2 Sam. 2:1-11 – Doing Lovingkindness & Faithfulness Like God Does

Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 9 Jan 2022

Introduction

1) vs. 1-4 David Moves With God’s Direction To Hebron

2) vs. 4-7 David’s communiqué with Jabesh Gilead

3) vs. 8-11 Rival King

Conclusion


2 Samuel 2:1-11 - Side-by side comparison of versionsA

LXX

Brenton

DRB

KJV

NAW

MT

1 Καὶ ἐγένετο μετὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἐπηρώτησεν Δαυιδ ἐν κυρίῳ λέγων Εἰ ἀναβῶ εἰς μίαν τῶν πόλεων Ιουδα; καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς αὐτόν Ἀνάβηθι. καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ Ποῦ ἀναβῶ; καὶ εἶπεν Εἰς Χεβρων.

1 And it came to pass after this that David enquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up into one of the cities of Juda? and the Lord said to him, Go up. And David said, Whither shall I go up? and he said, To Chebron.

1 And after these things David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I go up into one of the cities of Juda? And the Lord said to him: Go up. And David said: Whither shall I go up? And he answered [him]: Into Hebron.

1 And it came to pass after this, that David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah? And the LORD said unto him, Go up. And David said, Whither shall I go up? And he said, Unto Hebron.

1 And so it was after this that David inquired with Yahweh, saying, “May I go up into one of the towns of Judah?” And Yahweh said to him, “Go up.” And David said, “Where shall I go?” And He said, “To Hebron.”

1 וַיְהִי אַחֲרֵי- כֵן וַיִּשְׁאַל דָּוִד בַּיהוָה לֵאמֹר הַאֶעֱלֶה בְּאַחַת עָרֵי יְהוּדָה וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֵלָיו עֲלֵה וַיֹּאמֶר דָּוִד אָנָה אֶעֱלֶה וַיֹּאמֶר חֶבְרֹנָה:

2 καὶ ἀνέβη ἐκεῖ Δαυιδ [εἰς Χεβ­ρων] καὶ ἀμφό­τεραι αἱ γυναῖκες αὐτοῦ, Αχινο­ομ ἡ Ιεζραηλ­ῖτις καὶ Αβι­γαια ἡ γυνὴ Ναβαλ τοῦ Καρμηλίου,

2 And David went up thither [to Chebron], he and both his wives, Achina­am the Jezra­el­itess, and Abigaia the wife of Nabal the Carmelite,

2 So David went up X, and his two wives Achinoam the Jezrahelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal of Carmel:

2 So David went up thither, and his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail Nabal's wife the Carmelite.

2 So David went up there – and so did his two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail (who had been Nabal’s wife) from Carmel,

2 וַיַּעַל שָׁם דָּוִד וְגַם שְׁתֵּי נָשָׁיו אֲחִינֹעַם הַיִּזְרְעֵלִית וַאֲבִיגַיִל אֵשֶׁת נָבָל הַכַּרְמְלִי:

3 καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες X οἱ μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ, X X ἕκαστος καὶ ὁ οἶκος αὐτοῦ, καὶ κατῴκουν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν Χεβρων.

3 and X X the men that were with him, every one and his family; and they dwelt in the cities of Chebron.

3 And the men also that were with him, Da­vid brought up every man with his household: and they abode in the towns of Hebron.

3 And his men that were with him did David bring up, every man with his household: and they dwelt in the cities of Hebron.

3 along with {the} men who were with him. David brought up each with his household, and they settled down in the neighborhoods of Hebron.

3 וַאֲנָשָׁיוB אֲשֶׁר-עִמּוֹ הֶעֱלָה דָוִד אִישׁ וּבֵיתוֹ וַיֵּשְׁבוּ בְּעָרֵי חֶבְרוֹן:

4 καὶ ἔρχονται ἄνδρες τῆς Ιουδ­αίας καὶ χρίουσιν τὸν Δαυιδ ἐκεῖ τοῦ βασιλεύ­ειν ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ιουδα. Καὶ ἀπήγ­γει­λαν τῷ Δαυιδ λέγοντες [ὅτι] Οἱ ἄνδρες Ια­βις τῆς Γαλα­αδίτιδος X ἔθαψαν τὸν Σαουλ.

4 And the men of Judea come, and anoint David there to reign over the house of Juda; and they reported to David, saying {thatC}, The men of Jabis of the country of Galaad X have buried Saul.

4 And the men of Juda came, and anointed David there, to be king over the house of Juda. And it was told David X that the men of Jabes Galaad X had buried Saul.

4 And the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David X king over the house of Judah. And they told David, saying, That the men of Jabeshgilead were they that buried Saul.

4 Then the men of Judah came and anointed David there to {be} king over the house of Judah. They also communicated with David saying {that} the men of Jabesh Gilead {} had buried Saul.

4 וַיָּבֹאוּ אַנְשֵׁי יְהוּדָה וַיִּמְשְׁחוּ- שָׁם אֶת-דָּוִד לְמֶלֶךְD עַל-בֵּית יְהוּדָה וַיַּגִּדוּ לְדָוִד לֵאמֹר אַנְשֵׁי יָבֵישׁ גִּלְעָד אֲשֶׁר קָבְרוּ אֶת-שָׁאוּל:ס

5 καὶ ἀπέστει­λεν Δαυιδ ἀγ­γέλους πρὸς τοὺς ἡγου­μένους Ιαβις τῆς Γαλααδίτιδος καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς Εὐλογημένοι ὑμεῖς τῷ κυρίῳ, ὅτι πεποιήκατε τὸ ἔλεος τοῦτο ἐπὶ τὸν κύριον ὑμῶν ἐπὶ Σαουλ [τὸν χριστὸν κυρίου] καὶ ἐθάψατε αὐ­τὸν [καὶ Ιωνα­θαν τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ]·

5 And David sent messengers to the rulers of Jabis [of the country] of Galaad, and [Dav­idE] said to them, Blessed be ye of the Lord, because ye have wrought this mercy toward your lord, [even] toward Saul [the anointed of the Lord], and ye have buried him [and Jonathan his sonF].

5 David therefore sent messengers to the men of Jabes Galaad, and said to them: Blessed be you to the Lord, who have shewn this mercy to your master X Saul, and have buried him.

5 And David sent messengers unto the men of Jabesh­gilead, and said unto them, Blessed be ye of the LORD, that ye have shewed this kindness unto your lord, even unto Saul, and have buried him.

5 So, David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead and said to them, “May y’all be blessed by Yahweh since y’all performed this act of loving­kindness to your master – {to} Saul, {Yahweh’s anointed one} when y’all buried him.

5 וַיִּשְׁלַח דָּוִד מַלְאָכִים אֶל-אַנְשֵׁי יָבֵישׁ גִּלְעָד וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם בְּרֻכִים אַתֶּם לַיהוָה אֲשֶׁר עֲשִׂיתֶם הַחֶסֶדG הַזֶּה Hעִם- אֲדֹנֵיכֶם Iעִם- שָׁאוּל וַתִּקְבְּרוּ אֹתוֹ:

6 καὶ νῦν ποιήσαι κύριος μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν ἔλεος καὶ ἀλήθειαν, καί γε ἐγὼ ποιήσω μεθ᾿ ὑμῶν τὰ ἀγαθὰ ταῦτα, ὅτι ἐποιήσατε τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο·

6 And now may the Lord deal in mercy and truth towards you: and I also will requite towards you this good [deed], because ye have done this.

6 And now the Lord surely will render you mercy and truth, and I also will requite you [for] this good [turn], because you have done this thing.

6 And now the LORD shew kindness and truth unto you: and I also will requite you this kindness, because ye have done this thing.

6 And now, may Yahweh perform lovingkindness and faithfulness unto you, and also I myself will perform unto you this good thing since y’all performed that thing.

6 וְעַתָּה יַעַשׂ- יְהוָה Jעִמָּכֶם חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת וְגַם אָנֹכִי אֶעֱשֶׂה אִתְּכֶם הַטּוֹבָה הַזֹּאת אֲשֶׁר עֲשִׂיתֶם הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה:

7 καὶ νῦν κρατ­αιούσθωσαν αἱ χεῖρες ὑμῶν καὶ γίνεσθε εἰς υἱοὺς δυνατούς, ὅτι τέθνηκεν ὁ κύρ­ιος ὑμῶν Σαουλ, καί γε ἐμὲ κέχρι­κεν ὁ οἶκος Ιου­δα ἐφ᾿ ἑαυτοὺς εἰς βασιλέα.

7 And now let your hands be made strong, and be X X valiant; for your master Saul is dead, and moreover the house of Juda have anointed me to be king over them.

7 X X Let your hands be streng­thened, and be ye men of valour: for although your master Saul be dead, yet the house of Juda hathX anointed me to be X their king.

7 Therefore now let your hands be strengthened, and be ye X X valiant: for your master Saul is dead, and also the house of Judah have anointed me X king over them.

7 So now, y’all strengthen your hands and become part of the army, for Saul your master has died, and furthermore it is me whom the house­holds of Judah have anointed over them to be king.

7 וְעַתָּה תֶּחֱזַקְנָה יְדֵיכֶם וִהְיוּ לִבְנֵי-חַיִל כִּיK- מֵת אֲדֹנֵיכֶם שָׁאוּל וְגַם-אֹתִי מָשְׁחוּL בֵית- יְהוּדָה לְמֶלֶךְ עֲלֵיהֶםM: פ

8 Καὶ Αβεννηρ υἱὸς Νηρ ἀρχ­ιστράτηγος τοῦ Σαουλ ἔλαβεν τὸν ΙεβοσθεN υἱὸν Σαουλ καὶ ἀνεβίβασεν αὐτὸν [ἐκ τῆς παρεμβολῆς εἰς] Μαναεμ

8 But Abenner, the son of Ner, the commander-in-chief of Saul's [army], took Jebosthe son of Saul, and brought him up [from the camp to] Manaem

8 But Abner the son of Ner, general of Saul's army, took Isboseth the son of Saul, and led him [about] through the camp,

8 But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's host, took Ishbosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim;

8 Meanwhile, Abner, Ner’s son, Saul’s commanding-officer, grabbed Ish-bosheth, Saul’s son, and brought him over to Makhanaiym,

8 וְאַבְנֵר בֶּן- נֵר שַׂר-צָבָאO אֲשֶׁר לְשָׁאוּל לָקַח אֶת- אִישׁ בֹּשֶׁת בֶּן-שָׁאוּל וַיַּעֲבִרֵהוּ מַחֲנָיִם:

9 καὶ ἐβασίλ­ευσεν αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τὴν Γαλααδῖτιν καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν Θασιρι καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν Ιεζραελ καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν Εφραιμ καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν Βενιαμιν καὶ ἐπὶ πάντα Ισραηλ.

9 and made him king over the land of Galaad, and over Thas­iri, and over Jezrael, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all Israel.

9 And made him king over Galaad, and over Gessuri, and over Jezrahel, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all Israel.

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

9 and he made him king {over} Gilead and {over} the {Geshurites} and {over} Jezreel and over Ephraim and over Benjamin and over all Israel.

9 וַיַּמְלִכֵהוּ אֶל- הַגִּלְעָד וְאֶל- הָאֲשׁוּרִיP וְאֶל- יִזְרְעֶאל Qוְעַל- אֶפְרַיִם וְעַל- בִּנְיָמִן וְעַל- יִשְׂרָאֵל כֻּלֹּה: פ

10 τεσσαράκοντα ἐτῶν Ιεβοσθε υἱὸς Σαουλ, ὅτε ἐβασίλευσεν ἐπὶ τὸν Ισραηλ, καὶ δύο ἔτη ἐβασίλευσεν πλὴν τοῦ οἴκου Ιουδα, [οἳ] ἦσαν ὀπίσω Δαυιδ·

10 Jebosthe, Saul's son was forty years old, when he reigned over Israel; and he reigned two years, but not [over] the house of Juda, [who] followed David.

10 Isboseth the son of Saul was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years; and only the house of Juda followed David.

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

10 Ish-bosheth, son of Saul, was 40 years old when he became king over Israel, and he was king two years. However, the housholds of Judah were behind David,

10בֶּן-אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה אִישׁ-בֹּשֶׁת בֶּן-שָׁאוּל בְּמָלְכוֹ עַל-יִשְׂרָאֵל וּשְׁתַּיִם שָׁנִים מָלָךְ R אַךְ בֵּית יְהוּדָה הָיוּ אַחֲרֵי דָוִד:

11 καὶ ἐγένοντο XS αἱ ἡμέραι, ἃς Δαυιδ ἐβασίλευσεν ἐν Χεβρων ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον Ιουδα, ἑπτὰ ἔτη καὶ ἓξ μῆνας.

11 And the X days which David reigned in Chebron over the house of Juda were seven years and six months.

11 And the number of the days that David abode, reigning in Hebron over the house of Juda, was seven years and six months.

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

11 and the calculation of the days in which David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was 7 years and 6 months.

11 וַיְהִי מִסְפַּר הַיָּמִים אֲשֶׁר הָיָה דָוִד מֶלֶךְ בְּחֶבְרוֹן עַל- בֵּית יְהוּדָה שֶׁבַע שָׁנִים וְשִׁשָּׁה חֳדָשִׁים: ס


1Based upon BibleWorks Mapping software and confirmed by NICOT. Alternately, John Gill passed along the estimate from Bunting’s Travels (p.137) that it was only 16 miles.

2David didn’t have any children yet.

3Samuel Rutherford made this case cogently in his book, Lex Rex.

41 Samuel 24:6,10; 26:9,11,16,23; 2 Samuel 1:14,16.

5“Thus Dauid sheweth himselfe a patterne of a good King, who is appointed as for the punishment of the wicked, so for the praise and reward of weldoers: as before he put to death the Amalekite for confessing he had killed Saul, so now hee promiseth reward to the Iabeshites, for their kindnesse toward him.” ~Willett

6quoting K.D. Sakenfeld’s The Meaning of Hesed in the Hebrew Bible: A New Inquiry, Scholars Press, 1978, p. 111.

7It should be admitted, however, that no other commentator I read arrived at this conclusion except for McCarter.

8Tsumura asserted, based on “Gilead” being listed among the dominions of Ish-Bosheth, that the men of Jabesh Gilead refused David and followed Ish-Bosheth, but it is conceivable that the region in general followed Ish-boseth while Jabesh in particular did not.

9Willett argued anachronistically from 3:18 that Abner knew David was God’s anointed. Gill agreed that Abner purposefully defied God’s will because of his own ambition for power.

10Goldman noted the trend of two other names which were changed from “-baal” to “-bosheth,” Merib-baal (1Chron. 8:34) to Mephiboseth (2 Sam 4:4), and Jerubbaal (Judges 8:35) to Jerubbesheth (2 Sam 11:21) with the explanation that “because of the association of the name Baal with the Canaanite deities and their worship, bosheth ‘shame’ was substituted for Baal.”

11There is some debate as to whether Ishbosheth was the same as Ishvi or Melchishua, but the record of 1 & 2 Sam is clear that three sons of Saul died, so this was the remaining one.

12K&D agreed with Gill that it couldn’t be the independent kingdom of Gesher over which Israel never took dominion, but K&D stood against all the other commentators I read (except for Tsumura) in asserting that this couldn’t be the tribe of Asher, and K&D were alone in asserting that Ishbosheth’s reign couldn’t have extended very far west of the Jordan and that the northwestern tribes of Asher, Zebulon, Issachar and Naphtali could not be meant.

13This is Goldman’s position and that of Tsumura. Alternately, Willet held the position that Ishbosheth reigned 7 years total, and that the statement in 2 Sam. 2:10 is like that of 1 Sam. 13:1, in that it was an initial two years after which the significant events of the rest of the chapter took place. Henry accepted the 2 years as a total for Ishbosheth, suggesting that Abner was in power the other 5 years (cf. K&D who suggested that Abner took 5 years to consolidate power, then anointed Ishboseth king) or else that the ensuing “long war” was 5 years in which Ishbosheth’s kingship was disputed, the latter of which was Gill’s position. Others, like Kimchi asserted that there was simply no king over Israel for those 5 years. Such dispute led K&D to assert, “this difference in the length of the two reigns... cannot be explained.”

141 Samuel 16:1-14 Now the LORD said to Samuel, "...I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons… Jesse... brought [the youngest] in... And Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward…”

15"If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you... If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you… In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 15:18-20, 16:33, NKJV)

AMy original chart includes NASB and NIV and ESV, but their copyright restrictions force me to remove them from the publicly-available edition of this chart. (NAW is my translation.) When a translation adds words not in the Hebrew text, but does not indicate it has done so by the use of italics (or greyed-out text), I put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a wording which is different from all the other translations, I underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Hebrew word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text, I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word which is in the original text, I insert an X. (I also place an X at the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English translation is singular.) I occasionally use colors to help the reader see correlations between the various editions and versions when there are more than two different translations of a given word. The only known Dead Sea Scroll containing 2 Samuel 2 is 4Q51Samuela, which contains fragments of vs. 5-32, and which has been dated between 50-25 B.C. Where the DSS is legible and is the same as the MT, the MT has been colored purple. Where the DSS or Vulgate support the LXX with omissions or text not in the MT, I have highlighted with yellow the LXX and its translation into English, and where I have accepted that into my NAW translation, I have marked it with {pointed brackets}.

BVulgate & LXX do not contain the pronoun “his,” but “the men” is not different in meaning from “his men” in this case.

CThe word “that” is in the LXX (including the Vaticanus) as well as in the Vulgate and Syriac, but it is not in the MT or the Lucian rescription of the LXX (which presumably was emending the LXX to the MT form).

DLXX, Syriac, Targums, and Vulgate all render this noun in the MT as an infinitive verb “to reign.”

EThe Vaticanus enumerates the subject of this compound verb as “David,” which is merely implied in the standard LXX, MT, and Latin, so the meaning is the same. Adding David’s name here makes the shift from plural “messengers” to the singular “he said” more clear, but isn’t necessary.

FAlthough not in any other manuscripts, this is a common phrase in the books of Samuel (found in 1 Samuel 13:16,22; 19:1; 20:27; 23:16; 2 Samuel 1:4,5,12,17; 4:4; 21:12,13,14) and 2 Sam. 21 confirms the truth of Jonathan being included.

GThe DSS is illegible at this point, but has space for another whole word here. The word “of God” has been suggested, but it is not in any other known ancient manuscript, so we will leave it be.

HThe DSS reads על (“upon” instead of the MT “with”), and the LXX supports the DSS with επι (“upon”). The meaning is not too different, though. In the second repetition of this preposition in this verse, the DSS is illegible, but the LXX uses the same preposition επι. (In the next verse, when the LXX renders the Hebrew preposition “with” (עמ), it uses μετα.)

