2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:1 Judah makes David its king. Saul’s general Abner, however, seeks to restore Saul’s kingdom with Saul’s son Ish-bosheth as king. During the struggle between the two kingdoms, Abner, who has decided to go with David, is killed by David’s commander Joab. Later, Ish-bosheth... [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:4 See 1 Samuel 31:11. David seems to be presenting himself as Saul’s successor and suggesting that JABESH-GILEAD should enter into a treaty relationship with Judah. He is moved by their faithfulness toward Saul and wants to reward them. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getEle... [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:8 ABNER tries to continue Saul’s kingdom, on a reduced scale. From these verses and 2 Samuel 3:9, it appears that Abner, not ISH-BOSHETH, was actually in charge. MAHANAIM, a city on the Jabbok River, was apparently the capital of Gilead. The fact that the capital had to b... [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:10 For a time, there are two kings in the land of Israel. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:12 GIBEON is about 6 miles (9.7 km) north-northwest of Jerusalem. The “pool” (v. 2 Samuel 2:13) is probably the huge round cistern cut into the rock on its north side (compare Jeremiah 41:12). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:13 This marks the first appearance of JOAB THE SON OF ZERUIAH, though Abishai was referred to as his brother in 1 Samuel 26:6. Joab was commander over the army (2 Samuel 8:16). He appears frequently in 2 Samuel 1:1, often in a major role. Since Abner knows him and his bro... [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:19 ASAHEL was one of David’s mighty warriors, “one of the thirty” (2 Samuel 23:24; see also 1 Chronicles 11:26). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:23 Abner, an experienced warrior, apparently stopped suddenly, thrusting HIS SPEAR backward so forcefully that it went right through Asahel’s body as he ran into it. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:28 Here, as in 2 Samuel 18:16 and 2 Samuel 20:22, Joab uses a TRUMPET to summon an army and mark the end of fighting after a victory. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
2 SAMUEL—NOTE ON 2 SAMUEL 2:29 The ARABAH is part of the Jordan Valley rift south of the Dead Sea. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]