HarperCollins Study Bible

by Harold W. Attridge

  3.39 David says that he cannot control his nephews, the sons of Zeruiah, who, though fiercely loyal to him, are consistently ruthless and impetuous, as we have already seen (1 Sam 26.8; 2 Sam 2.18–23). The LORD pay back…wickedness, lacking in a scroll from Qumran (4QSama); it probably arose as the comment of a pious scribe.

  2 SAMUEL 4

  Ishbaal Assassinated

  1When Saul’s son Ishbaala heard that Abner had died at Hebron, his courage failed, and all Israel was dismayed. 2Saul’s son had two captains of raiding bands; the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab. They were sons of Rimmon a Benjaminite from Beeroth—for Beeroth is considered to belong to Benjamin. 3(Now the people of Beeroth had fled to Gittaim and are there as resident aliens to this day).

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

  5Now the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, set out, and about the heat of the day they came to the house of Ishbaal,c while he was taking his noonday rest. 6They came inside the house as though to take wheat, and they struck him in the stomach; then Rechab and his brother Baanah escaped.d 7Now they had come into the house while he was lying on his couch in his bedchamber; they attacked him, killed him, and beheaded him. Then they took his head and traveled by way of the Arabah all night long. 8They brought the head of Ishbaale to David at Hebron and said to the king, “Here is the head of Ishbaal,f son of Saul, your enemy, who sought your life; the LORD has avenged my lord the king this day on Saul and on his offspring.”

  9David answered Rechab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As the LORD lives, who has redeemed my life out of every adversity, 10when the one who told me, ‘See, Saul is dead,’ thought he was bringing good news, I seized him and killed him at Ziklag—this was the reward I gave him for his news. 11How much more then, when wicked men have killed a righteous man on his bed in his own house! And now shall I not require his blood at your hand, and destroy you from the earth?” 12So David commanded the young men, and they killed them; they cut off their hands and feet, and hung their bodies beside the pool at Hebron. But the head of Ishbaalg they took and buried in the tomb of Abner at Hebron.

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  a Heb lacks Ishbaal

  b In 1 Chr 8.34 and 9.40, Merib-baal

  c Heb Ish-bosheth

  d Meaning of Heb of verse 6 uncertain

  e Heb Ish-bosheth

  f Heb Ish-bosheth

  g Heb Ish-bosheth

  4.1–12 Seeking to gain favor with David, two Benjaminites murder Ishbaal. The author of the old story of David’s rise to power (see Introduction) stresses that David neither authorized nor approved of the assassination, though it cleared the way for him to become king of Israel.

  4.2 Beeroth, four to five miles northwest of Jerusalem, was one of the four Gibeonite cities that survived destruction during the conquest by tricking Joshua into making a treaty with them (see Josh 9, esp. v. 17); it was subsequently assigned to Benjamin by lot (Josh 18.25).

  4.3 Gittaim, Hebrew, “the Double Gath (Winepress).” Location unknown; it is mentioned elsewhere only in Neh 11.33. We are not told why the people of Beeroth had fled to Gittaim, but it probably had something to do with Saul’s hostility toward the Gibeonites (see 21.2). Resident aliens. See note on 1.13–16.

  4.4 The flow of the narrative is interrupted for the introduction of Mephibosheth. The name was originally Mephibaal (“Out of the Mouth of the Lord”) before the substitution of bosheth, “shame,” for baal, “lord, Baal” (see note on 2.8). The name is confused in the biblical text with another similar name, Merib-baal (“The Lord is Advocate”); Mephibaal was probably the name of a son of Saul by his concubine Rizpah (see 21.8); Merib-baal was the name of Jonathan’s crippled son (see 1 Chr 8.34; 9.40).

  4.7 As in 2.29, the journey to Mahanaim, Ishbaal’s capital (see 2.8), passes through the Arabah, or rift valley south of the Sea of Galilee.

  4.10 David recalls events of 1.2–16.

  4.12 Tomb of Abner. See 3.32.

  2 SAMUEL 5

  David Anointed King of All Israel

  1Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron, and said, “Look, we are your bone and flesh. 2For some time, while Saul was king over us, it was you who led out Israel and brought it in. The LORD said to you: It is you who shall be shepherd of my people Israel, you who shall be ruler over Israel.” 3So 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. 5At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months; and at Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years.

  Jerusalem Made Capital of the United Kingdom

  6The king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who said to David, “You will not come in here, even the blind and the lame will turn you back”—thinking, “David cannot come in here.” 7Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion, which is now the city of David. 8David had said on that day, “Whoever would strike down the Jebusites, let him get up the water shaft to attack the lame and the blind, those whom David hates.”a Therefore it is said, “The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.” 9David occupied the stronghold, and named it the city of David. David built the city all around from the Millo inward. 10And David became greater and greater, for the LORD, the God of hosts, was with him.

  11King Hiram of Tyre sent messengers to David, along with cedar trees, and carpenters and masons who built David a house. 12David then perceived that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel.

