2 Samuel 16:10

2 Samuel 16:10 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the king said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? so let him curse, because the Lord hath said unto him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so?
• New International Version (NIV)But the king said, “What does this have to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord said to him, ‘Curse David,’ who can ask, ‘Why do you do this?’ ”
• English Standard Version (ESV)But the king said, "What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord has said to him, 'Curse David,' who then shall say, 'Why have you done so?'"
• New King James Version (NKJV)But the king said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Zeruiah? So let him curse, because the Lord has said to him, ‘Curse David.’ Who then shall say, ‘Why have you done so?’ ”

Context of 2 Samuel 16:10

8The Lord has paid you back for all the blood of the house of Saul in whose place you became king, and the Lord has handed the kingdom over to your son Absalom. Look, you are in trouble because you’re a man of bloodshed!” 9Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and remove his head!” The king replied, “Sons of Zeruiah, do we agree on anything? He curses me this way because the Lord told him, ‘Curse David! ’ Therefore, who can say, ‘Why did you do that? ’” 11Then David said to Abishai and all his servants, “Look, my own son, my own flesh and blood, intends to take my life — how much more now this Benjaminite! Leave him alone and let him curse me; the Lord has told him to. 12Perhaps the Lord will see my affliction and restore goodness to me instead of Shimei’s curses today.”

2 Samuel 16:10 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ מַה־לִּ֥י וְלָכֶ֖ם בְּנֵ֣י צְרֻיָ֑ה כֹּ֣ה יְקַלֵּ֗ל כִּ֤י יְהוָה֙ אָ֤מַר לוֹ֙ קַלֵּ֣ל אֶת־דָּוִ֔ד וּמִ֣י יֹאמַ֔ר מַדּ֖וּעַ עָשִׂ֥יתָה כֵּֽן׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• What have I to do with you, ye sonsבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• of Zeruiahצְרוּיָהtserûyâh · ZeruiahH6870
• so let him curseקָלַלqâlal · to lightenH7043
• because the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
• Wherefore hast thou done soעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213

Cross-references for 2 Samuel 16:10

• 2 Samuel 3:39As for me, even though I am the anointed king, I have little power today. These men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too fierce for me. May the Lord repay the evildoer according to his evil!”
• 2 Samuel 19:22David answered, “Sons of Zeruiah, do we agree on anything? Have you become my adversary today? Should any man be killed in Israel today? Am I not aware that today I’m king over Israel?”
• 1 Kings 2:5“You also know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me and what he did to the two commanders of Israel’s army, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. He murdered them in a time of peace to avenge blood shed in war. He spilled that blood on his own waistband and on the sandals of his feet.
• Matthew 16:23Jesus turned and told Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns but human concerns.”
• 1 Kings 22:21“Then a spirit came forward, stood in the Lord’s presence, and said, ‘I will entice him.’
• 2 Kings 18:25Now, have I attacked this place to destroy it without the Lord’s approval? The Lord said to me, ‘Attack this land and destroy it.’”
• Lamentations 3:38Do not both adversity and good come from the mouth of the Most High?
• John 18:11At that, Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword away! Am I not to drink the cup the Father has given me?”
• Job 9:12If he snatches something, who can stop him? Who can ask him, “What are you doing?”
• Ecclesiastes 8:4For the king’s word is authoritative, and who can say to him, “What are you doing?”
• Daniel 4:35All the inhabitants of the earth are counted as nothing, and he does what he wants with the army of heaven and the inhabitants of the earth. There is no one who can block his hand or say to him, “What have you done?”
• Romans 9:20On the contrary, who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? Will what is formed say to the one who formed it, “Why did you make me like this?”

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 16:10

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10Because the Lord hath said - The particle וכי vechi should be translated for if, not because. For If the Lord hath said unto him, Curse David, who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so!Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10What have I to do … - See the marginal references compare Matthew 8:29; John 2:4, and a similar complaint about the sons of Zeruiah 2 Samuel 3:39. And for a like striking incident in the life of the Son of David, see Luke 9:52-56.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-14Verses 5-14 David bore Shimei's curses much better than Ziba's flatteries; by these he was brought to pass a wrong judgment on another, by those to pass a right judgment on himself: the world's smiles are more dangerous than its frowns. Once and again David spared Saul's life, while Saul sought his. But innocence is no defence against malice and falsehood; nor are we to think it strange, if we are charged with that which we have been most careful to keep…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10If he curses me because the LORD told him: David thought it might be punishment for past sins. David was actually reducing the violence around him, despite Shimei's accusations.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 5-125-12. when king David came to Bahurim--a city of Benjamin (2Sa 3:16; 19:16). It is, however, only the confines of the district that are here meant. Shimei, ... a man of the family of Saul--The misfortune of his family, and the occupation by David of what they considered their rightful possessions, afforded a natural, if not a justifiable cause for this ebullition of rude insults and violence. He upbraided David as an ambitious usurper, and charged him, as…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Samuel 16:10

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Clemency
• Forgiveness
• Meekness
• Prayer
• Resignation
• Shimei
• Zeruiah

In the dictionaries

• David
• Meekness
• Providence
• Shimei
• Bible, the
• Horse
• Israel, History of
• Samuel, Books of
• Solomon
• Zeruiah

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings