What is the meaning of 1 Samuel 13:21? The charge was a pim for sharpening a plowshare or mattock • In the days of Saul, the Philistines controlled ironworking, so Israel had to depend on them just to keep farm tools usable (1 Samuel 13:19–20). • A “pim” was a fixed fee—enough to feel like daylight robbery for agrarian families trying to survive. The enemy profited every time an Israelite prepared his fields (compare Judges 4:3, where Canaanite oppression also drained Israel’s resources). • This first price tag highlights how thoroughly the Philistines intended to weaken Israel: even plowshares and mattocks—basic tools of provision—were taxed. When God’s people let the world dull their edge, they soon pay for what ought to be theirs by right (see Deuteronomy 28:47–48 for the warning that disobedience leads to serving enemies “in hunger and thirst”). • Yet the Lord would later turn plowshares into swords under King David (1 Samuel 17:50; 2 Samuel 8:1), showing that He can reverse any disadvantage when His people trust Him. a third of a shekel for sharpening a pitchfork or an axe • The fee stays constant, but the tools shift from tilling soil to handling harvest. The Philistines taxed every stage of productivity—sowing, gathering, and building—ensuring Israel never accumulated strength (contrast the blessing of free, fruitful labor in Leviticus 26:4–5). • Pitchforks and axes also hint at defense: an axe’s edge can become a weapon (compare Judges 5:8, where “not a shield or spear was seen”). By keeping blades dull unless paid for, the enemy limited Israel’s military potential. • Spiritually, when believers neglect the sharpening of their God-given gifts, effectiveness is blunted (Ecclesiastes 10:10; 2 Timothy 1:6). The passage reminds us to keep a keen edge through the Word and fellowship, not by relying on worldly systems. and a third of a shekel for repointing an oxgoad • Even the cattle driver’s implement came under the tax. An oxgoad steers the animal that pulls the plow; so, guidance itself was taxed. The oppression touched guidance, labor, and harvest—total control. (See 1 Samuel 13:22, where only Saul and Jonathan had swords; everyone else worked with these very tools.) • God later used an oxgoad in Shamgar’s hand to deliver Israel (Judges 3:31), proving He can turn the simplest object into a mighty weapon when faith is present. • For believers, the passage urges vigilance: keep your “oxgoad” sharp—the Scriptures that prod and direct (Hebrews 4:12; Acts 2:37). Don’t concede that edge to the enemy by neglect or compromise. summary 1 Samuel 13:21 records a real, calculated oppression: the Philistines charged stiff fees for sharpening every vital tool, sapping Israel’s strength from field to battlefield. The verse underscores how bondage starts when God’s people surrender their edge—literal or spiritual—to an ungodly power. Yet the broader narrative shows the Lord ready to overturn such bondage when His people rely on Him alone, keeping their faith—and their tools—sharp. |
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