As Saul had watched David going out to confront the Philistine, he said to Abner the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this young man?” “As surely as you live, O king,” Abner replied, “I do not know.”
Here is 1. The engagement between the two champions, Sa1 17:48. To this engagement the Philistine advanced with a great deal of state and gravity; if he must encounter a pigmy, yet it shall be with the magnificence of a giant and a grandee.
Commenting on 1 Samuel 17:48-58
And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine,.... Set out to meet him, and engage with him, as he might from the side of the mountain, where he was encamped: he said unto Abner, the captain of the host; his own cousin, whom he had raised to this high post in the army, Sa1 14:50, Abner, whose son is this youth?
Saul . . . said unto Abner . . . whose son is this youth?--A young man is more spoken of in many Eastern countries by his father's name than his own. The growth of the beard, and other changes on a now full-grown youth, prevented the king from recognizing his former favorite minstrel [Sa1 16:23]. Next: 1 Samuel Chapter 18