Discovery Box2 Samuel 7:13
Context7:13 He will build a house for my name, and I will make his dynasty permanent. 1
2 Samuel 7:1
Context7:1 The king settled into his palace, 2 for the Lord gave him relief 3 from all his enemies on all sides. 4
2 Samuel 5:1-18
Context5:1 All the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron saying, “Look, we are your very flesh and blood! 5 5:2 In the past, when Saul was our king, you were the real leader in Israel. 6 The Lord said to you, ‘You will shepherd my people Israel; you will rule over Israel.’”
5:3 When all the leaders 7 of Israel came to the king at Hebron, King David made an agreement with them 8 in Hebron before the Lord. They designated 9 David as king over Israel. 5:4 David was thirty years old when he began to reign and he reigned for forty years. 5:5 In Hebron he reigned over Judah for seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem 10 he reigned for thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.
5:6 Then the king and his men advanced to Jerusalem 11 against the Jebusites who lived in the land. The Jebusites 12 said to David, “You cannot invade this place! Even the blind and the lame will turn you back, saying, ‘David cannot invade this place!’”
5:7 But David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the city of David). 5:8 David said on that day, “Whoever attacks the Jebusites must approach the ‘lame’ and the ‘blind’ who are David’s enemies 13 by going through the water tunnel.” 14 For this reason it is said, “The blind and the lame cannot enter the palace.” 15
5:9 So David lived in the fortress and called it the City of David. David built all around it, from the terrace inwards. 5:10 David’s power grew steadily, for the Lord God 16 who commands armies 17 was with him. 18
5:11 King Hiram of Tyre 19 sent messengers to David, along with cedar logs, carpenters, and stonemasons. They built a palace 20 for David. 5:12 David realized that the Lord had established him as king over Israel and that he had elevated his kingdom for the sake of his people Israel. 5:13 David married more concubines and wives from Jerusalem after he arrived from Hebron. Even more sons and daughters were born to David. 5:14 These are the names of children born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, 5:15 Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, Japhia, 5:16 Elishama, Eliada, and Eliphelet.
5:17 When the Philistines heard that David had been designated 21 king over Israel, they all 22 went up to search for David. When David heard about it, he went down to the fortress. 5:18 Now the Philistines had arrived and spread out in the valley of Rephaim.
2 Samuel 6:1
Context6:1 David again assembled 23 all the best 24 men in Israel, thirty thousand in number.
2 Samuel 6:1
Context6:1 David again assembled 25 all the best 26 men in Israel, thirty thousand in number.
2 Samuel 6:1
Context6:1 David again assembled 27 all the best 28 men in Israel, thirty thousand in number.
2 Samuel 7:13
Context7:13 He will build a house for my name, and I will make his dynasty permanent. 29
2 Samuel 8:1
Context8:1 Later David defeated the Philistines and subdued them. David took Metheg Ammah 30 from the Philistines. 31
2 Samuel 8:1
Context8:1 Later David defeated the Philistines and subdued them. David took Metheg Ammah 32 from the Philistines. 33
2 Samuel 17:1-2
Context17:1 Ahithophel said to Absalom, “Let me pick out twelve thousand men. Then I will go and pursue David this very night. 17:2 When I catch up with 34 him he will be exhausted and worn out. 35 I will rout him, and the entire army that is with him will flee. I will kill only the king
2 Samuel 2:1--4:1
Context2:1 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, 36 “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 37 of Hebron. 2:4 The men of Judah came and there they anointed David as king over the people 38 of Judah.
