2 Samuel

Book Outhne

Key theme: The restoration of the nation of Israel by God’s power

Key verses:

I. David Unites the People ()

A. A new king ()

B. A new capital city ()

C. A new dynasty ()

II. David Expands the Borders ()

A. He defeats Israel’s enemies (; )

B. He organizes the kingdom ()

C. He honors Mephibosheth ()

III. David Disobeys the Lord ()

A. David’s sins ()

B. Amnon’s sins ()

C. Absalom’s sins ()

D. David’s return to Jerusalem ()

IV. David Closes His Reign ()

A. Showing respect for Saul ()

B. Defeating the Philistines ()

C. Praising the Lord ()

D. Honoring his mighty men ()

E. Buying a site for the temple ()

Book Overview

For ten years David was in exile with a price on his head, fleeing from Saul and waiting for the time when God would put him on the throne of Israel. During those difficult years, David grew in faith and godly character, and God equipped him for the work He had chosen for him to do. When the day of victory did arrive, David was careful not to force himself on the people, many of whom were still loyal to the house of Saul. He took a cautious approach, and we can’t help but admire David for his wisdom and patience as he won the affection and allegiance of the people and sought to unify the shattered nation. “So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands” ().

David was a very effective leader during the seven and a half years he ruled in Hebron. While Joab led the army of Judah, David watched and waited, knowing that the Lord would one day open the way for him to reign as king over all Israel. God called David to be not only the king of His people, but also their shepherd and spiritual leader. David had to wait on God’s timing while patiently enduring the consequences of the selfish ambitions and reckless actions of leaders who were motivated by pride and hatred. David learned to build with the materials at hand and to trust God to use disappointments to the advantage of His people.

If you were asked to name David’s two greatest sins, you would probably reply, “His adultery with Bathsheba and his numbering of the people,” and you would be right. But out of those two great sins God built a temple! Bathsheba gave birth to Solomon, and God chose him to succeed David on the throne. On the property David purchased and on which he erected an altar, Solomon built the temple and dedicated it to the glory of God. What God did for David is certainly not an excuse for sin (, ), because David paid dearly for committing those sins. Knowing what God did for David, however, does encourage us to seek His face and trust His grace when we have disobeyed Him. “Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more” (). What a merciful God we serve!

“Be Transformed”

David walked across the stage of history surrounded by strong characters like Jonathan, Joab, Nathan, Bathsheba, Absalom, Abishai, and many others. Each of these people had a relationship with David as well as an effect on his life. Some were faithful companions, others were faithless friends, and some vacillated. David attracted loyalty because he offered it to others. His life is laid out with painful honesty in Scripture and causes us to consider what God meant in calling David a “man after His own heart” ().

Despite David’s shocking failures and persistent shortcomings, he kept seeking after God. Like us, David was his own worst enemy, and yet he pursued God’s presence, even when he realized he had taken a sinful detour. Like a wayward child, David never hesitated to approach his heavenly Father. He didn’t let the depths of his falls cause him to lose sight of the heights of God’s mercy and love. With David, repentance was always genuine. We don’t see a lot of repeat sins in David’s life, because his repentance was thorough. But when we don’t fully acknowledge our sins, we often find ourselves returning to the same sins. David’s greatest example to us takes effect when we make it our life’s purpose to pursue God, to seek His presence, to welcome His mercy, and seek to honor Him no matter how often we may fail along the way. The victorious Christian life is a series of new beginnings.

The Report of Saul’s Death

Now it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David had returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had stayed two days in Ziklag,

2on the third day, behold, it happened that a man came from Saul’s camp with his clothes torn and dust on his head. So it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the ground and prostrated himself.

3And David said to him, “Where have you come from?” So he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.”

4Then David said to him, “How did the matter go? Please tell me.” And he answered, “The people have fled from the battle, many of the people are fallen and dead, and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.”

5So David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?”

6Then the young man who told him said, “As I happened by chance to be on Mount Gilboa, there was Saul, leaning on his spear; and indeed the chariots and horsemen followed hard after him.

7“Now when he looked behind him, he saw me and called to me. And I answered, ‘Here I am.’

8“And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I answered him, ‘I am an Amalekite.’

9“He said to me again, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, for anguish has come upon me, but my life still remains in me.’

“So I stood over him and killed him, because I was sure that he could not live after he had fallen. And I took the crown that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my lord.”

11Therefore David took hold of his own clothes and tore them, and so did all the men who were with him.

12And they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son, for the people of the LORD and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.

13Then David said to the young man who told him, “Where are you from?” And he answered, “I am the son of an alien, an Amalekite.”

14So David said to him, “How was it you were not afraid to put forth your hand to destroy the LORD’s anointed?”

Then David called one of the young men and said, “Go near, and execute him!” And he struck him so that he died.

So David said to him, “Your blood is on your own head, for your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have killed the LORD’s anointed.’ ”

The Song of the Bow

Then David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son,

18and he told them to teach the children of Judah the Song of the Bow; indeed it is written in the Book of Jasher:

“The beauty of Israel is slain on your high places!

How the mighty have fallen!

20Tell it not in Gath,

Proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon—

Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice,

Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

21“O mountains of Gilboa,

Let there be no dew nor rain upon you,

Nor fields of offerings.

For the shield of the mighty is cast away there!

The shield of Saul, not anointed with oil.

22From the blood of the slain,

From the fat of the mighty,

The bow of Jonathan did not turn back,

And the sword of Saul did not return empty.

“Saul and Jonathan were beloved and pleasant in their lives,

And in their death they were not divided;

They were swifter than eagles,

They were stronger than lions.

24“O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,

Who clothed you in scarlet, with luxury;

Who put ornaments of gold on your apparel.

25“How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle!

Jonathan was slain in your high places.

26I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;

You have been very pleasant to me;

Your love to me was wonderful,

Surpassing the love of women.

“How the mighty have fallen,

And the weapons of war perished!”

David Anointed King of Judah

It happened after this that David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I go up to any of the cities of Judah?” And the LORD said to him, “Go up.” David said, “Where shall I go up?” And He said, “To Hebron.”

2So David went up there, and his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite.

3And David brought up the men who were with him, every man with his household. So they dwelt in the cities of Hebron.

Then the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah. And they told David, saying, “The men of Jabesh Gilead were the ones who buried Saul.”

5So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “You are blessed of the LORD, for you have shown this kindness to your lord, to Saul, and have buried him.

6“And now may the LORD show kindness and truth to you. I also will repay you this kindness, because you have done this thing.

“Now therefore, let your hands be strengthened, and be valiant; for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”

Ishbosheth Made King of Israel

But Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul and brought him over to Mahanaim;

and he made him king over Gilead, over the Ashurites, over Jezreel, over Ephraim, over Benjamin, and over all Israel.

10Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years. Only the house of Judah followed David.

11And the time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

Israel and Judah at War

Now Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon.

13And Joab the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out and met them by the pool of Gibeon. So they sat down, one on one side of the pool and the other on the other side of the pool.

14Then Abner said to Joab, “Let the young men now arise and compete before us.” And Joab said, “Let them arise.”

15So they arose and went over by number, twelve from Benjamin, followers of Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David.

16And each one grasped his opponent by the head and thrust his sword in his opponent’s side; so they fell down together. Therefore that place was called the Field of Sharp Swords, which is in Gibeon.

17So there was a very fierce battle that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

18Now the three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab and Abishai and Asahel. And Asahel was as fleet of foot as a wild gazelle.

19So Asahel pursued Abner, and in going he did not turn to the right hand or to the left from following Abner.

20Then Abner looked behind him and said, “Are you Asahel?” He answered, “I am.”

21And Abner said to him, “Turn aside to your right hand or to your left, and lay hold on one of the young men and take his armor for yourself.” But Asahel would not turn aside from following him.

22So Abner said again to Asahel, “Turn aside from following me. Why should I strike you to the ground? How then could I face your brother Joab?”

23However, he refused to turn aside. Therefore Abner struck him in the stomach with the blunt end of the spear, so that the spear came out of his back; and he fell down there and died on the spot. So it was that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died, stood still.

24Joab and Abishai also pursued Abner. And the sun was going down when they came to the hill of Ammah, which is before Giah by the road to the Wilderness of Gibeon.

25Now the children of Benjamin gathered together behind Abner and became a unit, and took their stand on top of a hill.

26Then Abner called to Joab and said, “Shall the sword devour forever? Do you not know that it will be bitter in the latter end? How long will it be then until you tell the people to return from pursuing their brethren?”

27And Joab said, “As God lives, unless you had spoken, surely then by morning all the people would have given up pursuing their brethren.”

28So Joab blew a trumpet; and all the people stood still and did not pursue Israel anymore, nor did they fight anymore.

29Then Abner and his men went on all that night through the plain, crossed over the Jordan, and went through all Bithron; and they came to Mahanaim.

30So Joab returned from pursuing Abner. And when he had gathered all the people together, there were missing of David’s servants nineteen men and Asahel.

31But the servants of David had struck down, of Benjamin and Abner’s men, three hundred and sixty men who died.

32Then they took up Asahel and buried him in his father’s tomb, which was in Bethlehem. And Joab and his men went all night, and they came to Hebron at daybreak.

Now there was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David. But David grew stronger and stronger, and the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker.

Sons of David

Sons were born to David in Hebron: His firstborn was Amnon by Ahinoam the Jezreelitess;

3his second, Chileab, by Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite; the third, Absalom the son of Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur;

4the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith; the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital;

5and the sixth, Ithream, by David’s wife Eglah. These were born to David in Hebron.

Abner Joins Forces with David

6Now it was so, while there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, that Abner was strengthening his hold on the house of Saul.

7And Saul had a concubine, whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. So Ishbosheth said to Abner, “Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?”

8Then Abner became very angry at the words of Ishbosheth, and said, “Am I a dog’s head that belongs to Judah? Today I show loyalty to the house of Saul your father, to his brothers, and to his friends, and have not delivered you into the hand of David; and you charge me today with a fault concerning this woman?

9“May God do so to Abner, and more also, if I do not do for David as the LORD has sworn to him—

10“to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul, and set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan to Beersheba.”

11And he could not answer Abner another word, because he feared him.

Then Abner sent messengers on his behalf to David, saying, “Whose is the land?” saying also, “Make your covenant with me, and indeed my hand shall be with you to bring all Israel to you.”

13And David said, “Good, I will make a covenant with you. But one thing I require of you: you shall not see my face unless you first bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, when you come to see my face.”

So David sent messengers to Ishbosheth, Saul’s son, saying, “Give me my wife Michal, whom I betrothed to myself for a hundred foreskins of the Philistines.”

15And Ishbosheth sent and took her from her husband, from Paltiel the son of Laish.

16Then her husband went along with her to Bahurim, weeping behind her. So Abner said to him, “Go, return!” And he returned.

17Now Abner had communicated with the elders of Israel, saying, “In time past you were seeking for David to be king over you.

18“Now then, do it! For the LORD has spoken of David, saying, ‘By the hand of My servant David, I will save My people Israel from the hand of the Philistines and the hand of all their enemies.’ ”

19And Abner also spoke in the hearing of Benjamin. Then Abner also went to speak in the hearing of David in Hebron all that seemed good to Israel and the whole house of Benjamin.

20So Abner and twenty men with him came to David at Hebron. And David made a feast for Abner and the men who were with him.

21Then Abner said to David, “I will arise and go, and gather all Israel to my lord the king, that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may reign over all that your heart desires.” So David sent Abner away, and he went in peace.

Joab Murders Abner

22At that moment the servants of David and Joab came from a raid and brought much spoil with them. But Abner was not with David in Hebron, for he had sent him away, and he had gone in peace.

23When Joab and all the troops that were with him had come, they told Joab, saying, “Abner the son of Ner came to the king, and he sent him away, and he has gone in peace.”

Then Joab came to the king and said, “What have you done? Look, Abner came to you; why is it that you sent him away, and he has already gone?

“Surely you realize that Abner the son of Ner came to deceive you, to know your going out and your coming in, and to know all that you are doing.”

26And when Joab had gone from David’s presence, he sent messengers after Abner, who brought him back from the well of Sirah. But David did not know it.

27Now when Abner had returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside in the gate to speak with him privately, and there stabbed him in the stomach, so that he died for the blood of Asahel his brother.

28Afterward, when David heard it, he said, “My kingdom and I are guiltless before the LORD forever of the blood of Abner the son of Ner.

29“Let it rest on the head of Joab and on all his father’s house; and let there never fail to be in the house of Joab one who has a discharge or is a leper, who leans on a staff or falls by the sword, or who lacks bread.”

So Joab and Abishai his brother killed Abner, because he had killed their brother Asahel at Gibeon in the battle.

David’s Mourning for Abner

Then David said to Joab and to all the people who were with him, “Tear your clothes, gird yourselves with sackcloth, and mourn for Abner.” And King David followed the coffin.

32So they buried Abner in Hebron; and the king lifted up his voice and wept at the grave of Abner, and all the people wept.

33And the king sang a lament over Abner and said:

“Should Abner die as a fool dies?

34Your hands were not bound

Nor your feet put into fetters;

As a man falls before wicked men, so you fell.”

Then all the people wept over him again.

35And when all the people came to persuade David to eat food while it was still day, David took an oath, saying, “God do so to me, and more also, if I taste bread or anything else till the sun goes down!”

36Now all the people took note of it, and it pleased them, since whatever the king did pleased all the people.

37For all the people and all Israel understood that day that it had not been the king’s intent to kill Abner the son of Ner.

38Then the king said to his servants, “Do you not know that a prince and a great man has fallen this day in Israel?

“And I am weak today, though anointed king; and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too harsh for me. The LORD shall repay the evildoer according to his wickedness.”

Ishbosheth Is Murdered

1When Saul’s son heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he lost heart, and all Israel was troubled.

2Now Saul’s son had two men who were captains of troops. The name of one was Baanah and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin. (For Beeroth also was part of Benjamin,

3because the Beerothites fled to Gittaim and have been sojourners there until this day.)

4Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son who was lame in his feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel; and his nurse took him up and fled. And it happened, as she made haste to flee, that he fell and became lame. His name was Mephibosheth.

Then the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, set out and came at about the heat of the day to the house of Ishbosheth, who was lying on his bed at noon.

6And they came there, all the way into the house, as though to get wheat, and they stabbed him in the stomach. Then Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped.

7For when they came into the house, he was lying on his bed in his bedroom; then they struck him and killed him, beheaded him and took his head, and were all night escaping through the plain.

8And they brought the head of Ishbosheth to David at Hebron, and said to the king, “Here is the head of Ishbosheth, the son of Saul your enemy, who sought your life; and the LORD has avenged my lord the king this day of Saul and his descendants.”

But David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, “As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life from all adversity,

10“when someone told me, saying, ‘Look, Saul is dead,’ thinking to have brought good news, I arrested him and had him executed in Ziklag—the one who thought I would give him a reward for his news.

11“How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous person in his own house on his bed? Therefore, shall I not now require his blood at your hand and remove you from the earth?”

12So David commanded his young men, and they executed them, cut off their hands and feet, and hanged them by the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ishbosheth and buried it in the tomb of Abner in Hebron.

David Reigns over All Israel

Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and spoke, saying, “Indeed we are your bone and your flesh.

2“Also, in time past, when Saul was king over us, you were the one who led Israel out and brought them in; and the LORD said to you, ‘You shall shepherd My people Israel, and be ruler over Israel.’ ”

Therefore all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the LORD. And they anointed David king over Israel.

4David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

5In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

The Conquest of Jerusalem

And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spoke to David, saying, “You shall not come in here; but the blind and the lame will repel you,” thinking, “David cannot come in here.”

7Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion (that is, the City of David).

Now David said on that day, “Whoever climbs up by way of the water shaft and defeats the Jebusites (the lame and the blind, who are hated by David’s soul), he shall be chief and captain.” Therefore they say, “The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.”

9Then David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the City of David. And David built all around from the Millo and inward.

10So David went on and became great, and the LORD God of hosts was with him.

Then Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters and masons. And they built David a house.

12So David knew that the LORD had established him as king over Israel, and that He had exalted His kingdom for the sake of His people Israel.

And David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he had come from Hebron. Also more sons and daughters were born to David.

14Now these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon,

15Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia,

16Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.

The Philistines Defeated

17Now when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to search for David. And David heard of it and went down to the stronghold.

18The Philistines also went and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim.

19So David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?” And the LORD said to David, “Go up, for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into your hand.”

So David went to Baal Perazim, and David defeated them there; and he said, “The LORD has broken through my enemies before me, like a breakthrough of water.” Therefore he called the name of that place Baal Perazim.

21And they left their images there, and David and his men carried them away.

Then the Philistines went up once again and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim.

Therefore David inquired of the LORD, and He said, “You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees.

24“And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the LORD will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.”

25And David did so, as the LORD commanded him; and he drove back the Philistines from Geba as far as Gezer.

The Ark Brought to Jerusalem

Again David gathered all the choice men of Israel, thirty thousand.

And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, whose name is called by the Name, the LORD of Hosts, who dwells between the cherubim.

So they set the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart.

4And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill, accompanying the ark of God; and Ahio went before the ark.

5Then David and all the house of Israel played music before the LORD on all kinds of instruments of fir wood, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on sistrums, and on cymbals.

And when they came to Nachon’s threshing floor, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled.

7Then the anger of the LORD was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error; and he died there by the ark of God.

8And David became angry because of the LORD’s outbreak against Uzzah; and he called the name of the place Perez Uzzah to this day.

9David was afraid of the LORD that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the LORD come to me?”

10So David would not move the ark of the LORD with him into the City of David; but David took it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite.

11The ark of the LORD remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite three months. And the LORD blessed Obed-Edom and all his household.

Now it was told King David, saying, “The LORD has blessed the house of Obed-Edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God.” So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with gladness.

13And so it was, when those bearing the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, that he sacrificed oxen and fatted sheep.

Then David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.

15So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet.

16Now as the ark of the LORD came into the City of David, Michal, Saul’s daughter, looked through a window and saw King David leaping and whirling before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart.

17So they brought the ark of the LORD, and set it in its place in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.

18And when David had finished offering burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts.

Then he distributed among all the people, among the whole multitude of Israel, both the women and the men, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins. So all the people departed, everyone to his house.

20Then David returned to bless his household. And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said, “How glorious was the king of Israel today, uncovering himself today in the eyes of the maids of his servants, as one of the base fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!”

21So David said to Michal, “It was before the LORD, who chose me instead of your father and all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the LORD, over Israel. Therefore I will play music before the LORD.

22“And I will be even more undignified than this, and will be humble in my own sight. But as for the maidservants of whom you have spoken, by them I will be held in honor.”

Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.

God’s Covenant with David

Now it came to pass when the king was dwelling in his house, and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies all around,

that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells inside tent curtains.”

Then Nathan said to the king, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the LORD is with you.”

4But it happened that night that the word of the LORD came to Nathan, saying,

5“Go and tell My servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Would you build a house for Me to dwell in?

6“For I have not dwelt in a house since the time that I brought the children of Israel up from Egypt, even to this day, but have moved about in a tent and in a tabernacle.

7“Wherever I have moved about with all the children of Israel, have I ever spoken a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’ ” ’

8“Now therefore, thus shall you say to My servant David, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: “I took you from the sheepfold, from following the sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel.

9“And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you, and have made you a great name, like the name of the great men who are on the earth.

“Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more; nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously,

11“since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel, and have caused you to rest from all your enemies. Also the LORD tells you that He will make you a house.

12“When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.

13“He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

14“I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.

15“But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you.

“And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”

According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.

David’s Thanksgiving to God

Then King David went in and sat before the LORD; and he said: “Who am I, O Lord GOD? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far?

19“And yet this was a small thing in Your sight, O Lord GOD; and You have also spoken of Your servant’s house for a great while to come. Is this the manner of man, O Lord GOD?

20“Now what more can David say to You? For You, Lord GOD, know Your servant.

21“For Your word’s sake, and according to Your own heart, You have done all these great things, to make Your servant know them.

22“Therefore You are great, O Lord GOD. For there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears.

23“And who is like Your people, like Israel, the one nation on the earth whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people, to make for Himself a name—and to do for Yourself great and awesome deeds for Your land—before Your people whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, the nations, and their gods?

“For You have made Your people Israel Your very own people forever; and You, LORD, have become their God.

