2 Samuel 21:1

2 Samuel 21:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David enquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.
• New International Version (NIV)During the reign of David, there was a famine for three successive years; so David sought the face of the Lord. The Lord said, “It is on account of Saul and his blood-stained house; it is because he put the Gibeonites to death.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year. And David sought the face of the Lord. And the Lord said, "There is bloodguilt on Saul and on his house, because he put the Gibeonites to death."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, “It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house, because he killed the Gibeonites.”

Context of 2 Samuel 21:1

There was a famine during David’s reign that lasted for three years, so David asked the Lord about it. And the Lord said, “The famine has come because Saul and his family are guilty of murdering the Gibeonites.” 2So the king summoned the Gibeonites. They were not part of Israel but were all that was left of the nation of the Amorites. The people of Israel had sworn not to kill them, but Saul, in his zeal for Israel and Judah, had tried to wipe them out. 3David asked them, “What can I do for you? How can I make amends so that you will bless the Lord’s people again?”

2 Samuel 21:1 word by word

וַיְהִ֣י רָעָב֩ בִּימֵ֨י דָוִ֜ד שָׁלֹ֣שׁ שָׁנִ֗ים שָׁנָה֙ אַחֲרֵ֣י שָׁנָ֔ה וַיְבַקֵּ֥שׁ דָּוִ֖ד אֶת־פְּנֵ֣י יְהוָ֑ה ס וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יְהוָ֗ה אֶל־שָׁאוּל֙ וְאֶל־בֵּ֣ית הַדָּמִ֔ים עַל־אֲשֶׁר־הֵמִ֖ית אֶת־הַגִּבְעֹנִֽים׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Then there was a famineרָעָבrâ‛âb · famineH7458
• in the daysיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• of Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
• threeשָׁלֹשׁshâlôsh shâlôsh shelôshâh shelôshâh · threeH7969
• yearsשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
• afterאַחַר'achar · afterH310
• enquiredבָּקַשׁbâqash · to seekH1245
• ofפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• answeredאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• for Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
• bloodyדָּםdâm · bloodH1818
• houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
• because he slewמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
• the Gibeonitesגִּבְעֹנִיgib‛ônîy · GibeoniteH1393

Cross-references for 2 Samuel 21:1

• Genesis 12:10At that time a severe famine struck the land of Canaan, forcing Abram to go down to Egypt, where he lived as a foreigner.
• Genesis 26:1A severe famine now struck the land, as had happened before in Abraham’s time. So Isaac moved to Gerar, where Abimelech, king of the Philistines, lived.
• Genesis 41:57And people from all around came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph because the famine was severe throughout the world.
• Genesis 42:1When Jacob heard that grain was available in Egypt, he said to his sons, “Why are you standing around looking at one another?
• Genesis 43:1But the famine continued to ravage the land of Canaan.
• Leviticus 26:19I will break your proud spirit by making the skies as unyielding as iron and the earth as hard as bronze.
• 1 Kings 17:1Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, “As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives—the God I serve—there will be no dew or rain during the next few years until I give the word!”
• 1 Kings 18:2So Elijah went to appear before Ahab. Meanwhile, the famine had become very severe in Samaria.
• 2 Kings 6:25As a result, there was a great famine in the city. The siege lasted so long that a donkey’s head sold for eighty pieces of silver, and a cup of dove’s dung sold for five pieces of silver.
• 2 Kings 8:1Elisha had told the woman whose son he had brought back to life, “Take your family and move to some other place, for the Lord has called for a famine on Israel that will last for seven years.”
• Jeremiah 14:1This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord, explaining why he was holding back the rain:
• 2 Samuel 5:19So David asked the Lord, “Should I go out to fight the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?” The Lord replied to David, “Yes, go ahead. I will certainly hand them over to you.”
• Numbers 27:21When direction from the Lord is needed, Joshua will stand before Eleazar the priest, who will use the Urim—one of the sacred lots cast before the Lord—to determine his will. This is how Joshua and the rest of the community of Israel will determine everything they should do.”
• 1 Samuel 23:2David asked the Lord, “Should I go and attack them?” “Yes, go and save Keilah,” the Lord told him.
• Job 5:8“If I were you, I would go to God and present my case to him.
• Job 10:2I will say to God, ‘Don’t simply condemn me— tell me the charge you are bringing against me.

Commentaries on 2 Samuel 21:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1Then there was a famine - Of this famine we know nothing; it is not mentioned in any part of the history of David. Because he slew the Gibeonites - No such fact is mentioned in the life and transactions of Saul; nor is there any reference to it in any other part of Scripture.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1There is no note of time whatever, nor any clue as to what part of David‘s reign the events of this chapter ought to be assigned. Enquired of the Lord - Hebrew “sought the face of the Lord,” quite a different phrase from that so often used in Judges (e. g. Judges 1:1) and the Books of Samuel, and probably indicating that this chapter is from a different source; an inference agreeing with the indefinite “in the days of David,” and with the allusion to the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The Gibeonites avenged. (1-9) Rizpah's care for the bodies of Saul's descendants. (10-14) Battles with the Philistines. (15-22) Verses 1-9 Every affliction arises from sin, and should lead us to repent and humble ourselves before God; but some troubles especially show that they are sent to bring sin to remembrance. God's judgments often look a great way back, which requires us to do so, when we are under his rebukes. It is not for us to object against the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1sought the face of the Lord: The Hebrew verb here is the same as when David "begged" for Bathsheba's child's life (2 Samuel 12:16). In these cases, "seeking" was done in a moment of crisis. However, in the Old Testament, "seeking God" usually means daily devotion and obedience to God (for example, Psalms 40:16; 105:4; Proverbs 28:5). the blood shed by Saul and his family: The famine happened because they broke an oath made before the Lord (Joshua…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 21:1

• Canaan
• Covenant
• David
• Famine
• Gibeon
• Saul
• Sin

In the dictionaries

• David
• Saul
• Paul, Saul
• Alliance
• Dearth
• Famine
• Thummim
• Bloody
• Giants
• Gibeah

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