1 Samuel 4:10 So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great--thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.

◄ 1 Samuel 4:10 ►

New International Version
So the Philistines fought, and the Israelites were defeated and every man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great; Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers.

New Living Translation
So the Philistines fought desperately, and Israel was defeated again. The slaughter was great; 30,000 Israelite soldiers died that day. The survivors turned and fled to their tents.

English Standard Version
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and they fled, every man to his home. And there was a very great slaughter, for thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.

Berean Standard Bible
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great—thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.

King James Bible
And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

New King James Version
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter, and there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.

New American Standard Bible
So the Philistines fought and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent; and the defeat was very great, for thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.

NASB 1995
So the Philistines fought and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent; and the slaughter was very great, for there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.

NASB 1977
So the Philistines fought and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent, and the slaughter was very great; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.

Legacy Standard Bible
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent; and the slaughter was very great, for there fell of Israel 30,000 foot soldiers.

Amplified Bible
So the Philistines fought; Israel was defeated and every man fled to his tent. It was a very great defeat, for thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.

Christian Standard Bible
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was severe—thirty thousand of the Israelite foot soldiers fell.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was severe—30,000 of the Israelite foot soldiers fell.

American Standard Version
And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man to his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

Contemporary English Version
The Philistines did fight. They killed 30,000 Israelite soldiers, and all the rest ran off to their homes.

English Revised Version
And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man to his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The Philistines fought and defeated Israel. Every [Israelite] soldier fled to his tent. It was a major defeat in which 30,000 Israelite foot soldiers died.

Good News Translation
The Philistines fought hard and defeated the Israelites, who went running to their homes. There was a great slaughter: thirty thousand Israelite soldiers were killed.

International Standard Version
The Philistines fought and Israel was defeated; each of them fled to his own tent. It was a very great slaughter, and 30,000 soldiers of Israel died.

Majority Standard Bible
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great—thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell.

NET Bible
So the Philistines fought. Israel was defeated; they all ran home. The slaughter was very great; thirty thousand foot soldiers fell in battle.

New Heart English Bible
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and they fled every man to his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

Webster's Bible Translation
And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter, for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

World English Bible
The Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter; for thirty thousand footmen of Israel fell.

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
And the Philistines fight, and Israel is struck, and they each flee to his tents, and the slaughter is very great, and thirty thousand footmen of Israel fall;

Young's Literal Translation
And the Philistines fight, and Israel is smitten, and they flee each to his tents, and the blow is very great, and there fall of Israel thirty thousand footmen;

Smith's Literal Translation
And Philisteim will fight and smite Israel, and they will flee, a man to his tent: and the blow will be very great, and there will fall from Israel thirty thousand footmen.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
So the Philistines fought, and Israel was overthrown, and every man fled to his own dwelling: and there was an exceeding great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Therefore, the Philistines fought, and Israel was cut down, and each one fled to his own tent. And an exceedingly great slaughter occurred. And thirty thousand foot soldiers from Israel fell.

New American Bible
The Philistines fought and Israel was defeated; everyone fled to their own tents. It was a disastrous defeat; Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers.

New Revised Standard Version
So the Philistines fought; Israel was defeated, and they fled, everyone to his home. There was a very great slaughter, for there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers.

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
And the Philistines fought with Israel, and Israel was defeated, and they fled every man to his tent; and there was a very great slaughter in Israel; for there fell of Israel in that day thirty thousand footmen.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And the Philistines fought with Israel and Israel was defeated, and they fled, each man, to his tent, and there was a very great plague in Israel, and thirty thousand Foot Soldiers of Israel fell on that day

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man to his tent; and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And they fought with them; and the men of Israel fall, and they fled every man to his ten; and there was a very great slaughter; and there fell of Israel thirty thousand fighting men.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

The Philistines Capture the Ark
…9Take courage and be men, O Philistines! Otherwise, you will serve the Hebrews just as they served you. Now be men and fight!” 10So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. The slaughter was very great— thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell. 11The ark of God was captured, and Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, died.…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Judges 2:14
Then the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He delivered them into the hands of those who plundered them. He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist.

Judges 10:7
So the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and Ammonites,

2 Samuel 1:4
“What was the outcome?” David asked. “Please tell me.” “The troops fled from the battle,” he replied. “Many of them fell and died. And Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead.”

