Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 11 Sept 2022
It’s been a few weeks since my last sermon on 2 Samuel, so let’s review the history to this point, before we resume in the middle of chapter 18.
King David’s son, Absalom, staged a coup in Hebron, south of Jerusalem.
David fled from Jerusalem to relocate across the Jordan River in IshBosheth’s old capitol of Machanaim.
Absalom, after securing Jerusalem for himself, then mobilized a huge army and crossed the Jordan to kill David in battle.
David’s companions insisted that he not go into the battle, so he stayed inside the walled city of Machanaim, organizing support for his troops.
God gave a signal victory to David’s troops in the battle that ensued. Absalom’s army was routed, and Absalom was slain.
We re-enter the story as Joab, one of the division commanders of David’s army, is choosing a messenger to tell King David the outcome of the battle.
My hypothesis is that Zadok the priest may be the historian who composed this chapter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, based on the details which his son Ahimaaz gave him. This is the only explanation I have for why Ahimaaz is so prominent in this story, even though he was really only a minor character.
READ
my translation, beginning at v.19:
Then Ahimaaz son of Zadoq
said, “Please let me run, and let me herald it to the king,
for Yahweh has brought justice for him from the control of his
enemies!” But Joab said to him, “You are not the
heraldry man this day. Although you may be a herald on a later day,
yet, this day you shall not be a herald, because it’s about
the king’s son having died.” Then Joab said to the
Cushite, “Go, communicate to the king what you have seen.”
And the Cushite bowed down before Joab and then ran. Zadoq’s
son Ahimaaz nevertheless tried again and said to Joab, “But
how can this be? Please let me run after the Cushite – me
too!” But Joab said, “Why is it, my son, that you would
run, when there is no heraldry to find for you?” {He
answered,} “What if I run anyway?” So he said to him,
“Run.” And Ahimaaz ran the Jordan-circuit road and he
passed up the Cushite. Meanwhile, the watchman had gone to the
balcony of the gate at the outer-wall, while David was sitting
between the two gates, and he strained his eyes and looked, and
there was a man running by himself. So the watchman called out and
communicated it to the king, and the king said, “If he is by
himself, there is heraldry in his mouth!” And he came on
enthusiastically and was getting near. Then the watchman saw another
man running, so the watchman called out to the gatekeeper and said,
“Look, another man is running by himself!” And the king
said, “This one also is heralding good news.” The
watchman also said, “I see that the running-form of the first
is like the running-form of Zadoq’s son Ahimaaz.” And
the king said, “This is a good man, so it is with good
heraldry that he comes!” Achimaaz then called out and said to
the king, “Shalom!” and he bowed down before the king
with his nose to the ground. He also said, “Blessed be Yahweh
your God who has shut up those men who raised their hand in
opposition to my master the king!” Then the king said, “Shalom
for my lad – for Absalom?” And Ahimaaz said, “I
saw this big commotion at Joab’s commissioning of a servant of
the king along with your servant, but I don’t know what it
was.” So the king said, “Turn around; station yourself
here,” so he turned around and stood by. Presently, there was
the Cushite coming in, and the Cushite said, “Let my master
the king receive a herald of good news, for Yahweh has brought
justice for you today from the control of all those who rose up
against you!” And the king said to the Cushite, “Is
there peace with the young man – with Absalom?” And the
Cushite said, “May the enemies of my master the king –
and all who rise up against {him} for evil – become like that
young man.” Then the king shuddered, and he went up to the
loft over the gateway, and he wept and spoke thus while he went, “My
son Absalom! My son! My son Absalom! If only I could have died –
me instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son!”
Ahimaaz, remember, had previously, together with the other high priest’s son Jonathan, delivered Hushai’s warning from Jerusalem that Absalom was coming after David with a big army. This same Ahimaaz wanted the honor of – not only being the harbinger of the war at the beginning but also of – being the victory-announcer at the end of the war. In his perspective, it was good news that David’s enemies had been vanquished.
General Joab, on the other hand, had a few more years on him, and he had a deeper understanding of how David thought. Joab knew that David would struggle with this news, because, in this case, winning the war meant the death of his own son. David would see this as a death announcement, not as a victory announcement.
That’s why Joab told Ahimaaz that, although he was a fine message-boy, and had a good career in front of him as a message-runner, this message was about the death of the prince, not about beating enemies, so it needed to be someone else who carried the message.
Perhaps Joab also feared that David might get angry and kill the bearer of this message like he had killed the men who had announced that they had assassinated Ish-bosheth and like he had killed the man who announced that he had assassinated Saul (although, of course, in those cases they were confessing themselves to be the assassins, which would not be the case for Ahimaaz, but still, it might have raised a little anxiety for any messenger).
Joab chooses instead to send another man to carry this message. There is some question as to whether the messenger’s name was Cushi or whether he is referred to impersonally as “the Cushite,” that is, a man from the country of Ethiopia (which was called Cush back then).
The Greek Septuagint, Latin Vulgate, and old English Geneva and King James versions interpreted it as a name, perhaps because in v.21 it occurs once without a definite article, as might be grammatically possible with a name. And it works as a name.
However, all the English versions1 made after the year 1800 (including the New King James which took a rare departure from the old King James here), as well as most commentators throughout all of history2, interpret it as an ethnicity (“the Cushite”), because
it occurs with the definite article (“the”) six times in this chapter,
and it is spelled in Hebrew with the hireq-yod word-ending which is typical for denoting an ethnic group – analogous to our English word-ending “-ite,” which we use for naming people groups like “Israelite,” “Ammonite,” “Hittite,” and even contemporaneously, as in, “Manhattanite.”
Perhaps he was the only Ethiopian in Joab’s division, so “The Cushite” had just become his nickname among the troops3.
David’s retinue has a surprising amount of ethnic diversity, although perhaps not so surprising considering how many of his Psalms mention getting the nations to worship God! (esp. Psalm 67:2-4 , 68:31, 87:4)
It reminds me of another Ethiopian in the book of Acts who carried the good news of Jesus from Israel to Ethiopia, where he served in the court of queen Candice, making Ethiopia one of the first Christian countries in the world.
But, back to our story in 2 Samuel, an Army general doesn’t send just any warm body to deliver an important message to the king; this Cushite must have earned a reputation of being trustworthy, dependable, and accurate. He has proved by his past service that he is truly “the king’s servant.”
Ahimaaz, in his immature, youthful zeal, however, kept pressing Joab to send him too as a messenger.
Joab’s response in v.22 is a bit obscure, so different English versions translate it different ways, but he seems to be maintaining his opinion that since David will not find the message of Absalom’s death to be good news, therefore it is not appropriate to herald it like it is good news, and that Ahimaaz should not to expect any reward from David for going to the trouble of running this news back to him.
Ahimaaz’s response is also a bit obscure in the Hebrew, but he appears to be obstinate about running as a messenger anyway, so Joab reluctantly gives in, and Ahimaaz takes off like a shot down the Jordan Valley Road, perhaps what is now highway 90.
I mentioned before that there is some debate as to which side of the Jordan River this battle was fought on. This debate extends into what route Ahimaaz and the Cushite took:
if they were on the West side of the river, they would have to cross the Jordan to get back to Machanaim, and therefore both would have gone through the Kikkar river-plain of the Jordan River valley to get there.
And if the battlefield was on the East side of the Jordan, the sides of the Jabbok River canyon in which Machanaim was settled may have been so steep that it was not practical to travel in a straight line to Machanaim. Perhaps one had to detour West down to the Jordan River bank to get into the canyon from the west where the Jabbok River flowed down into the Jordan, then make your way East up the Jabbok River canyon to Machanaim.
Most commentators I read thought that Ahimaaz took that “longer but easier route by the way of the Jordan Valley, while the Cushite... adopted the direct but more difficult route over the hills4,” but there were also those who thought that Ahimaaz and the Cushite took the same route since they seem to have approached the city from the same direction (K&D).
In v.24, the scene switches to the entryway of the walled city of Machanaim, where David sat in the courtyard, between the outer-gate in the city wall and the inner gate which opened into the residential area of the city. He was accompanied by a watchman posted above the gateway on the outer wall of the city, within earshot of David.
The watchman identified two runners coming toward the city, one of them who ran like Achimaaz. How did he know it was Ahimaaz? Perhaps he had been the watchman on duty the first time Achimaaz had arrived with a message and he recognized his running-style.
I’ve heard it said that everybody has their own unique gait when walking or running.
When I used to work in an office building, a couple of my co-workers told me that they could tell it was me coming by the sound of my footfalls down the hall.
David, for his part, seems to have discerned at a distance (from the circumstances) that both messengers had good news to announce.
He says so three times, as though he is trying to overcome anxieties in his heart (or anxieties in the hearts of the people in the city).
This expectation that there will be good news is quite a contrast to the news organizations today which seem to delight in expecting the worst of everybody and everything! Maybe we should learn a lesson from David’s optimism based on faith in God’s promises.
Ahimaaz is the first to reach David, having outrun the Cushite, and his first word is, “Shalom,” which means, “Peace/All is well!”
That’s actually a good messaging strategy. Generally, we have found that when a teenage driver departs on an adventure in the family car, about the only reason they will call home is if they have had an accident or if they’ve run into a problem. So when one of our teenage kids drives off, and then we get a phone call from them, it is often with some trepidation that we pick up the phone. So we’ve trained them that if there isn’t anything wrong, the first words out of their mouth should be, “Everything’s fine.” And then they can ask us whatever it is they were calling about.
Achimaaz follows up with, “Blessed be Yahweh your God who has shut up the men who raised their hand in opposition to my master the king!”
Absalom’s supporters are no longer boasting about themselves; their mouths have been shut,
and Absalom’s followers are also going to get shut out of their positions of leadership now because, when David resumes the throne, he is not going to trust them with power after they have committed treason.
David has been delivered from his enemies once again by the power of the LORD, and Achimaaz, the P.K. (that is, the Priest’s Kid), knows to give God the glory for this good news. (Do you give God glory when you have good news to share? Do you give God glory?)
Achimaaz also affirms his own loyalty to David, calling him, “My master the king.”
But when David inquires about Absalom, Achimaaz realizes he is in a pickle.
He has jumped the gun with Joab in delivering a message he had not been sent to deliver.
The official messenger sent by Joab, whom Achimaaz calls “the king’s servant,” has yet to arrive.
And, in David’s presence, he seems to suddenly realize that it could go very badly for him if he were to say the wrong thing and David were to get mad at him. He gets a glimpse of his own problem of “zeal without knowledge.”
So he tells a lie. He knew that Absalom was dead (for even if he had not seen it himself, Joab had told him personally in v.20 that the king’s son was dead), nevertheless, he leads David to think that he doesn’t know what happened to Absalom. He just vaguely reports that there was some sort of commotion that might (or might not) have had something to do with Absalom.
At the same time, he tips David off that he is just accompanying the official messenger – the servant of the king sent by Joab.
When David realizes that Achimaaz is not the official messenger, he doesn’t press Achimaaz for for any more information; he just commands him turn around and stand by.
Ahimaaz was facing the king to give his message, so “turning around” would involve turning away from the king and looking toward the other approaching messenger, thus ending Ahimaaz’s role as messenger for the time being.
David obviously wasn’t impressed that this young whippersnapper could run faster than the official herald. Funny how we get our priorities mixed up and spend so much energy doing something impressive only to find that it wasn’t important.
Presently, the Cushite confirms that he is the official herald, but curiously, instead of using his own words, he uses Ahimaaz’s words from back in v.19: “Yahweh has brought justice for you today from the control of all those who rose up against you!”
Notice, however, where the emphasis of his message lies: it is the deliverance of the LORD!
When you are set free from the control of oppression,
when you are delivered from your enemies,
when justice is done to the opposition, let it be known that the LORD did it!
Make that your message: Jesus is the one who brings about justice!
David, however, is preoccupied with Absalom. He already knows from Ahimaaz that the war was decided in his favor and that there is peace, but the foremost thing on his mind is, “Is my son Absalom enjoying that peace?” Is it peace for him too?
The Cushite’s diplomatic response lets David know that Absalom has been slain: “May the enemies of my master the king – and all who rise up against {him}5 for evil – become like that young man.”
Included in the Cushite’s words is a gentle reminder that what Absalom did was evil – it was treason against God-ordained government – and therefore, in his death, no injustice had been done to be upset about, only true justice had been served.
The king’s reaction is immediate and intense.
It seems to be more intense grief than what David experienced over the deaths and tragedies of others in his life previously.
Perhaps David felt just as much grief over them, but an account this full was not reported in those other instances because it was not part of the storyline, as it is here, of David’s display of grief interfering with his kingly duties.
Alternately, perhaps, when Absalom was a child, there had been a closer bond between him and David than there had been with David’s other children, and that intensified David’s grief.
Or perhaps because of the extraordinary social and political heights which Absalom attained and the extraordinary depth of his fall, David felt appropriateness in expressing extraordinary grief.
I think that v.33 describes a tremor that shook his whole body physically.
Then he had to get away from the crowd of people gathering around the messenger to allow himself full vent to his grief. “Absalom, my son, my son!”
The death of a son is a deep grief which most of us cannot even fathom, and when the death is the result of the son’s own course of rebellion, it is an even deeper grief.
What comfort can there possibly be when you’re pretty sure that this child, who was once such a close part of you, is going to suffer hell for the rest of eternity? The mind cannot help but stagger at the thought.
The Prophet Nathan’s pronouncement must have echoed again and again in his mind, “...the sword shall never turn away from your household, in that you despised me and you took the wife of Uriah the Hittite…” (2 Sam. 12:10, NAW)
Regrets over a thousand things he should have done, but didn’t do, must have come crashing over David, like storm waves, drowning him emotionally.
“If only I had not taken Bathsheba.”
“If only I had spent more time with my children.”
“If only I had warned Absalom better against pride and presumption against God!”
“If only I had punished Amnon so that Absalom wouldn’t have been tempted to kill him in revenge.”
“If only I had reached out to Absalom in the prime of his life when he ran away to Gerar and when he came back to Jerusalem.”
If only... “If only it could have been me that died instead of you!” (In David’s grief he even imagined it could have been better if Absalom had won the battle and continued on the throne, even though Absalom was not God’s anointed and, even though Absalom, in his pride, would have been a wicked, oppressive tyrant.)
Perhaps there was even a little resentment against Joab and his troops mixed in there too: “How many times did I tell them to go easy on him? Can’t they follow even one, simple order? They all heard me say not to harm the lad; why didn’t they honor that!”
Now it was too late. There was nothing David could do to heal that broken relationship with his son; he would never get to speak another word to Absalom again. Absalom had died trying to kill his own father, and now there could be no epilogue – no way to redeem his reputation. All hope of this having a happy ending was lost.
There are several things we can learn from David’s grief and apply to ourselves:
One is not to selfishly distance yourself from a loved one who has acted shamefully.
David wrongfully distanced himself from Absalom earlier in 2 Samuel when he should have punished and resolved conflicts with him.
But now, but when Absalom died, David openly owned him as his son. “Absalom, my son, my son!”
I have friends who were kicked out of their churches when they got pregnant out of wedlock. But Christ is the redeemer; He did not conveniently distance Himself from our shame, and we shouldn’t do that to others either.
We can also learn from David that there is a place for expressing grief.
It was right and good to weep over the tragic death of his son.
The Bible gives us many other examples of lament as well.
It is right to grieve and cry out to God over the ravages of sin in this world.
At the same time, let this Scriptural window into David’s grief motivate us to invest ourselves in our children,
to repent of the compromises and laziness we have indulged in as parents
and to “teach them diligently” (Deut. 6) and raise them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Eph. 6),
to pray for them, and set before them a godly example that they will want to follow,
to be eager heralds of the good news of Jesus to them!
Let me finish with some more application on the topic of being a messenger:
This passage highlights the fact that not everybody is qualified to do everything they want to do. There is a place for making way for others (who are called to a particular role) to fulfill their calling, even though you think you could do it faster or better than them.
When I was college student, I joined a church that had been founded to preach the gospel in the inner city 20 years before. I, however, was completely fixated on world missions, and I naively thought that God had called me to change that inner-city church to focus instead on missions to unreached people groups in foreign countries. I went about my task with great pride and zeal, but very little fruitfulness. It wasn’t until decades later that it occurred to me how gracious Pastor Randy must have been when he said he thought I would make a good pastor!
In my middle age, now as a church pastor myself, I have frequently found myself saying, “Oh, that’s why my previous church leaders did it that way. I shouldn’t have been so critical of them!”
Zeal is is not a bad thing, but it has a way of carrying us to unprofitable extremes, so it needs to be tempered with wisdom and knowledge. Throughout history, one effective way of doing that has been for older, wiser folks in the church, and younger, more zealous folks in the church to team up together in ministry to balance each other out.
And there is certainly room to grow in our qualifications for service.
Are you accurate in what you report to others, or do you fudge on details?
Do you report only the facts, or do you find it tempting to embellish the truth to make it more exciting or, conversely, to omit details that don’t reflect well on you?
Do you do what you say you will do – and get it done on time, or are people often left wondering whether you are going to honor your commitments?
Are you good at saying things in such a way that they bring peace and progress, or do people often have a hard time responding well to the way you say things?
Do you usually cynically assume the worst, or are you able to see good in all of God’s providences? Do you fail to see things as God’s providence, or are you able to direct praise to God, like Ahimaaz and the Cushite did?
If you do not currently have a reputation for Accuracy, Honesty, Follow-through, Timeliness, Diplomacy, and Godliness, why not ask God to help you grow in those areas and put into practice new disciplines in those areas and get mentors to help you.
God’s word tells us that we all have a message to share:
2 Cor. 5:17-21 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
We have a fuller understanding of the good news than David had:
Whereas in David’s day, the peace of the nation was won by hanging the king’s son in a tree, we have the fuller story of the peace of the world won by hanging the Son of God on a tree.
Whereas David was left wishing he could have died instead of Absalom, we know that Jesus suffered eternal death in our place in order to give us eternal life. As Isaiah put it: “Surely our griefs He Himself carried, and our sorrows, He bore them... He was being pierced from our rebellion - beaten from our iniquity. Chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes there is healing for us... He poured out His soul to the death and was numbered with rebels. And He Himself carried the sin of many, and will interpose for the rebels.” (Isaiah 53:4-12, NAW)
Do we have zeal (like Ahimaaz did) for sharing that message? Can you ask God to kindle in you a zeal to share the good news of Jesus Christ?
LXX |
Brenton |
DRB |
KJV |
NAW |
MT |
19 Καὶ Αχιμαας υἱὸς Σαδωκ εἶπεν Δράμω δὴ καὶ εὐαγγελίῳ τῷ βασιλεῖ ὅτι ἔκρινεν αὐτῷ κύριος ἐκ χειρὸς τῶν ἐχθρῶν αὐτοῦ. |
19 And Achimaas the son of Sadoc said, Let me run now and carry glad tidings to the king, for the Lord has delivered him from the hand of his enemies. |
19
And Achimaas the son of Sadoc said: I will run and |
19 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the LORD hath avenged him X X of his enemies. |
19 Then Ahimaaz son of Zadoq said, “Please let me run, and let me herald it to the king, for Yahweh has brought justice for him from the control of his enemies!” |
19 וַאֲחִימַעַץ בֶּן-צָדוֹק אָמַר אָרוּצָה נָּא וַאֲבַשְּׂרָה אֶת-הַמֶּלֶךְ כִּי-שְׁפָטוֹ יְהוָה מִיַּד אֹיְבָיו: |
20 καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ Ιωαβ Οὐκ ἀνὴρ εὐαγγελίας σὺ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ταύτῃ καὶ εὐαγγελιῇ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ἄλλῃ, [ἐν] δὲ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ταύτῃ οὐκ εὐαγγελιῇ, οὗ εἵνεκέν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ βασιλέως ἀπέθανεν. |
20
And Joab said to him, Thou shalt not be a |
20
And Joab said to him: Thou shalt not be the messenger
X
this
day, but shalt bear
tidings
X
another
day: X
this day |
20
And Joab said unto him, Thou |
20 But Joab said to him, “You are not the heraldry man this day. Although you may be a herald on a later day, yet, this day you shall not be a herald, because it’s about the king’s son having died.” |
20 וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ יוֹאָב לֹא אִישׁ בְּשֹׂרָה אַתָּה הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה וּבִשַּׂרְתָּ בְּיוֹם אַחֵר וְהַיּוֹם הַזֶּה לֹא תְבַשֵּׂר כִּי-עַלB בֶּן- הַמֶּלֶךְ מֵת: |
21
καὶ εἶπεν Ιωαβ
τῷ Χουσι Βαδίσας
ἀνάγγειλον
τῷ βασιλεῖ
ὅσα εἶδες·
καὶ προσεκύνησεν
Χουσι τῷ Ιωαβ
καὶ |
21
And Joab said to Chusi, Go, report to the king [allC]
that thou hast seen. And Chusi did obeisance to Joab, and |
21 And Joab said to Chusai: Go, [andD] tell the king what thou hast seen. X Chusai bowed down to Joab, and ran. |
21 Then said Joab to Cushi, Go tell the king what thou hast seen. And Cushi bowed himself unto Joab, and ran. |
21 Then Joab said to the Cushite, “Go, communicate to the king what you have seen.” And the Cushite bowed down before Joab and then ran. |
21 וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹאָב לַכּוּשִׁי לֵךְ הַגֵּד לַמֶּלֶךְ אֲשֶׁר רָאִיתָה וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ Eכוּשִׁי לְיוֹאָב וַיָּרֹץ: |
22
καὶ προσέθετο
ἔτι Αχιμαας
υἱὸς Σαδωκ
καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς
Ιωαβ Καὶ ἔστω
|
22
And Achimaas the son of Sadoc X
X said
again to Joab, |
22
Then Achimaas the son of Sadoc X
said
to Joab X
again:
X
Why
might |
22
Then X
said
Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Joab, But how |
22 Zadoq’s son Ahimaaz nevertheless tried again and said to Joab, “But how can this be? Please let me run after the Cushite – me too!” But Joab said, “Why is it, my son, that you would run, when there is no heraldry to find for you?” |
22 וַיֹּסֶף עוֹדG אֲחִימַעַץ בֶּן- צָדוֹק וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל-יוֹאָב וִיהִי מָה אָרֻצָה-נָּא גַם-אָנִי אַחֲרֵי הַכּוּשִׁי וַיֹּאמֶר יוֹאָב לָמָּה-זֶּה אַתָּה רָץ בְּנִי וּלְכָה Hאֵין- בְּשׂוֹרָה מֹצֵאת: |
23 [καὶ εἶπεν] Τί γὰρ [ἐὰν] δραμοῦμαιI; καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ [Ιωαβ] Δράμε. καὶ ἔδραμεν Αχιμαας ὁδὸν τὴν τοῦ Κεχαρ καὶ ὑπερέβη τὸν Χουσι. -- |
23
[And
he said,]
Why should I [not]
run? and [Joab]
said to him, Run. And Achimaas ran [along]
the way of Kechar, and |
23
[He
answered:]
But what [if]
I run? And he said to him: Run. Then Achimaas running [by]
a |
23
But howsoever, said
he,
let me run. And he said unto him, Run. Then Ahimaaz ran [by]
the way of the plain, and |
23 {He answered,} “What if I run anyway?” So he said to him, “Run.” And Ahimaaz ran the Jordan-circuit road and he passed up the Cushite. |
23 Jוִיהִי-מָהK אָרוּץ וַיֹּאמֶר לוֹ רוּץ וַיָּרָץ אֲחִימַעַץ דֶּרֶךְ הַכִּכָּר וַיַּעֲבֹר אֶת-הַכּוּשִׁי: |
24 καὶ Δαυιδ ἐκάθητο ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν δύο πυλῶν. καὶ ἐπορεύθη ὁ σκοπὸς εἰς τὸ δῶμα τῆς πύλης πρὸς τὸ τεῖχος καὶ ἐπῆρεν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶδεν καὶ ἰδοὺ ἀνὴρ τρέχων μόνος ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ, |
24
And David was sitting between the two gates: and the watchman went
[up]
|
24
And David sat between the two gates: and the watchman [that]
|
24 And David sat between the two gates: and the watchman went [up] to the roof [over] the gate unto the wall, and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a man running alone. |
24 Meanwhile, the watchman had gone to the balcony of the gate at the outer-wall, while David was sitting between the two gates, and he strained his eyes and looked, and there was a man running by himself. |
24 וְדָוִד יוֹשֵׁב בֵּין-שְׁנֵי הַשְּׁעָרִים וַיֵּלֶךְ הַצֹּפֶה אֶל- גַּג הַשַּׁעַר אֶל- הַחוֹמָה וַיִּשָּׂא אֶת- עֵינָיו וַיַּרְא וְהִנֵּה- אִישׁ רָץ לְבַדּוֹ: |
