1 Samuel 17:55 (GNV)

Passage

When Saul sawe Dauid go forth against the Philistim, he sayd vnto Abner the captaine of his hoste, Abner, whose sonne is this yong man? and Abner answered, As thy soule liueth, O King, I can not tell.

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 17:53 And the children of Israel returned from pursuing the Philistims, and spoyled their tents.

1 Samuel 17:54 And Dauid tooke the head of ye Philistim, and brought it to Ierusalem, and put his armour in his tent.

1 Samuel 17:55 When Saul sawe Dauid go forth against the Philistim, he sayd vnto Abner the captaine of his hoste, Abner, whose sonne is this yong man? and Abner answered, As thy soule liueth, O King, I can not tell.

1 Samuel 17:56 Then the King sayde, Enquire thou whose sonne this yong man is.

1 Samuel 17:57 And when Dauid was returned from the slaughter of the Philistim, then Abner tooke him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistim in his hand.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "saul", "sawe", "dauid", "forth", "against", "philistim", "sayd", and "vnto". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "saul" and "sawe", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 54's "And Dauid tooke the head of ye..." into verse 56's "Then the King sayde Enquire thou whose...", so "saul" and "sawe" 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 "sawe" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.