Verse Lens · Concise explanation
1 Samuel 14:4 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 4. 4And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the Philistines’ garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side, and a sharp rock on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Maps the two sharp rocks guarding Jonathan's route through the pass.
Read It With
- 1 Samuel 14:4–14:15
Follow the scene from 1 Samuel 14:4–14:15, not verse 14:4 alone. This line maps the two sharp rocks guarding Jonathan's route through the pass, and the surrounding movement is Jonathan and his armor-bearer use the garrison's taunt as a sign, climb the rocky pass, kill about twenty men, and trigger terror through the camp and earth.
Why This Verse Appears Here
At verse 14:4, the scene maps the two sharp rocks guarding Jonathan's route through the pass. That movement matters to “Jonathan's climb triggers terror in the garrison” while the unit's uncertainty and ethical boundary continue to govern application.
What Remains True
Maps the two sharp rocks guarding Jonathan's route through the pass. Within 1 Samuel 14:4–14:15, this contribution supports the unit's enduring claim: A responsible reader preserves both the unit's stated movement and its ethical limit. The victory does not authorize reckless testing, slurs, two-person violence, or claims that faith guarantees triumph against larger forces.
How It Can Shape Life
- Maps the two sharp rocks guarding Jonathan's route through the pass. The proportionate response is therefore the one traced from the complete unit: Test spiritual and providential claims patiently through the available evidence, trusted accountability, and their effects on people; do not turn impressions, signs, or religious language into unquestionable authority. The victory does not authorize reckless testing, slurs, two-person violence, or claims that faith guarantees triumph against larger forces.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read 1 Samuel 14:4–14:15 — Jonathan's climb triggers terror in the garrisonSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV words, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete unit coverage.
Exact location: 1 Samuel 14:4–14:15, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: 1 Samuel
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology, with the two KJV-Hebrew versification shifts stated rather than silently offset.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/1Sam.xml, OSIS 14:4–14:15; KJV 20:42 spans Hebrew 20:42–21:1, KJV 21:1–15 maps to Hebrew 21:2–16, KJV 23:29 maps to Hebrew 24:1, and KJV 24:1–22 maps to Hebrew 24:2–23
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible First Edition Notes: 1 Samuel
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Only the translator notes actually printed for these verses, used for lexical, grammatical, textual, historical, and older-English controls.
Exact location: NET Bible First Edition Notes, 1 Samuel PDF, printed pp. 504–543, exact tc/tn/sn entries attached to 14:4–14:15
Open source ↗