25“Now, O LORD God, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, establish it forever and do as You have said.

26“So let Your name be magnified forever, saying, ‘The LORD of hosts is the God over Israel.’ And let the house of Your servant David be established before You.

“For You, O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, have revealed this to Your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray this prayer to You.

28“And now, O Lord GOD, You are God, and Your words are true, and You have promised this goodness to Your servant.

29“Now therefore, let it please You to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for You, O Lord GOD, have spoken it, and with Your blessing let the house of Your servant be blessed forever.”

David’s Further Conquests

After this it came to pass that David attacked the Philistines and subdued them. And David took Metheg Ammah from the hand of the Philistines.

Then he defeated Moab. Forcing them down to the ground, he measured them off with a line. With two lines he measured off those to be put to death, and with one full line those to be kept alive. So the Moabites became David’s servants, and brought tribute.

David also defeated Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his territory at the River Euphrates.

4David took from him one thousand chariots, seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand foot soldiers. Also David hamstrung all the chariot horses, except that he spared enough of them for one hundred chariots.

5When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David killed twenty-two thousand of the Syrians.

6Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became David’s servants, and brought tribute. So the LORD preserved David wherever he went.

7And David took the shields of gold that had belonged to the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.

8Also from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took a large amount of bronze.

9When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had defeated all the army of Hadadezer,

10then Toi sent Joram his son to King David, to greet him and bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him (for Hadadezer had been at war with Toi); and Joram brought with him articles of silver, articles of gold, and articles of bronze.

11King David also dedicated these to the LORD, along with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he had subdued—

12from Syria, from Moab, from the people of Ammon, from the Philistines, from Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

And David made himself a name when he returned from killing eighteen thousand Syrians in the Valley of Salt.

14He also put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the LORD preserved David wherever he went.

David’s Administration

So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered judgment and justice to all his people.

16Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder;

17Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were the priests; Seraiah was the scribe;

Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth

Now David said, “Is there still anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

2And there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba. So when they had called him to David, the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” He said, “At your service!”

Then the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, to whom I may show the kindness of God?” And Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan who is lame in his feet.”

4So the king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “Indeed he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo Debar.”

5Then King David sent and brought him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo Debar.

6Now when Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, had come to David, he fell on his face and prostrated himself. Then David said, “Mephibosheth?” And he answered, “Here is your servant!”

So David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will surely show you kindness for Jonathan your father’s sake, and will restore to you all the land of Saul your grandfather; and you shall eat bread at my table continually.”

Then he bowed himself, and said, “What is your servant, that you should look upon such a dead dog as I?”

9And the king called to Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “I have given to your master’s son all that belonged to Saul and to all his house.

10“You therefore, and your sons and your servants, shall work the land for him, and you shall bring in the harvest, that your master’s son may have food to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s son shall eat bread at my table always.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

11Then Ziba said to the king, “According to all that my lord the king has commanded his servant, so will your servant do.” “As for Mephibosheth,” said the king, “he shall eat at my table like one of the king’s sons.”

12Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Micha. And all who dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants of Mephibosheth.

So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem, for he ate continually at the king’s table. And he was lame in both his feet.

The Ammonites and Syrians Defeated

It happened after this that the king of the people of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his place.

Then David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father. And David’s servants came into the land of the people of Ammon.

3And the princes of the people of Ammon said to Hanun their lord, “Do you think that David really honors your father because he has sent comforters to you? Has David not rather sent his servants to you to search the city, to spy it out, and to overthrow it?”

Therefore Hanun took David’s servants, shaved off half of their beards, cut off their garments in the middle, at their buttocks, and sent them away.

5When they told David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Wait at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then return.”

When the people of Ammon saw that they had made themselves repulsive to David, the people of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Beth Rehob and the Syrians of Zoba, twenty thousand foot soldiers; and from the king of Maacah one thousand men, and from Ish-Tob twelve thousand men.

7Now when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army of the mighty men.

8Then the people of Ammon came out and put themselves in battle array at the entrance of the gate. And the Syrians of Zoba, Beth Rehob, Ish-Tob, and Maacah were by themselves in the field.

9When Joab saw that the battle line was against him before and behind, he chose some of Israel’s best and put them in battle array against the Syrians.

10And the rest of the people he put under the command of Abishai his brother, that he might set them in battle array against the people of Ammon.

11Then he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the people of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come and help you.

12“Be of good courage, and let us be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the LORD do what is good in His sight.”

13So Joab and the people who were with him drew near for the battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him.

When the people of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fleeing, they also fled before Abishai, and entered the city. So Joab returned from the people of Ammon and went to Jerusalem.

15When the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they gathered together.

16Then Hadadezer sent and brought out the Syrians who were beyond the River, and they came to Helam. And Shobach the commander of Hadadezer’s army went before them.

When it was told David, he gathered all Israel, crossed over the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Syrians set themselves in battle array against David and fought with him.

18Then the Syrians fled before Israel; and David killed seven hundred charioteers and forty thousand horsemen of the Syrians, and struck Shobach the commander of their army, who died there.

19And when all the kings who were servants to Hadadezer saw that they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Syrians were afraid to help the people of Ammon anymore.

David, Bathsheba, and Uriah

It happened in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.

Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king’s house. And from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold.

So David sent and inquired about the woman. And someone said, “Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

Then David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleansed from her impurity; and she returned to her house.

5And the woman conceived; so she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.”

6Then David sent to Joab, saying, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David.

7When Uriah had come to him, David asked how Joab was doing, and how the people were doing, and how the war prospered.

8And David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” So Uriah departed from the king’s house, and a gift of food from the king followed him.

9But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house.

10So when they told David, saying, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “Did you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?”

11And Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go to my house to eat and drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.”

12Then David said to Uriah, “Wait here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next.

13Now when David called him, he ate and drank before him; and he made him drunk. And at evening he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.

14In the morning it happened that David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by the hand of Uriah.

15And he wrote in the letter, saying, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may be struck down and die.”

16So it was, while Joab besieged the city, that he assigned Uriah to a place where he knew there were valiant men.

17Then the men of the city came out and fought with Joab. And some of the people of the servants of David fell; and Uriah the Hittite died also.

18Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war,

19and charged the messenger, saying, “When you have finished telling the matters of the war to the king,

20“if it happens that the king’s wrath rises, and he says to you: ‘Why did you approach so near to the city when you fought? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall?

21‘Who struck Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Was it not a woman who cast a piece of a millstone on him from the wall, so that he died in Thebez? Why did you go near the wall?’—then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’ ”

22So the messenger went, and came and told David all that Joab had sent by him.

23And the messenger said to David, “Surely the men prevailed against us and came out to us in the field; then we drove them back as far as the entrance of the gate.

24“The archers shot from the wall at your servants; and some of the king’s servants are dead, and your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.”

Then David said to the messenger, “Thus you shall say to Joab: ‘Do not let this thing displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another. Strengthen your attack against the city, and overthrow it.’ So encourage him.”

When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband.

27And when her mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.

Nathan’s Parable and David’s Confession

Then the LORD sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: “There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.

2“The rich man had exceedingly many flocks and herds.

3“But the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him.

4“And a traveler came to the rich man, who refused to take from his own flock and from his own herd to prepare one for the wayfaring man who had come to him; but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

So David’s anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who has done this shall surely die!

6“And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”

Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.

‘I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your keeping, and gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!

9‘Why have you despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in His sight? You have killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword; you have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the people of Ammon.

‘Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised Me, and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’

“Thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, I will raise up adversity against you from your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.

12‘For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, before the sun.’ ”

So David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” And Nathan said to David, “The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die.

14“However, because by this deed you have given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also who is born to you shall surely die.”

Then Nathan departed to his house.

The Death of David’s Son

And the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s wife bore to David, and it became ill.

David therefore pleaded with God for the child, and David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground.

17So the elders of his house arose and went to him, to raise him up from the ground. But he would not, nor did he eat food with them.

18Then on the seventh day it came to pass that the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead. For they said, “Indeed, while the child was alive, we spoke to him, and he would not heed our voice. How can we tell him that the child is dead? He may do some harm!”

19When David saw that his servants were whispering, David perceived that the child was dead. Therefore David said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” And they said, “He is dead.”

So David arose from the ground, washed and anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he went into the house of the LORD and worshiped. Then he went to his own house; and when he requested, they set food before him, and he ate.

21Then his servants said to him, “What is this that you have done? You fasted and wept for the child while he was alive, but when the child died, you arose and ate food.”

22And he said, “While the child was alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, ‘Who can tell whether the LORD will be gracious to me, that the child may live?’

“But now he is dead; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.”

Solomon Is Born

Then David comforted Bathsheba his wife, and went in to her and lay with her. So she bore a son, and he called his name Solomon. Now the LORD loved him,

and He sent word by the hand of Nathan the prophet: So he called his name Jedidiah, because of the LORD.

Rabbah Is Captured

26Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the people of Ammon, and took the royal city.

27And Joab sent messengers to David, and said, “I have fought against Rabbah, and I have taken the city’s water supply.

28“Now therefore, gather the rest of the people together and encamp against the city and take it, lest I take the city and it be called after my name.”

29So David gathered all the people together and went to Rabbah, fought against it, and took it.

30Then he took their king’s crown from his head. Its weight was a talent of gold, with precious stones. And it was set on David’s head. Also he brought out the spoil of the city in great abundance.

31And he brought out the people who were in it, and put them to work with saws and iron picks and iron axes, and made them cross over to the brick works. So he did to all the cities of the people of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

Amnon and Tamar

After this Absalom the son of David had a lovely sister, whose name was Tamar; and Amnon the son of David loved her.

Amnon was so distressed over his sister Tamar that he became sick; for she was a virgin. And it was improper for Amnon to do anything to her.

But Amnon had a friend whose name was Jonadab the son of Shimeah, David’s brother. Now Jonadab was a very crafty man.

4And he said to him, “Why are you, the king’s son, becoming thinner day after day? Will you not tell me?” Amnon said to him, “I love Tamar, my brother Absalom’s sister.”

5So Jonadab said to him, “Lie down on your bed and pretend to be ill. And when your father comes to see you, say to him, ‘Please let my sister Tamar come and give me food, and prepare the food in my sight, that I may see it and eat it from her hand.’ ”

Then Amnon lay down and pretended to be ill; and when the king came to see him, Amnon said to the king, “Please let Tamar my sister come and make a couple of cakes for me in my sight, that I may eat from her hand.”

7And David sent home to Tamar, saying, “Now go to your brother Amnon’s house, and prepare food for him.”

8So Tamar went to her brother Amnon’s house; and he was lying down. Then she took flour and kneaded it, made cakes in his sight, and baked the cakes.

9And she took the pan and placed them out before him, but he refused to eat. Then Amnon said, “Have everyone go out from me.” And they all went out from him.

10Then Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food into the bedroom, that I may eat from your hand.” And Tamar took the cakes which she had made, and brought them to Amnon her brother in the bedroom.

11Now when she had brought them to him to eat, he took hold of her and said to her, “Come, lie with me, my sister.”

12But she answered him, “No, my brother, do not force me, for no such thing should be done in Israel. Do not do this disgraceful thing!

13“And I, where could I take my shame? And as for you, you would be like one of the fools in Israel. Now therefore, please speak to the king; for he will not withhold me from you.”

14However, he would not heed her voice; and being stronger than she, he forced her and lay with her.

Then Amnon hated her exceedingly, so that the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her. And Amnon said to her, “Arise, be gone!”

So she said to him, “No, indeed! This evil of sending me away is worse than the other that you did to me.” But he would not listen to her.

17Then he called his servant who attended him, and said, “Here! Put this woman out, away from me, and bolt the door behind her.”

18Now she had on a robe of many colors, for the king’s virgin daughters wore such apparel. And his servant put her out and bolted the door behind her.

19Then Tamar put ashes on her head, and tore her robe of many colors that was on her, and laid her hand on her head and went away crying bitterly.

And Absalom her brother said to her, “Has Amnon your brother been with you? But now hold your peace, my sister. He is your brother; do not take this thing to heart.” So Tamar remained desolate in her brother Absalom’s house.

But when King David heard of all these things, he was very angry.

22And Absalom spoke to his brother Amnon neither good nor bad. For Absalom hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar.

Absalom Murders Amnon

And it came to pass, after two full years, that Absalom had sheepshearers in Baal Hazor, which is near Ephraim; so Absalom invited all the king’s sons.

24Then Absalom came to the king and said, “Kindly note, your servant has sheepshearers; please, let the king and his servants go with your servant.”

25But the king said to Absalom, “No, my son, let us not all go now, lest we be a burden to you.” Then he urged him, but he would not go; and he blessed him.

26Then Absalom said, “If not, please let my brother Amnon go with us.” And the king said to him, “Why should he go with you?”

27But Absalom urged him; so he let Amnon and all the king’s sons go with him.

28Now Absalom had commanded his servants, saying, “Watch now, when Amnon’s heart is merry with wine, and when I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon!’ then kill him. Do not be afraid. Have I not commanded you? Be courageous and valiant.”

29So the servants of Absalom did to Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king’s sons arose, and each one got on his mule and fled.

30And it came to pass, while they were on the way, that news came to David, saying, “Absalom has killed all the king’s sons, and not one of them is left!”

31So the king arose and tore his garments and lay on the ground, and all his servants stood by with their clothes torn.

32Then Jonadab the son of Shimeah, David’s brother, answered and said, “Let not my lord suppose they have killed all the young men, the king’s sons, for only Amnon is dead. For by the command of Absalom this has been determined from the day that he forced his sister Tamar.

33“Now therefore, let not my lord the king take the thing to his heart, to think that all the king’s sons are dead. For only Amnon is dead.”

Absalom Flees to Geshur

Then Absalom fled. And the young man who was keeping watch lifted his eyes and looked, and there, many people were coming from the road on the hillside behind him.

35And Jonadab said to the king, “Look, the king’s sons are coming; as your servant said, so it is.”

36So it was, as soon as he had finished speaking, that the king’s sons indeed came, and they lifted up their voice and wept. Also the king and all his servants wept very bitterly.

37But Absalom fled and went to Talmai the son of Ammihud, king of Geshur. And David mourned for his son every day.

38So Absalom fled and went to Geshur, and was there three years.

And King David longed to go to Absalom. For he had been comforted concerning Amnon, because he was dead.

Absalom Returns to Jerusalem

So Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king’s heart was concerned about Absalom.

2And Joab sent to Tekoa and brought from there a wise woman, and said to her, “Please pretend to be a mourner, and put on mourning apparel; do not anoint yourself with oil, but act like a woman who has been mourning a long time for the dead.

3“Go to the king and speak to him in this manner.” So Joab put the words in her mouth.

4And when the woman of Tekoa spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground and prostrated herself, and said, “Help, O king!”

5Then the king said to her, “What troubles you?” And she answered, “Indeed I am a widow, my husband is dead.

6“Now your maidservant had two sons; and the two fought with each other in the field, and there was no one to part them, but the one struck the other and killed him.

7“And now the whole family has risen up against your maidservant, and they said, ‘Deliver him who struck his brother, that we may execute him for the life of his brother whom he killed; and we will destroy the heir also.’ So they would extinguish my ember that is left, and leave to my husband neither name nor remnant on the earth.”

8Then the king said to the woman, “Go to your house, and I will give orders concerning you.”

9And the woman of Tekoa said to the king, “My lord, O king, let the iniquity be on me and on my father’s house, and the king and his throne be guiltless.”

10So the king said, “Whoever says anything to you, bring him to me, and he shall not touch you anymore.”

11Then she said, “Please let the king remember the LORD your God, and do not permit the avenger of blood to destroy anymore, lest they destroy my son.” And he said, “As the LORD lives, not one hair of your son shall fall to the ground.”

12Therefore the woman said, “Please, let your maidservant speak another word to my lord the king.” And he said, “Say on.”

13So the woman said: “Why then have you schemed such a thing against the people of God? For the king speaks this thing as one who is guilty, in that the king does not bring his banished one home again.

“For we will surely die and become like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away a life; but He devises means, so that His banished ones are not expelled from Him.

15“Now therefore, I have come to speak of this thing to my lord the king because the people have made me afraid. And your maidservant said, ‘I will now speak to the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his maidservant.

16‘For the king will hear and deliver his maidservant from the hand of the man who would destroy me and my son together from the inheritance of God.’

17“Your maidservant said, ‘The word of my lord the king will now be comforting; for as the angel of God, so is my lord the king in discerning good and evil. And may the LORD your God be with you.’ ”

18Then the king answered and said to the woman, “Please do not hide from me anything that I ask you.” And the woman said, “Please, let my lord the king speak.”

19So the king said, “Is the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman answered and said, “As you live, my lord the king, no one can turn to the right hand or to the left from anything that my lord the king has spoken. For your servant Joab commanded me, and he put all these words in the mouth of your maidservant.

20“To bring about this change of affairs your servant Joab has done this thing; but my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of the angel of God, to know everything that is in the earth.”

21And the king said to Joab, “All right, I have granted this thing. Go therefore, bring back the young man Absalom.”

22Then Joab fell to the ground on his face and bowed himself, and thanked the king. And Joab said, “Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your sight, my lord, O king, in that the king has fulfilled the request of his servant.”

23So Joab arose and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem.

24And the king said, “Let him return to his own house, but do not let him see my face.” So Absalom returned to his own house, but did not see the king’s face.

David Forgives Absalom

25Now in all Israel there was no one who was praised as much as Absalom for his good looks. From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.

26And when he cut the hair of his head—at the end of every year he cut it because it was heavy on him—when he cut it, he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels according to the king’s standard.

27To Absalom were born three sons, and one daughter whose name was Tamar. She was a woman of beautiful appearance.

28And Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem, but did not see the king’s face.

29Therefore Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king, but he would not come to him. And when he sent again the second time, he would not come.

30So he said to his servants, “See, Joab’s field is near mine, and he has barley there; go and set it on fire.” And Absalom’s servants set the field on fire.

31Then Joab arose and came to Absalom’s house, and said to him, “Why have your servants set my field on fire?”

And Absalom answered Joab, “Look, I sent to you, saying, ‘Come here, so that I may send you to the king, to say, “Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me to be there still.” ’ Now therefore, let me see the king’s face; but if there is iniquity in me, let him execute me.”

So Joab went to the king and told him. And when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king. Then the king kissed Absalom.

Absalom’s Treason

1After this it happened that Absalom provided himself with chariots and horses, and fifty men to run before him.

2Now Absalom would rise early and stand beside the way to the gate. So it was, whenever anyone who had a lawsuit came to the king for a decision, that Absalom would call to him and say, “What city are you from?” And he would say, “Your servant is from such and such a tribe of Israel.”

Then Absalom would say to him, “Look, your case is good and right; but there is no deputy of the king to hear you.”

4Moreover Absalom would say, “Oh, that I were made judge in the land, and everyone who has any suit or cause would come to me; then I would give him justice.”

5And so it was, whenever anyone came near to bow down to him, that he would put out his hand and take him and kiss him.

In this manner Absalom acted toward all Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.

7Now it came to pass after forty years that Absalom said to the king, “Please, let me go to Hebron and pay the vow which I made to the LORD.

8“For your servant took a vow while I dwelt at Geshur in Syria, saying, ‘If the LORD indeed brings me back to Jerusalem, then I will serve the LORD.’ ”

9And the king said to him, “Go in peace.” So he arose and went to Hebron.

10Then Absalom sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, “As soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then you shall say, ‘Absalom reigns in Hebron!’ ”

11And with Absalom went two hundred men invited from Jerusalem, and they went along innocently and did not know anything.

Then Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counselor, from his city—from Giloh—while he offered sacrifices. And the conspiracy grew strong, for the people with Absalom continually increased in number.

David Escapes from Jerusalem

Now a messenger came to David, saying, “The hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom.”

14So David said to all his servants who were with him at Jerusalem, “Arise, and let us flee, or we shall not escape from Absalom. Make haste to depart, lest he overtake us suddenly and bring disaster upon us, and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”

15And the king’s servants said to the king, “We are your servants, ready to do whatever my lord the king commands.”

Then the king went out with all his household after him. But the king left ten women, concubines, to keep the house.

17And the king went out with all the people after him, and stopped at the outskirts.

18Then all his servants passed before him; and all the Cherethites, all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men who had followed him from Gath, passed before the king.

19Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite, “Why are you also going with us? Return and remain with the king. For you are a foreigner and also an exile from your own place.

