1-samuel 24:6
Translations
King James Version (KJV)
And he said to his men, The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the LORD's anointed, to stretch forth my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.
American King James Version (AKJV)
And he said to his men, The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the LORD's anointed, to stretch forth my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.
American Standard Version (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.
Basic English Translation (BBE)
And David said to his men, Before the Lord, never let it be said that my hand was lifted up against my lord, the man of the Lord's selection, for the Lord's holy oil has been put on him.
Webster's Revision
And he said to his men, The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the LORD'S anointed, to stretch forth my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.
World English Bible
He said to his men, "Yahweh forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, Yahweh's anointed, to put forth my hand against him, since he is Yahweh's anointed."
English Revised Version (ERV)
And he said unto his men, The LORD forbid that I should do this thing unto my lord, the LORD'S anointed, to put forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the LORD'S anointed.
Clarke's 1-samuel 24:6 Bible Commentary
The Lord's anointed - However unworthily Saul was now acting, he had been appointed to his high office by God himself, and he could only be removed by the authority which placed him on the throne. Even David, who knew he was appointed to reign in his stead, and whose life Saul had often sought to destroy, did not conceive that he had any right to take away his life; and he grounds the reasons of his forbearance on this - He is my master, I am his subject. He is the Lord's anointed, and therefore sacred as to his person in the Lord's sight. It is an awful thing to kill a king, even the most untoward, when he has once been constitutionally appointed to the throne. No experiment of this kind has ever succeeded; the Lord abhors king killing. Had David taken away the life of Saul at this time, he would, in the sight of God, have been a murderer.