2 Samuel 21:4

2 Samuel 21:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the Gibeonites said unto him, We will have no silver nor gold of Saul, nor of his house; neither for us shalt thou kill any man in Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you.
• New International Version (NIV)The Gibeonites answered him, “We have no right to demand silver or gold from Saul or his family, nor do we have the right to put anyone in Israel to death.” “What do you want me to do for you?” David asked.
• English Standard Version (ESV)The Gibeonites said to him, "It is not a matter of silver or gold between us and Saul or his house; neither is it for us to put any man to death in Israel." And he said, "What do you say that I shall do for you?"
• New King James Version (NKJV)And the Gibeonites said to him, “We will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house, nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us.” So he said, “Whatever you say, I will do for you.”

Context of 2 Samuel 21:4

2The Gibeonites were not descendants of Israel. They were the only Amorite people who still lived. The Israelites had promised not to kill them. But Saul thought that he should kill them. He thought that this would help Israel and Judah to rule their land. Now King David told the Gibeonites to come to speak with him. 3He asked them, ‘What can I do to help you? How can I make things right between us? I want you to bring the Lord's blessing to his people again.’ The Gibeonites answered David, ‘We do not want Saul's family to give us money or gold. And it would not be right for us to kill anyone in Israel.’ So David asked them, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ 5They answered the king, ‘You know that Saul tried to destroy us. That man wanted to kill all of our family who were living in Israel. 6So we want you to give us seven of his male descendants. Then we will kill them. We will hang their bodies at the place where people worship the Lord in Gibeah. That was Saul's town, the man that the Lord had chosen to be king.’ The king said, ‘I will give them to you.’

2 Samuel 21:4 word by word

וַיֹּ֧אמְרוּ ל֣וֹ הַגִּבְעֹנִ֗ים אֵֽין־לָ֜נוּ כֶּ֤סֶף וְזָהָב֙ עִם־שָׁא֣וּל וְעִם־בֵּית֔וֹ וְאֵֽין־לָ֥נוּ אִ֖ישׁ לְהָמִ֣ית בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיֹּ֛אמֶר מָֽה־אַתֶּ֥ם אֹמְרִ֖ים אֶעֱשֶׂ֥ה לָכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the Gibeonitesגִּבְעֹנִיgib‛ônîy · GibeoniteH1393
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto him, We will have no silverכֶּ֫סֶףkeseph · silver: moneyH3701
• nor goldזָהָבzâhâb · goldH2091
• ofעִם‛im · withH5973
• Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
• nor of his houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
• neither for us shalt thou killמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
• any manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• in Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• will I doעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213

Cross-references for 2 Samuel 21:4

• Psalms 49:6Those people think that their money will keep them safe. They are proud about their riches.
• 1 Peter 1:18Your ancestors lived in a way that did not make them really happy. That is the way that you learned to live as well. But now God has saved you from that way of life. You know that he has bought you for himself. He did not buy you with things that do not continue for ever, like silver or gold.

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 21:4

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4No silver, nor gold … - Money payments as a compensation for blood-guilt were very common among many nations. The law, too, in Numbers 35:31-32, presupposes the existence of the custom which it prohibits. In like manner the speech of the Gibeonites implies that such a payment as they refuse would be a not unusual proceeding. Neither … shalt thou kill any man in Israel - They mean that it is not against the nation of Israel, but against the individual…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-22The final chapters of 2 Samuel form a coda (a concluding section). This section brings together and summarizes the main themes from earlier chapters. These chapters are thematic, not chronological (arranged by topic, not by time). Because of this, not all the events happened at the end of David’s reign (for example, 2 Samuel 22:1). The material is arranged using a common Hebrew literary pattern called a chiasm (a mirror-like structure). In a chiasm, the…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-92Sa 21:1-9. The Three Years' Famine for the Gibeonites Cease by Hanging Seven of Saul's Sons. 1. the Lord answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites--The sacred history has not recorded either the time or the reason of this massacre. Some think that they were sufferers in the atrocity perpetrated by Saul at Nob (1Sa 22:19), where many of them may have resided as attendants of the priests; while others suppose it…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Samuel 21:4

• Covenant
• David
• Gibeon
• Saul

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Saul
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Paul, Saul
• David
• Giants
• Heredity
• Of
• Psalms, Book of

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