The Meaning of 1 Samuel 18:1 Explained

1 Samuel 18:1

KJV: And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

YLT: And it cometh to pass, when he finisheth to speak unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan hath been bound to the soul of David, and Jonathan loveth him as his own soul.

Darby: And it came to pass, when he had ended speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

ASV: And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And it came to pass, when he had made an end  of speaking  unto Saul,  that the soul  of Jonathan  was knit  with the soul  of David,  and Jonathan  loved  him as his own soul. 

What does 1 Samuel 18:1 Mean?

Context Summary

1 Samuel 18:1-9 - A Loyal Friend And A Jealous Enemy
These verses make very good reading. They present the one ray of light in a story which, from this point on, becomes more and more somber. David's bearing in the hour of victory was so modest and unaffected that Jonathan's heart leaped out to greet him as a kindred soul; while his advances awoke in David a love almost womanly in its tenderness. When we see Jonathan arraying his newfound friend in his own raiment, we are reminded of our Lord's great exchange with us. He was made sin, that we might become the righteousness of God in him, 2 Corinthians 5:21.
David's harp was now, for the most part, exchanged for the sword, and he became a popular hero. It was the refrain of the women's ode of victory that opened Saul's soul to the envenomed dart of jealousy. The milk of human kindness suddenly turned sour. "He eyed David from that day," not with affectionate admiration, but always with desire to place a malicious construction on every act and word and look. With terrible accuracy James shows the certain progress and development of such an attitude, James 1:14-15. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Samuel 18

1  Jonathan befriends David
5  Saul envies his praise
10  seeks to kill him in his fury
12  fears him for his good success
17  offers him his daughters for snare
23  David persuaded to be the king's son-in-law,
25  gives two hundred foreskins of the Philistines for Michal's dowry
28  Saul's hatred and David's glory increase

What do the individual words in 1 Samuel 18:1 mean?

Now when he had finished speaking to Saul and the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David - and loved him Jonathan as his own soul
וַיְהִ֗י כְּכַלֹּתוֹ֙ לְדַבֵּ֣ר אֶל־ שָׁא֔וּל וְנֶ֙פֶשׁ֙ יְה֣וֹנָתָ֔ן נִקְשְׁרָ֖ה בְּנֶ֣פֶשׁ דָּוִ֑ד [ויאהבו] (וַיֶּאֱהָבֵ֥הוּ) יְהוֹנָתָ֖ן כְּנַפְשֽׁוֹ

וַיְהִ֗י  Now 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
כְּכַלֹּתוֹ֙  when  he  had  finished 
Parse: Preposition-k, Verb, Piel, Infinitive construct, third person masculine singular
Root: כָּלָה  
Sense: to accomplish, cease, consume, determine, end, fail, finish, be complete, be accomplished, be ended, be at an end, be finished, be spent.
לְדַבֵּ֣ר  speaking 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Piel, Infinitive construct
Root: דָּבַר 
Sense: to speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing.
שָׁא֔וּל  Saul 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: שָׁאוּל  
Sense: a Benjamite, son of Kish, and the st king of Israel.
וְנֶ֙פֶשׁ֙  and  the  soul 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
יְה֣וֹנָתָ֔ן  of  Jonathan 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יְהֹונָתָן  
Sense: a son of king Saul and a friend of David.
נִקְשְׁרָ֖ה  was  knit 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: קָשַׁר  
Sense: to bind, tie, bind together, league together, conspire.
בְּנֶ֣פֶשׁ  to  the  soul 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
דָּוִ֑ד  of  David 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: דָּוִד  
Sense: youngest son of Jesse and second king of Israel.
[ויאהבו]  - 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine plural, third person masculine singular
(וַיֶּאֱהָבֵ֥הוּ)  and  loved  him 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular, third person masculine singular
Root: אָהַב  
Sense: to love.
יְהוֹנָתָ֖ן  Jonathan 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יְהֹונָתָן  
Sense: a son of king Saul and a friend of David.
כְּנַפְשֽׁוֹ  as  his  own  soul 
Parse: Preposition-k, Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.