1 Samuel 11:3 "Hold off for seven days," replied the elders of Jabesh, "and let us send messengers throughout Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you."

◄ 1 Samuel 11:3 ►

New International Version
The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days so we can send messengers throughout Israel; if no one comes to rescue us, we will surrender to you.”

New Living Translation
“Give us seven days to send messengers throughout Israel!” replied the elders of Jabesh. “If no one comes to save us, we will agree to your terms.”

English Standard Version
The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days’ respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.”

Berean Standard Bible
“Hold off for seven days,” replied the elders of Jabesh, “and let us send messengers throughout Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you.”

King James Bible
And the elders of Jabesh said unto him, Give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers unto all the coasts of Israel: and then, if there be no man to save us, we will come out to thee.

New King James Version
Then the elders of Jabesh said to him, “Hold off for seven days, that we may send messengers to all the territory of Israel. And then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you.”

New American Standard Bible
So the elders of Jabesh said to him, “Allow us seven days to send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you.”

NASB 1995
The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Let us alone for seven days, that we may send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to deliver us, we will come out to you.”

NASB 1977
And the elders of Jabesh said to him, “Let us alone for seven days, that we may send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to deliver us, we will come out to you.”

Legacy Standard Bible
Then the elders of Jabesh said to him, “Let us alone for seven days, that we may send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you.”

Amplified Bible
The elders of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Give us seven days so that we may send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out [and surrender] to you.”

Christian Standard Bible
“Don’t do anything to us for seven days,” the elders of Jabesh said to him, “and let us send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. If no one saves us, we will surrender to you.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
“Don’t do anything to us for seven days,” the elders of Jabesh said to him, “and let us send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. If no one saves us, we will surrender to you.”

American Standard Version
And the elders of Jabesh said unto him, Give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers unto all the borders of Israel; and then, if there be none to save us, we will come out to thee.

Contemporary English Version
The town leaders said, "Give us seven days so we can send messengers everywhere in Israel to ask for help. If no one comes here to save us, we will surrender to you."

English Revised Version
And the elders of Jabesh said unto him, Give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers unto all the borders of Israel: and then, if there be none to save us, we will come out to thee.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The leaders of Jabesh told him, "Give us seven days so that we can send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. And if there's no one to save us, we'll surrender to you."

Good News Translation
The leaders of Jabesh said, "Give us seven days to send messengers throughout the land of Israel. If no one will help us, then we will surrender to you."

International Standard Version
The elders of Jabesh told him, "Leave us alone for seven days so that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then if no one delivers us, we will come out to you and surrender."

Majority Standard Bible
?Hold off for seven days,? replied the elders of Jabesh, ?and let us send messengers throughout Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you.?

NET Bible
The elders of Jabesh said to him, "Leave us alone for seven days so that we can send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. If there is no one who can deliver us, we will come out voluntarily to you."

New Heart English Bible
The elders of Jabesh said to him, "Give us seven days, that we may send messengers to all the borders of Israel; and then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you."

Webster's Bible Translation
And the elders of Jabesh said to him, Give us seven days respit, that we may send messengers to all the borders of Israel: and then, if there is no man to save us, we will come out to thee.

World English Bible
The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days, that we may send messengers to all the borders of Israel; and then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you.”

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
And [the] elderly of Jabesh say to him, “Leave us alone [for] seven days, and we send messengers into all the border of Israel: and if there is none saving us—then we have come out to you.”

Young's Literal Translation
And the elders of Jabesh say to him, 'Let us alone seven days, and we send messengers into all the border of Israel: and if there is none saving us -- then we have come out unto thee.'

Smith's Literal Translation
And the old men of Jabesh will say to him, Let go to us seven days, and we will send messengers in every bound of Israel: and if none save us we will come forth to thee.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the ancients of Jabes said to him: Allow us seven days, that we may send messengers to all the coasts of Israel: and if there be no one to defend us, we will come out to thee.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And the elders of Jabesh said to him: “Grant to us seven days, so that we may send messengers to all the borders of Israel. And if there is no one who may defend us, we will go out to you.”

New American Bible
The elders of Jabesh said to him: “Give us seven days to send messengers throughout the territory of Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you.”

New Revised Standard Version
The elders of Jabesh said to him, “Give us seven days’ respite that we may send messengers through all the territory of Israel. Then, if there is no one to save us, we will give ourselves up to you.”

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
And the eiders of Jabesh said to him, Give us seven days respite, that we may send messengers throughout all the territory of Israel; and when we see if we have a savior or not, then we will come out to you.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And the Elders of Lakish said to him: “Let go us seven days, and we shall send Messengers into the entire border of Israel, and we will see if there is a Savior for us, and if not, then we will come forth to you”

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
And the elders of Jabesh said unto him: 'Give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers unto all the borders of Israel; and then, if there be none to deliver us, we will come out to thee.'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the men of Jabis say to him, Allow us seven days, and we will send messengers into all the coasts of Israel: if there should be no one to deliver us, we will come out to you.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

Saul Defeats the Ammonites
…2But Nahash the Ammonite replied, “I will make a treaty with you on one condition, that I may put out everyone’s right eye and bring reproach upon all Israel.” 3“Hold off for seven days,” replied the elders of Jabesh, “and let us send messengers throughout Israel. If there is no one to save us, we will surrender to you.” 4When the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and relayed these words in the hearing of the people, they all wept aloud.…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Judges 21:8-9
So they asked, “Which one of the tribes of Israel failed to come up before the LORD at Mizpah?” And, in fact, no one from Jabesh-gilead had come to the camp for the assembly. / For when the people were counted, none of the residents of Jabesh-gilead were there.

Judges 20:7
Behold, all you Israelites, give your advice and verdict here and now.”

1 Samuel 10:27
But some worthless men said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him and brought him no gifts; but Saul remained silent about it.

1 Samuel 17:10
Then the Philistine said, “I defy the ranks of Israel this day! Give me a man to fight!”

2 Kings 18:19-20
The Rabshakeh said to them, “Tell Hezekiah that this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: What is the basis of this confidence of yours? / You claim to have a strategy and strength for war, but these are empty words. In whom are you now trusting, that you have rebelled against me?

2 Kings 19:9-11
Now Sennacherib had been warned about Tirhakah king of Cush: “Look, he has set out to fight against you.” So Sennacherib again sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying, / “Give this message to Hezekiah king of Judah: ‘Do not let your God, in whom you trust, deceive you by saying that Jerusalem will not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria. / Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the other countries, devoting them to destruction. Will you then be spared?

Isaiah 36:4-5
The Rabshakeh said to them, “Tell Hezekiah that this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: What is the basis of this confidence of yours? / You claim to have a strategy and strength for war, but these are empty words. In whom are you now trusting, that you have rebelled against me?

Isaiah 37:10-12
“Give this message to Hezekiah king of Judah: ‘Do not let your God, in whom you trust, deceive you by saying that Jerusalem will not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria. / Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the other countries, devoting them to destruction. Will you then be spared? / Did the gods of the nations destroyed by my fathers rescue those nations—the gods of Gozan, Haran, and Rezeph, and of the people of Eden in Telassar?

Jeremiah 21:8-9
Furthermore, you are to tell this people that this is what the LORD says: ‘Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. / Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who besiege you will live; he will retain his life like a spoil of war.

Jeremiah 38:17-18
Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive. / But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’”

Ezekiel 33:11
Say to them: ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked should turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’

Matthew 10:14-15
And if anyone will not welcome you or heed your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. / Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.

Matthew 11:21-24
“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. / But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. / And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. ...

Luke 10:10-12
But if you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go into the streets and declare, / ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off as a testimony against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.’ / I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.

Luke 14:31-32
Or what king on his way to war with another king will not first sit down and consider whether he can engage with ten thousand men the one coming against him with twenty thousand? / And if he is unable, he will send a delegation while the other king is still far off, to ask for terms of peace.

Treasury of Scripture

And the elders of Jabesh said to him, Give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers to all the coasts of Israel: and then, if there be no man to save us, we will come out to you.

give us.

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Alone Borders Coasts Deliver Elders Israel Jabesh Messengers Ourselves Part Rescue Respit Respite Responsible Save Seven Surrender Territory Throughout

1 Samuel 11

1. Nahash offers them of Jabesh Gilead a reproachful condition
4. They send messengers, and are delivered by Saul
12. Saul thereby is confirmed, and his kingdom renewed

Berean Study Bible

Give us seven days
The request for "seven days" is significant in the biblical context, as the number seven often symbolizes completeness or divine perfection in Scripture. This period allowed the people of Jabesh-gilead to seek help, reflecting their hope and faith in divine intervention. Historically, this request shows the customs of ancient Near Eastern warfare, where terms of surrender could be negotiated, and time was sometimes granted for strategic or diplomatic reasons.

to send messengers throughout Israel
The act of sending "messengers" highlights the communal nature of Israelite society, where tribes were interconnected and relied on each other for support. This reflects the covenantal relationship among the tribes of Israel, emphasizing unity and mutual aid. The historical context shows the decentralized nature of Israel before the monarchy was fully established, where tribal leaders and judges played crucial roles in mobilizing the people.