20“In fact, you came only yesterday. Should I make you wander up and down with us today, since I go I know not where? Return, and take your brethren back. Mercy and truth be with you.”

But Ittai answered the king and said, “As the LORD lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely in whatever place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also your servant will be.”

22So David said to Ittai, “Go, and cross over.” Then Ittai the Gittite and all his men and all the little ones who were with him crossed over.

And all the country wept with a loud voice, and all the people crossed over. The king himself also crossed over the Brook Kidron, and all the people crossed over toward the way of the wilderness.

24There was Zadok also, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God. And they set down the ark of God, and Abiathar went up until all the people had finished crossing over from the city.

Then the king said to Zadok, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the LORD, He will bring me back and show me both it and His dwelling place.

26“But if He says thus: ‘I have no delight in you,’ here I am, let Him do to me as seems good to Him.”

The king also said to Zadok the priest, “Are you not a seer? Return to the city in peace, and your two sons with you, Ahimaaz your son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar.

28“See, I will wait in the plains of the wilderness until word comes from you to inform me.”

29Therefore Zadok and Abiathar carried the ark of God back to Jerusalem. And they remained there.

So David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. And all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went up.

31Then someone told David, saying, “Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.” And David said, “O LORD, I pray, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness!”

Now it happened when David had come to the top of the mountain, where he worshiped God—there was Hushai the Archite coming to meet him with his robe torn and dust on his head.

33David said to him, “If you go on with me, then you will become a burden to me.

34“But if you return to the city, and say to Absalom, ‘I will be your servant, O king; as I was your father’s servant previously, so I will now also be your servant,’ then you may defeat the counsel of Ahithophel for me.

35“And do you not have Zadok and Abiathar the priests with you there? Therefore it will be that whatever you hear from the king’s house, you shall tell to Zadok and Abiathar the priests.

36“Indeed they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz, Zadok’s son, and Jonathan, Abiathar’s son; and by them you shall send me everything you hear.”

So Hushai, David’s friend, went into the city. And Absalom came into Jerusalem.

Mephibosheth’s Servant

When David was a little past the top of the mountain, there was Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth, who met him with a couple of saddled donkeys, and on them two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred clusters of raisins, one hundred summer fruits, and a skin of wine.

2And the king said to Ziba, “What do you mean to do with these?” So Ziba said, “The donkeys are for the king’s household to ride on, the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat, and the wine for those who are faint in the wilderness to drink.”

Then the king said, “And where is your master’s son?” And Ziba said to the king, “Indeed he is staying in Jerusalem, for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will restore the kingdom of my father to me.’ ”

4So the king said to Ziba, “Here, all that belongs to Mephibosheth is yours.” And Ziba said, “I humbly bow before you, that I may find favor in your sight, my lord, O king!”

Shimei Curses David

5Now when King David came to Bahurim, there was a man from the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei the son of Gera, coming from there. He came out, cursing continuously as he came.

6And he threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David. And all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left.

7Also Shimei said thus when he cursed: “Come out! Come out! You bloodthirsty man, you rogue!

8“The LORD has brought upon you all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the LORD has delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom your son. So now you are caught in your own evil, because you are a bloodthirsty man!”

9Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Please, let me go over and take off his head!”

10But the king said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? So let him curse, because the LORD has said to him, ‘Curse David.’ Who then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’ ”

11And David said to Abishai and all his servants, “See how my son who came from my own body seeks my life. How much more now may this Benjamite? Let him alone, and let him curse; for so the LORD has ordered him.

12“It may be that the LORD will look on my affliction, and that the LORD will repay me with good for his cursing this day.”

13And as David and his men went along the road, Shimei went along the hillside opposite him and cursed as he went, threw stones at him and kicked up dust.

Now the king and all the people who were with him became weary; so they refreshed themselves there.

The Advice of Ahithophel

Meanwhile Absalom and all the people, the men of Israel, came to Jerusalem; and Ahithophel was with him.

16And so it was, when Hushai the Archite, David’s friend, came to Absalom, that Hushai said to Absalom, “Long live the king! Long live the king!”

17So Absalom said to Hushai, “Is this your loyalty to your friend? Why did you not go with your friend?”

18And Hushai said to Absalom, “No, but whom the LORD and this people and all the men of Israel choose, his I will be, and with him I will remain.

19“Furthermore, whom should I serve? Should I not serve in the presence of his son? As I have served in your father’s presence, so will I be in your presence.”

Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Give advice as to what we should do.”

21And Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Go in to your father’s concubines, whom he has left to keep the house; and all Israel will hear that you are abhorred by your father. Then the hands of all who are with you will be strong.”

22So they pitched a tent for Absalom on the top of the house, and Absalom went in to his father’s concubines in the sight of all Israel.

23Now the advice of Ahithophel, which he gave in those days, was as if one had inquired at the oracle of God. So was all the advice of Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom.

Moreover Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Now let me choose twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue David tonight.

2“I will come upon him while he is weary and weak, and make him afraid. And all the people who are with him will flee, and I will strike only the king.

3“Then I will bring back all the people to you. When all return except the man whom you seek, all the people will be at peace.”

4And the saying pleased Absalom and all the elders of Israel.

The Advice of Hushai

5Then Absalom said, “Now call Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear what he says too.”

6And when Hushai came to Absalom, Absalom spoke to him, saying, “Ahithophel has spoken in this manner. Shall we do as he says? If not, speak up.”

So Hushai said to Absalom: “The advice that Ahithophel has given is not good at this time.

8“For,” said Hushai, “you know your father and his men, that they are mighty men, and they are enraged in their minds, like a bear robbed of her cubs in the field; and your father is a man of war, and will not camp with the people.

9“Surely by now he is hidden in some pit, or in some other place. And it will be, when some of them are overthrown at the first, that whoever hears it will say, ‘There is a slaughter among the people who follow Absalom.’

10“And even he who is valiant, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will melt completely. For all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and those who are with him are valiant men.

11“Therefore I advise that all Israel be fully gathered to you, from Dan to Beersheba, like the sand that is by the sea for multitude, and that you go to battle in person.

12“So we will come upon him in some place where he may be found, and we will fall on him as the dew falls on the ground. And of him and all the men who are with him there shall not be left so much as one.

13“Moreover, if he has withdrawn into a city, then all Israel shall bring ropes to that city; and we will pull it into the river, until there is not one small stone found there.”

14So Absalom and all the men of Israel said, “The advice of Hushai the Archite is better than the advice of Ahithophel.” For the LORD had purposed to defeat the good advice of Ahithophel, to the intent that the LORD might bring disaster on Absalom.

Hushai Warns David to Escape

15Then Hushai said to Zadok and Abiathar the priests, “Thus and so Ahithophel advised Absalom and the elders of Israel, and thus and so I have advised.

16“Now therefore, send quickly and tell David, saying, ‘Do not spend this night in the plains of the wilderness, but speedily cross over, lest the king and all the people who are with him be swallowed up.’ ”

17Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz stayed at En Rogel, for they dared not be seen coming into the city; so a female servant would come and tell them, and they would go and tell King David.

18Nevertheless a lad saw them, and told Absalom. But both of them went away quickly and came to a man’s house in Bahurim, who had a well in his court; and they went down into it.

19Then the woman took and spread a covering over the well’s mouth, and spread ground grain on it; and the thing was not known.

20And when Absalom’s servants came to the woman at the house, they said, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” So the woman said to them, “They have gone over the water brook.” And when they had searched and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem.

21Now it came to pass, after they had departed, that they came up out of the well and went and told King David, and said to David, “Arise and cross over the water quickly. For thus has Ahithophel advised against you.”

22So David and all the people who were with him arose and crossed over the Jordan. By morning light not one of them was left who had not gone over the Jordan.

Now when Ahithophel saw that his advice was not followed, he saddled a donkey, and arose and went home to his house, to his city. Then he put his household in order, and hanged himself, and died; and he was buried in his father’s tomb.

24Then David went to Mahanaim. And Absalom crossed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.

25And Absalom made Amasa captain of the army instead of Joab. This Amasa was the son of a man whose name was Jithra, an Israelite, who had gone in to Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister of Zeruiah, Joab’s mother.

26So Israel and Absalom encamped in the land of Gilead.

27Now it happened, when David had come to Mahanaim, that Shobi the son of Nahash from Rabbah of the people of Ammon, Machir the son of Ammiel from Lo Debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite from Rogelim,

28brought beds and basins, earthen vessels and wheat, barley and flour, parched grain and beans, lentils and parched seeds,

29honey and curds, sheep and cheese of the herd, for David and the people who were with him to eat. For they said, “The people are hungry and weary and thirsty in the wilderness.”

Absalom’s Defeat and Death

1And David numbered the people who were with him, and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them.

2Then David sent out one third of the people under the hand of Joab, one third under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and one third under the hand of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people, “I also will surely go out with you myself.”

3But the people answered, “You shall not go out! For if we flee away, they will not care about us; nor if half of us die, will they care about us. But you are worth ten thousand of us now. For you are now more help to us in the city.”

4Then the king said to them, “Whatever seems best to you I will do.” So the king stood beside the gate, and all the people went out by hundreds and by thousands.

Now the king had commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, saying, “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.” And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains orders concerning Absalom.

6So the people went out into the field of battle against Israel. And the battle was in the woods of Ephraim.

7The people of Israel were overthrown there before the servants of David, and a great slaughter of twenty thousand took place there that day.

8For the battle there was scattered over the face of the whole countryside, and the woods devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.

Then Absalom met the servants of David. Absalom rode on a mule. The mule went under the thick boughs of a great terebinth tree, and his head caught in the terebinth; so he was left hanging between heaven and earth. And the mule which was under him went on.

10Now a certain man saw it and told Joab, and said, “I just saw Absalom hanging in a terebinth tree!”

11So Joab said to the man who told him, “You just saw him! And why did you not strike him there to the ground? I would have given you ten shekels of silver and a belt.”

12But the man said to Joab, “Though I were to receive a thousand shekels of silver in my hand, I would not raise my hand against the king’s son. For in our hearing the king commanded you and Abishai and Ittai, saying, ‘Beware lest anyone touch the young man Absalom!’

13“Otherwise I would have dealt falsely against my own life. For there is nothing hidden from the king, and you yourself would have set yourself against me.”

14Then Joab said, “I cannot linger with you.” And he took three spears in his hand and thrust them through Absalom’s heart, while he was still alive in the midst of the terebinth tree.

15And ten young men who bore Joab’s armor surrounded Absalom, and struck and killed him.

16So Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned from pursuing Israel. For Joab held back the people.

17And they took Absalom and cast him into a large pit in the woods, and laid a very large heap of stones over him. Then all Israel fled, everyone to his tent.

18Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and set up a pillar for himself, which is in the King’s Valley. For he said, “I have no son to keep my name in remembrance.” He called the pillar after his own name. And to this day it is called Absalom’s Monument.

David Hears of Absalom’s Death

19Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said, “Let me run now and take the news to the king, how the LORD has avenged him of his enemies.”

20And Joab said to him, “You shall not take the news this day, for you shall take the news another day. But today you shall take no news, because the king’s son is dead.”

21Then Joab said to the Cushite, “Go, tell the king what you have seen.” So the Cushite bowed himself to Joab and ran.

22And Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said again to Joab, “But whatever happens, please let me also run after the Cushite.” So Joab said, “Why will you run, my son, since you have no news ready?”

23“But whatever happens,” he said, “let me run.” So he said to him, “Run.” Then Ahimaaz ran by way of the plain, and outran the Cushite.

24Now David was sitting between the two gates. And the watchman went up to the roof over the gate, to the wall, lifted his eyes and looked, and there was a man, running alone.

25Then the watchman cried out and told the king. And the king said, “If he is alone, there is news in his mouth.” And he came rapidly and drew near.

26Then the watchman saw another man running, and the watchman called to the gatekeeper and said, “There is another man, running alone!” And the king said, “He also brings news.”

27So the watchman said, “I think the running of the first is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok.” And the king said, “He is a good man, and comes with good news.”

28So Ahimaaz called out and said to the king, “All is well!” Then he bowed down with his face to the earth before the king, and said, “Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delivered up the men who raised their hand against my lord the king!”

29The king said, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” Ahimaaz answered, “When Joab sent the king’s servant and me your servant, I saw a great tumult, but I did not know what it was about.”

30And the king said, “Turn aside and stand here.” So he turned aside and stood still.

31Just then the Cushite came, and the Cushite said, “There is good news, my lord the king! For the LORD has avenged you this day of all those who rose against you.”

32And the king said to the Cushite, “Is the young man Absalom safe?” So the Cushite answered, “May the enemies of my lord the king, and all who rise against you to do harm, be like that young man!”

David’s Mourning for Absalom

Then the king was deeply moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept. And as he went, he said thus: “O my son Absalom—my son, my son Absalom—if only I had died in your place! O Absalom my son, my son!”

And Joab was told, “Behold, the king is weeping and mourning for Absalom.”

2So the victory that day was turned into mourning for all the people. For the people heard it said that day, “The king is grieved for his son.”

3And the people stole back into the city that day, as people who are ashamed steal away when they flee in battle.

4But the king covered his face, and the king cried out with a loud voice, “O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!”

Then Joab came into the house to the king, and said, “Today you have disgraced all your servants who today have saved your life, the lives of your sons and daughters, the lives of your wives and the lives of your concubines,

6“in that you love your enemies and hate your friends. For you have declared today that you regard neither princes nor servants; for today I perceive that if Absalom had lived and all of us had died today, then it would have pleased you well.

7“Now therefore, arise, go out and speak comfort to your servants. For I swear by the LORD, if you do not go out, not one will stay with you this night. And that will be worse for you than all the evil that has befallen you from your youth until now.”

Then the king arose and sat in the gate. And they told all the people, saying, “There is the king, sitting in the gate.” So all the people came before the king. For everyone of Israel had fled to his tent.

David Returns to Jerusalem

Now all the people were in a dispute throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, “The king saved us from the hand of our enemies, he delivered us from the hand of the Philistines, and now he has fled from the land because of Absalom.

10“But Absalom, whom we anointed over us, has died in battle. Now therefore, why do you say nothing about bringing back the king?”

11So King David sent to Zadok and Abiathar the priests, saying, “Speak to the elders of Judah, saying, ‘Why are you the last to bring the king back to his house, since the words of all Israel have come to the king, to his very house?

12‘You are my brethren, you are my bone and my flesh. Why then are you the last to bring back the king?’

“And say to Amasa, ‘Are you not my bone and my flesh? God do so to me, and more also, if you are not commander of the army before me continually in place of Joab.’ ”

14So he swayed the hearts of all the men of Judah, just as the heart of one man, so that they sent this word to the king: “Return, you and all your servants!”

15Then the king returned and came to the Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to escort the king across the Jordan.

16And Shimei the son of Gera, a Benjamite, who was from Bahurim, hurried and came down with the men of Judah to meet King David.

17There were a thousand men of Benjamin with him, and Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him; and they went over the Jordan before the king.

Then a ferryboat went across to carry over the king’s household, and to do what he thought good.

David’s Mercy to Shimei

Now Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king when he had crossed the Jordan.

19Then he said to the king, “Do not let my lord impute iniquity to me, or remember what wrong your servant did on the day that my lord the king left Jerusalem, that the king should take it to heart.

20“For I, your servant, know that I have sinned. Therefore here I am, the first to come today of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king.”

21But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said, “Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the LORD’s anointed?”

22And David said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah, that you should be adversaries to me today? Shall any man be put to death today in Israel? For do I not know that today I am king over Israel?”

Therefore the king said to Shimei, “You shall not die.” And the king swore to him.

David and Mephibosheth Meet

Now Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king. And he had not cared for his feet, nor trimmed his mustache, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he returned in peace.

25So it was, when he had come to Jerusalem to meet the king, that the king said to him, “Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?”

26And he answered, “My lord, O king, my servant deceived me. For your servant said, ‘I will saddle a donkey for myself, that I may ride on it and go to the king,’ because your servant is lame.

27“And he has slandered your servant to my lord the king, but my lord the king is like the angel of God. Therefore do what is good in your eyes.

28“For all my father’s house were but dead men before my lord the king. Yet you set your servant among those who eat at your own table. Therefore what right have I still to cry out anymore to the king?”

29So the king said to him, “Why do you speak anymore of your matters? I have said, ‘You and Ziba divide the land.’ ”

Then Mephibosheth said to the king, “Rather, let him take it all, inasmuch as my lord the king has come back in peace to his own house.”

David’s Kindness to Barzillai

And Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim and went across the Jordan with the king, to escort him across the Jordan.

32Now Barzillai was a very aged man, eighty years old. And he had provided the king with supplies while he stayed at Mahanaim, for he was a very rich man.

33And the king said to Barzillai, “Come across with me, and I will provide for you while you are with me in Jerusalem.”

34But Barzillai said to the king, “How long have I to live, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem?

35“I am today eighty years old. Can I discern between the good and bad? Can your servant taste what I eat or what I drink? Can I hear any longer the voice of singing men and singing women? Why then should your servant be a further burden to my lord the king?

36“Your servant will go a little way across the Jordan with the king. And why should the king repay me with such a reward?

37“Please let your servant turn back again, that I may die in my own city, near the grave of my father and mother. But here is your servant Chimham; let him cross over with my lord the king, and do for him what seems good to you.”

38And the king answered, “Chimham shall cross over with me, and I will do for him what seems good to you. Now whatever you request of me, I will do for you.”

39Then all the people went over the Jordan. And when the king had crossed over, the king kissed Barzillai and blessed him, and he returned to his own place.

The Quarrel About the King

40Now the king went on to Gilgal, and Chimham went on with him. And all the people of Judah escorted the king, and also half the people of Israel.

Just then all the men of Israel came to the king, and said to the king, “Why have our brethren, the men of Judah, stolen you away and brought the king, his household, and all David’s men with him across the Jordan?”

42So all the men of Judah answered the men of Israel, “Because the king is a close relative of ours. Why then are you angry over this matter? Have we ever eaten at the king’s expense? Or has he given us any gift?”

43And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said, “We have ten shares in the king; therefore we also have more right to David than you. Why then do you despise us—were we not the first to advise bringing back our king?” Yet the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.

The Rebellion of Sheba

And there happened to be there a rebel, whose name was Sheba the son of Bichri, a Benjamite. And he blew a trumpet, and said:

“We have no share in David,

Nor do we have inheritance in the son of Jesse;

Every man to his tents, O Israel!”

2So every man of Israel deserted David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri. But the men of Judah, from the Jordan as far as Jerusalem, remained loyal to their king.

3Now David came to his house at Jerusalem. And the king took the ten women, his concubines whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in seclusion and supported them, but did not go in to them. So they were shut up to the day of their death, living in widowhood.

4And the king said to Amasa, “Assemble the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself.”

5So Amasa went to assemble the men of Judah. But he delayed longer than the set time which David had appointed him.

6And David said to Abishai, “Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord’s servants and pursue him, lest he find for himself fortified cities, and escape us.”

7So Joab’s men, with the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and all the mighty men, went out after him. And they went out of Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.

8When they were at the large stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came before them. Now Joab was dressed in battle armor; on it was a belt with a sword fastened in its sheath at his hips; and as he was going forward, it fell out.

9Then Joab said to Amasa, “Are you in health, my brother?” And Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him.

But Amasa did not notice the sword that was in Joab’s hand. And he struck him with it in the stomach, and his entrails poured out on the ground; and he did not strike him again. Thus he died. Then Joab and Abishai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri.

11Meanwhile one of Joab’s men stood near Amasa, and said, “Whoever favors Joab and whoever is for David—follow Joab!”

12But Amasa wallowed in his blood in the middle of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people stood still, he moved Amasa from the highway to the field and threw a garment over him, when he saw that everyone who came upon him halted.

13When he was removed from the highway, all the people went on after Joab to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.

14And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel and Beth Maachah and all the Berites. So they were gathered together and also went after Sheba.

15Then they came and besieged him in Abel of Beth Maachah; and they cast up a siege mound against the city, and it stood by the rampart. And all the people who were with Joab battered the wall to throw it down.

Then a wise woman cried out from the city, “Hear, hear! Please say to Joab, ‘Come nearby, that I may speak with you.’ ”

17When he had come near to her, the woman said, “Are you Joab?” He answered, “I am.” Then she said to him, “Hear the words of your maidservant.” And he answered, “I am listening.”

