SEV Biblia, Chapter 22:17
Entonces dijo el rey a la gente de su guardia que estaba alrededor de él: Cercad y matad a los sacerdotes del SEÑOR; porque también la mano de ellos es también con David, pues sabiendo ellos que huía, no me lo descubrieron. Mas los siervos del rey no quisieron extender sus manos para matar a los sacerdotes del SEÑOR.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - 1 Samuel 22:17
Verse 17. But the servants of the king would not] They dared to disobey the commands of the king in a case of such injustice, inhumanity, and irreligion.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 17. And the king said unto the footmen that stood about him , etc.] Or the “runners” f457 ; the running footmen, that used to run before him when he went out from place to place, and were here waiting on him, ready to set out whenever he should give the orders to go elsewhere. The tradition of the Jews is, that these were Abner and Amasa f458 ; but, as Kimchi observes, they were not footmen, but princes, captains in the army, and the first of them the general of it: turn and slay the priests of the Lord ; he owns them to be the priests of the Lord, and calls them so, and yet gave orders to put them to death, though innocent; one would have thought this their character would have flown in his face, and stung his conscience, and deterred him from so foul a fact: because their hand also [is] with David ; as well as Ahimelech; which did not at all appear, nor that they had so much as seen him at Nob, only Ahimelech; and still less that they had entered into a conspiracy with him: and because they knew when he fled, and did not show it to me ; which also was false; they knew nothing of the flight of David, and therefore could not discover it to the king: but the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the Lord ; their consciences would not suffer them to do it; they refused to obey the king’s orders, and chose rather to expose themselves to his resentment, than to be guilty of such a crime. Saul’s footmen had more sense of honour, justice, and truth, than he himself had, and were worthy of praise; but they would have been deserving of more, if they could not have prevailed upon him by entreaties and remonstrances to have forborne such a bloody execution, instead of being the tame spectators of it, they had taken him, and bound him as a madman, and so facilitated the escape of the priests, and prevented this shocking scene of wickedness.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 6-19 - See the nature of jealous malice and its pitiful arts. Saul looks upo all about him as his enemies, because they do not just say as he says In Ahimelech's answer to Saul we have the language of consciou innocence. But what wickedness will not the evil spirit hurry men to when he gets the dominion! Saul alleges that which was utterly fals and unproved. But the most bloody tyrants have found instruments of their cruelty as barbarous as themselves. Doeg, having murdered the priests, went to the city, Nob, and put all to the sword there. Nothin so vile but those may do it, who have provoked God to give them up to their hearts' lusts. Yet this was the accomplishment of the threatenings against the house of Eli. Though Saul was unrighteous in doing this, yet God was righteous in permitting it. No word of God shall fall to the ground.
Original Hebrew
ויאמר 559 המלך 4428 לרצים 7323 הנצבים 5324 עליו 5921 סבו 5437 והמיתו 4191 כהני 3548 יהוה 3068 כי 3588 גם 1571 ידם 3027 עם 5973 דוד 1732 וכי 3588 ידעו 3045 כי 3588 ברח 1272 הוא 1931 ולא 3808 גלו 1540 את 853 אזנו 241 ולא 3808 אבו 14 עבדי 5650 המלך 4428 לשׁלח 7971 את 853 ידם 3027 לפגע 6293 בכהני 3548 יהוה׃ 3068
