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1 Samuel 14:38

Old Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does 1 Samuel 14:38 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And Saul said, Draw nigh hither, all ye chiefs of the people; and know and see wherein this sin hath been this day.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And Saul said, Draw nigh hither, all ye chiefs of the people; and know and see wherein this sin hath been this day.
1 Samuel 14:38 — American Standard Version

Context — 1 Samuel 14

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
35And Saul built an altar unto Jehovah: the same was the first altar that he built unto Jehovah.
36And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and take spoil among them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatsoever seemeth good unto thee. Then said the priest, Let us draw near hither unto God.
37And Saul asked counsel of God, Shall I go down after the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into the hand of Israel? But he answered him not that day.
38And Saul said, Draw nigh hither, all ye chiefs of the people; and know and see wherein this sin hath been this day.
39For, as Jehovah liveth, who saveth Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die. But there was not a man among all the people that answered him.
40Then said he unto all Israel, Be ye on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. And the people said unto Saul, Do what seemeth good unto thee.
41Therefore Saul said unto Jehovah, the God of Israel, Show the right. And Jonathan and Saul were taken [by lot]; but the people escaped.
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And Saul said, draw ye near hither all the chief of the people, etc.] Or, the corners of the peoples f286; the princes, as Jarchi interprets it: and so the Targum, the heads of the people, in allusion to the cornerstones in buildings, which are the ornament, strength, and cement of them, (see <381004> Zechariah 10:4), though Abarbinel thinks the tribes themselves are meant, which lay encamped everyone in a corner by themselves, separated from one another; and these he would have brought together; not the heads only, but everyone, small and great, that it might be seen and known where the sin lay; but he should have observed, that the tribes of Israel were not now present with Saul, but a…”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Draw ye near: Sa1 10:19, Sa1 10:20; Jos 7:14-26 chief: Heb. corners, Num 24:17; Jdg 20:2; Sa2 18:3; Psa 47:9; Zac 10:4; Mat 21:42; Eph 2:20 1 Kings (1 Samuel) 14:39”
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Sources and verification