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2 Samuel 15-18
1. Absalom’s revolt and David’s flight. 2Sa_15:1 to 2Sa_16:14
7And it came to pass after forty [four] years, that Absalom said unto the king, I pray thee, let me go and pay my vow, which I have vowed unto the Lord [Jehovah], in Hebron. 8For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria, saying, If the Lord [Jehovah] shall bring me again indeed to Jerusalem, then I will serve the Lord [Jehovah]. 9And the king said unto him, Go in peace. So 10[And] he arose and went to Hebron. But [And] Absalom sent spies [or, emissaries] throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, As soon as ye hear the sound of the trumpet, then ye shall say, Absalom reigneth in Hebron. 11And with Absalom went two hundred men out of Jerusalem, that were called; and they went in their simplicity, and they knew not anything. 12And Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David’s counsellor, from his city, even from Giloh, while he offered sacrifices. And the conspiracy was strong; for the people increased continually with Absalom.
13And there came a messenger to David, saying, The hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom. 14And David said unto all his servants that were with him at Jerusalem, Arise, and let us flee; for we shall not else escape from Absalom; make speed to depart, lest he overtake us suddenly, and bring evil upon us, and smite the city with the edge of the sword. 15And the king’s servants said unto the king. Behold, thy servants are ready to do whatsoever my lord the king shall appoint 16[choose]. And the king went forth, and all his household after him. And the king left ten women which were [om. women which were] concubines to keep the 17house. And the king went forth, and all the people after him, and tarried [halted] in a place that was far off [in Beth-hammarhak, or, at the far house]. 18And all his servants passed on beside him, and all the Cherethites and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men, which [who] came after him from Gath passed on before the king.
19Then said the king [And the king said] to Ittai the Gittite, Wherefore goest thou also with us? Return to thy place, and abide with the king; for thou art a stranger, and also an exile. 20Whereas thou camest but yesterday [Yesterday thou camest], should I this day [and to-day shall I] make thee go up and down with us? [om.?], seeing I go whither I may [ins.?] Return thou, and take back thy brethren; mercy and truth be with thee. 21And Ittai answered the king and said, As the Lord [Jehovah] liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in [for] death or [ins. for] life, even there also will [there will] thy servant be. 22And David said to Ittai, Go, and pass over. And Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all his men, and all the little ones that were with him.
23And all the country [land] wept with a loud voice, and all the people passed over; the king also himself [and the king] passed over the brook Kedron, and all the people passed over, toward the way of the wilderness. 24And lo Zadok also and all the Levites were [om. were] with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God; and they set down the ark of God; and Abiathar went up, until all the people had done passing out of the city. 25And the king said unto Zadok, Carry back the ark of God into [to] the city. If I shall find favour in the eyes of the Lord [Jehovah], he will 26bring me again, and show me both it and his habitation. But [And] if he thus say, I have no delight in thee; behold, here am I, let him do to me as seemeth good unto him. 27The king said also [And the king said] unto Zadok the priest, Art not [om. not] thou a seer? return into [to] the city in peace, and your two sons with you, Ahimaaz thy son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar. 28See, I will tarry in the plain [by the fords] of the wilderness, until there come word from you to certify 29me. Zadok therefore [And Zadok] and Abiathar carried the ark of God again to Jerusalem; and they tarried there.
30And David went up by the ascent of mount Olivet, and wept as he went up, and had his head covered, and he went barefoot; and all the people that was with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up.
31And one told David, saying, Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom. And David said, O Lord [om. O Lord], I pray thee, turn [Turn, I pray thee] the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness [ins. O Jehovah]. 32And it came to pass that, when David was come to the top of the mount, where he worshipped God [where God was worshipped], behold Hushai the Archite [Arkite] came to meet him with his coat [garment] rent, and earth upon his head. 33Unto whom David said [And David said to him], If thou passest on with me, then shalt thou be a 34burden unto me; But if thou return to the city, and say unto Absalom, I will be thy servant, O king; as [om. as] I have been thy father’s servant hitherto, so will I now also [and now I will] be thy servant; then mayest thou for me defeat the 35counsel of Ahithophel. And hast thou not there with thee Zadok and Abiathar the priests? therefore [and] it shall be that [om. it shall be that] what thing soever thou shalt hear out of the king’s house, thou shalt tell it [om. it] to Zadok and 36Abiathar the priests. Behold, they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz Zadok’s son, and Jonathan Abiathar’s son; and by them ye shall send unto me 37everything that ye can [om. can] hear. So [And] Hushai David’s friend came into [to] the city, and Absalom came into [to] Jerusalem.
2Sa_16:1 And when [om. when] David was a little past the top of the hill, [ins. and] behold, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth met him, with a couple of asses saddled, and upon them two hundred loaves of bread, and an hundred bunches [cakes] of raisins, and an hundred of summer-fruits [cakes of figs], and a bottle 2[skin] of wine. And the king said unto Ziba, What meanest thou by these? And Ziba said, The asses be [are] for the king’s household to ride on, and the bread and summer-fruit [figs] for the young men to eat, and the wine that [for] such as be [are] faint in the wilderness may [to] drink. And the king said, And where Isaiah 3 thy master’s son? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem; for he said, To-day shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father. 4Then said the king [And the king said] to Ziba, Behold, thine are all that pertained unto [is all that belonged to] Mephibosheth. And Ziba said, I humbly beseech thee [I bow down] that [om. that]; I may [may I] find grace in thy sight, my lord O king.
