Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options Listen to 2 Samuel 1-10
Close NASB

2 Samuel 1-10
New American Standard Bible

David Learns of Saul’s Death

1 Now it came about after (A)the death of Saul, when David had returned from (B)the slaughter of the Amalekites, that David stayed two days in Ziklag. 2 And on the third day, behold, (C)a man came from [a]Saul’s camp (D)with his clothes torn and [b]dust on his head. And it happened when he came to David, (E)he fell to the ground and prostrated himself. 3 Then David said to him, “From where do you come?” And he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” 4 David said to him, “(F)How did things go? Please tell me.” And he said, “The people have fled from the battle, and many of the people also have fallen and are dead; and Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead.” 5 Then David said to the young man who told him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” 6 The young man who told him said, “By chance I happened to be on (G)Mount Gilboa, and behold, (H)Saul was leaning on his spear. And behold, the chariots and the horsemen had overtaken him. 7 When he looked behind himself, he saw me, and called to me. And I said, ‘Here I am.’ 8 Then he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ And I [c]answered him, ‘(I)I am an Amalekite.’ 9 And he said to me, ‘Please stand next to me and finish me off, for [d]agony has seized me because my [e]life still lingers in me.’ 10 So I stood next to him (J)and finished him off, because I knew that he could not live after he had fallen. And (K)I took the crown which was on his head and the band which was on his arm, and I have brought them here to my lord.”

11 Then (L)David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and so also did all the men who were with him. 12 And they mourned and wept and (M)fasted until evening for Saul and his son Jonathan, and for the people of the Lord and the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. 13 Then David said to the young man who informed him, “Where are you from?” And he [f]answered, “(N)I am the son of a stranger, an Amalekite.” 14 And David said to him, “How is it you were not afraid (O)to reach out with your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?” 15 Then David called one of the young men and said, “Come forward, [g]put him to death.” (P)So he struck him and he died. 16 And David said to him, “[h](Q)Your blood is on your head, because (R)your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I have finished off the Lord’s anointed.’”

David’s Song of Mourning for Saul and Jonathan

17 Then David (S)sang this song of mourning over Saul and his son Jonathan, 18 and he told them to teach the sons of Judah the mourning song of the bow; behold, it is written in (T)the Book of Jashar.

19 “[i]Your beauty, Israel, is [j]slaughtered on your high places!
(U)How the mighty have fallen!
20 (V)Tell it not in Gath,
Proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon,
Or (W)the daughters of the Philistines will rejoice,
The daughters of (X)the uncircumcised will celebrate.
21 (Y)Mountains of Gilboa,
(Z)May there be no dew nor rain on you, or fields of offerings!
For there the shield of the mighty was defiled,
The shield of Saul, not (AA)anointed with oil.
22 (AB)From the blood of those [k]slaughtered, from the fat of the mighty,
(AC)The bow of Jonathan did not turn back,
And the sword of Saul did not return [l]unstained.
23 Saul and Jonathan, beloved and delightful in [m]life,
And in their deaths they were not separated;
(AD)They were swifter than eagles,
(AE)They were mightier than lions.
24 Daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
Who clothed you in scarlet, with jewelry,
Who put gold jewelry on your apparel.
25 (AF)How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle!
Jonathan is [n]slaughtered on your high places.
26 I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;
You have been [o]a close friend to me.
(AG)Your love for me was more wonderful
Than the love of women.
27 (AH)How the mighty have fallen,
And (AI)the weapons of war have perished!”

David Made King over Judah

2 Then it came about afterward that (AJ)David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up to one of the cities of Judah?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up.” So David said, “Where shall I go up?” And He said, “(AK)To Hebron.” 2 So David went up there, and (AL)his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail the [p]widow of Nabal the Carmelite. 3 And (AM)David brought up his men who were with him, each with his household; and they settled in the cities of Hebron. 4 Then the men of Judah came, and there they (AN)anointed David king over the house of Judah.

And they told David, saying, “It was (AO)the men of Jabesh-gilead who buried Saul.” 5 So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead, and said to them, “(AP)May you be blessed of the Lord because you have [q]shown this kindness to Saul your lord, and have buried him. 6 And now (AQ)may the Lord [r]show kindness and truth to you; and I also will [s]show this goodness to you, because you have done this thing. 7 Now then, let your hands be strong and be [t]valiant, since Saul your lord is dead, and also the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.”

Ish-bosheth Made King over Israel

8 But (AR)Abner the son of Ner, commander of Saul’s army, had taken [u]Ish-bosheth the son of Saul and brought him over to (AS)Mahanaim. 9 And he made him king over (AT)Gilead, over the (AU)Ashurites, over (AV)Jezreel, over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, even over all Israel. 10 Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, was forty years old when he became king over Israel, and he was king for two years. The house of Judah, however, followed David. 11 And (AW)the [v]time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

Civil War

12 Now Abner the son of Ner, went from Mahanaim to (AX)Gibeon with the servants of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul. 13 And (AY)Joab the son of Zeruiah and the servants of David went out and met [w]them by the pool of Gibeon; and they sat down, [x]Abner’s men on the one side of the pool and [y]Joab’s men on the other side of the pool. 14 Then Abner said to Joab, “Now have the young men arise and (AZ)hold a martial skills match in our presence.” And Joab said, “Have them arise!” 15 So they got up and went over by count, twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David. 16 And each one of them seized his [z]opponent by the head and thrust his sword in his [aa]opponent’s side; so they fell down together. Therefore that place was called [ab]Helkath-hazzurim, which is in Gibeon. 17 That day the battle was very severe, and (BA)Abner and the men of Israel were defeated [ac]by the servants of David.

18 Now (BB)the three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab, Abishai, and Asahel; and Asahel was (BC)as [ad]swift-footed as one of the gazelles that is in the field. 19 Asahel pursued Abner and did not turn [ae]to the right or to the left from following Abner. 20 Then Abner looked behind himself and said, “Is that you, Asahel?” And he said, “It is I!” 21 So Abner said to him, “Turn aside for your own good to your right or to your left, and take hold of one of the young men for yourself, and take for yourself his equipment.” But Asahel was unwilling to turn aside from following him. 22 Then Abner repeated again to Asahel, “Turn aside for your own good from following me. Why should I strike you to the ground? (BD)How then could I [af]show my face to your brother Joab?” 23 However, he refused to turn aside; so Abner struck him in the belly with the butt end of the spear, so that the spear came out at his back. And he fell there and died on the spot. And it happened that all who came thereafter to the place where (BE)Asahel had fallen and died, stood still.

24 But Joab and Abishai pursued Abner, and when the sun was going down, they came to the hill of Ammah, which is opposite Giah by way of the wilderness of Gibeon. 25 And the sons of Benjamin gathered together behind Abner and became one troop, and they stood on the top of a hill. 26 Then Abner called to Joab and said, “Should the sword devour forever? Do you not realize that it will be bitter in the end? So how long will you [ag]refrain from telling the people to turn back from pursuing their kinsmen?” 27 Joab said, “As God lives, if you had not spoken, then the people of Judah certainly would have withdrawn in the morning, each from pursuing his brother.” 28 So Joab blew the trumpet, and all the people halted and no longer pursued Israel, (BF)nor did they continue to fight anymore. 29 Abner and his men then went through the Arabah all that night; so they crossed the Jordan, walked all morning, and came to (BG)Mahanaim.

30 Then Joab returned from pursuing Abner; but he gathered all the people together, and [ah]nineteen of David’s servants were missing, besides Asahel. 31 However, the servants of David had struck and killed many of Benjamin and Abner’s men; 360 men were dead. 32 And they carried Asahel away and buried him (BH)in his father’s tomb, which was in Bethlehem. Then Joab and his men traveled all night until the day [ai]dawned at Hebron.

The House of David Strengthened

3 Now (BI)there was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David; and David became steadily stronger, while the house of Saul became steadily weaker.

2 (BJ)Sons were born to David in Hebron: his firstborn was Amnon, by (BK)Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; 3 and his second, Chileab, by Abigail the [aj]widow of Nabal the Carmelite; and the third, Absalom the son of (BL)Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of (BM)Geshur; 4 and the fourth, (BN)Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital; 5 and the sixth, Ithream, by David’s wife Eglah. These sons were born to David in Hebron.

Abner Joins David

6 Now it happened that while there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, (BO)Abner was [ak]strengthening himself in the house of Saul. 7 And Saul had a concubine whose name was (BP)Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah; and [al]Ish-bosheth said to Abner, “Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?” 8 Then Abner became very angry over Ish-bosheth’s [am]question and said, “(BQ)Am I a dog’s head that belongs to Judah? Today I show kindness to the house of Saul your father, to his brothers and to his friends, and have not let you fall into the hands of David; yet today you call me to account for wrongdoing with [an]that woman? 9 (BR)May God do so to [ao]me, and more so, if (BS)as the Lord has sworn to David, I do not accomplish this for him: 10 (BT)to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul, and to establish the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, (BU)from Dan even to Beersheba!” 11 And Ish-bosheth could no longer say a word in response to Abner, because he was afraid of him.

12 Then Abner sent messengers to David at his place, saying, “Whose is the land? Make your covenant with me, and behold, my hand shall be with you to bring all Israel over to you.” 13 And he said, “Good! I will make a covenant with you, only I require one thing of you, [ap]namely, that (BV)you shall not see my face unless you (BW)first bring Michal, Saul’s daughter, when you come to see [aq]me.” 14 So David sent messengers to Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, saying, “Give me my wife Michal, to whom I was betrothed (BX)for a hundred foreskins of the Philistines.” 15 Ish-bosheth sent men and [ar]had her taken from her husband, from [as]Paltiel the son of Laish. 16 And her husband went with her, weeping as he went, [at]following her as far as (BY)Bahurim. Then Abner said to him, “Go, return.” So he returned.

17 Now Abner had a [au]consultation with (BZ)the elders of Israel, saying, “In times past you were seeking for David to be king over you. 18 Now then, do it! For the Lord has spoken regarding David, saying, ‘(CA)By the hand of My servant David [av]I will save My people Israel from the hand of the Philistines, and from the hands of all their enemies.’” 19 Abner also spoke [aw]to Benjamin; and in addition Abner went to speak [ax]to David in Hebron everything that seemed good to Israel and to (CB)the entire house of Benjamin.

20 Then Abner and twenty men with him came to David at Hebron. And David held a feast for Abner and the men who were with him. 21 Abner said to David, “Let me set out and go and (CC)gather all Israel to my lord the king, so that they may make a covenant with you, and that (CD)you may be king over all that your soul desires.” So David let Abner go, and he went in peace.

22 And behold, (CE)the servants of David and Joab came from a raid and brought a large amount of plunder with them; but Abner was not with David in Hebron, since he had let him go, and he had gone in peace. 23 When Joab and all the army that was with him arrived, they informed Joab, saying, “Abner the son of Ner came to the king, and he has let him go on his way, and he has gone in peace.” 24 Then Joab came to the king and said, “What have you done? Behold, Abner came to you; why then have you let him go, so that he is already gone? 25 You know Abner the son of Ner, that he came to gain your confidence, and to learn of (CF)your [ay]going out and coming in and to find out everything that you are doing.”

Joab Murders Abner

26 When Joab left David’s presence, he sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from the well of Sirah; but David did not know about it. 27 So when Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the middle of the gate to speak with him privately, and there (CG)he struck him in the belly, so that he died on account of the blood of his brother Asahel. 28 Afterward, when David heard about this, he said, “I and my kingdom are innocent before the Lord forever of the blood of Abner the son of Ner. 29 (CH)May it turn upon the head of Joab and on all his father’s house; and may there not be eliminated from the house of Joab (CI)someone who suffers a discharge, or has leprosy, or [az]holds the spindle, or falls by the sword, or lacks bread.” 30 So Joab and his brother Abishai killed Abner (CJ)because he had put their brother Asahel to death in the battle at Gibeon.

David Mourns Abner

31 Then David said to Joab and to all the people who were with him, “(CK)Tear your clothes and put on sackcloth, and mourn before Abner.” And King David walked behind the bier. 32 And they buried Abner in Hebron; and the king raised his voice and wept at (CL)the grave of Abner, and all the people wept. 33 And (CM)the king sang a song of mourning for Abner and said,

“Should Abner die as a fool dies?
34 Your hands were not bound, nor your feet put in bronze shackles;
As one falls before the [ba]wicked, you have fallen.”

And all the people wept over him again. 35 Then all the people came (CN)to provide [bb]food for David in his distress while it was still day; but David vowed, saying, “(CO)May God do so to me, and more so, if I taste bread or anything else (CP)before the sun goes down.” 36 Now all the people took note of David’s vow, and it [bc]pleased them, just as everything that the king did [bd]pleased all the people. 37 So all the people and all Israel understood on that day that it had not been the desire of the king to put Abner the son of Ner to death. 38 Then the king said to his servants, “Do you not know that a leader and a great man has fallen in Israel this day? 39 And I am (CQ)weak today, though anointed king; and these men, (CR)the sons of Zeruiah, are too difficult for me. (CS)May the Lord repay the evildoer in proportion to his evil.”

Ish-bosheth Murdered

4 Now when [be]Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, heard that (CT)Abner had died in Hebron, [bf](CU)his courage failed, and all Israel was horrified. 2 And Saul’s son had two men who were commanders of troops: the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the sons of Benjamin (for (CV)Beeroth is also considered (CW)part of Benjamin, 3 and the Beerothites fled to (CX)Gittaim and have lived there as strangers until this day).

4 Now (CY)Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son who was disabled in both feet. He was five years old when the (CZ)news of Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel, and his nurse picked him up and fled. But it happened that in her hurry to flee, he fell and could no longer walk. And his name was [bg](DA)Mephibosheth.

5 So the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, departed and came to the house of (DB)Ish-bosheth in the heat of the day, while he was taking his midday rest. 6 [bh]And they came to the interior of the house as if [bi]to get wheat, and (DC)they struck him in the belly; and Rechab and his brother Baanah escaped. 7 Now when they had come into the house, as he was lying on his bed in his bedroom, they struck him and killed him, and they beheaded him. And they took his head and [bj](DD)traveled by way of the Arabah all night. 8 Then they brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David at Hebron, and said to the king, “Behold, the head of Ish-bosheth (DE)the son of Saul, your enemy, who sought your life; so the Lord has given my lord the king vengeance this day on Saul and his [bk]descendants.”

9 But David replied to Rechab and his brother Baanah, sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, “As the Lord lives, (DF)who has redeemed my life from all distress, 10 (DG)when the one who informed me, saying, ‘Behold, Saul is dead,’ also [bl]viewed himself as the bearer of good news, I seized him and killed him in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news. 11 How much more, when wicked men have killed a righteous man in his own house on his bed, shall I not now (DH)require his blood from your hands and eliminate you both from the earth?” 12 Then (DI)David commanded the young men, and they killed them and cut off their hands and feet, and hung them up beside the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth (DJ)and buried it in the grave of Abner in Hebron.

David King over All Israel

5 (DK)Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and [bm]said, “Behold, we are (DL)your bone and your flesh. 2 Previously, when Saul was king over us, (DM)you were the one who led Israel [bn]out and in. And the Lord said to you, ‘(DN)You will shepherd My people Israel, and you will be (DO)a leader over Israel.’” 3 So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David (DP)made a covenant with them before the Lord in Hebron; then (DQ)they anointed David king over Israel. 4 David was (DR)thirty years old when he became king, and (DS)he reigned for forty years. 5 At Hebron (DT)he reigned over Judah for seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned for thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

6 (DU)Now the king and his men went to (DV)Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land; and they said to [bo]David, “You shall not come in here, but even those who are blind and those who limp will turn you away,” [bp]thinking, “David cannot enter here.” 7 Nevertheless, David captured the stronghold of Zion, that is, (DW)the city of David. 8 And David said on that day, “Whoever strikes the Jebusites is to reach those who limp and those who are blind, who are hated by David’s soul, through the water tunnel.” For that reason they say, “People who are blind and people who limp shall not come into the house.” 9 So David lived in the stronghold, and called it (DX)the city of David. And David built all around from the [bq](DY)Millo and inward. 10 (DZ)David became greater and greater, for the Lord God of armies was with him.

11 (EA)Then Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David with cedar trees, carpenters, and [br]stonemasons; and (EB)they built a house for David. 12 And David realized that the Lord had appointed him as king over Israel, and that He had exalted his kingdom for the sake of His people Israel.