David was told, 39 “The people 40 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 41 to your lord Saul by burying him. 2:6 Now may the Lord show you true kindness! 42 I also will reward you, 43 because you have done this deed. 2:7 Now be courageous 44 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 45 and had brought him to Mahanaim. 2:9 He appointed him king over Gilead, the Geshurites, 46 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 47 of Judah followed David. 2:11 David was king in Hebron over the people of Judah for seven and a half years. 48
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 49 before us.” Joab said, “So be it!” 50
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. 51 So that place is called the Field of Flints; 52 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. 53 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 54 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. 55 How then could I show 56 my face in the presence of Joab your brother?” 2:23 But Asahel 57 refused to turn aside. So Abner struck him in the abdomen with the back end of his 58 spear. The spear came out his back; Asahel 59 collapsed on the spot and died there right before Abner. 60 Everyone who now comes to the place where Asahel fell dead pauses in respect. 61
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 62 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 63 of their brothers!” 2:28 Then Joab blew the ram’s horn and all the people stopped in their tracks. 64 They stopped chasing Israel and ceased fighting. 65 2:29 Abner and his men went through the Arabah all that night. They crossed the Jordan River 66 and went through the whole region of Bitron 67 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. 68 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 69 was Kileab, born to Abigail the widow 70 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 71 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 72 in the house of Saul. 3:7 Now Saul had a concubine named Rizpah daughter of Aiah. Ish-bosheth 73 said to Abner, “Why did you have sexual relations with 74 my father’s concubine?” 75
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 76 loyalty to the house of Saul your father and to his relatives 77 and his friends! I have not betrayed you into the hand of David. Yet you have accused me of sinning with this woman today! 78 3:9 God will severely judge Abner 79 if I do not do for David exactly what the Lord has promised him, 80 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 81 was unable to answer Abner with even a single word because he was afraid of him.
3:12 Then Abner sent messengers 82 to David saying, “To whom does the land belong? Make an agreement 83 with me, and I will do whatever I can 84 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.” 85
3:14 David sent messengers to Ish-bosheth son of Saul with this demand: 86 “Give me my wife Michal whom I acquired 87 for a hundred Philistine foreskins.” 3:15 So Ish-bosheth took her 88 from her husband Paltiel 89 son of Laish. 3:16 Her husband went along behind her, weeping all the way to Bahurim. Finally Abner said to him, “Go back!” 90 So he returned home.
3:17 Abner advised 91 the elders of Israel, “Previously you were wanting David to be your king. 92 3:18 Act now! For the Lord has said to David, ‘By the hand of my servant David I will save 93 my people Israel from 94 the Philistines and from all their enemies.’”
3:19 Then Abner spoke privately 95 with the Benjaminites. Abner also went to Hebron to inform David privately 96 of all that Israel and the entire house of Benjamin had agreed to. 97 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 98 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 99 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 100 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 101 has come to you! Why would you send him away? Now he’s gone on his way! 102 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 103 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 104 in the abdomen and killed him, avenging the shed blood of his brother Asahel. 105
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 106 the head of Joab and the entire house of his father! 107 May the males of Joab’s house 108 never cease to have 109 someone with a running sore or a skin disease or one who works at the spindle 110 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 111 behind the funeral bier. 3:32 So they buried Abner in Hebron. The king cried loudly 112 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 113 were not bound,
and your feet were not put into irons.
You fell the way one falls before criminals.”
All the people 114 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 115 if I taste bread or anything whatsoever before the sun sets!”
3:36 All the people noticed this and it pleased them. 116 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. 117
3:38 Then the king said to his servants, “Do you not realize that a great leader 118 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! 119 May the Lord punish appropriately the one who has done this evil thing!” 120
4:1 When Ish-bosheth 121 the son of Saul heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he was very disheartened, 122 and all Israel was afraid.
Zechariah 6:12-13
Context6:12 Then say to him, ‘The Lord who rules over all says, “Look – here is the man whose name is Branch, 123 who will sprout up from his place and build the temple of the Lord. 6:13 Indeed, he will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed in splendor, sitting as king on his throne. Moreover, there will be a priest 124 with him on his throne and they will see eye to eye on everything.
[7:13] 1 tn Heb “and I will establish the throne of his kingdom permanently.”
[7:1] 2 tn Heb “house” (also in the following verse).
[7:1] 4 tn The translation understands the disjunctive clause in v. 1b as circumstantial-causal.
[5:1] 5 tn Heb “look we are your bone and your flesh.”
[5:2] 6 tn Heb “you were the one leading out and the one leading in Israel.”
[5:3] 8 tn Heb “and the king, David, cut for them a covenant.”