25 καὶ ἀνεβόησεν ὁ σκοπὸς καὶ ἀπήγγειλεν τῷ βασιλεῖ. καὶ εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεύς Εἰ μόνος ἐστίν, εὐαγγελία ἐν τῷ στόματι αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἐπορεύετο πορευόμενος καὶ ἐγγίζων. |
25 And the watchman cried out, and reported to the king. And the king said, If he be alone, there are good tidings in his mouth. And the man came X and drew near. |
25
And cry |
25 And the watchman cried, and told X the king. And the king said, If he be alone, there is tidings in his mouth. And he came apace, and drew near. |
25 So the watchman called out and communicated it to the king, and the king said, “If he is by himself, there is heraldry in his mouth!” And he came on enthusiastically and was getting near. |
25 וַיִּקְרָא הַצֹּפֶה וַיַּגֵּד לַמֶּלֶךְ וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ אִם-לְבַדּוֹ בְּשׂוֹרָה בְּפִיו וַיֵּלֶךְ הָלוֹךְ וְקָרֵב: |
26 καὶ εἶδεν ὁ σκοπὸς ἄνδρα ἕτερον τρέχοντα, καὶ ἐβόησεν ὁ σκοπὸς πρὸς τῇ πύλῃ καὶ εἶπεν Ἰδοὺ ἀνὴρ [ἕτερος] τρέχων μόνος. καὶ εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεύς Καί γε οὗτος εὐαγγελιζόμενος. |
26 And the watchman saw another man running: and the watchman cried at the gate, and said, And look, a[nother] man running alone. And the king said, He also brings glad tidings. |
26
X
The
watchman saw another man running, and X
crying
aloud |
26 And the watchman saw another man running: and the watchman called unto the porter, and said, Behold another man running alone. And the king said, He also bringeth tidings. |
26 Then the watchman saw another man running, so the watchman called out to the gatekeeper and said, “Look, another man is running by himself!” And the king said, “This one also is heralding good news.” |
26 וַיַּרְא הַצֹּפֶה אִישׁ-אַחֵר רָץ וַיִּקְרָא הַצֹּפֶה אֶל-הַשֹּׁעֵר וַיֹּאמֶר הִנֵּה- אִישׁL רָץ לְבַדּוֹ וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ גַּם-זֶה מְבַשֵּׂר: |
27 καὶ εἶπεν ὁ σκοπός Ἐγὼ ὁρῶ τὸν δρόμον τοῦ πρώτου ὡς δρόμον Αχιμαας υἱοῦ Σαδωκ. καὶ εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεύς Ἀνὴρ ἀγαθὸς οὗτος καί γε εἰς εὐαγγελίαν ἀγαθὴν ἐλεύσεται. |
27 And the watchman said, I see the running of the first as the running of Achimaas the son of Sadoc. And the king said, He is a good man, and will come to report glad tidings. |
27
And the watchman said: The running of the foremost |
27
And the watchman said, Me |
27 The watchman also said, “I see that the running-form of the first is like the running-form of Zadoq’s son Ahimaaz.” And the king said, “This is a good man, so it is with good heraldry that he comes!” |
27 וַיֹּאמֶר הַצֹּפֶה אֲנִי רֹאֶה אֶת- מְרוּצַת הָרִאשׁוֹן כִּמְרֻצַת אֲחִימַעַץ בֶּן-צָדוֹק וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ אִישׁ-טוֹב זֶה וְאֶל-בְּשׂוֹרָה טוֹבָה יָבוֹאM: |
28
καὶ ἐβόησεν
Αχιμαας καὶ
εἶπεν πρὸς τὸν
βασιλέα Εἰρήνη·
καὶ προσεκύνησεν
τῷ βασιλεῖ
ἐπὶ |
28
And Achimaas cried out and said to the king, Peace.
And he did obeisance to the king with his |
28
And Achimaas crying out, said to the king: [God]
save [thee,
O king].
And falling down before the king with his |
28
And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the king, [All]
is well.
And he fell down to the earth |
28 Achimaaz then called out and said to the king, “Shalom!” and he bowed down before the king with his nose to the ground. He also said, “Blessed be Yahweh your God who has shut up those men who raised their hand in opposition to my master the king!” |
28 וַיִּקְרָא אֲחִימַעַץ וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל-הַמֶּלֶךְ שָׁלוֹם וַיִּשְׁתַּחוּ לַמֶּלֶךְ לְאַפָּיו אָרְצָה ס וַיֹּאמֶר בָּרוּךְ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר סִגַּר אֶת- הָאֲנָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר- נָשְׂאוּ אֶת-יָדָם בַּאדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ: |
29 καὶ εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεύς Εἰρήνη τῷ παιδαρίῳ τῷ Αβεσσαλωμ; καὶ εἶπεν Αχιμαας Εἶδον τὸ πλῆθος τὸ μέγα τοῦ ἀποστεῖλαι τὸν δοῦλον τοῦ βασιλέως Ιωαβ καὶ τὸν δοῦλόν σου, καὶ οὐκ ἔγνων τί [ἐκεῖ]. |
29
And the king said, Is X
the
young man X
Abessalom
safe?
and Achimaas said, I saw |
29
And the king said: Is X
the
young man X
Absalom
safe?
And Achimaas said: I saw |
29
And the king said, Is X
the
young man X
Absalom
safe?
And Ahimaaz answered, When Joab sent [the]
king's servant, and me
thy servant, I saw |
29 Then the king said, “Shalom for my lad – for Absalom?” And Ahimaaz said, “I saw this big commotion at Joab’s commissioning of a servant of the king along with your servant, but I don’t know what it was.” |
29 וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ Oשָׁלוֹם לַנַּעַר לְאַבְשָׁלוֹם וַיֹּאמֶר אֲחִימַעַץ רָאִיתִי הֶהָמוֹן הַגָּדוֹל לִשְׁלֹחַ אֶת-עֶבֶד הַמֶּלֶךְ יוֹאָב Pוְאֶת-עַבְדֶּךָ Qוְלֹא יָדַעְתִּי מָה: |
30 καὶ εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεύς Ἐπίστρεψον, στηλώθητι ὧδε· καὶ ἐπεστράφη καὶ ἔστη. |
30 And the king said, Turn aside, stand still here. And he turned aside, and stood. |
30
And the king said to him: |
30 And the king said unto him, Turn aside, and stand X here. And he turned aside, and stood [still]. |
30 So the king said, “Turn around; station yourself here,” so he turned around and stood by. |
30 וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ סֹב הִתְיַצֵּב כֹּהR וַיִּסֹּב וַיַּעֲמֹד: |
31
καὶ ἰδοὺ ὁ Χουσι
παρεγένετο
καὶ εἶπεν |
31
And, behold, Chusi came up, and said |
X
Chusai
|
31 And, behold, Cushi came; and Cushi said, X Tidings, my lord the king: for the LORD hath avenged thee this day of X X all them that rose up against thee. |
31 Presently, there was the Cushite coming in, and the Cushite said, “Let my master the king receive a herald of good news, for Yahweh has brought justice for you today from the control of all those who rose up against you!” |
31 וְהִנֵּה הַכּוּשִׁי בָּא וַיֹּאמֶר הַכּוּשִׁיS יִתְבַּשֵּׂרT אֲדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ כִּי- שְׁפָטְךָU יְהוָה הַיּוֹם מִיַּד כָּל- הַקָּמִים עָלֶיךָ: ס |
32
καὶ εἶπεν ὁ
βασιλεὺς πρὸς
τὸν Χουσι Εἰ
εἰρήνη
τῷ παιδαρίῳ τῷ
Αβεσσαλωμ;
καὶ εἶπεν ὁ
Χουσι Γένοιντο
ὡς τὸ παιδάριον
οἱ ἐχθροὶ τοῦ
κυρίου μου
τοῦ βασιλέως
καὶ πάντες, ὅσοι
ἐπανέστησαν
ἐπ᾿ |
32
And the king said to Chusi, Is it well
with the young man Abessalom? and Chusi said, Let the enemies of
my lord the king, and all whosoever have risen up against |
32
And the king said to X
Chusai:
Is the young man Absalom safe?
And X
Chusai
[answering
him,]
said: Let the enemies of my lord, the king, and all that rise
against |
32 And the king said unto X Cushi, Is the young man Absalom safe? And X Cushi answered, The enemies of my lord the king, and all that rise against thee to do thee hurt, be as that young man is. |
32 And the king said to the Cushite, “Is there peace with the young man – with Absalom?” And the Cushite said, “May the enemies of my master the king – and all who rise up against {him} for evil – become like that young man.” |
32 וַיֹּאמֶר הַמֶּלֶךְ אֶל- הַכּוּשִׁי הֲשָׁלוֹם לַנַּעַר לְאַבְשָׁלוֹם וַיֹּאמֶר הַכּוּשִׁי יִהְיוּ כַנַּעַר אֹיְבֵי אֲדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר-קָמוּ עָלֶיךָV לְרָעָה: ס |
33
(19:1)
καὶ ἐταράχ |
33
And the king |
33 The king therefore [being much] moved, went up to the high chamber over the gate, and wept. And as he went he spoke in this manner: My son Absalom, Χ Χ Absalom my son: would [to God] that I might die X for thee, Absalom my son, my son [AbsalomW]. |
33 And the king [was much] moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would [God] I had died X for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son! |
33 Then the king shuddered, and he went up to the loft over the gateway, and he wept and spoke thus while he went, “My son Absalom! My son! My son Absalom! If only I could have died – me instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son!” |
19:1 וַיִּרְגַּז הַמֶּלֶךְ וַיַּעַל עַל־עֲלִיַּת הַשַּׁעַר וַיֵּבְךְּ וְכֹה אָמַר בְּלֶכְתּוֹX בְּנִי אַבְשָׁלוֹם בְּנִי בְנִי אַבְשָׁלוֹם מִי־יִתֵּן מוּתִי אֲנִי תַחְתֶּיךָ אַבְשָׁלוֹם בְּנִי בְנִיY׃ |
1This is an assumption based on the fact that it is so in NKJV, AJV, ASV, NASB, NIV, RV, ESV, NET, CEV, and NLT.
2The Soncino commentary, reflecting Jewish tradition, does not mention any rabbi who thought it was a proper name, and Andrew Willett’s commentary from 1613 cites three earlier commentators (“Jun. Pellic. Borrh.”) in support of his view that it meant “Cushite.” Keil & Delitzsch concurred. Jamieson’s commentary was the only exception I found.
3Matthew Henry (followed by Gill) seemed to hold this position calling it a “name [which] signifies… an Ethiopian.”
4Goldman (Soncino Books of the Bible). Matthew Henry, John Gill, and Tsumura (who also cited Driver, McCarter, and Hutton in support) also wrote in favor of this view.
5There is debate as to whether the king was referred to in the 2nd person or in the more respectful 3rd person. Ancient manuscripts render it both ways.
AMy
original chart includes the NASB, NIV, and ESV, but their copyright
restrictions have forced me to remove them from the
publicly-available edition of this chart. (LXX is the Rahlfs edition
of the Septuagint, Brenton is a translation into English of the
Greek Vaticanus, Douay is a translation of the Latin Vulgate,
and 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
Scrolls containing 2 Sam. 18 are 4Q51 Samuela containing
parts of verses 1-11 & 28-29, dated between 50-25 B.C.. (2 Sam
19:1 is obliterated in the known DSS.) Where the DSS is legible and
in agreement with the MT, the MT is colored purple.
Where the DSS supports the LXX (or Vulgate) 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}.
BScribes have suggested adding -כֵּן "therefore,"so it is in several Hebrew manuscripts as in the Greek. But no matter what the particular wording, all are agreed on the causal meaning ("because"). K&D commented with typical overconfidence: "The Keri כִּי עַל־כֵּן is to be preferred to the Chethib כִּי־עַל; and כֵּן has no doubt been dropt out merely because of בֶּן which follows. The Chethib does not give any suitable sense; for the absence of the article before מֵת ... If מֵת were to be construed as an adverb with בֶּן־מֶלֶךְ, it would of necessity have the article."
C“all” is not in the original Greek of the Vaticanus or of Rohlf’s edition of the Septuagint (nor is it in the original Hebrew).
DThe “and” added in the Vulgate here is supported by several Hebrew manuscripts and by the Greek Lucian Rescription, but is not in the MT, LXX, Targums, or Syriac. It makes no difference in meaning because of the already-close relationship between the two commands to “go” and “communicate.”
EIt
is curious that this occurrence of “Cushite” omits the
definite article. Tsumura (NICOT) hypothesized that it is due to a
scribe spelling what he heard phonetically. An “intervocalic
h” is often dropped in
pronunciation, much as my family would drop the “h” in
“have” in the phrase, “What did you have for
lunch?” Tsumara also postulated sandhi
to get rid of the vowel that normally accompanies the definite
article prefix in Hebrew. Again, in English this might be like my
family would pronounce the “you” in the preceding
sentence as “je.”
The spellings of the words may be compared below, with
this instance in grey:
יוֹאָב
לַכּוּשִׁי
יִּשְׁתַּחוּ
כוּשִׁי
אַחֲרֵי
הַכּוּשִׁי
וַיַּעֲבֹר
אֶת-הַכּוּשִׁי
וַיֹּאמֶר
הַכּוּשִׁי
אֶל-הַכּוּשִׁי
וַיֹּאמֶר
הַכּוּשִׁי
Or
perhaps
the coph
consonant prefers to
follow a
vowel of the "a" or "u" class?
FThe Vaticanus Greek is the same as Rohlfs’ edition.
Gcf. 2 Sam. 2:22 Then Abner tried again once more, saying to Asahel, "For your own [good], take a detour from following me! ..." (NAW)
Hcf. last instance of besorah: 2 Sam. 4:10 “Now, when the one who communicated it to me said, 'Saul is dead,' and, in his eyes, it was like bringing good-news, I seized him and killed him in Ziqlag. That's what I gave him for 'good-news'!” (NAW)
IVaticanus uses a non-deponent form of this verb, but it means the same thing.
JLXX, Vulgate (qui respondit...), and Syriac (...אמר) all indicate that “he said” has been dropped out of the MT at the beginning of this verse.
KHere one of the Targums inserts בִכדֵין (“insomuch as”), Syriac inserts basically the same thing (מדין), LXX inserts εαν (“if”), and Vulgate inserts si (“if”). It seems pretty clear that the pre-Masoretic Hebrew followed by these ancient versions had a word that since dropped out.
LLXX inserts ‘eteroV (“another”), Syriac inserts אחרנא (“another”), Targums inserts אוחרן (“another”), and Vulgate inserts mihi (“to me”).
Mcf. 1 Kings 1:42 “...Jonathan son of Abiathar the priest arrived. Adonijah said, ‘Come in. A worthy man like you must be bringing good news.’" (NIV)
NThe Hebrew word chamon can mean a “multitude” or the “noise that a multitude makes.” In the Greek as well as the Hebrew, it is definite: “THE great multitude/hubbub.”
OSeveral Hebrew manuscripts and rabbinical commentaries add an interrogative -ה (as it is in v.32). This interrogative was followed by the Vulgate estne and reflected in the LXX punctuation (;). Syriac reads differently:שׁריר הו טליא אבשׁלום.
PThis conjunction in the MT and LXX is missing in the Syriac and Targums, and is rendered me (“me” instead of et “and”) in the Vulgate. It doesn’t change the meaning, however.
QThis conjunction in the MT, Targums, and LXX is missing in the Syriac and Vulgate, but it doesn’t change the meaning.
RMasoretic
pointing indicates that “here” belongs with the first
half of the sentence, not the second
half:
https://hb.openscriptures.org/structure/OshbVerse/index.html?b=2Sam&c=18&v=30
SThe Syriac and Vulgate omit this second instance of “the Cushite,” and the LXX instead reads “to the king.” Neither edit changes the meaning of the text, because in any case “the Cushite” is the subject, and in any case he is speaking to David.
TThis is the only Hithpael form of this verb in the Bible. It is thought to mean, “Receive a herald of good news.”
USyriac continues speaking of the King in 3rd person rather than switching to 2nd person as the MT, LXX, and Vulgate do, but this doesn’t mean anything different. It is curious that the Cushite repeats the phrase that Ahimaaz spoke at the beginning of this periscope.
VLXX & Vulgate read 3ms. MT, Targums, Syriac, & Lucian Rescription read 2ms. DSS are too obliterated for comparison.
WThis last word was added in Douay’s translation into English. It is not there in the Latin Vulgate.
XSyriac and some Greek manuscripts seem to read “as he cried out” (וכד בכא/εν τω κλαιειν) instead of “as he walked,” which doesn’t really make a difference because the “going up” and the “crying out” are already both in the verse.
YThere are Greek, Latin, and Syriac manuscripts which remove one of the two duplications of the phrase “my son” in this verse, but they are inconsistent with themselves.