Bible Reading March 23 
2 Samuel 1:1--4:12
Context1:1 After the death of Saul, 1 when David had returned from defeating the Amalekites, 2 he stayed at Ziklag 3 for two days. 1:2 On the third day a man arrived from the camp of Saul with his clothes torn and dirt on his head. 4 When he approached David, the man 5 threw himself to the ground. 6
1:3 David asked him, “Where are you coming from?” He replied, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” 1:4 David inquired, “How were things going? 7 Tell me!” He replied, “The people fled from the battle and many of them 8 fell dead. 9 Even Saul and his son Jonathan are dead!” 1:5 David said to the young man 10 who was telling him this, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” 11 1:6 The young man who was telling him this 12 said, “I just happened to be on Mount Gilboa and came across Saul leaning on his spear for support. The chariots and leaders of the horsemen were in hot pursuit of him. 1:7 When he turned around and saw me, he called out to me. I answered, ‘Here I am!’ 1:8 He asked me, ‘Who are you?’ I told him, ‘I’m 13 an Amalekite.’ 1:9 He said to me, ‘Stand over me and finish me off! 14 I’m very dizzy, 15 even though I’m still alive.’ 16 1:10 So I stood over him and put him to death, since I knew that he couldn’t live in such a condition. 17 Then I took the crown which was on his head and the 18 bracelet which was on his arm. I have brought them here to my lord.” 19
1:11 David then grabbed his own clothes 20 and tore them, as did all the men who were with him. 1:12 They lamented and wept and fasted until evening because Saul, his son Jonathan, the Lord’s people, and the house of Israel had fallen by the sword.
1:13 David said to the young man who told this to him, “Where are you from?” He replied, “I am an Amalekite, the son of a resident foreigner.” 21 1:14 David replied to him, “How is it that you were not afraid to reach out your hand to destroy the Lord’s anointed?” 1:15 Then David called one of the soldiers 22 and said, “Come here and strike him down!” So he struck him down, and he died. 1:16 David said to him, “Your blood be on your own head! Your own mouth has testified against you, saying ‘I have put the Lord’s anointed to death.’”
1:17 Then David chanted this lament over Saul and his son Jonathan. 1:18 (He gave instructions that the people of Judah should be taught “The Bow.” 23 Indeed, it is written down in the Book of Yashar.) 24
1:19 The beauty 25 of Israel lies slain on your high places!
How the mighty have fallen!
1:20 Don’t report it in Gath,
don’t spread the news in the streets of Ashkelon, 26
or the daughters of the Philistines will rejoice,
the daughters of the uncircumcised will celebrate!
1:21 O mountains of Gilboa,
may there be no dew or rain on you, nor fields of grain offerings! 27
For it was there that the shield of warriors was defiled; 28
the shield of Saul lies neglected without oil. 29
1:22 From the blood of the slain, from the fat of warriors,
the bow of Jonathan was not turned away.
The sword of Saul never returned 30 empty.
1:23 Saul and Jonathan were greatly loved 31 during their lives,
and not even in their deaths were they separated.
They were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.
1:24 O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
who clothed you in scarlet 32 as well as jewelry,
who put gold jewelry on your clothes.
1:25 How the warriors have fallen
in the midst of battle!
Jonathan lies slain on your high places!
1:26 I grieve over you, my brother Jonathan!
You were very dear to me.
Your love was more special to me than the love of women.
1:27 How the warriors have fallen!
The weapons of war 33 are destroyed!
2:1 Afterward David inquired of the Lord, “Should I go up to one of the cities of Judah?” The Lord told him, “Go up.” David asked, “Where should I go?” The Lord replied, 34 “To Hebron.” 2:2 So David went up, along with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelite and Abigail, formerly the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 2:3 David also brought along the men who were with him, each with his family. They settled in the cities 35 of Hebron. 2:4 The men of Judah came and there they anointed David as king over the people 36 of Judah.
David was told, 37 “The people 38 of Jabesh Gilead are the ones who buried Saul.” 2:5 So David sent messengers to the people of Jabesh Gilead and told them, “May you be blessed by the Lord because you have shown this kindness 39 to your lord Saul by burying him. 2:6 Now may the Lord show you true kindness! 40 I also will reward you, 41 because you have done this deed. 2:7 Now be courageous 42 and prove to be valiant warriors, for your lord Saul is dead. The people of Judah have anointed me as king over them.”
2:8 Now Abner son of Ner, the general in command of Saul’s army, had taken Saul’s son Ish-bosheth 43 and had brought him to Mahanaim. 2:9 He appointed him king over Gilead, the Geshurites, 44 Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all Israel. 2:10 Ish-bosheth son of Saul was forty years old when he began to rule over Israel. He ruled two years. However, the people 45 of Judah followed David. 2:11 David was king in Hebron over the people of Judah for seven and a half years. 46
2:12 Then Abner son of Ner and the servants of Ish-bosheth son of Saul went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. 2:13 Joab son of Zeruiah and the servants of David also went out and confronted them at the pool of Gibeon. One group stationed themselves on one side of the pool, and the other group on the other side of the pool. 2:14 Abner said to Joab, “Let the soldiers get up and fight 47 before us.” Joab said, “So be it!” 48
2:15 So they got up and crossed over by number: twelve belonging to Benjamin and to Ish-bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David. 2:16 As they grappled with one another, each one stabbed his opponent with his sword and they fell dead together. 49 So that place is called the Field of Flints; 50 it is in Gibeon.
2:17 Now the battle was very severe that day; Abner and the men of Israel were overcome by David’s soldiers. 51 2:18 The three sons of Zeruiah were there – Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. (Now Asahel was as quick on his feet as one of the gazelles in the field.) 2:19 Asahel chased Abner, without turning to the right or to the left as he followed Abner.
2:20 Then Abner turned and asked, “Is that you, Asahel?” He replied, “Yes it is!” 2:21 Abner said to him, “Turn aside to your right or to your left. Capture one of the soldiers 52 and take his equipment for yourself!” But Asahel was not willing to turn aside from following him. 2:22 So Abner spoke again to Asahel, “Turn aside from following me! I do not want to strike you to the ground. 53 How then could I show 54 my face in the presence of Joab your brother?” 2:23 But Asahel 55 refused to turn aside. So Abner struck him in the abdomen with the back end of his 56 spear. The spear came out his back; Asahel 57 collapsed on the spot and died there right before Abner. 58 Everyone who now comes to the place where Asahel fell dead pauses in respect. 59
2:24 So Joab and Abishai chased Abner. At sunset they came to the hill of Ammah near Giah on the way to the wilderness of Gibeon. 2:25 The Benjaminites formed their ranks 60 behind Abner and were like a single army, standing at the top of a certain hill.
2:26 Then Abner called out to Joab, “Must the sword devour forever? Don’t you realize that this will turn bitter in the end? When will you tell the people to turn aside from pursuing their brothers?” 2:27 Joab replied, “As surely as God lives, if you had not said this, it would have been morning before the people would have abandoned pursuit 61 of their brothers!” 2:28 Then Joab blew the ram’s horn and all the people stopped in their tracks. 62 They stopped chasing Israel and ceased fighting. 63 2:29 Abner and his men went through the Arabah all that night. They crossed the Jordan River 64 and went through the whole region of Bitron 65 and came to Mahanaim.
2:30 Now Joab returned from chasing Abner and assembled all the people. Nineteen of David’s soldiers were missing, in addition to Asahel. 2:31 But David’s soldiers had slaughtered the Benjaminites and Abner’s men – in all, 360 men had died! 2:32 They took Asahel’s body and buried him in his father’s tomb at Bethlehem. 66 Joab and his men then traveled all that night and reached Hebron by dawn. 3:1 However, the war was prolonged between the house of Saul and the house of David. David was becoming steadily stronger, while the house of Saul was becoming increasingly weaker.
3:2 Now sons were born to David in Hebron. His firstborn was Amnon, born to Ahinoam the Jezreelite. 3:3 His second son 67 was Kileab, born to Abigail the widow 68 of Nabal the Carmelite. His third son was Absalom, the son of Maacah daughter of King Talmai of Geshur. 3:4 His fourth son was Adonijah, the son of Haggith. His fifth son was Shephatiah, the son of Abitail. 3:5 His sixth son was Ithream, born to David’s wife Eglah. These sons 69 were all born to David in Hebron.
3:6 As the war continued between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner was becoming more influential 70 in the house of Saul. 3:7 Now Saul had a concubine named Rizpah daughter of Aiah. Ish-bosheth 71 said to Abner, “Why did you have sexual relations with 72 my father’s concubine?” 73
3:8 These words of Ish-bosheth really angered Abner and he said, “Am I the head of a dog that belongs to Judah? This very day I am demonstrating 74 loyalty to the house of Saul your father and to his relatives 75 and his friends! I have not betrayed you into the hand of David. Yet you have accused me of sinning with this woman today! 76 3:9 God will severely judge Abner 77 if I do not do for David exactly what the Lord has promised him, 78 3:10 namely, to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and to establish the throne of David over Israel and over Judah all the way from Dan to Beer Sheba!” 3:11 Ish-bosheth 79 was unable to answer Abner with even a single word because he was afraid of him.
3:12 Then Abner sent messengers 80 to David saying, “To whom does the land belong? Make an agreement 81 with me, and I will do whatever I can 82 to cause all Israel to turn to you.” 3:13 So David said, “Good! I will make an agreement with you. I ask only one thing from you. You will not see my face unless you bring Saul’s daughter Michal when you come to visit me.” 83
3:14 David sent messengers to Ish-bosheth son of Saul with this demand: 84 “Give me my wife Michal whom I acquired 85 for a hundred Philistine foreskins.” 3:15 So Ish-bosheth took her 86 from her husband Paltiel 87 son of Laish. 3:16 Her husband went along behind her, weeping all the way to Bahurim. Finally Abner said to him, “Go back!” 88 So he returned home.
3:17 Abner advised 89 the elders of Israel, “Previously you were wanting David to be your king. 90 3:18 Act now! For the Lord has said to David, ‘By the hand of my servant David I will save 91 my people Israel from 92 the Philistines and from all their enemies.’”
3:19 Then Abner spoke privately 93 with the Benjaminites. Abner also went to Hebron to inform David privately 94 of all that Israel and the entire house of Benjamin had agreed to. 95 3:20 When Abner, accompanied by twenty men, came to David in Hebron, David prepared a banquet for Abner and the men who were with him. 3:21 Abner said to David, “Let me leave so that I may go and gather all Israel to my lord the king so that they may make an agreement 96 with you. Then you will rule over all that you desire.” So David sent Abner away, and he left in peace.
3:22 Now David’s soldiers 97 and Joab were coming back from a raid, bringing a great deal of plunder with them. Abner was no longer with David in Hebron, for David 98 had sent him away and he had left in peace. 3:23 When Joab and all the army that was with him arrived, Joab was told: “Abner the son of Ner came to the king; he sent him away, and he left in peace!”
3:24 So Joab went to the king and said, “What have you done? Abner 99 has come to you! Why would you send him away? Now he’s gone on his way! 100 3:25 You know Abner the son of Ner! Surely he came here to spy on you and to determine when you leave and when you return 101 and to discover everything that you are doing!”
3:26 Then Joab left David and sent messengers after Abner. They brought him back from the well of Sirah. (But David was not aware of it.) 3:27 When Abner returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside at the gate as if to speak privately with him. Joab then stabbed him 102 in the abdomen and killed him, avenging the shed blood of his brother Asahel. 103
3:28 When David later heard about this, he said, “I and my kingdom are forever innocent before the Lord of the shed blood of Abner son of Ner! 3:29 May his blood whirl over 104 the head of Joab and the entire house of his father! 105 May the males of Joab’s house 106 never cease to have 107 someone with a running sore or a skin disease or one who works at the spindle 108 or one who falls by the sword or one who lacks food!”
3:30 So Joab and his brother Abishai killed Abner, because he had killed their brother Asahel in Gibeon during the battle.
3:31 David instructed Joab and all the people who were with him, “Tear your clothes! Put on sackcloth! Lament before Abner!” Now King David followed 109 behind the funeral bier. 3:32 So they buried Abner in Hebron. The king cried loudly 110 over Abner’s grave and all the people wept too. 3:33 The king chanted the following lament for Abner:
“Should Abner have died like a fool?
3:34 Your hands 111 were not bound,
and your feet were not put into irons.
You fell the way one falls before criminals.”
All the people 112 wept over him again. 3:35 Then all the people came and encouraged David to eat food while it was still day. But David took an oath saying, “God will punish me severely 113 if I taste bread or anything whatsoever before the sun sets!”
