The Meaning of 1 Samuel 24:6 Explained

1 Samuel 24:6

KJV: And he said unto his men, The LORD forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the LORD'S anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.

YLT: and he saith to his men, 'Far be it from me, by Jehovah; I do not do this thing to my lord -- to the anointed of Jehovah -- to put forth my hand against him, for the anointed of Jehovah he is.'

Darby: And he said to his men, Jehovah forbid that I should do this thing to my master, Jehovah's anointed, to stretch forth my hand against him, for he is the anointed of Jehovah.

ASV: And he said unto his men, Jehovah forbid that I should do this thing unto my lord, Jehovah's anointed, to put forth my hand against him, seeing he is Jehovah's anointed.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And he said  unto his men,  The LORD  forbid  that I should do  this thing  unto my master,  the LORD'S  anointed,  to stretch forth  mine hand  against him, seeing he [is] the anointed  of the LORD. 

What does 1 Samuel 24:6 Mean?

Context Summary

1 Samuel 24:1-15 - Returning Good For Evil
Engedi is situated on the western shore of the Dead Sea. As Saul entered the cave, a very insidious temptation presented itself to David. Why not rid the kingdom of this cruel and oppressive monarch? Would it not confer a public benefit? Had not Samuel promised David the kingdom? Even if he himself did not strike the blow, why not let his men, who were not so squeamish, do so!But the man of God must not yield to such suggestions. He insisted on waiting the Lord's own time. He would not anticipate, by a single hour, the fulfillment of the great word on which he had been taught to rest through these weary years. The sensitiveness of his conscience was indicated in his compunction at having cut off a piece of the royal robe.
Never forget that opportunity does not make a wrong thing right. That the ship was waiting to sail to Tarshish did not make it right for Jonah to take passage. Our actions must not be determined by the opening of the door of circumstance, but by conscience, faith, obedience, and the high sense of Christian honor. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Samuel 24

1  David, in a cave at En Gedi, spares his life
8  He shows thereby his innocence,
16  Saul, acknowledging his fault, takes an oath of David, and departs

What do the individual words in 1 Samuel 24:6 mean?

And he said to his men forbid I Yahweh that should do - thing this to my master anointed of Yahweh to stretch out my hand against him seeing the anointed of Yahweh he [is]
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר לַאֲנָשָׁ֜יו חָלִ֧ילָה לִּ֣י מֵֽיהוָ֗ה אִם־ אֶעֱשֶׂה֩ אֶת־ הַדָּבָ֨ר הַזֶּ֤ה לַֽאדֹנִי֙ לִמְשִׁ֣יחַ יְהוָ֔ה לִשְׁלֹ֥חַ יָדִ֖י בּ֑וֹ כִּֽי־ מְשִׁ֥יחַ יְהוָ֖ה הֽוּא

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר  And  he  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
לַאֲנָשָׁ֜יו  to  his  men 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אֱנׄושׁ 
Sense: man, mortal man, person, mankind.
חָלִ֧ילָה  forbid 
Parse: Interjection, third person feminine singular
Root: חָלִיל  
Sense: far be it (from me), God forbid that, let it not be.
מֵֽיהוָ֗ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
אִם־  that 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: אִם  
Sense: if.
אֶעֱשֶׂה֩  should  do 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
הַדָּבָ֨ר  thing 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: דָּבָר  
Sense: speech, word, speaking, thing.
הַזֶּ֤ה  this 
Parse: Article, Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
לַֽאדֹנִי֙  to  my  master 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: אָדֹון  
Sense: firm, strong, lord, master.
לִמְשִׁ֣יחַ  anointed 
Parse: Preposition-l, Adjective, masculine singular construct
Root: מָשִׁיחַ  
Sense: anointed, anointed one.
יְהוָ֔ה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
לִשְׁלֹ֥חַ  to  stretch  out 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: שָׁלַח  
Sense: to send, send away, let go, stretch out.
יָדִ֖י  my  hand 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
בּ֑וֹ  against  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
כִּֽי־  seeing 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: כִּי 
Sense: that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since.
מְשִׁ֥יחַ  the  anointed  of 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular construct
Root: מָשִׁיחַ  
Sense: anointed, anointed one.
יְהוָ֖ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
הֽוּא  he  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, third person masculine singular
Root: הוּא 
Sense: he, she, it.