1 Samuel 17:30 (LSB)

Passage

Then he turned away from him to another and said the same word; and the people responded to him with the same word as before.

Nearby Context

1 Samuel 17:28 Then Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger burned against David, and he said, “Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I myself know your arrogance and the wickedness of your heart, for you have come down in order to see the battle.”

1 Samuel 17:29 But David said, “What have I done now? Was it not just a word?”

1 Samuel 17:30 Then he turned away from him to another and said the same word; and the people responded to him with the same word as before.

1 Samuel 17:31 Then the words which David spoke were heard. And they told them to Saul, and he sent for him.

1 Samuel 17:32 And David said to Saul, “Let no man’s heart fail on account of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "turned", "away", "another", "said", "same", "word", "people", and "responded". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "turned" and "away", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 29's "But David said What have I done..." into verse 31's "Then the words which David spoke were...", so "turned" and "away" 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 "turned" and "away" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.