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

War with the Philistines

17 Now when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, (EE)all the Philistines went up to seek out David; and when David heard about it, he went down to the (EF)stronghold. 18 Now the Philistines came and overran (EG)the Valley of Rephaim. 19 So (EH)David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You hand them over to me?” And (EI)the Lord said to David, “Go up, for I will certainly hand the Philistines over to you.” 20 Then David came to (EJ)Baal-perazim and [bs]defeated them there; and he said, “The Lord has broken through my enemies before me like the breakthrough of waters.” Therefore he named that place [bt]Baal-perazim. 21 And the Philistines abandoned their idols there, so (EK)David and his men carried them away.

22 Now (EL)the Philistines came up once again and overran the Valley of Rephaim. 23 So (EM)David inquired of the Lord, but He said, “You shall not go directly up; circle around behind them and come at them in front of the baka-shrubs. 24 And it shall be, when (EN)you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the baka-shrubs, then you shall [bu]act promptly, for then (EO)the Lord will have gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines.” 25 Then David did so, just as the Lord had commanded him; he struck and killed the Philistines from [bv](EP)Geba [bw]as far as (EQ)Gezer.

Peril in Moving the Ark

6 (ER)Now David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David [bx]departed from [by](ES)Baale-judah, with all the people who were with him, to bring up from there the ark of God which is called by the (ET)Name, the very name of the Lord of armies who (EU)is [bz]enthroned above the cherubim. 3 They had mounted the ark of God on (EV)a new cart and moved it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were leading the new cart. 4 So (EW)they brought it with the ark of God from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Ahio was walking ahead of the ark. 5 Meanwhile, David and all the house of Israel (EX)were celebrating before the Lord (EY)with all kinds of instruments made of juniper wood, and with [ca]lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets, and cymbals.

6 But when they came to the (EZ)threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah (FA)reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, because the oxen nearly overturned it. 7 And the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah, and (FB)God struck him down there for [cb]his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God. 8 Then David became angry because [cc]of the Lord’s outburst against Uzzah; and that place has been called [cd]Perez-uzzah to this day. 9 So (FC)David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” 10 And David was unwilling to move the ark of the Lord into the city of David with him; but David took it aside to the house of (FD)Obed-edom, the Gittite. 11 The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite for three months, and the Lord (FE)blessed Obed-edom and all his household.

The Ark Is Brought to Jerusalem

12 Now it was reported to King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, on account of the ark of God.” (FF)So David went and brought the ark of God up from the house of Obed-edom to (FG)the city of David with joy. 13 And so it was, that [ce]when (FH)those carrying the ark of the Lord marched six paces, he sacrificed an (FI)ox and a fattened steer. 14 And (FJ)David was dancing before the Lord with all his strength, and David was (FK)wearing a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with joyful shouting and the sound of the trumpet.

16 Then it happened, as the ark of the Lord was coming into the city of David, that (FL)Michal the daughter of Saul looked down through the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she was contemptuous of him in her heart.

17 Now they brought in the ark of the Lord and set it (FM)in its place inside the tent which David had pitched for it; and (FN)David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord. 18 When David had finished offering the burnt offering and the peace offerings, (FO)he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of armies. 19 Further, he distributed to all the people, to all the multitude of Israel, both to men and women, a cake of bread, one of dates, and one of raisins to each one. Then all the people left, each to his house.

20 But when David returned to bless his own household, Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David and said, “How the king of Israel dignified himself today! For (FP)he exposed himself today in the sight of his servants’ female slaves, as one of the (FQ)rabble shamelessly exposes himself!” 21 But David said to Michal, “(FR)I was before the Lord, who preferred me to your father and to all his house, to appoint me as ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel. So I will [cf]celebrate before the Lord! 22 And I might demean myself even more than this and be lowly in my own sight, but with the female slaves of whom you have spoken, with them I am to be held in honor!” 23 And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.

David Plans to Build a Temple

7 (FS)Now it came about, when the king lived in his house, and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all his enemies, 2 that the king said to (FT)Nathan the prophet, “See now, I live in (FU)a house of cedar, but the ark of God (FV)remains within the tent.” 3 Nathan said to the king, “(FW)Go, do all that is in your mind, for the Lord is with you.”

4 But in the same night, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying, 5 “Go and say to My servant David, ‘This is what the Lord says: “(FX)Should you build Me a house for My dwelling? 6 For (FY)I have not dwelt in a house since the day I brought up the sons of Israel from Egypt, even to this day; rather, I have been moving about (FZ)in a tent, that is, in a dwelling place. 7 (GA)Wherever I have gone with all the sons of Israel, did I speak a word with one of the tribes of Israel, (GB)whom I commanded to shepherd My people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedar?’”’

God’s Covenant with David

8 Now then, this is what you shall say to My servant David: ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “(GC)I Myself took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, (GD)to be leader over My people Israel. 9 And (GE)I have been with you wherever you have gone, and (GF)have eliminated all your enemies from you; I will also make a great name for you, like the names of the great men who [cg]are on the earth. 10 And I will establish a place for My people Israel, and (GG)will plant them, so that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed again, (GH)nor will [ch]malicious people oppress them anymore as previously, 11 even (GI)from the day that I appointed judges over My people Israel; and (GJ)I will give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord also declares to you that (GK)the Lord will make a house for you. 12 (GL)When your days are finished and you [ci](GM)lie down with your fathers, (GN)I will raise up your [cj]descendant after you, who will come from [ck]you, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 (GO)He shall build a house for My name, and (GP)I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 (GQ)I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; (GR)when he does wrong, I will discipline him with a rod of men and with strokes of sons of mankind, 15 but My favor shall not depart from him, (GS)as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from you. 16 (GT)Your house and your kingdom shall endure before [cl]Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.”’” 17 In accordance with all these words and all of this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.

David’s Prayer

18 Then David the king came in and sat before the Lord, and he said, “(GU)Who am I, Lord [cm]God, and who are the members of my household, that You have brought me this far? 19 And yet this was insignificant in Your eyes, Lord God, (GV)for You have spoken also of the house of Your servant regarding the distant future. And (GW)this is the [cn]custom of mankind, Lord God. 20 Again what more can David say to You? For (GX)You know Your servant, Lord God! 21 (GY)For the sake of Your word, and according to Your heart, You have done all this greatness, to let Your servant know. 22 For this reason (GZ)You are great, Lord God; for (HA)there is no one like You, and there is no God except You, (HB)according to all that we have heard with our ears. 23 And (HC)what one nation on the earth is like Your people Israel, whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people, and to make a name for Himself, and (HD)to do a great thing for You and awesome things for Your land, [co]because of (HE)Your people whom (HF)You have redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, from other nations and their gods? 24 For (HG)You have established for Yourself Your people Israel as Your own people forever, and (HH)You, Lord, have become their God. 25 Now then, Lord God, the word that You have spoken about Your servant and his house, confirm it forever, and do just as You have spoken, 26 (HI)so that Your name may be great forever, by saying, ‘The Lord of armies is God over Israel’; and may the house of Your servant David be established before You. 27 For You, Lord of armies, God of Israel, have [cp]given a revelation to Your servant, saying, ‘(HJ)I will build you a house’; therefore Your servant has found [cq]courage to pray this prayer to You. 28 Now then, Lord God, You are God, and (HK)Your words are truth; and You have [cr]promised this good thing to Your servant. 29 And now, may [cs]it please You to bless the house of Your servant, so that it may continue forever before You. For You, Lord God, have spoken; and [ct](HL)with Your blessing may the house of Your servant be blessed forever.”

David’s Triumphs

8 (HM)Now it happened afterward that David [cu]defeated the Philistines and subdued them; and David took [cv]control of the chief city from the hand of the Philistines.

2 (HN)And He [cw]defeated (HO)Moab, and measured them with the line, making them lie down on the ground; and he measured two lines to put to death, and a full line to keep alive. And (HP)the Moabites became servants to David, (HQ)bringing tribute.

3 Then David [cx]defeated (HR)Hadadezer, the son of Rehob king of Zobah, as (HS)he went to restore his [cy]power at the Euphrates River. 4 And David captured from him [cz]1,700 horsemen and twenty thousand foot soldiers; and David (HT)hamstrung almost all the chariot horses, but left enough of them for a hundred chariots. 5 When (HU)the Arameans of Damascus came to help Hadadezer, king of Zobah, David [da]killed twenty-two thousand men among the Arameans. 6 Then David put garrisons among the Arameans of Damascus, and (HV)the Arameans became servants to David, bringing tribute. And (HW)the Lord helped David wherever he went. 7 David took the shields of gold which were [db]carried by the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 And from [dc]Betah and (HX)Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took a very large amount of bronze.

9 Now when Toi king of (HY)Hamath heard that David had [dd]defeated the whole army of Hadadezer, 10 Toi sent his son [de]Joram to King David to [df]greet him and bless him, because he had fought Hadadezer and [dg]defeated him; for Hadadezer [dh]had been at war with Toi. And [di]Joram brought with him articles of silver, gold, and bronze. 11 King David also (HZ)consecrated these gifts to the Lord, with the silver and gold that he had consecrated from all the nations which he had subdued: 12 from [dj]Aram, (IA)Moab, (IB)the sons of Ammon, (IC)the Philistines, (ID)Amalek, and from the spoils of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah.

13 So (IE)David made a name for himself when he returned from [dk]killing eighteen thousand [dl]Arameans in (IF)the Valley of Salt. 14 He also put garrisons in Edom. In all Edom he put garrisons, and (IG)all the Edomites became servants to David. And (IH)the Lord helped David wherever he went.

15 So David reigned over all Israel; and David [dm]administered justice and righteousness for all his people. 16 (II)Joab the son of Zeruiah was commander over the army, and (IJ)Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was (IK)secretary. 17 (IL)Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were (IM)priests, and Seraiah was (IN)scribe. 18 (IO)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada [dn]was over the (IP)Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were [do](IQ)chief ministers.

David’s Kindness to Mephibosheth

9 Then David said, “Is there [dp]anyone still left of the house of Saul, (IR)so that I could show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2 Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they summoned him to David; and the king said to him, “Are you (IS)Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” 3 Then the king said, “Is there no one remaining of the house of Saul to whom I could show the (IT)kindness of God?” And Ziba said to the king, “(IU)There is still a son of Jonathan, one who is disabled in both feet.” 4 So the king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is (IV)in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.” 5 Then King David sent [dq]messengers who brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar. 6 (IW)Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, came to David and (IX)fell on his face and prostrated himself. And David said, “Mephibosheth.” And he said, “Here is your servant!” 7 Then David said to him, “Do not be afraid, for (IY)I will assuredly show kindness to you for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I (IZ)will restore to you all the [dr]land of your [ds]grandfather Saul; and (JA)you yourself shall [dt]eat at my table regularly.” 8 Again he prostrated himself, and said, “What is your servant, that you should be concerned about (JB)a dead dog like me?”

9 Then the king summoned Saul’s servant Ziba and said to him, “(JC)Everything that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s [du]grandson. 10 You and your sons and your servants shall cultivate the land for him, and you shall bring in the produce so that your master’s grandson will have food [dv]to eat; nevertheless (JD)Mephibosheth, your master’s grandson, (JE)shall [dw]eat at my table regularly.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. 11 Then Ziba said to the king, “In accordance (JF)with everything that my lord the king commands his servant, so your servant will do.” So Mephibosheth ate at [dx]David’s table as one of the king’s sons. 12 Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. And all who lived in the house of Ziba were servants to Mephibosheth. 13 So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because (JG)he ate at the king’s table regularly. And (JH)he was disabled in his two feet.

Ammon and Aram Defeated

10 (JI)Now it happened afterward that (JJ)the king of the Ammonites died, and his son Hanun became king in his place. 2 Then David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of (JK)Nahash, just as his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent [dy]some of his servants to console him about his father. But when David’s servants came to the land of the Ammonites, 3 the commanders of the Ammonites said to their lord Hanun, “[dz]Do you think that David is simply honoring your father since he has sent you servants [ea]to console you? (JL)Has David not sent his servants to you in order to explore the city, to spy it out and overthrow it?” 4 So Hanun took David’s servants and (JM)shaved off half of their beards, and (JN)cut off their robes in the middle as far as their buttocks, and sent them away. 5 When messengers informed David, he sent servants to meet them, because the men were extremely humiliated. And the king said, “Stay in Jericho until your beards grow back, and then you shall return.”

6 Now when the sons of Ammon saw that (JO)they had become repulsive to David, the sons of Ammon sent messengers and (JP)hired the Arameans of (JQ)Beth-rehob and the (JR)Arameans of Zobah, twenty thousand foot soldiers, and the king of (JS)Maacah with a thousand men, and the men of Tob with twelve thousand men. 7 When David heard about this, he sent Joab and all the army, the warriors. 8 And the sons of Ammon came out and lined up for battle (JT)at the entrance of the [eb]city, while the Arameans of Zobah and of Rehob and the men of (JU)Tob and Maacah were stationed by themselves in the field.

9 Now when Joab saw that [ec]the battle was set against him at the front and at the rear, he selected warriors from all the choice men in Israel, and lined them up against the Arameans. 10 But the remainder of the people he placed [ed]under the command of his brother Abishai, and he lined them up against the sons of Ammon. 11 And he said, “If the Arameans are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the sons of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will come to help you. 12 (JV)Be strong, and let’s show ourselves courageous for the sake of our people and the cities of our God; and (JW)may the Lord do what is good in His sight.” 13 So Joab and the people who were with him advanced to the battle against the Arameans, and (JX)they fled from him. 14 When the sons of Ammon saw that the Arameans had fled, they also fled from Abishai and entered the city. (JY)Then Joab returned from fighting against the sons of Ammon and came to Jerusalem.

15 When the Arameans saw that they had been [ee]defeated by Israel, they assembled together. 16 (JZ)And Hadadezer sent word and brought out the Arameans who were beyond the Euphrates River, and they came to Helam; and (KA)Shobach the commander of the army of Hadadezer [ef]led them. 17 Now when it was reported to David, he gathered all Israel together and crossed the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Arameans lined up against David and fought him. 18 But the Arameans fled from Israel, and David killed (KB)seven hundred charioteers of the Arameans and forty thousand horsemen, and struck Shobach the commander of their army, and he died there. 19 When all the kings, servants of Hadadezer, saw that they had been [eg]defeated by Israel, (KC)they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Arameans were afraid to help the sons of Ammon anymore.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 1:2 Lit the camp connected with Saul
  2. 2 Samuel 1:2 Lit earth
  3. 2 Samuel 1:8 Lit said to
  4. 2 Samuel 1:9 Or dizziness
  5. 2 Samuel 1:9 Lit whole life is still in me
  6. 2 Samuel 1:13 Lit said
  7. 2 Samuel 1:15 Lit fall on him
  8. 2 Samuel 1:16 I.e., his death was his own responsibility
  9. 2 Samuel 1:19 Lit The
  10. 2 Samuel 1:19 Lit pierced
  11. 2 Samuel 1:22 Lit pierced
  12. 2 Samuel 1:22 Or without success
  13. 2 Samuel 1:23 Lit their lives
  14. 2 Samuel 1:25 Lit pierced
  15. 2 Samuel 1:26 Lit very friendly to
  16. 2 Samuel 2:2 Lit wife
  17. 2 Samuel 2:5 Lit done
  18. 2 Samuel 2:6 Lit do
  19. 2 Samuel 2:6 Lit do
  20. 2 Samuel 2:7 Lit sons of valor
  21. 2 Samuel 2:8 I.e., man of shame; cf. 1 Chr 8:33, Eshbaal
  22. 2 Samuel 2:11 Lit number of days
  23. 2 Samuel 2:13 Lit them together
  24. 2 Samuel 2:13 Lit these on
  25. 2 Samuel 2:13 Lit these on
  26. 2 Samuel 2:16 Lit fellow
  27. 2 Samuel 2:16 Lit fellow’s
  28. 2 Samuel 2:16 I.e., the field of sword-edges
  29. 2 Samuel 2:17 Lit in front of
  30. 2 Samuel 2:18 Lit light in his feet
  31. 2 Samuel 2:19 Lit to go to
  32. 2 Samuel 2:22 Lit lift up
  33. 2 Samuel 2:26 Lit not tell the people
  34. 2 Samuel 2:30 Lit nineteen men
  35. 2 Samuel 2:32 Lit dawned for them
  36. 2 Samuel 3:3 Lit wife
  37. 2 Samuel 3:6 Or remaining faithful to
  38. 2 Samuel 3:7 As in some mss and ancient versions; MT he
  39. 2 Samuel 3:8 Lit words
  40. 2 Samuel 3:8 Lit the
  41. 2 Samuel 3:9 Lit Abner
  42. 2 Samuel 3:13 Lit saying
  43. 2 Samuel 3:13 Lit my face
  44. 2 Samuel 3:15 Lit took her
  45. 2 Samuel 3:15 In 1 Sam 25:44, Palti
  46. 2 Samuel 3:16 Lit after her
  47. 2 Samuel 3:17 Lit a word
  48. 2 Samuel 3:18 As in many mss and ancient versions; MT he
  49. 2 Samuel 3:19 Lit in the ears of
  50. 2 Samuel 3:19 Lit in the ears of
  51. 2 Samuel 3:25 I.e., daily business
  52. 2 Samuel 3:29 I.e., an effeminate man; LXX holds on to a staff (prob. a crutch)
  53. 2 Samuel 3:34 Lit sons of wickedness
  54. 2 Samuel 3:35 Lit bread
  55. 2 Samuel 3:36 Lit was good in their eyes
  56. 2 Samuel 3:36 Lit was good in the eyes of all
  57. 2 Samuel 4:1 As in some mss; MT he
  58. 2 Samuel 4:1 Lit his hands dropped
  59. 2 Samuel 4:4 In 1 Chr 8:34 and 9:40, Merib-baal
  60. 2 Samuel 4:6 Lit And here they
  61. 2 Samuel 4:6 Lit takers of wheat
  62. 2 Samuel 4:7 Lit went
  63. 2 Samuel 4:8 Lit seed
  64. 2 Samuel 4:10 Lit was as a bearer of good news in his own eyes
  65. 2 Samuel 5:1 Lit said, saying
  66. 2 Samuel 5:2 I.e., to battle and in (returning) from battle
  67. 2 Samuel 5:6 Lit David, saying
  68. 2 Samuel 5:6 Lit saying
  69. 2 Samuel 5:9 I.e., terraced structure
  70. 2 Samuel 5:11 Lit stone wall craftsmen
  71. 2 Samuel 5:20 Lit David struck
  72. 2 Samuel 5:20 I.e., the master of breakthroughs
  73. 2 Samuel 5:24 Or pay attention
  74. 2 Samuel 5:25 In 1 Chr 14:16, Gibeon
  75. 2 Samuel 5:25 Lit until you come to
  76. 2 Samuel 6:2 Lit arose and went
  77. 2 Samuel 6:2 I.e., Kiriath-jearim
  78. 2 Samuel 6:2 Lit sitting
  79. 2 Samuel 6:5 Or zithers
  80. 2 Samuel 6:7 Lit the
  81. 2 Samuel 6:8 Lit the Lord broke through a breakthrough
  82. 2 Samuel 6:8 I.e., outburst against Uzzah
  83. 2 Samuel 6:13 Or each time those
  84. 2 Samuel 6:21 Or dance
  85. 2 Samuel 7:9 Or were
  86. 2 Samuel 7:10 Lit sons of malice
  87. 2 Samuel 7:12 I.e., die
  88. 2 Samuel 7:12 Lit seed
  89. 2 Samuel 7:12 Lit your bowels
  90. 2 Samuel 7:16 As in LXX and some ancient mss; MT you
  91. 2 Samuel 7:18 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch
  92. 2 Samuel 7:19 Or law
  93. 2 Samuel 7:23 Or before Your
  94. 2 Samuel 7:27 Lit uncovered the ear of
  95. 2 Samuel 7:27 Lit his heart
  96. 2 Samuel 7:28 Lit spoken
  97. 2 Samuel 7:29 Lit You be resolved and bless
  98. 2 Samuel 7:29 Lit from
  99. 2 Samuel 8:1 Lit struck
  100. 2 Samuel 8:1 Lit the bridle of the mother city
  101. 2 Samuel 8:2 Lit struck
  102. 2 Samuel 8:3 Lit struck
  103. 2 Samuel 8:3 Lit hand
  104. 2 Samuel 8:4 Here LXX reads as 1 Chr 18:4; partial DSS text appears to also
  105. 2 Samuel 8:5 Lit struck
  106. 2 Samuel 8:7 Lit on
  107. 2 Samuel 8:8 In 1 Chr 18:8, Tibhath
  108. 2 Samuel 8:9 Lit struck
  109. 2 Samuel 8:10 In 1 Chr 18:10, Hadoram
  110. 2 Samuel 8:10 Lit ask him of his welfare
  111. 2 Samuel 8:10 Lit struck
  112. 2 Samuel 8:10 Lit was a man of wars
  113. 2 Samuel 8:10 Lit there were in his hand
  114. 2 Samuel 8:12 Some mss Edom
  115. 2 Samuel 8:13 Lit striking
  116. 2 Samuel 8:13 Some mss Edom
  117. 2 Samuel 8:15 Lit was doing
  118. 2 Samuel 8:18 See 1 Chr 18:17; MT and the Cherethites
  119. 2 Samuel 8:18 Lit priests
  120. 2 Samuel 9:1 Lit he who is
  121. 2 Samuel 9:5 Lit and he brought
  122. 2 Samuel 9:7 Lit field
  123. 2 Samuel 9:7 Lit father
  124. 2 Samuel 9:7 Lit eat bread
  125. 2 Samuel 9:9 Lit son
  126. 2 Samuel 9:10 Lit and eat it
  127. 2 Samuel 9:10 Lit eat bread
  128. 2 Samuel 9:11 Lit my
  129. 2 Samuel 10:2 Lit by the hand of
  130. 2 Samuel 10:3 Lit In your eyes is David honoring
  131. 2 Samuel 10:3 Lit consoling
  132. 2 Samuel 10:8 Lit gate
  133. 2 Samuel 10:9 Lit the faces of the battle were against
  134. 2 Samuel 10:10 Lit in the hand of
  135. 2 Samuel 10:15 Lit struck
  136. 2 Samuel 10:16 Lit was before them
  137. 2 Samuel 10:19 Lit struck
Close TLB

2 Samuel 1-10
Living Bible

1 1-2 Saul was dead and David had returned to Ziklag after slaughtering the Amalekites. Three days later a man arrived from the Israeli army with his clothes torn and with dirt on his head as a sign of mourning. He fell to the ground before David in deep respect.

3 “Where do you come from?” David asked.

“From the Israeli army,” he replied.

4 “What happened?” David demanded. “Tell me how the battle went.”

And the man replied, “Our entire army fled. Thousands of men are dead and wounded on the field, and Saul and his son Jonathan have been killed.”

5 “How do you know they are dead?”

6 “Because I was on Mount Gilboa and saw Saul leaning against his spear with the enemy chariots closing in upon him. 7 When he saw me he cried out for me to come to him.

8 “‘Who are you?’ he asked.

“‘An Amalekite,’ I replied.

9 “‘Come and put me out of my misery,’ he begged, ‘for I am in terrible pain but life lingers on.’

10 “So I killed him,[a] for I knew he couldn’t live. Then I took his crown and one of his bracelets to bring to you, my lord.”

11 David and his men tore their clothes in sorrow when they heard the news. 12 They mourned and wept and fasted all day for Saul and his son Jonathan, and for the Lord’s people, and for the men of Israel who had died that day.

13 Then David said to the young man who had brought the news, “Where are you from?”

And he replied, “I am an Amalekite.”

14 “Why did you kill God’s chosen king?” David demanded.

15 Then he said to one of his young men, “Kill him!” So he ran him through with his sword and he died.

16 “You die self-condemned,” David said, “for you yourself confessed that you killed God’s appointed king.”

17-18 Then David composed a dirge for Saul and Jonathan and afterward commanded that it be sung throughout Israel. It is quoted here from the book Heroic Ballads.

19 O Israel, your pride and joy lies dead upon the hills;

Mighty heroes have fallen.

20 Don’t tell the Philistines, lest they rejoice.

Hide it from the cities of Gath and Ashkelon,

Lest the heathen nations laugh in triumph.

21 O Mount Gilboa,

Let there be no dew nor rain upon you,

Let no crops of grain grow on your slopes.[b]

For there the mighty Saul has died;

He is God’s appointed king no more.