18So she spoke, saying, “They used to talk in former times, saying, ‘They shall surely seek guidance at Abel,’ and so they would end disputes.

19“I am among the peaceable and faithful in Israel. You seek to destroy a city and a mother in Israel. Why would you swallow up the inheritance of the LORD?”

20And Joab answered and said, “Far be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or destroy!

21“That is not so. But a man from the mountains of Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, has raised his hand against the king, against David. Deliver him only, and I will depart from the city.” So the woman said to Joab, “Watch, his head will be thrown to you over the wall.”

22Then the woman in her wisdom went to all the people. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and threw it out to Joab. Then he blew a trumpet, and they withdrew from the city, every man to his tent. So Joab returned to the king at Jerusalem.

David’s Government Officers

23And Joab was over all the army of Israel; Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites;

24Adoram was in charge of revenue; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder;

25Sheva was scribe; Zadok and Abiathar were the priests;

26and Ira the Jairite was a chief minister under David.

David Avenges the Gibeonites

Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, “It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house, because he killed the Gibeonites.”

So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; the children of Israel had sworn protection to them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.

3Therefore David said to the Gibeonites, “What shall I do for you? And with what shall I make atonement, that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD?”

4And the Gibeonites said to him, “We will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house, nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us.” So he said, “Whatever you say, I will do for you.”

5Then they answered the king, “As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel,

6“let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us, and we will hang them before the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD chose.” And the king said, “I will give them.”

7But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the LORD’s oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.

8So the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite;

9and he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them on the hill before the LORD. So they fell, all seven together, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest.

10Now Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until the late rains poured on them from heaven. And she did not allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night.

11And David was told what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done.

12Then David went and took the bones of Saul, and the bones of Jonathan his son, from the men of Jabesh Gilead who had stolen them from the street of Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them up, after the Philistines had struck down Saul in Gilboa.

13So he brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there; and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged.

They buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zelah, in the tomb of Kish his father. So they performed all that the king commanded. And after that God heeded the prayer for the land.

Philistine Giants Destroyed

When the Philistines were at war again with Israel, David and his servants with him went down and fought against the Philistines; and David grew faint.

16Then Ishbi-Benob, who was one of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose bronze spear was three hundred shekels, who was bearing a new sword, thought he could kill David.

17But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “You shall go out no more with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”

18Now it happened afterward that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbechai the Hushathite killed Saph, who was one of the sons of the giant.

19Again there was war at Gob with the Philistines, where Elhanan the son of Jaare-Oregim the Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.

20Yet again there was war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature, who had six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot, twenty-four in number; and he also was born to the giant.

21So when he defied Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, killed him.

These four were born to the giant in Gath, and fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.

Praise for God’s Deliverance

Then David spoke to the LORD the words of this song, on the day when the LORD had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul.

And he said:

“The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;

3The God of my strength, in whom I will trust;

My shield and the horn of my salvation,

My stronghold and my refuge;

My Savior, You save me from violence.

4I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised;

So shall I be saved from my enemies.

5“When the waves of death surrounded me,

The floods of ungodliness made me afraid.

6The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me;

The snares of death confronted me.

In my distress I called upon the LORD,

And cried out to my God;

He heard my voice from His temple,

And my cry entered His ears.

8“Then the earth shook and trembled;

The foundations of heaven quaked and were shaken,

Because He was angry.

9Smoke went up from His nostrils,

And devouring fire from His mouth;

Coals were kindled by it.

10He bowed the heavens also, and came down

With darkness under His feet.

11He rode upon a cherub, and flew;

And He was seen upon the wings of the wind.

12He made darkness canopies around Him,

Dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.

13From the brightness before Him

Coals of fire were kindled.

14“The LORD thundered from heaven,

And the Most High uttered His voice.

15He sent out arrows and scattered them;

Lightning bolts, and He vanquished them.

16Then the channels of the sea were seen,

The foundations of the world were uncovered,

At the rebuke of the LORD,

At the blast of the breath of His nostrils.

17“He sent from above, He took me,

He drew me out of many waters.

18He delivered me from my strong enemy,

From those who hated me;

For they were too strong for me.

19They confronted me in the day of my calamity,

But the LORD was my support.

20He also brought me out into a broad place;

He delivered me because He delighted in me.

“The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness;

According to the cleanness of my hands

He has recompensed me.

22For I have kept the ways of the LORD,

And have not wickedly departed from my God.

23For all His judgments were before me;

And as for His statutes, I did not depart from them.

24I was also blameless before Him,

And I kept myself from my iniquity.

25Therefore the LORD has recompensed me according to my righteousness,

According to my cleanness in His eyes.

“With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful;

With a blameless man You will show Yourself blameless;

27With the pure You will show Yourself pure;

And with the devious You will show Yourself shrewd.

28You will save the humble people;

But Your eyes are on the haughty, that You may bring them down.

“For You are my lamp, O LORD;

The LORD shall enlighten my darkness.

30For by You I can run against a troop;

By my God I can leap over a wall.

31As for God, His way is perfect;

The word of the LORD is proven;

He is a shield to all who trust in Him.

32“For who is God, except the LORD?

And who is a rock, except our God?

33God is my strength and power,

And He makes my way perfect.

34He makes my feet like the feet of deer,

And sets me on my high places.

35He teaches my hands to make war,

So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

36“You have also given me the shield of Your salvation;

Your gentleness has made me great.

37You enlarged my path under me;

So my feet did not slip.

38“I have pursued my enemies and destroyed them;

Neither did I turn back again till they were destroyed.

39And I have destroyed them and wounded them,

So that they could not rise;

They have fallen under my feet.

40For You have armed me with strength for the battle;

You have subdued under me those who rose against me.

41You have also given me the necks of my enemies,

So that I destroyed those who hated me.

42They looked, but there was none to save;

Even to the LORD, but He did not answer them.

43Then I beat them as fine as the dust of the earth;

I trod them like dirt in the streets,

And I spread them out.

44“You have also delivered me from the strivings of my people;

You have kept me as the head of the nations.

A people I have not known shall serve me.

45The foreigners submit to me;

As soon as they hear, they obey me.

46The foreigners fade away,

And come frightened from their hideouts.

“The LORD lives!

Blessed be my Rock!

Let God be exalted,

The Rock of my salvation!

48It is God who avenges me,

And subdues the peoples under me;

49He delivers me from my enemies.

You also lift me up above those who rise against me;

You have delivered me from the violent man.

Therefore I will give thanks to You, O LORD, among the Gentiles,

And sing praises to Your name.

“He is the tower of salvation to His king,

And shows mercy to His anointed,

To David and his descendants forevermore.”

David’s Last Words

Now these are the last words of David.

Thus says David the son of Jesse;

Thus says the man raised up on high,

The anointed of the God of Jacob,

And the sweet psalmist of Israel:

2“The Spirit of the LORD spoke by me,

And His word was on my tongue.

The God of Israel said,

The Rock of Israel spoke to me:

‘He who rules over men must be just,

Ruling in the fear of God.

4And he shall be like the light of the morning when the sun rises,

A morning without clouds,

Like the tender grass springing out of the earth,

By clear shining after rain.’

5“Although my house is not so with God,

Yet He has made with me an everlasting covenant,

Ordered in all things and secure.

For this is all my salvation and all my desire;

Will He not make it increase?

But the sons of rebellion shall all be as thorns thrust away,

Because they cannot be taken with hands.

7But the man who touches them

Must be armed with iron and the shaft of a spear,

And they shall be utterly burned with fire in their place.”

David’s Mighty Men

8These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb-Basshebeth the Tachmonite, chief among the captains. He was called Adino the Eznite, because he had killed eight hundred men at one time.

9And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle, and the men of Israel had retreated.

10He arose and attacked the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand stuck to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to plunder.

11And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines had gathered together into a troop where there was a piece of ground full of lentils. So the people fled from the Philistines.

12But he stationed himself in the middle of the field, defended it, and killed the Philistines. So the LORD brought about a great victory.

Then three of the thirty chief men went down at harvest time and came to David at the cave of Adullam. And the troop of Philistines encamped in the Valley of Rephaim.

14David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.

15And David said with longing, “Oh, that someone would give me a drink of the water from the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate!”

16So the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines, drew water from the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and took it and brought it to David. Nevertheless he would not drink it, but poured it out to the LORD.

And he said, “Far be it from me, O LORD, that I should do this! Is this not the blood of the men who went in jeopardy of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. These things were done by the three mighty men.

18Now Abishai the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of another three. He lifted his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name among these three.

19Was he not the most honored of three? Therefore he became their captain. However, he did not attain to the first three.

20Benaiah was the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man from Kabzeel, who had done many deeds. He had killed two lion-like heroes of Moab. He also had gone down and killed a lion in the midst of a pit on a snowy day.

21And he killed an Egyptian, a spectacular man. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand; so he went down to him with a staff, wrested the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and killed him with his own spear.

22These things Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did, and won a name among three mighty men.

23He was more honored than the thirty, but he did not attain to the first three. And David appointed him over his guard.

24Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem,

25Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite,

26Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite,

27Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite,

28Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,

29Heleb the son of Baanah (the Netophathite), Ittai the son of Ribai from Gibeah of the children of Benjamin,

30Benaiah a Pirathonite, Hiddai from the brooks of Gaash,

31Abi-Albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite,

32Eliahba the Shaalbonite (of the sons of Jashen), Jonathan,

33Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Hararite,

34Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite,

35Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite,

36Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite,

37Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite (armorbearer of Joab the son of Zeruiah),

38Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite,

39and Uriah the Hittite: thirty-seven in all.

David’s Census of Israel and Judah

Again the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”

2So the king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him, “Now go throughout all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and count the people, that I may know the number of the people.”

And Joab said to the king, “Now may the LORD your God add to the people a hundred times more than there are, and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king desire this thing?”

4Nevertheless the king’s word prevailed against Joab and against the captains of the army. Therefore Joab and the captains of the army went out from the presence of the king to count the people of Israel.

5And they crossed over the Jordan and camped in Aroer, on the right side of the town which is in the midst of the ravine of Gad, and toward Jazer.

6Then they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtim Hodshi; they came to Dan Jaan and around to Sidon;

7and they came to the stronghold of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and the Canaanites. Then they went out to South Judah as far as Beersheba.

8So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.

9Then Joab gave the sum of the number of the people to the king. And there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.

The Judgment on David’s Sin

And David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, I pray, O LORD, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly.”

11Now when David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying,

12“Go and tell David, ‘Thus says the LORD: “I offer you three things; choose one of them for yourself, that I may do it to you.” ’ ”

13So Gad came to David and told him; and he said to him, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or shall you flee three months before your enemies, while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ plague in your land? Now consider and see what answer I should take back to Him who sent me.”

14And David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Please let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for His mercies are great; but do not let me fall into the hand of man.”

So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel from the morning till the appointed time. From Dan to Beersheba seventy thousand men of the people died.

16And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

17Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Surely I have sinned, and I have done wickedly; but these sheep, what have they done? Let Your hand, I pray, be against me and against my father’s house.”

The Altar on the Threshing Floor

And Gad came that day to David and said to him, “Go up, erect an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”

19So David, according to the word of Gad, went up as the LORD commanded.

20Now Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming toward him. So Araunah went out and bowed before the king with his face to the ground.

21Then Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” And David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you, to build an altar to the LORD, that the plague may be withdrawn from the people.”

22Now Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up whatever seems good to him. Look, here are oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing implements and the yokes of the oxen for wood.

23“All these, O king, Araunah has given to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the LORD your God accept you.”

24Then the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God with that which costs me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

25And David built there an altar to the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. So the LORD heeded the prayers for the land, and the plague was withdrawn from Israel.

Annotations for 2 Samuel

Scripture gives us three accounts of the death of Saul and his sons: , the report of the messenger here in , and the record in .

On the day that David was slaughtering the Amalekites, the Philistines were overpowering Saul and his army at Mount Gilboa, where they killed Saul and three of his sons (; ). The next day, while David was returning to Ziklag, the Philistines were humiliating Saul by desecrating his body and the bodies of his sons, and the Amalekite messenger was starting off to bring the news to David. It took David at least three days to get to Ziklag, which was about eighty miles from the scene of the battle. So it was on David’s third day in Ziklag that he received the tragic news that Israel had been defeated and that Saul and three of Saul’s sons were dead.

According to , , Saul killed himself by falling on his sword, but the messenger said he had killed Saul to save him from experiencing further agony and humiliation. The likely explanation is that the messenger was lying.

, There is no question that the man had been on the battlefield. While searching for spoils, he found the corpses of Saul and his sons before the Philistines had identified them, and he took Saul’s insignias of kingship, his golden armband, and the gold chaplet he wore on his helmet. The Amalekite didn’t kill Saul as he claimed, however, because Saul and his sons were already dead. But by making that claim, he lost his own life.

In slaying the messenger, David vindicated Saul and his sons and demonstrated publicly that he had not been Saul’s enemy and was not rejoicing at Saul’s death. Honoring Saul was dangerous because David and his men were living in Philistine territory, and the Philistine king still considered David to be his friend and ally. For David to take his stand with the dead king of Israel could be considered an act of treason. But the Lord had vindicated David, and David had vindicated Saul—and David was not afraid. Whatever shortcomings and sins we find in David’s life, one of his stellar qualities, worth imitating, was his persistent trust in God.

, David’s grief over the deaths of Saul and Jonathan was sincere, and to help the people remember them, he wrote a touching elegy in their honor. He ordered this lament to be taught and sung in his ancestral tribe of Judah; no doubt people in other tribes learned and appreciated it as well.

One of the key words in this chapter is “fallen,” found in verses , , , , and . When Saul began his royal career, he was described as “From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people” (; see also and ), but he ended his career a fallen king. He fell on his face in fear in the house of the spirit medium (), and he fell on the battlefield before the enemy (). The dangers of losing our way and falling from what we know are always present. We need to remember the counsel of , “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.”

To David, Jonathan and Saul weren’t just great soldiers; they were also gracious people who were beloved in life and loyal to each other and to the people, even in death. From his meeting with Samuel in the medium’s house, Saul knew that he and his sons would die that day in battle (), yet he entered the contest determined to do his best. Jonathan knew that his father had disobeyed God and had sinned against David, yet he stayed at his side in the fight. Even though the army of Israel was defeated, David wanted the people to remember the greatness of their king and his sons.

In composing and teaching this elegy, David may have had several purposes in mind. For one thing, he honored Saul and Jonathan, teaching the people to respect the monarchy. Since Saul was Israel’s first king, the people might conclude that all their kings would follow his bad example and possibly ruin the nation, so David sought to strengthen the concept of monarchy. The song also clearly demonstrated that David held no grudges against his father-in-law and sovereign. Finally, David set an example for all of us to follow in paying loving tribute to those who have died in battle to protect their country.

When David settled in Hebron, his return to Judah was the signal for his people to recognize him as their leader; so the elders of Judah anointed David a second time and made him king (see ).

In his accession to the throne of Israel, David illustrates the career of Jesus Christ, the Son of David. Like David the shepherd, Jesus came first as a humble servant and was anointed king privately. Like David the exile, Jesus is King today but doesn’t yet reign on the throne of David. Like Saul in David’s day, Satan is still free to obstruct God’s work and oppose God’s people. One day, Jesus will return in glory, Satan will be imprisoned, and Jesus will reign in His glorious kingdom (). God’s people today faithfully pray, “Your Kingdom come soon” () and eagerly await the return of their King.

Jabesh Gilead was located across the Jordan in the tribe of Gad, and the men who recovered the bodies had to travel northwest and cross the Jordan River to reach Beth Shan, a round trip of perhaps twenty miles. It was a courageous endeavor, and David thanked them for their devotion to Saul and to the kingdom of Israel. They had displayed loyalty, and the Lord would show them loyalty and unfailing love. Twenty-five years later, David would disinter the remains of Saul and the sons who died with him and rebury them in their native tribe of Benjamin ().

Unfortunately, the people of Jabesh Gilead didn’t choose to submit to David but instead followed Abner and Saul’s weak son Ishbosheth. They allowed their affection for Saul to blind them to God’s plan for the nation. They had a good motive, but they made a bad choice. How often in the history of the church have God’s people allowed human affection and appreciation to overrule the will of God! Jesus Christ is King, and He deserves our submission, loyalty, and obedience. To put human leaders ahead of God’s anointed King is to create division and weakness in the ranks of the Lord’s followers and invite multiplied problems for the Lord’s people.

The people of Judah obeyed God’s will and anointed David as their king, but Abner disobeyed the Lord and made Saul’s one remaining son, Ishbosheth, the king of “all Israel.” Abner knew that David was God’s choice, a gifted leader and a brave soldier, but he deliberately rebelled against the Lord and appointed Ishbosheth. Most of what Abner did during the next seven and a half years wasn’t for the glory of God or the strengthening of Israel, but for his own self-interest. He was taking care of number one.

Abner put Ishbosheth on the throne. This scenario has modern parallels, for our political and religious worlds are populated by these same three kinds of people. We have weak people, like Ishbosheth, who get where they are because they have “connections.” We have strong, selfish people, like Abner, who know how to manipulate others for their own personal profit. We also have people of God, like David, who are called, anointed, and equipped but must wait for God’s time before they can serve. It is tragic when churches and other ministries bypass God’s chosen men and women and put unqualified people into places of leadership just because they are well-known or have “connections.”

When Abner made Ishbosheth king, he was actually declaring war on David, and Abner knew it. Within a short time Abner had all the tribes except Judah behind him, and he felt he could easily defeat David in battle and take over the entire kingdom. But Abner was rebelling against God while David was God’s chosen leader! And God always has the last word.

The phrase “a long war” (vv. , ) suggests a state of hostility for two years with occasional clashes rather than one long battle. David was biding his time, knowing that God would keep His promises and give him the throne of Israel. David’s government in Hebron was going from strength to strength (), while the alliance of tribes under Ishbosheth and Abner was getting weaker. The astute Abner, however, was using his position in the house of Saul to strengthen his own authority, for he was getting ready to make David an offer the king couldn’t resist ().

David’s family was also increasing (see also ), and he now had a growing harem like any other Eastern monarch. Of course, David’s son Solomon would go far beyond what his father had done or what any Jewish king would do (). David had moved to Hebron with two wives, and now he had six sons by six different wives. Polygamy began with Lamech, a descendant of Cain (), and was tolerated in Israel, but it was forbidden to Israel’s kings ().

Catalyst

The list of David’s children () provides the framework for the unfolding story of a family tragedy. Amnon, David’s firstborn, would rape his half-sister Tamar (ch. ) and be murdered by Tamar’s full brother Absalom, who would be killed while trying to take the kingdom from his father (chs. ). The fact that Absalom was related to royalty on his mother’s side might have encouraged his crusade for the kingdom. No doubt David’s marriage to Maacah was politically motivated so that David would have an ally near Ishbosheth. During David’s final illness, Adonijah would try to capture the throne and would be executed by Solomon (). We know nothing about Shephatiah and his mother Abital, and Ithream and his mother Eglah. After relocating his capital in Jerusalem, David took even more wives and concubines and had eleven more sons born to him ().

Children are not punished by God for their parents’ sins, but the consequences of their parents’ sins often impact the children in terrible ways. Godly parenting always includes the recognition that our children are watching our actions and imitating our habits. Our task is to give them the best possible example in every area of our lives.

Go to the

This episode during which Abner negotiates for David is a good example of ancient “shuttle diplomacy.”

1. Abner sent messengers to David, offering to bring all Israel under his rule (v. ).

2. David sent messengers to Abner accepting his offer, provided Abner would first bring Michal to him. She was David’s wife and Ishbosheth’s sister (v. ).

3. Abner told Ishbosheth to honor David’s request, and David also sent Ishbosheth a message asking that Michal be sent to Hebron (v. ).

4. Abner conferred with the elders of Israel (vv. , ).

5. Abner conferred with the leaders of Benjamin (v. ).

6. Abner and twenty representatives from the tribes came to Hebron, bringing Michal with them (vv. , , ).

7. Abner and David agreed on how to transfer the kingdom, and they shared a feast and made a covenant (v. ).

Why did David make the return of Michal a condition for further negotiation? First of all, she was still his wife, even though Saul had given her to another man. Ten years before, when they were wed, Michal loved David very much (), and we have reason to believe that David loved her. Inviting his “queen” to join with him would be good diplomacy, and the fact that she was from the house of Saul helped to strengthen the bonds of unity. By claiming the daughter of Saul, David was also claiming the entire kingdom. So Abner bringing Michal to Hebron was a public announcement that he had broken with the house of Saul and was now allied with David.

The text records no reply from David to Joab’s rebuke. David’s silence wasn’t that of agreement because he didn’t agree with his general; it was the silence of restraint and the evidence of a deep desire to put the nation back together again. David wasn’t promoting “peace at any price” because he was a man of integrity, but he wasn’t prepared to let his impetuous general conduct a personal vendetta in the name of the king. The sentiments of could certainly apply to David’s situation at this time.

Joab accused Abner of being a liar but practiced deception himself! We’re often guilty of the sins we say others commit, and “it takes a thief to catch a thief.” Traits that really bother us in others can be a clue to problems in our own lives.

The situation surrounding Abner’s death reminds us of the parable of the prodigal son (). Abner, the “prodigal soldier,” was coming home, and David gave him a banquet. Joab, the faithful “elder brother,” might say to David, “I’ve been faithful to you and risked my life, and yet you never gave me a banquet!”

The phrase “all the people who were with him” is used seven times in vv. . It refers to the men in Joab’s army (; ). David commanded them all to tear their garments, put on burlap, and weep over the death of a great man, and David himself followed the bier to the place of interment. He was again honoring an enemy.

David was frustrated with his inability to control family members. David had experienced God’s gentleness (), and he tried to deal with others as God had dealt with him. He no doubt went too far in this approach when it came to his own family (, ), but David was a man after God’s own heart (). In this case, all David could do was to leave the judgment with the Lord, for God never makes a mistake.

The account of Baanah and Rechab reminds us of the Amalekite (ch. ) who claimed to have killed Saul. These two men were minor officers in Abner’s army who thought they could earn rewards and promotion from David if they killed Ishbosheth. As with the Amalekite, they were wrong. David was not going to take the throne by subterfuge. He was waiting for God’s timing.

David’s answer made it clear that at no time in his career had he ever broken God’s commandment by murdering somebody in order to accomplish his purposes. The Lord had watched over him and protected him during ten years of exile and now more than seven years as king in Hebron. Unfortunately, David failed to maintain his integrity later on (ch. ), and this statement came back to haunt him. David’s life is another example for us of the biblical warning, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” ().

, Saul had been “the people’s king” but he wasn’t the Lord’s first choice, for God had given him as a judgment against Israel because they wanted to be like the other nations (; ). The Lord loved His people and knew they needed a shepherd, so he equipped David to be their king. Unlike Saul, a Benjaminite, David was from the royal tribe of Judah () and was born and raised in Bethlehem. Because of this, He was able to establish the dynasty that brought the Messiah Jesus Christ into the world, who also was born in Bethlehem.

, Now the elders of the whole nation anointed David and proclaimed him as their king. No amateur, David was a seasoned warrior and a gifted leader who obviously had the blessing of the Lord on his life and ministry. After experiencing years of turbulence and division, the nation at last had a king who was God’s choice and the people’s choice. God takes time to prepare His leaders; much to be pitied is the person who “succeeds” without His preparation and blessing.

Catalyst

In Paul references four “rulers”: He says that sin ruled over all the people (), that death rules over many (), but that through Christ God’s wonderful grace rules (), and that all who receive God’s grace rule, or “triumph” over sin and death (). These four “rulers” were certainly active in David’s life. Sin was reigning, as men lied to each other, hated each other, and sought to destroy each other. Death also reigned, as Asahel, Abner, and Ishbosheth were slain, along with nearly four hundred soldiers who died at the battle of the pool of Gibeon. God’s grace reigned, for He protected David and overruled men’s sins to accomplish His divine purposes. “But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more” (). And David was triumphant, for he let God control him as he faced one emergency after another. He was a man empowered by God, and God brought him through each crisis and helped him to succeed.

In the midst of today’s troubles and trials, God’s people can “triumph” in life, if we will surrender to Christ, wait on Him, and trust His promises.

Go to the

When David chose Jerusalem as his capital, political considerations were important but so was security, and the topography of Jerusalem made it an ideal royal city. Built on a rocky hill and surrounded on three sides by valleys and hills, the city was vulnerable only on the north side. The Valley of Hinnom lay on the south, the Kidron Valley on the east, and the Tyropean Valley on the west. and praise Jerusalem’s features. The Jewish people have always loved the city of Jerusalem, and today it is revered by Jews, Christians, and Muslims. To be born in Jerusalem was a high honor indeed ().

The Jebusites who lived in Jerusalem thought their citadel was impregnable and that even the blind and the lame could defend it, a boast that made David angry. He knew the Lord had promised Moses that Israel would conquer all the nations living in Canaan, including the Jebusites (, ; , ; ), so by faith he planned his attack.

David’s palace was probably built for him after his successful wars against the Philistines (vv. ), and this may have been Hiram’s way of recognizing David’s accession to the throne. No doubt the Phoenician king also appreciated the fact that David had defeated his warlike neighbors, the Philistines.

, Scripture has four lists of David’s children—those born while he reigned in Hebron () and those born after he moved to Jerusalem (; ; ).

Some commentators believe that the Gadite warriors joined David’s army at this time (), and this was probably the occasion when three of David’s “mighty men” broke through the Philistine lines and obtained for David water from the Bethlehem well (; ). Doing this took a great deal of faith and courage, and they did this in response to a desire in David’s heart and not an order from his lips. They obtained the water because they loved their king and wanted to please him. What an example for us to follow!

By these victories Israel regained the territory that Saul had lost in his last battle. In subsequent campaigns, David also took back the cities the Philistines had taken from Saul (; ). David had repeated battles with the Philistines, and the Lord gave him one victory after another ().

The people had long recognized that David was a brave and skillful warrior, and these two victories added greater glory to God and honor to His servant. By defeating the Philistines, David gave notice to Israel’s enemies that they had better be careful what they did to him and his people.

, What was the sound in the tops of the trees? Only the wind? Angels ()? God coming to lead His people to victory? The strategy worked, and David crushed the enemy. Believing God doesn’t mean that we can always recognize how He works on our behalf. Our task is to trust Him and live in obedience.

Why did David want the ark in Jerusalem? For one thing, he wanted to honor the Lord and give Him His rightful place as King of the nation. But David also had a secret desire in his heart to build a sanctuary for the Lord (ch. ; ), and the first step would be to place the ark in the capital city. David knew that the Lord desired a central sanctuary (, , ; , ; , , ; ), and he hoped God would let him build it.

The ark of the covenant was to be kept in the Most Holy Place of the tabernacle, for it symbolized the glorious throne of God (; ); but for over seventy-five years, the ark had been absent from the divine sanctuary at Shiloh. The Philistines captured the ark when Eli was high priest () and then returned it to the Israelites because the Lord sent judgment on the Philistines. First the ark was sent to Beth Shemesh; then it was taken to Kirjath Jearim and guarded in the house of Abinadab (). There it had stayed.

But one thing is missing: There is no record that David sought the mind of the Lord in this matter. Relocating the ark to Jerusalem seemed a wise idea, and everybody was enthusiastic about doing it; but the king didn’t follow his usual pattern of asking the Lord for His directions. After all, what pleases the king and the people may not please God, and what doesn’t please God will not have His blessing.

When they used a new cart drawn by oxen, they were following the pattern of the pagan Philistines (), not the pattern given to Moses on Mount Sinai (). The lesson here is obvious: God’s work must be done in God’s way if it is to have God’s blessing.

, When it looked as though the ark would fall from the cart, Uzzah presumptuously took hold of it to steady it, and he was killed. God had warned about this in the Law of Moses, and every Israelite surely knew of it (; , ). There’s no evidence that Abinadab was a Levite or that his sons Uzzah and Ahio were even qualified to be near the ark, let alone touch it. David quickly had the ark taken into the house of Obed-Edom, a Levite (, , ; ; , ), and there it remained for three months.

When David heard that the presence of the ark was bringing blessing to the household of Obed-Edom, he wanted that blessing for himself and his people. The ark belonged in the tent he had erected for it in Jerusalem. Since 1 and 2 Chronicles were written from the priestly viewpoint, the account of the second attempt in Chronicles is much fuller than the record in 2 Samuel ().

David danced enthusiastically in worship before the Lord and dressed for the occasion in a priestly linen ephod. Later, his wife accused him of shamelessly exposing himself (v. ), but informs us that he was also wearing a royal robe under the ephod. Though not from the tribe of Levi, David was acting as both king and priest—a picture of Jesus, the Son of David, who holds both offices “in the order of Melchizedek” (; see ).

David’s dance was personal and sincere, and he did it before the Lord as he celebrated the coming of His presence into the capital city. Some of the Psalms (; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; see also ) probably reflect his thoughts and feelings on that occasion. In ancient times, dancing played a part in both pagan and Hebrew worship () as well as in the celebrations of special occasions, such as weddings, family gatherings (), and military victories ().

When the ark was safely installed in the tent, David blessed the people (another priestly act) and gave each person some bread and flesh (or wine) and a cake of raisins. Once again we’re reminded of the priest-king Melchizedek, who came from Salem and gave Abraham bread and wine (, ).

Michal’s barrenness was a blessing from the Lord. It prevented Saul’s family line from continuing in Israel and therefore threatening the throne of David. The Lord wanted the lineage and throne of David to be kept apart from any other dynasty because David’s line would culminate in the birth of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

That David wanted to build a house for the Lord isn’t surprising because David was a man after God’s own heart and longed to honor Him in every possible way. During David’s years of exile, he had vowed to the Lord that he would build Him a temple (), and his bringing the ark to Jerusalem was surely the first step toward fulfilling that vow. Now it troubled David that he was living in a comfortable stone house with cedar paneling while God’s throne was in a tent, and he shared his burden with Nathan.

This is the first appearance of Nathan in Scripture. Gad had been David’s prophet during his exile (), and after David’s coronation, Gad didn’t pass from the scene (). In fact, he and Nathan worked together keeping the official records (, ) and organizing the worship (), but Nathan seems to have been the prophetic voice of God to David during his reign.

When Nathan told David to do what was in his heart, he wasn’t affirming that David’s desires were actually God’s will. Rather, he was encouraging the king to pursue his desires and see what the Lord wanted him to do. God answered by giving Nathan a special message for the king, and Nathan faithfully delivered it.

The foundation for God’s purposes and dealings with the people of Israel is His covenant with Abraham (; ). God chose Abraham by His grace and promised him a land, a great name, multiplied descendants, and His blessing and protection. God also promised that the whole world would be blessed through Abraham’s seed, and this refers to Jesus Christ (). God called Israel to be the human channel through which His Son and His Word would come to the world. God’s covenant with David builds on this covenant with Abraham, for it speaks about the nation, the land, and the Messiah.

Catalyst

God’s first announcement of the coming of the Savior was given in , informing us that the Savior would be a human being and not an angel. explains that He would be an Israelite who would bless the whole world, and says that He would come through the tribe of Judah. In the covenant here in , God announced to David that Messiah would come through his family, and prophesied that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, the City of David (see ). No wonder the king was so elated when he learned that Messiah would be known as “the Son of David” (see )!

In , the Lord speaks about Solomon as well as about the Savior, who is “greater than Solomon” (). Solomon would build the temple David longed to build, but his reign would end; however, the reign of Messiah would go on forever. David would have a house forever (, ), a kingdom forever (), and a throne forever (, ), and he would glorify God’s name forever ().

All of this is fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the Son of David (; , , ; ; , ; ) and will be manifested when He returns, establishes the promised kingdom, and sits on David’s throne.

Go to the

The Lord turned from promises concerning the land and the nation to promises concerning David’s throne and family (vv. ). Every king is concerned about the future of his kingdom, and the Lord promised David something above and beyond anything he could have imagined. David wanted to build God a house (the temple), but God promised to build David a house—a dynasty forever! The Hebrew word for “house” is used fifteen times in this chapter and refers to David’s palace (vv. , ), the temple (vv. , ), and David’s dynasty, culminating in Messiah, Jesus Christ (vv. , , , ).

The spiritual blessings God offered to David are today offered in Jesus Christ to all who will trust Him (; ). They will be fulfilled literally by Jesus Christ in the future kingdom promised to Israel (; ; ; ; , ; , ; ; , ). The throne of David ended in 586 B.C. with Zedekiah, the last king of Judah, but the line of David continued and brought Jesus Christ the Son of God into the world (; , , , ).

The announcement to David that he would not build God’s temple must have disappointed David, but he accepted it graciously and gave the Lord thanks for all His goodness to him. When Solomon dedicated the temple, he explained that God accepted David’s desire for the deed: “You wanted to build the temple to honor my name. Your intention is good, but you are not the one to do it” (, ; see ). God’s servants must learn to accept the disappointments of life, for God’s ways and His purposes are always better.

In his prayer, David focuses first on the present as he gives praise for the mercies God bestowed on him (vv. ). It was God’s grace that had brought David this far—from the sheepfolds to the throne—and now God has spoken about his descendants far into the future.

Verses show David looking at the past and God’s amazing grace toward Israel. The Lord chose Israel instead of the other nations on the earth, and He revealed Himself to Israel by giving the law at Mount Sinai and speaking the Word through His prophets. The Israelites were to remember the uniqueness of the Lord and not bow before the idols of the other nations. (See ; ; , ; .) God is the Lord of all nations, but He did great things for Israel, His chosen people. David recognized the wonderful truth that God had chosen Israel to be His people forever!

The third part of David’s prayer and praise () looks to the future as revealed in the covenant just delivered to the king. God gave the Word, David believed it, and David asked God to fulfill that Word for His people.

Whether they recognized it or not, the Jewish people were heavily indebted to David for their temple, the instruments and songs used in the temple, the organization of the temple ministry, and the protection the nation had from the enemy nations. Today we are indebted to David for keeping the light shining so that the Savior could come into the world. Despite the nation’s sins, God chastened His people, but He did not break His covenant or take His mercy away (v. ; ; ; ; , , ).

David prayed that his house would be built just as the Lord had promised, even though it was disappointing to David that he wasn’t permitted to build a house for the Lord. “Your kingdom come” is the thrust of verse , and “Your will be done” the thrust of verse (see ). David simply needed to hear the promises and believe them; he also prayed to the Lord to fulfill them. In his humility, faith, and submission to God’s will, David is a good example for us to follow.

We must look at David’s military activities in the light of God’s covenants with Israel through Abraham (; ), Moses (), and David (). The Lord had promised Israel the land from the border of Egypt to the Euphrates River (; ; ; , ), and the Lord used David to help fulfill the promise. Israel had lost territory to her enemies during the reign of King Saul, and David recaptured it. But he also expanded Israel’s borders and acquired land that hadn’t been conquered in Joshua’s day (). A man of faith, David believed God’s promises and acted upon them for the blessing of his people.

The Philistines were the traditional enemies of the Israelites and seized every opportunity to attack them. In , at least four different Philistine campaigns are mentioned (see also ).

The Moabites had hired Balaam the prophet to curse Israel, and then seduced the men of Israel (), so the Lord had declared war on Moab, and David was only continuing that crusade. Most conquerors would have slaughtered the entire army, but David spared every third soldier and settled for tribute from the nation.

The defeat of the Arameans (Syrians) gave Israel important military installations in the north and also control of the valuable caravan routes that passed through that territory. Israel could levy duty as the traders passed through and thereby increase its income. By defeating the Arameans, David also made friends with their enemies and received tribute from them (vv. ).

, Though David and Joab were the conquering leaders in these military campaigns, the Lord received the glory when David commemorated the victory in . “Over Edom I will cast My shoe; Philistia, shout in triumph because of Me” () is a metaphorical expression that may have a dual meaning: (1) God claims Edom as His territory, and (2) God treats Edom like a slave who cleans the master’s shoes. It expresses the humiliation God brought to the proud Edomites whom David conquered.

Winning battles is one thing, and managing the affairs of the growing nation is quite another; and here David proved himself capable. He ruled with justice and righteousness and served all the people. David also demonstrated his capabilities in appointing wise and skilled subordinates. God loves righteousness and justice () and manifests both as He rules over His universe (; ; ; ; ). David indeed was a man after God’s own heart.

David’s victories also meant peace and safety for the people of Israel so they could live normal lives and not be constantly threatened by their neighbors. Israel had a great work to perform on earth in bearing witness to the true and living God and bringing the written Scriptures and the Messiah into the world. Furthermore, David’s victories enriched the treasury of the Lord so that the material was available for Solomon to build the temple (vv. ; ). The church today doesn’t use military weapons to fight God’s battles (; ; ), but we could use the faith and courage of David and his soldiers and reclaim lost territory for the Lord.

The title “chief ministers” is a translation of the Hebrew word for “priests.” Because David belonged to the tribe of Judah, neither he nor his sons could enter the holy precincts of the tabernacle and minister as priests; so the term probably means “confidential advisers.” These were men who had access to the king and assisted him in directing the affairs of the kingdom.

The kindness of God is a central theme in this chapter (vv. , , ), and it means the mercy and favor of the Lord to undeserving people. Paul saw the kindness of God in the coming of Jesus Christ and His work on the cross (; ), and we see in David’s dealings with Mephibosheth a picture of God’s kindness to lost sinners. David had promised both Saul and Jonathan that he would not exterminate their descendants when he became king (, ; ), and in the case of Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth, David not only kept his promise but went above and beyond the call of duty.

David couldn’t show any love or kindness to Jonathan, so he looked for one of Jonathan’s relatives to whom he could express his affection. So it is with God’s children: They are called and saved, not because they deserve anything from God, but for the sake of God’s Son, Jesus Christ (; ). God in His grace gives us what we don’t deserve, and in His mercy He doesn’t give us what we do deserve.

The fact that David made the first move to rescue Mephibosheth reminds us that it was God who reached out to us and not we who sought Him. We were estranged from God and enemies of God, yet He loved us and sent His Son to die for us. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (). For David to rescue and restore Mephibosheth cost him only the land of Saul, which he had never paid for to begin with; for God to restore us and bring us into His family, however, Jesus had to sacrifice His life. Our inheritance is much more than a piece of real estate on earth; it’s an eternal home in heaven!

Mephibosheth looked upon himself as a “dead dog.” We remember we were “dead” in our trespasses and sins when Jesus called us and gave us new life (). We have a higher position than that which David gave Mephibosheth, for now we sit on the throne with Jesus Christ () and reign in life through Him (). God gives us the riches of His mercy and grace () and “unsearchable riches” in Christ (). God supplies all our needs, not out of an earthly king’s treasury, but according to “His riches in glory” ().

This touching event in David’s life not only illustrates the believer’s spiritual experience in Christ but also reveals that David was indeed a man after God’s own heart (; ). He was a shepherd who had a special concern for the lame sheep in the flock. He loved God, and he loved his neighbor Mephibosheth as himself, a standard we are called to follow.

Once again (see ch. ), David wanted to show kindness, but this time his attempt led to war instead of peace. His overtures to his neighbor were misunderstood, and David had to defend his own honor as well as the honor of the Lord and His people. David the warrior was also a man who understood the principle found in , “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.”

How did David become friendly with the Ammonites when his predecessor was at war with them? It probably occurred when David was in exile and appeared to be at war with Saul. During those “outlaw years,” David tried to build a network of friendships outside Israel that he hoped would help him when he became king. The phrase “show kindness” can carry the meaning of “make a covenant,” so it may have been David’s desire not only to comfort Hanun but also to make a treaty with him.

, The Ammonites shaved the ambassadors’ faces, leaving but one side of each beard intact, and then cut the men’s official garments off at the waist. Israelite men were supposed to keep their beards intact (; ; , ), and to tamper with a man’s beard was a great insult. All Israelites were to be dressed modestly, so exposing the men’s bodies was even more embarrassing. Cutting off the robes also meant removing some of the tassels on their garments that identified them as Israelites (; ).

Israel suddenly faced two armies who were using a pincer movement to defeat Israel, with the Arameans coming from the north and the Ammonites coming from the south. Joab wisely divided his forces and put his brother Abishai in charge of the southern front, and with the Lord’s gracious help, Joab so defeated the northern troops that his victory frightened the southern troops to flee to Rabbah, the fortified capital city of Ammon.

