2 Samuel 1:4

1:4 David inquired, “How were things going? ¹  Tell me!” He replied, “The people fled from the battle and many of them ²  fell dead. ³  Even Saul and his son Jonathan are dead!”

2 Samuel 2:4

2:4 The men of Judah came and there they anointed David as king over the people ⁴  of Judah.

David was told, ⁵  “The people ⁶  of Jabesh Gilead are the ones who buried Saul.”

2 Samuel 4:10

4:10 when someone told me that Saul was dead – even though he thought he was bringing good news ⁷  – I seized him and killed him in Ziklag. That was the good news I gave to him!

2 Samuel 6:12

6:12 David was told, ⁸  “The Lord has blessed the family of Obed-Edom and everything he owns because of the ark of God.” So David went and joyfully brought the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David.

2 Samuel 7:11

7:11 and during the time when I appointed judges to lead my people Israel. Instead, I will give you relief ⁹  from all your enemies. The Lord declares ¹⁰  to you that he himself ¹¹  will build a dynastic house ¹²  for you.

2 Samuel 11:10

11:10 So they informed David, “Uriah has not gone down to his house.” So David said to Uriah, “Haven’t you just arrived from a journey? Why haven’t you gone down to your house?”

2 Samuel 13:4

13:4 He asked Amnon, ¹³  “Why are you, the king’s son, ¹⁴  so depressed every morning? Can’t you tell me?” So Amnon said to him, “I’m in love with Tamar the sister of my brother Absalom.”

2 Samuel 14:33

14:33 So Joab went to the king and informed him. The king ¹⁵  summoned Absalom, and he came to the king. Absalom ¹⁶  bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and the king kissed him. ¹⁷ 

2 Samuel 17:16

17:16 Now send word quickly to David and warn him, ¹⁸  “Don’t spend the night at the fords of the desert ¹⁹  tonight. Instead, be sure you cross over, ²⁰  or else the king and everyone who is with him may be overwhelmed.” ²¹ 

2 Samuel 17:21

17:21 After the men had left, Ahimaaz and Jonathan ²²  climbed out of the well. Then they left and informed King David. They advised David, “Get up and cross the stream ²³  quickly, for Ahithophel has devised a plan to catch you.” ²⁴ 

2 Samuel 18:11

18:11 Joab replied to the man who was telling him this, “What! You saw this? Why didn’t you strike him down right on the spot? ²⁵  I would have given you ten pieces of silver ²⁶  and a commemorative belt!” ²⁷ 

2 Samuel 19:6

19:6 You seem to love your enemies and hate your friends! For you have as much as declared today that leaders and servants don’t matter to you. I realize now ²⁸  that if ²⁹  Absalom were alive and all of us were dead today, ³⁰  it would be all right with you.

2 Samuel 19:8

19:8 So the king got up and sat at the city gate. When all the people were informed that the king was sitting at the city gate, they ³¹  all came before him.

David Goes Back to Jerusalem

But the Israelite soldiers ³²  had all fled to their own homes. ³³ 

[1:4]  ¹ tn Heb “What was the word?”

[1:4]  ² tn Heb “from the people.”

[1:4]  ³ tn Heb “fell and died.”

[2:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “house.”

[2:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “and they told David.” The subject appears to be indefinite, allowing one to translate the verb as passive with David as subject.

[2:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “men.”

[4:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “and he was like a bearer of good news in his eyes.”

[6:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and it was told to David, saying.”

[7:11]  ¹³ tn Or “rest.”

[7:11]  ¹⁴ tn In the Hebrew text the verb is apparently perfect with vav consecutive, which would normally suggest a future sense (“he will declare”; so the LXX, ἀπαγγελεῖ [apangelei]). But the context seems instead to call for a present or past nuance (“he declares” or “he has declared”). The synoptic passage in 1 Chr 17:10 has וָאַגִּד (va’aggid, “and I declared”). The construction used in 2 Sam 7:11 highlights this important statement.

[7:11]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the Lord.”

[7:11]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “house,” but used here in a metaphorical sense, referring to a royal dynasty. Here the Lord’s use of the word plays off the literal sense that David had in mind as he contemplated building a temple for the Lord. To reflect this in the English translation the adjective “dynastic” has been supplied.

[13:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and he said to him.”

[13:4]  ¹⁷ tn An more idiomatic translation might be “Why are you of all people…?”

[14:33]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “he.” Joab, acting on behalf of the king, may be the implied subject.

[14:33]  ²⁰ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Absalom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[14:33]  ²¹ tn Heb “Absalom.” For stylistic reasons the name has been replaced by the pronoun (“him”) in the translation.

[17:16]  ²² tn Heb “send quickly and tell David saying.”

[17:16]  ²³ tn Or “wilderness” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV, TEV).

[17:16]  ²⁴ tn That is, “cross over the Jordan River.”

[17:16]  ²⁵ tn Heb “swallowed up.”

[17:21]  ²⁵ tn Heb “they”; the referents (Ahimaaz and Jonathan) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:21]  ²⁶ tn Heb “the water.”

[17:21]  ²⁷ tn Heb “for thus Ahithophel has devised against you.” The expression “thus” is narrative shorthand, referring to the plan outlined by Ahithophel (see vv. 1-3). The men would surely have outlined the plan in as much detail as they had been given by the messenger.

[18:11]  ²⁸ tn Heb “Why did you not strike him down there to the ground.”

[18:11]  ²⁹ tn Heb “ten [shekels] of silver.” This would have been about 4 ounces (114 grams) of silver by weight.

[18:11]  ³⁰ tn Heb “and a girdle” (so KJV); NIV “a warrior’s belt”; CEV “a special belt”; NLT “a hero’s belt.”

[19:6]  ³¹ tn Heb “today.”

[19:6]  ³² tc The translation follows the Qere, 4QSam^a, and many medieval Hebrew mss in reading לוּ (lu, “if”) rather than MT לֹא (lo’, “not”).

[19:6]  ³³ tc The Lucianic Greek recension and Syriac Peshitta lack “today.”

[19:8]  ³⁴ tn Heb “all the people.”

[19:8]  ³⁵ tn The Hebrew text has simply “Israel” (see 18:16-17).

[19:8]  ³⁶ tn Heb “had fled, each to his tent.”