Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 1 Samuel 11:9

And they said unto the messengers that came, Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabesh-gilead, Tomorrow, by [that time] the sun be hot, ye shall have help. And the messengers came and showed [it] to the men of Jabesh; and they were glad.

9. ye shall have help ] Or, deliverance. The same word is translated “salvation” in 1Sa 11:13, and the cognate verb “save” in 1Sa 11:3.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

The distance from Bezek to Jabesh-Gilead would perhaps be about twenty miles.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

To-morrow, to wit, the day after your departure hence, or return home; for it seems probable that some few days had been spent in the gathering and disposing of the forces, and bringing them towards those parts.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

And they said unto the messengers that came,…. From Jabeshgilead, that is, Saul and Samuel said to them, as follows:

thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabeshgilead: when they returned unto them, as they were now upon the departure:

tomorrow, by that time the sun be hot; when it smites with the greatest heat, as at noon: this morrow seems not to be the next from their return home, or going from Saul, but the morrow after they were got home, and should deliver the message to those that sent them, 1Sa 11:10 and so Josephus z says, it was on the third day the assistance was promised them:

ye shall have help; Saul with his army by that time would come and raise the siege: and the messengers came and showed it to the men of Jabesh; what Saul had promised, and what a numerous army he had raised, and had now upon the march for their relief, and tomorrow would be with them:

and they were glad; it was good news and glad tidings to them; it cheered their hearts, and gave them spirit.

z Ut supra, (Antiqu. l. 6. c. 5.) sect. 3.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

(9) To morrow, by that time the sun be hot.That is, about noon the army of rescue will be at hand. The distance from Bezek to Jabesh was not much over twenty miles.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

9. They said unto the messengers that came These messengers were the ones that came from Jabesh to Gibeah. They had repaired to Bezek to wait to see the result of Saul’s call for the people to assemble there.

Tomorrow, by that time the sun be hot That is, about noon.

Whether this “morrow” was the last day of the seven granted by Nahash to the elders of Jabesh cannot be certainly decided by any thing here recorded. But on the supposition that it was, the question has been raised: Was a period of seven days sufficient time for all these things to be done? It would require at least a day for the messengers to reach Gibeah, and it would seem at first sight that a week would be barely sufficient to notify the tribes, much less to get together an army of three hundred and thirty thousand men in readiness for battle. Indeed, with our modern ideas and methods of raising and marshalling an army, it would be utterly impossible for the most experienced general to get together, without any previous arrangement, so large an army in so short a time. But we must divest our minds of our modern notions of warfare, and remember that in ancient Israel every able-bodied man was made familiar from his childhood with the implements of war. A bow, a sword or a spear, and a shield, or simply a sling, were the weapons most commonly used. From 1Sa 13:22, it appears that swords and spears were scarce among the people, but at such a time the sling was probably regarded as a much more serviceable weapon. Compare the feat of David, 1Sa 17:49, and the statement of Jdg 20:16, that the little tribe of Benjamin had seven hundred chosen men, each of whom could sling stones at a hair-breadth and not miss. Accordingly, when summoned out to battle, every man would provide his own weapons and his own food, and hasten at once to the place of rendezvous. No great length of time would be necessary, under such circumstances, for the mustering of an army. A man notified in the morning, might equip himself and travel forty or fifty miles before night, and in circumstances of great peril he would probably travel in the night time also. Jos 10:9. Then we must not imagine that the roads of Palestine were, at that time, in the ruined and neglected state in which the modern traveller finds them: nor should we obscure the subject by the supposition that the summons of Saul was carried through the coasts of Israel by a few slow-footed travellers. Doubtless every town had one or more swift-footed runners, who, like Asahel, (2Sa 2:18,) were as light of foot as the wild roe; and as the tidings reached one town, swift messengers would fly forth in different directions; and the alarm might spread still more rapidly by the erection of ensigns on the tops of the high hills. Such tidings, of course, would spread by night as well as by day, and thirty or forty hours would be sufficient to send the call of the king through all the coasts of Israel. Saul probably sent forth ten swift runners, (for it is hardly likely that the tribes on the east of the Jordan were summoned,) each bearing a piece of the slaughtered oxen to the chief city of each tribe; and from such central city of every tribe the call rapidly flew to all the surrounding country. Attention to all these circumstances will show that a vast army might, without great difficulty, be mustered in a few days.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

The Utter Overthrow of the Ammonites

v. 9. And they, the men representing the army of Israel, said unto the messengers that came, Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabesh-gilead, Tomorrow, by that time the sun be hot, before noon, ye shall have help, in being delivered from the power of their arrogant enemies. And the messengers came and showed it to the men of Jabesh, gave them the joyful information; and they were glad.

v. 10. Therefore the men of Jabesh said, employing a stratagem which was to make the Ammonites overconfident, Tomorrow we will come out unto you, and ye shall do with us all that seemeth good unto you, for this sounded as though they would surrender themselves unconditionally, not having been able to interest the rest of Israel.

v. 11. And it was so on the morrow that Saul put the people in three companies, three attacking divisions; and they came into the midst of the host in the morning watch, between three o’clock and dawn, when the night is darkest, and slew the Ammonites, who were caught and overpowered by surprise, until the heat of the day; and it came to pass that they which remained were scattered, so that two of them were not left together. It was an utter rout, a complete overthrow of the invading army.

v. 12. And the people said unto Samuel, when they had returned from their pursuit of the scattered enemies and were once more encamped, Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over us? Bring the men that we may put them to death. By virtue of his prophetic power, Samuel was to name the children of Belial, 1Sa 10:27, who had sneered at Saul. The people were so enthusiastic over the victory gained under the leadership of Saul that they were ready to deal very summarily with men whom they regarded as traitors.

v. 13. And Saul said, There shall not a man be put to death this day; for today the Lord hath wrought salvation in Israel. This was not only tactful and magnanimous, but showed true piety of heart, which would not permit the sacred joy of the day of victory to be marred by bloodshed, since the victory of the foe was for him nothing but a saving act of God Himself. It was an utterance of royal generosity toward his personal enemies, whose hearts he wanted to win; it was a victory over himself.

v. 14. Then said Samuel to the people, Come and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there, by a solemn confirmation and open acknowledgment of the election as it took place in Mizpeh.

v. 15. And all the people went to Gilgal; and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal, the entire nation, as one man, rendering him the homage which made him ruler over Israel in fact as well as in name; and there they sacrificed sacrifices of peace-offerings, with which were connected joyful sacrificial meals, before the Lord; and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly. So both the happy relation between the covenant God and Israel and the union of the tribes, welded together to form a perfect unit, was here celebrated. For a Christian it is self-evident that for everything which he has managed to perform by the strength and power of God he gives all honor to Jehovah alone.

Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

1Sa 11:9 And they said unto the messengers that came, Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabeshgilead, To morrow, by [that time] the sun be hot, ye shall have help. And the messengers came and shewed [it] to the men of Jabesh; and they were glad.

Ver. 9. Tomorrow, by that time the sun be hot. ] Not tertio die, the next day after tomorrow, as Josephus and Comestor have it, who will needs mend Magnificat.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

help = salvation, or deliverance.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

help: or, deliverance, Psa 18:17

Reciprocal: Jos 10:9 – all night Jos 11:6 – morrow 2Ki 7:1 – To morrow Pro 27:17 – so

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

11:9 And {e} they said unto the messengers that came, Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabeshgilead, To morrow, by [that time] the sun be hot, ye shall have help. And the messengers came and shewed [it] to the men of Jabesh; and they were glad.

(e) Meaning, Saul and Samuel.

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes