1 Samuel 13:21

21 It cost a fourth of an ounce of silver to sharpen a plow or a hoe. It cost an eighth of an ounce to sharpen a pitchfork or an axe. That's also what it cost to put new tips on large sticks that were used to drive oxen.

1 Samuel 13:21 Meaning and Commentary

1 Samuel 13:21

Yet they had a file for the mattocks, and for the coulters,
and for the forks, and for the axes
Those that would not go to the Philistines, or were not able, or thought it too much trouble, these kept files by them to sharpen those several instruments with upon occasion; though the words are by some rendered in connection with the preceding, to this sense, that they went to the Philistines to sharpen them, when the mouths, or edges, of the mattocks, coulters were dull; or "blunt" ^F9; and so needed sharpening; and even

to sharpen the goads;
with which they pricked and pushed on the oxen in ploughing, when sluggish and remiss.

(The word for "file" in the verse is (Myp) "pim", and occurs only here in the Hebrew scriptures. It is not used elsewhere in other Hebrew writings. Therefore the translators of the 1611 Authorised Version had only the root derivation to deduce what the word meant. Literally, it means "a file with mouths". However, recently archaeologists have found a stone inscribed with this word. Also they found a stone inscribed with the word "shekel". Hence they deduced that the word was really a weight of measure equal to about one third of a shekel. Newer translations usually translate this as "the charge was a third of a shekel ...", hence removing the obvious contradiction between this verse and the preceding one. Editor.)

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FOOTNOTES:

F9 (Myp hryuph htyhw) "retusae itaque erant acies vomerum", V. L. "quandoquidem acies cultrorum aratri" "obtusae erant", Tigurine version.

1 Samuel 13:21 In-Context

19 There weren't any blacksmiths in the whole land of Israel. That's because the Philistines had said, "The Hebrews might hire them to make swords or spears!"

20 So all of the people of Israel had to go down to the Philistines. They had to go to them to get their plows, hoes, axes and sickles sharpened.

21 It cost a fourth of an ounce of silver to sharpen a plow or a hoe. It cost an eighth of an ounce to sharpen a pitchfork or an axe. That's also what it cost to put new tips on large sticks that were used to drive oxen.

22 So not one of Saul's or Jonathan's soldiers had a sword or spear in his hand when he went out to battle. Only Saul and his son Jonathan had those weapons.

23 A group of Philistine soldiers had gone out to the pass at Micmash.