I Samuel 9:25-27 · Bible study
1 Samuel 9:25-27 Commentary: Private Counsel and Divine Message
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Samuel prepares Saul privately before anointing him king, revealing God's message in a quiet rooftop conversation and an early morning walk.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Samuel privately prepares Saul to receive God's message of his calling as king, using the rooftop and a walk to the edge of town to secure privacy and attention.
- Key words: 'Stand still' (עָמַד, 'amad, to take a stand, remain, stop), 'cause you to hear' (Hiphil of שָׁמַע, shama, to cause to hear, announce, proclaim), 'word of God' (דְּבַר אֱלֹהִים, devar Elohim, a divine message or revelation).
- Main debate: Whether the rooftop conversation explicitly told Saul he would be king, or whether Samuel discussed the nation's crisis and only revealed the kingship the next morning (Keil & Delitzsch; contrast Gill and Wesley).
- Theological theme: God's call comes through human mediators who create space for private revelation; the transition from public honor to private commissioning.
- Best use: A model of pastoral wisdom in delivering a life-changing word; a reminder that hearing God often requires intentional withdrawal from distraction.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
25And after they had come down from the high place into the city, Samuel spoke with Saul on the roof of his house.
26They got up early in the morning, and just before dawn Samuel called to Saul on the roof, “Get ready, and I will send you on your way!” So Saul arose, and both he and Samuel went outside together.
27As they were going down to the edge of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us, but you stay for a while, and I will reveal to you the word of God.” So the servant went on.
WEB World English Bible 2000
25When they had come down from the high place into the city, he talked with Saul on the housetop.
26They arose early; and about daybreak, Samuel called to Saul on the housetop, saying, “Get up, that I may send you away.” Saul arose, and they both went outside, he and Samuel, together.
27As they were going down at the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, “Tell the servant to go on ahead of us.” He went ahead, then Samuel said, “But stand still first, that I may cause you to hear God’s message.”
KJV King James Version 1769
25And when they were come down from the high place into the city, Samuel communed with Saul upon the top of the house.
26And they arose early: and it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called Saul to the top of the house, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad.
27And as they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us, (and he passed on,) but stand thou still a while, that I may shew thee the word of God.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
25And when they were come down from the high place into the city, he communed with Saul upon the housetop.
26And they arose early: and it came to pass about the spring of the day, that Samuel called to Saul on the housetop, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad.
27As they were going down at the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us (and he passed on), but stand thou still first, that I may cause thee to hear the word of God.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
25And they come down from the high place to the city, and he speaketh with Saul on the roof.
26And they rise early, and it cometh to pass, at the ascending of the dawn, that Samuel calleth unto Saul, on the roof, saying, `Rise, and I send thee away;' and Saul riseth, and they go out, both of them--he and Samuel, without.
27They are going down in the extremity of the city, and Samuel hath said unto Saul, `Say to the young man that he pass on before us (and he passeth on), and thou, stand at this time, and I cause thee to hear the word of God.'
Darby Darby Bible 1890
25And they came down from the high place into the city, and he spoke with Saul upon the roof.
26And they arose early; and when it was about the dawning of the day, Samuel called to Saul on the roof, saying, Arise, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, into the street.
27As they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Tell the servant to pass on before us (and he passed on), but stand thou still now, that I may cause thee to hear the word of God.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
25And they went down from the high place into the town, and he spoke with Saul upon the top of the house: and he prepared a bed for Saul on the top of the house and he slept.
26And when they were risen in the morning, and it began now to be light, Samuel called Saul on the top of the house, saying: Arise, that I may let thee go. And Saul arose: and they went out both of them: to wit, he and Samuel.
