New English Translation
2 Samuel 21:6
6let seven of his male descendants be turned over to us, and we will execute them before the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, who was the Lord’s chosen one.” The king replied, “I will turn them over.”
2 Samuel 21:6 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, whom the Lord did choose. And the king said, I will give them.
- New International Version (NIV)let seven of his male descendants be given to us to be killed and their bodies exposed before the Lord at Gibeah of Saul—the Lord’s chosen one.” So the king said, “I will give them to you.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)let seven of his sons be given to us, so that we may hang them before the Lord at Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the Lord." And the king said, "I will give them."
- New King James Version (NKJV)let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us, and we will hang them before the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, whom the Lord chose.” And the king said, “I will give them.”
Context of 2 Samuel 21:6
4The Gibeonites said to him, “We have no claim to silver or gold from Saul or from his family, nor would we be justified in putting to death anyone in Israel.” David asked, “What then are you asking me to do for you?” 5They replied to the king, “As for this man who exterminated us and who schemed against us so that we were destroyed and left without status throughout all the borders of Israel – let seven of his male descendants be turned over to us, and we will execute them before the Lord in Gibeah of Saul, who was the Lord’s chosen one.” The king replied, “I will turn them over.” 7The king had mercy on Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, in light of the Lord’s oath that had been taken between David and Jonathan son of Saul. 8So the king took Armoni and Mephibosheth, the two sons of Aiah’s daughter Rizpah whom she had born to Saul, and the five sons of Saul’s daughter Merab whom she had born to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite.
Read all of 2 Samuel 212 Samuel 21:6 word by word
יֻתַּן לָ֜נוּ שִׁבְעָ֤ה אֲנָשִׁים֙ מִבָּנָ֔יו וְהוֹקַֽעֲנוּם֙ לַֽיהוָ֔ה בְּגִבְעַ֥ת שָׁא֖וּל בְּחִ֣יר יְהוָ֑ה ס וַיֹּ֥אמֶר הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ אֲנִ֥י אֶתֵּֽן׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Let sevenשֶׁ֫בַעsheba‛ shib‛âh · sevenH7651
- menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
- of his sonsבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- be deliveredנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
- unto us, and we will hang them upיָקַעyâqa‛ · to dislocate/hangH3363
- unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- in Gibeahגִּבְעָהgib‛âh · GibeahH1390
- of Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
- did chooseבָּחִירbâchîyr · chosenH972
- And the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
Cross-references for 2 Samuel 21:6
- 2 Samuel 17:23When Ahithophel realized that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and returned to his house in his hometown. After setting his household in order, he hanged himself. So he died and was buried in the grave of his father.
- 2 Samuel 18:10When one of the men saw this, he reported it to Joab saying, “I saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree.
- Genesis 40:19In three more days Pharaoh will decapitate you and impale you on a pole. Then the birds will eat your flesh from you.”
- Numbers 25:4The Lord said to Moses, “Arrest all the leaders of the people, and hang them up before the Lord in broad daylight, so that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel.”
- Deuteronomy 21:22If a person commits a sin punishable by death and is executed, and you hang the corpse on a tree,
- Joshua 8:29He hung the king of Ai on a tree, leaving him exposed until evening. At sunset Joshua ordered that his corpse be taken down from the tree. They threw it down at the entrance of the city gate and erected over it a large pile of stones (it remains to this very day).
- Joshua 10:26Then Joshua executed them and hung them on five trees. They were left hanging on the trees until evening.
- Ezra 6:11“I hereby give orders that if anyone changes this directive a beam is to be pulled out from his house and he is to be raised up and impaled on it, and his house is to be reduced to a rubbish heap for this indiscretion.
- Esther 9:10the ten sons of Haman son of Hammedatha, the enemy of the Jews. But they did not confiscate their property.
- Matthew 27:5So Judas threw the silver coins into the temple and left. Then he went out and hanged himself.
- 1 Samuel 10:26Even Saul went to his home in Gibeah. With him went some brave men whose hearts God had touched.
- 1 Samuel 11:4When the messengers went to Gibeah (where Saul lived) and informed the people of these matters, all the people wept loudly.
- 1 Samuel 9:16“At this time tomorrow I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin. You must consecrate him as a leader over my people Israel. He will save my people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have looked with favor on my people. Their cry has reached me!”
- 1 Samuel 10:1Then Samuel took a small container of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head. Samuel kissed him and said, “The Lord has chosen you to lead his people Israel! You will rule over the Lord’s people and you will deliver them from the power of the enemies who surround them. This will be your sign that the Lord has chosen you as leader over his inheritance.
- Acts 13:21Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man from the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years.
Commentaries on 2 Samuel 21:6
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6Seven men of his sons - Meaning sons, grandsons, or other near branches of his family. It is supposed that the persons chosen were principal in assisting Saul to exterminate the Gibeonites. But where is the proof of this?Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6Seven men - Seven was a sacred number not only with the Hebrews but with other Oriental nations Numbers 23:1, Numbers 23:29, and is therefore brought in on this occasion when the judicial death of the sons of Saul was a religious act intended to appease the wrath of God for the violation of an oath Numbers 25:4. Whom the Lord did choose - Rather, “the Lord‘s chosen,” or elect. The same phrase is applied to Moses Psalm 106:23, to the Israelites Isaiah…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 6seven of his male descendants: The law codes of other ancient Near Eastern nations sometimes permitted members of a family to be punished for crimes a guilty individual had committed. But Deuteronomy 24:16 did not allow this practice among the Israelites. Only God could impose such penalties (Deuteronomy 5:9). The few instances in the Bible when offspring were punished were not regular criminal cases. Instead, they involved offenses against God, such as…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the Lord in Gibeah of Saul--The practice of the Hebrews, as of most Oriental nations, was to slay first, and afterwards to suspend on a gibbet, the body not being left hanging after sunset. The king could not refuse this demand of the Gibeonites, who, in making it, were only exercising their right as blood-avengers; and, although through fear and a sense of weakness they had…Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Samuel 21:6
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
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries