2 Samuel 5:24

2 Samuel 5:24 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the Lord go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines.
• New International Version (NIV)As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the poplar trees, move quickly, because that will mean the Lord has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then rouse yourself, for then the Lord has gone out before you to strike down the army of the Philistines."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. For then the Lord will go out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.”

Context of 2 Samuel 5:24

22Now the Philistines came up once again and spread themselves out in the valley of Rephaim. 23When David inquired of the Lord, He said, “You shall not go directly up; circle around behind them and come at them in front of the balsam trees. It shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then you shall act promptly, for then the Lord will have gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines.” 25Then David did so, just as the Lord had commanded him, and struck down the Philistines from Geba as far as Gezer.

2 Samuel 5:24 word by word

וִ֠יהִי כְּֽשָׁמְעֲךָ֞ אֶת־ק֧וֹל צְעָדָ֛ה בְּרָאשֵׁ֥י הַבְּכָאִ֖ים אָ֣ז תֶּחֱרָ֑ץ כִּ֣י אָ֗ז יָצָ֤א יְהוָה֙ לְפָנֶ֔יךָ לְהַכּ֖וֹת בְּמַחֲנֵ֥ה פְלִשְׁתִּֽים׃Read the interlinear

• you hearשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• the soundקוֹלqôl qôl · voice: soundH6963
• of marchingצְעָדָהtse‛âdâh · marchingH6807
• in the topsרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: topH7218
• balsamבָּכָאbâkâ' · balsamH1057
• thenאָז'âz · thenH227
• you shall actחָרַץchârats · to decideH2782
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• will have goneיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• out beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• you to strikeנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• the armyמַחֲנֶהmachăneh · campH4264
• of the Philistinesפְּלִשְׁתִּיpelishtîy · PhilistineH6430

Cross-references for 2 Samuel 5:24

• 2 Kings 7:6For the Lord had caused the army of the Arameans to hear a sound of chariots and a sound of horses, even the sound of a great army, so that they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us.”
• Judges 4:14Deborah said to Barak, “Arise! For this is the day in which the Lord has given Sisera into your hands; behold, the Lord has gone out before you.” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him.
• Judges 7:15When Gideon heard the account of the dream and its interpretation, he bowed in worship. He returned to the camp of Israel and said, “Arise, for the Lord has given the camp of Midian into your hands.”
• 1 Samuel 14:9If they say to us, ‘Wait until we come to you’; then we will stand in our place and not go up to them.
• 1 Chronicles 14:15It shall be when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then you shall go out to battle, for God will have gone out before you to strike the army of the Philistines.”
• Philippians 2:11and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 5:24

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 24When thou hearest the sound of a going - If there had not been an evident supernatural interference, David might have thought that the sleight or ruse de guerre which he had used was the cause of his victory. By the going in the tops of the mulberry trees probably only a rustling among the leaves is intended. The Targum says, a noise; the Arabic has it, the noise of horses' hoofs.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-25Verses 17-25 The Philistines considered not that David had the presence of God with him, which Saul had forfeited and lost. The kingdom of the Messiah, as soon as it was set up in the world, was thus attacked by the powers of darkness. The heathen raged, and the kings of the earth set themselves to oppose it; but all in vain, Psa 2:1, &c. The destruction will turn, as this did, upon Satan's own kingdom. David owns dependence on God for victory; and refers…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-25For the first time as king, David fought the Philistines in battle. Up to this point in 2 Samuel, David’s life follows a clear and repeated pattern: He was crowned king in Hebron (2 Samuel 2:4). He won a battle (2 Samuel 2:12–17). He grew stronger (2 Samuel 3:1). He started a large family (2 Samuel 3:2–5). A similar pattern appears again later: David was crowned king in Jerusalem (2 Samuel 5:3). He grew stronger again (2 Samuel 5:10). He expanded his…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2424. the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees--now generally thought not to be mulberry trees, but some other tree, most probably the poplar, which delights in moist situations, and the leaves of which are rustled by the slightest movement of the air [Royle].Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Samuel 5:24

• Armies
• Mulberry Tree
• Philistines
• Prayer
• War

In the dictionaries

• Philistines
• Mulberry; Trees
• Compass
• Fetch
• Mulberry
• Augur's Oak
• Baca
• Genealogy
• God
• Samuel, Books of

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 5

• 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