27And as they were going down in the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul: Speak to the servant to go before us, and pass on: but stand thou still a while, that I may tell thee the word of the Lord.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · I Samuel 9:25
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Samuel used the private moments after the feast to prepare Saul for the announcement that he would be Israel's king. Gill and Wesley explicitly say they talked of the kingdom. Matthew Henry states Samuel communed with Saul concerning the kingdom designed for him. Clarke notes the purpose was to show Saul the word, counsel, or design of the Lord, something revealed in the following chapter. Keil and Delitzsch offer a more cautious view, suggesting the rooftop conversation did not mention royal dignity directly but instead addressed the nation's religious and political decay, the oppression by enemies, and the need for a leader wholly devoted to God. The Cambridge Bible similarly describes the conversation as preparing Saul for the announcement to be made the next morning. All agree that Samuel's actions were deliberate: choosing a private rooftop, rising early, walking to the city's edge, and sending the servant ahead, all to create a space where Saul could receive God's message personally and without distraction.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Samuel intentionally created a private setting where Saul could hear a divine message, and that message—whatever its detailed content—launched Saul into the kingship of Israel.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Content of the rooftop conversation | Samuel spoke with Saul privately to prepare him for what God would reveal the next morning. | Some (Gill, Wesley, Matthew Henry) see the conversation as explicitly about the kingdom; others (Keil & Delitzsch) argue it addressed the nation's crisis without direct mention of the kingship. |
| Meaning of 'the word of God' in verse 27 | It refers to a specific divine message Samuel was to deliver to Saul. | Whether this message was the anointing instructions recorded in chapter 10, or a broader charge about leadership and obedience before the anointing. |
| Role of the servant in verse 27 | The servant's removal ensured privacy for the message. | Some (Gill) emphasize protocol, Samuel did not presume to order another man's servant, while others focus on the secrecy needed so the people would not claim Samuel imposed a king by his own authority (Wesley). |
| Timing of the revelation | The major disclosure happened the morning after the feast, not during the feast or the night before. | Whether that timing was strategic (to avoid the appearance of human scheming, as Wesley suggests) or simply part of the natural sequence of Samuel's hospitality. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The rooftops of ancient Israelite homes were flat, constructed with beams and planks covered with clay or lime plaster. These roofs served as extra living space. People walked there, dried produce, held family prayers, and spread sleeping mats in warm weather, a practice confirmed by Deuteronomy 22:8, which commands a railing to prevent falls. In Samuel's house, the rooftop offered a secluded setting for the private conversation that would change Saul's life. Gill and Barnes note that beds were often placed on the roof; Saul likely slept there overnight.
The phrase the spring of the day (KJV, ASV) describes the first glimmer of dawn. Rising early was not unusual in the ancient Near East, where people worked from sunrise. Here the early start served a specific purpose. By walking out of town with Saul just as the city stirred, Samuel ensured they could speak without interruption at the edge of the city, a liminal space where few would overhear. Sending the servant ahead (the Hebrew na'ar can mean boy, attendant, or servant) secured absolute privacy.
The high place (bamah) mentioned earlier in the chapter was a local sanctuary where Samuel had conducted the sacrificial feast. After descending from that elevated worship site into the city, Samuel led Saul to his home. The movement from high place to rooftop to city edge traces a deliberate sequence: from public worship to private preparation to the moment of revelation. This pattern of descending into deeper privacy reinforces the intimacy and seriousness of what was about to happen.
Textual Notes
The Masoretic Hebrew text presents the conversation on the rooftop as described. The Septuagint, however, reads differently at verse 25: “they prepared a bed for Saul on the roofter and he slept,” omitting the conversation before the morning call. Several modern commentators (Keil & Delitzsch, Cambridge Bible) discuss this variant, noting that the Septuagint may preserve a different Hebrew Vorlage. Most English translations follow the Masoretic text, which is attested in the Qumran manuscripts and is considered the more original reading. The Hebrew text of verses 26-27 is stable, with no significant variant affecting interpretation.
Reception History
This passage has been read across church traditions as a pattern for the private spiritual counsel that precedes public commissioning. Early Jewish exegesis (e.g., Targum Jonathan) emphasized Samuel as the faithful prophet who revealed God's will at the proper moment. In Christian interpretation, the rooftop setting is often compared to Peter's prayer on a housetop in Acts 10:9, creating a link between prophetic revelation and apostolic vision. Reformers such as Calvin and Luther saw here a model of ministerial discretion: Samuel did not rush the revelation but let the calling unfold through hospitality, conversation, and private instruction. Modern preachers often use the scene to illustrate the necessity of solitude and intentional mentorship before undertaking a new responsibility. The sending of the servant ahead has been interpreted as a lesson in creating space for undivided attention to God's word.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Private preparation after public honor. Saul had been seated at the head of the feast, given the reserved thigh portion, treated as a guest of the highest rank. That night, Samuel took him to the rooftop. The public recognition was not the end; it was the prelude to something more. Before God calls someone to a new role, he often provides a season of quiet attention.
- Deliberate removal to an intimate space. Samuel rose early, went outside with Saul, and then dismissed the servant. Each step created distance from distraction. The word of God was not shouted from the temple steps; it was spoken at the edge of a sleeping town to a man and a prophet standing alone. God still speaks in quietness, not always in the crowd.
- A word that changes everything. Whatever Samuel said, whether the direct announcement of kingship or a charge about the nation's crisis, it was the word of God. That word, once heard, would reorder Saul's life completely. Hearing and responding to God's message is the hinge on which calling turns.
Five-point outline
- From the high place to the rooftop (v. 25), worship gives way to personal direction.
- Rising before the city stirs (v. 26), readiness for what God will say.
- Walking to the city's edge (v. 27a), leaving the familiar behind.
- Sending the servant ahead (v. 27b), the need for exclusive attention.
- Standing still to hear God's message (v. 27c), the posture of a true servant-leader.
Illustration hooks
- A person who receives a promotion at work and then asks a trusted mentor for a private conversation about how to lead well. The public honor is real, but the private counsel shapes what comes next.
- A parent taking a teenager aside after a family dinner, away from siblings, to speak honestly about an important decision coming soon. The setting matters as much as the words.
- The experience of driving to a quiet park or walking a beach alone when a critical life decision needs clarity. The separation from noise is not avoidance; it is preparation.
Questions your congregation is asking
- How do I know when God is speaking to me personally, as he spoke to Saul through Samuel?
- Why does God often give his most important messages in private rather than public?
- What should I do when I sense God preparing me for a new responsibility, but the full picture is not yet clear?
Leading a Discussion
This passage shows the care Samuel took to deliver God's message to Saul. The private rooftop, the early start, the dismissal of the servant, each detail emphasizes that hearing from God requires intentional space. Notice what Samuel does not do: he does not announce the kingdom at the feast, nor does he send word by messenger. He walks alongside Saul and speaks when they are alone.
Discussion questions
- What do you observe about the setting in each verse? Why does Samuel move from the high place to the rooftop to the edge of the city?
- Why is it significant that Samuel called Saul from the rooftop at dawn rather than telling him during the evening meal?
- Samuel tells Saul to send the servant ahead. What does this action suggest about the nature of the message Saul was about to receive?
- In verse 27 Samuel says, “Stand still first, that I may cause you to hear God's message.” What does this command reveal about the posture needed to receive a word from God?
- What do you think Samuel may have said to Saul during the private rooftop conversation the night before (v. 25)? Why does the text not record it?
- When in your own life has a trusted person created space to speak a hard or important truth to you privately? How did that setting affect how you received it?
- How can your group help one another create margin, away from noise and crowds, to listen for what God might be saying?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Deuteronomy 22:8 | When you build a new house, then you shall make a railing around your roof, so that you don’t bring blood on your house if anyone falls from there. |
| II Samuel 11:2 | At evening, David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. From the roof, he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to look at. |
| Nehemiah 8:16 | So the people went out and brought them, and made themselves temporary shelters, everyone on the roof of his house, in their courts, in the courts of God’s house, in the wide place of the water gate, and in the wide place of Ephraim’s gate. |
| Jeremiah 19:13 | The houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah, which are defiled, will be as the place of Topheth, even all the houses on whose roofs they have burned incense to all the army of the sky and have poured out drink offerings to other gods.”’” |
| Matthew 10:27 | What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in the ear, proclaim on the housetops. |
| Acts 10:9 | Now on the next day as they were on their journey and got close to the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray at about noon. |
| Genesis 19:14 | Lot went out, and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters, and said, “Get up! Get out of this place, for Yahweh will destroy the city!” But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be joking. |
| Genesis 44:4 | When they had gone out of the city, and were not yet far off, Joseph said to his steward, “Up, follow after the men. When you overtake them, ask them, ‘Why have you rewarded evil for good? |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
9 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke draws attention to the eastern custom of sleeping on flat rooftops for cool air, explaining that Saul had spent the night there. At daybreak Samuel called up to him, and they went down so that Samuel could speak privately, sending the servant ahead to reveal God's purpose to Saul alone.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes notes that Saul's bed was on the house-top, a detail that reflects common Eastern practice. Families often set up tents or awnings on the roof to provide extra sleeping space in the warm climate. This cultural context explains what might otherwise seem unusual.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentary notes that the rooftop conversation allowed Samuel to honor Saul publicly while still speaking privately. It also observes that the Septuagint may preserve a more original sequence, placing the rooftop sleep before the morning call, which resolves a chronological awkwardness in the Hebrew text.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill highlights the precautions Samuel took to prevent anyone from thinking he was personally making Saul king. Rising early, going outside the city, and sending the servant ahead ensured the anointing would clearly appear as God's doing, not Samuel's. The private rooftop conversation likely covered the kingship, Samuel's willingness to step aside, and Saul's objections.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB highlights the private rooftop conversation where Samuel likely explained the sacred duties of an earthly king ruling under God, Israel's Divine King. The prophet then escorted Saul out of the city for a final private interview the next morning, setting the stage for his anointing.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch argues that Samuel's rooftop conversation with Saul was not about the call to the throne itself, which was revealed only the next day. Instead, it was a preparatory talk, likely covering Israel's spiritual decline, oppression by enemies, and the need for a leader fully devoted to the Lord.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees the lost donkeys as no accident: God orchestrated a trivial errand to bring the future king to Samuel without Saul's knowledge. The whole chapter shows divine providence quietly using everyday frustrations to accomplish its purposes, while Samuel carefully prepares Saul's heart step by step.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry notes that Samuel honored Saul with the chief seat and a specially reserved portion, a clear sign that God had chosen him for a higher purpose. The private rooftop conversation shows that divine appointment comes with both public recognition and personal preparation.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley emphasizes Samuel's deliberate secrecy in conversing privately with Saul about the kingdom. Samuel withheld this earlier to avoid any suspicion that he was imposing a king by his own design, ensuring that God's choice would be confirmed clearly through the subsequent lot.