1 Samuel 14 · Verse 25

1 Samuel 14:25

And all they of the land came to a wood; and there was honey upon the ground.
1 Samuel 14:25, King James Version

1 Samuel 14:25 in other translations

BSBThen all the troops entered the forest, and there was honey on the ground.
WEBAll the people came into the forest; and there was honey on the ground.
ASVAnd all the people came into the forest; and there was honey upon the ground.
YLTAnd all they of the land have come into a forest, and there is honey on the face of the field;
DARBYAnd all they of the land came to a wood; and there was honey on the ground.
BBEAnd there was honey on the face of the field, and all the people came to the honey, the bees having gone from it;
WebsterAnd all they of the land came to a wood; and there was honey upon the ground.

What does 1 Samuel 14:25 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
25. all they of the land came to a wood; and there was honey--The honey is described as "upon the ground," "dropping" from the trees, and in honeycombs--indicating it to be bees' honey. "Bees in the East are not, as in England, kept in hives; they are all in a wild state. The forests literally flow with honey; large combs may be seen hanging on the trees as you pass along, full of honey" [Roberts].

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 25 There was honey upon the ground - There were many wild bees in that country, and Judea is expressly said to be a land flowing with milk and honey.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 1 Samuel 14:24-35

Saul's severe order was very unwise; if it gained time, it lost strength for the pursuit. Such is the nature of our bodies, that daily work cannot be done without daily bread, which therefore our Father in heaven graciously gives. Saul was turning aside from God, and now he begins to build altars, being then most zealous, as many are, for the form of godliness when he was denying the power of it.

Read the full comment on 1 Samuel 14:24-35 →

1 Samuel 14:25 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְכָל\־ve.kholand allH3605
הָאָ֖רֶץha.'A.retzthe landH776
בָּ֣אוּBa.'uthey wentH935
בַיָּ֑עַרvai.Ya.'arin the forestH3293
וַיְהִ֥יvay.Hiand it wasH1961
דְבַ֖שׁde.VashhoneyH1706
עַל\־'al-onH5921
פְּנֵ֥יpe.Nei[the] surface ofH6440
הַשָּׂדֶֽה\׃ha.sa.Dehthe fieldH7704

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 1 Samuel 14:25

  • Deuteronomy 9:28

    Lest the land whence thou broughtest us out say, Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which he promised them, and because he hated them, he hath brought them out to slay them in the wilderness.

  • Numbers 13:27

    And they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it.

  • Exodus 3:8

    And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

  • Matthew 3:4-5

    And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan,

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
all they.
De 9:28; Mt 3:5
honey.This was wild honey, which to this day abounds in Judea; and bursting from the comb, runs down the hollow trees, rocks, etc.
Ex 3:8; Nu 13:27; Mt 3:4

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • 1 Samuel 14:24

    And the men of Israel were distressed that day: for Saul had adjured the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be avenged on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted any food.

  • 1 Samuel 14:25

    And all they of the land came to a wood; and there was honey upon the ground.

  • 1 Samuel 14:26

    And when the people were come into the wood, behold, the honey dropped; but no man put his hand to his mouth: for the people feared the oath.

Read all of 1 Samuel 14

1 Samuel 14:25 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y todo el pueblo del país llegó á un bosque donde había miel en la superficie del campo.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et tout le peuple du pays vint dans une forêt; et il y avait du miel sur le dessus des champs.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und das ganze Volk kam in den Wald, und Honig war auf der Fläche des Feldes.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		omneque terræ vulgus venit in saltum, in quo erat mel super faciem agri.