3:36 All the people noticed this and it pleased them. 114 In fact, everything the king did pleased all the people. 3:37 All the people and all Israel realized on that day that the killing of Abner son of Ner was not done at the king’s instigation. 115
3:38 Then the king said to his servants, “Do you not realize that a great leader 116 has fallen this day in Israel? 3:39 Today I am weak, even though I am anointed as king. These men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too much for me to bear! 117 May the Lord punish appropriately the one who has done this evil thing!” 118
4:1 When Ish-bosheth 119 the son of Saul heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he was very disheartened, 120 and all Israel was afraid. 4:2 Now Saul’s son 121 had two men who were in charge of raiding units; one was named Baanah and the other Recab. They were sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, who was a Benjaminite. (Beeroth is regarded as belonging to Benjamin, 4:3 for the Beerothites fled to Gittaim and have remained there as resident foreigners until the present time.) 122
4:4 Now Saul’s son Jonathan had a son who was crippled in both feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan arrived from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but in her haste to get away, he fell and was injured. 123 Mephibosheth was his name.
4:5 Now the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite – Recab and Baanah – went at the hottest part of the day to the home of Ish-bosheth, as he was enjoying his midday rest. 4:6 They 124 entered the house under the pretense of getting wheat and mortally wounded him 125 in the stomach. Then Recab and his brother Baanah escaped.
4:7 They had entered 126 the house while Ish-bosheth 127 was resting on his bed in his bedroom. They mortally wounded him 128 and then cut off his head. 129 Taking his head, 130 they traveled on the way of the Arabah all that night. 4:8 They brought the head of Ish-bosheth to David in Hebron, saying to the king, “Look! The head of Ish-bosheth son of Saul, your enemy who sought your life! The Lord has granted vengeance to my lord the king this day against 131 Saul and his descendants!”
4:9 David replied to Recab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered my life from all adversity, 4:10 when someone told me that Saul was dead – even though he thought he was bringing good news 132 – I seized him and killed him in Ziklag. That was the good news I gave to him! 4:11 Surely when wicked men have killed an innocent man as he slept 133 in his own house, should I not now require his blood from your hands and remove 134 you from the earth?”
4:12 So David issued orders to the soldiers and they put them to death. Then they cut off their hands and feet and hung them 135 near the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth 136 and buried it in the tomb of Abner 137 in Hebron. 138
[1:1] 1 sn This chapter is closely linked to 1 Sam 31. It should be kept in mind that 1 and 2 Samuel were originally a single book, not separate volumes. Whereas in English Bible tradition the books of Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, and Ezra-Nehemiah are each regarded as two separate books, this was not the practice in ancient Hebrew tradition. Early canonical records, for example, counted them as single books respectively. The division into two books goes back to the Greek translation of the OT and was probably initiated because of the cumbersome length of copies due to the Greek practice (unlike that of Hebrew) of writing vowels. The present division into two books can be a little misleading in terms of perceiving the progression of the argument of the book; in some ways it is preferable to treat the books of 1-2 Samuel in a unified fashion.
[1:1] 2 sn The Amalekites were a nomadic people who inhabited Judah and the Transjordan. They are mentioned in Gen 36:15-16 as descendants of Amalek who in turn descended from Esau. In Exod 17:8-16 they are described as having acted in a hostile fashion toward Israel as the Israelites traveled to Canaan from Egypt. In David’s time the Amalekites were viewed as dangerous enemies who raided, looted, and burned Israelite cities (see 1 Sam 30).
[1:1] 3 sn Ziklag was a city in the Negev which had been given to David by Achish king of Gath. For more than a year David used it as a base from which he conducted military expeditions (see 1 Sam 27:5-12). According to 1 Sam 30:1-19, Ziklag was destroyed by the Amalekites while Saul fought the Philistines.
[1:2] 4 sn Tearing one’s clothing and throwing dirt on one’s head were outward expressions of grief in the ancient Near East, where such demonstrable reactions were a common response to tragic news.
[1:2] 5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the man mentioned at the beginning of v. 2) has been specified in the translation to avoid confusion as to who fell to the ground.
[1:2] 6 tn Heb “he fell to the ground and did obeisance.”
[1:4] 7 tn Heb “What was the word?”
[1:4] 8 tn Heb “from the people.”
[1:4] 9 tn Heb “fell and died.”
[1:5] 10 tn In v. 2 he is called simply a “man.” The word used here in v. 5 (so also in vv. 6, 13, 15), though usually referring to a young man or servant, may in this context designate a “fighting” man, i.e., a soldier.
[1:5] 11 tc Instead of the MT “who was recounting this to him, ‘How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?’” the Syriac Peshitta reads “declare to me how Saul and his son Jonathan died.”
[1:6] 12 tc The Syriac Peshitta and one
[1:8] 13 tc The present translation reads with the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[1:9] 14 tn As P. K. McCarter (II Samuel [AB], 59) points out, the Polel of the verb מוּת (mut, “to die”) “refers to dispatching or ‘finishing off’ someone already wounded and near death.” Cf. NLT “put me out of my misery.”
[1:9] 15 tn Heb “the dizziness has seized me.” On the meaning of the Hebrew noun translated “dizziness,” see P. K. McCarter, II Samuel (AB), 59-60. The point seems to be that he is unable to kill himself because he is weak and disoriented.
[1:9] 16 tn The Hebrew text here is grammatically very awkward (Heb “because all still my life in me”). Whether the broken construct phrase is due to the fact that the alleged speaker is in a confused state of mind as he is on the verge of dying, or whether the MT has sustained corruption in the transmission process, is not entirely clear. The former seems likely, although P. K. McCarter understands the MT to be the result of conflation of two shorter forms of text (P. K. McCarter, II Samuel [AB], 57, n. 9). Early translators also struggled with the verse, apparently choosing to leave part of the Hebrew text untranslated. For example, the Lucianic recension of the LXX lacks “all,” while other witnesses (namely, one medieval Hebrew
[1:10] 17 tn Heb “after his falling”; NAB “could not survive his wound”; CEV “was too badly wounded to live much longer.”
[1:10] 18 tc The MT lacks the definite article, but this is likely due to textual corruption. It is preferable to read the alef (א) of אֶצְעָדָה (’ets’adah) as a ה (he) giving הַצְּעָדָה (hatsÿ’adah). There is no reason to think that the soldier confiscated from Saul’s dead body only one of two or more bracelets that he was wearing (cf. NLT “one of his bracelets”).
[1:10] 19 sn The claims that the soldier is making here seem to contradict the story of Saul’s death as presented in 1 Sam 31:3-5. In that passage it appears that Saul took his own life, not that he was slain by a passerby who happened on the scene. Some scholars account for the discrepancy by supposing that conflicting accounts have been brought together in the MT. However, it is likely that the young man is here fabricating the account in a self-serving way so as to gain favor with David, or so he supposes. He probably had come across Saul’s corpse, stolen the crown and bracelet from the body, and now hopes to curry favor with David by handing over to him these emblems of Saul’s royalty. But in so doing the Amalekite greatly miscalculated David’s response to this alleged participation in Saul’s death. The consequence of his lies will instead be his own death.
[1:11] 20 tc The present translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[1:13] 21 tn The Hebrew word used here refers to a foreigner whose social standing was something less than that of native residents of the land, but something more than that of a nonresident alien who was merely passing through.
[1:18] 23 tn Heb “be taught the bow.” The reference to “the bow” is very difficult here. Some interpreters (e.g., S. R. Driver, P. K. McCarter, Jr.) suggest deleting the word from the text (cf. NAB, TEV), but there does not seem to be sufficient evidence for doing so. Others (cf. KJV) understand the reference to be elliptical, meaning “the use of the bow.” The verse would then imply that with the deaths of Saul and Jonathan having occurred, a period of trying warfare is about to begin, requiring adequate preparation for war on the part of the younger generation. Various other views may also be found in the secondary literature. However, it seems best to understand the word here to be a reference to the name of a song (i.e., “The Bow”), most likely the poem that follows in vv. 19-27 (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV, CEV, NLT); NIV “this lament of the bow.” To make this clear the words “the song of” are supplied in the translation.
[1:18] 24 sn The Book of Yashar is a noncanonical writing no longer in existence. It is referred to here and in Josh 10:12-13 and 1 Kgs 8:12-13. It apparently was “a collection of ancient national poetry” (so BDB 449 s.v. יָשָׁר).
[1:19] 25 sn The word beauty is used figuratively here to refer to Saul and Jonathan.
[1:20] 26 sn The cities of Gath and Ashkelon are mentioned here by synecdoche of part for the whole. As major Philistine cities they in fact represent all of Philistia. The point is that when the sad news of fallen Israelite leadership reaches the Philistines, it will be for these enemies of Israel the occasion of great joy rather than grief.
[1:21] 27 tc Instead of the MT’s “fields of grain offerings” the Lucianic recension of the LXX reads “your high places are mountains of death.” Cf. the Old Latin montes mortis (“mountains of death”).
[1:21] 28 tn This is the only biblical occurrence of the Niphal of the verb גָּעַל (ga’al). This verb usually has the sense of “to abhor” or “loathe.” But here it seems to refer to the now dirty and unprotected condition of a previously well-maintained instrument of battle.
[1:21] 29 tc It is preferable to read here Hebrew מָשׁוּחַ (mashuakh) with many Hebrew
[1:22] 30 tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form is used here to indicate repeated past action.
[1:23] 31 tn Heb “beloved and dear.”
[1:24] 32 sn Clothing of scarlet was expensive and beyond the financial reach of most people.
[1:27] 33 sn The expression weapons of war may here be a figurative way of referring to Saul and Jonathan.
[2:1] 34 tn Heb “he said.” The referent (the
[2:3] 35 tc The expression “the cities of Hebron” is odd; we would expect the noun to be in the singular, if used at all. Although the Syriac Peshitta has the expected reading “in Hebron,” the MT is clearly the more difficult reading and should probably be retained here.
[2:4] 37 tn Heb “and they told David.” The subject appears to be indefinite, allowing one to translate the verb as passive with David as subject.
[2:6] 40 tn Or “loyalty and devotion.”
[2:6] 41 tn Heb “will do with you this good.”
[2:7] 42 tn Heb “let your hands be strong.”
[2:8] 43 sn The name Ish-bosheth means in Hebrew “man of shame.” It presupposes an earlier form such as Ish-baal (“man of the Lord”), with the word “baal” being used of Israel’s God. But because the Canaanite storm god was named “Baal,” that part of the name was later replaced with the word “shame.”
[2:9] 44 tc The MT here reads “the Ashurite,” but this is problematic if it is taken to mean “the Assyrian.” Ish-bosheth’s kingdom obviously was not of such proportions as to extend to Assyria. The Syriac Peshitta renders the word as “the Geshurite,” while the Targum has “of the house of Ashur.” We should probably emend the Hebrew text to read “the Geshurite.” The Geshurites lived in the northeastern part of the land of Palestine.
[2:11] 46 tn Heb “And the number of the days in which David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.”
[2:14] 47 tn Heb “play.” What is in view here is a gladiatorial contest in which representative groups of soldiers engage in mortal combat before the watching armies. Cf. NAB “perform for us”; NASB “hold (have NRSV) a contest before us”; NLT “put on an exhibition of hand-to-hand combat.”
[2:14] 48 tn Heb “let them arise.”
[2:16] 49 tn Heb “and they grabbed each one the head of his neighbor with his sword in the side of his neighbor and they fell together.”
[2:16] 50 tn The meaning of the name “Helkath Hazzurim” (so NIV; KJV, NASB, NRSV similar) is not clear. BHK relates the name to the Hebrew term for “side,” and this is reflected in NAB “the Field of the Sides”; the Greek OT revocalizes the Hebrew to mean something like “Field of Adversaries.” Cf. also TEV, NLT “Field of Swords”; CEV “Field of Daggers.”
[2:17] 51 tn Heb “servants.” So also elsewhere.
[2:21] 52 tn Heb “young men.” So also elsewhere.
[2:22] 53 tn Heb “Why should I strike you to the ground?”
[2:23] 55 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Asahel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:23] 56 tn Heb “the.” The article functions here as a possessive pronoun.
[2:23] 57 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Asahel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:23] 58 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Abner) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:23] 59 tn Heb “and they stand.”
[2:25] 60 tn Heb “were gathered together.”
[2:27] 61 tn The Hebrew verb נַעֲלָה (na’alah) used here is the Niphal perfect 3rd person masculine singular of עָלָה (’alah, “to go up”). In the Niphal this verb “is used idiomatically, of getting away from so as to abandon…especially of an army raising a siege…” (see S. R. Driver, Notes on the Hebrew Text and the Topography of the Books of Samuel, 244).
[2:28] 63 tn Heb “they no longer chased after Israel and they no longer fought.”
[2:29] 64 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.
[2:29] 65 tn Heb “and they went, all the Bitron.” The meaning of the Hebrew word “Bitron,” which is used only here in the OT, is disputed. The translation above follows BDB 144 s.v. בִּתְרוֹן in taking the word to be a proper name of an area east of the Jordan. A different understanding was advocated by W. R. Arnold, who took the word to refer to the forenoon or morning; a number of modern scholars and translations have adopted this view (cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV, CEV, NLT). See W. R. Arnold, “The Meaning of בתרון,” AJSL 28 (1911-1912): 274-83. In this case one could translate “and they traveled all morning long.”
[2:32] 66 map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.
[3:3] 67 tn The Hebrew text does not have the word “son.” So also in vv. 3-5.
[3:5] 69 tn The Hebrew text does not have “sons.”
[3:6] 70 tn Heb “was strengthening himself.” The statement may have a negative sense here, perhaps suggesting that Abner was overstepping the bounds of political propriety in a self-serving way.
[3:7] 71 tc The Hebrew of the MT reads simply “and he said,” with no expressed subject for the verb. It is not likely that the text originally had no expressed subject for this verb, since the antecedent is not immediately clear from the context. We should probably restore to the Hebrew text the name “Ish-bosheth.” See a few medieval Hebrew
[3:7] 72 tn Heb “come to”; KJV, NRSV “gone in to”; NAB “been intimate with”; NIV “sleep with.”
[3:7] 73 sn This accusation against Abner is a very serious one, since an act of sexual infringement on the king’s harem would probably have been understood as a blatant declaration of aspirations to kingship. As such it was not merely a matter of ethical impropriety but an act of grave political significance as well.
[3:8] 76 tn Heb “and you have laid upon me the guilt of the woman today.”
[3:9] 77 tn Heb “So will God do to Abner and so he will add to him.”
[3:9] 78 tc Heb “has sworn to David.” The LXX, with the exception of the recension of Origen, adds “in this day.”
[3:11] 79 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ish-bosheth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[3:12] 80 tn The Hebrew text adds here, “on his behalf.”
[3:12] 81 tn Heb “cut a covenant.” So also in vv. 13, 21.
[3:12] 82 tn Heb “and behold, my hand is with you.”
[3:13] 83 tn The words “when you come to see my face,” though found in the Hebrew text, are somewhat redundant given the similar expression in the earlier part of the verse. The words are absent from the Syriac Peshitta.
[3:14] 84 tn Heb “to Ish-bosheth son of Saul saying.” To avoid excessive sibilance (especially when read aloud) the translation renders “saying” as “with this demand.”
[3:14] 85 tn Heb “whom I betrothed to myself.”
[3:15] 86 tn Heb “sent and took her.”
[3:15] 87 tn In 1 Sam 25:44 this name appears as “Palti.”
[3:16] 88 tn Heb “Go, return.”
[3:17] 89 tn Heb “the word of Abner was with.”
[3:17] 90 tn Heb “you were seeking David to be king over you.”
[3:18] 91 tc The present translation follows the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate in reading “I will save,” rather than the MT “he saved.” The context calls for the 1st person common singular imperfect of the verb rather than the 3rd person masculine singular perfect.
[3:18] 92 tn Heb “from the hand of.”
[3:19] 93 tn Heb “into the ears of.”
[3:19] 94 tn Heb “also Abner went to speak into the ears of David in Hebron.”
[3:19] 95 tn Heb “all which was good in the eyes of Israel and in the eyes of all the house of Benjamin.”
[3:21] 96 tn After the cohortatives, the prefixed verbal form with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.
[3:22] 97 tn Heb “And look, the servants of David.”
[3:22] 98 tn Heb “he”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[3:24] 99 tn Heb “Look, Abner.”
[3:24] 100 tc The LXX adds “in peace.”
[3:25] 101 tn Heb “your going out and your coming in.” The expression is a merism. It specifically mentions the polar extremities of the actions but includes all activity in between the extremities as well, thus encompassing the entirety of one’s activities.
[3:27] 102 tn Heb “and he struck him down there [in] the stomach.”
[3:27] 103 tn Heb “and he [i.e., Abner] died on account of the blood of Asahel his [i.e., Joab’s] brother.”
