2 Samuel 5:6

David Occupies Jerusalem

5:6 Then the king and his men advanced to Jerusalem¹ against the Jebusites who lived in the land. The Jebusites² said to David, “You cannot invade this place! Even the blind and the lame will turn you back, saying, ‘David cannot invade this place!’”

2 Samuel 11:1

David Commits Adultery with Bathsheba

11:1 In the spring of the year, at the time when kings³ normally conduct wars,⁴ David sent out Joab with his officers⁵ and the entire Israelite army.⁶ They defeated the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed behind in Jerusalem.⁷

2 Samuel 12:31

12:31 He removed⁸ the people who were in it and made them do hard labor with saws, iron picks, and iron axes, putting them to work at the brick kiln. This was his policy⁹ with all the Ammonite cities. Then David and all the army returned to Jerusalem.¹⁰

2 Samuel 15:14

15:14 So David said to all his servants who were with him in Jerusalem,¹¹ “Come on!¹² Let’s escape!¹³ Otherwise no one will be delivered from Absalom! Go immediately, or else he will quickly overtake us and bring¹⁴ disaster on us and kill the city’s residents with the sword.”¹⁵

2 Samuel 16:3

16:3 The king asked, “Where is your master’s grandson?”¹⁶ Ziba replied to the king, “He remains in Jerusalem,¹⁷ for he said, ‘Today the house of Israel will give back to me my grandfather’s¹⁸ kingdom.’”

2 Samuel 17:20

17:20 When the servants of Absalom approached the woman at her home, they asked, “Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” The woman replied to them, “They crossed over the stream.” Absalom’s men¹⁹ searched but did not find them, so they returned to Jerusalem.²⁰

2 Samuel 19:19

19:19 He said to the king, “Don’t think badly of me, my lord, and don’t recall the sin of your servant on the day when you, my lord the king, left²¹ Jerusalem!²² Please don’t call it to mind!

2 Samuel 20:3

20:3 Then David went to his palace²³ in Jerusalem. The king took the ten concubines he had left to care for the palace and placed them under confinement.²⁴ Though he provided for their needs, he did not have sexual relations with them.²⁵ They remained in confinement until the day they died, living out the rest of their lives as widows.

2 Samuel 20:22

20:22 Then the woman went to all the people with her wise advice and they cut off Sheba’s head and threw it out to Joab. Joab²⁶ blew the trumpet, and his men²⁷ dispersed from the city, each going to his own home.²⁸ Joab returned to the king in Jerusalem.

2 Samuel 24:16

24:16 When the angel²⁹ extended his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the Lord relented from his judgment.³⁰ He told the angel who was killing the people, “That’s enough! Stop now!”³¹ (Now the Lord’s angel was near the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.)

¹map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

²tn The Hebrew text has “he” rather than “the Jebusites.” The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. In the Syriac Peshitta and some mss of the Targum the verb is plural rather than singular.

³tc Codex Leningrad (B19A), on which BHS is based, has here “messengers” (הַמַּלְאכִים, hammal’khim), probably as the result of contamination from the occurrence of that word in v. 4. The present translation follows most Hebrew mss and the ancient versions, which read “kings” (הַמֶּלָאכִים, hammela’kim).

⁴tn Heb “go out.”

⁵tn Heb “and his servants with him.”

⁶tn Heb “all Israel.”

⁷tn The disjunctive clause contrasts David’s inactivity with the army’s activity.

⁵tn Heb “brought out.”

⁶tn Heb “and so he would do.”

⁷map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

⁸tn Heb “Arise!”

⁹tn Heb “let’s flee.”

¹⁰tn Heb “thrust.”

¹¹tn Heb “and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”

⁹tn Heb “son.”

¹⁰map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹¹tn Heb “my father’s.”

¹¹tn Heb “they”; the referents (Absalom’s men) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹²map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹³tn Though this verb in the MT is 3rd person masculine singular, it should probably be read as 2nd person masculine singular. It is one of fifteen places where the Masoretes placed a dot over each of the letters of the word in question in order to call attention to their suspicion of the word. Their concern in this case apparently had to do with the fact that this verb and the two preceding verbs alternate from third person to second and back again to third. Words marked in this way in Hebrew manuscripts or printed editions are said to have puncta extrordinaria, or “extraordinary points.”

¹⁴map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹⁵tn Heb “house.”

¹⁶tn Heb “and he placed them in a guarded house.”

¹⁷tn Heb “he did not come to them”; NAB “has no further relations with them”; NIV “did not lie with them”; TEV “did not have intercourse with them”; NLT “would no longer sleep with them.”

¹⁷tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joab) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁸tn Heb “they”; the referent (Joab’s men) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁹tn Heb “his tents.”

¹⁹tn Heb “messenger.”

²⁰tn Heb “concerning the calamity.”

²¹tn Heb “Now, drop your hand.”