about his person that certainly would have involved a lengthened, if not a continuous, residence at the court. In this and the following verses we read how this same David, at the time of his great exploit, was apparently unknown to the king and to Abner, the captain of the host. The LXX., fully conscious of the difficulty, determined to solve it by boldly, if not wisely, cutting the knot. They literally expunged from their version all the later passages which they could not easily bring into harmony with the earlier. The Greek Version, then, simply omits these four last verses of 1 Samuel 17, together with the first five verses of 1 Samuel 18, and the whole of the section 1Sa. 17:12-31.
Various ingenious explanations have been suggested by scholars.
(a) The mental state of Saul when David played before him was such that the king failed to recognise him on the present occasion, and Abner probably had never seen him before.
(b) Some length of time had elapsed since his last visit to the court, and as he was then in very early manhood, he had, so to speak, grown, in a comparatively speaking short space of time, out of Sauls memory.
(c) The purpose of Sauls inquiry was not to find out who David wasthat he knew well alreadybut to ascertain the position and general circumstances of the young heros father, as, according to the promise (in 1Sa. 17:25), in the event of his success (which evidently the king confidently looked for), the father of the champion and his family would receive extraordinary honours.
The real solution of the difficulty probably lies in the fact that, as has been before stated, this and the other historical books of the Old Testament were made up by the inspired compiler from well-authenticated traditions current in Israel, and most probably preserved in the archives of the great prophetic schools. (See Notes on 1Sa. 17:1; 1Sa. 17:15.) There were, no doubt, many of these traditions connected with the principal events of Davids early career. Two here were selected which, to a certain extent, covered the same ground. The firstpreserved, no doubt, in some prophetic school where music and poetry were especially cultivatednarrates the influence which David acquired over Saul through his great gift of music. The power of music and poetry in Sauls mental disease was evidently the great point of interest to the original writer of 1Sa. 16:14-23. Now, in the narrative contained in these ten verses no note of time occurs. The events related evidently were spread over a considerable, possibly over a very long, period. The afflicted king might have seen the young musician perhaps in a darkened tent once or twice before the Goliath combat, but the great intimacy described in 1Sa. 16:21-23, we may well assume, belonged to a period subsequent to the memorable combat with the giant.
Following out this hypothesis, we may with some confidence assume that King Saul failed entirely to recognise the young player whom he had only seen (possibly only heard in his darkened tent) on one or two sad occasions; and Abner probably had never seen him.
As for the great love on the part of the king, and position of royal armour-bearer these things we have little doubt came to David after the victory over the giant Philistine, and very likely indeed in consequence of it.
In the later of the two sections of the Goliath history, the compiler cared little for the musical detail; his work was to show that the foundation stone of Davids brilliant and successful life was intense faith in the Jehovah of Israel, a perfect child-like trust in the power of the Invisible King.
In the former of the two sections the relaterno doubt in his day a famous teacher in some school of prophetic musicwas, only concerned to show the mighty influence of his Divine art upon the souls and the lives of men, as exemplified in the story of the early days of the sweet Psalmist-King of Israel.
The musical details connected with the early life of David, the composer of so many of the famous hymns sung in the Tempie Service and also in the public gatherings of the people, would bein the eyes of this writerof the deepest interest to coming generations.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
55. Whose son is this youth But did not Saul remember David, whose services on the harp had been of so much advantage to him in his madness?
1Sa 16:20-23. Perhaps not, for probably some time had elapsed since the youth had left his court, and Saul’s memory may have suffered somewhat from his disease. A man of Saul’s varying moods would be quite likely to forget even a benefactor; or if he remembered David’s musical service, he may have forgotten his looks, so as not to have recognised him on this occasion. But now, having promised to reward not only him who slew Goliath, but his father also, (1Sa 17:25,) and seeing the youth go forth against the giant confident of victory, he begins to inquire after the tribe and position of his father’s house.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The Aftermath. Having Promised His Daughter To David Saul Enquires About His Antecedents ( 1Sa 17:55-58 ).
Analysis.
a
b And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I cannot tell you” (1Sa 17:55 b).
c And the king said, Enquire you whose son the stripling is” (1Sa 17:56).
b And 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 (1Sa 17:57).
a And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite” (1Sa 17:58).
Note that in ‘a’ Saul asks after David’s ancestry, and in the parallel asks David himself about it. In ‘b’ he asks Abner to follow the question up and in the parallel Abner does so by bringing David to Saul. Centrally in ‘c’ Saul wants to know whose son the stripling is. From what ‘tree’ is he stripped?
1Sa 17:55
‘ And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain of the host, “Abner, whose son is this youth?” And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I cannot tell.” ’
Meanwhile Saul, as he watched David go out to fight the Philistine, was mindful of the fact that he had promised his daughter to whoever defeated the Philistine, and he was thus now concerned about David’s antecedents, so he turned to Abner his general and asked, ‘Whose son is this?’ It had not been important who Jesse was when all Saul had been doing was employ him as a musician. And he had probably forgotten the details of David’s background, if he had ever known them. He could hardly have been expected to remember the details of the families of all his servants. It was, however, a totally different matter if he was to receive him into the family. Abner’s reply was that he simply did not know (emphasising that David was a nobody).
1Sa 17:56
‘ And the king said, “You enquire whose son the stripling is.” ’
So the king asked him to enquire into David’s antecedents. The reference to a ‘stripling’ has in mind the source from which David came. He was like a small strip from the parent stem.
1Sa 17:57
‘ And 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.’
And when David returned from his defeat of Goliath, Abner took him and brought him before Saul. David was carrying the head of Goliath in his hand as an indication of YHWH’s victory. In the writer’s eyes this told Saul whose son he was. He was the ‘son’ of YHWH Who had given him this great deliverance. He was the new anointed of YHWH.
1Sa 17:58
‘ And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?” And David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite.” ’
As a result of Abner’s action Saul was able to question him himself, and he asked him whose son he was. David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite,” after which there was further conversation (1Sa 18:1) in which he would have given more details about himself and his family. What he did not tell him was that he was also the anointed of YHWH. That is for the reader (and listener) to know as he stands there with the head of Goliath in his hand.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
1Sa 17:55-58. Whose son is this youth? &c. Saul probably knew David’s person, but had forgotten the name of his father. He does not ask, therefore, who the youth is, but whose son he is; a question of the more consequence to him, as he had promised his daughter in marriage to the conqueror of Goliath. Besides, as David had been for some time absent from Saul, perhaps a year or two, what is there improbable, that the youth, who had been so little with Saul, should, after such an absence, not even be remembered by him in person at first view; especially as he was now in his shepherd’s habit, and not in that of one of Saul’s guards (see the note ch. 1Sa 16:21.); and when Saul had himself been employed in a multiplicity of important affairs, seen such a variety of different persons since the first interview with David, and had been disordered by the melancholy of his own mind? But it is much less to be wondered at, that he should not remember his parentage, which is the only thing that the sacred historian affirms. See Grotius, and Chandler’s Review, p. 96. Houbigant is of opinion, that Saul was at this time seized with that evil spirit which troubled him, and that Abner, courtier-like, would not answer him, lest his answer should prove to Saul the present unhappy and disturbed state of his mind. We learn from the whole of this pleasing chapter, how ready God is to help those who trust in him; for whose defence and protection he makes use of means, apparently the most weak, to humble the pride of the wicked, and to destroy the powers which seem most formidable.
REFLECTIONS.1st. David having put off his armour, in his shepherd’s dress, with his sling in his hand, marches down toward this proud Philistine, and chooses five smooth stones from the brook which ran in the valley, nor was at all terrified by the formidable appearance of his antagonist, since God was the strength of his hope.