5And when [om. when] king David came to Bahurim, [ins. and] behold, thence came out a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose [and his] name was Shimei, the son of Gera; he came forth, and cursed still as he came. 6And he cast stones at David, and at all the servants of king David; and all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. 7And thus said Shimei when he cursed, Come out, come out, thou bloody man, and thou man of Belial 8[wicked man]. The Lord [Jehovah] hath returned upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned, and the Lord [Jehovah] hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son; and behold, thou art taken in thy mischief [thou art in thy calamity], because thou art a bloody man. 9Then said Abishai the son of Zeruiah [And Abishai, etc., said] unto the king, Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head. 10And the king said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? so let him curse, because [for] the Lord [Jehovah] hath said unto him, Curse David; [,] who shall then say [and who shall say], Wherefore hast thou done [doest thou] so? 11And David said to Abishai and to all his servants, Behold, my son, which [who] came forth of my bowels, seeketh my life, [ins. and] how much more now may this Benjamite do it [how much more now the Benjaminite]? let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord [Jehovah] hath bidden him. 12It may be that the Lord [Jehovah] will look on mine affliction, and that the Lord [Jehovah] will requite 13me good for his cursing this day. And as [om. as] David and his men went by [on] the way, [ins. and] Shimei went along on the hill’s side over against him, and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him, and cast dust. 14And the king and all the people that were with him came weary [or, came to Ajephim] and refreshed themselves there.
2Sa_15:1. “After this.” The word here used ( îֵàַçֲøֵé ëֵï comp. 3:28) shows that what is here related follows immediately on the event narrated in 14:28–33. Absalom provides himself a state-chariot with its appurtenances [fifty runners or footmen] in order thus to assume a royal appearance and to attract the wondering attention of the people to himself. Comp. the similar procedure of Adonijah, 1Ki_1:5.
2Sa_15:2 sq. Vivid description of his condescending behaviour (in contrast with his pompous appearance) to gain the favor of the people in connection with their law-matters. [He “rose up early” in order to show his zeal and get opportunities; and such legal business is usually attended to very early in the East; Malcolm (quoted by Philippson) says that Oriental ministers hold their levees at an hour when Western people of quality are not yet up.—Tr.]. The “gate” here referred to is the gate of the royal palace, whither those came that sought the decision of the king in law-matters. “For judgment,” that is, for legal decision. The “hearer” is the judicial officer whose duty it was first to hear and understand the people’s matters, and then lay them before the king, an auscultator. For just decision everything depends on careful hearing and understanding. But there is no hearer for thee on the part of the king.—Absalom guards indeed against accusing the king himself of injustice; but he excites in the minds of the people distrust of the king’s whole judicial practice by saying that there was no regular judicial process for a good and just cause. Perhaps neglect and partiality had crept in, so that Absalom could find some handle for his charges, and avail himself of an already existing dissatisfaction. In the words: See, thy matters are good and right, he gives (in order to win favor) a judicial decision before thorough investigation has been made. Thy just cause, says he, is not investigated; else thou would’st not lack a favorable decision. [Absalom shows himself master of the art of political intriguing—he flatters the people and brings charges against the rulers. Perhaps his insinuations were directed in part against the princes his brothers, possibly against Solomon (Patrick), whose age, however, at this time we do not know, or whether it had been intimated that he was heir to the throne.—Tr.].
2Sa_15:4. “O that I were made judge,” literally: “who will make me judge!” (Ges. § 136, 1). “That to me [lit. “on me”], might come every man.” The “to me” is put first for the sake of emphasis; Absalom contrasts himself as just judge with the state of things under his father. òַì (“on me”) stands for àֶì (“to me”), or, the sentence is to be explained with Thenius from the collective idea “all men” ( ëָּìÎàִéùׁ ): “In imagination Absalom sees the litigants assembled around him;” comp. Exo_18:13; Jdg_3:19; 1Sa_22:6. The phrase “on me” is not to be explained from the sitting of the judge and the people standing around above him. [The phrase “come on me” is like English “press on,” “lean on,” and implies probably that Absalom would bear their burdens, or else, the proposition here = “at, near, with” (apud).—Tr.].—I would do him justice.—Absalom here presumes on the people’s litigiousness and their confidence in the justice each man of his own cause, and, having brought his father’s judicial procedure into discredit with them, promises to do every man justice. Vulg.: “I should judge justly.”
2Sa_15:5 sq. [Absalom’s affability]. He magnanimously puts aside the honor gained by these arts, and attaches the people to him by a pretended fraternization with every man. The result of these preparations for the purposed insurrection: Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.—The phrase ( âָּðַá ìֵá ) may also mean “to deceive the heart,” as in Gen_31:20; but the connection shows that the meaning here is “to steal the heart.” [Sept. very well: “made his own the heart,” ἰäéïðïéåῖôï ; Vulg.: solicitabat corda.—Tr.]. He turned the hearts of the people by guile from his father to himself. [Patrick: a most vile piece of flattery (2Sa_15:5), yet acceptable to the people. So Plato (Rep. Lib. viii.), describes those as doing that would get possession of the government; and see Aristotle Pol. V. 4. Absalom’s beautiful person no doubt attracted the people, as well as his condescending familiarity of manner.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:7-12. The conspiracy set on foot.
2Sa_15:7. The statement of time: At the end of forty years, is certainly wrong according to the connection. An immediate sequence of events being indicated in 2Sa_15:1 [see on 2Sa_15:1 and translator’s note], the phrase “at the end of” can only point to a previous occurrence in Absalom’s life—not, however, to his return from Geshur, which is not important enough in the narrative to serve as reckoning-point (terminus a quo) for a new series of events, but rather to his reconciliation with David (14:33). But Absalom’s procedure here described (2Sa_15:1-6) up to his insurrection cannot have lasted forty years; and further, such a space of time cannot be fitted into the history of David and Absalom, though this would be allowable only in case there were here indicated some chronological-historical point of support, as it has been attempted to find, for example, in Absalom’s age at this time or in the duration of David’s reign. According to these conjectures Absalom’s conspiracy must have occurred in the last days of David’s reign, and this would be wholly unhistorical. The reading of Codd. 70 and 90 (Kennicott) “forty days” is a violent attempt to remove the difficulty, and only introduces another difficulty, since forty days is too short a time after Absalom’s reconciliation with his father for all his preparations here described. We must read “four years” with Syr., Arab., Vulg. [but Codex Amiatinus has “forty”—Tr.], Josephus, Theodoret (Capellus, Grotius, Ewald, Thenius, Keil and others [Bib.-Com.]). [Others, (as Ussher, Patrick, Cahen, Philippson) retain the number “forty,” and reckon it in various ways, some from the beginning of David’s reign (Abarbanel), some from David’s anointment by Samuel (Ussher and others), some from the people’s demand for a king (Seder Olam); but the objection to all these is (as Erdmann above suggests) that there is no hint in the text of so remote a terminus a quo as any of them; the time is evidently reckoned from some near event. Though the number four is more probable than forty, it is after all only a conjecture, though a well-supported one; the chronology must here be regarded as uncertain.—Tr.].
2Sa_15:8. Absalom’s “vow” and “serving the Lord” is to be understood of the offering of a sacrifice. He wished to sacrifice in Hebron, ostensibly, no doubt, because it was his birth-place, but really because (his father having there assumed the crown) he considered it a peculiarly suitable place for his being proclaimed king. He chose this place, not because there was dissatisfaction at the removal of the royal residence to Jerusalem (Thenius and Keil, following the “Exegetical Manual”), but because he could there count on a numerous following from the tribe of Judah. [We have here an example of sacrificial feasting not in connection with the Tabernacle (as in David’s history 1Sa_20:6), an indication that the strict law of Leviticus (Lev_17:3-4; comp. Deu_12:13-14) was not in practical operation; else David would have objected to sacrificing in Hebron.—Tr.].
2Sa_15:9. David permits himself to be deceived by the pretence of a thank-offering in Hebron, which Absalom might have offered as well, or better, in Jerusalem. Ewald remarks: “that David observed nothing of all this till the startling news reached him that the heart of Israel was turned to Absalom, cannot be reckoned to his disadvantage, since so ancient and simple a kingdom had nothing like our modern state-police; it is rather a mark of the noble-minded security that we elsewhere see in him, that he gives so free scope to his beloved son, who might be regarded as first-born and heir-apparent, and whose quiet nature certainly even greatly pleased him.”
2Sa_15:10. “Absalom sent.” The verb is not Pluperfect but Imperfect, since the sending out of emissaries might be synchronous with the journey to Hebron, where Absalom’s accomplices had gotten everything in readiness for proclaiming him king, else he could not have said: As soon as ye hear the sound of the trumpet, say, Absalom is become king in Hebron. Absalom sent emissaries into all the tribes of Israel, to find out public opinion and prepare for his attempt throughout the whole kingdom at the same time, he having already gotten the favor of the people by the arts above-related, and thrown his net over them. The emissaries had only to spread the net wider and deeper, and then at the signal to draw it in and catch the people.
2Sa_15:11. The two hundred men that accompanied him were not “poor, dependent people,” which would certainly have excited surprise, but courtiers such as ususually accompanied kings and kings’ sons on their journeys without causing remark. That these men might be perfectly at their ease, under the impression that they were going to a sacrificial feast at Hebron, and that the real purpose might the better be concealed from David, nothing was said to them of Absalom’s design; they knew “nothing at all” of the matter. Taken by surprise in Hebron by the sudden proclamation of Absalom as king, they must have appeared to the people at Jerusalem and elsewhere as part of the royal retinue. [Bib.-Com. points out the extreme secrecy of the affair as explaining David’s ignorance of it, and also Absalom’s taste for large entertainments.—Tr.]. 2Sa_15:12. Ahithophel appears as Absalom’s secret counsellor in the contriving of the conspiracy, and so as traitor to David, whose counsellor he was. His native city Giloh was near and south of Hebron (Jos_15:51; Jos_15:54). The text reads literally: “He sent Ahithophel from his city,” that is, he caused him to come. Either this expression is to be regarded as a pregnant one=“he sent and brought” (Keil), or we must change the vowel-points. Why Ahithophel abandoned David is not said; probably from dissatisfaction and ambition. [Patrick: “And it is supposed by the Jews that Ahithophel was incensed against David for abusing Bathsheba, whom they take to have been his grand-daughter, she being the daughter of Eliam (11:3), and Eliam being the son of Ahithophel (23:34).”—So Blunt, Coincidences, Part II. (ix.)—Tr.]—No doubt he had been slyly working at Giloh, and had prepared everything for proclaiming Absalom. The conspiracy grew rapidly, and the people came to Absalom in constantly increasing numbers. It is noticeable that it is in the tribe of Judah that this defection from David is consummated. The elements of this so astonishingly successful insurrection of Absalom were David’s grievous sins, his weakness towards Amnon and Joab, the lacks of the royal government and the consequent dissatisfaction among the people. [The expression: “while he offered bloody offerings” is difficult. If the subject be Ahithophel, it does not appear why his offering should be mentioned; or if, as is more probable, the subject is Absalom, the reason for his sending for Ahithophel while he was offering is not clear; we should rather have expected the latter to be present at the beginning of the solemn sacrifice that was to pledge the conspirators. As the text stands, it cannot be rendered: “he sent for Ahithophel to be present when he offered,” nor: “and while he sacrificed, the conspiracy grew strong,” though something like one of these renderings seems to be the meaning. The text is discussed in “Text, and Gram.”—Grotius refers to the similar procedure of Civilis (pledging conspirators at a feast), Tacit., Hist. IV. 14.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:13 to 2Sa_16:14. David’s flight before Absalom.
