1 Samuel 13:1
New International Version
Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty- two years.

New Living Translation
Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned for forty-two years.

English Standard Version
Saul lived for one year and then became king, and when he had reigned for two years over Israel,

Berean Standard Bible
Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-two years.

King James Bible
Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

New King James Version
Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

New American Standard Bible
Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for forty-two years over Israel.

NASB 1995
Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty two years over Israel.

NASB 1977
Saul was forty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-two years over Israel.

Legacy Standard Bible
Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty-two years over Israel.

Amplified Bible
Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty-two years over Israel.

Christian Standard Bible
Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty-two years over Israel.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Saul was 30 years old when he became king, and he reigned 42 years over Israel.

American Standard Version
Saul was [ forty ] years old when he began to reign; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And when Shaul reigned one or two years in his kingdom over Israel

Contemporary English Version
Saul was a young man when he became king, and he ruled Israel for two years.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Saul was a child of one year when he began to reign, and he reigned two years over Israel.

English Revised Version
Saul was thirty years old when he began to reign; and he reigned two years over Israel.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Saul was [thirty] years old when he became king, and he was king of Israel [forty-two] years.

International Standard Version
Saul was 30 years old when he began to reign, and he ruled for 42 years over Israel.

JPS Tanakh 1917
Saul was --years old when he began to reign; and two years he reigned over Israel.

Literal Standard Version
Saul [is] a son of [[thirty]] years in his reigning, and he has reigned over Israel [forty]-two years,

Majority Standard Bible
Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-two years.

New American Bible
[Saul was. . .years old when he became king and he reigned. . .-two years over Israel.]

NET Bible
Saul was [thirty] years old when he began to reign; he ruled over Israel for [forty] years.

New Revised Standard Version
Saul was�.�.�. years old when he began to reign; and he reigned�.�.�. and two years over Israel.

New Heart English Bible
Saul was� years old when he began to reign; and he reigned forty years over Israel.

Webster's Bible Translation
Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

World English Bible
Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-two years.

Young's Literal Translation
A son of a year is Saul in his reigning, yea, two years he hath reigned over Israel,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
War with the Philistines
1Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-two years. 2He chose for himself three thousand men of Israel: Two thousand were with Saul at Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. And the rest of the troops he sent away, each to his own home.…

Cross References
1 Samuel 12:25
But if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away."

1 Samuel 13:2
He chose for himself three thousand men of Israel: Two thousand were with Saul at Michmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. And the rest of the troops he sent away, each to his own home.


Treasury of Scripture

Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

A.

Exodus 12:5
Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:

Micah 6:6
Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?

Jump to Previous
Israel Reign Reigned Reigning Saul Thirty
Jump to Next
Israel Reign Reigned Reigning Saul Thirty
1 Samuel 13
1. Saul's select band
3. He calls the Hebrews to Gilgal against the Philistines
5. The Philistines' great army
6. The distress of the Israelites
8. Saul, weary of staying for Samuel, sacrifices
11. Samuel reproves him
17. The three raiding parties of the Philistines
19. The policy of the Philistines, to allow no blacksmith in Israel














(1) Saul reigned one year.--The only possible literal translation of the Hebrew of this verse is, "Saul was the son of one year (i.e., one year old); he began to reign, &c." In several places in the Books of Samuel the numbers are quite untrustworthy (we have another instance of this in the 5th verse of this chapter). The present verse, however, is an old difficulty, the corruption or gap in the text dating from a far back period. The English translation is simply a probable, but conjectural, paraphrase. The Chaldee and some of the Rabbis thus strangely interpret it: "Saul was an innocent child when he began to reign"--that is, was as innocent as a one year old child, &c. The Syriac and others paraphrase much as our English Version. The LXX. omit the verse altogether. The Speaker's Commentary thus literally translates the Hebrew, marking with a--where a number probably originally stood: "Saul was--years old when he began to reign, and he reigned--and two years over Israel." On the whole, the usually accepted meaning is that Saul had reigned one year when the events related in the last chapter took place, and after he had reigned two years he chose out the 3,000 men, and did what is related in this chapter.

Verse 1. - Saul's age and length of reign. Saul reigned one year. This verse literally translated is, "Saul was one year old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years over Israel." In its form it exactly follows the usual statement prefixed to each king's reign, of his age at his accession, and the years of his kingdom (2 Samuel 2:10; 2 Samuel 5:4; 1 Kings 14:21; 1 Kings 22:42, etc.). The rendering of the A.V. is too forced and untenable to be worth discussing. As we have seen before, the numerals in the Books of Samuel are not trustworthy; but the difficulty here is an old one. The Vulgate translates the Hebrew literally, as we have given it; the Septuagint omits the verse, and the Syriac paraphrases as boldly as the A.V.: "When Saul had reigned one or two years." The Chaldee renders, "Saul was as innocent as a one-year-old child when he began to reign." In the Hexaplar version some anonymous writer has inserted the word thirty, rashly enough; for as Jonathan was old enough to have an important command (ver. 2), and was capable of the acts of a strong man (1 Samuel 14:14), his father's age must have been at least thirty-five, and perhaps was even more. As regards the length of Saul's reign, St. Paul makes it forty years (Acts 13:21), exactly the same as that of David (1 Kings 2:11) and of Solomon (1 Kings 11:42); and Josephus testifies that such was the traditional belief of the Jews ('Antiq.,' 6:14, 9). On the other hand, it is remarkable that the word here for years is that used where the whole number is less than ten. The events, however, recorded in the rest of the book seem to require a longer period than ten years for the duration of Saul's reign; thirty-two would be a more probable number, and, added to the seven and a half years' reign of Ishbosheth (see 2 Samuel 5:5), they would make up the whole sum of forty years ascribed by St. Paul to Saul's dynasty. It is quite possible, however, that these forty years may even include the fifteen or sixteen years of Samuel's judgeship. But the two facts, that all the three sons of Saul mentioned in 1 Samuel 14:49 were old enough to go with him to the battle of Mount Gilboa, where they were slain; and that Ishbosheth, his successor, was forty years of age when his father died, effectually dispose of the idea that Saul's was a very short reign. OCCASION OF THE FIRST WAR AGAINST THE PHILISTINES (vers. 2-7).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Saul
שָׁא֣וּל (šā·’ūl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 7586: Saul -- first king of Israel, also an Edomite and two Israelites

was [thirty] years old
בֶּן־ (ben-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 1121: A son

when he became king,
בְּמָלְכ֑וֹ (bə·mā·lə·ḵōw)
Preposition-b | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 4427: To reign, inceptively, to ascend the throne, to induct into royalty, to take counsel

and he reigned
מָלַ֖ךְ (mā·laḵ)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 4427: To reign, inceptively, to ascend the throne, to induct into royalty, to take counsel

over
עַל־ (‘al-)
Preposition
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

Israel
יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ (yiś·rā·’êl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3478: Israel -- 'God strives', another name of Jacob and his desc

[forty]-two
וּשְׁתֵּ֣י (ū·šə·tê)
Conjunctive waw | Number - fdc
Strong's 8147: Two (a cardinal number)

years.
שָׁנִ֔ים (šā·nîm)
Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 8141: A year


Links
1 Samuel 13:1 NIV
1 Samuel 13:1 NLT
1 Samuel 13:1 ESV
1 Samuel 13:1 NASB
1 Samuel 13:1 KJV

1 Samuel 13:1 BibleApps.com
1 Samuel 13:1 Biblia Paralela
1 Samuel 13:1 Chinese Bible
1 Samuel 13:1 French Bible
1 Samuel 13:1 Catholic Bible

OT History: 1 Samuel 13:1 Saul was forty years old when he (1Sa iSam 1 Sam i sa)
1 Samuel 12:25
Top of Page
Top of Page