The Church Fathers on this verse

1 Kingdoms (1 Samuel) 24:16Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Be the Lord judge, and judge between me and thee, and see, and judge my cause, and deliver me out of thy hand.

Douay-Rheims

וְהָיָ֤ה יְהוָה֙ לְדַיָּ֔ן וְשָׁפַ֖ט בֵּינִ֣י וּבֵינֶ֑ךָ וְיֵ֙רֶא֙ וְיָרֵ֣ב אֶת־רִיבִ֔י וְיִשְׁפְּטֵ֖נִי מִיָּדֶֽךָ׃

Hebrew (Masoretic text)

The Church Fathers on this verse

One Church Father comments on this verse

Basil the Great

4th centuryChurch Father

Saul remained unaffected by this grace and once again assembled an army to pursue his vendetta, eventually finding himself caught a second time by David in a cave. In this encounter, David’s righteousness shone even brighter, revealing Saul's wrongdoing more clearly. Envy represents a particularly profound form of hostility. While other adversaries may soften in response to kindness, the envious and malicious are often further agitated by the good bestowed upon them. The more favors Saul received, the deeper his resentment grew, leading to greater torment and irritation.

Cross references

Passages read together with this verse.