New Living Translation
2 Samuel 21:12
12he went to the people of Jabesh-gilead and retrieved the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan. (When the Philistines had killed Saul and Jonathan on Mount Gilboa, the people of Jabesh-gilead stole their bodies from the public square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hung them.)
2 Samuel 21:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh–gilead, which had stolen them from the street of Beth–shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa:
- New International Version (NIV)he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead. (They had stolen their bodies from the public square at Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them after they struck Saul down on Gilboa.)
- English Standard Version (ESV)David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the public square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, on the day the Philistines killed Saul on Gilboa.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then David went and took the bones of Saul, and the bones of Jonathan his son, from the men of Jabesh Gilead who had stolen them from the street of Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them up, after the Philistines had struck down Saul in Gilboa.
Context of 2 Samuel 21:12
10Then Rizpah daughter of Aiah, the mother of two of the men, spread burlap on a rock and stayed there the entire harvest season. She prevented the scavenger birds from tearing at their bodies during the day and stopped wild animals from eating them at night. 11When David learned what Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done, he went to the people of Jabesh-gilead and retrieved the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan. (When the Philistines had killed Saul and Jonathan on Mount Gilboa, the people of Jabesh-gilead stole their bodies from the public square of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hung them.) 13So David obtained the bones of Saul and Jonathan, as well as the bones of the men the Gibeonites had executed. 14Then the king ordered that they bury the bones in the tomb of Kish, Saul’s father, at the town of Zela in the land of Benjamin. After that, God ended the famine in the land.
Read all of 2 Samuel 212 Samuel 21:12 word by word
וַיֵּ֣לֶךְ דָּוִ֗ד וַיִּקַּ֞ח אֶת־עַצְמ֤וֹת שָׁאוּל֙ וְאֶת־עַצְמוֹת֙ יְהוֹנָתָ֣ן בְּנ֔וֹ מֵאֵ֕ת בַּעֲלֵ֖י יָבֵ֣ישׁ גִּלְעָ֑ד אֲשֶׁר֩ גָּנְב֨וּ אֹתָ֜ם מֵרְחֹ֣ב בֵּֽית־שַׁ֗ן אֲשֶׁ֨ר תְּלָא֥וּם שָׁ֙מָּה֙ פְּלִשְׁתִּ֔ים בְּי֨וֹם הַכּ֧וֹת פְּלִשְׁתִּ֛ים אֶת־שָׁא֖וּל בַּגִּלְבֹּֽעַ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Davidדָּוִדdâvid dâvîyd · DavidH1732
- wentיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
- and tookלָקַחlâqach · to take: takeH3947
- the bonesעֶ֫צֶם‛etsem · boneH6106
- of Saulשָׁאוּלshâ'ûl · SaulH7586
- of Jonathanיְהוֹנָתָןyehônâthân · JonathanH3083
- his sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- from the menבַּעַלba‛al · master: menH1167
- of Jabesh–gileadגִּלְעָדgil‛âd · (Jabesh)-gileadH1568
- of Jabesh–gileadיָבֵשׁyâbêsh yâbêysh · JabeshH3003
- which had stolenגָּנַבgânab · to stealH1589
- them from the streetרְחוֹבrechôb rechôb · street/plazaH7339
- of Beth–shanבֵּית שְׁאָןbêyth she'ân bêyth shân · Beth-sheanH1052
- where the Philistinesפְּלִשְׁתִּיpelishtîy · PhilistineH6430
- had hangedתָּלָהtâlâh · to hangH8518
- had hangedתָּלָאtâlâ' · to hangH8511
- them, whenיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- had slainנָכָהnâkâh · to smiteH5221
- in Gilboaגִּלְבֹּעַgilbôa‛ · GilboaH1533
Cross-references for 2 Samuel 21:12
- 2 Samuel 2:5he sent them this message: “May the Lord bless you for being so loyal to your master Saul and giving him a decent burial.
- 1 Samuel 31:11But when the people of Jabesh-gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul,
- Joshua 17:11The following towns within the territory of Issachar and Asher, however, were given to Manasseh: Beth-shan, Ibleam, Dor (that is, Naphoth-dor), Endor, Taanach, and Megiddo, each with their surrounding settlements.
- 1 Samuel 31:10They placed his armor in the temple of the Ashtoreths, and they fastened his body to the wall of the city of Beth-shan.
- 2 Samuel 1:6The man answered, “I happened to be on Mount Gilboa, and there was Saul leaning on his spear with the enemy chariots and charioteers closing in on him.
- 1 Samuel 28:4The Philistines set up their camp at Shunem, and Saul gathered all the army of Israel and camped at Gilboa.
- 1 Samuel 31:1Now the Philistines attacked Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them. Many were slaughtered on the slopes of Mount Gilboa.
- 1 Chronicles 10:1Now the Philistines attacked Israel, and the men of Israel fled before them. Many were slaughtered on the slopes of Mount Gilboa.
Commentaries on 2 Samuel 21:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Took the bones of Saul - The reader will recollect that the men of Jabesh-gilead burned the bodies of Saul and his sons, and buried the remaining bones under a tree at Jabesh. See 1 Samuel 31:12, 1 Samuel 31:13. These David might have digged up again, in order to bury them in the family sepulcher.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12From the street of Beth-shan - This was the wide place just inside the gate of an Oriental city, bounded therefore by the city wall (compare the marginal reference). Here, as the place of concourse, the Philistines had fastened the bodies.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-14Verses 10-14 That a guilty land should enjoy many years of plenty, calls for gratitude; and we need not wonder misused abundance should be punished with scarcity; yet how few are disposed to ask of the Lord concerning the sinful cause, while numbers search for the second causes by which he is pleased to work! But the Lord will plead the cause of those who cannot or will not avenge themselves; and the prayers of the poor are of great power. When God sent…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11-13Rizpah’s action shamed David into likewise honoring the dead of Saul’s family.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son, &c.--Before long, the descent of copious showers, or perhaps an order of the king, gave Rizpah the satisfaction of releasing the corpses from their ignominious exposure; and, incited by her pious example, David ordered the remains of Saul and his sons to be transferred from their obscure grave in Jabesh-gilead to an honorable interment in the family vault at Zelah or Zelzah (1Sa…Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Samuel 21:12
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
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