1-samuel 31:10
Translations
King James Version (KJV)
And they put his armor in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Bethshan.
American King James Version (AKJV)
And they put his armor in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Bethshan.
American Standard Version (ASV)
And they put his armor in the house of the Ashtaroth; and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.
Basic English Translation (BBE)
His war-dress they put in the house of Astarte; and his body was fixed on the wall of Beth-shan.
Webster's Revision
And they put his armor in the house of Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.
World English Bible
They put his armor in the house of the Ashtaroth; and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth Shan.
English Revised Version (ERV)
And they put his armour in the house of the Ashtaroth: and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.
Clarke's 1-samuel 31:10 Bible Commentary
They put his armor in the house of Ashtaroth - As David had done in placing the sword of Goliath in the tabernacle. We have already seen that it was common for the conquerors to consecrate armor and spoils taken in war, to those who were the objects of religious worship.
They fastened his body to the wall - Probably by means of iron hooks; but it is said, 2 Samuel 21:12, that these bodies were fastened in the Street of Beth-shan. This may mean that the place where they were fastened to the wall was the main street or entrance into the city.
Barnes's 1-samuel 31:10 Bible Commentary
In the house of Ashtaroth - This was doubtless the famous temple of Venus in Askelon mentioned by Herodotus as the most ancient of all her temples. Hence, the special mention of Askelon 2 Samuel 1:20. The placing Saul's armour as a trophy in the temple of Ashtaroth was a counterpart to the placing Goliath's sword in the tabernacle 1 Samuel 21:9. In 1 Chronicles 10:10 it is added that they "fastened Saul's head in the temple of Dagon," probably either in Gaza Judges 16:21, or in Ashdod 1 Samuel 5:1-3. This was, perhaps, in retaliation for the similar treatment of Goliath's head 1 Samuel 17:54. The variations seem to imply that both this narrative and that in 1 Chronicles 10:1-14 are compiled from a common and a fuller document.