2 Kings 17:20
So the LORD rejected all the descendants of Israel. He afflicted them and delivered them into the hands of plunderers, until He had banished them from His presence.

Psalm 78:60-64
He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent He had pitched among men. / He delivered His strength to captivity, and His splendor to the hand of the adversary. / He surrendered His people to the sword because He was enraged by His heritage. ...

Jeremiah 7:12-14
But go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for My Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel. / And now, because you have done all these things, declares the LORD, and because I have spoken to you again and again but you would not listen, and I have called to you but you would not answer, / therefore what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears My Name, the house in which you trust, the place that I gave to you and your fathers.

Lamentations 2:7
The Lord has rejected His altar; He has abandoned His sanctuary; He has delivered the walls of her palaces into the hand of the enemy. They have raised a shout in the house of the LORD as on the day of an appointed feast.

Hosea 9:12-17
Even if they raise their children, I will bereave them of each one. Yes, woe be to them when I turn away from them! / I have seen Ephraim, like Tyre, planted in a meadow. But Ephraim will bring out his children for slaughter. / Give them, O LORD—what will You give? Give them wombs that miscarry and breasts that dry up! ...

Amos 5:2
“Fallen is Virgin Israel, never to rise again. She lies abandoned on her land, with no one to raise her up.”

Isaiah 42:24-25
Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to the plunderers? Was it not the LORD, against whom we have sinned? They were unwilling to walk in His ways, and they would not obey His law. / So He poured out on them His furious anger and the fierceness of battle. It enveloped them in flames, but they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.

Deuteronomy 28:25
The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.

Leviticus 26:17
And I will set My face against you, so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee when no one pursues you.

1 Chronicles 5:25-26
But they were unfaithful to the God of their fathers, and they prostituted themselves with the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them. / So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria (that is, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria) to take the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh into exile. And he brought them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan, where they remain to this day.

2 Chronicles 36:17-19
So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who put their young men to the sword in the sanctuary, sparing neither young men nor young women, neither elderly nor infirm. God gave them all into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, / who carried off everything to Babylon—all the articles of the house of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD and of the king and his officials. / Then the Chaldeans set fire to the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned down all the palaces and destroyed every article of value.

Romans 11:7-10
What then? What Israel was seeking, it failed to obtain, but the elect did. The others were hardened, / as it is written: “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that could not see, and ears that could not hear, to this very day.” / And David says: “May their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution to them. ...

Treasury of Scripture

And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.

Israel

1 Samuel 4:2
And the Philistines put themselves in array against Israel: and when they joined battle, Israel was smitten before the Philistines: and they slew of the army in the field about four thousand men.

Leviticus 26:17
And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you.

Deuteronomy 28:25
The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.

every man

2 Samuel 20:1
And there happened to be there a man of Belial, whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjamite: and he blew a trumpet, and said, We have no part in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: every man to his tents, O Israel.

1 Kings 12:16
So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed unto their tents.

1 Kings 22:36
And there went a proclamation throughout the host about the going down of the sun, saying, Every man to his city, and every man to his own country.

a very great

2 Samuel 18:7
Where the people of Israel were slain before the servants of David, and there was there a great slaughter that day of twenty thousand men.

2 Chronicles 13:17
And Abijah and his people slew them with a great slaughter: so there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand chosen men.

2 Chronicles 28:5,6
Wherefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they smote him, and carried away a great multitude of them captives, and brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who smote him with a great slaughter…

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1 Samuel 4

1. The Israelites are overcome by the Philistines at Ebenezer
3. They fetch the ark unto the terror of the Philistines
10. They are smitten again, the ark taken, and Hophni and Phinehas are slain
12. Eli at the news, falling backward, breaks his neck
19. Phinehas's wife, discouraged in her travail with Ichabod, dies

Berean Study Bible

So the Philistines fought
The Philistines, a seafaring people from the Aegean region, were known for their military prowess and advanced weaponry, including iron chariots and swords. The Hebrew root for "fought" (לחם, lacham) implies a fierce and determined battle. This phrase sets the stage for the unfolding tragedy, highlighting the Philistines' aggressive and relentless nature. Historically, the Philistines were a constant threat to Israel, often challenging them both militarily and spiritually, as they worshipped pagan gods.

and Israel was defeated
The Hebrew word for "defeated" (נגף, nagaph) suggests a striking down or being smitten. This defeat was not just a military loss but a spiritual and national crisis for Israel. It reflects the consequences of Israel's disobedience and lack of faith in God. Throughout the Old Testament, Israel's victories and defeats are often tied to their relationship with God, serving as a reminder of the importance of faithfulness and obedience.

and each man fled to his tent
This phrase indicates a complete rout and disarray among the Israelite forces. The imagery of fleeing to one's tent suggests a return to personal safety and a retreat from communal responsibility. In ancient times, the tent was a symbol of one's household and personal domain. This retreat signifies not only a physical defeat but also a breakdown in the collective morale and unity of the Israelite army.

The slaughter was very great
The term "slaughter" (מכה, makah) conveys a sense of devastating loss and overwhelming defeat. The use of "very great" emphasizes the magnitude of the tragedy. This phrase underscores the severity of the consequences when God's people stray from His commandments. It serves as a sobering reminder of the cost of disobedience and the importance of seeking God's guidance in all endeavors.

thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell
The specific number, "thirty thousand," highlights the scale of the disaster. In the ancient world, such a loss would have been catastrophic, decimating the fighting strength of a nation. The term "foot soldiers" (רגלי, ragli) refers to infantrymen, the backbone of Israel's military force. This loss not only weakened Israel militarily but also had profound social and spiritual implications, as it reflected God's judgment and the need for national repentance and renewal.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(10) And Israel was smitten.--The result was strictly in accordance with those immutable laws which have ever guided the connection of Israel and their God-Friend. As long as they clave to the invisible Preserver, and served Him with their whole heart and soul, and kept themselves pure from the pollution of the idol nations around them, so long was He in their midst, so long would they be invincible; but if, as now, they chose to revel in the impure joys, and to delight themselves in the selfish, shameless lives of the idolatrous world around them, and only carried the Ark on their shoulders, with no memory of Him whom the mercy-seat and the overshadowing cherubim of that Ark symbolised, in their hearts, then--to use the solemn words of the hymn of Asaph--"Then God was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel, and forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, and delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand." (See Psalm 78:59-61, where the crushing defeat of Aphek and the signal victory of the Philistines is recounted in detail.)

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 10. - Israel fled every man into - better to - his tent. Their camp stood them this time in no stead. It was stormed by the Philistines, and the whole army fled in confusion. In those days the Israelites dwelt in tents, and to flee "every man to his tent" means that they fled away in every direction, each to his own home. It is in this indiscriminate flight that an army suffers most. As long as men keep together the loss is comparatively slight. But now, thus utterly broken, there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen - a terrible slaughter. They are called footmen because the Israelites had neither cavalry nor chariots.

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

So the Philistines
פְלִשְׁתִּ֗ים (p̄ə·liš·tîm)
Noun - proper - masculine plural
Strong's 6430: Philistines -- inhabitants of Philistia

fought,
וַיִּלָּחֲמ֣וּ (way·yil·lā·ḥă·mū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 3898: To feed on, to consume, to battle

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

was defeated,
וַיִּנָּ֤גֶף (way·yin·nā·ḡep̄)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5062: To push, gore, defeat, stub, inflict

and each man
אִ֣ישׁ (’îš)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person

fled
וַיָּנֻ֙סוּ֙ (way·yā·nu·sū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 5127: To flit, vanish away

to his tent.
לְאֹהָלָ֔יו (lə·’ō·hā·lāw)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine plural construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 168: A tent

The slaughter
הַמַּכָּ֖ה (ham·mak·kāh)
Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 4347: A wound, carnage, pestilence

was
וַתְּהִ֥י (wat·tə·hî)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

very
מְאֹ֑ד (mə·’ōḏ)
Adverb
Strong's 3966: Vehemence, vehemently, wholly, speedily

great—
גְּדוֹלָ֣ה (gə·ḏō·w·lāh)
Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 1419: Great, older, insolent

thirty
שְׁלֹשִׁ֥ים (šə·lō·šîm)
Number - common plural
Strong's 7970: Thirty, thirtieth

thousand
אֶ֖לֶף (’e·lep̄)
Number - masculine singular
Strong's 505: A thousand

foot soldiers
רַגְלִֽי׃ (raḡ·lî)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 7273: A footman

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

fell.
וַיִּפֹּל֙ (way·yip·pōl)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5307: To fall, lie

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OT History: 1 Samuel 4:10 The Philistines fought and Israel was struck (1Sa iSam 1 Sam i sa)