1 Samuel 17:19 (DBY)

Passage

Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel [were] in the valley of terebinths, fighting against the Philistines.

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 17:17 And Jesse said to David his son, Take, I pray, for thy brethren, this ephah of parched [corn] and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to thy brethren;

1 Samuel 17:18 and carry these ten cheeses to the captain of the thousand, and visit thy brethren to see how they are, and take a pledge of them.

1 Samuel 17:19 Now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel [were] in the valley of terebinths, fighting against the Philistines.

1 Samuel 17:20 And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took his charge and went, as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the wagon-defence; and the host which was going forth to the battle-array shouted for the fight.

1 Samuel 17:21 And Israel and the Philistines put the battle in array, rank against rank.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "saul", "israel", "valley", "terebinths", "fighting", "against", and "philistines". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "saul" and "israel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "and carry these ten cheeses to the..." into verse 20's "And David rose up early in the...", so "saul" and "israel" belong inside that flow. In 1 Samuel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "saul" and "israel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.