What Does 1 Samuel 2:10 Mean in the King James?

The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.
1 Samuel 2:10 · KJV
The analysis reads the King James wording.

King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.

This verse in the Selah Decoded Version

Those who contend against the LORD are broken, while the strength of the one marked with oil rises into view.

Contending powers do not hold the final authority over what you face: the LORD thunders against opposition and judges the ends of the earth. The same LORD gives strength to his king and lifts the horn, the visible force, of his anointed one. The power that breaks opposition also raises the one he has marked.

WHAT THIS UNDOES

It undoes the belief that opposition gets the last word simply because it can threaten or overpower. The final ruling belongs to the LORD, who brings adversaries low and raises strength for his anointed.

מְרִיבָיו

mĕrîvāv

GROWS FROM

ריב

r-y-b

To contend, dispute, or plead a case.

The adversaries are named as contenders; the verse then places the LORD as judge over the earth. Their opposition is a dispute that cannot determine its own final outcome.

ALSO GROWS

rîb: dispute, contention

רִיב

This names the active conflict beneath the word “adversaries”: they are contending against the LORD.

merivah: strife, contention

מְרִיבָה

The same root names contention itself, showing opposition as an active force that the LORD brings to an end.

קֶרֶן

qeren

GROWS FROM

קרן

q-r-n

A horn or projecting point; a related verb means to send out rays.

The horn is an outwardly projecting image of strength, and the same consonants appear in a verb for rays streaming out. To raise the anointed one’s horn is to make his strength rise visibly.

ALSO GROWS

qeren: horn; a projecting point, often an image of strength

קֶרֶן

Here the LORD raises this visible sign of the anointed one’s strength.

qāran: send out rays, shine

קָרַן

This related verb describes rays projecting from Moses’ face, echoing the image of power rising outward.

מְשִׁיחוֹ

mĕšîḥô

GROWS FROM

משח

m-š-ḥ

To rub or apply oil; to anoint.

“His anointed” grows from the act of applying oil: the anointing and the person marked by it share one root. The verse ends with strength rising for the one marked as the anointed one.

ALSO GROWS

māšîaḥ: anointed one

מָשִׁיחַ

This is the title contained in “his anointed,” identifying the person whose horn the LORD raises.

mišḥāh: anointing oil, anointing

מִשְׁחָה

This names the oil or act behind the title, keeping the person and the marking joined in one root.

The LORD brings hostile power low while raising the visible strength of the one he appoints.

All the horns of the wicked also will I cut off; but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.
Psalm 75:10 · KJVIt pairs the cutting off of the wicked’s horns with the exaltation of the righteous horns, the same reversal of power pictured here.
And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;
Luke 1:69 · KJVIt carries the horn image into a raised horn of deliverance in David’s house, joining lifted authority with deliverance.
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
Revelation 17:14 · KJVIt shows rulers arrayed against the Lamb and then overcome by the King above kings, echoing the defeat of adversaries and the raising of the king.
There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed.
Psalm 132:17 · KJV

The same Hebrew pair meets in both verses: qeren means “horn,” and mashiach means “anointed one.” Here the anointed one’s horn is lifted; the psalm pictures David’s horn budding and a lamp ordained for the anointed, extending the image from strength to growth and visibility.

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1 Samuel 2:10 KJV Meaning