Darby Bible
2 Samuel 21:2
2And the king called the Gibeonites, and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remainder of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn to them; and Saul sought to smite them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.)
2 Samuel 21:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)
- New International Version (NIV)The king summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were survivors of the Amorites; the Israelites had sworn to spare them, but Saul in his zeal for Israel and Judah had tried to annihilate them.)
- English Standard Version (ESV)So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the people of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites. Although the people of Israel had sworn to spare them, Saul had sought to strike them down in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.
- New King James Version (NKJV)So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; the children of Israel had sworn protection to them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.
Context of 2 Samuel 21:2
1And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of Jehovah. And Jehovah said, It is for Saul, and for [his] house of blood, because he slew the Gibeonites. And the king called the Gibeonites, and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remainder of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn to them; and Saul sought to smite them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.) 3And David said to the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? and with what shall I make atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of Jehovah? 4And the Gibeonites said to him, As to Saul and his house, it is with us no question of receiving silver or gold, neither is it for us to have any man put to death in Israel. And he said, What ye say will I do for you.
Read all of 2 Samuel 212 Samuel 21:2 word by word
וַיִּקְרָ֥א הַמֶּ֛לֶךְ לַגִּבְעֹנִ֖ים וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵיהֶ֑ם וְהַגִּבְעֹנִ֞ים לֹ֣א מִבְּנֵ֧י יִשְׂרָאֵ֣ל הֵ֗מָּה כִּ֚י אִם־מִיֶּ֣תֶר הָאֱמֹרִ֔י וּבְנֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ נִשְׁבְּע֣וּ לָהֶ֔ם וַיְבַקֵּ֤שׁ שָׁאוּל֙ לְהַכֹּתָ֔ם בְּקַנֹּאת֥וֹ לִבְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל וִיהוּדָֽה׃Read the interlinear
- kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- calledקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
- Gibeonitesגִּבְעֹנִיgib‛ônîy · GibeoniteH1393
- Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- remainderיֶ֫תֶרyether · remainderH3499
- Amoritesאֱמֹרִי'ĕmôrîy · AmoriteH567
- swornשָׁבַעshâba‛ · to swearH7650
- Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
- soughtבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
- Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
Cross-references for 2 Samuel 21:2
- Joshua 9:3And when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai,
- Joshua 6:19And all the silver, and gold, and vessels of copper and iron, shall be holy to Jehovah; they shall come into the treasury of Jehovah.
- Genesis 15:16And [in the] fourth generation they shall come hither again; for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.
- Deuteronomy 7:16And thou shalt consume all the peoples that Jehovah thy God will give up unto thee; thine eye shall not spare them, and thou shalt not serve their gods; for that would be a snare unto thee.
- 1 Samuel 14:44And Saul said, God do so [to me] and more also; thou shalt certainly die, Jonathan.
- 1 Samuel 15:8And he took Agag the king of Amalek alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.
- 2 Kings 10:16and said, Come with me, and see my zeal for Jehovah. So they made him ride in his chariot.
- Luke 9:54And his disciples James and John seeing [it] said, Lord, wilt thou that we speak [that] fire come down from heaven and consume them, as also Elias did?
- John 16:2They shall put you out of the synagogues; but the hour is coming that every one who kills you will think to render service to God;
- Romans 10:2For I bear them witness that they have zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.
- Galatians 4:17They are not rightly zealous after you, but desire to shut you out [from us], that ye may be zealous after them.
Commentaries on 2 Samuel 21:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2The remnant of the Amorites - The Gibeonites were Hivites, not Amorites, as appears from Joshua 11:19; : but Amorites is a name often given to the Canaanites in general, Genesis 15:16; Amos 2:9, and elsewhere.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2The way in which the writer here refers to the history of the league with the Gibeonites Joshua 9:7; Joshua 11:19; and in many enumerations of the Canaanite nations the Hivites are distinguished from the Amorites. But “Amorite” is often used in a more comprehensive sense, equivalent to “Canaanite” (as Genesis 15:16; Deuteronomy 1:27), and denoting especially that part of the Canaanite nation which dwelt in the hill country Numbers 13:29; Deuteronomy 1:7…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2Though the Amorites were a specific group of people (Genesis 10:16), here it refers to the people living in Canaan before the Israelites. When zeal (strong devotion or passion) is directed in the right way, it is commendable. The Bible gives positive examples of this kind of zeal (Numbers 25:11; 1 Kings 19:10). Saul’s zeal, however, was misdirected. He showed clear disregard for Israel’s covenant (a binding agreement) with the Gibeonites.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah--Under pretense of a rigorous and faithful execution of the divine law regarding the extermination of the Canaanites, he set himself to expel or destroy those whom Joshua had been deceived into sparing. His real object seems to have been, that the possessions of the Gibeonites, being forfeited to the crown, might be divided among his own people (compare 1Sa 22:7). At all events, his proceeding against…Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Samuel 21:2
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Samuel 21
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
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