1883 Haydock Douay Rheims Bible
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| II Samuel 1:1 | Now *it came to pass, after Saul was dead, that David returned from the slaughter of the Amalecites, and abode two days in Siceleg. | Year of the World 2949, Year before Christ 1055. Siceleg, though it had been burnt down. (Salien, the year of the world 2949.) |
| II Samuel 1:2 | And on the third day, there appeared a man who came out of Saul's camp, with his garments rent, and dust strewed on his head: and when he came to David, he fell upon his face, and adored. | |
| II Samuel 1:3 | And David said to him: From whence comest thou? And he said to him: I am fled out of the camp of Israel. | |
| II Samuel 1:4 | And David said unto him: What is the matter that is come to pass? tell me. He said: The people are fled from the battle, and many of the people are fallen and dead: moreover Saul, and Jonathan, his son, are slain. | |
| II Samuel 1:5 | And David said to the young man that told him: How knowest thou that Saul, and Jonathan, his son, are dead? | |
| II Samuel 1:6 | And the young man that told him, said: I came by chance upon Mount Gelboe, and Saul leaned upon his spear: and the chariots and horsemen drew nigh unto him, | Chance. He feigned this to obtain the favour of David; but the king punished him as he deserved. (Worthington) --- Spear, or sword, as it is before expressed. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 1:7 | And looking behind him, and seeing me, he called me. And I answered, Here am I. | |
| II Samuel 1:8 | And he said to me: Who art thou? And I said to him: I am an Amalecite. | Amalecite. The Rabbins say he was the son of Doeg; and has this appellation because Amalec sprung from Esau, Genesis 36:12. But this is all very uncertain. The man seems to have gotten possession of the marks of the royal dignity in the night, as the Philistines deferred till the next day stripping the bodies of the deceased. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 1:9 | And he said to me: Stand over me, and kill me: for anguish is come upon me, and as yet my whole life is in me. | Anguish. Hebrew, "the coat of mail withholds me." Septuagint, "horrid darkness encompasses me." Shabah, signifies a coat of mail, made of cloth, very thick, and boiled in vinegar, to render it more impenetrable. The Greeks emperors and the French formerly wore them much, instead of iron. (Calmet) --- Protestants however agrees with us. --- In me. I have yet received no mortal wound. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 1:10 | So standing over him, I killed him: for I knew that he could not live after the fall: and I took the diadem that was on his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither to thee, my lord. | I killed him. This story of the young Amalecite was not true, as may easily be proved by comparing it with the last chapter of the foregoing book. (Challoner) --- Fall. This he says, apprehending that David would perhaps disapprove of what he had done. --- Diadem, or ribband, which was tied round his head, as a badge of his dignity. Hebrew, "the crown." But it was not of metal, though such were already common, Exodus 28:36., and 1 Paralipomenon 20:2. Some pretend that Doeg gave these insignia to this son, that he might ingratiate himself with the future king. But they were upon Saul, so that the enemy could easily distinguish him. --- Bracelet. The Hebrews took a great many from the Madianites, Numbers 31:50. Such presents were made by the Romans to soldiers who had performed some feats of valour. (Pliny, [Natural History?] 33:2.) (Livy 1:10.) |
| II Samuel 1:11 | Then David took hold of his garments and rent them, and likewise all the men that were with him: | Rent them, in sign of grief, as many other nations did. Tum pius Aeneas humeris abscindere vestem. (Virgil, Aeneid v.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 1:12 | And they mourned, and wept, and fasted until evening, for Saul, and for Jonathan, his son, and for the people of the Lord, and for the house of Israel, because they were fallen by the sword. | Of the Lord, the priests; (Abulensis) though it seems to be explained by the following words, of all the Israelites. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 1:13 | And David said to the young man that told him: Whence art thou? He answered: I am the son of a stranger of Amalec. | Stranger, residing among the Hebrews. |
| II Samuel 1:14 | David said to him: *Why didst thou not fear to put out thy hand to kill the Lord's anointed? Psalm 104:15. | |
| II Samuel 1:15 | And David calling one of his servants, said: Go near and fall upon him. And he struck him so that he died. | |
| II Samuel 1:16 | And David said to him: Thy blood be upon thy own head: for thy own mouth hath spoken against thee, saying: I have slain the Lord's anointed. | Head. None but thyself can be answerable for thy death. See Matthew 27:25. David was already supreme magistrate, and he wished that all should be convinced that he rejoiced not at the death of the king, and that none might imitate the example of this wretch. (Calmet) --- Thus Vitellius punished the murderers of Galba, "not out of respect to Galba; but, according to the custom of princes, as a protection for the present, and a threat of vengeance for the future," in case any should dare to treat him in like manner. (Tacitus i.) Tradito principibus more, munimentum in praesens, in posterum ultionem. |
| II Samuel 1:17 | And David made this kind of lamentation over Saul, and over Jonathan, his son. | |
| II Samuel 1:18 | (Also he commanded that they should teach the children of Juda the use of the bow, as it is written in the Book of the just.) And he said: Consider, O Israel, for them that are dead, wounded on thy high places. | Bow. So this canticle was entitled, because it spoke in praise of the bow and arrows of Saul and Jonathan, ver. 22. So one of the works of Hesiod is called "a buckler;" of Theocritus "a flute;" of Simmias "a wing;" etc. Septuagint have neglected this word entirely (Calmet) in the Roman edition. But it is found in the Alexandrian copy, which reads "Israel," instead of Juda, perhaps properly. (Grabe, prol. 4:2.) (Haydock) --- Chaldean, "to shoot with the bow." Many suppose that David cautioned his men to exert themselves in that art, (Menochius) as they might soon expect to have to encounter the Philistines, (Tirinus) who were very expert bowmen. (Worthington) --- But the former interpretation seems preferable. (Calmet) --- The bow might be also the beginning of some favourite song, to the tune of which (Du Hamel) David would have his men to sing this canticle, (Haydock) particularly when they went to battle. (Grotius) --- Just. See Josue 10:3. (Menochius) --- It seems this was a more ancient record, to which the author of this book refers. (Calmet) --- He might have in view the canticle of Anna, (1 Kings 2:4,) or some other. (Haydock) --- The custom of composing canticles, on such solemn occasions, is very ancient and frequent. See 3 Kings 3:33., and 13:29., and Jeremias 48:31. (Homer, Iliad ps et ch) The style of this piece can hardly be equalled by the most polite writers. (Calmet) --- David is chiefly occupied with the praises of Jonathan. (Haydock) --- Consider....places. This sentence is omitted in Hebrew, Chaldean, Septuagint, and in some copies of St. Jerome's version. (T. 1:p. 365, Nov. edit. op.) It is a farther explication of the subsequent verse. (Calmet) --- Yet the Septuagint read, "Erect a pillar, O Israel, [upon thy heights; the Vatican Septuagint places this after slain. (Haydock)] in honour of the slain, thy wounded soldiers. How are the mighty fallen?" The Hebrew seems to be different from what the Septuagint, Chaldean, etc., read, as the Masora now adopts etsbi, instead of etsib, which has greatly puzzled interpreters. Hence Aquila translates akriboson, with the Septuagint of Ximenes, i.e., "Execute or consider with attention," this sepulchral monument on which you shall inscribe, "For the dead and for thy wounded." It was to be placed on some "eminence," according to custom. The present Hebrew is very indeterminate, denoting "glory, a honey-comb," etc., Ezechiel 20:6., and Daniel 11:16, 41. See Grabe, Prol. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 1:19 | The illustrious of Israel are slain upon thy mountains: how are the valiant fallen? | Illustrious. Hebrew, "the glory (beauty, hart, etc.) of Israel hath been pierced," etc. The comparison of Saul with a hart, is noble enough in the ideas of the ancients, Psalm 17:34., Canticle of Canticles 2:9., and 8:14. Syriac and Arabic, "O hart of Israel, they have been slain," etc. (Calmet) --- Slain. Hebrew chalal, signifies also "a soldier;" and this word agrees perfectly well with giborim, "valiant," both here and ver. 22 and 25. Kennicott would apply it to Jonathan, upon whom David's attention is mostly fixed. "O ornament of Israel! O warrior, upon thy high places! How," etc. (Haydock) --- In this manner many such pieces commence, Lamentations 1:(Tirinus) |
| II Samuel 1:20 | Tell it not in Geth, publish it not in the streets of Ascalon: lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph. | Triumph. He was aware of the exultation of the infidels. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 1:21 | Ye mountains of Gelboe, let neither dew nor rain come upon you, nor let there be in you fields of first-fruits: for there was cast away the shield of the valiant, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with oil. | Fruits, which may be offered to the Lord. Inanimate things could not offend, nor does David curse them in earnest. But (Tirinus) nothing could more strikingly express his distress and grief, than this imprecation. It is false that those mountains have since been barren. This canton is one of the most fruitful of the country. (Brochard.) (Calmet) --- Job (iii.) speaks with the same animation, and curses his day. (Menochius) --- Of Saul, or "Saul, the shield of his people, was cast away, as," etc. Protestants, "as though he had not been anointed with oil." (Haydock) --- He is not reproached for throwing away his buckler, for nothing was deemed more shameful. The ancient Germans would not allow such a one to enter their temples or places of assembly. (Tacitus, mor. Germ) --- A woman of Sparta told her son, when she delivered one to him, "Bring this back, or be brought upon it" dead. Impositu scuto referunt Pallanta frequentes. (Virgil, Aeneid x.) (Sanctius) (Calmet) --- As though. Hebrew seems to have sh, instead of s, (as it is in several manuscripts correctly, in noshug) and bli, instead of cli, (Delany) as the former word seems no where else to signify quasi non; and the Syriac, Arabic, and Chaldean omit the negation. It might therefore be the shield of Saul, "the arms of him who has been anointed with oil." (Kennicott) --- Some would refer this unction to the shield, (Vatable) as this was some times done: (Menochius) but the reflection would be here too trifling. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 1:22 | From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the valiant, the arrow of Jonathan never turned back, and the sword of Saul did not return empty. | From. Hebrew, "without the blood of soldiers, without the fat of the valiant, the bow of Jonathan had never returned." (Kennicott) --- Fat. The entrails. It might also denote the most valiant of the soldiers, as we read of "the fat or marrow of corn" for the best, Psalm 80:17. (Calmet) --- Jonathan attacked the most courageous, and laid them dead at his feet. (Haydock) --- Empty. Saul carried destruction wherever he went. Et nos tela, pater, ferrumque haud debile dextra, Spargimus et nostro sequitur de vulnere sanguis. (Virgil, Aeneid 12:50.) |
| II Samuel 1:23 | Saul and Jonathan, lovely, and comely in their life, even in death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions. | Lovely, or united. Jonathan always behaved with due respect towards his father, though he could not enter into his unjust animosity against David. (Calmet) --- The latter passes over in silence all that Saul had done against himself, and seems wholly occupied with the thought of the valour and great achievements of the deceased. (Haydock) --- Sanchez believes that these epithets were introduced of course into funeral canticles, like Alas! my noble one, (Jeremias 22:18.; Menochius) as Saul could have no pretensions to be styled lovely, or friendly, towards the latter part of his reign; since he treated the priests, David, and even his son Jonathan, with contumely, and even with unrelenting fury. But all this David would willingly bury in oblivion. He will not even notice how different was the end of the two heroes. Jonathan died like a virtuous soldier in his country's cause; Saul was wounded, but impiously accelerated his own death, through dread of torments and of insult. Though they died, therefore, on the same field of battle, their end was as different as that of the saint and of the impenitent sinner. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 1:24 | Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you with scarlet in delights, who gave ornaments of gold for your attire. | |
| II Samuel 1:25 | How are the valiant fallen in battle? how was Jonathan slain in the high places? | Battle. Hebrew, "in the midst of battle! O Jonathan, thou warrior upon thy high places!" (Kennicott, Diss. 1:p. 123.) |
| II Samuel 1:26 | I grieve for thee, my brother Jonathan, exceeding beautiful, and amiable to me above the love of women. As the mother loveth her only son, so did I love thee. | Brother. So they lamented, Alas! my brother, Jeremias 22:18. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 1:27 | How are the valiant fallen, and the weapons of war perished? | Perished, falling into the hands of the enemy; though Saul and Jonathan may be styled the arms, as well as the shield, of Israel. (Menochius) --- No character could be more worthy of praise than the latter. His breast was never agitated by envy, though he seemed to be the most interested to destroy David. Even Saul had many excellent qualities; which makes Ven. Bede compare him in those respects with Jesus Christ; as most of the memorable persons and events of the Old Testament had a view to Christ on the one hand, and to the Synagogue on the other. Saul is one of the most striking figures of the reprobation and conduct of the Jewish church. As he was adorned with many glorious prerogatives, and chosen by God, yet he no sooner beheld the rising merit of David, than he began to persecute him: so the Jews had been instructed by the prophets, and had been selected as God's peculiar inheritance; and nevertheless took occasion from the virtues and miracles of the Son of God, to conspire his ruin. The Romans were sent to punish the Jews, who are now become the most abject of all mankind, and are filled with rage, seeing the exaltation of the Christian Church, as Saul was reduced by the Philistines to the greatest distress, and his children were forced to implore the protection of the man whom he had so cruelly persecuted, etc. (Calmet) --- Saul and Judas may be a warning to us, that no person ought to live without fear, since they perished so miserably, though they had been elevated by the hand of God. (St. Ambrose, etc.) (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 2:0 | David is received and anointed king of Juda. Isboseth, the son of Saul, reigneth over the rest of Israel. A battle between Abner and Joab. | |
| II Samuel 2:1 | And *after these things David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I go up into one of the cities of Juda? And the Lord said to him: Go up. And David said: Whither shall I go up? And he answered him: Into Hebron. | Year of the World 2949. Juda. David thought it was his duty to co-operate with the designs of Providence. He consults the Lord (Calmet) by means of Abiathar, (Abulensis) or by a prophet. (Josephus) --- Hebron, ennobled by the patriarchs. (Menochius) --- It was also in the centre of Juda, and the strongest place belonging to that tribe. (Calmet) --- Part of Jerusalem was still in the hands of the Jebusites. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 2:2 | So David went up, and his two wives, Achinoam, the Jezrahelitess, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel: | |
| II Samuel 2:3 | And the men also that were with him, David brought up, every man with his household: and they abode in the towns of Hebron. | Towns, villages, and dependencies of Hebron. |
| II Samuel 2:4 | *And the men of Juda came, and anointed David there, to be king over the house of Juda. And it was told David, that the men of Jabes Galaad had buried Saul. 1 Machabees 2:57.; 2 Kings 5:3. | Juda, without the concurrence of the other tribes, (Calmet) which would be an evil precedent in a commonwealth, unless God had authorized them by the declaration of his will. (Grotius) --- Samuel had before anointed David, and given him a right to the crown, (Worthington) jus ad regnum. But this anointing gives him a right to govern, jus in regno; (Calmet) or rather it proves, that the tribe submitted voluntarily to his dominion, which he had already (Haydock) lawfully begun to exercise, when he put the Amalecite to death. (Abulensis) (Tirinus) --- Told, perhaps by some ill-designing men, who wished to irritate David against those who had shewn an attachment to Saul, unless the king had made enquiry, thinking it his duty to bury the deceased. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 2:5 | David therefore sent messengers to the men of Jabes Galaad, and said to them: Blessed be you to the Lord, who have shewed this mercy to your master, Saul, and have buried him. | |
| II Samuel 2:6 | And now the Lord surely will render you mercy and truth, and I also will requite you for this good turn, because you have done this thing. | And truth, or a real kindness. God will reward you for the sincere piety which you have shewn towards the dead. (Calmet) --- Will. I do, by these messengers, thank you. (Louis de Dieu) |
| II Samuel 2:7 | Let your hands be strengthened, and be ye men of valour: for although your master, Saul, be dead, yet the house of Juda hath anointed me to be their king. | King. He invites them to concur with the men of Juda, hoping that all Israel would be influenced by their example. But his hopes proved abortive, as Abner caused Isboseth to be proclaimed king in the vicinity at Mahanaim. |
| II Samuel 2:8 | But Abner, the son of Ner, general of Saul's army, took Isboseth, the son of Saul, and led him about through the camp. | Camp. Hebrew Machanayim, which many take for a proper name (Calmet) of the town, on the river Jabok, where Jacob had encamped, Genesis 32:2. (Haydock) --- Abner was aware that he should not retain his authority under David, and therefore conducted Isboseth to the camps in various places, (Menochius) but chiefly on the east side of the Jordan, (Haydock; ver. 29.) where the people were particularly attached to Saul's family. Isboseth seems to have been a fit tool for his purpose. |
| II Samuel 2:9 | And made him king over Galaad, and over Gessuri, and over Jesrahel, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all Israel. | Gessuri. There was one south of Juda: but this country was probably near Hermon, and might be tributary to Israel. David perhaps married this king's daughter, in order to detach him from the party of Isboseth, 2 Kings 3:3. Hebrew reads, "Assuri;" and St. Jerome observes, that many explained it of the tribe of Aser, (Trad. Heb.[Hebrew tradition?]) with the Chaldee, (Du Hamel; Menochius) or of the Assurians, Genesis 25:3. --- Israel, by degrees. In the mean time the Philistines occupied many cities, which might prevent Isboseth from attempting to fix his residence on the west side of the Jordan, ver. 19. |
| II Samuel 2:10 | Isboseth, the son of Saul, was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years; and only the house of Juda followed David. | He reigned two years, viz., before he began visibly to decline: but in all he reigned seven years and six months: for so long David reigned in Hebron. (Challoner) (Worthington) --- The Jews admit of an interregnum in Israel of above five years, which is by no means probable. Two years elapsed before the two houses came to an open war; (Salien) soon after which, the power of Isboseth was greatly weakened by the defeat, and afterwards by the defection, of Abner. (Haydock) --- Hence the sacred historian refers to the commencement of hostilities, and not to the end of Isboseth's dominion. (Estius; Tirinus; Calmet) |
| II Samuel 2:11 | And the number of the days that David abode, reigning in Hebron over the house of Juda, was seven years and six months. | |
| II Samuel 2:12 | And Abner, the son of Ner, and the servants of Isboseth, the son of Saul, went out from the camp to Gabaon. | Servants; guards, army. (Menochius) --- Camp; or from Machanayim to Gabaon, in the tribe of Benjamin, about six miles from Jerusalem. (Calmet) --- Septuagint leave the former word untranslated, "Manaeim." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 2:13 | And Joab, the son of Sarvia, and the servants of David went out, and met them by the pool of Gabaon. And when they were come together, they sat down over-against one another: the one on the one side of the pool, and the other on the other side. | |
| II Samuel 2:14 | And Abner said to Joab: Let the young men rise, and play before us. And Joab answered: Let them rise. | Play, like the gladiators with drawn swords, which formed one of the principal diversions at Rome, (Calmet) while it was pagan. This might be considered as a prelude to the ensuing engagement; or like a detachment of twelve on each side, fighting to shew the prowess of their respective armies; as the three Horatii and Curiatii did afterwards, to spare the effusion of blood. But there is no mention that Abner and Joab had authority to agree that these champions should decide the fate of the two kingdoms, (Haydock) whence they are generally accused of ostentation; though the soldiers, not being acquainted with their motives, were obliged to obey. (Tirinus; Menochius) |
| II Samuel 2:15 | Then there arose and went over twelve in number of Benjamin, of the part of Isboseth, the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David. | |
| II Samuel 2:16 | And every one catching his fellow, by the head, thrust his sword into the side of his adversary, and they fell down together: and the name of the place was called: The field of the valiant, in Gabaon. | Together. Some understand this only of Abner's soldiers, as the original may be explained: "And they (David's men) caught every on one his," etc. But it is more generally believed that all fell. (Calmet) --- Rufin has erroneously translated Josephus in the former sense, and has lead Comestor, Lyranus, etc., into this opinion. (Tirinus) --- Valiant. Hebrew, "the portion of the smooth stones, (hatsurim, 1 Kings 17:40. or) of the brave." (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 2:17 | And there was a very fierce battle that day: And Abner was put to flight, with the men of Israel, by the servants of David. | |
| II Samuel 2:18 | And there were the three sons of Sarvia there, Joab, and Abisai, and Asael: now Asael was a most swift runner, like one of the roes, that abide in the woods. | Woods. Swiftness was one great qualification of a warrior, 2 Kings 1:23. Homer generally styles Achilles, "the swift-footed." |
| II Samuel 2:19 | And Asael pursued after Abner, and turned not to the right hand nor to the left from following Abner. | |
| II Samuel 2:20 | And Abner looked behind him, and said: Art thou Asael? And he answered: I am. | |
| II Samuel 2:21 | And Abner said to him: Go to the right hand, or to the left, and lay hold on one of the young men, and take thee his spoils. But Asael would not leave off following him close. | Spoils. Attack one who may be a more equal match for thee. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 2:22 | And again Abner said to Asael: Go off, and do not follow me, lest I be obliged to stab thee to the ground, and I shall not be able to hold up my face to Joab, thy brother. | Brother. It seems they were great friends, though they had espoused different parties. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 2:23 | But he refused to hearken to him, and would not turn aside: wherefore Abner struck him with his spear, with a back stroke in the groin, and thrust him through, and he died upon the spot: and all that came to the place where Asael fell down and died, stood still. | Stroke, (aversa.) Hebrew, "with the hinder end of the spear, under the fifth rib." Septuagint, "in the loin." |
| II Samuel 2:24 | Now while Joab and Abisai pursued after Abner, the sun went down: and they came as far as the hill of the aqueduct, that lieth over-against the valley, by the way of the wilderness in Gabaon. | Wilderness, or land which was not ploughed, though fruitful. |
| II Samuel 2:25 | And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together to Abner: and being joined in one body, they stood on the top of a hill. | |
| II Samuel 2:26 | And Abner cried out to Joab, and said: Shall thy sword rage unto utter destruction? knowest thou not that it is dangerous to drive people to despair? how long dost thou defer to bid the people cease from pursuing after their brethren? | Destruction. Septuagint, "till thou hast gained a complete victory?" Chaldean, "to separation?" Must we come to an eternal rupture? --- Despair? Hebrew, "that it will be bitterness in the end?" Abner insinuates that they had commenced in a sort of play, but the consequences had already proved too serious; and if Joab continued to pursue, his men would be rendered desperate. (Calmet) --- Despair makes people perform wonders, to revenge themselves. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 2:27 | And Joab said: As the Lord liveth, if thou hadst spoke sooner, even in the morning the people should have retired from pursuing after their brethren. | Sooner. Hebrew, "If thou hadst not spoken," (Du Hamel) by challenging, ver. 14. (Josephus, etc.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 2:28 | Then Joab sounded the trumpet, and all the army stood still, and did not pursue after Israel any farther, nor fight any more. | Trumpet. It was not dishonourable for a general to do this himself, 2 Kings 18:16. But among the Hebrews, the priests generally performed this office. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 2:29 | And Abner and his men walked all that night through the plains: and they passed the Jordan, and having gone through all Beth-horon, came to the camp. | Beth-horon. Septuagint, "the extended plain." Hebrew Bithrun, (Haydock) or the country towards the Jordan. (Calmet) --- Thus the battle ended in his disgrace; (Haydock) and many from all Israel began to flock to the standard of David, 1 Paralipomenon 12:22. (Tirinus) |
| II Samuel 2:30 | And Joab returning, after he had left Abner, assembled all the people: and there were wanting of David's servants nineteen men, beside Asael. | |
| II Samuel 2:31 | But the servants of David had killed of Benjamin, and of the men that were with Abner, three hundred and sixty, who all died. | |
| II Samuel 2:32 | And they took Asael, and buried him in the sepulchre of his father, in Bethlehem: and Joab, and the men that were with him, marched all the night, and they came to Hebron at break of day. | Day, after a march of ten hours. (Adrichomius) (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 3:0 | David groweth daily stronger. Abner cometh over to him: he is treacherously slain by Joab. | |
| II Samuel 3:1 | Now *there was a long war between the house of Saul and the house of David: David prospering and growing always stronger and stronger, but the house of Saul decaying daily. | Year of the World 2951. War, the particulars of which are not given. (Calmet) --- But David's power continually increased, and he was blessed with many children. (Haydock) --- "Legions and fleets are not such strong bulwarks of the throne, as a numerous family." (Tacitus, Hist. v.) |
| II Samuel 3:2 | *And sons were born to David in Hebron: and his first-born was Amnon, of Achinoam, the Jezrahelitess. 1 Paralipomenon 3:1. | Amnon, who was murdered by Absalom, for his incest, 2 Kings 13:32. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 3:3 | And his second Cheleab, of Abigail, the wife of Nabal, of Carmel: and the third, Absalom, the son of Maacha, the daughter of Tholmai, king of Gessur. | Cheleab, or Daniel, 1 Paralipomenon 3:1. Septuagint, "Dalnia." (Calmet) --- Alexandrian, "Dalouja." (Haydock) --- Others, "Abia." --- Gessur, not far from Damascus. The lady probably first embraced the true religion, though the Scripture seldom enters into these details. (Calmet) --- David is never blamed for marrying strange women. Salien supposes that he entered into this alliance before the civil war broke out, that Isboseth, who had fixed his court at Mahanaim, might have an opponent near at hand. The fruits of this marriage were very unfortunate, and brought great distress upon David: so little do men know what will be the event of the most splendid connections! (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 3:4 | And the fourth, Adonias, the son of Haggith: and the fifth, Saphathia, the son of Abital. | Adonias was slain by Solomon, (3 Kings 2:24.; Menochius) for arrogating to himself the right of the first-born, and pretending that the crown belonged to him. (Haydock) --- The names of his mother, and of those who follow, are barely known. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 3:5 | And the sixth, Jethraam, of Egla, the wife of David: these were born to David in Hebron. | Wife. She was otherwise of no nobility, but perhaps loved by David more than the rest, as Rachel was by Jacob. The Rabbins would infer that Egla and Michol are the same person. But the latter had no children, (chap. 6:23.; Salien) and is mentioned [in] ver. 13. |
