All commentators agree that the original Hebrew text of this verse is corrupt or damaged. The literal translation is nonsensical: 'Saul was the son of one year when he began to reign.' Scholars believe the numbers for his age and the length of his reign were lost early in the copying process. This is a well-known textual issue, which is why the ancient Greek Septuagint translation omits the verse entirely and many modern Bibles include a footnote.