  13In Jerusalem, after he came from Hebron, David took more concubines and wives; and more sons and daughters were born to David. 14These are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, 15Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, 16Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.

  Philistine Attack Repulsed

  17When the Philistines heard that David had been anointed king over Israel, all the Philistines went up in search of David; but David heard about it and went down to the stronghold. 18Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the valley of Rephaim. 19David inquired of the LORD, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” The LORD said to David, “Go up; for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.” 20So David came to Baal-perazim, and David defeated them there. He said, “The LORD has burst forth againstb my enemies before me, like a bursting flood.” Therefore that place is called Baal-perazim.c 21The Philistines abandoned their idols there, and David and his men carried them away.

  22Once again the Philistines came up, and were spread out in the valley of Rephaim. 23When David inquired of the LORD, he said, “You shall not go up; go around to their rear, and come upon them opposite the balsam trees. 24When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then be on the alert; for then the LORD has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines.” 25David did just as the LORD had commanded him; and he struck down the Philistines from Geba all the way to Gezer.

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  a Another reading is those who hate David

  b Heb paraz

  c That is Lord of Bursting Forth

  5.1–5 David becomes king a second time, now of the northern tribes.

  5.1–2 These two verses, which have a number of verbal parallels with the oracle of Nathan in ch. 7, were inserted by a Deuteronomistic editor in whose time it was natural for the Israelites to describe themselves in relation to David, a Judahite, as your bone and flesh; in the older narrative (19.13) David
uses the same expression to signify his kinship to the people of Judah in contrast to the people of Israel. David led out Israel and brought it in, i.e., he led the army (see Num 27.17; 1 Chr 2.11; cf. 1 Sam 18.13, 16; 29.6). For David as Israel’s shepherd, see 2 Sam 7.7; ruler (Hebrew nagid) translates the same word as prince in 7.8 (cf. note on 1 Sam 9.16).

  5.3 A second, older account of David’s appointment as king. By making a covenant with the Israelite elders David is binding himself to certain obligations in return for fealty.

  5.4–5 These chronological notices belong to the Deuteronomistic framework of the narrative (see Introduction; 2.10–11; note on 1 Sam 13.1). Biblical scholars generally date David’s reign to the first half of the tenth century, ca. 1000–960BCE.

  5.6–16 David’s private army successfully besieges the city of the Jebusites.

  5.6 Jebusites, the indigenous inhabitants of Jerusalem whom Joshua failed to drive away (Josh 15.63; Judg 1.21). There have been many attempts to explain the role of the blind and the lame in this account. The present translation reflects the interpretation that the Jebusites are taunting David: “We are so much stronger than you that even our blind and lame can keep you out.”

  5.7 Stronghold of Zion, a fortified hilltop on the southeast corner of the later city. In the strict sense, then, Zion and the city of David refer only to this hill (see 1 Kings 8.1), but both terms were extended to mean the city as a whole.

  5.8 At this point in the Chronicler’s version of the capture of Jerusalem (1 Chr 11.6) Joab wins the position as commander in chief of David’s army by leading the attack on the city. Water shaft, a vertical passage used by the Jebusites to have access to the Gihon, Jerusalem’s primary water source, from within the city walls. Another possible translation of the Hebrew word rendered water shaft is “windpipe” David might be telling his troops to strike at the windpipe, dealing only fatal blows so as not to leave the city full of maimed people (the lame and the blind). The narrator uses the story to explain a rule excluding the lame and blind from the house, i.e., the temple (cf. Lev 21.16–23; Deut 23.1).

  5.9 Named. Ancient Near Eastern conquerors often renamed cities in their own honor. Millo, Hebrew, “the Fill,” an earth-work of some kind, perhaps a building platform created by filling a ravine; Solomon amplified or rebuilt it (1 Kings 9.15, 24; 11.27).

  5.10 The old story of David’s rise to power (see Introduction) probably ended here, with a final recapitulation of its central motif (see 1 Sam 16.18; 18.14, 28).

  5.11 King Hiram will later supply Solomon with the skilled workers and materials necessary for the construction of the temple (see 1 Kings 5.1–10); extrabiblical sources indicate that his reign was long and productive. Tyre, port and chief city of Phoenicia, ancient Lebanon; it was about fifty miles south of Beirut. For millennia, the cedars of Lebanon were prized for use in the building of temples and royal residences; for David’s house of cedar, see also 7.2.

  5.12 Language anticipating that of the dynastic promise in ch. 7 (see esp. 7.12).

  5.13–15 Sons born to David in Jerusalem (see also 1 Chr 14.3–4). For David’s sons born in Hebron, cf. 3.2–5. For a composite listing, see 1 Chr 3.1–9. Of the sons mentioned here, only Solomon will play a significant role in the story.

  5.17–25 A miscellany detailing David’s success in the Philistine wars.