If no one comes to rescue us
This phrase underscores the desperation and vulnerability of the people of Jabesh-gilead. The word "rescue" is pivotal, as it echoes the recurring theme of deliverance found throughout the Old Testament, where God often raises leaders to save His people from oppression. This reflects the Israelites' reliance on divine providence and the hope that God would stir the hearts of their fellow Israelites to come to their aid.

we will surrender to you
The willingness to "surrender" indicates the dire situation faced by the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead. In the Hebrew context, surrendering often meant subjugation and loss of freedom, which was a fate the Israelites sought to avoid. This phrase also sets the stage for Saul's emergence as a leader, as it presents a crisis that requires decisive action and leadership, ultimately leading to Saul's anointing as king and his first military victory.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(3) Give us seven days' respite.--This kind of proposal has always in time of war been a common one; such a request from a beleaguered fortress we meet with constantly, especially in mediaeval chronicles. It was, no doubt, made by the citizens in the hope that Saul the Benjamite, in whose election as king they had recently taken a part, would devise some means for their rescue. Between Benjamin and the city of Jabesh-gilead there had long existed the closest ties of friendship. How far back this strange link between the southern tribe and the distant frontier town dated, we know not. When Israel was summoned "as one man" (Judges 21), probably under the direction of Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron, to avenge on Benjamin the crime committed by the men of Gibeah, Jabesh-gilead alone, among the cities of Israel--no doubt, out of its friendship for the sinning tribe--declined to obey the imperious summons, and for this act of disobedience was rased to the ground, and its inhabitants put to the sword. The tribes, however, subsequently regretted their remorseless cruelty in their punishment of Benjamin, and feared lest their brother's name might perish out of the land; mindful, then, of the old loving feeling which existed between the city of Jabesh-gilead and the tribe of Benjamin, they gave the maidens of the ruined city spared in the judicial massacre perpetrated on the citizens, to the fighting remnant of Benjamin, still defending themselves on the impregnable Rock of the Pomegranate, "Rimmon," and did what was in their power to restore the ruined and broken tribe. Jabesh-gilead seems to have risen again from its ashes, and Benjamin once more held up its head among the tribes of Israel, and just now had given the first king to the people. No wonder, then, that the city in the hour of its sore need and deadly peril should send for succour to Gibeah in Benjamin, and to Saul, the Benjamite king. Neither the tribe nor the king failed them in their distress.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 3. - The elders who govern the town know nothing of a king having been appointed, nor do they send to Samuel to ask him, as the judge, to protect them; but they request a seven days' respite, that they may send messengers unto all the coasts of Israel, and Nahash, feeling sure that no combined action would be the result, grants their request, that so Israel far and wide might know of his triumph.

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

“Hold off
הֶ֤רֶף (he·rep̄)
Verb - Hifil - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 7503: Sink, relax

for
לָ֙נוּ֙ (lā·nū)
Preposition | first person common plural
Strong's Hebrew

seven
שִׁבְעַ֣ת (šiḇ·‘aṯ)
Number - masculine singular construct
Strong's 7651: Seven, seven times, a week, an indefinite number

days,”
יָמִ֔ים (yā·mîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 3117: A day

replied
וַיֹּאמְר֨וּ (way·yō·mə·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 559: To utter, say

the elders
זִקְנֵ֣י (ziq·nê)
Adjective - masculine plural construct
Strong's 2205: Old

of Jabesh,
יָבֵ֗ישׁ (yā·ḇêš)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 3003: Jabesh -- a place in Gilead, also an Israelite

“and let us send
וְנִשְׁלְחָה֙ (wə·niš·lə·ḥāh)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive imperfect Cohortative - first person common plural
Strong's 7971: To send away, for, out

messengers
מַלְאָכִ֔ים (mal·’ā·ḵîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4397: A messenger, of God, an angel

throughout
בְּכֹ֖ל (bə·ḵōl)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

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

If
וְאִם־ (wə·’im-)
Conjunctive waw | Conjunction
Strong's 518: Lo!, whether?, if, although, Oh that!, when, not

[there is] no one
אֵ֥ין (’ên)
Adverb
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

to deliver
מוֹשִׁ֛יעַ (mō·wō·šî·a‘)
Verb - Hifil - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 3467: To be open, wide, free, to be safe, to free, succor

us,
אֹתָ֖נוּ (’ō·ṯā·nū)
Direct object marker | first person common plural
Strong's 853: Untranslatable mark of the accusative case

we will surrender
וְיָצָ֥אנוּ (wə·yā·ṣā·nū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - first person common plural
Strong's 3318: To go, bring, out, direct and proxim

to you.”
אֵלֶֽיךָ׃ (’ê·le·ḵā)
Preposition | second person masculine singular
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

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OT History: 1 Samuel 11:3 The elders of Jabesh said to him (1Sa iSam 1 Sam i sa)