22 Both Saul and Jonathan slew their strongest foes,

And did not return from battle empty-handed.

23 How much they were loved, how wonderful they were—

Both Saul and Jonathan!

They were together in life and in death.

They were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.

24 But now, O women of Israel, weep for Saul;

He enriched you

With fine clothing and gold ornaments.

25 These mighty heroes have fallen in the midst of the battle.

Jonathan is slain upon the hills.

26 How I weep for you, my brother Jonathan;

How much I loved you!

And your love for me was deeper

Than the love of women!

27 The mighty ones have fallen,

Stripped of their weapons, and dead.

2 David then asked the Lord, “Shall I move back to Judah?”

And the Lord replied, “Yes.”

“Which city shall I go to?”

And the Lord replied, “Hebron.”

2 So David and his wives—Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal from Carmel— 3 and his men and their families all moved to Hebron. 4 Then the leaders of Judah came to David and crowned him king of the Judean confederacy.

When David heard that the men of Jabesh-gilead had buried Saul, 5 he sent them this message: “May the Lord bless you for being so loyal to your king and giving him a decent burial. 6 May the Lord be loyal to you in return and reward you with many demonstrations of his love! And I too will be kind to you because of what you have done. 7 And now I ask you to be my strong and loyal subjects, now that Saul is dead. Be like the tribe of Judah who have appointed me as their new king.”

8 But Abner, Saul’s commander-in-chief, had gone to Mahanaim to crown Saul’s son Ish-bosheth as king. 9 His territory included Gilead, Ashuri, Jezreel, Ephraim, the tribe of Benjamin, and all the rest of Israel. 10-11 Ish-bosheth was forty years old at the time. He reigned in Mahanaim for two years; meanwhile, David was reigning in Hebron and was king of the Judean confederacy for seven and a half years.

12 One day General Abner led some of Ish-bosheth’s troops to Gibeon from Mahanaim, 13 and General Joab (the son of Zeruiah) led David’s troops out to meet them. They met at the pool of Gibeon, where they sat facing each other on opposite sides of the pool. 14 Then Abner suggested to Joab, “Let’s watch some sword play between our young men!”

Joab agreed, 15 so twelve men were chosen from each side to fight in mortal combat. 16 Each one grabbed his opponent by the hair and thrust his sword into the other’s side, so that all of them died. The place has been known ever since as Sword Field.

17 The two armies then began to fight each other, and by the end of the day Abner and the men of Israel had been defeated by Joab[c] and the forces of David. 18 Joab’s brothers, Abishai and Asahel, were also in the battle. Asahel could run like a deer, 19 and he began chasing Abner. He wouldn’t stop for anything, but kept on, single-minded, after Abner alone.

20 When Abner looked behind and saw him coming, he called out to him, “Is that you, Asahel?”

“Yes,” he called back, “it is.”

21 “Go after someone else!” Abner warned. But Asahel refused and kept on coming.

22 Again Abner shouted to him, “Get away from here. I could never face your brother Joab if I have to kill you!”

23 But he refused to turn away, so Abner pierced him through the belly with the butt end of his spear. It went right through his body and came out his back. He stumbled to the ground and died there, and everyone stopped when they came to the place where he lay.

24 Now Joab and Abishai set out after Abner. The sun was just going down as they arrived at Ammah Hill near Giah, along the road into the Gibeon Desert. 25 Abner’s troops from the tribe of Benjamin regrouped there at the top of the hill, 26 and Abner shouted down to Joab, “Must our swords continue to kill each other forever? How long will it be before you call off your people from chasing their brothers?”

27 Joab shouted back, “I swear by God that even if you hadn’t spoken, we would all have gone home tomorrow morning.” 28 Then he blew his trumpet and his men stopped chasing the troops of Israel.

29 That night Abner and his men retreated across the Jordan Valley, crossed the river, and traveled all the next morning until they arrived at Mahanaim. 30 Joab and the men who were with him returned home, too, and when he counted his casualties, he learned that only nineteen men were missing, in addition to Asahel. 31 But three hundred and sixty of Abner’s men (all from the tribe of Benjamin) were dead. 32 Joab and his men took Asahel’s body to Bethlehem and buried him beside his father; then they traveled all night and reached Hebron at daybreak.

3 That was the beginning of a long war between the followers of Saul and of David. David’s position now became stronger and stronger, while Saul’s dynasty became weaker and weaker.

2 Several sons were born to David while he was at Hebron. The oldest was Amnon, born to his wife Ahinoam. 3 His second son, Chileab, was born to Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. The third was Absalom, born to Maacah, the daughter of King Talmai of Geshur. 4 The fourth was Adonijah, who was born to Haggith. Then Shephatiah was born to Abital, and 5 Ithream was born to Eglah.

6 As the war went on, Abner became a very powerful political leader among the followers of Saul. 7 He took advantage of his position by sleeping with one of Saul’s concubines, a girl named Rizpah. But when Ish-bosheth accused Abner of this, 8 Abner was furious.

“Am I a Judean dog to be kicked around like this?” he shouted. “After all I have done for you and for your father by not betraying you to David, is this my reward—to find fault with me about some woman? 9-10 May God curse me if I don’t do everything I can to take away the entire kingdom from you, all the way from Dan to Beersheba, and give it to David, just as the Lord predicted.”

11 Ish-bosheth made no reply, for he was afraid of Abner.

12 Then Abner sent messengers to David to discuss a deal—to surrender the kingdom of Israel to him in exchange for becoming commander-in-chief of the combined armies of Israel and Judah.

13 “All right,” David replied, “but I will not negotiate with you unless you bring me my wife Michal, Saul’s daughter.” 14 David then sent this message to Ish-bosheth: “Give me back my wife Michal, for I bought her with the lives of one hundred Philistines.”

15 So Ish-bosheth took her away from her husband Palti.[d] 16 He followed along behind her as far as Behurim, weeping as he went. Then Abner told him, “Go on home now.” So he returned.

17 Meanwhile, Abner consulted with the leaders of Israel and reminded them that for a long time they had wanted David as their king.

18 “Now is the time!” he told them. “For the Lord has said, ‘It is David by whom I will save my people from the Philistines and from all their other enemies.’”

19 Abner also talked to the leaders of the tribe of Benjamin; then he went to Hebron and reported to David his progress with the people of Israel and Benjamin. 20 Twenty men accompanied him, and David entertained them with a feast.

21 As Abner left, he promised David, “When I get back I will call a convention of all the people of Israel, and they will elect you as their king, as you’ve so long desired.” So David let Abner return in safety.

22 But just after Abner left, Joab and some of David’s troops returned from a raid, bringing much loot with them. 23 When Joab was told that Abner had just been there visiting the king and had been sent away in peace, 24-25 he rushed to the king, demanding, “What have you done? What do you mean by letting him get away? You know perfectly well that he came to spy on us and that he plans to return and attack us!”

26 Then Joab sent messengers to catch up with Abner and tell him to come back. They found him at the well of Sirah and he returned with them; but David knew nothing about it. 27 When Abner arrived at Hebron, Joab took him aside at the city gate as if to speak with him privately; but then he pulled out a dagger and killed him in revenge for the death of his brother Asahel.

28 When David heard about it he declared, “I vow by the Lord that I and my people are innocent of this crime against Abner. 29 Joab and his family are the guilty ones. May each of his children be victims of cancer, or be lepers, or be sterile, or die of starvation, or be killed by the sword!”

30 So Joab and his brother, Abishai, killed Abner because of the death of their brother, Asahel, at the battle of Gibeon.

31 Then David said to Joab and to all those who were with him, “Go into deep mourning for Abner.” And King David accompanied the bier to the cemetery. 32 They buried Abner in Hebron. And the king and all the people wept at the graveside.

33-34 “Should Abner have died like a fool?” the king lamented.

“Your hands were not bound,

Your feet were not tied—

You were murdered—

The victim of a wicked plot.”

And all the people wept again for him. 35-36 David had refused to eat anything the day of the funeral, and now everyone begged him to take a bite of supper. But David vowed that he would eat nothing until sundown. This pleased his people, just as everything else he did pleased them! 37 Thus the whole nation, both Judah and Israel, understood from David’s actions that he was in no way responsible for Abner’s death.

38 And David said to his people, “A great leader and a great man has fallen today in Israel; 39 and even though I am God’s chosen king, I can do nothing with these two sons of Zeruiah. May the Lord repay wicked men for their wicked deeds.”