With the Ammonites barricaded inside Rabbah, Joab wisely waited to set up a siege against the Ammonite capital until the spring of the year (). Joab took the city and had David come to finish the siege and claim the honors (). It was while Joab and his men were besieging Rabbah that David remained in Jerusalem and committed adultery with Bathsheba.

David indeed was a man of war who fought the battles of the Lord, and the Lord was with him to give him victory. Because of God’s gifts and help, David undoubtedly became Israel’s greatest king and greatest military genius. He was blessed with courageous men like Joab and Abishai, plus his “mighty men” (ch. ; ). Yet for all of David’s character and greatness, he was still subject to temptation and sin. In our moments of peak success and accomplishments, we can also be on the brink of pride and moral failure. There is never a good time to let down our spiritual guard and think we are beyond the need for God’s continual help and protection.

In this chapter we see David, the man after God’s own heart, committing adultery and then murdering a man in a last-ditch effort to cover his own sin. For at least nine months, David refused to confess his sins. Then God spoke to David, and he sought the face of the Lord and made a new beginning. But David paid dearly for his sins and suffered the consequences of his sins for the rest of his life. That’s what happens to all who rebel against Him, for God chastens those He loves and seeks to make them obedient. The good things that we receive in life, we pay for in advance, for God prepares us for what He has prepared for us. But the evil things we do are paid for on the installment plan, and bitter is the sorrow brought by the consequences of forgiven sin.

Chronologists calculate that David was about fifty years old at this time. It’s true that David had been advised by his leaders not to engage actively in warfare (), but he could have been with his troops to help develop the strategy and give moral leadership. Whatever the cause, good or bad, that kept David in Jerusalem, he certainly wasn’t making good use of his time.

Catalyst

While his men were out risking their lives, David stayed at home, idle. When David laid aside his armor, he took the first step toward moral defeat. The same principle applies to believers today (). Without the helmet of salvation, we don’t think like saved people; and without the breastplate of righteousness, we have nothing to protect the heart. Lacking the girdle of truth, we easily believe lies (“We can get away with this!”); and without the sword of the Word and the shield of faith, we are helpless before the enemy. Without prayer we have no power. As for the shoes of peace, David walked in the midst of battles for the rest of his life. He was safer on the battlefield than on the battlement of his house!

The dangers of sin and its consequences are constants in our lives. What tragedies follow when believers let down their guard and stop wearing their spiritual armor! How prepared for spiritual warfare are you right now?

Go to the

Idleness isn’t just the absence of activity, for all of us need regular rest; idleness is also activity to no purpose. When David was finished with his afternoon nap, he should have immediately moved into some kingdom duty that would have occupied his mind and body. Or, if he wanted to take a walk, he should have invited someone to walk with him. Had David followed that counsel and maintained a purposeful schedule, he would have saved himself and his family a great deal of heartache.

David looked over the city, but he focused on one woman. In modern terms, he was doing the equivalent of idly clicking the remote or surfing the Internet. He didn’t think he was looking for trouble, but trouble found him in the form of temptation. Not only did he notice the woman, he kept looking and decided to find out who she was. David’s temptation and sin illustrate the truth that “each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death” (, ).

When God forbids something and calls it sin (, ), we shouldn’t try to get more information about it. “I want you to be wise in what is good, and simple concerning evil,” Paul writes (). David knew what the law said about adultery, so why did he inquire about the woman? Because in his heart, he had already taken possession of her, and now he was anxious to have a rendezvous with her. He learned that Bathsheba was a married woman—that fact alone should have stopped him from carrying out his evil plan. When he learned she was the wife of one of his courageous soldiers (), he should have gone to the tabernacle, fallen on his face, and cried out to God for mercy.

One of the puzzles in this event is the willingness of Bathsheba to go with the messengers and submit to David’s desires. Did Bathsheba even know why David wanted her? If so, didn’t she stop to consider that, having recently finished her monthly period (v. ), she was ripe for conception? She may have thought David had news from the front about her husband, but the king didn’t deliver military announcements. Did she miss her husband’s love and take her purification bath in public as a deliberate invitation to any man who happened to be watching? If she refused David’s requests, would he punish her husband? (That happened anyway!)

No Jewish citizen had to obey a king who himself was disobeying God’s law, for the king covenanted with God and the people to submit to the divine law. Did she think that submitting to David would put into her hands a weapon that might help her in the future, especially if her husband were killed in battle? We can ask these questions and many more, but we can’t easily answer them. The biblical text doesn’t tell us, and even educated guesses aren’t much help.

David and Bathsheba sinned against God, for it is God who established marriage and wrote the rules that govern it. So serious was adultery in the nation of Israel that both the adulterer and the adulteress were taken out and stoned to death (; ; ). God takes seriously the marriage vows that brides and grooms make, even if they don’t (; ).

Catalyst

“I’m pregnant” (). These are the only recorded words of Bathsheba in this entire episode, but they were the words David didn’t want to hear. You can paraphrase her brief message, “The next step is yours.” Being the tactician that he was, David immediately devised a plan to cover up his sin. He called Uriah back from the battlefield, hoping that this brave soldier would go home and spend time with his wife. In fact, David ordered him to go there (v. ), but the soldier disobeyed and stayed with the king’s servants that night.

David had to think up another scheme, and his next expedient was to have a second interview with Uriah the next day, during which the king chided him for not going home. A true soldier, Uriah gently rebuked the king for suggesting that one of his own soldiers put personal pleasure ahead of duty, especially when their fellow soldiers were out on the battlefield. Even the ark of God was in a tent, so why should Uriah enjoy his home and wife?

David’s third expedient was to invite Uriah to have a meal with him before he returned to the battle. During the meal, David passed the cup so frequently that Uriah became drunk. But Uriah drunk proved to be a better man than David sober, for he once again refused to go home. Uriah was a soldier at heart, and even when alcohol tore down his defenses, he remained faithful to his calling.

Only one expedient remained: Uriah had to die. If David couldn’t entice Uriah to go home, he would have to get him out of the way so he could marry Uriah’s widow—and the sooner they married, the better the scheme would work. David was breaking the Ten Commandments one by one. He coveted his neighbor’s wife and committed adultery with her, and now he would bear false witness against his neighbor and order him to be killed. David thought he was deceiving everybody, but he was deceiving only himself. He thought he could escape guilt when all the while he was adding to his guilt, and he could not escape God’s judgment. “He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy” (). One way or another, hidden sins always find their way into the light.

Go to the

David’s response to the news of Uriah’s death shows us the state of his heart. Relief over the “solution” to his problem blinded him from the cost of his cover-up. Buried guilt can harden us to further sin, until we don’t care who gets hurt as long as the truth stays hidden.

Bathsheba’s expressions of grief for her dead warrior husband were undoubtedly sincere, but they were mitigated by the knowledge that she would soon be living in the palace. People probably raised their eyebrows when she married so quickly after the funeral, and married the king at that. But when some six months later she delivered a baby boy, eyebrows went up again.

In telling a story about the crime of another, Nathan prepared David for dealing with his own sins. David may have thought that Nathan was presenting him with an actual case from the local court. Nathan was catching David off guard and could study the king’s response and better know what to do next. Since David had been a shepherd himself, he would pay close attention to a story about the theft of an innocent lamb. And as king, he was obligated to see that poor families were given justice. Our reactions to the sins of others can often reveal the state of our own lives, especially if we have a bold friend like Nathan to help us make the connection!

, David passed judgment on the rich man without realizing he was passing judgment on himself. Of all blindness, the worst kind is that which makes us blind to ourselves. How easily we can be convicted about other people’s sins ()! Stealing and killing a domestic animal wasn’t a capital offense in Israel, but David was so angry, he exaggerated both the crime and the punishment. Until this point, he had been minimizing the consequences and doing nothing when actually what he did to Uriah was worthy of death. Both David and Bathsheba should have been stoned to death (; ; ). Knowing the law, David realized that four sheep had to be given to repay the owner whose ewe lamb had been stolen ().

The prophet realized that though David was very angry, he was also unguarded and ready for the sword of the Spirit to pierce his heart (; ). With one quick thrust, Nathan said, “You are that man!” and proceeded to hold up the mirror that revealed how dirty the king really was. Unless we can “see” our sinfulness, we are not likely to repent.

, Once he had David’s attention, Nathan delivered God’s verdict on the king’s actions. First, the king forgot the goodness of the Lord who had given him everything he had and would have given him more (vv. , ). Second, David had despised God’s commandment and acted as though he had the privilege of sinning (v. ). By coveting, committing adultery, bearing false witness, and killing, David had broken four of the Ten Commandments, and he thought he could get away with it! It was bad enough that David arranged to have Uriah killed, but he used the sword of the enemy to do it!

The sword did not depart from the king’s household, and his wives were taken and violated just as he had taken Bathsheba. Indeed, David did pay fourfold, for Bathsheba’s baby died, and his sons Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah were slain (; , ; ). David’s beautiful daughter Tamar was raped by her half brother (), and David’s concubines were humiliated publicly by Absalom when he seized the kingdom (). For the rest of David’s lifetime, he experienced one tragedy after another, either in his family or in the kingdom. What a price he paid for those few minutes of passion with his neighbor’s wife! It is never wise to minimize or ignore consequences when we are faced with temptation.

, The punishments God assigned to David were already stated in the covenant God had with Israel and which the king was expected to obey (; ). If the nation rebelled against God, He would slay their sons in battle (; , ), take away their children (; ), give their wives to others (), and even take Israel out of its land into foreign exile (). Because of Absalom’s rebellion, David was forced to flee Jerusalem and live in the wilderness. But the covenant also included a section on repentance and pardon (.; ), and David took it seriously.

, The convicted prisoner knew that the verdict was true and the sentence was just, so without any argument, he confessed: “I have sinned against the LORD.” Nathan assured David that the Lord had put away his sin. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (). The lessons of God’s mercy reverberate through Scripture. “If You, LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared” (, ).

Catalyst

Nathan’s reply to David’s confession had a “nevertheless” (), for though God in His grace had forgiven David’s sins, God in His government had to permit David to experience the consequences of those sins, beginning with the death of Bathsheba’s baby. All during David’s months of silence, he had suffered intensely, as you can detect when you read his two prayers of confession ( and ). pictures a sick old man instead of a virile warrior, and describes a believer who had lost almost everything—his purity, joy, witness, wisdom, and peace—a man who was afraid God would take the Holy Spirit from him as He had done to Saul. David experienced intense emotional and physical pain, but he left behind two prayers that are precious to all believers who have sinned.

Because of Christ’s finished work on the cross, God is able to save lost sinners and forgive disobedient saints. The sooner the lost and the disobedient turn to the Lord and repent, the better off they will be. David wrote, “Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, ‘I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah. For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You in a time when You may be found; surely in a flood of great waters they shall not come near him” (, ). Isaiah added his own urgent counsel to all of us when caught in sin, “Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near” ().

Go to the

In biblical language, this passage records the early stages of David’s chastening. Chastening is not punishment meted out by an angry judge who wants to uphold the law; rather, it is difficulty permitted by a loving Father who wants His children to submit to His will and develop godly character. Chastening is an expression of God’s love (, ), and the Greek word used in means “child training, instruction, discipline.” In the Christian life, chastening isn’t always God’s response to our disobedience; sometimes He’s preparing us for challenges yet to come, like a coach preparing athletes for the Olympics. If there were no painful consequences to sin or subsequent chastening from the hand of God, what kind of a daring and irresponsible world would we be living in?

Why would a loving and just God not answer a grieving and repentant father’s prayers and heal the child? After all, it wasn’t the baby’s fault that his father and mother had sinned against the Lord. For that matter, why did God allow Uriah and some fellow soldiers to die at Rabbah just so David could marry Bathsheba? Keep asking similar questions and you will end up with the ultimate question, “Why does a loving God permit evil in the world?” Eventually David looked back and saw this painful experience as God’s “goodness and mercy” () both to him and to the baby. “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” asked Abraham (). Scripture provides no easy answers to settle our minds but plenty of dependable promises to heal our hearts, and faith is nurtured on promises, not explanations.

In spite of his many sins, David was still a tender shepherd and a man after God’s own heart; he had not been “hardened through the deceitfulness of sin” (). He washed himself, changed his apparel, worshiped the Lord, and returned to life with its disappointments and duties. In Scripture, washing oneself and changing clothes symbolizes making a new beginning (, ; ; ; ; , ; ; ). No matter how long or how much the Lord chastens us, “He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever” (). Because of God’s grace and mercy, we can always make a new beginning.

David’s words here have brought great comfort to people who have experienced the death of a little one, but not every Old Testament student agrees that the king’s words are a revelation from God. Perhaps he was just saying, “My son can’t come back from the grave or the world of departed spirits, but one day I shall go there to him.” But what kind of comfort does it bring us to know that everybody eventually dies? The statement, “He shall not return to me,” shows that David believed his dead son neither could be reincarnated, nor would he be resurrected before the Lord’s time. It also affirms that David expected to see and recognize his son in the future life. Where was David eventually going? He answers, “I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever” (; see also ; ; ).

No matter how devastated the chastening hand of our loving Father makes us feel, comfort is available from the Lord (see , , , ). Before her son died, God called Bathsheba “Uriah’s wife” (), possibly because that’s who she was when the boy was conceived. But here she is called David’s wife, which suggests that, like David, she was also making a new beginning. What an evidence of God’s grace that “[she] who had been the wife of Uriah” is mentioned in the genealogy of Messiah (), along with Tamar (; cf. ) and Rahab and Ruth (; cf. ; and ; ).

God caused the conception to occur (v. ) and saw to it that the baby would have the “genetic structure” that he would need to accomplish God’s will (). In a very special way, “the LORD loved him” and even gave Solomon (“peaceable”) a special name, “Jedidiah,” which means “beloved by the Lord.” Since “David” means “beloved,” father and son were bound together by similar names. God had told David that this son would be born and that he would build the temple (, ; ), and God kept His promise. Every time David and Bathsheba looked at Solomon, his very presence reminded them that God had forgiven their past and guaranteed their future.

. We have seen in the first ten chapters of 2 Samuel how God empowered David to defeat Israel’s enemies and establish and expand the kingdom. Then David committed the sins of adultery, murder, and deception (chs. ), and the rest of the book describes David wresthng with problems caused by his own children. David’s days are dark and disappointing, but he still depends on the Lord, and the Lord enables him to overcome and prepare the nation for the reign of his son Solomon. What life does to us depends on what life finds in us, and in David was a muscular faith in the living God.

David was reigning over Israel, but sin and death were reigning within his own family (, , ). God had forgiven David’s sins (), but David was discovering that the consequences of forgiven sin are very painful. God had blessed David with many sons (), but now the Lord would turn some of those blessings into curses (, ). As Jeremiah warned us all, “ ‘Your own wickedness will correct you, and your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken the LORD your God, and the fear of Me is not in you,’ says the Lord GOD of hosts!” ().

Amnon was the oldest of David’s sons and the apparent heir to the throne, so perhaps he felt he had privileges that the other sons didn’t have. It was evil for him to nurture an abnormal love for his half sister, and he should have stopped feeding that appetite the moment it started (). Not only was the sin unnatural, but it also violated the standard of sexual purity established by God’s law (; ; ).

Jonadab was Amnon’s cousin, the son of David’s brother Shimeah (Heb., Shammah), and he was a very crafty man, probably a minor official in the palace. He will show up again in after Amnon has been killed by Absalom’s servants. Anybody who makes it easy for us to sin is certainly not much of a friend. By following Jonadab’s “friendly” advice, Amnon ended up becoming a rapist, committing incest, and getting killed.

, David was known for his wisdom and keen insight (, ), but after the “Bathsheba affair” he seems to have lost ground. By ordering Tamar to obey her half brother’s wishes, he sent her into pain and humiliation. And when two years later David allowed Amnon to attend Absalom’s feast, he sent his firstborn to his death. David the deceiver was himself deceived!

Amnon thought he loved Tamar. First he was desperate over her (v. ), and then he became ill longing for her (v. ), even to the point of looking dejected day after day (v. ). But after he committed the shameful act, he hated Tamar vehemently and wanted to get rid of her! True love would never violate another person’s body just to satisfy selfish appetites, nor would true love try to persuade someone to disobey the law of God.

Sexual sins usually produce all kinds of collateral, emotional damage. When you treat other people like objects to be used, you end up throwing them aside like broken toys or old clothes. The word “woman” is not in the Hebrew text of verse , so Amnon was saying, “Throw this thing out!” This explains why Tamar accused Amnon of being even more cruel by casting her aside than by raping her.

When Tamar told her story to Absalom, his cunning brain was already at work on a scheme that would accomplish three purposes: avenge Tamar, get rid of Amnon, and put himself next in line for the throne! His statement “He’s your brother” (v. ) means, “If it were any other man, I would avenge you immediately; but since he’s your brother, I’ll have to be patient and wait for an opportunity.” Absalom was trying to avoid a public scandal that would grieve the family and hurt his own plans to seize the throne.

King David did hear about the tragedy and became very angry, but what could he say? The memory of his own sins shut his mouth, and how could he punish his firstborn son and supposed heir to his throne? One of the consequences of sin is the inability to speak from the “high ground,” and we are forced into the difficult role of confessing again—“I know what you did is wrong because I committed the same sin.” David chose silence instead.

For two years Absalom waited to avenge the rape of his sister; but when the time came, he was ready to act. During those years, Absalom perfected his plan and made arrangements for escape. His father David had arranged for the murder of Uriah the Hittite and had survived, so why shouldn’t his son Absalom survive? Like his father, Absalom used other hands to do the deed, and at a time when the victim least expected it. Another tragic consequence of sin is the heartbreak of seeing our shameful past serve as an example followed by others.

The problem with revenge is that it doesn’t really solve any problems and eventually turns around and hurts the perpetrator. Absalom’s escape was another pause in a cycle of sin that had infected David’s household. By way of sharp contrast, no one was treated more unjustly and inhumanely than David’s descendant Jesus Christ at His trial and crucifixion, yet He refused to retaliate, and He is our example (). The old slogan “Don’t get mad—get even” may satisfy some people, but it can never be pleasing to the Lord. The Christian way is the way of forgiveness and faith, trusting the Lord to work everything out for our good and His glory ().

The phrase “longed to go to Absalom” has been given at least two interpretations. It means either that David wanted very much to see his son again, or that David planned to go after Absalom and deal with him, but his anger gradually quieted down. But if David had really wanted Absalom back home, he could have accomplished it very easily, since Joab was in favor of this action (). When Absalom did come home, however, David kept him at a distance for two years ()! Evidently David was struggling in his heart: David knew his son deserved punishment, but David was known for being lenient with his sons (). Eventually, David compromised by finally bringing Absalom home, but he punished him by delaying full reconciliation. Five years passed before father and son saw each other face-to-face (; ).

Just as Nathan had confronted David the sinner by telling him a story (), so Joab confronted David the father and king by putting a fabricated account of a family problem into the mouth of a woman who was both wise and a very good actress. Nathan’s story about the ewe lamb touched the heart of David the shepherd, and this story about a warring family moved the heart of David the father. When has God used a story from someone’s life to open your eyes to your own story?

God is no respecter of persons, and His law is true, but even God devises ways to show mercy and forgive offenders. He punishes sin, to be sure, but He also looks for ways to reconcile sinners with Himself. (This woman may have had in mind and .) Had God not forgiven David’s sins? The woman confessed that she was afraid that her family would slay her son and rob her of the inheritance God had given them. Until we remember we are also targets of God’s mercy, we won’t be able to see how badly others need His mercy—even when it comes through us!

Did anybody know that Solomon was God’s choice for the next king? Perhaps not, for the Lord hadn’t revealed it. According to some chronologists, Solomon’s birth occurred before Amnon’s sin against Tamar, but Bathsheba had given birth to three other sons before she gave birth to Solomon (; ; ). God promised David that one of his sons would succeed him and build the temple (), but it isn’t recorded that He announced the name of the son at that time. Amnon and Absalom had already been born, and the announcement sounds as if the designated son would be born in the future.

There is no record that Absalom was repentant and sought his father’s forgiveness, or that he offered the required sacrifices. Father and son were together again, but it was a fragile truce and not a real peace. Absalom still had his hidden agenda and was determined to seize David’s throne. Now that the prince was free, he could be visible in the city and enjoy the adulation of the crowds, while at the same time quietly organizing his sympathizers for the coming rebellion. David was about to lose his throne and crown, his concubines, his trusted adviser Ahithophel, and ultimately his son Absalom. It would be the darkest hour in David’s life.