[5:5] 10 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[5:6] 11 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[5:6] 12 tn 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
[5:8] 13 tc There is some confusion among the witnesses concerning this word. The Kethib is the Qal perfect 3cp שָׂנְאוּ (sanÿ’u, “they hated”), referring to the Jebusites’ attitude toward David. The Qere is the Qal passive participle construct plural שְׂנֻאֵי (sÿnu’e, “hated”), referring to David’s attitude toward the Jebusites. 4QSama has the Qal perfect 3rd person feminine singular שָׂנְאָה (sanÿ’ah, “hated”), the subject of which would be “the soul of David.” The difference is minor and the translation adopted above works for either the Kethib or the Qere.
[5:8] 14 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term has been debated. For a survey of various views, see P. K. McCarter, II Samuel (AB), 139-40.
[5:8] 15 tn Heb “the house.” TEV takes this as a reference to the temple (“the Lord’s house”).
[5:10] 16 tc 4QSama and the LXX lack the word “God,” probably due to harmonization with the more common biblical phrase “the
[5:10] 17 tn Traditionally, “the
[5:10] 18 tn The translation assumes that the disjunctive clause is circumstantial-causal, giving the reason for David’s success.
[5:11] 19 map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.
[5:17] 22 tn Heb “all the Philistines.”
[6:1] 23 tn The translation understands the verb to be a defective spelling of וַיְּאֱסֹף (vayyÿ’esof) due to quiescence of the letter א (alef). The root therefore is אסף (’sf, “to gather”). The Masoretes, however, pointed the verb as וַיֹּסֶף (vayyosef), understanding it to be a form of יָסַף (yasaf, “to add”). This does not fit the context, which calls for a verb of gathering.
[6:1] 25 tn The translation understands the verb to be a defective spelling of וַיְּאֱסֹף (vayyÿ’esof) due to quiescence of the letter א (alef). The root therefore is אסף (’sf, “to gather”). The Masoretes, however, pointed the verb as וַיֹּסֶף (vayyosef), understanding it to be a form of יָסַף (yasaf, “to add”). This does not fit the context, which calls for a verb of gathering.
[6:1] 27 tn The translation understands the verb to be a defective spelling of וַיְּאֱסֹף (vayyÿ’esof) due to quiescence of the letter א (alef). The root therefore is אסף (’sf, “to gather”). The Masoretes, however, pointed the verb as וַיֹּסֶף (vayyosef), understanding it to be a form of יָסַף (yasaf, “to add”). This does not fit the context, which calls for a verb of gathering.
[7:13] 29 tn Heb “and I will establish the throne of his kingdom permanently.”
[8:1] 30 tn Heb “the bridle of one cubit.” Many English versions treat this as a place name because the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:1 reads “Gath” (which is used by NLT here). It is possible that “the bridle of one cubit” is to be understood as “the token of surrender,” referring to the Philistine’s defeat rather than a specific place (cf. TEV, CEV).
[8:1] 31 tn Heb “from the hand [i.e., control] of the Philistines.”
[8:1] 32 tn Heb “the bridle of one cubit.” Many English versions treat this as a place name because the parallel text in 1 Chr 18:1 reads “Gath” (which is used by NLT here). It is possible that “the bridle of one cubit” is to be understood as “the token of surrender,” referring to the Philistine’s defeat rather than a specific place (cf. TEV, CEV).
[8:1] 33 tn Heb “from the hand [i.e., control] of the Philistines.”
[17:2] 34 tn Heb “and I will come upon him.”
[17:2] 35 tn Heb “exhausted and slack of hands.”
[2:1] 36 tn Heb “he said.” The referent (the
[2:3] 37 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] 39 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] 42 tn Or “loyalty and devotion.”
[2:6] 43 tn Heb “will do with you this good.”
[2:7] 44 tn Heb “let your hands be strong.”
[2:8] 45 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] 46 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] 48 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] 49 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] 50 tn Heb “let them arise.”
[2:16] 51 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] 52 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] 53 tn Heb “servants.” So also elsewhere.
[2:21] 54 tn Heb “young men.” So also elsewhere.
[2:22] 55 tn Heb “Why should I strike you to the ground?”
[2:23] 57 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Asahel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:23] 58 tn Heb “the.” The article functions here as a possessive pronoun.
[2:23] 59 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Asahel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:23] 60 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Abner) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:23] 61 tn Heb “and they stand.”
[2:25] 62 tn Heb “were gathered together.”
