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 Living Translation (NLT)When you hear a sound like marching feet in the tops of the poplar trees, be on the alert! That will be the signal that the Lord is moving ahead of you to strike down the Philistine army.”

Context of 2 Samuel 5:24

22Then the Philistines went up once again and deployed themselves in the Valley of Rephaim. 23Therefore David inquired of the Lord, and He said, “You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. 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.” 25And David did so, as the Lord commanded him; and he drove back 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

Words taken from the KJV.

• And let it be, when thou hearestשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
• the soundקוֹלqôl qôl · voice: soundH6963
• of a goingצְעָדָהtse‛âdâh · marchingH6807
• in the topsרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: topH7218
• of the mulberry treesבָּכָאbâkâ' · balsamH1057
• that then thou shalt bestirחָרַץchârats · to decideH2782
• thyself: for then shall the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• go outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• thee, to smiteנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
• the hostמַחֲנֶהmachăneh · campH4264
• of the Philistinesפְּלִשְׁתִּיpelishtîy · PhilistineH6430

Cross-references for 2 Samuel 5:24

• 2 Kings 7:6For the Lord had caused the army of the Syrians to hear the noise of chariots and the noise of horses—the noise of a great army; so they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us!”
• Judges 4:14Then Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in which the Lord has delivered Sisera into your hand. Has not the Lord gone out before you?” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him.
• Judges 7:15And so it was, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream and its interpretation, that he worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise, for the Lord has delivered the camp of Midian into your hand.”
• 1 Samuel 14:9If they say thus to us, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we will stand still in our place and not go up to them.
• 1 Chronicles 14:15And it shall be, when you hear a sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall go out to battle, for God has gone out before you to strike the camp of the Philistines.”
• Philippians 2:11and that every tongue should 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