  5.17 Stronghold, probably not Zion (vv. 7, 9), but Adullam, a Judahite fortress about sixteen miles to the southwest where David sought refuge in the past (see 1 Sam 22.1, 4; 24.22) and where he will be in another encounter with Philistines in the valley of Rephaim (see 2 Sam 23.13, 14).

  5.18 Valley of Rephaim, usually identified with a plain southwest of Jerusalem; it formed part of the boundary of the tribal territories of Benjamin and Judah (see Josh 15.8; 18.16).

  5.20 Baal-perazim (“the lord of Perazim”) must have been a sanctuary on or near Mount Perazim (see Isa 28.21); here its name is playfully traced to David’s victory.

  5.21 Just as the Philistines carried off the ark after their victory in 1 Sam 4.1–11, David and his men now carry away their idols (lit. “gods”).

  5.23 Balsam trees, obscure; perhaps some kind of tree or bush or a place-name, “Bachaim.”

  5.24 The sound of marching will indicate that the LORD has gone out as the Divine Warrior to fight on David’s behalf.

  5.25 Geba, which was northeast of Jerusalem (see 1 Sam 13.3), should be emended to “Gibeon,” which was northwest of the city (see 2.12) and therefore more suited to the geography of the present passage. Gezer was about fifteen miles west of Gibeon in the direction of the Philistine plain.

  2 SAMUEL 6

  David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem

  1David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand.2David and all the people with him set out and went from Baale-judah, to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the LORD of hosts who is enthroned on the cherubim. 3They carried the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio,a the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart 4with the ark of God;b and Ahioc went in front of the ark. 5David and all the house of Israel were dancing before the LORD with all their might, with songsd and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.

  6When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen shook it. 7The anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah; and God struck him there because he reached out his hand to the ark;e and he died there beside the ark of God. 8David was angry because the LORD had burst forth with an outburst upon Uzzah; so that place is called Perez-uzzah,f to this day. 9David was afraid of the LORD that day; he said, “How can the ark of the LORD come into my care?” 10So David was unwilling to take the ark of the LORD into his care in the city of David; instead David took it to 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.

  12It was told King David, “The LORD has blessed the household 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 rejoicing; 13and when those who bore the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. 14David danced before the LORD with all his might; David was girded with 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. 16 As the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal daughter of Saul looked out of the window, and saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart.

  17They brought in the ark of the LORD, and set it in its place, inside the tent that David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt offerings and offerings of well-being before the LORD. 18When David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the offerings of well-being, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts, 19and distributed food among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, to each a cake of bread, a portion of meat,g and a cake of raisins. Then all the people went back to their homes.

  20David returned to bless his household. But Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said, “How the king of Israel honored himself today, uncovering himself today before the eyes of his servants’ maids, as any vulgar fellow might shamelessly uncover himself!” 21David said to Michal, “It was before the LORD, who chose me in place of your father and all his household, to appoint me as prince over Israel, the people of the LORD, that I have danced before the LORD. 22I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in my own eyes; but by the maids of whom you have spoken, by them I shall be held in honor.” 23And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.

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  a Or and his brother

  b Compare Gk: Heb a
nd brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill with the ark of God

  c Or and his brother

  d Q Ms Gk 1 Chr 13.8: Heb fir trees

  e 1 Chr 13.10 Compare Q Ms: Meaning of Heb uncertain

  f That is Bursting Out Against Uzzah

  g Vg: Meaning of Heb uncertain

  6.1–23 David installs the chief symbol of the religion of Israel in his new capital city.

  6.2 Baale-judah, another name for Kiriath-jearim (cf. Josh 15.9), where the ark has been since its return from Philistia (see 1 Sam 7.2).

  6.2 The ark of God, the most sacred object in Israelite worship, marks the presence of the Lord. The LORD…cherubim. See note on 1 Sam 4.4.

  6.3 The cart in which the ark returned from Philistia was burned in a sacrifice (1 Sam 6.14), and in any case a new cart is necessary for ritual purposes; see note at 1 Sam 6.7. The house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. See 1 Sam 6.21; 7.1. Uzzah and Ahio were not mentioned in 1 Sam 7.1, where we were told that Abinadab’s son Eleazar was consecrated for service with the ark; it is possible that Eleazar and Uzzah are the same person.

  6.6–7 Because of its great sacredness the ark is potentially very dangerous (cf. 1 Sam 6.19) and must be treated with great care. Although Uzzah’s purpose in reaching for the ark is probably only to steady it, he has not been ritually prepared to touch it, and his lapse proves fatal.

  6.8 The meaning of Perez-uzzah, as the threshing floor of Nacon was known in the time of the author of this verse, is explained by a reference to the events just described.

  6.9–10 David becomes fearful of the holy object and temporarily abandons his plan to bring it into the city. Obed-edom the Gittite, perhaps one of the soldiers whose loyalty David won when he served in the army of the king of Gath (see 1 Sam 27) and who followed him when he returned to Israel (see 15.18); because of his association with the ark he had been given a levitical genealogy by the time of the Chronicler (1 Chr 15.18, 21, 24; 16.5, 38).