[2:27] 63 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] 65 tn Heb “they no longer chased after Israel and they no longer fought.”
[2:29] 66 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.
[2:29] 67 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] 68 map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.
[3:3] 69 tn The Hebrew text does not have the word “son.” So also in vv. 3-5.
[3:5] 71 tn The Hebrew text does not have “sons.”
[3:6] 72 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] 73 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] 74 tn Heb “come to”; KJV, NRSV “gone in to”; NAB “been intimate with”; NIV “sleep with.”
[3:7] 75 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] 78 tn Heb “and you have laid upon me the guilt of the woman today.”
[3:9] 79 tn Heb “So will God do to Abner and so he will add to him.”
[3:9] 80 tc Heb “has sworn to David.” The LXX, with the exception of the recension of Origen, adds “in this day.”
[3:11] 81 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ish-bosheth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[3:12] 82 tn The Hebrew text adds here, “on his behalf.”
[3:12] 83 tn Heb “cut a covenant.” So also in vv. 13, 21.
[3:12] 84 tn Heb “and behold, my hand is with you.”
[3:13] 85 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] 86 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] 87 tn Heb “whom I betrothed to myself.”
[3:15] 88 tn Heb “sent and took her.”
[3:15] 89 tn In 1 Sam 25:44 this name appears as “Palti.”
[3:16] 90 tn Heb “Go, return.”
[3:17] 91 tn Heb “the word of Abner was with.”
[3:17] 92 tn Heb “you were seeking David to be king over you.”
[3:18] 93 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] 94 tn Heb “from the hand of.”
[3:19] 95 tn Heb “into the ears of.”
[3:19] 96 tn Heb “also Abner went to speak into the ears of David in Hebron.”
[3:19] 97 tn Heb “all which was good in the eyes of Israel and in the eyes of all the house of Benjamin.”
[3:21] 98 tn After the cohortatives, the prefixed verbal form with the prefixed conjunction indicates purpose or result.
[3:22] 99 tn Heb “And look, the servants of David.”
[3:22] 100 tn Heb “he”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[3:24] 101 tn Heb “Look, Abner.”
[3:24] 102 tc The LXX adds “in peace.”
[3:25] 103 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] 104 tn Heb “and he struck him down there [in] the stomach.”
[3:27] 105 tn Heb “and he [i.e., Abner] died on account of the blood of Asahel his [i.e., Joab’s] brother.”
[3:29] 106 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] 107 tc 4QSama has “of Joab” rather than “of his father” read by the MT.
[3:29] 108 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] 109 tn Heb “and may there not be cut off from the house of Joab.”
[3:29] 110 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] 111 tn Heb “was walking.”
[3:32] 112 tn Heb “lifted up his voice and wept.” The expression is a verbal hendiadys.
[3:34] 113 tc The translation follows many medieval Hebrew manuscripts and several ancient versions in reading “your hands,” rather than “your hand.”
[3:34] 114 tc 4QSama lacks the words “all the people.”
[3:35] 115 tn Heb “Thus God will do to me and thus he will add.”
[3:36] 116 tn Heb “it was good in their eyes.”
[3:37] 117 tn Heb “from the king.”
[3:38] 118 tn Heb “a leader and a great one.” The expression is a hendiadys.
[3:39] 119 tn Heb “are hard from me.”
[3:39] 120 tn Heb “May the
[4:1] 121 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] 122 tn Heb “his hands went slack.”
[6:12] 123 tn The epithet “Branch” (צֶמַח, tsemakh) derives from the verb used here (יִצְמָח, yitsmakh, “will sprout up”) to describe the rise of the Messiah, already referred to in this manner in Zech 3:8 (cf. Isa 11:1; 53:2; Jer 33:15). In the immediate context this refers to Zerubbabel, but the ultimate referent is Jesus (cf. John 19:5).
[6:13] 124 sn The priest here in the immediate context is Joshua but the fuller and more distant allusion is to the Messiah, a ruling priest. The notion of the ruler as a priest-king was already apparent in David and his successors (Pss 2:2, 6-8; 110:2, 4), and it finds mature expression in David’s greater Son, Jesus Christ, who will combine both offices in his kingship (Heb 5:1-10; 7:1-25).