IThe DSS is obliterated at this point, but it has space for 27 more characters compared to the 17 characters which remain in the MT edition of this verse. This is enough to include one of the two additional statements in the LXX, either “Yahweh’s anointed” (ותקברו אתו hwhy jy?m על אדניכם על שאול Purple text indicates legible DSS text, Black text indicates MT text, Grey text indicates LXX text back-translated) or “and Jonathan his son” (על אדניכם על שאול ותקברו אתו ויהונתן בנו). My pick is the former, since Saul and the transition between anointed kings seems to be David’s focus.

JThe DSS reads the synonym את, but it makes no difference in translation. The LXX “with” could support either.

KGill, noting that the men of Jabesh who had buried Saul didn’t need to be told that Saul was dead, translated the כי … וגם as “though… notwithstanding.” Tsumura labeled it a “speaker-oriented” ki, “explaining why David said this.”

LHere and in v.10 in the MT, the verb-of-being is plural, whereas the subject (“house of Judah”) is singular. In the LXX, the same disparity is preserved in this verse, but the subject is pluralized in v.10.

MThe last two words of the MT (and Vulgate) in this verse are in reverse order of the older DSS and LXX manuscripts, but it doesn’t change the meaning.

NLater Greek editions (Aquila, Symmachus, Theodotian) called him Ish-baal (Εισβααλ) “Baal’s man” or “the dictator’s man.”

ODSS adds a definite article (“the”) to the word “commanding/army/host” (abxh), but this doesn’t change the meaning. cf. K&D “chief-captain,” Tsumura “army commander” cf. ‎1 Samuel 14:50 “...the name of the army general שַׂר־צְבָאוֹ was Abner, son of Ner, Saul's uncle.”

PThe DSS is illegible here, but doesn’t have enough space between legible portions of the verse for the 6-letter word in the MT, although there is room for a shorter word like גשר(י) or אשור. The Syriac (gswr) and Vulgate (Gesuri) seem to support an initial “g” consonant (16th century Clementine edition doubled the “s”), but Targum (bjt ‘sr house of Asher”) and the MT suggest an initial “a,” and the LXX (and later Greek versions) suggests an initial “t.” As for the ending, the Syriac and Targum don’t have the “ai” ending (although the Targum’s “house of” could be an expression of the same concept), whereas the Vulgate and Masoretic do. The DSS doesn’t necessarily decide between them. As a simple voting matter, the “ai” ending seems to have more support for it. As for the initial letter, support seems pretty closely matched beetween “g” “a” and “t,” but the “a” makes the most sense geographically, there being no known place names matching the consonantal progression “tsr,” and Asher being in the NW corner of Israel and thus best denoting “all Israel,” by encompassing Asher, Zebulon, Naphtali, and Issachar, which would not be circumscribed by “Gesher" on the East side of the sea of Galilee, although the meaning would be about the same in terms of describing northern latitude.

QThe switch in preposition from “to” to “over” in the MT is not found in the Vulgate or LXX, where the preposition “over” is repeated all six times. The DSS doesn’t help because the first 3 prepositions are illegible, and both prepositions in Hebrew are the same number of letters long. Two different prepositions could conveivably indicate first an extent of land area (as far as the region of “Gilead” to the east of the Jordan River, as far as the kingdom of “Gesher” or the tribe of “Asher” – both about even with the top of the Sea of Galilee to the North, and as far as the “Jezreel” valley stretches West from the Jordan), geographic descriptions which would encompass the tribes of Asher, Zebulon, Naphtali, Issachar, and Manassah (and perhaps Gad), then the following 3 prepositions could indicate jurisdiction “over” tribal peoples of “Ephraim” and “Benjamin,” to the South (although Ephraim could also be a region name), and thus summarily “over all Israel.”

RDSS starts v. 10 here, omitting Ishbotheth’s name, age, and length of reign, but it’s in the LXX & Vulgate, so we’ll keep it.

SAlthough the text of the DSS is illegible at this point, the spacing between legible portions of this verse supports the extra word “number/accounting/calculation/length” in the MT.

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