שמואל א ט׳:א׳-י״ד

בארץ צוף. בארעא דבה נביא:

To the land of Tzuph. [Targum renders] 'into the land wherein there was a prophet.'

צוף. כמו 'צופה':

Tzuph. [צוּף] meaning a seer.¹ See above 1:1.

פן יחדל אבי מן האתונות. שתגדל דאגה שלנו עליו, עד שישכח את האתונות:

Lest my father stop worrying about the donkeys. Because his worry about us will grow so that he will forget the donkeys.

ודאג. איטוביטאר"ה בלע"ז:

And worry. E dubitera in O.F.

את דרכנו. מעשה האתונות מה נהיתה בם, שבשבילם הלכנו את כל הדרך הזה:

Our road. The story about the donkeys, i.e., what has become of them, for whom we have gone all this way.²They were not only seeking advice where to look for the donkeys, but were also looking for an explanation for their long journey. They were puzzled over why they had searched and not found them yet, being that donkeys usually do not stray far from their home.

ומה נביא לאיש. תרגם יונתן: אם מקבל ממון, מה נעול לגברא. לא היה שאול מכיר במעשיו של שמואל, וסבר שישאל שכר:

What shall we bring to the man. Targum Yonoson renders, 'If he accepts money, what shall we bring to the man?' Shaul was not familiar with Shmuel's habits and thought that he would ask for remuneration.³ It seems that in those days it was customary to bring gifts in this type of situation; as in II Melachim 4:42. They thought that perhaps Shmuel might demand some form of remuneration for his prophecies just as diviners seek gifts from those for whom they predict the future.—Radak

ותשורה. תרגם יונתן: ומדעם דכשר, לשון יושר. ומנחם פירש: 'תשורה', לשון תקרובת, ראות פני מלך ואדם חשוב, לשון אשורנו (במדבר כד יז), ונראין דבריו:

And [we have no] gift. Targum Yonoson renders, 'and there is nothing proper.' This is an expression of יוֹשֶׁר [=propriety]. Menachem, however, explains תְּשׁוּרָה as an expression of a tribute for the privilege of seeing a king or an important person; [תְּשׁוּרָה being] an expression related to אֲשׁוּרֶנּוּ [meaning] 'I behold them,'⁴Bamidbar 24:17. and I agree with his explanation.⁵That וּתְשׁוּרָה is from the root שוּר [=to see].

רבע שקל. זוזא חדא דכספא:

A quarter shekel. One zuz of silver.

לפנים בישראל. הסופר כתב זאת, ואין זה מדברי נער שאול:

In former times in Yisroel. The author wrote this verse,⁶I.e., Shmuel. See Maseches Bava Basra 14b which states that Shmuel authored the Book of Shmuel. However, being that Shmuel died before Shaul who only reigned for two years, what is the meaning of “formerly” and “of today” as stated in the verse? Radak therefore suggests that “formerly” refers to an earlier period when prophets were known for their ability to predict the future and to display a knowledge of hidden things, therefore the term רוֹאֶה. However, in Shmuel’s time prophecy became widespread, but the type of prophecy was a Divine inspiration to bring to the people the word of ‘ה, therefore the term נָבִיא [from the root בוֹא]. In Shaul’s case he was looking for a רוֹאֶה to tell him where his donkeys were. Others however, maintain that the author of this verse may have been Ezra or Yirmiyahu. i.e., this is not part of the youth of Shaul's statement.

כי לנביא היום. למי שקורים אותו נביא היום, היו קורים לפנים 'רואה':

For the "prophet" of today. The one who is called 'prophet' today was formerly called 'seer.'

כבואכם העיר כן וגו'. מאריכות היו בדברים, כדי להסתכל ביופיו של שאול:

As you enter the city you… They prolonged their conversation in order to gaze upon Shaul's handsomeness.⁷Maseches Berachos 48b. The girls gave an extraordinarily long answer to a relatively simple question. The fact that the entire conversation was recorded in Scripture makes it likely that they were struck by Shaul’s handsome appearance and wanted to gaze at him a few moments longer.

הבמתה. תרגם יונתן: לבית אסחרותא. משחרבה שילה הותרו הבמות, והיו מקריבין שלמים בבמה, ואוכלים יחד:

The high place. Targum Yonoson renders, 'to the banquet hall.' When Shiloh was destroyed, it became permissible [to offer sacrifices on] the high places, and they would sacrifice peace-offerings on the high place and eat together.

כי הוא יברך הזבח. תרגם יונתן: 'ארי הוא פריס מזונא', בוצע על המזון, על השלמים מברכין באכילתם: ברוך אתה ה' אלהינו מלך העולם אשר קדשנו במצותיו וצונו לאכול את הזבח:

Because he blesses the offering. Targum Yonoson renders, אֲרֵי הוּא פָּרִיס עַל מְזוֹנָא meaning, 'for he will break bread.' [Before] partaking of the peace-offering they recited: 'Blessed are You Adonoy, our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to eat the sacrifice."

כהיום. כאשר היום קיים:

As [surely as it is] day. Just as the day exists.⁸He said this to emphasize the truthfulness of his statement.—Radak