2 Samuel 4-5

Complete Jewish Bible

4 When Ish-Boshet the son of Sha’ul heard that Avner had died in Hevron, his courage failed; and all Isra’el became alarmed. ² Sha’ul’s son had two men who were captains of raiding parties, one called Ba‘anah and the other Rekhav, sons of Rimmon the Be’eroti, of the people of Binyamin (for Be’erot is counted as part of Binyamin, ³ even though the Be’erotim fled to Gittayim and have lived as foreigners there to this day). ⁴ Now Y’honatan the son of Sha’ul’s had a son, and he was lame in both legs. He had been five years old when the news about Sha’ul and Y’honatan came from Yizre‘el. His nurse had gathered him up and fled; but as she was hurrying to get away, he fell and became lame. His name was M’fivoshet. ⁵ The sons of Rimmon the Be’eroti, Rekhav and Ba‘anah went and arrived during the heat of the day at the home of Ish-Boshet as he was taking his afternoon rest. ⁶ They went right into the house, as if they were coming to get wheat, and stabbed him in the groin; then Rekhav and Ba‘anah his brother escaped. ⁷ They entered the house as he lay on his bed in his bedroom, stabbed him and killed him; then they beheaded him, took his head and fled all night along the road through the ‘Aravah. ⁸ They brought the head of Ish-Boshet to David in Hevron and said to the king, “Here is the head of Ish-Boshet the son of Sha’ul your enemy, who wanted to take your life. Today Adonai has taken revenge on Sha’ul and his son for the sake of my lord the king.”

⁹ But David answered Rekhav and Ba‘anah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Be’eroti, “As Adonai lives, who has rescued me from every kind of difficulty, ¹⁰ when someone told me, ‘Here, Sha’ul is dead,’ thinking to himself that he was bringing good news, I didn’t reward him for his news but seized him and killed him in Ziklag. ¹¹ How much more, when criminals have killed an innocent man in his own house on his own bed, shouldn’t I hold you responsible for his death and rid the earth of you?” ¹² David then gave the order to his men, and they put them to death, cutting off their hands and feet and hanging them up next to the pool at Hevron. But they took the head of Ish-Boshet and buried it in Avner’s grave at Hevron.

5 Then all the tribes of Isra’el came to David in Hevron and said, “Here, we are your own flesh and bone. ² In the past, when Sha’ul was king over us, it was you who led Isra’el’s military campaigns; and Adonai said to you, ‘You will shepherd my people Isra’el, and you will be chief over Isra’el.’” ³ So all the leaders of Isra’el came to the king in Hevron, and King David made a covenant with them in Hevron in the presence of Adonai. Then they anointed David king over Isra’el. ⁴ David was thirty years old when he began his rule, and he ruled forty years. ⁵ In Hevron he ruled over Y’hudah seven years and six months; then in Yerushalayim he ruled thirty-three years over all Isra’el and Y’hudah.

⁶ The king and his men went to Yerushalayim to attack the Y’vusi, the inhabitants of that region. They taunted David, “You won’t get in here! Even the blind and the lame could fend you off!” — in other words, they were thinking, “David will never get in here.” ⁷ Nevertheless, David captured the stronghold of Tziyon, also known [now] as the City of David. ⁸ What David said on that day was, “In order to attack the Y’vusi, you have to climb up [from the spring outside the city] through the water tunnel. Then you can do away with those [so-called] ‘lame and blind’” (whom David despises — hence the expression, “The ‘blind and lame’ keep him from entering the house”).

⁹ David lived in the stronghold and called it the City of David. Then David built up the city around it, starting at the Millo [earth rampart] and working inward. ¹⁰ David grew greater and greater, because Adonai the God of Armies was with him. ¹¹ Hiram king of Tzor sent envoys to David with cedar logs, and with them were carpenters and stonemasons; and they built David a palace. ¹² David then knew that Adonai had set him up as king over Isra’el and increased his royal power for the sake of his people.

¹³ David took for himself more concubines and wives in Yerushalayim after coming from Hevron, so that still more sons and daughters were born to David. ¹⁴ Here are the names of those born to him in Yerushalayim: Shamua, Shovav, Natan, Shlomo, ¹⁵ Yivchar, Elishua, Nefeg, Yafia, ¹⁶ Elishama, Elyada and Elifelet.

¹⁷ When the P’lishtim heard that David had been anointed king over Isra’el, all the P’lishtim went up in search of David. On learning of it, David went down to the stronghold. ¹⁸ The P’lishtim came and deployed in the Refa’im Valley. ¹⁹ David consulted Adonai, asking, “Should I attack the P’lishtim? Will you hand them over to me?” Adonai answered David, “Attack; I will certainly hand the P’lishtim over to you.” ²⁰ So David went to Ba‘al-P’ratzim and defeated them there. He said, “Adonai has broken through my enemies for me like a river breaking through its banks.” This is why he called the place Ba‘al-P’ratzim [Lord of breaking through]. ²¹ The P’lishtim had left their idols there, so David and his men took them away.

²² The P’lishtim came up again and deployed in the Refa’im Valley. ²³ When David consulted Adonai, he said, “Don’t attack! Circle behind them, and engage them opposite the balsam trees. ²⁴ When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, advance; because then Adonai has gone out ahead of you to defeat the army of the P’lishtim.” ²⁵ David did exactly as Adonai had ordered him to do and pursued his attack on the P’lishtim from Geva all the way to Gezer.