2 Samuel 19:16-18

19:16 Shimei son of Gera the Benjaminite from Bahurim came down quickly with the men of Judah to meet King David. 19:17 There were a thousand men from Benjamin with him, along with Ziba the servant ¹  of Saul’s household, and with him his fifteen sons and twenty servants. They hurriedly crossed ²  the Jordan within sight of the king. 19:18 They crossed at the ford in order to help the king’s household cross and to do whatever he thought appropriate.

Now after he had crossed the Jordan, Shimei son of Gera threw himself down before the king.

2 Samuel 19:1

19:1 (19:2) Joab was told, “The king is weeping and mourning over Absalom.”

2 Samuel 2:8-9

David’s Army Clashes with the Army of Saul

2:8 Now Abner son of Ner, the general in command of Saul’s army, had taken Saul’s son Ish-bosheth ³  and had brought him to Mahanaim. 2:9 He appointed him king over Gilead, the Geshurites, ⁴  Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all Israel.

2 Samuel 2:1

David is Anointed King

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, ⁵  “To Hebron.”

2 Samuel 2:1

David is Anointed King

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, ⁶  “To Hebron.”

2 Samuel 2:1

David is Anointed King

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, ⁷  “To Hebron.”

¹ tn Heb “youth.”

² tn Heb “rushed into.”

³ 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.”

⁴ 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.

⁵ tn Heb “he said.” The referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

⁶ tn Heb “he said.” The referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.

⁷ tn Heb “he said.” The referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.