2Sa_15:13. Literally: “the messenger;” according to our usage: “a messenger,” the Heb. employing the Def. Art, to express the class individualized in the person in question. Comp. Ges. § 109, 3, Rem. 1 b, c.—“The heart of the men of Israel is after Absalom”—“to be after one” means “to attach one’s self to him, embrace his cause.” Comp. 2:10; 1Sa_12:14.
2Sa_15:14. Up! let us flee. David’s immediate flight is to be explained (according to the reason that he himself here gives) by the fact that seized not with momentary fear (Thenius), but doubtless with sudden terror at the unexpected revolution, he yet sees that the fulfilment of Nathan’s prophecy of approaching “misfortune” (12:10, 11) is now beginning, that the punishment cannot be warded off, and that to stay in Jerusalem will only occasion a storming of the city with much bloodshed, which he wishes to avoid. “Against an insurrection so vigorous, and yet so thoroughly groundless and unintelligible, the best defence was to withdraw quietly and try to gain time; the first fright happily gotten over, sober thought would soon return in many places” (Ewald). [How far Jerusalem was now in condition to stand a siege (Zion was probably fortified), or whether David had a well-organized standing army, and how much of the army Absalom carried off, we do not know; David’s forces seem not to have received any important addition after he left the city. Two reasons for leaving Jerusalem would be: to spare the city the horrors of a siege, and to gain the advantage of his military skill and of the discipline of his tried warriors in the open country.—Tr.]—[2Sa_15:15. David’s servants (soldiers) declare themselves ready to obey his commands—a comfortable faithfulness in the midst of general defection.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:16. The king’s household went “after him” ( áְּøַâְìָéå ), comp. Jdg_4:10; Jdg_4:15, not: “on foot” (Michaelis). The king left ten concubines to keep the house. It appears from 19:6 [Eng. A. V. 5] that other concubines went along with him.
2Sa_15:17. “All the people,” all persons attached to the court, including the numerous body of servants = “the whole household” (2Sa_15:16). They halted at “the farthest (or far) house” [Eng. A. V.: “a place that was far off”] on the road to Mount Olivet, but this side the Kidron. So the German phrase “the last cent” (der letzte Heller) used as a proper name to designate a farm lying at the extremity of a region. Probably this designation had already become a proper name among the people. [Bib. Com.: “very likely a fort guarding the passage of the Kidron.” Others write: Beth-merhak.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:18. David having halted here with his immediate retinue (of his household), caused first all his servants to pass by at his side ( òַìÎéָãåֹ ), then his body guard and six hundred Gittites (who had followed him from Gath) to pass before him, so that the latter formed the vanguard. On the “Cherethites and Pelethites” comp. 8:18. As the “six hundred men that followed him from Gath” are called “all the Gittites,” they must be those six hundred faithful companions-in-arms that gathered about David during Saul’s persecution (1Sa_22:2; 1Sa_23:13; 1Sa_25:13), went with him to Gath (1Sa_27:2 sq.) and settled with him in Ziklag (1Sa_27:8; 1Sa_29:2; 1Sa_30:1; 1Sa_30:9). Thence they marched with him to Hebron (2:3) and Jerusalem (5:6). They are the same that are called “Gibborim” [heroes, mighty men] in 16:6, and appear as his military escort. Comp. 20:7; 23:8 sqq., where the Gibborim seem to be identical with these. “They very probably formed, from the time that David went to reside at Jerusalem, a special body, known as ‘the Gibborim,’ kept always in full number (hence here also, six hundred), living in barracks at Jerusalem (see Appendix to the Books of Kings, § 7), employed only in the most important undertakings (10:7; 20:7, 9) the Old Guard, as it were, who here also will protect the retreat of their lord with their stout, faithful bodies” (Thenius). They are here called “the Gittites” because they were so called by the people, as having followed David “from Gath on” (Keil). There is no necessity for read- Gibborim instead of Gittites (Thenius), especially as all the versions have the latter. [This reading is discussed in “Text. and Gram.” Some hold these “Gittites” to be foreigners (Philistines) that had entered David’s service, as we know many foreigners did; and this is probable, if we retain the present text. But that the Gibborim were called “Gittites” (Keil) is not probable, and as there is no account of such a body of Philistines having followed David from Gath (that is, when he lived there), there is strong reason for reading Gibborim instead of Gittites.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:19. Ittai was a Philistine of Gath, “who had lately with other bold Philistine warriors come over to David, and, having probably had a good position in his native city, was also assigned a high place by David” (Ewald). According to 2Sa_15:22 his wife and children were with him. He was given command of one-third of the army (18:2), and stood along with Joab and Abishai as an able general. It need not surprise us that a foreigner should occupy such a military position; comp. 11:3, Uriah the Hittite. David advises this faithful follower not to go with him, but to remain “with the king” at Jerusalem. This phrase cannot mean: with him that is or will be king, according to God’s will, whether it be David or Absalom (Keil, and so Seb. Schmidt: “it is not your business to decide this contest: wait quietly, see whom God chooses and serve him”), but it must be referred definitely to Absalom, who in David’s eyes is now king de facto. Ewald: David gave him the friendly advice to stay in Jerusalem with the new king. David thus neither recognizes Absalom as rightful king (Böttch.), nor ironically so calls him = “with him who is acting as if he were king” (Clericus). In this usurpation of the throne David recognizes and submits to a divine dispensation, and so calls Absalom king.—The reason for his counsel to Ittai: “For thou art a stranger and moreover an emigrant (exile) in thy place. “Stranger” = not an Israelite; “emigrant or exile” ( âֹּìֶä ) = one not in his native land. The last phrase may be rendered: “for thy place,” or “in respect to thy place,” or may be taken to express a state of quiet (comp. Ges. § 154, 3 e). The meaning is: “as a foreigner, thou needst not care who is king, or join either side; stay where thou art.” The reading of Sept., Vulg., Syr., Arab.: “thou hast come from thy place,” does not warrant us in changing the preposition “to” of the Heb. into “from;” for, if the latter were the original text, it is hard to see how the present difficult reading came. [The passage reads literally: “Return, and abide with the king, for thou art a stranger and also an exile to thy place.” Eng. A. V. transposes the last phrase, or supposes a parenthesis: “return to thy place and abide,” etc. (and so Kimchi), and Bib.-Com.: “Return and dwell with the king (for thou art a foreigner and thou art an exile) at thy place” (i. e. Jerusalem). Erdmann in his translation of the chapter (prefixed to the Exposition) gives: “for thou art a stranger and moreover a man that has been carried away from his place,” but here renders it quite differently: “for thou art a stranger and an exile in thy place,” that is, remaining quietly in thy place (Jerusalem, thy adopted home). Philippson: “thou art a stranger, etc., in respect to thy place” (Gath, thy native place). The parenthesis of Eng. A. V. is improbable, and Erdmann’s rendering in the Exposition is impossible; we must adopt Philippson’s, or change the Prep. and read “from,” as Erdmann in his translation. See the discussion in “Text. and Gram.”—Tr.]—Whether Ittai came with his family (2Sa_15:22) and his kinsfolk (2Sa_15:20) to Jerusalem as hostage (Thenius), or went over to David with other warriors (Ewald), cannot be determined, as nothing is said thereon. But as he was a man in high position and a distinguished military leader, and as David broke the Philistines’ supremacy in the last war with them (8:1), it is probable (2Sa_15:20 : “thou camest yesterday”) that this victory of David’s was the occasion of his coming to Jerusalem.
2Sa_15:20. The sense is: “Shall 1 drag thee, a stranger lately come, and an exile, into my unquiet and precarious life?” Since I go whither I go, without certain aim, “whither the way leads me” (Maurer). Comp. 1Sa_23:13.—David wishes Ittai the favor and the faithfulness of God. From this and from Ittai’s saying: “as the Lord lives,” it is probable that Ittai with his whole house had already become a believer in the God of Israel. [From this expression we cannot infer anything as to Ittai’s religious position, much less as to that of his family. Any foreigner might believe in Jehovah as a deity and swear by His name (so Achish, 1Sa_29:6) without giving up his own gods. On general grounds it is not improbable that Ittai accepted the God of Israel; but we have no information as to any special religious depth or conversion in his history.—Tr.] It is doubtful whether we should render: “carry thy brethren back with thee in grace and truth.” (Maurer), or take the latter part separately: “with thee be grace and truth,” that is, God’s (Keil); the accents favor the first, the connection of thought the second. Sept. and Vulg. have: “and the Lord will do with thee grace and truth,” to which Vulg. adds: “because thou hast shown grace and faithfulness,” whence Thenius (with Ew. and Böttch. for the Sept. reading) will correspondingly change the Heb. text. But the words of Sept. and Vulg. seem to be an interpreting paraphrase, with the similar words in 2:5, 6, in mind. The text without this addition gives a good sense: “lead thy brethren back; with thee be grace and faithfulness.”
2Sa_15:21. Ittai’s answer expresses unconditional devotion and fidelity for life and death.
2Sa_15:22. David accepts Ittai’s vow of fidelity. The latter with his whole family (wife and children, èַó , comp. Exo_12:37) remains in the line of march.
2Sa_15:23. Description of the deep and loud lamentation of all the faithful people over the misfortune of their king. “All the land” = all the inhabitants who poured out with the procession; “all the people” = David’s courtiers and servants, were “passing by,” namely, in front of these crowds of people standing on the way-side. The procession marched eastward over the brook Kedron, it being David’s aim to reach the wilderness of Judah [that is, between Jerusalem and Jericho]. The Kedron, filled with water only in the winter or rainy season, was in the valley of Jehoshaphat, east of Jerusalem, between the city and Mount Olivet. David passed “in the direction of the way” to the wilderness, the northern part of the wilderness of Judah.
2Sa_15:24-29. The priests sent back with the ark to Jerusalem.
