A battle involves many men and it is not possible to know if certain individuals have died unless you were there beside them at the time. David thus wanted to know if the man had seen the bodies of Saul and Jonathan or merely heard reports. He wanted to be sure whether Saul and Jonathan had been killed.
5 David dit au jeune homme qui lui apportait ces nouvelles: Comment sais-tu que Saül et Jonathan, son fils, sont morts?