1. Goliath, looking on such a puny foe, a youth, and so accoutred, treated with high disdain his insolence in daring to approach him, as if he were a dog, to be beaten with a shepherd’s staff; and, cursing him by his gods, threatens, as easily as a lion tears the lamb, to give his flesh to the birds and beasts. Note; (1.) The curse which is causeless falls only on the head that utters it. (2.) The presumption of the proud destroys them.
2. David replies with confidence and dependence upon God, and hurls back this boaster’s threatenings into his face. Having authority from the God of Israel, whom, in his people, Goliath had defied, dependent on the arm of that omnipotent Lord of hosts, who alone giveth victory in the battle, he threatens that his carcase, and those of his countrymen, shall this day afford a nobler feast to the birds and beasts: the nations around shall then acknowledge the glory of Israel’s God, and his church and people adore him for a salvation so great and wonderful.
2nd, We have the issue of this unequal match, and see that the battle is not always to the strong.
1. Like a Colossus, huge Goliath strides along, glittering in burnished armour; David, with nimbler step, hastes to meet him, and, having placed the stone in his sling, aimed at the broad mark of this Philistine’s forehead. Swift flew the messenger of death, resistless pierced through his skull, and backward fell the mighty hero, extended breathless on the plain. With eagerness now David flies on his prey, draws forth the vanquished champion’s sword, and severs his head from his body, as the trophy of his victory. Note; (1.) Vain is the arm of flesh against the power of God. (2.) Thus has Jesus conquered the powers of darkness, and spoiled them openly; and thus shall every believer conquer those giant-like corruptions which wage war against his soul.
2. A panic seizes the hosts of Philistia when they behold their boasted hero fallen; whilst Israel’s armies, shouting for victory, pursue the dispirited fugitives even to the gates of their cities, and on their return spoil the camp. Note; They who rely on man will find their dependence but a broken reed.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
(55) And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell. (56) And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is. (57) And 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. (58) And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.
It should seem that Saul had forgotten the person of David, so as not to know him again, which would appear rather strange if it were not considered that his disease at that time had left him but little recollection; and his anxiety for his kingdom and his life, also now preyed, no doubt, much upon him. But when David made himself known to him, the matter must have been brought to his recollection.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
1Sa 17:55 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son [is] this youth? And Abner said, [As] thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.
Ver. 55. Whose son is this? ] Saul being of a weak brain by reason of his frantic fits, and withal full of business, had, belike, forgotten David, who might be now much altered in his visage and habit, and never haply otherwise taken notice of by Saul than as princes use to do of musicians or servants.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
whose son . . . ? Though Saul had just had an interview with David, he did not know his father, whom he had promised (1Sa 17:25) to make free in Israel. Note in all these passages (verses: 55, 56, 58) Saul’s inquiry is not about David, but about David’s father.
thy soul = thyself (emph.) Hebrew. nephesh. App-13.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
a Loyal Friend and a Jealous Enemy
1Sa 17:55-58; 1Sa 18:1-9
These verses make very good reading. They present the one ray of light in a story which, from this point on, becomes more and more somber. Davids bearing in the hour of victory was so modest and unaffected that Jonathans heart leaped out to greet him as a kindred soul; while his advances awoke in David a love almost womanly in its tenderness. When we see Jonathan arraying his newfound friend in his own raiment, we are reminded of our Lords great exchange with us. He was made sin, that we might become the righteousness of God in him, 2Co 5:21.