2Sa_15:24. Zadok (of the branch of Eleazar) with the priests took the ark from its place (2 Samuel 6), brought it out to David, and set it down where he halted (after passing the Kidron) on the declivity of the mount of Olives, “to give the people that were yet coming on time to join the procession” (Keil). On the other hand Abiathar (of the line of Eli [branch of Ithamar]) had remained in the city “till the people had all passed over from the city.” He went up, that is, of course, to the summit of Mount Olivet, where the ark was set down; the rendering: “he sacrificed” (Schultz, Böttcher), is impossible, since the verb ( òìä ) never has this meaning except in connection with the substantive “burnt-offering” ( òåֹìָä ) [or some other offering, Isa_57:6.—Tr.], or without reference to it in the connection; in the passages cited by Böttcher, 1Sa_2:28; 2Sa_24:22; 1Ki_3:15, the context points to offering. Thenius proposes to read: “and Abiathar waited,” for which there is no necessity, as the text in the connection (in respect to the locality) gives a good sense.—[Böttcher: “And Zadok, etc., bearing the ark, etc., of God, and Abiathar the son of Ahimelech at the head of all the Levites, and they set down the ark of God, and Abiathar offered sacrifices until,” etc., an improbable reading, in which the inserted clause is suggested by the Sept. ἀðὸ âáéíὰñ = Abiathar. Wellhausen acutely suggests that the words: “and Abiathar went up (or, offered sacrifices),” are in the wrong place; the text reads: “they set down the ark till all the people,” etc. It is hard to get any good sense from the present text, or to explain what part Abiathar took in the proceedings. Some think he staid in the city till the ark was set down; others (contrary to the text) that he preceded the ark, which was not set down till he stopped. Probably Abiathar ought to be somehow connected with Zadok in the bearing of the ark (see the plural “your” in 2Sa_15:27), and perhaps in sacrificing; but we have not the means of satisfactorily restoring the text.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:25 sqq. The ark sent back. David declares that he does not need this sign of God’s gracious presence and protection. His reason for this is expressed in the words [2Sa_15:26]: “if I find favor,” etc., wherein in contrast with the visible sign of God’s presence he emphasizes His spiritual nearness, on which everything depends, and gives himself unconditionally up to the will of the Lord, whom he knows to be present, whose hand he sees in these events, according to the announcement made him by Nathan. He resigns himself to God in the proper sense of the word for “favor or disfavor.” David speaks only to Zadok, who here (as in in 2Sa_15:24) appears as the officiating high-priest at the head of the Levites. [But from 1Ki_2:35 it seems that Abiathar was the superior (Bib.-Com., Bähr on “Kings” (Lange’s Bible-work), Patrick). It is not improbable that some mention of Abiathar has here fallen out of the text (see 2Sa_15:29); though it may be that in the distribution of duties the care of the ark fell to Zadok. The two priests are throughout this narrative represented as equally faithful to David.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:27 sqq. [The king says to Zadok: Return to the city, and I will await word from you at the fords.] The word äøàä [Eng. A. V. seer] presents great difficulties if we adopt the interrogative pointing, and render: “Seest thou not?” (Grot.), where the insertion of the negative is unwarranted, or: “Seest thou?” (De Wette), or: “Understandest thou?” namely, what I have just said (Böttcher), which renderings are partly too heavy, partly superfluous. [These translations take the word as Participle. Eng. A. V. takes it as a substantive, and unwarrantably inserts a negative, leaving out which, the rendering: “art thou a seer?” is grammatically possible, but not suitable to the circumstances.—Tr.] Instead of the Interrogative particle ( äֲ ) we must read the Article ( äָ ), and render: “Thou seer,” that is, thou prophet, “since a high-priest might certainly bear this higher, yet archaic name” (Ewald). The high-priest might well be called a seer, because he received divine revelations through the Urim and Thummim. David’s reason for so naming him here is found in his words in 2Sa_15:25 sqq. Zadok is to return to Jerusalem and learn God’s will through events, and through him David is to learn whether the Lord will again take him into favor and restore him to Jerusalem; that is, Zadok was to act as seer for him.—[This interpretation is hardly conveyed by the words. Zadok was to act as observer, as reporter or intermediary between Hushai and David, and in fact does so act. But he performs none of the functions of the official Roeh or Seer, and it is not easy to see why he should be so called. Usage forbids us to take the word in its literal sense: “seeer” = observer. Wellhausen’s reading: “high-priest” ( øàù ) belongs to a later time, and that of the Sept. “see!” ( øְàֵä ) seems to offer fewer difficulties than any other.—Tr.]—Ahimaaz and Jonathan the sons of the two high-priests are to be the messengers to bring news from Jerusalem; comp. 2Sa_15:28 and 2Sa_15:36.—In 2Sa_15:28 we retain (from 17:6 comp. with 19:19) the Kethib or text: “the fords of the wilderness” (instead of the Qeri “plains” [so Eng. A. V.], 2Ki_25:5), the point where one passed from the wilderness over the Jordan. Thither (to the west side of the Jordan) David had to repair in order to escape any threatening danger by crossing the river at one of the several fords in the vicinity; and there he would await information from Jerusalem. Comp. the Jordan-fords, Jos_2:7; Jdg_3:28.
2Sa_15:29. The ark is carried back to Jerusalem, and the two high-priests remain there.
2Sa_15:30-37. Continuation of the flight on the road to the wilderness of Judah over the Mount of Olives.
2Sa_15:30. David went up the height of the olive trees, that is, Mount Olivet [Eng. A. V.: the ascent (or acclivity) of Mount Olivet]. Deep and loud mourning of David and all the faithful people that accompanied him. “Covering the head” is the symbol of the mind sorrowfully sunk in itself, wholly withdrawn from the outer world. Comp. Est_6:12; Eze_24:17. Of David it is said besides that he went “barefoot,” “as a penitent” (Ewald), or: “to manifest his humiliation in the sight of God” (Thenius).
2Sa_15:31. “It was told David,” he learned from Jerusalem, that the crafty Ahithophel (see on 2Sa_15:12) was “among the conspirators” with Absalom. He replies only by a brief ejaculation, praying the Lord “to make foolish the counsel of Ahithophel,” that is, to bring it to naught.
2Sa_15:32. The fulfilment of this prayer is straightway prepared by the arrival of Hushai, the old, faithful friend of David, see 17:1 sq.—David came to the top, that is, of Mount Olivet, its highest point, whither David had come after ascending from the height below on the declivity (comp. 2Sa_15:24 with 2Sa_15:30); for there only can have been the place where men were wont to worship. By some (Sept., Vulg., Ew.) [Eng. A. V.]) “David” is taken as the subject of the verb “worshipped;” but then an Infin. with Prep. “to” ( ìְ ) must have been employed, or a Pers. Pron. ( äåּà ) inserted before the verb (Böttch.). This place on the top of Mount Olivet, therefore, was one of the Bamoth or high places, which still existed in various places in Palestine.—Hushai was a trusted, proved counsellor of the king, as appears from the duties assigned him (2Sa_15:33 sq.). That he was in close friendship with the king is shown by his repeated designation as “David’s friend,” 2Sa_15:37; 2Sa_16:16; 1Ch_27:33.—The Arkite, from the city Erek in Ephraim, on its south border near Atharoth (Jos_16:2). Hushai came to meet David, had consequently preceded him in the flight [or else, had been out of the city]. The “torn garment and the earth on the head” betoken his grief, comp. 1Sa_4:12. [According to Braun this garment was like a surplice, with sleeves, worn commonly by men of rank and position (Patrick).—Tr.]
