CHAPTER 1
1. Now what took place after Sha’ul’s death, when David had returned from conquering the Amaleqites, was that David had stayed in Tziqlag for two days,
Josephus says David arrived back at Tziqlag on the same day Sha’ul died. The city had been burned by the Amaleqites, but would have still been habitable since most buildings were chiefly of stone.
2. when, on the third day, a man arrived from the camp—from with Sha’ul—with his garments torn and earth on his head. What he did when he came to David was that he fell to the ground and bowed in homage.
Was he a mercenary soldier for Sha’ul or a prison of war? Another possibility is suggested below. The particular term used for “garments” here is from a root word meaning “treachery” or “deceit”—more of a “cloak”, and this may suggest that he was not completely truthful in what he came to say or sincere in his appearance of mourning.
3. Then David said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he told him, “I was delivered from the camp of Israel!”
4. So David said to him, “How did thing[s] go? Please tell me!” So he said that the people had fled and many of the people had even fallen and died, and that Sha’ul and his son Y’honathan had died as well.
5. But David said to the young [man] who was reporting to him, “How did you find out that Sha’ul and his son Y’honathan had died?”
6. So the young [man] who was reporting to him said, “As I happened by chance upon Mount Gilboa, there was Sha’ul supporting himself on his spear, and lo and behold, the chariots and masters of warhorses were ready to overtake him!
Happened by chance: This phraseology alone would tip David off that something was wrong with his outlook. Deut. 25:18 says Amaleq “happened” upon Israel and attacked the stragglers at the rear, and from this the Rabbis have deduced that the Amaleqites considered everything to be random and chaotic, with no meaning to their experiences —already a slap in the face of YHWH’s sovereignty. But since philosophy at that time was never separated from religion, they had to be worshipping chance and coincidence—and that viewpoint comes out clearly in this verse.
7. “When he turned and looked behind him, he saw me and called to me, and I said, ‘Here I am!’
8. “And he said to me, ‘Who are you?’ So I said, “I am an Amaleqite!’
Sha’ul may have wanted to make sure he was not from a nation that raped those they were going to kill, as he knew the Filistines would.
9. “And he said to me, ‘Please stand over me and kill me, because agony has seized me while all of my life is still in me!’
Agony has seized me: or, possibly, my woven-mail coat has become caught (keeping him from piercing himself with the sword or spear; see note on v. 10). I.e., he could not get his “blade-proof vest” off in order to reach his vital organs. All of my life: i.e., though seriously injured, possibly with multiple arrowheads lodged in his body, he had not lost enough blood to be able to die quickly.
10. “So I stood over him and killed him, because I knew that he could not survive after his downfall. Then I took the crown [of consecration] that was on his head and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them here to my master!”
Josephus’ account makes it sound like he was actually telling the truth, reconciling this with 1 Shmu’el 31:4 by saying that try as he might, Sha’ul could not get the sword to go through his own body, so he called this Amaleqite over to finish the job for him. The interpretation suggested in the note on verse 9 might lend some credence to this, but it is Josephus’ word against that of the scribe who wrote 1 Shmu’el, and the latter would have been much closer to eyewitnesses. It seems the Amaleqite is looking for a reward, for why else would he be interested in seeing David enthroned, when David had been killing his people? This man might have simply been an opportunist waiting to plunder the slain, like the “carpet-baggers” during the American Civil War, as we know the Filistines did not come back to do so until the next day. (1 Shmu’el 31:8) He might even have robbed his tent, since he came from the “camp” (v. 2) and Sha’ul might not have taken a crown into battle. On the other hand, it may have been more to ingratiate his whole nation with David than simply for personal gain, knowing David’s band is the only undefeated army in the Land. That he even knew where to find David shows how widely known it was that David would be the next king. Seeing the items he brought was, in any case, enough evidence for David that Sha’ul was indeed dead (cf. v. 5), because he was very familiar with that crown and bracelet, having seen them often. The crown was probably not an elaborate one like European kings of more recent centuries, but by definition of the Hebrew word, something that clearly distinguished him or set him apart. Ancient kings were recognized more by what was on their wrists than what was on their head, as evidenced by the fact that the Assyrian king Sennakheriv’s sons, who violently overthrew him, chipped the bracelets off all depictions of him in stone. If this Amaleqite in fact killed Sha’ul, then that which he was meant to destroy is what came back to take his life.
11. But David took hold of his garments and tore them, and [so did] all the men who were with him,
12. and they began to lament and weep, and they abstained from food until the evening on account of Sha’ul and his son Y’honathan and over the people of YHWH and the house of Israel, since they had fallen by the sword.
They used all the common expressions of mourning except putting ashes or dirt on their heads—tearing their garments, loud lamentation, and fasting. The practice of fasting only until evening (because that is when the new day begins) has survived to this day among the Arabs as well, and memorial fasts commonly practiced among the Jews that are not specifically commanded in the Torah are carried out only during daylight hours.
13. Then David said to the young [man] who had reported to him, “Where are you from?” So he said, “I myself am the son of a man living [here] temporarily—an Amaleqite.”
He had already told David indirectly that he was an Amaleqite. David might have forgotten due to the whole day of mourning that had elapsed, or he may have wanted further clarification. With the recent attack from the Amaleqites on his own city, this could not have disposed David to be very patient with him. Living here temporarily: a visitor or sojourner who was given rights but not inherited property, but was expected to abide by the laws of Israel. (Ex. 22:21; 23:9; Lev. 17:8; 19:10, 33-34)
14. And David said to him, “How [is it that] you were not afraid to stretch out your hand to slay YHWH’s anointed?”
David himself, who had killed tens of thousands, still knew this hesitancy well; that this man did not proved to David that he had not learned to be a true Israelite, though his description of his father indicates that he might have been trying to learn the ways of YHWH from Israel. He clearly had at least not taught his son well enough, because David thought he should have known better. (Ex. 12:49; 20:10; Num. 15:16, 29; Lev. 17:10; 18:26, et al)
15.And David called to one of the young men and said, “Come here and pounce on him!” And he struck him so that he died.
He certainly did not expect this response from David, for he did not know him very well at all. He may have been appealing to David’s knowledge of the command not to mistreat a foreigner in the Land. This may be why David got someone else to kill him. Even on his deathbed David would ask his son to kill men he had promised that he himself would not kill!
16. And David said to him, “Your blood is on your own head, because your own mouth has testified against you, saying, ‘I myself have killed the anointed of YHWH!’”
He had voiced his own accusation. But since he was an Amaleqite, he was already under YHWH’s death sentence. (Ex. 17:16)
17. Then David started chanting this dirge over Sha’ul and over Y’honathan his son,
18. and he told [them] to teach the sons of Yehudah “The Bow”—look, it is written on the scroll of Yashar:
This whole verse may be a parenthetical introduction before the actual lyrics of the dirge begin. “The Bow” may be the name of the song that follows, which the historian Josephus said had survived (apparently including the melody) to his own day (a generation after Yahshua). It indeed emphasizes that Y’honathan was more adept at the bow than the sword. (v. 22) “Book of Yashar”(also alluded to in Y’hoshua 10:13) could, in this case, simply mean “the accurate record”. (Yashar means “upright” or “straight”.) But though spurious modern “Books of Yashar” have appeared, one older version first published in English in 1840 appends this to the account of Yaaqov’s blessings of his sons on his deathbed: “And Yaaqov said to Yehudah, ‘I know, my son, that you are a mighty one for your brothers. Reign over them, and your sons will reign over their sons forever. Only teach your sons the bow and all the weapons of war, in order that they may fight the battles of their brother who will rule over his enemies.” (Yashar 56:8-9) Though this book has some flamboyant embellishments to the Biblical accounts, it is no worse in this respect than many other midrashim or even some of the Aramaic targums, so it is possible that this is what David is alluding to in order to remind Israel that Yehudah (his own tribe) is meant to reign. In any case, now that Sha’ul was dead and the ten generations have passed since his ancestor Paretz had been born in a manner illegitimate according to Torah (Deut. 23:2), the promised preeminence of Yehudah (Gen. 49:8-10) could now take effect.
19. “The glory of Israel is mortally wounded on your high ridges! How the heroic champions have fallen!
The glory of Israel: The king represented his entire people through his display of wealth. High ridges: often used in a specialized sense for pagan worship sites, but this does not seem to apply here.
20. “Don’t report it in Gath; don’t gladden the streets of Ashqelon with the news, lest the daughters of the Filistines should be joyful, lest the daughters of uncircumcised [men] should gloat!
These were two of the primary Filistine cities. We saw an example of this among the modern people who adopted the name “Filistine” (the “Palestinians”, who pronounce their self-chosen name in exactly the same way), who celebrated in the streets after the 9/11/01 destruction of the World Trade Center. Though it was certain that word had reached them already, David may have been threatening to attack them in an especially harsh manner if they bragged about this victory.
21. “O mountains of Gilboa, [may there be] no dew and no rain upon you, nor fields [cultivated for] contributions, because there the shield of the heroes was cast off with aversion—the shield of Sha’ul, without being anointed with oil!
There are some trees on one side of Mt. Gilboa (possibly planted in recent nationwide reforestation efforts), but no crops, and the other side is indeed in the “rain shadow” of the mountain ridge that runs all along the west side of the Rift Valley. This weather pattern may have begun after David’s time, as we know there was a six-degree shift in the earth’s axis between the time his son Shlomo built the first Temple and when the second Temple was built. But additionally, Mt. Gilboa, in the land of Menashe, is formed of very porous chalk limestone, and indeed remains a barren mountain to our own day, as any rain that might fall on it is not retained near the surface for any vegetation to take root on, though the Yizre’el Valley at its base is lush with some of the Land’s best agriculture. The contributions mentioned here are the type brought to the priests at the Sanctuary. Cast off with aversion: or, rejected as loathsome. A shield would usually be oiled when it was put away after a battle, to preserve it for later use, but this time there was no one to do this; Sha’ul had fought his last battle.
22. “Y’honathan’s bow did not turn back from the blood of the pierced, from the fat of the mightiest, nor did Sha’ul’s sword return empty.
I.e., every time they withdrew their weapons, there was fresh blood on them. Sha’ul was first and foremost a warrior, and he fought much better than he ruled. They had apparently still managed to kill many Filistines even in this last battle. This is a soldier’s way of honoring other soldiers.
23. “Sha’ul and Y’honathan, those beloved and delightful in their lifetimes, were not parted in their death. They were swifter than eagles, mightier than lions!
Not parted: i.e., not separated; they died together. Despite all the hardship he had caused David, Sha’ul was still greatly respected in his opinion; how much more Y’honathan, who had been his best friend? Not parted: Since Y’honathan had no way of mourning for his father, David may have been heaping even more honor on Sha’ul as the vicarious eulogy of a son for Y’honathan’s sake. This was not a time to emphasize his weaker points, and the same men who wanted to kill Sha’ul were mourning along with David. We saw this briefly after the events of 9/11/01, when people in New York stopped mugging one another and turned their hatred instead toward the common enemy of militant Islam. The honor lavished on a king at his funeral should not be stained by a reminder that he sometimes had feet of clay. He represented the honor of everyone there, and as a people their loss was collective, and it did not matter whether it personally benefited David or not.
24. “O daughters of Israel, weep over Sha’ul, the one who clothed you doubly with finery, who made ornaments of gold to ascend your apparel!
Doubly: or, in scarlet (only the vowels are different). Even if Sha’ul had taken sons and daughters as his palace servants, the gains he made for the nation had benefited them all. Who was there to do such things for them now?
25. “How the heroic champions have fallen in the midst of the battle! Y’honathan has been mortally wounded on your high ridges!
26. “I am in distress over you, my brother Y’honathan! You were very pleasant to me; your friendship was beyond my understanding—[more amazing] than the love of women!
Y’honathan acted more as a brother to David than any of his biological brothers had. Amazing: or, distinctive, extraordinary, surpassing. David was very popular with the women, and they could have seemed like “ a dime a dozen” in comparison to such an enduring friendship. But his point seems to be that the attraction between a particular man and a particular woman is often so illogical that myths like that of Cupid’s bow have grown up to try to explain it. How much more puzzling it must have been to David how such a strong bond could develop between himself and the son of the man who had been trying to kill him, especially when it endangered Y’honathan as well.
27. “How the heroic champions have fallen, and [how] the weapons of war have been lost!”
CHAPTER 2
1. And what took place after the same [was] that David inquired of YHWH to say, “Should I go up to one of the cities of Yehudah?” And YHWH told him, “Go up.” So David said, “To where should I go up?” And He said, “To Hevron.”
David knew that it was now time to take the throne, but he wanted to do things in YHWH’s order. Hevron was not only a city of refuge (Y’hoshua 21:13); it belonged to David’s ancestor Kalev by YHWH’s command. (Y’hosh. 14:14) It is only about 16 miles (25 km.) from Tziqlag, but is at the top of the mountain ridge. In fact, it has the highest elevation of any city in Israel.
2. So David went up there, and so did his two wives, Akhinoam the Yizreelitess and Avigayil the wife of Naval the Karmelite.
3. And David brought up his men who were with him—[each] man with his household—and they lived in the suburbs of Hevron.
Suburbs: literally, cities—apparently other cities within the vicinity that in some way were dependent on Hevron, their metropolis. They were probably mainly made up of clans of shepherds.
4. And the men of Yehudah came and anointed David as king over the House of Yehudah there. Then they reported to David, “[The] men of Yaveysh-Gil’ad [are the ones] who buried Sha’ul.”
This is the first king Yehudah has anointed. Unlike Israel, they waited for the right one, since, after all, Yaaqov’s prophecy said the scepter belonged to this tribe. (Gen. 49:10) The fact that Shmu’el had anointed David king might not have been widely known, since it was a very private affair (1 Shm. 16:13), but everyone knew he would be the next king because he was now indisputably the nation’s greatest warrior. Besides, he had honored the elders of Yehudah the whole time he was in exile (1 Shm. 30:26), so they would now reciprocate.
5. So David sent messengers to the people of Yaveysh-Gil’ad and said to them, “You are blessed unto YHWH that you have done this kindness with your master—with Sha’ul—and buried him.
6. “So now, may YHWH deal with you [in] kindness and faithfulness, and I will also deal you this benefit, as you have done this thing.
7. “And now, let your hands grow resolute, and be sons of valor, because your master Sha’ul is dead, and the House of Yehudah has also anointed me as king over them.”
David realizes it will be a difficult choice to make, since their loyalty had been to this king who was the relative of many in their city (Judges 21:12-14), but he also sees that they know how to honor a king, and wants them to transfer that loyalty to himself. He is not out for vengeance against Sha’ul, but wants Israel united again. So he makes a bid to be king of both kingdoms. If they accept, YHWH’s kindness to them will come through David’s hands.
8. But Avner the son of Ner, captain of the army that [had] belonged to Sha’ul, took Ish-Bosheth, the son of Sha’ul, and had him cross over [to] Makhanayim.
Ish-Bosheth means “man of shame”. In 1 Chron. 8:33 he is called Ish-Ba’al, so the scribe here substitutes “shame” for the name of a pagan deity. He also was apparently not in the battle with his father and three brothers, which may indicate that he was either lame or a poor warrior—a cause for loss of honor at that time as well. Makhanayim is where Yaaqov saw a vision of the two camps, and here it is highlighted that Israel is still divided. It is also only eight miles (13 km.) east of Yaveysh-Gil’ad. He is immediately challenging Yaveysh-Gil’ad to see whether they will dare to accept David’s overtures toward them instead of letting Sha’ul’s house have a dynasty. Thus Yaveysh-Gil’ad was the site of the first crisis in Sha’ul’s reign (1 Shmu’el 11) and the first in David’s as well.
9. And he made him king to Gil’ad, to the Ashurites, and to Yizre’el, as well as over Efrayim, over Binyamin, and over all of Israel.
No priest seems to have been involved; he was king only by the will of man. YHWH gave him no endorsement. It is clear that Avner is the real mastermind here, but, being Sha’ul’s uncle, he is probably too old to expect anyone to make him king, though he is now probably the most respected man in his tribe. So he takes a puppet ruler who is in his prime and can be construed to have a claim to Sha’ul’s throne, though we have never heard of him until this point. Avner (whose name means “father of light”) is a picture of the second apocalyptic beast—a false prophet--who induces people to worship the image of the first beast. (Rev. 13) He is an example of the “light that is darkness”. (Mat. 6:23) Ashurites: a tribe that inhabited the Yizre’el Valley.
10. Ish-Bosheth the son of Sha’ul was forty years old when he began to reign over the House of Israel, and he reigned two years. However, the House of Yehudah was behind David.
David could have easily killed Ish-Bosheth, but he had promised Sha’ul that he would spare his seed when he became king. (1 Shmu’el 24:20) Ish-Bosheth therefore, temporarily, became the second king of Israel, but not of Yehudah.
11. And it turned out that the number of days that David was king in Hevron over the House of Yehudah was seven years and six months.
12. And Avner the son of Ner and the servants of Ish-Bosheth the son of Sha’ul went out from Makhanayim to Giv’on.
Giv’on is in the tribal land of Binyamin, very close to Sha’ul’s capital city of Giv’ah, and not far from Yerushalayim.
13. And Yo’av the son of Tz’ruyah went out with David’s servants, and they [all] met together around the Giv’on Pond and sat down—these on this [side] of the pond and those on that [side] of the pond.
The rival of the “father of light” is Yo’av, whose name means “YHWH is Father”. This is the great rivalry that is shaping up for the end battle again—generic light vs. YHWH in particular. Together: literally, [as] His united ones. All of Israel was represented here, and they could have been one nation again if they had all submitted to YHWH’s choice of king. The rivalry was not a northern vs. southern kingdom affair in particular, but a case of rebellion by the tribe of Binyamin.
14. But Avner said to Yo’av, “Please let the lads get up and compete in front of us.” So Yo’av said, “Let them get up.”
Compete: or simply, play. It may have started out as a contest—a spectator sport--and gotten out of hand, as the men essentially became dueling gladiators—not a common Hebrew practice. This representative form of war in which only the heroes fight foreshadows later Greek practice.
15. So they got up and went across by number—twelve for Binyamin and for Ish-bosheth the son of Sha’ul, and twelve from the servants of David.
16. Then each grasped his counterpart by the head, and [thrust] his sword into his counterpart’s side, so that they fell together, and the name given to that place was “The Sword-Edges that are in Giv’on.”
Sword-edges: alt., parcel of rocks, the Smoothness of Boulders. They thought they could end the argument quickly as Golyath had tried to do, but neither side was stronger at this point. It ended in a deadlock, so there was no clear advantage, so the battle continued. They used the same fighting techniques because they had previously been fighting the same enemies. They were supposed to be one army, but because Israel’s side would not concede, the best fighters on both sides had to die.
17. And the battle grew very fierce on that day, and Avner was being struck down, along with the men of Israel, before David’s servants.
18. And three sons of Tz’ruyah were there: Yo’av, Avishai, and ‘Asah’El. Now ‘Asah’El was as light on his feet as one of the gazelles of the field.
Tz’ruyah was David’s sister. (1 Chron. 2:15-16) Yo’av means “YHWH is Father”. Avishai means “My ancestor is Yishai” (Jesse). ‘Asah’El means “Elohim has accomplished it.”
19. So ‘Asah’el chased hard after Avner, and did not turn to go to the right or to the left from following Avner.
If Avner could stay ahead of Yehudah’s fastest runner for this long at his age, he may have been mounted on an animal.
20. And Avner turned [to look] behind him, and he said, “Is that you, ‘Asah’El?” And he said, “I myself!”
They had probably fought side by side in many past battles.
21. So Avner said to him, “Incline yourself to your right or to your left, and seize one of the young [men] for yourself, and seize whatever you can salvage from him. But ‘Asah’El was not willing to turn aside from [going] after him.
It appears that ‘Asah’El was not trying to kill Avner, but only to dishonor him through a form of teasing. At first Avner may have put up with him for his uncle David’s sake, but after such losses, he was hardly amused when he kept up the chase. Seize one of the young men: He will telling him to get back into the battle. His attitude is that some privates are expendable for the sake of the generals—a common attitude in war today, but Yehudah’s modern army in the Land is making a tikkun (reparation) for this attitude, for its generals are the first to go out into battle, leading the troops rather than sitting in a safe bunker and letting others go out to die.
22. So yet again Avner said to ‘Asah’El, “Turn yourself aside from [coming] after me! Why should I strike you down to the ground? Then how could I hold my [head] up to face your brother Yo’av?”
Avner knew that when the confrontation came, he could easily beat ‘Asah’El in a duel, but he at least had great respect for his military prowess, even if they were now on opposite sides of the battle, and he hated to let such talent go to waste. In David’s absence, he would have to answer to Yo’av. In a battle situation, Yo’av would not have the right to avenge his brother’s blood, but he knows the battle will escalate if he kills ‘Asah’El. But ‘Asah’El is not of Avner’s rank, and he should not be chasing him as if he were a dog. Avner’s honor is at stake. ‘Asah’El was out of order, so Avner had to put him in his place.
23. But he kept refusing to turn aside, so Avner hit him with the back end of the spear in the abdomen and it came out the back of him, and he fell down there and died on the spot, and it turned out that any who came to the place where ‘Asah’El fell down and died would stop there.
Abdomen: related to the word “five”; possibly the fifth rib. Stop: They would spend the equivalent of a “moment of silence” there in honor of the memory of this heroic runner who was a nephew of King David. Josephus says this was while his body was still there, and thus they left off pursuing the enemy. But it sounds as if the practice might have endured for some time after that as well.
24. Then Yo’av and Avishai chased after Avner, but the sun went [down] when they had come as far as the Hill of Ammah, which is on the face of where the Giv’on Wilderness road breaks forth.
Ammah means “a cubit”. On the face of where…: or, in front of Giyakh [on the] road [to] the wilderness of Giv’on.
25. Then the sons of Binyamin assembled themselves after Avner and became as one band [of troops], and they and stood on the top of a certain hill.
A certain hill: literally, one hill.
26. But Avner called to Yo’av and said, “Must the sword continue devouring perpetually? Don’t you realize it will be bitter at the end? How long will you not tell the people to turn back from [going] after their brothers?”
27. And Yo’av said, “[As surely as] Elohim lives, if you had not spoken, then [not until] the morning would each of the people have been taken up from following his brother!
I.e., they would have fought all night until the enemy had been wiped out and only stopped then.
28. So Yo’av gave a blast on the shofar, and all the people stopped, and no longer chased after Israel, and did not start fighting again.
29. But Avner and his men walked through the Aravah that whole night, then crossed the Yarden and walked all [the way] through the ravine and came to Makhanayim.
This was not a true surrender after all, but only a cease-fire, giving Avner occasion to go back and regroup his forces. Through the ravine: a cleft—and there is such a split in the plateau that runs all the way from the Yarden River to Makhanayim; alternately, walked the dividing (possibly an idiom for half of the day).
30. When Yo’av returned from [going] after Avner, he collected all the people [together], and nineteen men of David’s servants were missing, in addition to ‘Asah’El.
Is this a prophecy that there would be nineteen centuries with no Davidic ruler on the throne of Yehudah, as well as one heroic relative of the King (Ya’aqov the Just, a.k.a. James) killed by his brothers?
31. But David’s servants had struck down 360 men from Binyamin and among the men of Avner, [and] they died.
The sudden surge in killings that gave David the advantage was probably sparked by anger at ‘Asah’El’s death.
32. And they took ‘Asah’El up and buried him in the tomb of his father, which is in Beyth-Lakhem. Then they walked all night, and it was becoming light for them [when they arrived] at Hevron.
His father’s name is never given, only his mother’s, since she came from the immediate family of the king, though this may be referring to Yishai. Josephus says his father’s name was Suri (Greek for Tzuri?), but his source for this information is unknown. There is also a figurative sense in which the light was becoming brighter for them, for now David was reigning at Hevron. But the break in the fighting that allowed his burial was short-lived.
CHAPTER 3
1. As the war between the house of Sha’ul and the house of David was prolonged, David[‘s grip] grew progressively stronger, while the house of Sha’ul grew steadily weaker.
After the cease-fire of chapter 2, skirmishes continued to break out.
2. Sons were also being born to David in Hevron: His first was Amnon, born to Akhinoam the Yizre’elitess,
Amnon means “the most faithful”.
3. and his second was Khil’av, [born] to Avigayil the wife of Naval the Karmelite, and the third, Avshalom the son of Maakhah the daughter of Thalmai the king of G’shur,
Khil’av means “like his father” or “restrainer of the father”. Avshalom means “father of peace”. Maakhah means “oppression”. Thalmai means “furrowed”. Daughter of the king: Thus Avshalom was not full-blooded Israelite, which may explain some of his later actions, especially if his mother did not fully embrace Israel’s ways. This was probably a political marriage to seal a treaty, as would be the common practice of his son Shlomo (hence the reference to peace in both of their names). But for both, these marriages had unwelcome results—probably YHWH’s way of hinting that it was not the best idea. He had told kings not to have too many wives, lest their hearts be turned away. (Deut. 17:17) He was beginning to let politics outweight the Torah. G’shur was a region just east of the Kinnereth (Sea of Galilee) on the western Golan Heights, mainly around Gamla, but at times reaching as far south as the Yarmuq River, which today forms part of the border between Israel and Jordan. There was even a region just north of it named Maakhah. It is not clear whether it was named after the woman or if she was named for it.
4. and the fourth was Adoniyah the son of Khaggith, and the fifth, Sh’fatyah the son of Avital,
Adoniyah means “YHWH is my master”. Khaggith means “festive”. Sh’fatyah means “YHWH has judged [and vindicated]”—probably a celebration of His indeed having judged between Sha’ul and David, as he had asked (1 Shmu’el 24:12), and finding David more worthy to rule.
5. and the sixth was Yithream, [born] to Eglah, David’s wife; these were born to David in Hevron.
So by this time he had at least six wives and/or concubines. Eglah (“cow”) was probably not one of the latter, since she is specifically called a wife. Yithream means “profit or superiority of the people”. In so naming them, these mothers were probably already vying for their sons to be the next king, so they gave them great names.
6. But while the war between the house of Sha’ul and the house of David was going on, Avner ended up strengthening his grip on the house of Sha’ul.
7. Now Sha’ul had a concubine, and her name was Ritzpah, the daughter of Ayah. And he said to Avner, “Why have you come in to my father’s concubine?”
Ritzpah means “pavement” or “glowing coal”; in modern Hebrew it also means “floor”. He said: verse 8 tells who “he” was.
8. And Avner’s anger was greatly kindled over the words of Ish-Bosheth, and he said, “Am I myself a dog’s head that belongs to Yehudah? Do I deal kindly with the house of your father Sha’ul, to his brothers and to his companions today, in that I have not let the hand of David reach you, and will you call me to account today about guilt concerning the woman?
A dog’s head: one of the lowest things an Israelite could be called, other than swine. He was asking whether he was an agent of Yehudah, a traitor, since a dog’s head goes after whatever its stomach wants. How could Ish-Bosheth doubt his loyalty? Yet now, he decides that Ish-Bosheth is not worth being loyal to, since he does not like this weak ruler calling him on an event that, nonetheless, would be much like putting on the king’s crown when no one was looking, since whatever belonged to Sha’ul now belonged to his son. It is a political move, a subtle claim that he is in fact the real ruler. He has a point (Ish-Bosheth would be nothing without him), but he considers his guilt a trifling matter, when Ish-Bosheth is, after all, his king regardless. But he has more respect for David.
9. “May YHWH do the same to Avner and add more of the same to it since what YHWH has sworn to David, that indeed I will do for him--
10. “to cause the dominion to pass from the house of Sha’ul and to establish the throne of David over Israel and over Yehudah from Dan all the way to Be’er-Sheva’!”
Cause to pass: or, transfer. He decides to be YHWH’s instrument of fulfilling a prophecy which must have become general knowledge now that Yehudah had anointed David king.
11. And he was no longer able to make a comeback against Avner [with one] word because of his fear of him.
He feared him because, now that Sha’ul was gone, he was the chief warrior from a tribe already known for its warlike capabilities. He was the strongest living Binyamite. People would see him as essentially the king already. But Ish-Bosheth at least showed more respect for Avner than ‘Asah’El had.
12. So Avner sent messengers to David on his behalf, to say, “Whose is the Land?”—[that is] to say, “Cut your covenant with me, and indeed my hand [will be] with you, to cause all Israel to turn to you.”
13. And he said, “All right, I will cut a covenant with you, but I only ask one thing from you: [that is] to say, you will not see my face unless you bring [me] Mikhal the daughter of Sha’ul before you come to see my face.”
14. Then David sent messengers to Ish-Bosheth the son of Sha’ul, saying, “Give me [back] my wife Mikhal, whom I betrothed to myself for a hundred Filistine foreskins!”
Though the bride price was only 100, he actually paid 200 foreskins for her! (1 Shmu’el 18:27)
15. So Ish-Bosheth sent and retrieved her from being with a man, from with Palti’El the son of Lawish.
A man: This is the man Sha’ul had given her to as a wife when David fell out of favor with him (1 Shm. 25:44, where her father is called Palti the son of Layish). Lawish may be a scribal error, as the equivalent of the “w” in Hebrew looks much like a lengthened form of the counterpart of the “y”. This is a picture of YHWH asking to have his wife Israel back, despite her having been with another “man”, as in the prophet Hoshea. Ish-Bosheth does not even dispute the order, but placates him, probably reasoning that David was easily able to kill him if displeased, though he did not yet have jurisdiction over all Israel, but only Yehudah.
16. But her husband went with her, walking along and weeping behind her, as far as Bakhurim, but Avner told him, “Go on, turn back!” So he went back.
He might have tried to reason that David had six other wives, and this was his only one. He could have even cited Deut. 24:1-4 about a man not taking his former wife back if someone else had married her in the intervening time, but this only applies if he had divorced her, and David had done no such thing. Sha’ul took her away when she was still rightfully David’s, so it was completely allowable for him to take her back. She was his first wife, and she must have been glad to be back with David, as she loved him. (1 Shm. 18:20) If Palti’El had grown attached to her, that was the price he had to pay for having held onto a woman who was in reality no longer Sha’ul’s to give him, even if she was his daughter. David apparently honored Sha’ul’s choice while he was alive, simply because he was king, but now he no longer has to answer to him. Bakhurim is east of Mt. Scopus near Yerushalayim, on the same site as modern Ras-et-Tmim.
17. And the word of Avner came to be with the elders of Israel, to say, “Both yesterday and the day before that you were seeking [to have] David as king over yourselves.
Even before Sha’ul died, had they been complaining that David would be the better king? Keeping a dynasty for Sha’ul had apparently only been Avner’s idea, though he did have the army to back up his preferences.
18. “So now act, because YHWH has spoken to David, saying, ‘By the hand of my servant David, I will cause my people Israel to be saved from the hand of the Filistines and from the hand of all of their enemies!’”
This particular word from YHWH is not previously recorded in all its detail; Avner may have embellished the core truth somewhat. This is very reminiscent of the claims made for Moshe, Israel’s deliverer.
19. And Avner even spoke in the ears of Binyamin, and Avner also went to speak in the ears of David in Hevron all that was right in the eyes of Israel, even in the eyes of the whole house of Binyamin.
20. When Avner came to David in Hevron, twenty men were with him, and David made a feast for Avner and for the men who were with him.
Feast: literally, a drinking banquet.
21. Then Avner told David, “Let me get up, and I will go and gather all Israel to my master the king, so that they may cut a covenant with you, and you can reign over all that your soul may desire!” So David sent Avner, and he went in peace.
22. But then the servants of David, along with Yo’av, came in from a raid, and they brought with them lots of spoils [that they had plundered], but Avner was not with David in Hevron, because he had sent him out, and he had gone in peace.
23. When Yo’av and the whole army that was with him arrived, they reported to Yo’av, “Avner the son of Ner came to the king, and he has sent him out, and he has gone in peace.”
24. When Yo’av came to the king, he said, “What have you done? Look here, Avner came to you! Why is it that you have sent him away, and he is gone walking?
In modern parlance, “You had him in your grasp, and yet you let him walk?!” David has made peace with Avner, but Yo’av has not, because he was not present at the right time.
25. “You know Avner the son of Ner—because he came to open you up wide, and to be aware of your going out and your coming in, and to find out all that you do!”
26. When Yo’av went out from David, he sent messengers after Avner, and they brought him back from the cistern of Sirah, but David did not know [it].
Cistern of Sirah: or, well, pit, or dungeon; etymologically, it means “the clarification of turning aside”. He wanted to “clear up” what he saw as the “fact” of Avner’s “turning aside”. But he did not know all the facts of why Avner had come, and assumed the worst intentions. Sometimes this is wise, especially for a military general, but this time he was wrong. Though Avner’s motives were odd, they appear to have been genuine. Yo’av was not able to get over his own resentment and trust the one YHWH had put in authority, even though he supposedly recognized him as king, so he took matters into his own hands:
27. When Avner returned to Hevron, Yo’av took him aside inside the gate [as if] to speak with him privately, but he thrust him through there in his abdomen, and he died on [account of] the blood of ‘Asah’El [Yo’av’s] brother.
He struck him in exactly the place Avner had struck his brother. Yo’av thus avenged his brother’s blood, though what Avner had done was not a capital offense, having been done during a war. As the nearest kinsman he felt he still had the right to demand the life of one who killed his relative, but Avner was even within the walls of a city of refuge. Avner had come expecting a joyful peacemaking ceremony, and instead Yo’av violated a code of honor, breaking the truce and killing one David had just honored, thus bringing shame on his whole house, which was headed by David. Honor did not rest with the individual, but with the house as a whole.
28. Afterward when David heard [about] the same, he said, “I and my kingdom are forever exempt from responsibility for the blood of Avner the son of Ner, from with YHWH!
From with YHWH: i.e., the way He sees it. David had not confirmed Yo’av’s suspicions, and had definitely not given him permission to act like this.
29. “May it whirl above the head of Yo’av and toward all of his father’s house, and may there not be cut off from the household of Yo’av one who has an oozing discharge, or a leper, or one who grasps a staff, or who falls by the sword, or who is lacking bread!”
May it whirl: that is, the sword, like that of the kh’ruvim guarding the entrance to Eden, hanging over him so that he never knew when it might reach him, for as Yahshua said, “Those who choose the sword will die by the sword.” (Mat. 26:52) May there not be cut off: i.e., may there never fail to be present… Remember, this was his nephew he was cursing like this! Grasps a staff: i.e., is crippled. Several of these categories of people cannot enter the “congregation of Israel”, though it is uncertain exactly what other restrictions this means besides access to the sanctuary courts. Many people have likewise claimed to honor Yahshua as king, but have trusted misinterpretations of Paul’s words rather than his own, and have brought the curse of a Gentile reading of Scripture on much of Israel.
30. Thus Yo’av and Avishai his brother killed Avner on account of his having killed their brother ‘Asah’El in battle at Giv’on.
Though the elders had tentatively concurred with Avner about making David king, nothing had yet been finalized yet, as Avner had been the one gathering them for the ceremony. So the upshot of this act was that the kingdom remained divided.
31. Then David said to Yo’av and to all the people who were with him, “Tear your garments and put on burlap sacks, and lament before Avner!” And King David walked behind the bier.
32. And they buried Avner in Hevron. Then the king lifted up his voice and wept at Avner’s grave, and all the people wept.
33. And the king chanted a dirge over Avner, and said, “Should Avner die as a fool dies?
As a fool dies: a senseless death, or like a common criminal, right out in the street.
34. “Your hands were not tied, not your feet drawn together with bronze [fetter]s! You have fallen as a man falls before unjustly violent [men]!” And all the people began to weep over him again.
This gives us insight into how people who were to be executed were bound. The advantage of dying this way was that he could know death was coming, and at least know who was responsible rather than being caught off guard as Avner was. He was killed by one he respected.
35. And all the people came to try to get David to eat food while it was still day, but David swore an oath, saying, “May Elohim do the same to me and more so, if I taste bread or anything [else] before the sun goes [down]!”
Do the same: i.e., make me die as Avner died. He knew it would not be fitting to find enjoyment in anything else that day.
36.And all of the people took note [of this], and it was appropriate in their eyes, just as everything the king had done was appropriate in the eyes of all the people.
Took note: covers the whole range of paying attention, showing regard, observing, acknowledging, and understanding. They all considered him the right king for Israel.
37. And all the people—and all Israel—recognized that it had not been from the king to put Avner the son of Ner to death.
38. Moreover, the king said to his servants, “Don’t you realize that a [noble] commander—and a great one [at that]—has fallen this day in Israel?
His respect for Avner’s military prowess rivaled that which he had for Sha’ul’s.
39. “And I myself am fainthearted today, though anointed king! These men, the sons of Tz’ruyah are more cruel than I am! May YHWH pay back the evildoer according to his wickedness!”
More cruel: or, too severe (intense, fierce, stubborn) for me. David, who had killed thousands without batting an eyelash, could not fathom why his own nephews would do such a thing. David had a right to kill women and children, because this was the Torah in regard to YHWH’s enemies; but the Torah did not allow Yo’av to kill Avner. His life and that of Avishai were all about bloodletting. They were so used to being men of war that when David saw an open door for peace between brother tribes, they did not know when to stop and switch gears. They worshipped war and vengeance more than YHWH. Now honor remained to none of these otherwise-great heroes. They had disgraced their whole household and ruined David’s coronation. David, on the other hand, was a man of awesome balance, because he was about pleasing YHWH. He saw when it was time to be harsh and when it was time to be merciful. He did not want to be around people who knew nothing but harshness all the time.
CHAPTER 4
1. When the son of Sha’ul heard that Avner had died in Hevron, his hands went slack, and all the Israelites were dismayed.
His hands went slack: He lost his grip on the people, he forsook his strength, and as we will see, he lost all will to do anything. Dismayed: nervous, troubled, anxiously fretting—because the successor to the one who had been providing for them was letting everything drop. They no longer had a guide. As when Yahshua was killed, his disciples were left devastated, like sheep without a shepherd. They also knew that the one whose reign they upheld had fallen from favor with YHWH, and they must have wondered where they stood with Him. They knew David was now the most powerful man in Israel, and he killed whomever he wanted to; they did not know whether he might have mercy on them or not. The only man they had felt sure would know how to deal with the tribe of Yehudah was now dead. Especially the tribe of Binyamin, which had almost been annihilated once before, keenly felt that they were at his mercy. Some of them, therefore, decided to take matters into their own hands and try to placate him rather than waiting out the storm to see what YHWH—and David--might do:
2. Now there were two men who had accompanied the son of Sha’ul [as] commanders of troops, the name of one [being] Baanah, and the name of the second Rekhav, sons of Rimmon the Be’erothite from the sons of Binyamin, because Be’eroth, too, is considered to [belong to] Binyamin,
Baanah means “in affliction”; Rekhav means “rider”. It is very unlikely that the Rehav in 2 Kings 4 was the ancestor of the Rekhavites praised by YHWH in Yirmeyahu (Jeremiah) 35; there was another Rekhav introduced in 1 Chron. 2:55, who came from a family of scribes among the Qeynites, a people living in Yavetz who had been allied with Israel for many generations. He is more likely to have been their ancestor. In any case, it was Yonadav the son of Rekhav, not Rekhav, who was given a magnificent promise by YHWH. Rimmon means “pomegranate”. Be’eroth means [more than two] “wells”. It was a Giv’onite city, hence Kanaanite in ethnicity, a remnant of those spared by Y’hoshua because of his foolish oath, and who had become servants to Israel.
3. as the Be’erothites had fled into Gittayim, and have been there as expatriates to this day.
Gittayim means “two wine presses”. It is located in Yehudah, but the exact site is unknown; it may have been the same as Gittim or Gitti, the Gentile names for Gath, Golyath’s home town. (Y’hoshua 13:3) To clarify, since the true Be’erothites, who were not Israelites, had abandoned their city, those who were now known as Be’erothites were Binyamites who had moved in after they had left.
4. (Y’honathan the son of Sha’ul also had a son whose feet had been damaged. He was five years old when the report [about] Sha’ul and Y’honathan had come from Yizre’el, and his nurse picked him up while she was fleeing, and it turned out that in her rush to escape, he fell and became crippled. Now his name was Mefibosheth.)
Nurse: or, foster-mother. Was crippled: literally, came to be limping (from the root word for Pesakh, or Passover). Mefibosheth means “shatterer of the shameful thing”. An alternate name was “Merib-ba’al”, found in 1 Chron. 9:40, means “the one who contends with Ba’al”, so “shameful thing” was substituted so people would not have to pronounce the name of the pagan deity. How he plays into this story we will not see until chapter 9. He may be mentioned here just to make us aware that Ish-Bosheth was not the only descendant Sha’ul had left, or to draw a clear distinction between Mefibosheth and Ish-Bosheth, due to their similar names.
5. And the sons of Rimmon the Be’erothite, Rekhav and Baanah, came to the house of Ish-Bosheth during the hot part of the day, when he was lying on a couch at noon.
He was not taking a siesta, but simply had lost the will to get out of bed. He was suffering from deep depression, and stayed in bed at least until noon.
6. And they came as far as the inside of the house, carrying wheat, and gave a thrust into his abdomen. Then Rekhav and his brother Baanah slipped away.
“They” here is in the feminine form, possibly because they acted, in common parlance, “like women” in their way of attacking a man who was not warned to defend himself. Carrying wheat: or possibly, fetching wheat. They either pretended to be delivering grain to gain access to the house, or were coming to get provisions from the one who was no longer acting to deliver them to his people. They would not have needed the wheat to conceal their daggers, which were usually very short compared to later swords, and one would expect that they could pass the guards easily without being suspected, since they were essentially generals, well known to the household. Killing with a thrust in the abdomen seems to have been the fashion of the day! But in this case it may have been done this way to keep his head undamaged.
7. When they came into the house, he was lying on his couch in his bed-chamber, and they attacked him and killed him, and removed his head. Then they took his head and went by way of the Aravah all night.
Ish-bosheth had been living either in Makhanayim or Giv’on (2:8-12, where Sha’ul’s palace had been)—most likely the former, because of the route they took. The Aravah is the Great Rift Valley that follows the Yarden River at this point. This was the easiest way to travel south to Hevron from Mahanayim, which is across the river. Coming from Giv’on, they would have been more likely to travel down the highest ridge of the mountains, passing Yerushalayim. Pm the other hand, one night might not have been enough to travel the 60 miles from Makhanayim, as opposed to 25 from Giv’on, unless they were indeed riding horses, as Rehav’s name suggests.
8. And they brought Ish’Bosheth’s head to David at Hevron, and said to the king, “Behold the head of Ish-Bosheth the son of Sha’ul, your enemy, who sought your life. Thus may YHWH allow my master the king to be avenged this day from Sha’ul and his seed!”
9. But David responded to Rekhav and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Be’erothite by telling them, “[By the] life of YHWH, who has redeemed my soul from every distress,
10. “since [someone] brought me a report, saying, ‘Look! Sha’ul is dead!’ and saw himself as a bearer of glad news, but I seized him and killed him in Tziqlag as [the reward for] his ‘glad news’,
David did not kill him just for bringing bad news, but he probably felt very certain that this man had not really been the one to kill Sha’ul, but did take delight in his death, and most of all, his story was designed to gain him a reward or high position from David, and David probably had no doubt that these men had acted for the same reason—mere political expediency. They must have certainly heard this story before, but did not learn from the other man’s mistakes.
11. “how much more, when wicked men have murdered a righteous man in his own house, on his own bed, shouldn’t I demand his blood from your hand right now, and burn you off of the [very] earth?!”
Burn you off: or consume you, remove you from, as by gleaning. He called him a righteous man, knowing it had not even been Ish-Bosheth’s idea to become king, but these men he immediately condemned because they had not even been loyal to one who had treated them well; how could he ever expect them to show any genuine loyalty to himself? They obviously did not know David very well. Josephus adds that he said, “You could not lay a greater blot on my honor than by making such a supposal!” This was no occasion for mercy, though David would have had mercy on Ish-Bosheth both for Sha’ul’s sake and because he knew he was no longer a real challenge to him.
12. And David gave orders to the young [men], and they killed them and cut off their hands and feet, and hung them up over the pond in Hevron, but they took the head of Ish-Bosheth and buried it in Avner’s grave in Hevron.
Thus Ish-Bosheth’s head rested with the one who had made him the “head” of Israel for a short while. David honored him by burying him in his capital city, but dishonored the corpses of the men who deserved no honor. This was a very unusual thing for an Israelite to do, so it highlights just how heinous their deed was. His cutting off their hands and feet may have been part of the inspiration for his son Shlomo’s proverb that included among the “seven things that are an abomination” to YHWH, “hands that shed innocent blood” and “feet that are swift in running to mischief”. Swift justice and hanging them by the pool where everyone came to draw water was a deterrent to others, much like the Romans’ practice of crucifixion. Another saying of Shlomo’s seems pertinent to this incident: “The king by justice establishes the land, but he who receives a cut off the top [i.e., bribe] overthrows it. Many seek the king’s favor, but every man’s judgment comes from YHWH.” (Prov. 29:4-5)
CHAPTER 5
1. Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hevron and spoke, saying, “He we are! We are your bone and flesh!
Bone and flesh: the phraseology Adam used of Chawwah when he recognized that he had located his complement. (Gen. 2:23) The reunification of Israel is the first step in the restoration of the unfallen, undivided Adam.
2. “Both yesterday and before that, while Sha’ul was king over us, it was you who were the one who led Israel out and brought [us] in, and YHWH told you, ‘[It is] you [who] will lead my people, that is, Israel, to pasture, and you will serve as a ruler over Israel.’”
Lead my people to pasture: As a literal shepherd, he had been groomed for this task.
3. Then all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hevron, and [he] cut [a covenant] for them as king over Israel.
There is now one king, but we will see evidence that those over whom he ruled still regarded themselves as two kingdoms even after this. A truly unified kingdom of all Israel still remains to be seen, but we have prophecies that it will come to be.
4. Now David was 30 years old when he became king; he reigned 40 years.
This is the age when a priest began his full-scale service after his training, and the age at which Yahshua was “anointed” king by the priest Yochanan the Immerser.
5. In Hevron he reigned over Yehudah seven years and six months, and in Yerushalayim he reigned 33 years over all Israel and Yehudah.
Thus 40 years and 6 months is rounded down to 40 years (v. 4) rather than rounded up to 41, making it sound like he reigned longer than he actually did.
6. When the king and his men went up to the Yevusite inhabiting the Land at Yerushalayim, [someone] started speaking to David, saying, “You couldn’t come in here without the blind and lame turning you away!”, [that is] to say, “David couldn’t come in here!”
The Yevusites were the descendants of the third son of Kanaan. (Gen. 10:15-16) The earlier generations under Y’hoshua had been unable to conquer the city. The taunt is essentially that the walls are so strong that even the blind and lame could defend the city; they would need no army to fight.
7. But David captured the stronghold of Tzion; that is, the City of David.
8. And on that day David said, “Anyone who strikes down a Yevusite—he can even reach [them by] the water-shaft! But the lame and the blind are hated by the soul of David!” On account of this, they say, “The blind or the lame may not enter into the house.”
Anyone who…: This seems like an incomplete sentence. 1 Chron. 11:6 tells us that he offered the chief leadership position to whomever was first to attack, and Yo’av was the one who did. The water-shaft: One has been found that goes all the way through the bedrock of Tzion by a natural fissure down to the conduit from the Gihon Spring that Hizqiyahu widened and enclosed later. While there is still some debate over whether that shaft had been discovered this early, it has been proven experimentally that with a platform built to hang over the opening, buckets could be lowered straight down it and retrieved without much loss of water. Thus the men could enter via the spring from the eastern flank of the long, narrow hill on which the city sat, and climb up the natural “well” by which the Yevusites may have drawn their water from a receptacle below. They would have to shimmy up it, but it can be climbed. Blind and lame: Apparently this taunt (v. 6) so disgusted David that he turned against even the poor cripples of his own people, because they reminded him too much of this. The house: It cannot mean the Temple yet, though that is the most common later specialized use of this term. The only house mentioned in this context is the one in 11, but David must have made an exception for Mefibosheth (9:10) because of his promise to Sha’ul. He may have gone to extremes on the literal level, but the term for “lame” is the same as the one Eliyahu used when asking how long Israel would “limp” between two opinions. (1 Kings 18:26) So the picture stands that those who refuse to see and who hesitate or are not fully committed will not be of benefit to the nation he is called to direct. Note that David speaks of himself in the second person, for he now has a right to speak in the royal manner.
9. So David settled in the stronghold and called it the City of David. And David continued building all around from the filled-in [area] and inward.
The filled-in area: possibly the stepped-stone structure unearthed on the eastern slope of the City of David near the site of his palace. The historian Josephus explains that he joined the citadel to the rest of the city and encompassed the whole with new walls. He says this conquest was 515 years after Y’hoshua had entered the land.
10. And David went on to become great, and YHWH, Elohim of Armies, was with him.
11. Then Khiram, king of Tzor, sent ambassadors to David with cedar trees, engravers of wood, and stone masons, and they built a house for David.
Khiram means “their whiteness or nobility”. Tzor: also known as Tyre, it was a major city-state on the coast of Phoenicia, or what is now the nation of Lebanon. He would end up being a great ally to both David and his son. Ambassadors: or simply messengers. Stone masons: the term used here specifically relates to walls. When a portion of the northeast corner of the Temple Mount collapsed, numbers were found written in chalk on the stones in the Phoenician script of the northern style. (Israel used the same script at that time, but in a slightly different form.) The stones were cut off-site and numbered so they would know which ones fit together, thus speeding up the on-site construction. They were fitted so tightly together that it never washed or eroded away.
12. Then David recognized that YHWH had [firmly] established him as king over Israel and supported his reign for the sake of His people Israel.
13. But David continued to take concubines and wives from Yerushalayim after he had come from Hevron, and sons and daughters continued to be born to David.
David was somewhat moderate in how many wives he took, considering his wealth, but YHWH warned the kings in the Torah not to let a king “multiply wives for himself”. (Deut. 17:17) This practice, especially when it came to political marriages, would be a great snare to his son, who carried the pattern to the extreme.
14. And these are the names of those [children] born to him in Yerushalayim: Shammua [renowned], Shovav [returning], Nathan [he has given], Shlomoh [his peace],
15. Yivkhar [he has chosen], Elishua [my Elohim is opulent], Nefeg [sprouting forth], Yafia [shining with beams],
16. Elishama [my Elohim has heard], Eliyada [my Elohim has recognized], and Elifalet [my Elohim has delivered].
This would make 17 children for David. 1 Chron. 3:1-9, which may have been written later but by someone further removed, adds Nogah and an additional Elifalet, as well as more children by concubines. There Shammua is called Shim’a and Elishua called Elishama like his brother. Or, like news reports today, different details are left out for many reasons, some of them political. Since Shlomoh is mentioned here, we know that these births were spread out over many years; this is just giving a summary of his entire reign.
17. When the Filistines heard that they had anointed David as king over Israel, all the Filistines came up to search for David. When David heard [of it], he went down to the stronghold.
Over Israel: as opposed to only over Yehudah. Search for: or, demand, as to require the people to hand him over. Down to the stronghold: possibly a bunker-type fortification built beneath the city, as possibly just a fortress lower in elevation than his palace, which was at the highest point in the city at that time. The Filistines were not concerned about Israel as long as the two houses were fighting against one another, but now that they were in unity, they posed a real threat that they wanted to “nip in the bud”. There may have also been an element of retaliation against David for rejoining their enemy after living with them for several months.
18. Then the Filistines came and spread themselves out across the Valley of Refa’im.
Refa’im: meaning “healers”, this was a race of giants. (Deut. 2:11, 20; 3:11) Y’hoshua 15:8 gives the location of this valley as adjacent to the Valley of Hinnom, if not connected to it, therefore placing it very close to Yerushalayim. 1 Chronicles 11:15-16 suggests that it was south of Yerushalayim on the way toward Beyth Lekhem, and that it was at this time that the incident of his heroes retrieving water from his favorite well took place.
19. So David inquired of YHWH and said, “Should I go up to the Filistines? Will you deliver them into my hand?” And YHWH told David, “Go up, because I will certainly deliver the Filistines into your hand!”
Inquired: via the priest(s). Note that David did not assume he should do anything without YHWH’s approval, but he did not hesitate to ask Him either.
20. So David came into Ba’al-Pratzim, and David attacked them there, and he said, “YHWH has broken through my enemies before me as water breaks through!” On account of this, he called the name of that place, “Ba’al-Pratzim”.
Ba’al-Pratzim means “master of the breakings-through”. Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 28:21 seems to locate a “Mount Pratzim” near Giv’on, which near the Geva’ of verse 25.
21. And they abandoned their idols there, so David and his men took them away.
This is probably because the Filistines’ idols appeared to have forsaken them, so they simply “retaliated”.
22. But the Filistines came up yet again and spread themselves out across the Valley of Refa’im.
Even without their idols, they dared to come back. Josephus adds that they brought threefold reinforcements.
23. When David inquired of YHWH, He said, “Do not go up, [but] circle around to their rear and approach them from in front of the balsam trees.
Balsam trees: or, mulberry trees; literally, “weeping ones”, probably because they put forth a gummy sap.
24. “Then [what you need to] do is, when you hear the sound of footsteps in the tops of the balsam trees, that’s when you must make a decisive move, because at that time YHWH will go out ahead of you to strike down the Filistine camp.
Footsteps: or, marching. It seems as if YHWH sent a very strong wind to knock down their tents, and that amid the time of greatest confusion, Israel would be given a narrow window in which to attack most effectively. With the noise in the trees, the Filistines might not hear the troops approaching either. Louis Ginzberg relates an ancient legend that YHWH “wanted to pass judgment on the tutelary angels of the heathen before surrendering the heathen themselves to the pious.” If these are mulberry trees, they do not grow very tall—not more than about ten feet, but they do make a lot of noise when the wind blows.
25. And David did so, just as YHWH had ordered him, and he struck down the Filistines from Geva’ all the way to the entrance the Gezer.
Gezer is some twenty miles (32 km.) west of Yerushalayim at the base of the foothills on the coastal plain. Ginzberg writes that the Filistines drew very close before the cue was given, but David restrained his men, saying, “It is better to die obeying YHWH.” As soon as he did, the rustling in the trees began. After this took place, YHWH pointed his obedience out to the angels, saying, “See the difference between Sha’ul and David!”
CHAPTER 6
1. Then David again assembled every select [person] in Israel—30,000 [in all],
Select person: the best warriors. 1 Chronicles 13 adds the details that he consulted with the captains of hundreds and thousands and asked for their consensus about bringing the ark up, and suggested that they assemble their “brothers”, wherever they were, along with any priests and Levites among them. So these representatives of all parts of Israel selected by the leaders all agreed that this was the right thing to do:
2. and David, and all the people who were with him, got up and went from Baaley-Yehudah in order to bring up from there the ark of Elohim that is called by the Name—the Name of YHWH [Master of] Armies, which sits with the kh’ruvim above it.
Baaley-Yehudah: another name for Kiryath-Ye’arim. (1 Chron. 13:6) Alt., “all the people who were with him, the landowners of Yehudah, got up…” Kh’ruvim: a six-winged class of beings depicted in golden imagery atop the ark. Note the warfare theme in the “name” of the ark itself. In some cases, the ark did lead Israel out to battle. 1 Chron. 13:3 adds that they had not inquired of YHWH at the ark since the days of Sha’ul—at least seven and a half years prior to this. But David did not inquire of YHWH this time—a rare occasion for him—but rather decided to move it based on popular opinion.
3. But they mounted the ark of Elohim on a new wagon, and carried it out from the house of Avinadav, which is on the hill, with Uzza and Akhio, the sons of Avinadav, guiding the new cart.
Akhio: or simply, Uzza and his brother. Avinadav was he name of David’s eldest brother, as well as the name of one of Sha’ul’s sons; it was clearly a popular name in that day. The ark had been in Kiryath-Ye’arim, seven miles west of Yerushalayim (1 Shmu’el 7:1), since the men of Beyth-Shemesh who had looked into it were struck down, and they were afraid to keep it there. But David should have known from this incident in itself that he needed to be careful in regard to the ark. El’azar was the one who had been put in charge of it; that he is not mentioned here may mean that he had already died, as that was about twenty years prior to this.
4. As they brought it up from Avinadav’s house, which is on the hill, with the ark of Elohim, Akhio was walking in front of the ark.
5. And David and the whole house of Israel were playing before YHWH on all [kinds of instruments made of] cypress wood, lyres, harps, drums, and rattling and quivering [instruments].
6. But as they were approaching Nakhon’s threshing-floor, Uzzah stretched out [his hand] toward the ark of Elohim and held onto it, because the oxen had shaken it loose.
Nakhon is also known as Khidon (1 Chron. 13:9). Uzzah: the alternate spelling reflects the change in Hebrew, in which it is at first spelled with a final alef, but from here onward it ends in the letter “hey”. Alef has the numeric value of 1, symbolizing Israel in unity or YHWH’s own ways, and hey has the value of five, suggesting that he had put his own hand to this. Uzzah means “strength”, and after their military triumph there seems to have been a presumption that they could now do whatever they wanted. But proper order always gives a better advantage than mere strength, which can be easily dissipated. Shaken it loose: upset it or made it fall.
7. And YHWH’s anger burned against Uzzah, and Elohim struck him down there on account of the negligence, and he died there with the ark of Elohim.
YHWH had probably been angered already by this situation, and this was all he could take. The negligence was that YHWH had commanded the priests to carry the ark on poles (Ex. 25:13-14); no one was to touch it with their hands, not even them. Now, no one would want something that represented YHWH’s presence to be dishonored by falling to the ground. Uzzah’s heart seemed to be in the right place. But this was not enough. YHWH does not accept “I thought” as an excuse. Uzzah—and the whole situation—was totally out of context. Even if the ark had been brought to its previous location on a wagon, that did not mean Israel was free to continue that tradition; that was done by the Filistines, who did not know better. But Israel should have known how the ark was to be carried. Even if they “beautified the tradition” by using a new cart this time, “there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the ways of death.” (Prov. 16:25) We must go beyond natural reflexes when YHWH’s kingdom requires it. We must get to the point of not only knowing better, but also retraining our natural inclinations to do better. If the ark had hit the ground, the rest of the people would probably have been reminded that this was not the way it was meant to be done. Because the wrong decision was made at the start, there was no “clean” way to compensate for the problem that resulted. It is crucial that we study to be sure our actions are right from the beginning, for otherwise we leave others with no real choice. Uzzah should have been using the strength his name bespeaks to carry the ark, as he appears to have been a priest. Even in our self-abandon in worship of YHWH, we cannot throw all caution to the wind and be reckless in celebrating the One who brought order to the world—and even more to Israel. We must be careful to rejoice in the ways He has appointed. The psalms tell us much about how.
8. And David was incensed on account of [the fact] that YHWH had made an outburst against Uzzah, and that place has been called Peretz-Uzzah to this day.
The party was over; YHWH had rained on his parade. His response to anger was anger, and it appears he renamed the place in his rebellion. (Peretz means “breach, breaking-forth, or outburst”.) But his anger short-circuited what he could have learned from it if he had pondered what had gone wrong. But later reflection on this incident may be what led David to realize he had to YHWH’s word in his heart to avoid sinning against Him (Ps. 119:11) at times like this when there might have been no one on hand to ask what the proper procedure was.
9. And David became afraid of YHWH that day, and said, “How can the ark of YHWH come to me?”
David may have now realized that he had spoken too quickly, and thought YHWH would never want His ark in the possession of one who responded to His judgment like this. His anger got him the opposite of what this event was all about—getting the ark to the City of David.
10. And David was not willing to move the ark of YHWH to himself on the City of David, so David had it turn aside [at the] house of Oved-Edom, the Githite.
One Torah violation had led to another, and the whole procession now stopped, as David parked the ark right there, wanting nothing more to do with it. Githite: someone from Gath—probably a Filistine--and his name means “servant of Edom”! What an inappropriate place to leave the symbol of YHWH’s presence! The ark had meant little to Israel until the unity between the tribes was restored, but because everyone was out of practice, no one was in the order that was needed for it to be cared for. So it remained in the house of a foreigner yet again.
11. So the ark sat in the house of Oved-Edom, the Githite, for three months, yet YHWH blessed Oved-Edom and his whole household.
No matter how bad the symbols in this man’s name and nationality were, he was apparently faithful to keep his charge. Edom was in later rabbinic tradition used as a code-name for Rome. Christianity sometimes takes up, honors, and protects parts of the covenant, since YHWH’s Name dwelling among the servants of Rome has given them a partial view of truth. But it is time to move all authority back to Yerushalayim, where it belongs.
12. Then it was reported to King David, saying, “YHWH has blessed the household of Oved-Edom and all who belong to him on account of the ark of Elohim.” So David went and gladly brought the ark of Elohim up from Oved-Edom’s house to the City of David.
David now saw that though there was definitely danger involved in bearing YHWH’s name, there was also much blessing, and he gave that the greater weight.
13. And what he did was, when those who were carrying the ark of YHWH had advanced six steps, he would slaughter a bull and a fattened beast [from the herd].
It seems David learned his lesson; they are transporting it correctly this time. This is a picture of the six days and a pause for the Sabbath. It appears they did this not just after the first six steps, but every six paces, judging by the amount of food that was available. (v. 19) The ark would have moved only about three times its length each time they advanced. They had already advanced closer to Yerushalayim than Kiryath-Ye’arim (seven miles away), so they were probably only three or four miles from the city when this part of the journey began, so it would have taken several hours, but was not an impossible distance to cover in this manner. He would slaughter: i.e., it was done under his authority; he may have done some of it himself. This looks like an extravagant “beautifying of the commandment”, but the loss of Uzzah’s life was ultimately David’s responsibility, and it is a Torah principle to give back more than one stole, so his “overcorrection” is not at all opposed to the spirit of Torah.
14. And David [was] dancing with all his might before YHWH, and David was dressed in a white linen efod.
Dancing: literally, whirling; Aramaic, praising. Dressed: or, girded, tied up. An efod was the garment of priests, though apparently not exclusively so. The high-priestly one was made of interwoven gold, blue, purple, and scarlet. (Ex. 28:15 ) Still, this suggests that David was stepping into his role as “priest after the order of Melkhitzedeq”—which simply means an officiator who also reigns as king in Yerushalayim in particular. He did not usurp the role of the Levitical priests, but he did preside over some congregational slaughterings to YHWH (v. 13) and blessed the people in YHWH’s name as Aharon was told to do (v. 18).
15. As David and all of Israel were bringing the ark of YHWH up with shouts [of joy] and the sound of a shofar,
16. it turned out that when the ark of YHWH had entered the City of David, Mikhal the daughter of Sha’ul looked down through the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before YHWH, and she began to regard him with disdain in her heart.
Leaping: or being agile. Mikhal let her pride and how she thought David’s reputation would reflect on her take precedence over love for YHWH with total abandon as David was doing. He did not mind looking foolish, because his heart was completely toward YHWH and he was rejoicing with his whole being.
17. When they brought the ark of YHWH in and set it in its place inside a tent that David had pitched for it, and David offered up ascending-offerings before YHWH, as well as peace-offerings.
The tent: probably not the Tabernacle, though possibly patterned after it. The last we saw it, it was at Shiloh on a semi-permanent base. Later David was not satisfied with the place where the ark was, and decided to build a house for it. If this tent had been the Tabernacle, there is no reason he should have been dissatisfied with it, for YHWH had commanded that it be built the way it was. Apparently the Tabernacle had fallen into disuse. We saw some evidence when he retrieved Golyath’s sword from there that it may have been becoming more of a museum than an active place of worship. So David was doing all he could to make the public worship of YHWH a normal thing again.
18. When David had finished making the ascending-offerings go up, along with the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the Name of YHWH [Master of] Armies.
19. And he apportioned out to all the people—to the whole multitude of Israel—one loaf of bread to each, one portion [of meat], and one pressed cake of raisins. Then the people all left, each for his home.
Portion: specifically something measured out; or possibly, date-cake; Aramaic, one portion and one share. But it appears that there would have been much meat to go around with how many animals were being slaughtered. (v. 13)
20. When David returned to bless his own household, Mikhal the daughter of Sha’ul went out to meet David, and she said, “How heavily was the king of Israel honored today, when he revealed himself today to the eyes of the handmaidens [among] his servants, as one of the idle [men] openly uncovers himself!”
She is being very sarcastic here, and YHWH did not appreciate this. Revealed himself: While this may mean he had been wearing nothing but an efod, it may just mean he let his heart be fully known without shame. He apparently took off his outer garment to be able to dance more freely, but she saw it as an attempt to show off his physique, or she may have simply meant that he had made himself too vulnerable—showing them too much of his humanness—so that they might not give him the respect due a king.
21. But David told Mikhal, “Before YHWH, who chose me over your father and over all of his household, who appointed me as leader over Israel—it is before YHWH that I was making merry!
She probably thought he was not living up to the dignity of a king, and was using her father as the standard, he having been the only king of Israel prior to this, at least who was called by that title. So David shows what YHWH thinks of that comparison—evidenced by the simple fact of whom He chose. Much of Sha’ul’s apparent dignity may have simply been his fear and hesitancy to put his whole self into things as David did so readily, as seen here. But David does not call himself the king, but only a leader. He knew he was only a representative of YHWH, the true king—something Mikhal appears not to have understood--and we must remember that this is what Yahshua is as well. Even Sha’ul was called to be a “leader” (nagid)—the same Hebrew word used here. (1 Shmu’el 9:16; 13:14; 2 Shm. 5:2) “Halleluyah” means “rave foolishly unto Yah(weh)”. She thought kings were only supposed to be about pomp, and here he was acting like a commoner—for dancing was often done by the lower classes for the entertainment of the rich.
22. “And I will be even more lightly esteemed than this, and will be lowly in my own eyes, but with the maid-servants of whom you spoke—with them I will be held as honorable!”
Lightly esteemed: to appear trifling or insignificant, even treated with contempt. Those whom she considered beneath her would actually prove more insightful than she. This concept has been carried too far by democracy, but there is a validity to it in the right context. He is probably also hinting that she in particular needs to take a more humble view of herself as well.
23. And as for Mikhal, she had no child until the day she died.
This may mean YHWH closed her womb as a punishment, or it may simply mean that David was never again attracted to her after what she said. David was not only her husband, but her king as well, and on both counts she should have shown him more respect—especially if she spoke in front of others, which she apparently did, if the scribe who recorded this knew about it. Had she had a child, she would have taught it her lack of respect for authority, but since she was also the daughter of the King of Israel, any son born to both her and David would have been expected to be king, being the rightful natural heir to both kingdoms, but this is not what YHWH had in mind.
CHAPTER 7
1. And what took place when the king had settled into his house, since YHWH had given him rest from all his enemies on every side,
As soon as David had the leisure and resources to do more than the bare essentials, here is the first thing that was on his mind:
2. was that David said to Nathan the prophet, “Consider, please: I myself am living in a house [made] of cedar trees, while the ark of Elohim is sitting between curtains!”
Cedar trees: the finest form of construction of his day, and very aromatic. The best cedars came from Levanon, the next country to the north of Israel, and were very available due to his close alliance with King Hiram there. He wanted to express His thanks to YHWH in the greatest way he knew how. He could not simply say, “Thank you” without doing something with his hands. The tribe of Yehudah has carried on this attitude in the absence of a Temple today by seeing the table as a parallel to the altar, and treating it as such (by not laying unclean food on it, and on being sure to mention YHWH when eating at it) and by giving charity at festival times. Curtains: the term emphasizes that they flutter or are flimsy—i.e., it is barely hidden from sight, let alone protected from either elements or hostile intruders.
3. And Nathan told the king, “Go and do anything that is in your heart, because YHWH is with you!”
“In your heart” should be a red flag to anyone (Yirmeyahu/Jer. 17:9), but David had proven to have a heart after YHWH (1 Shm. 13:14), continually seeking to please Him despite his occasional downfalls. The prophet clearly knew this, and so was confident that he would not be planning something blatantly evil, but still he was making an assumption, which YHWH had to correct:
4. But it turned out that the word of YHWH came to Nathan that night to say,
5. “Go, and tell my servant David, ‘This is what YHWH says: “Could you build Me a house [to serve] as My abode?
6. “‘“Because since the day I brought the descendants of Israel up out of Egypt until this day I have not dwelt in a house, but I have been going around in a tent, that is, in a Tabernacle.
Even prior to this, the only “house” he dwelt in was Avraham’s—and even that was a tent. Even Shem, the great teacher before Avraham, never had his name associated with a house, but with tents. (Gen. 9:27)
7. “‘“Wherever I have gone among all the descendants of Israel, have I said a word to [any] one of the tribes of Israel that I commanded to shepherd My people, saying, ‘Why have you not built Me a house of cedars?’”’
Yet He would ask this same question later, when Yehudah’s attitude was just the opposite—when they had built fancy homes but had not rebuilt His Temple. (Haggai 1:1-7) Yet though David’s wish sounds right, and in a way it is, still he must stay in season and in the order that YHWH has in mind:
8. “So now, this is what you must say to My servant David: ‘This is what YHWH, [Master] of Armies, says: “I have selected you from the meadowland, from [following] behind the flock, to become ruler over My people—over Israel.
Selected: or simply, taken. Meadowland: an adorned or beautiful place, a prepared habitation, a resting place especially for flocks, an abode of shepherds, a pleasant place. This may have emphasized that he had been at ease (apart from a few predators he had to fight off) before YHWH called him to a turbulent life full of conflict and then the heavy responsibility of being shepherd of His people. He was not called to a life of leisure, despite the great peace he had because he loved YHWH’s Torah. (Psalm 119:165)
9. “‘“And I have been with you everywhere you have gone and have cut off all your enemies from your presence, and I have made a great name for you like the name of the great men that are in the earth.
10. “‘“And I have determined a place for My people Israel and have planted them there, and they have settled in their [proper] spot, and they will never again be disturbed, nor will the sons of deviation continue to afflict them as [they] used to--
Their proper spot: or, a place of their own; Aramaic, a fixed place. As they used to: literally, as at the first. Such a promise! Yet He does not stop there.
11. “‘“that is, from the day when I put judges in charge of My people Israel—and I have allowed you a respite from all of your enemies.” And YHWH has declared to you that He will bring about a house for you!
I.e., isn’t all of this enough for one man? David would not be able to make a house for YHWH, but YHWH would make a “house” (essentially a dynasty) for him! Indeed, the Aramaic targum interprets this as “I will establish a kingdom for you”.
12. “‘And when your days are fulfilled and you sleep with your fathers, I will raise up your seed after you, which will proceed from within your body, and I will establish his kingdom.
David’s kingdom would not end with him as it had for Sha’ul. When David recounted this story to the elders of the tribes (1 Chron. 28:3), he added the detail that YHWH had not permitted him to build the Temple because he was a man of war and bloodshed. It does not appear that the incident in chapter 11 had taken place yet at this point, it is not likely that this refers to shedding innocent blood, and bloodshed in and of itself would not disqualify him, as it would certainly take place around the altar. The ark itself even went out to war with Israel. So what YHWH appears to be saying is that building a fixed, permanent structure would attach the wrong picture to David. A man of war dwells in tents, just like His ark had been doing all along. The feast of Sukkoth teaches us to remember the temporary nature of our settlements, just as the Tabernacle did. Archaeology shows that the camp of Israel around the Tabernacle looked uncannily like a huge version of the war camp of Pharaoh. Their presence in the wilderness made the nations around them tremble. Scripture uses the title “YHWH [Master] of Armies” more often than any other for Him. He wanted people to remember David as one who put his enemies under his feet. Though he was a man who preferred peace (Psalm 120:7), battles had to be fought before there could be peace. Until we see people choosing the Kingdom even over their own families, it is not yet close. (Mat. 10:37; 19:29) His son would be the picture of the peaceful aspect of the Kingdom, but what David represented was that no house for YHWH is built without war, whether it be literal or figurative. If there are no struggles, we are not gaining any ground. Some of the battles may simply be within our own selves. Loving one another does make war on what is outside, and this is more difficult than physical warfare! 1 Chron. 28:6 specifies that the “seed” spoken of here is Shlomo in particular.
13. “‘He [is the one who] will build a house for My Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
So it turns out that Nathan’s first words were true when seen in the right context. David would build a house for YHWH through the “house” YHWH would build from David! If David’s son built it, representing him, it would still be considered to have been built by David, as it was done under his authority. And in Y’hezq’el’s account of the coming Temple, we see David himself show up again to officiate at some ceremonies in it, whether by resurrection or by having one of his descendants represent him. (Compare Psalm 22:29-30.) Those who lose their lives for the sake of the anointing will find them again. This promise released David to make preparations for the house his son would build, possibly to ensure that he would indeed have no excuse not to begin, since it may not have been as prominent a matter in his son’s mind than it was in his own. But had he gone ahead and started construction at this time, he would have built it in the wrong place, for the threshing floor on which it was to be built—the site where Avraham had offered Yitzhaq--still belonged to someone else at this point. Many generations of David’s sons are collapsed into one here. His direct son would be a prototype, but his descendant a thousand years later, the Messiah, would finally seal this promise in place forever, though it would be at least an additional 2,000 years until the fullness of this promise would be seen. The “house” Yahshua would complete would be made up of “living stones”—though he will probably take part in building a physical Temple once again as well. Note, though, that it is not a house for YHWH, but for His Name—i.e., to proclaim His reputation and teach about His attributes. As David’s son would reiterate when it was built, even the universe itself cannot contain YHWH, let alone a comparatively small building! (1 Kings 8:27) And as 1 Kefa (Peter) 2:5ff reminds us, having a building was never enough to fulfill YHWH’s true wish; what He really wants is a spiritual house made up of “living stones”—i.e., an underlying reality for the physical Temple to point to and represent.
14. “‘I will become as a Father to him, and he will come to serve as my Son. If he acts crookedly, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men,
This is the basis for Yahshua’s being called “son of Elohim”. It is a specific title of the royal son of David in any generation, given at his coronation. (Note that it says “become”, not “be”.) It is not a statement that YHWH Himself had literally sired a child. But as is clearly evident here, this title applies to any descendant of David who sits on his throne. Every time there is a righteous king in Yehudah, David is heavily honored, and of course the Messiah brought him the greatest glory. But there is an open door for redemption any time a son of David is on the throne, if his people are prepared. David built through Shlomo, and Yahshua builds through us. The chastening may not apply to Yahshua, but it certainly applied to other sons before him.
15 “‘but my mercy will not depart from him, as I took it from Sha’ul, whom I put away before you.
Although correctives would inevitably have to come to his very human progeny, they would not cancel the promises altogether. It may have taken as many generations as there were between David and Yahshua for one of his sons to have a ready ear (Yeshayahu/Isa. 50:5-6) that did not require stripes and chastisement, except on behalf of others. (Yesh. 53:5)
16 “‘And your house and your kingdom will be established for ever before you; your throne will be established for ever.’”
Not just until the Babylonian captivity—though the throne has not been overt since then.
17. According to all these words and according to this whole vision, so said Nathan to David.
Though the part about not being able to build the Temple himself must have been somewhat disappointing to David, he now knew that he had YHWH’s full attention and had such marvelous promises. David wrote Psalm 89 to memorialize this encounter.
18. Then King David came in and sat before YHWH and said, “Who am I, O My Master YHWH, and who is my household, that you have brought me to this point?
Sat: Not only does this indicate that YHWH considered him a friend as He did Avraham. This was the basis for building in the Temple a raised pavilion in which the king who is a descendant of David may sit. No one else is permitted to be seated when within the Temple courts.
19. “Though this was still an insignificant thing in Your eyes, O Master YHWH, yet you have even spoken to the household of Your servant for a distant [time], and this is the instruction of mankind, O Master YHWH!
A distant time: or, for a great while to come; the Aramaic interprets it eschatologically as “for the age to come”. Instruction of mankind: literally, torah of Adam—i.e., going back even beyond Moshe’s.
20. “So what more could David say to You? But You have recognized Your servant, O Master YHWH.
21. “By means of Your word and according to Your heart You have accomplished all this greatness to let Your servant be acquainted with.
22. “On account of the same, You have been magnified, O YHWH Elohim, because there is none like You, and there is no elohim except You, according to all that we have heard with our ears!
He is speaking Torah back to YHWH (compare Ex. 15:11; Deut. 4:7; 10:21 et al), showing that he paid attention to the words he had to write when copying the Torah scroll upon his ascent to the throne. (Deut. 17:18)
23. “And who is like Your people—like Israel—one nation in the earth that Elohim went to redeem for Himself to [serve as His] people, and to establish a name for it, and to accomplish a great thing for yourselves and awesome things for Your Land because of the presence of Your people whom You redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, Gentiles and their elohim.
24. “Indeed, You have been establishing Your people Israel to be to You a people forever, and You, O YHWH, have come to be an Elohim to them!
25. “So now, O YHWH Elohim, the word which You spoke concerning Your servant and about his house—let it stand forever, and do as You have said
Let it stand: or, confirm it, make it binding, establish it. Though he probably really meant it when he said, “Who am I?” (v. 18, which the Aramaic targum takes as “I am not worthy”), still he clearly wanted what YHWH promised!
26. “so that Your name might grow [more and more] magnified into perpetuity, to say [that] YHWH [the Master] of Armies is Elohim over Israel, and may the house of David be firmly established before You,
Which name of YHWH does he want to grow more magnified? The name that highlights the aspect of His nature that should always be seen among David’s descendants. (See note on v. 12.)
27. “because You, O YHWH [Master] of Armies, Elohim of Israel, have uncovered the ear of Your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ Therefore, Your servant has found his heart to pray this prayer to You.
Uncovered the ear: In other words, David is saying, “I get it! I understand what You meant! Israel is to look at me and learn to risk their lives for You. Let Your house indeed be built in me!”
28. “And now, O Master YHWH, You are the One—the Elohim—and may Your words hold true when You promise Your servant this prosperity!
29. “Even now may You be pleased to bless the house of Your servant that it may always [remain] in Your presence, since You, O Master YHWH, have spoken. And may the house of Your servant be blessed from Your blessing forever.”
He did not want any blessing except what came from YHWH and what He defined as blessing.
CHAPTER 8
1. Now what took place after the same is that David attacked the Filistines and brought them into subjection, and David took Metheg haAmmah from the hand of the Filistines.
After the same: that is, YHWH’s reminder to David that his job for the kingdom was to subdue his enemies so that there could be peace and the Temple could be built. This is what motivated him in the battles described below. Metheg haAmmah: possibly “bridle of the measure/cubit” or “bridle of the mother city”, probably the name of a town, or, David took control of the Filistines’ capital city, though they still had their own rulers in the individual city-states. This way they could no longer hold the threat of attacking Israel. The Aramaic translation has, “the arrangement of the cubit”—possibly some technology the Filistines had not previously allowed Israel to share.
2. Then he attacked Moav and measured them off with a cord, making them lie down on the ground, and he measured off two lines to put to death, and the full length of the line to let live, and Moav became servants for David, bearing a tribute.
The exact method they used is not known, but the Aramaic translation took it as a form of casting lots. Bearing: could mean either carrying or enduring. But it is probably the former, because while such a means of choosing some to live and some to die is foreign to modern morality, and would be considered an atrocity, people at this time were of a very different state of mind. They expected that if they were defeated, their lot was to be killed, so they were grateful that he spared some, and were willing to serve him because of his mercy. They did their job in the place they were allotted. While David was not hesitant to shed blood without qualms when it was necessary since the House of YHWH could not be built until there was rest from all his enemies, still he was not bloodthirsty. If Yo’av had been commander-in-chief, they might have all been killed, but one of David’s own ancestors had even come from Moav. (Ruth 4:13-22) These people were not in the Land of Israel, so he was not required to annihilate them all. And in contrast to his distaste for the blind and lame, we know that David greatly respected great warriors; Sha’ul, for all his shortcomings, had been his hero. So he honored those willing to die, and especially those who fought well enough to survive a battle with his men, by making them part of his own army so they could help him win more battles, as well as to help with the construction of the Temple. Such were worth keeping alive. So he spared the ones one would think he should fear, because their respect for one another was mutual. They feel honored to now be associated with the renowned David.
3. Then David attacked Hadad-ezer, the son of Rekhov, king of Tzovah, as he was going to turn back his hand at the river.
Hadad-ezer means “a mighty one helps”. Tzovah was east of Levanon and north of Damaseq. Turn back his hand: Aramaic, to change his border. They were apparently trying to expand their territory. “The river” is thought to be the Ferath (Euphrates). Khamath lay between it and that river, and verse 10 suggests that this was the territory they were trying to take so that they had access to the immense volume of trade that that river would allow them..
4. And David captured from him 1,700 war-horses and 20,000 footmen, and David hamstrung all the mounts, but of these he left 100 chariots.
Hamstringing the horses would keep them from being battle-worthy. David must have remembered the Torah command that the king of Israel should not have many horses, as this was too reminiscent of Egyptian ways. (Deut. 17:16) David was giving his nation an example of how to love and obey YHWH. Apparently he did not consider 100 chariots to be excessive, and it seems to imply that he spared 100 horses or horse-teams to pull the chariots. Or he may have left these with those he conquered so they could guard the new borders of his kingdom for him.
5. And when the Arameans of Damaseq came to help Hadad-azer, king of Tzovah, David struck down among the Arameans 22,000 men.
Arameans: i.e., Syrians. Again, his ancestor Yaaqov’s wives had both come from Aram, which may be one reason David left many of them alive, but he had to weaken them because they had chosen the wrong alliance. Hadad-Azer means “Hadad (a pagan deity) assists."
6. And David stationed garrisons in Aram of Damaseq, and the Arameans became servants to David, bearers of tribute, and YHWH delivered David everywhere he went.
7. And David took the golden shields that were on the servants of Hadad-azer, and brought them to Yerushalayim.
Shields: or ornamental coverings, as gold is a soft metal and would not function well for a protective purpose; the term comes from a word meaning “to have power over” or “get mastery”.
8. And from Betakh [security] and Berothai [cypress groves], Hadad-azer’s cities, King David took very much bronze.
9. When Tho’i, the King of Khamath, heard that David had struck down the whole army of Hadad-azer,
10. Tho’i sent his son Yoram to King David to ask him for peace and to intensely bless him, because he had engaged Hadad-azer in battle and struck him down, since Hadad-azer had been a man of battles [for] Tho’i. And in his hand were articles of gold, articles of silver, and articles of bronze.
Bless: literally, to bow the knee to. He was very grateful to David for removing the threat of the one who had been attacking him.
11. King David even dedicated them to YHWH along with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations that he had brought into subjection--
David knew that the Torah warned kings not to amass much silver or gold for themselves (Deut. 17), undoubtedly due to the intrinsic dangers of doing so, but he also knew that YHWH had commanded him to war against any nation that threatened Israel, so that his son could build YHWH’s Temple. He was not supposed to sit around his palace, but to focus on his task for the kingdom. And the benefit of this was great wealth, so he poured it into the Temple as his contribution to what his son would do, rather than sulking because he could not do the part his son was called to do.
12. from Aram, from Moav, from the sons of Ammon, from the Filistines, from Amaleq, and from the plunder of Hadad-azer, the son of Rekhov, king of Tzovah.
Several of these peoples had earned this conquest by mistreating Israel earlier in their history. Hadad-ezer was apparently a neighborhood bully. (v. 10)
13. Thus David got a reputation when he returned from defeating Aram in the Valley of Salt—18,000 [in all]!
Thus it seems that David killed 40,000 Arameans in all. (Compare verse 5.) Got a reputation: literally, accomplished a name—one which was to be recognized, representing a people that was truly greater than others and that no one else should exalt themselves against. Valley of Salt: probably the Great Rift in general, since the Salt Sea (Dead Sea) is in it, and the Rift runs north beyond the Kinnereth (Sea of Galilee) to very close to Aram. This valley is where his ancestor Avraham had fought to recover his relatives, and upon his return paid tithes to Melkhitzedeq. That it is called the Valley of Salt rather than the Sea of Salt suggests that the Dead Sea had not yet filled the whole valley. This stands to reason because it had only been 1,000 years since the S’dom and Amorrah cataclysm that cut off the Yarden River’s outlet, which thus started filling up the deep gash in the earth’s surface that was caused by the same event.
14. And he stationed garrisons in Edom; in all of Edom he put garrisons, and all of Edom became servants to David, and YHWH was giving David victory everywhere he went.
Giving victory: or, bringing him deliverance.
15. Now as David was coming to reign over all of Israel, David began to execute judgment and justice for all of his people.
This is another reason the nations around him respected him: he was honorable. He treated his people—and even his enemies—rightly. As the Torah said, those from outside Israel who attached themselves to him were treated as equals. (Ex. 12:49 et al) They recognized that we are designed to follow one strong leader, not a group of leaders. This is an example of what YHWH said would take place if we followed the statutes and righteous judgments that Moshe taught. (Deut. 4:5ff) The nations around us would say ,”Surely this is a wise and understanding people!” No one else had such appropriate laws. Sha’ul might have taught David war, but Moshe taught him relationship with YHWH.
16. And Yo’av the son of Tz’ruyah was over the army, and Y’hoshafat the son of Akhilud was the chronicler.
Chronicler: literally, causer to remember, i.e., a historian who kept records. He may be the one who wrote this book. Y’hoshafat means “YHWH has judged” and Akhilud means “My brother begets children” or “brother of a child”.
17. Also, Tzadoq the son of Akhituv and Akhimelekh the son of Evyathar were the priests, and Serayah was the one who kept tally.
Tzadoq means “righteous”, Akhituv means “my brother prospers” or “my brother is appropriate”. Akhimelekh means “my brother is a king”. Evyather means “eminent father” or “my father has a remnant”. He was the only one who survived Sha’ul’s slaughter of his family. (1 Shmu’el 22). While Tzadoq’s line would prove to be more worthy, David preserved the priestly dynasty that had begun to serve in the days of Eli, because though they were not the ones designated to be priests, they must have had to fill in during a void in proper leadership, and apparently were as faithful as they could be in that role. Therefore David does not rob his family of some due credit, while at the same time restoring the proper line now that it is possible. Akhimelekh was named for his grandfather, and Akhituv may be mentioned partly to distinguish him from Akhimelekh’s great-grandfather, whose name was also Akhituv. Serayah means “YHWH exerts Himself”, “YHWH endures”, or “YHWH rules”.
18. And B’nayahu the son of Y’hoyada [was over] both the Krithites and the Plethites, and David’s [own] sons became officiators.
B’nayah means “YHWH has built [up]”. Y’hoyada means “YHWH knew”. Krithites and Plethites: possibly executioners or bodyguards in general, but there was a people who lived near the coast who were also called by Krithites (1 Shm. 30:14; Y’hezq’el 25:16; Z’kharyah 2:5), often mentioned in conjunction with the Filistines. They may have been mercenaries who came from among the Filistines or other sea peoples. Plethites comes from a word for “swiftness”, and is only used in connection with the Krithites. Some therefore translate it “couriers”. This would mean David trusted foreigners to carry his war plans, etc. This multiplicity of foreigners who see David as king foreshadows Yahshua. Those who know themselves to be Israel are being called to return to the ancient ways, but there are many who have no blood relationship who will also be joined to him. Of course they would worship YHWH, not their former elohim. Officiators: or, priests—possibly in a more general sense than the Levitical priests of v. 17, for the king presided over some Temple functions, but more in a civic sense, and never impinging on the duties of the Levites. (e.g., 6:17-18) This is the manner in which Yahshua can be both king and priest—after the “order of Melkhitzedeq”. This helps us avoid the erroneous doctrine that he replaced the Aharonic priesthood. This could not be, because due to the actions of Pin’has, YHWH made that priesthood eternal. In fact, the only tribe that we can identify absolutely today is the Levite, and most particularly the priestly line of Aharon. Some with this genetic marker are being actively trained to serve in the Temple when it can be rebuilt. The writer to the Hebrews might have chosen to leave this somewhat ambiguous because of the corrupt priesthood in its day, which led the true priest in exile to start the Essene sect. But as the Kingdom draws nearer, we must have the facts straight and rightly divide the Word.
INTRODUCTION: This book begins where I Shmu’el leaves off—when David is told of King Sha’ul’s death, very close to 1000 B.C.E. Why is the book named after Shmu’el when Shmu’el has already died before it begins? Shouldn’t it be called the Book of David instead? That is whom it is mainly about. But Shmu’el was responsible for putting David in his position, as he had been for Sha’ul. The division of the book of Shmu’el into two parts originated with the Greek Septuagint (LXX) in the second century B.C.E. It was not until the 15th century C.E. (A.D.) that it was divided into two parts in the Hebrew scriptures.
THE SECOND BOOK OF
Shmu'el
the prophet
6:1-7:17 is a haftarah (companion passage) to Torah portion Sh'mini.