| II Samuel 3:6 | Now while there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner, the son of Ner, ruled the house of Saul. | |
| II Samuel 3:7 | And Saul had a concubine named Respha, the daughter of Aia. And Isboseth said to Abner: | |
| II Samuel 3:8 | Why didst thou go in to my father's concubine? And he was exceedingly angry for the words of Isboseth, and said: Am I a dog's head against Juda this day, who have shewn mercy unto the house of Saul, thy father, and to his brethren and friends, and have not delivered thee into the hands of David, and hast thou sought this day against me, to charge me with a matter concerning a woman? | Concubine. To marry the king's widow was deemed an attempt upon the throne, 3 Kings 2:22. Hence Solomon was so displeased at Adonias, ver. 24. Some think that Isboseth formed the accusation on mere conjecture; but Abner does not deny the fact. (Calmet) --- Dog's head: of no account, like a dead dog; (Haydock) or no better than a servant, who leads a dog. The Jews considered the dog as one of the vilest of animals, 2 Kings 9:8., and Job 30:1. --- Juda. This word is neglected by the Septuagint. Some would substitute Liduth, "to be cast away." (Calmet) --- God permits the defenders of a wrong cause to fall out, that the right one may be advanced. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 3:9 | So do God to Abner, and more also, unless as the Lord hath sworn to David, so I do to him, | Sworn. It seems therefore that he knew of God's appointment, and had hitherto resisted it for his own temporal convenience. (Haydock) --- If both he and Isboseth were ignorant of this decree, Abner had no right to deprive the latter of the crown. (Abulensis, q. 7.) (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 3:10 | That the kingdom be translated from the house of Saul, and the throne of David be set up over Israel, and over Juda, from Dan to Bersabee. | |
| II Samuel 3:11 | And he could not answer him a word, because he feared him. | Him. And no wonder; since even David could not repress the insolence of his chief commander, ver. 39. So Otho "had not yet sufficient authority to hinder the perpetration of crimes." (Tacitus, Hist. i.) |
| II Samuel 3:12 | Abner *therefore sent messengers to David for himself, saying: Whose is the land? and that they should say: Make a league with me, and my hand shall be with thee: and I will bring all Israel to thee. | Year of the World 2956, Year before Christ 1048. Himself. Hebrew may be also "immediately," (Piscator) or "in secret," (Kimchi) as the matter seems not to have transpired. (Calmet) --- Alexandrian Septuagint, "to Thelam, where he was, without delay, saying, Make," etc. (Haydock) --- Land? Is it not thine? or have not I the disposal of a great part of it? (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 3:13 | And he said: Very well: I will make a league with thee: but one thing I require of thee, saying: Thou shalt not see my face before thou bring Michol, the daughter of Saul; and so thou shalt come, and see me. | Thee. Could David thus authorize treachery? It is answered, that Abner knew that the throne belonged to him, and he was already responsible for all the evils of the civil war. David does not approve of his conduct, but only makes use of him to obtain his right. --- Michol. He might justly think that the people would have less repugnance to acknowledge him for their sovereign, when they saw that he had married the daughter of Saul. She had never been repudiated by him. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 3:14 | And David sent messengers to Isboseth, the son of Saul, saying: *Restore my wife, Michol, whom I espoused to me for a hundred fore-skins of the Philistines. 1 Kings 18:27. | Isboseth. Thus he would screen the perfidy of Abner, (Menochius) and hinder him from using any violence. (Calmet) --- The pacific king accedes immediately to the request, as he had no personal aversion to David, and saw that he was in a far more elevated condition than Phaltiel. (Haydock) --- Moreover, this was no time to irritate him more, as Abner was discontented. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 3:15 | And Isboseth sent, and took her from her husband, Phaltiel, the son of Lais. | |
| II Samuel 3:16 | And her husband followed her, weeping as far as Bahurim: And Abner said to him: Go and return. And he returned. | Bahurim, in the tribe of Benjamin. (Adrichomius 28.) |
| II Samuel 3:17 | Abner also spoke to the ancients of Israel, saying: Both yesterday and the day before you sought for David, that he might reign over you. | |
| II Samuel 3:18 | Now then do it: because the Lord hath spoken to David, saying: By the hand of my servant David I will save my people Israel from the hands of the Philistines, and of all their enemies. | Enemies. We read not of this promise elsewhere. But how many other things are omitted in the sacred books? (Calmet) --- Abner alleges God's decree, that he may not be deemed a traitor. (Cajetan) |
| II Samuel 3:19 | And Abner spoke also to Benjamin. And he went to speak to David, in Hebron, all that seemed good to Israel, and to all Benjamin. | Benjamin, which tribe was naturally most attached to Saul's family. They followed, however, the example of the ten tribes, and 20 of them accompanied their general to Hebron. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 3:20 | And he came to David, in Hebron, with twenty men: and David made a feast for Abner, and his men that came with him. | Feast, through joy at the reception of his wife, and of such good news. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 3:21 | And Abner said to David: I will rise, that I may gather all Israel unto thee, my lord the king, and may enter into a league with thee, and that thou mayst reign over all as thy soul desireth. Now when David had brought Abner on his way, and he was gone in peace, | And may. Some Latin copies read with the Hebrew, "and it (Israel) may enter," ineat. |
| II Samuel 3:22 | Immediately David's servants and Joab came, after having slain the robbers, with an exceeding great booty: And Abner was not with David in Hebron, for he had now sent him away, and he was gone in peace. | Robbers. Amalecites, (Salien) or Philistines, who had made some incursions into David's territories. (Abulensis) |
| II Samuel 3:23 | And Joab and all the army that was with him, came afterwards: and it was told Joab, that Abner, the son of Ner, came to the king, and he hath sent him away, and he is gone in peace. | |
| II Samuel 3:24 | And Joab went in to the king, and said: What hast thou done? Behold Abner came to thee: Why didst thou send him away, and he is gone and departed? | |
| II Samuel 3:25 | Knowest thou not Abner, the son of Ner, that to this end he came to thee, that he might deceive thee, and to know thy going out, and thy coming in, and to know all thou dost? | Dost. This explains going out, etc. (Haydock) --- Joab pretends to be wholly solicitous for the king's welfare. But he was afraid lest Abner should take his place, and he also desired to revenge Asael's death. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 3:26 | Then Joab going out from David, sent messengers after Abner, and brought him back from the cistern of Sira, David knowing nothing of it. | Messengers, in the king's name. --- Sira. See Judges 3:26. Josephus says the place was 20 stadia from Hebron. (Antiquities 7:1.) |
| II Samuel 3:27 | And when *Abner was returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside to the middle of the gate, to speak to him, treacherously: and he stabbed him there in the groin, and he died, in revenge of the blood of Asael his brother. 3 Kings 2:5. | Middle. Septuagint, "sides." --- Brother; (who had been wounded in the same place) a just punishment of Abner's licentiousness. (Salien) --- This was given out as the pretext of the murder; but envy seems to have been the chief promoter. (Menochius) --- Joab treated Amasa in the same manner, 2 Kings 20:10. Ambition was his god. (Calmet) --- Abisai was ready to assist him to murder Abner, ver. 30. Thus the fairest prospects of union seemed to vanish, and David was sincerely grieved, as he manifested in the most decided manner, confessing it was only the want of power which prevented him from bringing these merciless and potent brothers, his own nephews, to immediate punishment, ver. 39. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 3:28 | And when David heard of it, after the thing was now done, he said: I, and my kingdom are innocent before the Lord for ever of the blood of Abner, the son of Ner: | Innocent. I would not purchase a kingdom at such a price. (Calmet) --- I beg that the crime may not be imputed to us, who are innocent. (Haydock) --- God sometimes punishes a whole kingdom for the sins of the rulers. (Menochius) --- Yet not without some fault of the subjects. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 3:29 | And may it come upon the head of Joab, and upon all his father's house: and let there not fail from the house of Joab one that hath an issue of seed, or that is a leper, or that holdeth the distaff, or that falleth by the sword, or that wanteth bread. | Issue. Such were looked upon as unclean, (Leviticus 15:3,) and incapable of having children. Aquila translates zab, "blind." Septuagint, "afflicted with the gonorrhoea." --- Distaff, like eunuchs. (Delrio, adag. 190.) (Claud in Eutrop.) Tu telas non tela pati, etc. Some translate a stick, with which the blind, lame and aged endeavour to walk. (Calmet) --- Any of these conditions would be very mortifying to great warriors. (Haydock) --- Bread. Hunger and famine were considered as a scourge of God, Psalm 58:7, 15., and 108:10. David is not moved with hatred, but foretells what will befall the posterity of these men, whose crime he abhors. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 3:30 | So Joab, and Abisai, his brother slew Abner, because he had killed their brother Asael, at Gabaon, in the battle. | |
| II Samuel 3:31 | And David said to Joab, and to all the people that were with him: Rend your garments, and gird yourselves with sackcloths, and mourn before the funeral of Abner. And king David himself followed the bier. | Joab. Requiring him to make some reparation, at least, for the offence, and to render the funeral pomp more solemn. All were obliged to rend their garments, and to put on sackcloth, on such occasions. It was very rough, and consisted chiefly of goat and camel's hair. --- Bier, contrary to the custom of kings. Some copies of the Septuagint say, he "went before the bier," (Calmet) where women commonly were placed. (Grotius) |
| II Samuel 3:32 | And when they had buried Abner in Hebron, king David lifted up his voice, and wept at the grave of Abner: and all the people also wept. | |
| II Samuel 3:33 | And the king, mourning and lamenting over Abner, said: Not as cowards are wont to die, hath Abner died. | Died. Hebrew, "Is Abner dead, like Nabal," "a fool," (Chaldean) "like the wicked?" "Ought so brave a man to have died in this treacherous manner?" |
| II Samuel 3:34 | Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet loaden with fetters: but as men fall before the children of iniquity, so didst thou fall. And all the people repeating it, wept over him. | Iniquity. David does not spare Joab, in this canticle, which was sung by all the people. (Calmet) --- He intimates, that if he had not used deceit, Abner would not have been so easily overcome. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 3:35 | And when all the people came to take meat with David, while it was yet broad day, David swore, saying: So do God to me, and more also, if I taste bread or any thing else before sun-set. | David. Hebrew, "to cause David to eat meat" (Haydock) at the feast, which usually accompanied funerals, Genesis 50:3. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 3:36 | And all the people heard, and they were pleased, and all that the king did seemed good in the sight of all the people. | |
| II Samuel 3:37 | And all the people, and all Israel understood that day, that it was not the king's doing, that Abner, the son of Ner, was slain. | |
| II Samuel 3:38 | The king also said to his servants: Do you not know that a prince and a great man is slain this day in Israel? | Israel. And that all this pomp is not unseasonable. (Menochius) --- The chief, if not the only virtue of Abner, was military skill, or a blunt valour. |
| II Samuel 3:39 | But I as yet am tender, though anointed king: and these men, the sons of Sarvia, are too hard for me: the Lord reward him that doeth evil according to his wickedness. | King. Septuagint, "and that I am to-day a relation, (by my wife) and appointed king by the king?" (Haydock) --- He seemed as yet to have little more than the title. His throne was not well established; (Calmet; Worthington) and to undertake to punish the offenders now, might have had so pernicious consequences as the attempt of Isboseth to correct his general. (Haydock) --- It is better to temporize than to increase the distemper, (Calmet) by a fruitless zeal for justice. (Haydock) --- The punishment was only deferred, 3 Kings 2:5. (Menochius) -- Hard. Powerful or insupportable. (Calmet) --- This year was memorable for the death of Codrus, king of Athens. (Salien, the year of the world 2985.) |
| II Samuel 4:0 | Isboseth is murdered by two of his servants: David punisheth the murderers. | |
| II Samuel 4:1 | And *Isboseth, the son of Saul, heard that Abner was slain in Hebron: and his hands were weakened, and all Israel was troubled. | Year of the World 2956. Isboseth is omitted in Hebrew but understood. He is expressed in the Septuagint. The Alexandrian copy generally substitutes Memphibosthai, by mistake; as he (Miphiboseth) was the son of Jonathan, ver. 4. (Haydock) --- Weakened. Hitherto Abner had been the chief support of Saul's family. His traitorous practices had been kept secret from Isboseth, (Calmet) who hoped that his former declaration had been dictated by a sudden passion, and would not be carried into effect, 2 Kings 3:10. (Haydock) --- Troubled, not knowing what turn things would now take, and fearing the resentment of the sons of Sarvia, though they were convinced of David's good dispositions. (Salien, the year before Christ 1067.) |
| II Samuel 4:2 | Now the son of Saul had two men captains of his bands; the name of the one was Baana, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Remmon, a Berothite, of the children of Benjamin: for Beroth also was reckoned in Benjamin. | Bands, (Latronum.) Literally, "robbers," or people who live on plunder, like the posterity of Ismael, and of Esau, Genesis 27:40. The life-guards of princes are often styled latrones, (Calmet) from their being stationed at their "sides," as if Laterones. (Menochius) -----Fixumque latronis, Impavidus frangit telum. (Virgil, Aeneid 12:7.) See Servius. (Judges 11:3.) --- Beroth was one of the towns of the Gabaonites. It is not certain that the inhabitants retired, in consequence of the persecution of Saul; but they went to the territory of Geth, or to another town of Benjamin, 2 Esdras 11:33. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 4:3 | And the Berothites fled into Gethaim, and were sojourners there until that time. | That. Hebrew, etc., "this day," when the historian wrote. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 4:4 | And Jonathan, the son of Saul, had a son that was lame of his feet: for he was five years old, when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan from Jezrahel. And his nurse took him up and fled: and as she made haste to flee, he fell and became lame: and his name was Miphiboseth. | Miphiboseth. All from Beroth, (ver. 2,) may be included within a parenthesis, being only mentioned here to let us know the state of affairs, (Haydock) and how the son of Jonathan could have no pretensions of the crown. (Grotius) (Calmet) --- He would be almost 12 years old at the death of his uncle. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 4:5 | And the sons of Remmon, the Berothite, Rechab and Baana, coming, went into the house of Isboseth in the heat of the day: and he was sleeping upon his bed at noon. And the door-keeper of the house, who was cleansing wheat, was fallen asleep. | At noon, "to divide the day," as Varro (III. 2,) writes. This custom is very prevalent in hot countries. --- And the, etc., is all omitted in Hebrew and in most ancient manuscripts of St. Jerome's version. It is taken from the Septuagint, (Calmet) who do not notice any farther the taking ears of corn, ver. 6. (Haydock) --- Probably the Hebrew had this sentence formerly. (Du Hamel) --- It was customary to have women to keep the doors; (Matthew 26:69,) and they were often employed in cleansing wheat. Petronius says, in lance argentea pisum purgabat. (Calmet) --- The ears of corn, hardly ripe, were cleansed, and used as a delicious food. (Tirinus) (1 Kings 17:17.) (Sanctius) |
| II Samuel 4:6 | And they entered into the house secretly, taking ears of corn; and Rechab, and Baana, his brother, stabbed him in the groin, and fled away. | Corn. Soldiers were paid with corn, instead of money. They came, therefore, under this pretext; or they brought some as a present to the king, (Liranus) or pretended that they were come to purchase, (Menochius) or bringing a sample to sell; (Tirinus) ut emptores tritici. (Chaldean) Protestants, "as though they would have fetched wheat, and they smote him under the fifth rib." |
| II Samuel 4:7 | For when they came into the house, he was sleeping upon his bed in a parlour; and they struck him and killed him: and taking away his head, they went off by the way of the wilderness, walking all night. | Parlour. Hebrew, "bed-chamber." --- Wilderness. Avoiding places frequented. (Haydock) --- The distance was about 40 leagues, which they could not travel in one night. (Calmet) --- Adrichomius says it was 30 hours' walk. Septuagint, "west-ward." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 4:8 | And they brought the head of Isboseth to David, to Hebron: and they said to the king: Behold the head of Isboseth, the son of Saul, thy enemy, who sought thy life: and the Lord hath revenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed. | Life. They wish to recall to David's remembrance what Saul had done against him, that he may approve the more of what they had perpetrated. (Menochius) --- They supposed that, as Abner had been well received, they should obtain still greater favour. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 4:9 | But David answered Rechab, and Baana, his brother, the sons of Remmon, the Berothite, and said to them: As the Lord liveth, who hath delivered my soul out of all distress, | |
| II Samuel 4:10 | *The man that told me, and said: Saul is dead, who thought he brought good tidings, I apprehended, and slew him in Siceleg, who should have been rewarded for his news. 2 Kings 1:14. | |
| II Samuel 4:11 | How much more now, when wicked men have slain an innocent man in his own house, upon his bed, shall I not require his blood at your hand, and take you away from the earth? | Innocent. Isboseth was such, at least, in their regard. He might also have mounted his father's throne, bona fide; and, at any rate, it was not their business to decide the matter (Calmet) in this treacherous manner. Thus Alexander punished Bessus, who had murdered his master, Darius, with whom the former was at war. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 4:12 | And David commanded his servants, and they slew them, and cutting off their hands and feet, hanged them up over the pool in Hebron: but the head of Isboseth they took and buried in the sepulchre of Abner, in Hebron. | Feet, while they were alive, (Theodoret; Menochius) almost as Adonibezec had treated many; (Judges 1:6,) or they were first put to death, and the parts cut off were fastened to a cross; as the head and right hand of Cyrus were by his brother Artaxerxes. (Xenophon, Anab. iii.) (Calmet) --- Josephus seems to be of the former opinion, saying, "he ordered them to be executed in the most excruciating torments," "while the head of Jebosthe (Isboseth) was buried with all honour." (Antiquities 7:2.) --- Thus David convinced the people that he would punish crimes, when it was in his power, and that he would give no encouragement to the treason or perfidy of any one. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 5:0 | David is anointed king of all Israel. He taketh Jerusalem, and dwelleth there. He defeateth the Philistines. | |
| II Samuel 5:1 | Then all the tribes of Israel came to David, in Hebron, saying: *Behold we are thy bone and thy flesh. 3: 2 Kings 2:4. | Year of the World 2956, 1 Paralipomenon xi. Tribes. Thus were God's promises sweetly fulfilled, and David obtained the quiet dominion over all Israel, excepting perhaps a few of the tribe of Benjamin, according to the Vulgate, 1 Paralipomenon 12:29. an army of 340,822 was collected on this occasion; and David signalized the commencement of his reign, by the taking of Jerusalem. (Calmet) --- The tribe is Issachar is not specified in the text; but Josephus asserts, that 20,000 of them assembled; so that the army would amount to 359 (Salien) or 60[360?] thousand, besides the 822. (Calmet) --- These might be considered as deputies of all the rest of their brethren, 1 Paralipomenon 12:38. They were abundantly supplied with all necessities. (Salien) --- Flesh, of the same nation, as Moses had specified, Deuteronomy 17:15. (Calmet) --- They now relinquish all the seeds of division, which had before hindered them from joining with their brethren of Juda. Kennicott discovers several important alterations, by comparing this history with 1 Chronicles xi. (Dissert. i.) (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 5:2 | Moreover yesterday also and the day before, when Saul was king over us, thou wast he that did lead out and bring in Israel: and the Lord said to thee: Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be prince over Israel. | Lead out to battle. His experience in war was a great recommendation. (Haydock) --- Feed, as a shepherd, under which character he is first represented. (Haydock) --- Other rulers were afterwards honoured with the same title, (Calmet) particularly the governors of the Church, Acts xx., etc. David's name is written without i, in the books before the captivity; whence Kennicott would infer, that the canticles were perhaps not the work of Solomon, as the i occurs there; Duid for Dud. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 5:3 | The ancients also of Israel came to the king, to Hebron, and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the Lord: *and they anointed David to be king over Israel. | Ancients; princes of the tribes, and officers, (Calmet) with all the chief magistrates. (Haydock) --- The high priest, Abiathar, received the oaths of allegiance from the people, and of the king, who promised to govern according to the laws of God. The ark was probably present, and innumerable sacrifices offered on this solemn occasion, as was usual, 1 Paralipomenon 12:26. Hebron continued to be a place for sacrifices, chap 15:7. (Calmet) --- David had erected here a temporary altar and tabernacle, where Abiathar officiated in his pontifical robes, as it was not safe for the people to go into the dominions of Isboseth, either to Gabaon or to Cariathiarim. (Tostat) --- Israel, acknowledging the right which David had to the throne, by God's appointment. (Haydock; Worthington) |
| II Samuel 5:4 | David was thirty years old when he began to reign, *and he reigned forty years. 3 Kings 2:11. | Forty, a round number, as another half year is specified below; (Calmet) or Solomon might be crowned at the expiration of the 40th year. (Du Hamel) |
| II Samuel 5:5 | In Hebron he reigned over Juda seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned three and thirty years over all Israel and Juda. | |
| II Samuel 5:6 | And the king and all the men that were with him went to Jerusalem, to the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land: and they said to David: Thou shalt not come in hither, unless thou take away the blind and the lame, that say David shall not come in hither. | Land. This was the only canton which the infidels still retained, as they had still possession of the citadel of Jebus, (Calmet) though the Israelites had been in the country above 400 years. (Kennicott) --- Nothing could reflect greater glory on the beginning of David's reign, than the seizing of this place, (Calmet) which was deemed so impregnable, that the Jebusites thought the blind and the lame were sufficient to defend it. (Haydock) --- They placed some upon the walls, (Menochius) "despising him, on account of the strength of their walls." |
| II Samuel 5:7 | But David took the castle of Sion: the same is the city of David. | Castle: "the lower city," (Josephus) spread over Mount Sion. |
| II Samuel 5:8 | For David had offered that day a reward to whosoever should strike the Jebusites, and get up to the gutters of the tops of the houses, and take away the blind and the lame that hated the soul of David: Therefore it is said in the proverb: The blind and the lame shall not come into the temple. | Gutters. Hebrew Tsinnor, "through (Nodius) the subterraneous passage," (leading to the tops of the houses.) (Hugo of Vienna) --- Thus Babylon was taken by Cyrus, who passed through the channel of the Euphrates, the waters of which he had let out; though the inhabitants had derided his attempt to take the city by siege, as the men of Jebus do here. Polybius says, "Rabatamana, a city of Arabia, could not be taken, till one of the prisoners shewed the besiegers a subterraneous passage, (uponomon) through which the besieged came down for water." Of the same nature were the gutters here spoken of. (Kennicott) --- "The king promised to give the command of the army to the man who would pass through the cavities (pharaggon) below, and take the citadel." (Josephus) --- This reward is expressly mentioned in 1 Paralipomenon 11:6, with the person who obtained it; (St. Jerome, Trad.) and it seems, after David, this ought to be inserted, "shall be the head and captain. And Joab, the son of Sarvia, went up first, and was made the general." (Haydock) ---Hatred. Hebrew, "that are hated by David's soul." Cajetan supposes that the Jebusites in the citadel, are thus distinguished from those who dwelt peaceably in the lower town, with the Israelites. (Calmet) --- Proverb. Protestants insert, "He shall be head and captain. Wherefore they said, the blind....into the house." What is translated temple, may denote also, "the house" of David, or "the place" where this provocation had been given. (Haydock) --- Idols shall never be adored in the true Church. (Worthington) --- Some think that the blind and the lame were excluded from the temple, or from David's palace. But we find that they had free access to the temple; (Matthew 21:14., and Acts 3:2.) and Miphiboseth ate at David's table, though he was lame. If the Jebusites be designated, they were already excluded from the temple, like other infidels of Chanaan. (Calmet) --- Josephus ([Antiquities?] 7:3.) insinuates, that "David drove them from Jerusalem," though we read of Areuna residing there, 2 Kings 24:16. But he might be a proselyte before, and not dwell in the fort. The expression seems however to be proverbial, to signify any very difficult enterprize, which proves successful, and contrary to expectation. (Haydock) --- The Jebusites were thus derided (Sanctius) in their turn. (Tirinus) --- Whether Joab took this strong place by a subterraneous passage, (Haydock) or scaled the walls, and so got to the top, whence the water falls, as from a gutter; (Calmet) it is certain that he displayed the utmost valour, and thus obtained the confirmation of his authority, which David would perhaps have willingly taken from him, (Salien) if another had offered himself, and performed this hazardous enterprize. (Haydock) --- He made a fair offer to all Israel, as they probably expected. (Kennicott) |