2Sa_15:33 sq.—David, however, suggests to Hushai to return to Jerusalem. If thou pass on with me, thou wilt be a burden to me—why, it is not said. Ewald thinks it was because he was not used to war; but the matter in hand now was not war, but flight. Clericus supposes that he was a talented and prudent man, but not a warrior, and so Keil. Thenius: “thou wouldst thus increase my cares.” Probably David thinks that Hushai would impede his flight, either because he was old, or because, as the king’s intimate friend and confidential counsellor he would require special care. By entering Absalom’s service, he thinks, Hushai may foil Ahithophel’s plans (2Sa_15:34), and through the priests’ sons keep him informed of the state of affairs in Jerusalem. Hushai is to say to Absalom: Thy servant, O king, I will be; thy father’s servant was I formerly; but now—well, I am thy servant. [This was not honest, but it was according to the policy practiced in those days, and indeed in all ages. Which Procopius Gazæus approves so far as to say that “a lie told for a good end is equivalent to truth.” But I dare not justify such doctrine (Patrick).—Tr.]—[2Sa_15:35-36. Zadok and Abiathar and their sons are to participate in the stratagem of Hushai, and their moral position in the matter is perhaps the same as his and David’s. Bp. Patrick’s judgment above cited is hardly too severe. This was not an ordinary stratagem; these men, Zadok and the rest, were not simply spies, but we can avoid calling them traitors only by supposing that the priests were not recognized as adherents of Absalom, but as indifferent non-combatants, or as friends of David.—Tr.]
2Sa_15:37. Hushai returned to Jerusalem at the same time that Absalom entered the city. The addition of the Vulg.: “and Ahithophel with him” was occasioned, no doubt, by 16:15 (Thenius).
1sa 16:1–14. Two disturbing experiences in David’s flight continued from the summit of the Mount of Olives.—1) 2Sa_16:1-4. Meeting with Ziba, and the latter’s calumny against Mephibosheth.
2Sa_16:1. When David was a little past the top [of Olivet], the point where he met Hushai (15:32). On Ziba, Mephibosheth’s servant, see 9:2 sq. He came to meet David, had therefore gone on in advance of the army (as Hushai did) in order more easily to secure David’s attention after the first disorder was over. On two saddled asses he brings a quantity of food, two hundred loaves of bread, one hundred cakes of raisins or dried grapes, one hundred cakes of fruit [probably fig-cakes] ( ðáëÜèáé , comp. the Sept. in Jer_40:10; Jer_40:12) and a skin of wine.
2Sa_16:2. Ziba states his purpose in bringing this food. [His gift was particularly thoughtful and seasonable.—Tr.]—His real wish was to gain the king’s favor and gratitude, he being shrewd enough to see that David would come out victor over his son.
2Sa_16:3. David asks: “where is the son (Mephibosheth) of thy lord (Jonathan)?”; to which he replies with the calumny, that Mephibosheth had stayed in Jerusalem, hoping to regain the kingdom of his father (Jonathan), who, if he had outlived Saul, would have been king. That the helpless cripple had designs on the throne, was an evident lie. But David might now believe it, partly because the present excitement prevented quiet consideration and opened his mind to such an insinuation, partly because he feared the Sauline party, dissatisfied with his government, might use the confusion produced by Absalom’s insurrection to restore Saul’s dynasty under the name of the last scion of his house. The aim of Ziba in this calumny (19:25 sqq. proves it undoubtedly to have been such) was to get possession of the estate committed to him for Mephibosheth’s benefit (9:7 sq.), comp. 19:27–29. The manner of Ziba’s trick was this (19:26): Mephibosheth, learning of David’s flight, had ordered asses saddled for himself and his servants, in order to repair to the king in token of his faithful attachment; Ziba had taken the asses together with the presents intended by Mephibosheth for the king, come to the latter, and left the helpless Mephibosheth in the lurch. He was therefore not only an arrant liar and calumniator, but also an impudent thief and traitor.
2Sa_16:4. Another example of David’s credulity and haste. He believes Ziba without investigation, and bestows on him all his master’s property. The impudent swindler replies to this grace with two words: 1) I bow myself, that is, I manifest my most humble and devoted thanks; 2) may I find favor in the eyes of my lord, the king. I commend myself to your further good-will, comp. 1Sa_1:18. David, in the excitement of momentary misfortune, is here guilty of a double wrong, first in treating the faithful Mephibosheth as a traitor, and then in royally rewarding the false and slanderous Ziba.
2) 2Sa_16:5-14. Shimei curses David. The flight reaches Bahurim, on the position of which place see on 3:16, Thenius in loco and Käuffer’s bibl. Stud. II. 154.—[It was between Mount Olivet and the Jordan, but the exact site is unknown.—Tr.]—Shimei was of the race of Saul’s house.—[See the lists in Gen_46:21; 1Ch_8:1 sqq. Some identify him (but doubtfully) with the Cush of the title of Psalms 7.—Tr.] This explains his rage against David, which he here vents in curses and revilings and in throwing stones at him and his followers. [Such virulence is to this day exhibited in the East towards fallen greatness. Josephus states (Ant. 7, 9, 7) that Bahurim lay off the main road, which agrees very well with the account of Shimei’s behaviour (Smith’s Bib.-Dict., Art. Bahurim).—Tr.]
