2 Samuel 1:1

David Learns of the Deaths of Saul and Jonathan

1:1 After the death of Saul, ¹  when David had returned from defeating the Amalekites, ²  he stayed at Ziklag ³  for two days.

2 Samuel 1:5-6

1:5 David said to the young man ⁴  who was telling him this, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?” ⁵  1:6 The young man who was telling him this ⁶  said, “I just happened to be on Mount Gilboa and came across Saul leaning on his spear for support. The chariots and leaders of the horsemen were in hot pursuit of him.

2 Samuel 1:22

1:22 From the blood of the slain, from the fat of warriors,

the bow of Jonathan was not turned away.

The sword of Saul never returned ⁷  empty.

2 Samuel 1:24

1:24 O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,

who clothed you in scarlet ⁸  as well as jewelry,

who put gold jewelry on your clothes.

2 Samuel 2:7-8

2:7 Now be courageous ⁹  and prove to be valiant warriors, for your lord Saul is dead. The people of Judah have anointed me as king over them.”

David’s Army Clashes with the Army of Saul

2:8 Now Abner son of Ner, the general in command of Saul’s army, had taken Saul’s son Ish-bosheth ¹⁰  and had brought him to Mahanaim.

2 Samuel 2:15

2:15 So they got up and crossed over by number: twelve belonging to Benjamin and to Ish-bosheth son of Saul, and twelve from the servants of David.

2 Samuel 3:10

3:10 namely, to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and to establish the throne of David over Israel and over Judah all the way from Dan to Beer Sheba!”

2 Samuel 9:1-2

David Finds Mephibosheth

9:1 ¹¹ Then David asked, “Is anyone still left from the family ¹²  of Saul, so that I may extend kindness to him for the sake of Jonathan?”

9:2 Now there was a servant from Saul’s house named Ziba, so he was summoned to David. The king asked him, “Are you Ziba?” He replied, “At your service.” ¹³ 

2 Samuel 9:6

9:6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed low with his face toward the ground. ¹⁴  David said, “Mephibosheth?” He replied, “Yes, at your service.” ¹⁵ 

2 Samuel 9:9

9:9 Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s attendant, and said to him, “Everything that belonged to Saul and to his entire house I hereby give to your master’s grandson.

2 Samuel 21:6

21:6 let seven of his male descendants be turned over to us, and we will execute ¹⁶  them before the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, who was the Lord’s chosen one.” ¹⁷  The king replied, “I will turn them over.”

2 Samuel 21:13

21:13 David ¹⁸  brought the bones of Saul and of Jonathan his son from there; they also gathered up the bones of those who had been executed.

2 Samuel 22:1

David Sings to the Lord

22:1 ¹⁹ David sang ²⁰  to the Lord the words of this song when ²¹  the Lord rescued him from the power ²²  of all his enemies, including Saul. ²³ 

[1:1]  ¹ sn This chapter is closely linked to 1 Sam 31. It should be kept in mind that 1 and 2 Samuel were originally a single book, not separate volumes. Whereas in English Bible tradition the books of Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, and Ezra-Nehemiah are each regarded as two separate books, this was not the practice in ancient Hebrew tradition. Early canonical records, for example, counted them as single books respectively. The division into two books goes back to the Greek translation of the OT and was probably initiated because of the cumbersome length of copies due to the Greek practice (unlike that of Hebrew) of writing vowels. The present division into two books can be a little misleading in terms of perceiving the progression of the argument of the book; in some ways it is preferable to treat the books of 1-2 Samuel in a unified fashion.

[1:1]  ² sn The Amalekites were a nomadic people who inhabited Judah and the Transjordan. They are mentioned in Gen 36:15-16 as descendants of Amalek who in turn descended from Esau. In Exod 17:8-16 they are described as having acted in a hostile fashion toward Israel as the Israelites traveled to Canaan from Egypt. In David’s time the Amalekites were viewed as dangerous enemies who raided, looted, and burned Israelite cities (see 1 Sam 30).

[1:1]  ³ sn Ziklag was a city in the Negev which had been given to David by Achish king of Gath. For more than a year David used it as a base from which he conducted military expeditions (see 1 Sam 27:5-12). According to 1 Sam 30:1-19, Ziklag was destroyed by the Amalekites while Saul fought the Philistines.

[1:5]  ⁴ tn In v. 2 he is called simply a “man.” The word used here in v. 5 (so also in vv. 6, 13, 15), though usually referring to a young man or servant, may in this context designate a “fighting” man, i.e., a soldier.

[1:5]  ⁵ tc Instead of the MT “who was recounting this to him, ‘How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead?’” the Syriac Peshitta reads “declare to me how Saul and his son Jonathan died.”

[1:6]  ⁶ tc The Syriac Peshitta and one ms of the LXX lack the words “who was telling him this” of the MT.

[1:22]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form is used here to indicate repeated past action.

[1:24]  ⁸ sn Clothing of scarlet was expensive and beyond the financial reach of most people.

[2:7]  ⁹ tn Heb “let your hands be strong.”

[2:8]  ¹⁰ sn The name Ish-bosheth means in Hebrew “man of shame.” It presupposes an earlier form such as Ish-baal (“man of the Lord”), with the word “baal” being used of Israel’s God. But because the Canaanite storm god was named “Baal,” that part of the name was later replaced with the word “shame.”

[9:1]  ¹¹ sn 2 Samuel 9–20 is known as the Succession Narrative. It is a literary unit that describes David’s efforts at consolidating his own kingdom following the demise of King Saul; it also provides the transition to subsequent leadership on the part of David’s successor Solomon.

[9:1]  ¹² tn Heb “house.”

[9:2]  ¹³ tn Heb “your servant.”

[9:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “he fell on his face and bowed down.”

[9:6]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Look, your servant.”

[21:6]  ¹⁶ tn The exact nature of this execution is not altogether clear. The verb יָקַע (yaqa’) basically means “to dislocate” or “alienate.” In Gen 32:26 it is used of the dislocation of Jacob’s thigh. Figuratively it can refer to the removal of an individual from a group (e.g., Jer 6:8; Ezek 23:17) or to a type of punishment the specific identity of which is uncertain (e.g., here and Num 25:4); cf. NAB “dismember them”; NIV “to be killed and exposed.”

[21:6]  ¹⁷ tc The LXX reads “at Gibeon on the mountain of the Lord” (cf. 21:9). The present translation follows the MT, although a number of recent English translations follow the LXX reading here (e.g., NAB, NRSV, NLT).

[21:13]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (David) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:1]  ¹⁹ sn In this long song of thanks, David affirms that God is his faithful protector. He recalls in highly poetic fashion how God intervened in awesome power and delivered him from death. His experience demonstrates that God vindicates those who are blameless and remain loyal to him. True to his promises, God gives the king victory on the battlefield and enables him to subdue nations. A parallel version of the song appears in Ps 18.

[22:1]  ²⁰ tn Heb “spoke.”

[22:1]  ²¹ tn Heb “in the day,” or “at the time.”

[22:1]  ²² tn Heb “hand.”

[22:1]  ²³ tn Heb “and from the hand of Saul.”