| II Samuel 5:9 | *And David dwelt in the castle, and called it, The city of David: and built round about from Mello and inwards. 1 Paralipomenon 11:8. | Inwards. He built or repaired the higher "city of David," beginning at Mello, to "fill up" the valley, which Solomon finished, and adorned with a palace, 3 Kings 9:15., and 4 Kings 12:20. The place is probably called Asaramel, 1 Machabees 14:27. (Calmet) --- Septuagint and Josephus generally understand Mello to designate the citadel of Sion, or "a complete fortification," to defend the city. Instead of inwards, the Septuagint have, "and his house." But ubithe means, "and to the house," temple, or fort, whence he began the enclosure, so as to make a complete communication. (Kennicott) --- This city became "the most famous in all the East." (Pliny, [Natural History?] 5:14.) --- "Walls, built in a crooked manner, according to the rules of art, enclosed two hills, immensely high." (Tacitus, Hist. v.) --- These hills were multiplied, on account of their different summits, so that Josephus speaks of five hills. The palace of David stood on Sion, and the temple on Moria, which was a part of it still more elevated, towards the east. The other hill is often called Acra, by Josephus, and lay southward of Sion. Here the ancient town of Jebus was built. The Machabees took in an adjoining eminence. (Josephus, Jewish Wars 6:6.) --- Bethsetta, or the new city, was afterwards enclosed. Herod adorned the city with many superb monuments, both of a public and of a private nature. (Calmet) --- We read of ten gates, and of four towers, belonging to this city. It was not well supplied with water, and what it had was brackish. The walls seem never to have exceeded four and a half miles; now they are only three, and include Mount Calvary, which was formerly no part of the city. Button says a valley run from west to east, between the two hills of Zion on the south, and Acra on the north; which contradicts the former statement. (Haydock) --- Villalpand supposes that the citadel was nine and a half stadia, and all the city thirty-five stadia in circumference, eight of which make an Italian mile. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 5:10 | And he went on prospering and growing up; and the Lord God of hosts was with him. | |
| II Samuel 5:11 | *And Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons for walls: and they built a house for David. 1 Paralipomenon 14:1. | Hiram was a magnificent prince, who kept up a correspondence with Solomon. He greatly adorned the city of Tyre. See Jospehus, contra Apion 1.) |
| II Samuel 5:12 | And David knew that the Lord had confirmed him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom over his people Israel. | Over. Hebrew, "for." The king is bound to promote the welfare of his people. (Calmet) --- But the same word means "over," as the Protestants allow. (Haydock) --- Success constantly attending David, was an earnest that the Lord had not rejected him. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 5:13 | *And David took more concubines and wives of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron: and there were born to David other sons also and daughters: 1 Paralipomenon 3:1- 2. | David took more concubines and wives of Jerusalem. Not harlots, but wives of an inferior condition: for such in Scripture are styled concubines. (Challoner) --- He had in all eight wives, and ten whom he married with less solemnity. He might desire to attach the principal families of the nation, as well as some foreign princes, to his interests. Moses forbids a king to have too many wives, Deuteronomy 17:17. (Calmet) --- But David is never blamed for the transgression of this precept. See 2 Kings 3:1. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 5:14 | And these are the names of them that were born to him in Jerusalem, Samua, and Sobab, and Nathan, and Solomon, | |
| II Samuel 5:15 | And Jebahar, and Elisua, and Nepheg, | |
| II Samuel 5:16 | And Japhia, and Elisama, and Elioda, and Eliphaleth. | Eliphaleth. Septuagint reckon twenty instead of eleven. (Calmet) --- The Vatican copy has twenty-four, as some of the names have been read differently, so as to make two persons, and thus frequently a double translation occurs in the Septuagint; the one being taken either from Aquila, etc., or from some more early version, of which we know not the author. (Grabe) (Kennicott, Diss. 2:p. 404.) |
| II Samuel 5:17 | And the Philistines heard that they had anointed David to be king over Israel: and they all came to seek David: and when David heard of it, he went down to a strong hold. | Seek, or attack David. He went out to meet them. (Par.[1 Paralipomenon 14:8.?]) But receiving an order not to join battle as yet, retired to Odollam, (chap. 23:13., and 1 Paralipomenon 11:15.; Calmet) a strong hold, with which he was perfectly acquainted. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 5:18 | *And the Philistines coming, spread themselves in the valley of Raphaim. 1 Paralipomenon 14:9. | Raphaim. Septuagint, "of Titans," (Calmet) or giants who had dwelt there. (Menochius) --- It lay to the west (Menochius) or south of Jerusalem, and extended as far as Bethlehem. David was still more to the south, (Calmet) so that he seemed to be cut off from his capital. But it was secure enough. (Haydock) --- On this occasion, three of his brave men went through the midst of the enemies' ranks, to fetch water from the spring of Bethlehem, 2 Kings 23:16. |
| II Samuel 5:19 | And David consulted the Lord, saying: Shall I go up to the Philistines? and wilt thou deliver them into my hand? And the Lord said to David: Go up, for I will surely deliver the Philistines into thy hand. | |
| II Samuel 5:20 | *And David came to Baal Pharisim: and defeated them there, and he said: The Lord hath divided my enemies before me, as waters are divided. **Therefore the name of the place was called Baal Pharisim. Isaias 28:21.; 1 Paralipomenon 14:11. | Baal-Pharisim, "the master of the divisions, or god of the scattered;" as the place was afterwards called, in memory that David became master, and put the enemy to flight, taking their idols, (Calmet) which were unable to save themselves. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 5:21 | And they left there their idols: which David and his men took away. | Away, and burnt. (Par.[1 Paralipomenon 14:12.?) The ark had on the contrary proved fatal to the gods, and to the people of the Philistines; who might hence perceive the difference there was between the true God and their false gods. |
| II Samuel 5:22 | And the Philistines came up again, and spread themselves in the valley of Raphaim. | |
| II Samuel 5:23 | And David consulted the Lord: Shall I go up against the Philistines, and wilt thou deliver them into my hands? He answered: Go not up against them, but fetch a compass behind them, and thou shalt come upon them over-against the pear trees. | Shall, etc. This consultation is omitted in Hebrew. (Calmet) --- Protestants, "and when David inquired of the Lord, he said, "Thou shalt not," etc. Septuagint, "and David," etc. (Haydock) --- Trees. Hebrew Becaim. Septuagint, "of lamentation," Judges 2:1. |
| II Samuel 5:24 | And when thou shalt hear the sound of one going in the tops of the pear trees, then shalt thou join battle: for then will the Lord go out before thy face, to strike the army of the Philistines. | Trees. Many translate the Hebrew, "mulberry trees," or leave the original word, becaim, "the heights of Bochim." Septuagint seem to give a double version: "the sound of the agitation (or Alexandrian, "shutting up," (Haydock) as with an army on all sides) of the woods, of the lamentation." (Menochius) --- Theodoret supposes, "the woods put in motion, without any wind." It is thought that an army of spirits went before David, and threw the enemy into a panic. Storms of hail, etc., seem to have also cut them down, Isaias 28:21., and Psalm 17:9. |
| II Samuel 5:25 | And David did as the Lord had commanded him, and he smote the Philistines from Gabaa, until thou come to Gezer. | Gabaa, which some would understand of "the hills" of Bochim. (Calmet) --- But in Septuagint (Alexandrian) and in Paralipomenon, we read Gabaon, a city near the birth-place of Saul. (Haydock) --- David pursued the enemy by Gabaa, and took from them all the cities of which they had taken possession, after their victory. (Calmet) --- Gezer was in the tribe of Ephraim, (Menochius) on the confines of the Philistines. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 6:0 | David fetcheth the ark from Cariathiarim. Oza is struck dead for touching it. It is deposited in the house of Obededom: and from thence is carried to David's house. | |
| II Samuel 6:1 | And David again gathered together all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. | Again, after he had been anointed. David consulted his officers, etc., (1 Paralipomenon 13:1.) and called a numerous assembly of the priests and people to meet him at Cariathiarim. --- Thousand, in arms, to protect the rest, (Calmet) who might probably amount to 300,000. (Haydock) --- This number Capel and Grotius would substitute for the one here mentioned. Some copies of the Septuagint read 70,000. In the former assembly, there were 340, or 359, (Calmet) or 60 thousand, 2 Kings 5:1. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 6:2 | *And David arose, and went, with all the people that were with him of the men of Juda, to fetch the ark of God, upon which the name of the Lord of hosts is invoked, who sitteth over it between the Cherubims. 1 Paralipomenon 13:5.; | Year of the World 2959. Juda. But why are not the other tribes mentioned? and whither did they go? We should probably translate, "from the city of Baalim, in Juda;" which is another name of Cariathiarim, as the Paralipomenon intimate, [1 Paralipomenon xiii.?] ver. 6. See Josue 15:9, 60. --- Invoked; or which is called "the ark of the Lord." |
