When ye were but few, even a few, and strangers in it.

1 CHRONICLES 16:19KJV
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1 Chronicles 16:19 (KJV)

What does 1 Chronicles 16:19 mean?

1 Chronicles 16:19 recalls a time when the people of Israel were very small in number and living as foreigners in a land that was not their own. The verse emphasizes their vulnerability and outsider status during the early days of their history.

This statement comes from a song of thanks that King David is leading before the gathered people, celebrating the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. David is reminding the people how God cared for their ancestors when they were few and living as strangers, highlighting God's protection and faithfulness even when Israel was weak and unknown.

The Hebrew behind 1 Chronicles 16:19

  • "few" (מִסְפָּר, mispar): This word means "number" or "count," often used to stress how small a group is. Here, it underlines that Israel was not a large or powerful nation at that time.
  • "few" (מְעַט, me'at): This word means "little" or "few," reinforcing the idea of being small or insignificant in size.
  • "strangers" (גֵּרִים, gerim): This word refers to people living as foreigners or sojourners, without rights or permanent status in the land. It stresses how Israel did not belong or have security in the places they traveled.

Why 1 Chronicles 16:19 matters

  • The verse clears up any idea that Israel started as a strong or established nation; instead, it highlights their humble beginnings and dependence on God.
  • By repeating the idea of being "few," the verse stresses just how unlikely Israel's survival and growth were without divine help.
  • This reminder fits into the wider passage, which is a song of thanksgiving, showing that God's care for Israel began long before they became a nation and continued through their most vulnerable times.

Where else these words appear

“few” Hebrew H4962 · used in 21 verses

  • Genesis 34:30 And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.
  • Deuteronomy 33:6 Let Reuben live, and not die; and let not his men be few.
  • Psalms 17:14 From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.

“few” Hebrew H4592 · used in 92 verses

  • Genesis 18:4 Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:
  • 1 Samuel 14:29 Then said Jonathan, My father hath troubled the land: see, I pray you, how mine eyes have been enlightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.
  • Proverbs 10:20 The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.

“strangers” Hebrew H1481 · used in 94 verses

  • Genesis 12:10 And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.
  • Numbers 22:3 And Moab was sore afraid of the people, because they were many: and Moab was distressed because of the children of Israel.
  • Psalms 61:4 I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.

“few” Hebrew H4557 · used in 129 verses

  • Genesis 34:30 And Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, Ye have troubled me to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites: and I being few in number, they shall gather themselves together against me, and slay me; and I shall be destroyed, I and my house.
  • Deuteronomy 32:8 When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.
  • Ezra 3:4 They kept also the feast of tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the custom, as the duty of every day required;