New King James Version
2 Samuel 20:6
6And David said to Abishai, “Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord’s servants and pursue him, lest he find for himself fortified cities, and escape us.”
2 Samuel 20:6 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And David said to Abishai, Now shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou thy lord’s servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fenced cities, and escape us.
- New International Version (NIV)David said to Abishai, “Now Sheba son of Bikri will do us more harm than Absalom did. Take your master’s men and pursue him, or he will find fortified cities and escape from us.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord's servants and pursue him, lest he get himself to fortified cities and escape from us."
- New Living Translation (NLT)Then David said to Abishai, “Sheba son of Bicri is going to hurt us more than Absalom did. Quick, take my troops and chase after him before he gets into a fortified town where we can’t reach him.”
Context of 2 Samuel 20:6
4And the king said to Amasa, “Assemble the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself.” 5So Amasa went to assemble the men of Judah. But he delayed longer than the set time which David had appointed him. And David said to Abishai, “Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord’s servants and pursue him, lest he find for himself fortified cities, and escape us.” 7So Joab’s men, with the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and all the mighty men, went out after him. And they went out of Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri. 8When they were at the large stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came before them. Now Joab was dressed in battle armor; on it was a belt with a sword fastened in its sheath at his hips; and as he was going forward, it fell out.
Read all of 2 Samuel 202 Samuel 20:6 word by word
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר דָּוִד֙ אֶל־אֲבִישַׁ֔י עַתָּ֗ה יֵ֧רַֽע לָ֛נוּ שֶׁ֥בַע בֶּן־בִּכְרִ֖י מִן־אַבְשָׁל֑וֹם אַ֠תָּה קַ֞ח אֶת־עַבְדֵ֤י אֲדֹנֶ֙יךָ֙ וּרְדֹ֣ף אַחֲרָ֔יו פֶּן־מָ֥צָא ל֛וֹ עָרִ֥ים בְּצֻר֖וֹת וְהִצִּ֥יל עֵינֵֽנוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- to Abishaiאֲבִישַׁי'ăbîyshay 'abshay · AbishaiH52
- Now shall Shebaשֶׁ֫בַעsheba‛ · ShebaH7652
- the sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- of Bichriבִּכְרִיbikrîy · BichriH1075
- do us more harmיָרַעyâra‛ · quiverH3415
- Absalomאֲבִישָׁלוֹם'ăbîyshâlôm 'abshâlôm · AbsalomH53
- takeלָקַחlâqach · to take: takeH3947
- thou thy lord’sאָדוֹן'âdôn 'âdôn · lordH113
- servantsעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
- and pursueרָדַףrâdaph · to pursueH7291
- afterאַחַר'achar · afterH310
- him, lest he getמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
- him fencedבָּצַרbâtsar · to gather/restrain/fortifyH1219
- citiesעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
- and escapeנָצַלnâtsal · to rescueH5337
- usעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eye: before(the eyes)H5869
Cross-references for 2 Samuel 20:6
- 2 Samuel 2:18Now the three sons of Zeruiah were there: Joab and Abishai and Asahel. And Asahel was as fleet of foot as a wild gazelle.
- 2 Samuel 3:30So Joab and Abishai his brother killed Abner, because he had killed their brother Asahel at Gibeon in the battle.
- 2 Samuel 10:9When Joab saw that the battle line was against him before and behind, he chose some of Israel’s best and put them in battle array against the Syrians.
- 2 Samuel 18:2Then David sent out one third of the people under the hand of Joab, one third under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and one third under the hand of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people, “I also will surely go out with you myself.”
- 2 Samuel 21:17But Abishai the son of Zeruiah came to his aid, and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, “You shall go out no more with us to battle, lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”
- 2 Samuel 23:18Now Abishai the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of another three. He lifted his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name among these three.
- 1 Samuel 26:6Then David answered, and said to Ahimelech the Hittite and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah, brother of Joab, saying, “Who will go down with me to Saul in the camp?” And Abishai said, “I will go down with you.”
- 1 Chronicles 11:20Abishai the brother of Joab was chief of another three. He had lifted up his spear against three hundred men, killed them, and won a name among these three.
- 1 Chronicles 18:12Moreover Abishai the son of Zeruiah killed eighteen thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
- 2 Samuel 19:7Now therefore, arise, go out and speak comfort to your servants. For I swear by the Lord, if you do not go out, not one will stay with you this night. And that will be worse for you than all the evil that has befallen you from your youth until now.”
- 2 Samuel 11:11And Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go to my house to eat and drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.”
- 1 Kings 1:33The king also said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and have Solomon my son ride on my own mule, and take him down to Gihon.
Commentaries on 2 Samuel 20:6
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6To Abishai - Probably, as the king was on bad terms with Joab, and wished to deprive him of his post as Captain of the host, he gave his orders to Abishai, and weakly connived at the execution of them by Joab, which was inevitable.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-13Verses 4-13 Joab barbarously murdered Amasa. The more plot there is in a sin, the worse it is. Joab contentedly sacrificed the interest both of the king and the kingdom to his personal revenge. But one would wonder with what face a murderer could pursue a traitor; and how, under such a load of guilt, he had courage to enter upon danger: his conscience was seared.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-92Sa 20:1-9. Sheba Makes a Party in Israel. 1. Sheba ... a Benjamite--Though nothing is known of this man, he must have been a person of considerable power and influence, before he could have raised so sudden and extensive a sedition. He belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, where the adherents of Saul's dynasty were still numerous; and perceiving the strong disgust of the other tribes with the part assumed by Judah in the restoration, his ill-designing heart…Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Samuel 20:6
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Samuel 20
- 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries