1 Samuel 20:21
19 And when thou hast stayed three days, then thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself when the business was in hand, and shalt remain by the stone Ezel.
20 And I will shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot at a mark.
And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find out the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them; then come thou: for there is peace to thee, and no hurt; as the LORD liveth.
22 But if I say thus unto the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond thee; go thy way: for the LORD hath sent thee away.
23 And as touching the matter which thou and I have spoken of, behold, the LORD be between thee and me for ever.
Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.
Compare
- BSB
- Then I will send a boy and say, ‘Go, find the arrows!’ Now, if I expressly say to him, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; bring them,’ then come, because as surely as the LORD lives, it is safe for you and there is no danger.
- KJV
- And, behold, I will send a lad, saying, Go, find out the arrows. If I expressly say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them; then come thou: for there is peace to thee, and no hurt; as the LORD liveth.
- WEB
- Behold, I will send the boy, saying, ‘Go, find the arrows!’ If I tell the boy, ‘Behold, the arrows are on this side of you. Take them;’ then come, for there is peace to you and no danger, as the LORD lives.
- ASV
- And, behold, I will send the lad, [saying], Go, find the arrows. If I say unto the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee; take them, and come; for there is peace to thee and no hurt, as Jehovah liveth.
- DARBY
- And behold, I will send the lad, [saying,] Go, find the arrows. If I expressly say to the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take them; then come, for there is peace for thee, and it is nothing; [as] Jehovah liveth.
- BLB
- And there I will send a boy: ‘Go, find the arrows.’ If I expressly say to him, ‘Look, the arrows [are] [here] on this side and away from you, take them and come,’ then [there is] safety for you and there will be no matter, as YHWH lives.
- ÅB
- Så skal jeg sende min tjener der bort og si: Gå og finn pilene! Sier jeg da til tjeneren: Se, pilene ligger hitenfor deg, ta dem - så kom! For da kan du være trygg, og der er ingen fare, så sant Herren lever.
- OTB
- Da skal jeg sende gutten og si: 'Gå, finn pilene.' Hvis jeg spesifikt sier til gutten: 'Se, pilene er på denne siden av deg; hent dem,' så kom ut, for det er trygghet for deg og ingen skade, så sant Herren lever.
- B1930
- Så skal jeg sende min tjener der bort og si: Gå og finn pilene! Sier jeg da til tjeneren: Se, pilene ligger hitenfor dig, ta dem - så kom! For da kan du være trygg, og der er ingen fare, så sant Herren lever.
Study notes (Tyndale)
Original text and word study
Cross references
Jeremiah 4:2
And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.
Read in contextJeremiah 5:2
And though they say, The LORD liveth; surely they swear falsely.
Read in contextAmos 8:14
They that swear by the sin of Samaria, and say, Thy god, O Dan, liveth; and, The manner of Beer-sheba liveth; even they shall fall, and never rise up again.
Read in contextJeremiah 12:16
And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, The LORD liveth; as they taught my people to swear by Baal; then shall they be built in the midst of my people.
Read in context