In just four years Absalom’s magnetism drew together a large number of devoted followers throughout the whole land. The people Absalom met returned home and told their friends and neighbors that they had spoken personally to the crown prince, and over the four-year period, this kind of endorsement won Absalom many friends. His rapid success at influencing the minds and hearts of a nation warns us that one day a leader will arise who will control the minds of people around the world (; ). Even the people of Israel will be deceived and sign a covenant with this ruler, and then he will turn on them and seek to destroy them (). Jesus told the Jewish leaders of His day, “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive” ().

With great skill, the egotistical prince used every device at his disposal to mesmerize the people and win their support. David had won the hearts of the people through sacrifice and service, but Absalom did it the easy way—and the modern way—by manufacturing an image of himself that the people couldn’t resist. David was a hero; Absalom was only a celebrity. Alas, many of the people had gotten accustomed to their king and now took him for granted. But people who confuse image with integrity and public relations with character end up supporting leaders who can only lead them astray.

Absalom’s rise was Ahithophel’s great opportunity to avenge himself on David. After all, David had violated Ahithophel’s granddaughter Bathsheba and ordered her husband killed. (See ; .) In supporting Absalom, however, Ahithophel was rejecting Bathsheba’s son, Solomon, whom God would choose to be the next ruler of Israel. At the same time, Ahithophel was taking steps toward his own death for, like Judas, after rejecting the true king, he went out and committed suicide (see ; ; ; ; ; ). Ahithophel deceived David, his king, and sinned against the Lord, who had chosen David.

The anonymous messenger who informed David actually helped to save the king’s life. However lethargic David may have been before now, he immediately moved into action because he always did his best during a crisis.

David knew that the same Absalom who killed Amnon would also kill his brothers and possibly even his father, so it was imperative that everybody flee. Furthermore, if Absalom had to attack Jerusalem, he would slaughter the inhabitants, and there was no reason for hundreds of innocent people to die. It was just like David to risk his own life and abandon his own throne in order to protect others. In what ways do you consider the needs of others when the pressure is on you?

Ittai assured David that he and his six hundred men were completely loyal to the king. This Gentile’s testimony of fidelity to David is one of the great confessions of faith and faithfulness found in Scripture and ranks with that of Ruth () and the Roman centurion (). Crises have a special way of separating easy devotion from genuine loyalty.

For the second time in his life, David was forced to flee into the wilderness to save his life. As a young man, he had fled the jealous rage of King Saul (), and now he was seeking refuge from the hypocritical deceptions of his son Absalom and his former adviser, Ahithophel. By leaving Jerusalem, David had spared the city a bloodbath, but now he and his family were in danger. What was the future of the kingdom and God’s covenant with David? The king continued to trust God with the outcome (see ).

David told Zadok and Abiathar to take the ark back to Jerusalem! He didn’t want the throne of God treated like a good-luck charm as in the days of Eli when the glory departed from Israel (). Absalom and his men were trying to turn David’s glory into shame (), but God’s favor was upon the king, and He would restore him to his throne. David had seen God’s power and glory in his sanctuary (), and he would see it by faith there in the wilderness.

, , and are special “wilderness psalms” that David probably wrote at this time. They allow us to look into David’s troubled heart as he asks God for guidance and strength. Note that each of these three psalms ends with a strong affirmation of faith in the Lord. Today we can have courage and assurance in our own times of difficulty as we see how God responded to David and his great needs.

If ever a man had a right to weep, it was David. He knew that what was happening was the unfolding of events he had set in motion by his own sins. But David’s tears went much deeper. He was not only concerned for the welfare of his rebellious son but also for the safety of the nation and the future of Israel’s God-given ministry to the world. God’s covenant with David (ch. ) assured him that his throne would last forever, and this is fulfilled in Christ, but the promise also implied that Israel would not be destroyed or the lamp of David permanently extinguished (; ; ; ; ). God would be faithful to keep His covenant, and David knew that his throne was safe in the hands of the Lord.

As he had done with Zadok and Abiathar and their two sons, so David did with Hushai: He sent him back to Jerusalem to “serve” Absalom. All five men were taking risks for the sake of the Lord and the kingdom, but they considered it an honor to serve their king and help restore him to the throne. All of the people to whom David gave special assignments could say, “We are your servants, ready to do whatever my lord the king commands” (). This would be a fine statement for believers to adopt today as an expression of their devotion to Christ.

If anything can be better than getting an answer to prayer, it would be being an answer to prayer, and Hushai was the answer to David’s prayer. Humanly speaking, if not for Hushai’s counsel to Absalom, David might have been slain in the wilderness.

Through Ziba’s lies, Satan attacked David as a serpent who deceives (; cf. ), and then through Shimei’s words and stones, Satan came as a lion who devours (). Ziba told lies and Shimei threw stones, and both were making it difficult for David. David’s attitude was one of submission, because he accepted Shimei’s abuse as from the hand of God. David had already announced that he would accept anything the Lord sent to him (), and here he proved it.

Ziba lied to the king and did his best to discredit his young master, Mephibosheth. David was weary and deeply wounded within, and it wasn’t the best time for him to be making character decisions. He accepted Ziba’s story—which was later discredited (, )—and made a rash judgment that gave Ziba the property that rightfully belonged to Mephibosheth. “He who answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame to him” (). God’s leaders must constantly be on guard lest they make unwise decisions on the basis of incomplete information.

What did all this suffering accomplish for David? It made him more like Jesus Christ! He was rejected by his own people and betrayed by his own familiar friend. He gave up everything for the sake of the people and would have surrendered his own life to save his rebellious son who deserved to die. Like Jesus, David crossed the Kidron and went up Mount Olivet. He was falsely accused and shamefully treated, and yet he submitted to the sovereign will of God.

Hushai’s words to Absalom must be read very carefully or they will be misunderstood. Hushai gave the usual respectful greeting “God save the king,” but he didn’t say “King Absalom.” In his heart, he was referring to King David, but the new king didn’t understand what Hushai was saying. A proud man, Absalom interpreted all of Hushai’s words to apply to himself, and he accepted Hushai as another adviser. This decision was of the Lord and prepared the way for Absalom’s defeat.

Absalom looked to human experience and wisdom—and from a human point of view, Ahithophel was among the very best. Ahithophel didn’t seek the mind of the Lord, however, nor did he want the will of the Lord. His primary goal was to avenge himself against David for the sin David had committed against his granddaughter Bathsheba and her husband, Uriah the Hittite. The depravity and triumphs of sin may shock us, but they cannot defeat the plans or purposes of God.

Humanly speaking, if Absalom had followed Ahithophel’s plan, David would have been slain and Absalom’s problems solved. But David had prayed that God would turn Ahithophel’s counsel into foolishness (), and God used Hushai to accomplish just that purpose.

Ahithophel’s matter-of-fact speech was forgotten as Hushai’s grand plan, punctuated with vivid mental pictures, gripped the hearts and minds of Absalom and his leaders. God had answered David’s prayer and confused the counsel of Ahithophel. Absalom would ride at the front of his army, intent on victory, but he would meet with humiliating defeat. “The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations” (, ).

Both Ahithophel and Absalom ended up hanging from a tree. How tragic it is when a man or woman leads an exemplary and useful life and then fails dishonorably at the end. There are old fools as well as young fools, and Ahithophel was one of them. All of us need to pray that the Lord will help us to end well.

David was guilty of pampering his sons (, ; see ). But before we criticize David, we must remember that he was a man after God’s own heart. Let’s be thankful that our Father in heaven hasn’t dealt with us according to our sins (). In His grace, He gives us what we don’t deserve, and in His mercy He doesn’t give us what we do deserve. Jesus didn’t deserve to die, for He was sinless, yet He took the punishment that belonged to us. What a Savior!

God didn’t need a sword to stop the rebel Absalom; He simply used the branch of a tree! How much his heavy head of hair contributed to this accident isn’t recorded, but, ironically, the thing he was so proud of (, ) turned out to assist in his death. Indeed, pride does lead to judgment.

David’s tears reveal the broken heart of a loving father. David wept when he heard about the death of Jonathan and Saul (, ), the murder of Abner (), and the murder of Amnon (), so why shouldn’t he weep over the death of his beloved son Absalom? Once again, we see the heart of God revealed in David’s heart, for Christ died for us when we were sinners and living as the enemies of God (). David would have died for Absalom, but Jesus did die for us!

The repeated theme in this chapter is bringing back the king (vv. , , , , ). David was across the Jordan in Mahanaim, but he belonged in Jerusalem. All the tribes, including David’s own tribe of Judah, had participated in Absalom’s rebellion to some extent; now it was time for them to bring their king back to Jerusalem. Years of intrigue and intertribal conflict left Israel a deeply divided nation, and there was a desperate need for a strong display of unity and loyalty.

David’s problem wasn’t that he grieved over his son, for grief is a very human response and tears are a part of the healing. His problem was that he grieved excessively and wouldn’t permit himself to be comforted. David’s response was abnormal. He neglected himself and his responsibilities and had to be soundly rebuked by Joab before he would take steps to return to Jerusalem and save the kingdom. His troubles weren’t over, but the Lord would empower him to be the ruler He wanted him to be. The Lord can heal a broken heart, if we give all the pieces to Him and obey Him by faith.

Joab’s short but cutting speech jolted the king back to reality, and David took his place at the gate—where his men came to him and where he acknowledged their brave service. David probably didn’t yet know that it was Joab who had engineered Absalom’s death and burial; otherwise his response might have been different. It didn’t take long for David to find out what Joab and his men did, and this helped to precipitate David’s naming Amasa as general of the army (v. ; and see ).

The one element missing in the entire Absalom episode is David’s seeking the mind of the Lord as he made decisions. The younger David called on God directly or asked for the counsel of a prophet, but apart from his prayer in , we don’t find David requesting divine guidance. Of course, the wilderness psalms ( and others) record his concerns and prayers, so we know he wasn’t depending on himself and his leaders alone. But we wish David had sought God’s direction as he dealt with Absalom and the problems he created. When it came to dealing with his sons, David needed all the help he could get, but perhaps he wouldn’t admit it. It’s never too late for God to work.

Fear of David’s retribution, party squabbles, and tribal friction kept things in ferment throughout Israel. David knew that the trouble would only increase if he waited too long to regain his city and his throne, so he marched right ahead. After all, he was God’s anointed king (v. ) and didn’t need to call for a referendum before taking up his fallen scepter. The nation needed David’s decisiveness.

The news that David appointed Amasa to be his general must have shocked the leaders of the nation and then brought them great relief, for it meant that David was pardoning all the officials who had followed Absalom. Amasa had been Absalom’s general who had been assigned to search for David and destroy him, but now David was making his nephew (and Joab’s cousin) the leader of his great army.

Why did David replace Joab? For one thing, David learned that it was Joab who had slain Absalom, in disobedience to the orders the king had given. Even though he deserved death, Absalom could have been taken alive and brought to David to be dealt with later, and Joab didn’t have the authority to defy his sovereign and act as judge and executioner. If Joab did this to the king’s son, what might he do to the king himself? This brings up a second reason David replaced Joab: Joab had been gradually increasing his authority ever since David had been told to stop waging war personally ().

Certainly Shimei deserved to be killed for the way he had treated David (), and Abishai was willing to do the job; but David stopped his nephew just as he had done before (). The first time David stopped Abishai, his reason was that the Lord had told Shimei to curse the king, so David would take his abuse as from the hand of the Lord. But now his reason for sparing Shimei was because it was a day of rejoicing, not a day of revenge. But even more, by pardoning Shimei, King David was offering a general amnesty to all who had supported Absalom during the rebellion.

David kept his word and didn’t have Shimei killed for his crime, but when David was about to die, he warned Solomon to keep an eye on Shimei (, ). Solomon put him under house arrest and told him not to leave Jerusalem. Then, when Shimei disobeyed the king, he was taken and slain (). Shimei had a weakness for resisting authority and treating God’s appointed ministers with disdain (), and that’s why David cautioned Solomon. Shimei didn’t appreciate David’s mercy or Solomon’s grace, and his independence and arrogance finally caught up with him.

When David was escaping from Jerusalem, Ziba showed up without his master and brought help to David and his people. At that time, David made an impulsive decision and gave all the land to Ziba (). Ziba also came to help David cross the river and return home (). This time, Mephibosheth wanted an opportunity to speak to David personally, deny Ziba’s previous lies, and affirm his own allegiance to the king, all of which he did. David realized he had been tricked by Ziba. By dividing the land between Ziba and Mephibosheth, David was taking the easy way out that saved face and partly reversed his earlier impulsive solution.

Mephibosheth’s reply must have stunned David: “let him take it all!” But thanks to David’s impetuous judgment, Ziba already had it all. This situation reminds us of the “case of the dead baby” that Solomon had to solve (). When he offered to divide the living baby, the child’s true mother protested, and that’s how Solomon discovered her identity. Unlike a living baby, land isn’t harmed when it’s divided, but David may have been testing Mephibosheth to see where his heart was. The text doesn’t tell us, but perhaps Mephibosheth did receive all the land as in the original contract. Either way, the lame prince was cared for as Ziba worked the land.

David wanted to reward Barzillai by caring for him at his palace in Jerusalem. But Barzillai graciously refused David’s offer on the grounds that he was too old. Older people don’t like to pull up their roots and relocate, and they want to die at home and be buried with their loved ones. At his age, Barzillai couldn’t enjoy the special pleasures of life at court, and he would only be a burden to the king, who had enough to think about. However, Barzillai was willing to let his son Kimham take his place (v. ; ) and go to Jerusalem to live. What Barzillai didn’t need for himself he was willing for others to enjoy.

A crisis will bring out the best in some people and the worst in others. The representatives of the tribes were gathered at Gilgal to escort their king back to Jerusalem, and instead of rejoicing at the victory God had given His people, the tribes were fighting among themselves. The conflict between Judah and Israel had deep roots, just like the political conflicts that divide many nations today. When King Saul assembled his first army, it was divided between Israel and Judah (), and this division continued throughout his reign (; ; ). After the death of Saul, the ten tribes of Israel followed Saul’s son Ishbosheth, while Judah followed David (, ). This tribal rivalry existed even in David’s day (; ). As Jesus put it, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand” (). When Rehoboam became king after the death of Solomon his father, the rift widened and the kingdom divided into Judah and Israel.

Though he no longer had an official position, Joab went along with his brother Abishai to help in any way that he could. The two men had fought side by side most of their lives. Joab had no love for Amasa, who had betrayed David and led Absalom’s army (). Furthermore, it was Amasa who took Joab’s place as commander of the troops, an appointment that must have humiliated Joab, whom David dismissed because he had killed David’s son Absalom. Joab knew that he and his brother Abishai could deal successfully with Sheba’s revolt but that Amasa was too weak and inexperienced to lead a victorious army. By murdering Amasa, Joab reclaimed his commander’s role.

Once more, the sword was at work in David’s household, for Amasa was his cousin. There was no reason why Amasa should be killed. True, he had joined forces with Absalom, but David had declared a general amnesty that included Joab, who had killed Absalom. Joab could have easily taken the command away from Amasa, but the old campaigner was of such a disposition that he preferred to destroy those who stood in his way. He wanted none of Absalom’s leaders to live, and he refused to step down from a role he had repeatedly dishonored by his ruthlessness.

For the third time in the “David story,” a woman changed the course of events. Abigail was the first (), and the woman of Tekoa was the second (). Here in chapter , the wise woman called to Joab from the wall and assured him that her city was not in league with any rebels and therefore didn’t deserve to be attacked. Perhaps she was thinking about the law in requiring that a city first be given an offer of peace before it was attacked. When Joab explained that it was only Sheba he was after, she persuaded the citizens to kill the rebel leader and save the city. Sheba wasn’t a scapegoat, however; as a rebel against the king, he deserved to be slain. Sheba wanted to be head of the army, but instead, his head was thrown over the wall to the army.

The book of 2 Samuel closes with a record of two national calamities—a drought caused by King Saul’s sin () and a plague caused by King David’s sin (). Between these two tragic events, the writer gives us a summary of four victories () and a list of David’s mighty men (), as well as two psalms written by David (). Once again we see David the soldier, the singer, and the sinner. These chapters give us a glimpse of God’s intimate role in David’s life.

Saul’s religious life is a puzzle. Attempting to appear very godly, he would make foolish vows that nobody should keep (), while at the same time he didn’t obey the clear commands of the Lord (; ). He was commanded to slay the Amalekites and didn’t; yet he tried to exterminate the Gibeonites! Another piece of the puzzle is that Jeiel, Saul’s great-grandfather, was the progenitor of the Gibeonites (; ), so Saul slaughtered his own relatives.

David knew that the Israelites were forbidden to offer human sacrifices (; ; ; ), and he didn’t see the deaths of the seven men as sacrifices with atoning value. Today, we who have the New Testament and understand the gospel of Jesus Christ view this entire episode with mingled disgust and dismay, but we must keep in mind that we’re dealing with law, not grace, and Israel, not the church. The Law of Moses required that an unsolved murder be atoned for by sacrifice (), so how much more a known slaughter perpetrated by a king! However, we must keep in mind that the death of the seven men was not atonement but legal retribution.

David had the bones gathered up, along with the bones of Saul and his sons that the men of Jabesh Gilead had interred (), and brought the whole family together in their family tomb. To have proper burial with one’s ancestors was the desire of every Israelite, and David granted this blessing to Saul and his family. Whatever questions remain concerning this unusual event, this much is true: One man’s sins can bring sorrow and death to his family, even after he is dead and buried. We must also give credit to David for dealing drastically with sin for the sake of the nation, and yet for showing kindness to the house of Saul.

The four conflicts recorded in this passage took place much earlier in David’s reign, probably after he made Jerusalem his capital and the Philistines opposed his rise to power. All four involve “descendants of the giants” from Philistia, one of whom was a brother of Goliath (v. ).

When as a youth David killed Goliath, he certainly gave the men of Israel a good example of what it means to trust God for victory over giants. And giants come in many forms, not just as human enemies. The key to facing giants successfully involves active confidence in God. Knowing how to kill giants yourself is good, but be sure to help others kill their giants.

records the song Hannah sang when she brought her son Samuel to serve the Lord at the tabernacle, and records the song of David after the Lord helped him defeat his enemies (v. ; ). How significant that two books full of burdens and bloodshed are bracketed by praise! No matter how dark the days or how painful the memories, we can always find reasons to praise the Lord.

It is likely that chapter is the original version; but when the song was adapted for corporate worship, David wrote a new opening: “I will love You, O LORD, my strength” (). The Hebrew word used here for “love” means “a deep and fervent love,” not just a passing emotion. He also deleted from “My Savior, You save me from violence.” There are other differences, but they do not deter us from grasping the glorious message of this song of praise. A song written for use by many always seems more powerful when it is the heartfelt expression of the writer’s soul. The enduring quality of many of David’s psalms has to do with the fact that they were first personal expressions of praise.

A rock reminds us of strength and stability, that which is dependable and unchanging. No matter how David’s enemies tried to destroy him, he was always guided and protected by the Lord. God was a shield around him and a deliverer in every time of danger.

The image of the rock gives way to the image of the flood (vv. ), and this leads to the vivid picture of the storm (vv. ). While exiled in the wilderness, David certainly saw many rainstorms (see ) that transformed the dry riverbeds into raging torrents (). No matter what the season, David was constantly fighting the strong currents of Saul’s opposition. Waves of death, floods of ungodly men, the cords of Sheol (the land of the dead), and the hidden traps of death all made David’s life difficult and dangerous. But those images of hardship and danger were also reminders of God’s great strength and faithfulness.

What do you do when you’re drowning in a flood of opposition? You cry out to the Lord and trust Him for the help you need. David was a man of prayer who depended on the Lord for wisdom, strength, and deliverance, and the Lord never failed him. Why did God wait all those years before delivering David and putting him on the throne? For one thing, the Lord was building Himself a leader, and this could be done only by means of trial, suffering, and battle. But the Lord also had His own timetable: “when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law” (). Out of David’s family the Messiah would come to the world.

A superficial reading of these verses might lead us to believe that David was bragging about himself, but this isn’t the case at all. David was praising the Lord for enabling him to live a blameless life in dangerous and uncomfortable situations. Just think of how difficult it would be to keep the law of the Lord in the Judean wilderness while fleeing for your life! This doesn’t mean that David was spotless and always did the right thing. He had his days of despair when he even fled to the enemy for help, but these were incidents in a life that was otherwise wholly devoted to God.

God is always faithful to His character and His covenant. Knowing the character of God is essential to knowing and doing the will of God and pleasing His heart. David knew God’s covenant, so he understood what God expected of him. The character of God and the covenant of God are the foundations for the promises of God. If we ignore His character and covenant, we will never be successful in claiming His promises.

The image of the burning lamp can refer to God’s goodness in keeping people alive (, ; ). David’s life was constantly in danger, but the Lord kept him alive and provided all he needed. But a burning lamp also speaks of the reign of a king. David’s men were afraid that one day he would be slain in battle, and the lamp of Israel” () be put out. Even after David died, the Lord was true to His covenant promise and kept David’s lamp burning by maintaining David’s dynasty (; ; ; ; ).

Catalyst

The song in chapter tells us that God enlarged David’s path (v. ) and put him into a place of safety (v. ). The remarkable statement “Your gentleness has made me great” (v. ) reveals David’s utter amazement that Almighty God would condescend to pay any attention to him. David always saw himself as an ordinary Israelite shepherd with no special position in Israel (, ), but the Lord “stooped down” to make him great. He made David a great warrior and gave him a lasting dynasty (), and David acknowledged this incredible mercy from God, but David’s greatest desire was to make Jehovah’s name great before the nations ().

The gracious condescension of the Lord is a theme that is too often neglected by God’s people. As He did with David, God the Father condescends to work in our lives to fit us for the work of His choosing (see ), and God the Son certainly humbled Himself for us when He came to earth as a servant and a sacrifice for sin (). The Holy Spirit condescended to come to earth and live in the people of God! David didn’t look back on those difficult exile years and see the “hardness” of God but the help of God. He saw only goodness and mercy following him ().

When we think about all that God does for us, one of the constant reasons for amazement is to note how much God accomplishes when we give Him so little to work with! But like the little boy who offered five loaves and two fishes (), Jesus condescends to take the “insignificance” we offer and work wonders in and through our lives.

Go to the

David’s shout of praise, “The LORD lives,” was his bold witness to subjected peoples that their dead idols could not save them or protect them (see ). Only Jehovah, the God of Israel, is the true and living God, and David’s victories and enthronement proved that God was with him. David was always careful not to exalt himself but to exalt the Lord. David closed his song with high and holy praise for the Lord God of Israel. If we magnify our own name or our own deeds, we will sin, but if the Lord magnifies us, we can bring glory to His name ().

Paul quoted verse in as part of the wrap-up of his admonition to the believers in the churches in Rome that they receive one another and stop judging one another. Paul points out that Christ came to minister to both Jews and Gentiles by fulfilling God’s promises to the Jews and dying for both Jews and Gentiles. From the very beginning of the nation, when God called Abraham and Sarah, the Lord had it in mind to include the Gentiles in His gracious plan of salvation (; ; ; .). They have always been part of God’s plan!

This psalm shows what thrilled David’s heart—seeing God in the affairs of life. David saw the Lord in both the happy occasions and the storms. He saw God’s purpose in his life and in the nation of Israel and rejoiced to be a part of it. Most exciting, despite David’s troubles, he still saw the gentle hand of God, molding his life and accomplishing His purposes (v. ). The enlarged troubles () “enlarged” David () and prepared him to take enlarged steps () in the enlarged place God had prepared for him (v. ). That can be our experience, too. In what ways can you trace God’s patient, faithful, and gentle action in your own past?

At least seventy-three of the psalms in the book of Psalms are assigned to David, but his last one is found only here in . The phrase “the last words of David” means “his last inspired written words from the Lord.” The psalm may have been written during the closing days of David’s life. Since the theme of the psalm is godly leadership, he may have written it especially for Solomon, but it has much to say to all of God’s people today.

, God empowers those whom He calls, and He anointed David with His Spirit (, ). That’s why so many gifted men came to David and joined his band when he was in the wilderness. To be an effective leader and to be able to recruit and train other leaders takes more than talent and training. Jesus reminded His disciples, “without Me you can do nothing” (). Religious leaders who follow the principles of what the world calls “success” rarely accomplish anything permanent that glorifies God. “But he who does the will of God abides forever” (). To be educated by human beings is good, but to be called, trained, and raised up by the Lord is so much more important.

Without righteousness and the fear of God, a leader becomes a dictator and abuses God’s people, driving them like cattle instead of leading them like sheep. David was a ruler who served and a servant who ruled, and he had the welfare of his people on his heart (). We can be encouraged today to see that even secular business specialists are comparing effective leaders to shepherds who care. God’s people-principles work among all people in all times.

, Unspiritual leaders produce thorns that irritate people and make progress very difficult. With God’s help, leaders must provide such a creative atmosphere that their co-laborers will be able to grow and produce fruit. Ministry involves both sunshine and rain, bright days and cloudy days, but a godly leader’s ministry will produce gentle rain that brings life and not storms that destroy. What a delight it is to follow a spiritual leader who brings out the best in us and helps us produce fruit for the glory of God.

Whatever God put in David’s hands He used to honor God and help God’s people—sling, sword, harp, scepter, and even a cup of water. When David looked into the cup, he didn’t see water; he saw the blood of the three men who had risked their lives for him. Drinking that water would demean his men and cheapen the brave deed of the three heroes, communicating that their lives really weren’t important to him. By pouring the water out as a drink offering to the Lord, David turned the cave into a temple. The drink offering was an act of dedication that symbolized a person’s life poured out in the service of the Lord. The three men had given themselves as a sacrifice to the Lord to serve David (), so David added his offering to theirs to show them he was one with them in their devotion to Jehovah. All leaders need to follow David’s example and let their followers know how much they appreciate them and the sacrifices they make.

Jesus gave himself as a sacrifice for us, and also as a drink offering (; ). Paul used the image of the drink offering to describe his own dedication to the Lord (; ). Pouring out a drink offering or giving help to others may seem like small gestures. But doing small things because we love Christ turns them into great things. According to Jesus, whenever we show love and kindness to others and seek to meet their needs, we give Him a cup of cold water ().

This verse states that God caused David to number the people, while names Satan as the culprit. Both are true: God permitted Satan to tempt David in order to accomplish the purposes He had in mind. Satan certainly opposed God’s people throughout all of Old Testament history, but this is one of four instances in the Old Testament where Satan is named specifically and seen openly at work. The other three are when he tempted Eve (), when he attacked Job (), and when he accused Joshua the high priest (). Whatever mischief Satan causes in our lives, he never acts outside of God’s supervision.

What was wrong about this census? Joab and his captains were against the project (v. ), and Joab’s speech in verse suggests that David was motivated by pride, wanting to magnify his own achievements rather than glorify the Lord. David may have rationalized this desire by arguing that his son Solomon was a man of peace who had no military experience. David wanted to be certain that, after his death, Israel would have the forces needed to preserve the peace. Another factor may have been David’s plan to organize the army, the government, and the priests and Levites so that Solomon could manage more easily and be able to build the temple ().

David confessed his sin and sought the Lord’s face. At least six times we find David confessing “I have sinned” (; , ; ; ; ). When confessing his sins of adultery and murder, David said, “I have sinned.” But when confessing his sin of numbering the people, he said, “I have sinned greatly.” Most would consider his sins relating to Bathsheba far worse than numbering the people, and far more foolish, but David saw the enormity of what he had done. David’s sins with Bathsheba had cost him four sons (the baby, Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah) plus the life of Uriah. But after the census, God sent a plague that killed seventy thousand people. The Lord must have agreed with David that he had indeed sinned greatly.

The plague began the next morning and continued for the appointed three days, with the judgment angel ending his work at Jerusalem, just as Joab and his men had done (v. ). David’s shepherd’s heart was broken because of this judgment, and he pleaded with God to punish him instead. Why would God kill seventy thousand men and yet keep David alive? We must note that says God was angry with Israel and not with David, so He must have been punishing the people for their sin(s). Some have suggested that this plague took the lives of the Israelites who had followed Absalom in his rebellion and didn’t want David as their king. Perhaps, but the text doesn’t say.

The land that David purchased was no ordinary piece of property, for it was the place where Abraham had put his son Isaac on the altar () and where Solomon would build the temple (; ). After the plague had ceased, David consecrated the site to the Lord (, ) and used it as a place of sacrifice and worship. The altar and tabernacle were at Gibeon, but David was permitted to worship at Jerusalem. The land was sanctified and would one day be the site of God’s temple. David announced, “This is the house of the LORD God, and this is the altar of burnt offering for Israel” (), and from that time he began to get everything ready for Solomon to build the temple.

2 Samuel 1

1:1

1:1 , ,

1:2

1:4 ;

1:4

1:6

1:10

1:11 ;

1:12

1:14

1:14 ;

1:15 ,

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1:18

1:19

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1:21

1:22

1:23

1:26 ; ;

1:27 ,

2 Samuel 2

2:1

2:2 , ;

2:3

2:4

2:5 ;

2:6 ,

2:8

2:8 Called Esh-Baal in and

2:9

2:11

2:12 ;

2:13 ;

2:13

2:16 Hebrew Helkath Hazzurim

2:18

2:23 ; ;

2:23

2:27

2:32

2 Samuel 3

3:1

3:2

3:2 ,

3:3

3:4

3:7

3:8

3:9

3:10

3:13

3:13 ; ;

3:14

3:15 Spelled Palti in

3:16 ;

3:18

3:18 Following many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Syriac, and Targum; Masoretic Text reads he.

3:19

3:21 ,

3:21

3:25

3:27

3:29 ,

3:29

3:30

3:31

3:33 ,

3:35

3:39

3:39 , ,

2 Samuel 4

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4:1 That is, Ishbosheth

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4:3

4:4

4:4 ,

4:4

4:4 Called Merib-Baal in and

4:5 ,

4:6 ;

4:8 , , ; ;

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4:10

4:11 [, ]

4:12

2 Samuel 5

5:1

5:1 ,

5:2 , ,

5:2

5:3

5:4

5:4 ;

5:5

5:6

5:7 ; ;

5:8

5:8 Compare

5:9

5:9 Literally The Landfill

5:10

5:10 ,

5:11

5:12

5:13 []

5:14

5:14 Spelled Shimea in

5:15 Spelled Elishama in

5:17

5:18

5:19

5:20

5:20 Literally Master of Breakthroughs

5:21 ,

5:22

5:23

5:24

5:25

5:25 Following Masoretic Text, Targum, and Vulgate; Septuagint reads Gibeon.

2 Samuel 6

6:2 ,

6:2

6:2 Septuagint, Targum, and Vulgate omit by the Name; many Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac read there.

6:3

6:3 Septuagint adds with the ark.

6:4

6:5 ,

6:6

6:6 , ,

6:8 Literally Outburst Against Uzzah

6:9

6:10

6:10 ;

6:11

6:11 ;

6:12

6:13

6:14 ;

6:14 ,

6:15

6:16

6:17

6:17 , ,

6:18 , ,

6:19

6:20

6:20 ,

6:20

6:21 ;

6:21

6:23

2 Samuel 7

7:1

7:2

7:3 ,

7:5 , ;

7:6

7:6 ,

7:7 ,

7:7

7:8 ,

7:9

7:10 ;

7:10 ,

7:11

7:11 That is, a royal dynasty

7:12

7:13 ;

7:13 [; ]

7:14 []

7:14 [; , , ]

7:15 , ;

7:16

7:16 Septuagint reads Me.

7:18

7:19 [, ]

7:20

7:22

7:22 Targum and Syriac read O LORD God.

7:23

7:23 ;

7:24 []

7:24

7:28

7:29

2 Samuel 8

8:2

8:3

8:4 ,

8:4 Or seven thousand (compare )

8:5

8:6 ;

8:7

8:8

8:8 Spelled Tibhath in

8:9

8:9 Spelled Tou in

8:10 Spelled Hadoram in

8:11

8:12

8:12 Septuagint, Syriac, and some Hebrew manuscripts read Edom.

8:13

8:13 Septuagint, Syriac, and some Hebrew manuscripts read Edomites (compare ).

8:14 ,

8:16 ;

8:16

8:17 ;

8:17 Spelled Shavsha in

8:18

2 Samuel 9

9:1 ;

9:2 ; ,

9:3

9:4

9:6 ;

9:8

9:9 ;

9:10 , , ;

9:10

9:11 Septuagint reads David’s table.

9:12

9:13 , ,

9:13

2 Samuel 10

10:1

10:2

10:4 ;

10:6

10:6 ,

10:6

10:6 ,

10:7

10:8

10:10

10:12

10:14

10:16 Hebrew Hadarezer

10:16 That is, the Euphrates

10:18

10:19

10:19 Hebrew Hadarezer

2 Samuel 11

11:1

11:2

11:3

11:4 [, ]

11:4 ,

11:8 ;

11:9 ,

11:11 ,

11:11

11:13 ,

11:13

11:14 ,

11:15

11:21

11:21 Same as Jerubbaal (Gideon),

11:27

2 Samuel 12

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12:6 []

12:7

12:9

12:9 ,

12:10 []

12:11 ,

12:12

12:13

12:13 []

12:14

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12:16

12:20

12:22

12:22 A few Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac read God.

12:23

12:24

12:24 Following Kethib, Septuagint, and Vulgate; Qere, a few Hebrew manuscripts, Syriac, and Targum read she.

12:25 Qere, some Hebrew manuscripts, Syriac, and Targum read she.

12:25 Literally Beloved of the LORD

12:26

12:30

2 Samuel 13

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13:1

13:3

13:6

13:9

13:11

13:12 [; ]

13:12 ;

13:13

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13:19

13:22 ;

13:22 [, ]

13:23

13:28

13:29

13:31

13:32

13:33

13:34 ,

13:34 Septuagint adds And the watchman went and told the king, and said, “I see men from the way of Horonaim, from the regions of the mountains.”

13:37

13:38 , ;

13:39 ,

13:39 Following Masoretic Text, Syriac, and Vulgate; Septuagint reads the spirit of the king; Targum reads the soul of King David.

13:39 Following Masoretic Text and Targum; Septuagint and Vulgate read ceased to pursue after.

2 Samuel 14

14:1

14:2

14:3

14:4 ;

14:4 ,

14:4 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate read came.

14:5 []

14:7 ,

14:9

14:11 ,

14:11

14:13

14:13 ,

14:14 []

14:14

14:16

14:17

14:19

14:20 ;

14:23 ,

14:24

14:25

14:27 ;

14:28

14:32

14:33

2 Samuel 15

15:1

15:2

15:4

15:5 ;

15:6 []

15:7 []

15:7 ,

15:7 Septuagint manuscripts, Syriac, and Josephus read four.

15:8

15:8 ,

15:8

15:10

15:11 ,

15:11

15:12

15:13

15:14

15:16

15:16 ; ,

15:18

15:18 ; ; ,

15:19

15:20

15:21 ,

15:23 ;

15:24

15:25 []

15:25

15:26

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15:30

15:30 ,

15:30 []

15:31 , ;

15:31 ; ,

15:32

15:33

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15:35 ,

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15:37

2 Samuel 16

16:1 ,

16:1 ; ,

16:2 ;

16:3 ,

16:3

16:5

16:7

16:8 , ,

16:8 ; , ; ,

16:9

16:10 ;

16:10 []

16:11

16:12

16:12 []

16:12 Following Kethib, Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate; Qere reads my eyes; Targum reads tears of my eyes.

16:15 ,

16:16

16:17

16:19

16:20

16:21 ;

16:21

16:22 ,

16:23

2 Samuel 17

17:2

17:4 ;

17:5

17:8

17:10

17:11

17:13

17:14 ,

17:15 ,

17:16

17:17 ,

17:17

17:17 ;

17:18 ;

17:19

17:20

17:21 ,

17:23

17:24 ;

17:25 ,

17:25

17:25 Spelled Jether in and elsewhere

17:25 Following Masoretic Text, some manuscripts of the Septuagint, and Targum; some manuscripts of the Septuagint read Ishmaelite (compare ); Vulgate reads of Jezrael.

17:27 ;

17:27

17:27 ,

17:29 ,

2 Samuel 18

18:1

18:2

18:3

18:5

18:6 ,

18:9

18:12

18:12 The ancient versions read ‘Protect the young man Absalom for me!’

18:17 ;

18:17 ; ,

18:18

18:19 ;

18:24

18:27

18:28

18:33

2 Samuel 19

19:1

19:2

19:3 , ;

19:4

19:5

19:8 ;

19:8

19:9

19:11

19:12

19:13

19:14

19:15

19:16

19:17

19:17 , ; ,

19:19

19:19 ,

19:19

19:20

19:21 []

19:22 ;

19:22

19:23 , , ,

19:24 ;

19:25

19:27 ,

19:28

19:31

19:32

19:35

19:37

19:39

19:40 Masoretic Text reads Chimhan.

19:41

19:42

19:43 ,

19:43 ;

2 Samuel 20

20:1

20:1 Literally man of Belial

20:2

20:3 ; ,

20:4 ;

20:6

20:7 ,

20:7

20:9

20:10

20:14

20:14 Literally him

20:15

20:19

20:22 []

20:23

20:24

20:25

20:26

2 Samuel 21

21:1

21:2 ,

21:2 []

21:3

21:6

21:7 ;

21:7

21:8

21:8 Or Merab (compare and ; and )

21:9

21:10 ;

21:10

21:12

21:12 Spelled Beth Shean in and elsewhere

21:14

21:16

21:17

21:18

21:18 ;

21:18 Spelled Sippai in

21:19

21:19 Spelled Jair in

21:20

21:21

21:21 Spelled Shammah in and elsewhere

21:22

2 Samuel 22

22:1

22:1 ;

22:2

22:2 Compare

22:3

22:3 ; , ,

22:6

22:7 ;

22:7

22:8

22:8 Following Masoretic Text, Septuagint, and Targum; Syriac and Vulgate read hills (compare ).

22:9

22:10

22:11

22:11 Following Masoretic Text and Septuagint; many Hebrew manuscripts, Syriac, and Vulgate read He flew (compare ); Targum reads He spoke with power.

22:12

22:14

22:15

22:16

22:17

22:19

22:20 ;

22:20

22:21

22:22

22:23 [; ]

22:24 []

22:25

22:25 Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate read the cleanness of my hands in His sight (compare ); Targum reads my cleanness before His word.

22:26 []

22:27 [, ]

22:28

22:29 ;

22:30

22:31 []

22:31

22:32 ,

22:33

22:33 []

22:33 ,

22:33 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate read It is God who arms me with strength (compare ); Targum reads It is God who sustains me with strength.

22:33 Following Qere, Septuagint, Syriac, Targum, and Vulgate (compare ); Kethib reads His.

22:34

22:34 Following Qere, Septuagint, Syriac, Targum, and Vulgate (compare ); Kethib reads His.

22:37

22:39

22:40 []

22:41

22:42

22:43

22:44

22:44 []

22:46 []

22:46 Following Septuagint, Targum, and Vulgate (compare ); Masoretic Text reads gird themselves.

22:47

22:48

22:49 , ,

22:50

22:51

2 Samuel 23

23:1 ,

23:2 []

23:3 []

23:3

23:4

23:5

23:8 Literally One Who Sits in the Seat (compare )

23:8 Following Masoretic Text and Targum; Septuagint and Vulgate read the three.

23:9 ;

23:9 Spelled Dodai in

23:10

23:10 ,

23:11

23:11 ,

23:13

23:14 ,

23:17 []

23:18

23:18 Following Masoretic Text, Septuagint, and Vulgate; some Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac read thirty; Targum reads the mighty men.

23:20

23:23 ;

23:24

23:25

23:30

23:33

23:34

23:35 Spelled Hezro in

23:36

23:38

23:39 ,

2 Samuel 24

24:1 ,

24:2

24:2 []

24:3

24:5

24:5 ,

24:6

24:7

24:9

24:10

24:11

24:13

24:13 Following Masoretic Text, Syriac, Targum, and Vulgate; Septuagint reads three (compare ).

24:14 [; , , ; ; , ]

24:14 []

24:15

24:16

24:16 Or Angel

24:16 Spelled Ornan in

24:17

24:18

24:21

24:21 ,

24:22

24:23 [, ]

24:24 ,

24:25

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