2Sa_16:7 sqq. Out, out, namely, out of the kingdom and the land. He calls David “thou bloody man” probably because he ascribed to him the murder of Ishbosheth and Abner (3:27 sqq.; 4:6 sqq.), of which he was wholly guiltless. [Others, less probably, think also of Saul and Jonathan, and even of Uriah.—Tr.] The misfortune [Eng. A. V. not so well “mischief”] that Absalom’s insurrection had brought on him he regards as a punishment from God, because he had become king in Saul’s stead. This shows how embittered Saul’s kindred were over David’s elevation to the throne, and how, therefore, Ziba’s slander against Mephibosheth found readier acceptance with David. [Shimei is here so far devout and religious that he ascribes the present state of things wholly to Jehovah, the God of Israel; but he ignores Samuel’s sentence of rejection (1 Samuel 15.), and otherwise shows a bad spirit.—Tr.]
2Sa_16:9. [Abishai wishes to kill Shimei.] On Abishai compare 2:23 sq.; 3:30. The “dead dog” is the expression of the extremest vileness and badness, comp. 9:8. Abishai appears here as in chaps, 2., 3. [and 1Sa_26:8] violent and revengeful. He wishes to make Shimei atone for his reviling with his head.
2Sa_16:10. [David restrains Abishai.]—Ye sons of Zeruiah. Joab is here joined with his brother (as in 2:23), being probably of the same opinion with him. “What is there to me and to you?” (comp. Joh_2:4, ôß ἐìïὶ êáὶ óïὶ ; Jos_22:24; 1Ki_17:18; for the thought comp. Luk_9:52-56), that is, what have I in common with you? [Eng. A. V.: what have I to do with you?]. David decidedly repels Abishai’s suggestion, saying: I have here no feeling in common with you; we are different persons; I will have nothing to do with you in such self-help and revenge. He bases this strict prohibition on the admonition that Shimei’s cursing is by dispensation of God. The marginal reading: “so let him curse, for the Lord” [so Eng. A. V.], and the insertion of Sept. and Vulg.: “and let him alone” (following the “let him alone” of 2Sa_16:11) after “sons of Zeruiah,” are explanations owing their origin to the difficulty that the text presented when the first particle ( ëִּé ) was taken as causal (= “for” or “because”), the second ( åְëִּé ) being then very harsh. Render both particles by “when,” and begin the apodosis with “and who” ( åּîִé ). Maurer: “when he curses and when Jehovah has said to him, Curse David, who then shall say,” etc.
2Sa_16:11 sq. David here combines Shimei’s cursing and Absalom’s revolt under the point of view of the divine permission and causation; and the fresh reference to this divine cause shows how deeply in his pious heart David feels in this misfortune also the blows of God’s chastening hand. “The repetition of the: And he said, is not superfluous, for the discourse is addressed to more persons than before” (Thenius). How much more the Benjamite, that is, the member of Saul’s tribe, who hate me. It is not surprising that such a one reviles me, when my own son seeks my life. David thus shows that from a purely human point of view there was no ground for the course proposed by Abishai.
2Sa_16:12. “Perhaps the Lord will look on my iniquity.” Instead of this ( òֲåֹðִé ) the Qeri or margin has “my eye” ( òֵéðִé ), that is, the Lord will perhaps look on “my tears,” the Masorites [ancient Jewish editors of the Heb. text] not being able to comprehend how David, guiltless in respect to this reviling, could acknowledge himself guilty. We are not, however, to change the text to “my affliction” ( òָðְéִé , Then., Ew. [Eng. A. V.]), but to retain the idea of guilt, since David deeply feels that he has offended, not, indeed, in the matter mentioned by Shimei, but against the Lord. God’s “looking on His iniquity” can then be only a gracious and merciful looking. “Perhaps the Lord will requite me good for the curse that has come on me this day,” since I patiently bear it as a chastisement of His hand. Retain the text “my curse” = the curse that has befallen me, against the Qeri “his curse” [Eng. A. V.], that is, Shimei’s. [It seems more in accordance with the thought here to read “my affliction” instead of “my iniquity;” see “Text. and Gram.” David’s humility is seen in his “perhaps;” he will not be sure of the divine blessing (Patrick). His feeling towards Shimei here seems to be controlled by an overpowering sense of God’s chastising providence. He does not exonerate his reviler, but feels that at this moment it is not his business to asssert his right, but only to bow under God’s hand. The misfortune that has befallen him is so terrible that he thinks Shimei’s addition to it only natural. Afterwards (19:23) under the generous impulses of victory, he pardons him, but finally (1Ki_2:8-9) hands him over to Solomon’s vengeance. Whatever his feeling in this last act, it is clear that now his humble sense of God’s chastisement has driven all self-assertion and revenge from his heart.—Tr.].
2Sa_16:13. Shimei’s rage is increased, it would seem, by David’s quiet behaviour; he runs along the side of the acclivity (by which the road passed) opposite him, cursing and throwing stones at David and his followers.
2Sa_16:14. David’s arrival in “Ajephim” [Eng. A. V.: “weary”]. A place of this name, indeed, is not known; but that is no ground against its existence. If the word be rendered “weary,” no place is named to which they came, as the word “there” indicates. This place was certainly not Bahurim [2Sa_16:5], for 17. 18 shows that David’s rest-place was beyond Bahurim towards the Jordan, the priests’ sons having hidden at Bahurim, and then gone on farther towards David. [Bib. Com. suggests that Ajephim was a caravansary, for which the meaning of the word (weary) would be appropriate.—Tr.].—The exact statement of the localities of David’s flight [and, indeed, of the whole history of the day of flight—Tr.] is remarkable; comp. 15:17, 23, 30, 32; 16:1, 5, 13, 14.
If we inquire, indeed, concerning the innermost grounds and causes of the insurrection and the national disintegration, we must first and chiefly note the treachery of Absalom and his accomplice, which was combined with hypocrisy and with kindness offered as a bribe, and, on the other hand, the fickleness and unfaithfulness of the people. The ambition of Absa