[3:29] 104 tn Heb “and may they whirl over.” In the Hebrew text the subject of the plural verb is unexpressed. The most likely subject is Abner’s “shed blood” (v. 28), which is a masculine plural form in Hebrew. The verb חוּל (khul, “whirl”) is used with the preposition עַל (’al) only here and in Jer 23:19; 30:23.
[3:29] 105 tc 4QSama has “of Joab” rather than “of his father” read by the MT.
[3:29] 106 tn Heb “the house of Joab.” However, it is necessary to specify that David’s curse is aimed at Joab’s male descendants; otherwise it would not be clear that “one who works at the spindle” refers to a man doing woman’s work rather than a woman.
[3:29] 107 tn Heb “and may there not be cut off from the house of Joab.”
[3:29] 108 tn The expression used here is difficult. The translation “one who works at the spindle” follows a suggestion of S. R. Driver that the expression pejoratively describes an effeminate man who, rather than being a mighty warrior, is occupied with tasks that are normally fulfilled by women (S. R. Driver, Notes on the Hebrew Text and the Topography of the Books of Samuel, 250-51; cf. NAB “one unmanly”; TEV “fit only to do a woman’s work”; CEV “cowards”). But P. K. McCarter, following an alleged Phoenician usage of the noun to refer to “crutches,” adopts a different view. He translates the phrase “clings to a crutch,” seeing here a further description of physical lameness (II Samuel [AB], 118). Such an idea fits the present context well and is followed by NIV, NCV, and NLT, although the evidence for this meaning is questionable. According to DNWSI 2:915-16, the noun consistently refers to a spindle in Phoenician, as it does in Ugaritic (see UT 468).
[3:31] 109 tn Heb “was walking.”
[3:32] 110 tn Heb “lifted up his voice and wept.” The expression is a verbal hendiadys.
[3:34] 111 tc The translation follows many medieval Hebrew manuscripts and several ancient versions in reading “your hands,” rather than “your hand.”
[3:34] 112 tc 4QSama lacks the words “all the people.”
[3:35] 113 tn Heb “Thus God will do to me and thus he will add.”
[3:36] 114 tn Heb “it was good in their eyes.”
[3:37] 115 tn Heb “from the king.”
[3:38] 116 tn Heb “a leader and a great one.” The expression is a hendiadys.
[3:39] 117 tn Heb “are hard from me.”
[3:39] 118 tn Heb “May the
[4:1] 119 tn The MT does not specify the subject of the verb here, but the reference is to Ish-bosheth, so the name has been supplied in the translation for clarity. 4QSama and the LXX mistakenly read “Mephibosheth.”
[4:1] 120 tn Heb “his hands went slack.”
[4:2] 121 tc The present translation, “Saul’s son had two men,” is based on the reading “to the son of Saul,” rather than the MT’s “the son of Saul.” The context requires the preposition to indicate the family relationship.
[4:3] 122 tn Heb “until this day.”
[4:4] 123 tn Heb “and was lame.”
[4:6] 124 tc For the MT’s וְהֵנָּה (vÿhennah, “and they,” feminine) read וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh, “and behold”). See the LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Targum.
[4:6] 125 tn Heb “and they struck him down.”
[4:7] 126 tn After the concluding disjunctive clause at the end of v. 6, the author now begins a more detailed account of the murder and its aftermath.
[4:7] 127 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ish-bosheth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[4:7] 128 tn Heb “they struck him down and killed him.” The expression is a verbal hendiadys.
[4:7] 129 tn Heb “and they removed his head.” The Syriac Peshitta and Vulgate lack these words.
[4:7] 130 tc The Lucianic Greek recension lacks the words “his head.”
[4:10] 132 tn Heb “and he was like a bearer of good news in his eyes.”
[4:11] 133 tn Heb “on his bed.”
[4:11] 134 tn See HALOT 146 s.v. II בער. Some derive the verb from a homonym meaning “to burn; to consume.”
[4:12] 135 tn The antecedent of the pronoun “them” (which is not present in the Hebrew text, but implied) is not entirely clear. Presumably it is the corpses that were hung and not merely the detached hands and feet; cf. NIV “hung the (their NRSV, NLT) bodies”; the alternative is represented by TEV “cut off their hands and feet, which they hung up.”
[4:12] 136 tc 4QSama mistakenly reads “Mephibosheth” here.
[4:12] 137 tc The LXX adds “the son of Ner” by conformity with common phraseology elsewhere.
[4:12] 138 tc Some
