1 Samuel 4:12

THE MESSAGE

Immediately, a Benjaminite raced from the front lines back to Shiloh. Shirt torn and face smeared with dirt, he entered the town. Eli was sitting on his stool beside the road keeping vigil, for he was extremely worried about the Chest of God. When the man ran straight into town to tell the bad news, everyone wept. They were appalled. Eli heard the loud wailing and asked, "Why this uproar?" The messenger hurried over and reported. Eli was ninety-eight years old then, and blind. The man said to Eli, "I've just come from the front, barely escaping with my life." "And so, my son," said Eli, "what happened?"

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
That same day, a Benjaminite man ran from the battle and came to Shiloh. His clothes were torn, and there was dirt on his head.

Hebrew Names Version
There ran a man of Binyamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes torn, and with dirt on his head.

King James Version
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.

Lexham English Bible
A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh that same day, and his clothes were torn and earth was on his head.

English Standard Version
A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes torn and with dirt on his head.

New Century Version
That same day a man from the tribe of Benjamin ran from the battle. He tore his clothes and put dust on his head to show his great sadness.

New English Translation
On that day a Benjaminite ran from the battle lines and came to Shiloh. His clothes were torn and dirt was on his head.

Amplified Bible
Now a man [from the tribe] of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh that same day with his clothes torn and dust on his head [as signs of mourning over the disaster].

New American Standard Bible
Now a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes torn, and dust on his head.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And there ranne a man of Beniamin out of the armie, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and earth vpon his head.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same day with his robes torn and dust on his head.

Contemporary English Version
That same day a soldier from the tribe of Benjamin ran from the battlefront to Shiloh. He had torn his clothes and put dirt on his head to show his sorrow.

Complete Jewish Bible
One of the soldiers, a man from Binyamin, ran and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes torn and earth on his head [as a sign of mourning].

Darby Translation
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the battle, and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes rent and with earth upon his head.

Easy-to-Read Version
One of the men who ran from the battle was a man from the tribe of Benjamin. He tore his clothes and put dust on his head to show his great sadness.

George Lamsa Translation
And there ran a man of Benjamin from the battle line, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent and with earth upon his head.

Good News Translation
A man from the tribe of Benjamin ran all the way from the battlefield to Shiloh and arrived there the same day. To show his grief, he had torn his clothes and put dirt on his head.

Literal Translation
And a man of Benjamin ran out of the battle line and came to Shiloh on that day. And his clothes were torn, and earth on his head.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then rane there one of Ben Iamin out of the fore fronte of the battayl, & came vnto Silo the same daye, & had his clothes rente, and had earth vpo his heade.

American Standard Version
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.

Bible in Basic English
And a man of Benjamin went running from the fight and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothing out of order and earth on his head.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And there ran a man of Beniamin out of the armie, and came to Silo the same day with his clothes rent, and earth vpon his head.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.

King James Version (1611)
And there ran a man of Beniamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth vpon his head.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the battle, and he came to Selom on that day: and his clothes were rent, and earth was upon his head.

English Revised Version
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.

Berean Standard Bible
That same day a Benjamite ran from the battle line all the way to Shiloh, with his clothes torn and dirt on his head.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Sotheli a man of Beniamyn ran fro the scheltrun, and cam in to Silo in that dai, with his cloth torent and his heed bispreynt with dust; and whanne he was comen,

Young's Literal Translation
And a man of Benjamin runneth out of the ranks, and cometh into Shiloh, on that day, and his long robes [are] rent, and earth on his head;

Update Bible Version
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes rent, and with earth on his head.

Webster's Bible Translation
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.

World English Bible
There ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes torn, and with earth on his head.

New King James Version
Then a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line the same day, and came to Shiloh with his clothes torn and dirt on his head.

New Living Translation
A man from the tribe of Benjamin ran from the battlefield and arrived at Shiloh later that same day. He had torn his clothes and put dust on his head to show his grief.

New Life Bible
A man of Benjamin ran from the battle and came to Shiloh the same day. His clothes were torn and he had dust on his head.

New Revised Standard
A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line, and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes torn and with earth upon his head.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and entered Shiloh on the same day, - with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Silo the same day, with his clothes rent, and his head strewed with dust.

Revised Standard Version
A man of Benjamin ran from the battle line, and came to Shiloh the same day, with his clothes rent and with earth upon his head.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Now a man of Benjamin ran from the battle line and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes torn and dust on his head.

Contextual Overview

¹²Immediately, a Benjaminite raced from the front lines back to Shiloh. Shirt torn and face smeared with dirt, he entered the town. Eli was sitting on his stool beside the road keeping vigil, for he was extremely worried about the Chest of God. When the man ran straight into town to tell the bad news, everyone wept. They were appalled. Eli heard the loud wailing and asked, "Why this uproar?" The messenger hurried over and reported. Eli was ninety-eight years old then, and blind. The man said to Eli, "I've just come from the front, barely escaping with my life." "And so, my son," said Eli, "what happened?" ¹⁷ The messenger answered, "Israel scattered before the Philistines. The defeat was catastrophic, with enormous losses. Your sons Hophni and Phinehas died, and the Chest of God was taken." ¹⁸ At the words, "Chest of God," Eli fell backward off his stool where he sat next to the gate. Eli was an old man, and very fat. When he fell, he broke his neck and died. He had led Israel forty years.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

with his clothes rent: These, as we have already remarked, were the general signs of sorrow and distress. 2 Samuel 1:2

with earth: Joshua 7:6, 2 Samuel 13:19, 2 Samuel 15:32, Nehemiah 9:1, Job 2:12

Reciprocal: Genesis 14:13 - one 1 Samuel 22:20 - escaped 2 Kings 19:1 - he rent Proverbs 3:6 - In Jeremiah 51:31 - post Ezekiel 24:26 - General Ezekiel 27:30 - cast Revelation 18:19 - they cast

Cross-References

Genesis 4:3
Time passed. Cain brought an offering to God from the produce of his farm. Abel also brought an offering, but from the firstborn animals of his herd, choice cuts of meat. God liked Abel and his offering, but Cain and his offering didn't get his approval. Cain lost his temper and went into a sulk.

Genesis 4:17
Cain slept with his wife. She conceived and had Enoch. He then built a city and named it after his son, Enoch. Enoch had Irad, Irad had Mehujael, Mehujael had Methushael, Methushael had Lamech.

Genesis 4:23
Lamech said to his wives, Adah and Zillah, listen to me; you wives of Lamech, hear me out: I killed a man for wounding me, a young man who attacked me. If Cain is avenged seven times, for Lamech it's seventy-seven!

Leviticus 26:36
"As for those among you still alive, I'll give them over to fearful timidity—even the rustle of a leaf will throw them into a panic. They'll run here and there, back and forth, as if running for their lives even though no one is after them, tripping and falling over one another in total confusion. You won't stand a chance against an enemy. You'll perish among the nations; the land of your enemies will eat you up. Any who are left will slowly rot away in the enemy lands. Rot. And all because of their sins, their sins compounded by their ancestors' sins.

Hosea 9:17
My God has washed his hands of them. They wouldn't listen. They're doomed to be wanderers, vagabonds among the godless nations.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army,.... Out of the rank in which he was, before the whole army was quite broken up. This was a young man as Josephus b says, which is highly probable; though not at all to be depended on is what the Jews c say, that this was Saul, later king of Israel:

and came to Shiloh the same day; which, according to Bunting d, was forty two miles from Ebenezer, near to which the battle was fought; and that it was a long way is pretty plain by the remark made, that this messenger came the same day the battle was fought; though not at such a distance as some Jewish writers say, some sixty, some one hundred and twenty miles e; which is not at all probable:

with his clothes rent, and earth upon his head; which were both tokens of distress and mourning, and showed that he was a messenger of bad tidings from the army; :-.

b Antiqu. l. 5. c. 11. sect. 3. c Shalshalet Hakabala. fol. 8. 1. Jarchi in loc. d Travels of the Patriarchs, &c. p. 123. e Midrash Schemuel apud Abarbinel in loc.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Runners who were swift of foot, and could go long distances were important and well-known persons (compare 2 Samuel 18:19-31). There seem to have been always professional runners to act as messengers with armies in the field (2 Kings 11:4, 2 Kings 11:6,2 Kings 11:19, the King James Version “guards”).

Earth upon his head - In token of bitter grief. Compare the marginal references.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Samuel 4:12. Came to Shiloh the same day — The field of battle could not have been at any great distance, for this young man reached Shiloh the same evening after the defeat.

With his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head. — These were signs of sorrow and distress among all nations. The clothes rent, signified the rending, dividing, and scattering, of the people; the earth, or ashes on the head, signified their humiliation: "We are brought down to the dust of the earth; we are near to our graves." When the Trojan fleet was burnt, AEneas is represented as tearing his robe from his shoulder, and invoking the aid of his gods: -

Tum pius AEneas humeris abscindere vestem,

Auxilioque vocare Deos, et tendere palmas.

VIRG. AEn. lib. v., ver. 685.

"The prince then tore his robes in deep despair,

Raised high his hands, and thus address'd his prayer."

PITT.

We have a remarkable example in the same poet, where he represents the queen of King Latinus resolving on her own death, when she found that the Trojans had taken the city by storm: -

Purpueros moritura manu discindit amictus.

AEn. lib. xii., ver. 603.

She tears with both her hands her purple vest.

But the image is complete in King Latinus himself, when he heard of the death of his queen, and saw his city in flames: -

_______ It scissa veste Latinus,

Conjugis attonitus fatis, urbisque ruina,

Canitiem immundo perfusam pulvere turpans.

Ib., ver. 609.

Latinus tears his garments as he goes.

Both for his public and his private woes:

With filth his venerable beard besmears,

And sordid dust deforms his silver hairs.

DRYDEN.

We find the same custom expressed in one line by Catullus: -

Canitiem terra, atque infuso pulvere foedans.

EPITH. Pelei et Thetidos, ver. 224.

Dishonouring her hoary locks with earth and sprinkled dust.

The ancient Greeks in their mourning often shaved off their hair: -

Τουτο νυ και γερας οιον οΐζυροισι βροτοισι,

Κειρασθαι τε κομην, βαλεειν τ' απο δακρυ παρειων.

HOM. Odyss. lib. iv., ver. 197.

"Let each deplore his dead: the rites of wo

Are all, alas! the living can bestow

O'er the congenial dust, enjoin'd to shear

The graceful curl, and drop the tender tear."

POPE.

And again: -

Κατθεμεν εν λεχεεσσι καθηραντες χροα καλον

Ὑδατι τε λιαρῳ και αλειφατι· πολλα δε σ' αμφις

Δακρυα θερμα χεον Δαναοι, κειροντο τε χαιτας.

Ib., lib. xxiv., ver. 44.

"Then unguents sweet, and tepid streams, we shed;

Tears flow'd from every eye; and o'er the dead

Each clipp'd the curling honours of his head."

POPE.

The whole is strongly expressed in the case of Achilles, when he heard of the death of his friend Patroclus: -

Ὡς φατο· τον δ' αχεος νεφεος νεφελη εκαλυψε μελαινα

Αμφοτερῃσι δε χερσιν ἑλων κονιν αοθαλοεσσαν,

Χευατο κακ κεφαλης, χαριεν δ' ῃσχυνε προσωπον·

Νεκταρεῳ δε χιτωνι μελαιν' αμφιζανε τεφρη.

Iliad, lib. xviii., ver. 22.

"A sudden horror shot through all the chief,

And wrapp'd his senses in the cloud of grief.

Cast on the ground, with furious hands he spread

The scorching ashes o'er his graceful head:

His purple garments, and his golden hairs.

Those he deforms with dust, and these with tears."

POPE.

It is not unusual, even in Europe, and in the most civilized parts of it, to see grief expressed by tearing the hair, beating the breasts, and rending the garments; all these are natural signs, or expression of deep and excessive grief, and are common to all the nations of the world.