Davids harp was now, for the most part, exchanged for the sword, and he became a popular hero. It was the refrain of the womens ode of victory that opened Sauls soul to the envenomed dart of jealousy. The milk of human kindness suddenly turned sour. He eyed David from that day, not with affectionate admiration, but always with desire to place a malicious construction on every act and word and look. With terrible accuracy James shows the certain progress and development of such an attitude, Jam 1:14-15.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
whose son: 1Sa 17:58, 1Sa 16:21, 1Sa 16:22
Reciprocal: Gen 42:15 – By the life 1Sa 1:26 – as thy soul 1Sa 14:50 – the name of the captain 1Sa 20:3 – as thy soul 1Sa 26:5 – Abner 2Sa 2:8 – Abner 2Sa 11:11 – as thou livest 2Sa 14:19 – As thy soul 2Ki 2:2 – As the Lord 1Ch 26:28 – Abner Dan 3:24 – O king
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1Sa 17:55. Whose son is this youth? It may, at first sight, appear strange that Saul should be represented here as not knowing who David was, when we have a relation in the foregoing chapter of his sending for him to court, being highly pleased with his behaviour, and much delighted with his music, making him his armour-bearer, and sending to his father Jesse to ask his leave for his continuance at court. But it may be observed that Saul, in this place, does not express an entire ignorance of David, but only inquires whose son he was A question of the more consequence to him, as he had promised his daughter in marriage to the conqueror of Goliath. Either Saul had never before made any inquiry about his parentage, or both he and Abner had forgotten whence he was. And this might very easily happen to a king and a general of an army, who daily see and have to do with so many different faces, and who pay so little regard to things of this sort. Nay, if Saul had entirely forgotten David, it would not have been strange, considering that he had been but little with him, had some time ago been dismissed from the court, and was returned home, where he had remained at least a year or two, during which time Saul had not seen him. Besides, the distemper of Sauls mind might make him forgetful, and David might now be much changed, both in his countenance and in his habit. Abner said, I cannot tell Abners employment was generally in the camp, when David was at the court; and when Abner was there he probably took little notice of a youth so much inferior to him as David was.
We may learn from the whole of this pleasing chapter, says Dr. Dodd, how ready God is to help those who trust in him; for whose defence and protection he makes use of means apparently the most weak, to humble the pride of the wicked, and to destroy the powers which seem most formidable. Some writers have considered this destruction of Goliath by David as a type of the victory of Jesus Christ, in his state of weakness and humiliation, over the strong and gigantic powers of hell and the grave.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
1Sa 17:1 to 1Sa 18:5. David and Goliath (E, with additione by R).In this section two narratives seem to have been interwoven. For the sake of convenience, we may denote one set of passages by (A), and the other by (B), thus:
(A) 1Sa 17:1-11, 1Sa 17:32-54.
(B) 1Sa 17:12-31, 1Sa 17:55 to 1Sa 18:5.
The (B) passages, together with 1Sa 17:41 and 1Sa 17:50, are omitted by very many MSS. of the LXX, including the very important Vatican Codex. (A) by itself would form a complete narrative, and would not present any very glaring inconsistencies with the previous chapters (cf., however, below). (B), even with the addition of 1Sa 17:41 and 1Sa 17:50, could hardly be read as a complete narrative.
Two explanations have been given of these facts:
(i) Apart from minor textual changes, the whole section, 1Sa 17:1 to 1Sa 18:5, belongs together and was taken from the same document. The (B) passages were omitted by LXX on account of the contradiction between them and 1Sa 16:10
1Sa 17:55 to 1Sa 18:5. Saul finds out who David is, and makes him one of his captains. It can hardly be meant that he took the place of Abner as commander-in-chief, but the author may write in a rhetorical vein and ignore the actual circumstances. Jonathan forms a passionate friendship for David.
1Sa 17:3 f. The covenant seems to be actually formed by this investiture of David with Jonathans clothes and weapons. The clothes are, so to speak, impregnated with the personality of the wearer; there is thus an actual physical bond created between the original wearer and his successor. David carries about with him always something of Jonathans personality. This physical contact, which in other forms plays a large part in covenants, is doubled if there is an exchange of garments. Nothing is said of such an exchange here, and David, of course, had no weapons. Cf. RS2, p. 335.A. S. P.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
17:55 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, {e} whose son [is] this youth? And Abner said, [As] thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.
(e) That is, of what family and tribe is he? He had forgotten David, even though he had received so great a benefit by him.