4 When King Ish-bosheth heard about Abner’s death at Hebron, he was paralyzed with fear, and his people too were badly frightened. 2-3 The command of the Israeli troops then fell to two brothers, Baanah and Rechab, who were captains of King Ish-bosheth’s raiding bands. They were the sons of Rimmon, who was from Beeroth in Benjamin. (People from Beeroth are counted as Benjaminites even though they fled to Gittaim,[e] where they now live.)

4 (There was a little lame grandson of King Saul’s named Mephibosheth, who was the son of Prince Jonathan. He was five years old at the time Saul and Jonathan were killed at the battle of Jezreel. When the news of the outcome of the battle reached the capital, the child’s nurse grabbed him and fled, but she fell and dropped him as she was running, and he became lame.)

5 Rechab and Baanah arrived at King Ish-bosheth’s home one noon as he was taking a nap. 6-7 They walked into the kitchen as though to get a sack of wheat, but then sneaked into his bedroom and murdered him and cut off his head. Taking his head with them, they fled across the desert that night and escaped. 8 They presented the head to David at Hebron.

“Look!” they exclaimed. “Here is the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of your enemy Saul who tried to kill you. Today the Lord has given you revenge upon Saul and upon his entire family!”

9 But David replied, “I swear by the Lord who saved me from my enemies, 10 that when someone told me, ‘Saul is dead,’ thinking he was bringing me good news, I killed him; that is how I rewarded him for his ‘glad tidings.’ 11 And how much more shall I do to wicked men who kill a good man in his own house and on his bed! Shall I not demand your lives?”

12 So David ordered his young men to kill them, and they did. They cut off their hands and feet and hanged their bodies beside the pool in Hebron. And they took Ish-bosheth’s head and buried it in Abner’s tomb in Hebron.

5 Representatives of all the tribes of Israel now came to David at Hebron and gave him their pledge of loyalty.

“We are your blood brothers,” they said. 2 “And even when Saul was our king you were our real leader. The Lord has said that you should be the shepherd and leader of his people.”

3 So David made a contract before the Lord with the leaders of Israel there at Hebron, and they crowned him king of Israel. 4-5 (He had already been the king of Judah for seven years, since the age of thirty. He then ruled thirty-three years in Jerusalem as king of both Israel and Judah; so he reigned for forty years altogether.)

6 David now led his troops to Jerusalem to fight against the Jebusites who lived there.

“You’ll never come in here,” they told him. “Even the blind and lame could keep you out!” For they thought they were safe. 7 But David and his troops defeated them and captured the stronghold of Zion, now called the City of David.

8 When the insulting message from the defenders of the city reached David, he told his troops, “Go up through the water tunnel into the city and destroy those ‘lame’ and ‘blind’ Jebusites. How I hate them.” (That is the origin of the saying, “Even the blind and the lame could conquer you!”)

9 So David made the stronghold of Zion (also called the City of David) his headquarters. Then, beginning at the old Millo section of the city, he built northward toward the present city center. 10 So David became greater and greater, for the Lord God of heaven was with him.

11 Then King Hiram of Tyre sent cedar lumber, carpenters, and masons to build a palace for David. 12 David now realized why the Lord had made him the king and blessed his kingdom so greatly—it was because God wanted to pour out his kindness on Israel, his chosen people.

13 After moving from Hebron to Jerusalem, David married additional wives and concubines, and had many sons and daughters. 14-16 These are his children who were born at Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, Elishama, Eliada, Eliphelet.

17 When the Philistines heard that David had been crowned king of Israel, they tried to capture him; but David was told that they were coming and went into the stronghold. 18 The Philistines arrived and spread out across the valley of Rephaim.

19 Then David asked the Lord, “Shall I go out and fight against them? Will you defeat them for me?”

And the Lord replied, “Yes, go ahead, for I will give them to you.”

20 So David went out and fought with them at Baal-perazim and defeated them. “The Lord did it!” he exclaimed. “He burst through my enemies like a raging flood.” So he named the place “Bursting.” 21 At that time David and his troops confiscated many idols that had been abandoned by the Philistines. 22 But the Philistines returned and again spread out across the valley of Rephaim.

23 When David asked the Lord what to do, he replied, “Don’t make a frontal attack. Go behind them and come out by the balsam trees. 24 When you hear a sound like marching feet in the tops of the balsam trees, attack! For it will signify that the Lord has prepared the way for you and will destroy them.”

25 So David did as the Lord had instructed him and destroyed the Philistines all the way from Geba to Gezer.

6 1-2 Then David mobilized thirty thousand special troops and led them to Baal-judah to bring home the Ark of the Lord of heaven who is enthroned above the Guardian Angels. 3 The Ark was placed upon a new cart and taken from the hillside home of Abinadab. It was driven by Abinadab’s sons, Uzzah and Ahio. 4 Ahio was walking in front 5 and was followed by David and the other leaders of Israel, who were joyously waving branches of juniper trees and playing every sort of musical instrument before the Lord—lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets, and cymbals.

6 But when they arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, the oxen stumbled and Uzzah put out his hand to steady the Ark. 7 Then the anger of the Lord flared out against Uzzah and he killed him for doing this, so he died there beside the Ark. 8 David was angry at what the Lord had done, and named the spot “The Place of Wrath upon Uzzah” (which it is still called to this day).

9 David was now afraid of the Lord and asked, “How can I ever bring the Ark home?” 10 So he decided against taking it into the City of David, but carried it instead to the home of Obed-edom, who had come from Gath. 11 It remained there for three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household.

12 When David heard this, he brought the Ark to the City of David with a great celebration. 13 After the men who were carrying it had gone six paces, they stopped and waited so that he could sacrifice an ox and a fat lamb. 14 And David danced before the Lord with all his might and was wearing priests’ clothing.[f] 15 So Israel brought home the Ark of the Lord with much shouting and blowing of trumpets.

16 (But as the procession came into the city, Michal, Saul’s daughter, watched from a window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she was filled with contempt for him.)

17 The Ark was placed inside the tent that David had prepared for it; and he sacrificed burnt offerings and peace offerings to the Lord. 18 Then he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of heaven 19 and gave a present to everyone—men and women alike—of a loaf of bread, some wine, and a cake of raisins. When it was all over, and everyone had gone home, 20 David returned to bless his family.

But Michal came out to meet him and exclaimed in disgust, “How glorious the king of Israel looked today! He exposed himself to the girls along the street like a common pervert!”

21 David retorted, “I was dancing before the Lord who chose me above your father and his family and who appointed me as leader of Israel, the people of the Lord! So I am willing to act like a fool in order to show my joy in the Lord. 22 Yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this, but I will be respected by the girls of whom you spoke!”

23 So Michal was childless throughout her life.

7 When the Lord finally sent peace upon the land, and Israel was no longer at war with the surrounding nations, 2 David said to Nathan the prophet, “Look! Here I am living in this beautiful cedar palace while the Ark of God is out in a tent!”

3 “Go ahead with what you have in mind,” Nathan replied, “for the Lord is with you.”

4 But that night the Lord said to Nathan, 5 “Tell my servant David not to do it![g] 6 For I have never lived in a temple. My home has been a tent ever since the time I brought Israel out of Egypt. 7 And I have never once complained to Israel’s leaders, the shepherds of my people. Have I ever asked them, ‘Why haven’t you built me a beautiful cedar temple?’

8 “Now go and give this message to David from the Lord of heaven: ‘I chose you to be the leader of my people Israel when you were a mere shepherd, tending your sheep in the pastureland. 9 I have been with you wherever you have gone and have destroyed your enemies. And I will make your name greater yet, so that you will be one of the most famous men in the world! 10-11 I have selected a homeland for my people from which they will never have to move. It will be their own land where the heathen nations won’t bother them as they did when the judges ruled my people. There will be no more wars against you; and your descendants shall rule this land for generations to come! 12 For when you die, I will put one of your sons upon your throne, and I will make his kingdom strong. 13 He is the one who shall build me a temple. And I will continue his kingdom into eternity. 14 I will be his father and he shall be my son. If he sins, I will use other nations to punish him, 15 but my love and kindness shall not leave him as I took it from Saul, your predecessor. 16 Your family shall rule my kingdom forever.’”

17 So Nathan went back to David and told him everything the Lord had said.

18 Then David went into the Tabernacle and sat before the Lord and prayed, “O Lord God, why have you showered your blessings on such an insignificant person as I am? 19 And now, in addition to everything else, you speak of giving me an eternal dynasty! Such generosity is far beyond any human standard! O Lord God! 20 What can I say? For you know what I am like! 21 You are doing all these things just because you promised to and because you want to! 22 How great you are, Lord God! We have never heard of any other God like you. And there is no other God. 23 What other nation in all the earth has received such blessings as Israel, your people? For you have rescued your chosen nation in order to bring glory to your name. You have done great miracles to destroy Egypt and its gods. 24 You chose Israel to be your people forever, and you became our God.

25 “And now, Lord God, do as you have promised concerning me and my family. 26 And may you be eternally honored when you have established Israel as your people and have established my dynasty before you. 27 For you have revealed to me, O Lord of heaven, God of Israel, that I am the first of a dynasty which will rule your people forever; that is why I have been bold enough to pray this prayer of acceptance. 28 For you are indeed God, and your words are truth; and you have promised me these good things— 29 so do as you have promised! Bless me and my family forever! May our dynasty continue on and on before you; for you, Lord God, have promised it.”

8 After this David subdued and humbled the Philistines by conquering Gath, their largest city. 2 He also devastated the land of Moab. He divided his victims by making them lie down side by side in rows. Two-thirds of each row, as measured with a tape, were butchered, and one-third were spared to become David’s servants—they paid him tribute each year.

3 He also destroyed the forces of King Hadadezer (son of Rehob) of Zobah in a battle at the Euphrates River, for Hadadezer had attempted to regain his power. 4 David captured seventeen hundred cavalry and twenty thousand infantry; then he lamed all of the chariot horses except for one hundred teams. 5 He also slaughtered twenty-two thousand Syrians from Damascus when they came to help Hadadezer. 6 David placed several army garrisons in Damascus, and the Syrians became David’s subjects and brought him annual tribute money. So the Lord gave him victories wherever he turned. 7 David brought the gold shields to Jerusalem which King Hadadezer’s officers had used. 8 He also carried back to Jerusalem a very large amount of bronze from Hadadezer’s cities of Betah and Berothai.

9 When King Toi of Hamath heard about David’s victory over the army of Hadadezer, 10 he sent his son Joram to congratulate him, for Hadadezer and Toi were enemies. He gave David presents made from silver, gold, and bronze. 11-12 David dedicated all of these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold he had taken from Syria, Moab, Ammon, the Philistines, Amalek, and King Hadadezer.

13 So David became very famous. After his return he destroyed eighteen thousand Edomites[h] in Salt Valley, 14 and then placed garrisons throughout Edom, so that the entire nation was forced to pay tribute to Israel—another example of the way the Lord made him victorious wherever he went.

15 David reigned with justice over Israel and was fair to everyone. 16 The general of his army was Joab (son of Zeruiah), and his secretary of state was Jehoshaphat (son of Ahilud). 17 Zadok (son of Ahitub) and Ahimelech (son of Abiathar) were the High Priests, and Seraiah was the king’s private secretary. 18 Benaiah (son of Jehoiada) was captain of his bodyguard,[i] and David’s sons were his assistants.

9 One day David began wondering if any of Saul’s family was still living, for he wanted to be kind to them, as he had promised Prince Jonathan. 2 He heard about a man named Ziba, who had been one of Saul’s servants, and summoned him.

“Are you Ziba?” the king asked.

“Yes, sir, I am,” he replied.

3 The king then asked him, “Is anyone left from Saul’s family? If so, I want to fulfill a sacred vow by being kind to him.”

“Yes,” Ziba replied, “Jonathan’s lame son is still alive.”

4 “Where is he?” the king asked.

“In Lo-debar,” Ziba told him. “At the home of Machir.”

5-6 So King David sent for Mephibosheth—Jonathan’s son and Saul’s grandson. Mephibosheth arrived in great fear and greeted the king in deep humility, bowing low before him.

7 But David said, “Don’t be afraid! I’ve asked you to come so that I can be kind to you because of my vow to your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land of your grandfather Saul, and you shall live here at the palace!”

8 Mephibosheth fell to the ground before the king. “Should the king show kindness to a dead dog like me?” he exclaimed.

9 Then the king summoned Saul’s servant Ziba. “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family,” he said. 10-11 “You and your sons and servants are to farm the land for him, to produce food for his family; but he will live here with me.”

Ziba, who had fifteen sons and twenty servants, replied, “Sir, I will do all you have commanded.”

And from that time on, Mephibosheth ate regularly with King David, as though he were one of his own sons. 12 Mephibosheth had a young son, Mica. All the household of Ziba became Mephibosheth’s servants, 13 but Mephibosheth (who was lame in both feet) moved to Jerusalem to live at the palace.

10 Some time after this the Ammonite king died and his son Hanun replaced him.

2 “I am going to show special respect for him,” David said, “because his father, Nahash, was always so loyal and kind to me.” So David sent ambassadors to express regrets to Hanun about his father’s death.

3 But Hanun’s officers told him, “These men aren’t here to honor your father! David has sent them to spy out the city before attacking it!”

4 So Hanun took David’s men and shaved off half their beards and cut their robes off at the buttocks and sent them home half naked. 5 When David heard what had happened he told them to stay at Jericho until their beards grew out; for the men were very embarrassed over their appearance.

6 Now the people of Ammon realized how seriously they had angered David, so they hired twenty thousand Syrian mercenaries from the lands of Rehob and Zobah, one thousand from the king of Maacah, and ten thousand from the land of Tob. 7-8 When David heard about this, he sent Joab and the entire Israeli army to attack them. The Ammonites defended the gates of their city while the Syrians from Zobah, Rehob, Tob, and Maacah fought in the fields. 9 When Joab realized that he would have to fight on two fronts, he selected the best fighters in his army, placed them under his personal command, and took them out to fight the Syrians in the fields. 10 He left the rest of the army to his brother Abishai, who was to attack the city.

11 “If I need assistance against the Syrians, come out and help me,” Joab instructed him. “And if the Ammonites are too strong for you, I will come and help you. 12 Courage! We must really act like men today if we are going to save our people and the cities of our God. May the Lord’s will be done.”

13 And when Joab and his troops attacked, the Syrians began to run away. 14 Then, when the Ammonites saw the Syrians running, they ran too, and retreated into the city. Afterwards Joab returned to Jerusalem. 15-16 The Syrians now realized that they were no match for Israel. So when they regrouped, they were joined by additional Syrian troops summoned by Hadadezer from the other side of the Euphrates River. These troops arrived at Helam under the command of Shobach, the commander-in-chief of all of Hadadezer’s forces.

17 When David heard what was happening, he personally led the Israeli army to Helam, where the Syrians attacked him. 18 But again the Syrians fled from the Israelis, this time leaving seven hundred charioteers dead on the field, also forty thousand cavalrymen, including General Shobach. 19 When Hadadezer’s allies saw that the Syrians had been defeated, they surrendered to David and became his servants. And the Syrians were afraid to help the Ammonites anymore after that.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Samuel 1:10 So I killed him. He was evidently lying. See 1 Samuel 31:3 for the true account. Probably he had found Saul dead upon the field and thought David would reward him for killing his rival.
  2. 2 Samuel 1:21 Let no crops of grain grow on your slopes. The text is uncertain in the original manuscripts.
  3. 2 Samuel 2:17 by Joab, implied.
  4. 2 Samuel 3:15 Palti, see 1 Samuel 25:44.
  5. 2 Samuel 4:2 to Gittaim, which is not in Benjamin.
  6. 2 Samuel 6:14 was wearing priests’ clothing, literally, “David was girded with a linen ephod.”
  7. 2 Samuel 7:5 Tell my servant David not to do it! literally, “Shall you build me a house to dwell in?”
  8. 2 Samuel 8:13 Edomites, literally, “Syrians.”
  9. 2 Samuel 8:18 captain of his bodyguard, literally, “the Cherethites and Pelethites.” were his assistants, literally, “were priests”; see 1 Chronicles 18:17.
Next
1 Samuel 31
2 Samuel 11
Next
dropdown
New American Standard Bible (NASB)

New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.

New American Standard Bible is made available by The Lockman Foundation
Living Bible (TLB)

The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.