| II Samuel 6:3 | And they laid the ark of God upon a new cart: and took it out of the house of Abinadab, who was in Gabaa; and Oza, and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart. | Cart, out of respect, as the Philistines had done, 1 Kings 6:7. But God had ordered the Levites to carry it themselves, and the neglect here proved so dreadful; for which reason, David required the priests to attend when he removed the ark from the house of Obededom, 1 Paralipomenon 15:12. --- Gabaa means "the hill of Cariathiarim," where the ark had been in the house of Abinadab, from the time of its being restored back by the Philistines. (Challoner) --- Hunnius would multiply the places where the ark was fixed, to show, against Catholics, that the Church is not confined to one place; (Amama) as if Catholic did not maintain the universality of the Church! (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 6:4 | *And when they had taken it out of the house of Abinadab, who was in Gabaa, Ahio, having care of the ark of God, went before the ark. 1 Kings 7:1. | |
| II Samuel 6:5 | But David and all Israel played before the Lord on all manner of instruments made of wood, on harps, and lutes, and timbrels, and cornets, and cymbals. | Wood. Hebrew specifies "fir wood," of which the instruments were, perhaps, usually made. |
| II Samuel 6:6 | And when they came to the floor of Nachon, Oza put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it: because the oxen kicked, and made it lean aside. | Nachon. 1 Paralipomenon Chidon. Hebrew may be rendered, "prepared;" (Chaldean) as they were almost arrived at the end (Calmet) of the procession. --- His hand, is wanting in Hebrew. (Kennicott) --- Kicked. Protestants, "shook it." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 6:7 | And the indignation of the Lord was enkindled against Oza, and he struck him for his rashness: and he died there before the ark of God. | Rashness. Hebrew shal, means also "error, ignorance," etc. Syriac and Arabic better, "because he put forth his hand." (Kennicott) --- Oza had touched the ark uncovered, (Serarius) shewing too little confidence in God, as if he could not have hindered it from falling; (Rabbins) or perhaps he was the advisor of the ark's being placed upon a cart, instead of the Levites' shoulders. (Tirinus) --- It is not certain that he was a Levite; and the privilege belonged to the sons of Caath, who could claim this honour only after the ark had been folded up with three covers. Moreover, the priests seem to have been always selected to carry the ark, after they came into the promised land, ver. 3., and 1 Kings 4:4., etc. It is hoped that the fault of Oza would be expiated by his sudden death, (Calmet) as his intention was laudable. (Tirinus) --- But God would teach his ministers with what caution they were to treat sacred things, (Calmet) and how exactly all his injunctions were to be observed. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 6:8 | *And David was grieved because the Lord had struck Oza, and the name of that place was called: The striking of Oza, to this day. 1 Paralipomenon 13:11. | |
| II Samuel 6:9 | And David was afraid of the Lord that day, saying: How shall the ark of the Lord come to me? | |
| II Samuel 6:10 | And he would not have the ark of the Lord brought in to himself into the city of David: but he caused it to be carried into the house of Obededom, the Gethite. | Gethite, a native of Geth-remmon, a Levitical city; (Josue 21:24,) or he might have been born at Geth; (Calmet) or his father might have resided there a long time, (Serarius; Tirinus) unless he was there with David. (Salien) --- He was a Levite, 1 Paralipomenon 15:18., and 16:5., and 26:4. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 6:11 | And the ark of the Lord abode in the house of Obededom, the Gethite, three months: and the Lord blessed Obededom, and all his household. | |
| II Samuel 6:12 | *And it was told king David, that the Lord had blessed Obededom, and all that he had, because of the ark of God. So David went, and brought away the ark of God out of the house of Obededom, into the city of David, with joy. And there were with David seven choirs, and calves for victims. 1 Paralipomenon 15:25. | Choirs. Or companies of musicians. (Challoner) --- This sentence is not found in Hebrew nor in St. Jerome's version. (Calmet) --- The Vatican and Alexandrian Septuagint have, "David brought the ark of the Lord from the house of Obeddara, into the city of David, with joy; (13) and there were seven choirs with him, taking up the ark, and the sacrifice, a calf and lamb; (14) and David played on tuneful organs before the Lord; and David had on a beautiful stole." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 6:13 | *And when they that carried the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a ram: 1 Paralipomenon 15:26. | Paces. So altars of turf (Grotius) were erected at this distance from each other, on each side of the road. The pagans have sometimes treated their emperors and deities with the like respect. (Suetonius in Otho and Calig.) --- Paris thus addresses Helena in Ovid's Heroic Epistles. Ibis Dardanias ingens Regina per urbes, Teque novam vulgus credet adesse Deam, Quaque feres gressus, adolebunt cynnama flammae, Coesaque sanguineam victima planget humum. |
| II Samuel 6:14 | And David danced with all his might before the Lord: and David was girded with a linen ephod. | Ephod which ordinarily was the habit of priests. But no law restrained others from using it, (Calmet) particularly on sacred occasions; as we often see laics in a surplice, when they have to sing Church music, etc. (Menochius) --- David had also on a cloak of byssus; (Paralipomenon) and still Michol speaks as if he had been uncovered; because in this solemn ceremony, he was inspired to divest himself of his royal robes, and to act with a degree of enthusiasm; (Haydock) which would not have been otherwise becoming in a king. David is considered by some of the fathers as a figure of the priests of the new law; as he ate the loaves of proposition, was dressed like priests, etc. Sacerdos scitus erat David. (1 Iraen. iv.; St. Ambrose V. in Luc. vi.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 6:15 | And David and all the house of Israel brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord with joyful shouting, and with sound of trumpet. | |
| II Samuel 6:16 | And when the ark of the Lord was come into the city of David, Michol, the daughter of Saul, looking out through a window, saw king David leaping and dancing before the Lord: and she despised him in her heart. | Leaping. Septuagint, "beating" musical instruments....she counted him as nothing, etc. (Haydock) --- She rather partook of her father's disposition and pride. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 6:17 | And they brought the ark of the Lord, and set it in its place in the midst of the tabernacle, which David had pitched for it: and David offered holocausts, and peace-offerings before the Lord. | |
| II Samuel 6:18 | And when he had made an end of offering holocausts and peace-offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts. | Blessed. Wishing all sorts of happiness. Only priests and kings perform this function publicly, 3 Kings 8:55. Afterwards David went to his palace, to impart the same blessing to his family, and particularly to the women, who had not been present. This is a vestige of the sacerdotal power, which masters of families formerly enjoyed. |
| II Samuel 6:19 | And he distributed to all the multitude of Israel, both men and women, to every one, a cake of bread, and a piece of roasted beef, and fine flour fried with oil: and all the people departed, every one to his house. | Cake, made very thin, with a mixture of oil. --- Beef, sufficient for a meal. --- Oil. This was much esteemed in those days. Many would translate the Hebrew, "a bottle of wine." |
| II Samuel 6:20 | And David returned to bless his own house: and Michol, the daughter of Saul, coming out to meet David, said: How glorious was the king of Israel to-day, who uncovered himself before the handmaids of his servants, and was undressed, as if one of the vain fellows should strip himself. | Fellows. Septuagint, "dancers." Michol exaggerates, as David had been guilty of no indiscretion, ver. 14. (Calmet) --- St. Gregory (Mor. 27:27,) styles her "insane." Yet Abulensis does not sufficiently approve of David's conduct. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 6:21 | And David said to Michol: Before the Lord, who chose me rather than thy father, and than all his house, and commanded me to be ruler over the people of the Lord in Israel, | |
| II Samuel 6:22 | I will both play, and make myself meaner than I have done: and I will be little in my own eyes: and with the handmaids, of whom thou speakest, I shall appear more glorious. | Eyes. Humility in a king is truly noble. --- Glorious. He accepts the compliment of Michol, though she had spoken ironically. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 6:23 | Therefore Michol, the daughter of Saul, had no child to the day of her death. | Death. Thus was she punished. The five sons who are attributed to her (chap. 21:8.) were only adopted; or perhaps we ought to read Merob, instead of Michol; (Calmet) as the latter had been connected with Phaltiel, and not with Adriel, who was the former's husband. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 7:0 | David's purpose to build a temple is rewarded with the promise of great blessings in his seed: His prayer and thanksgiving. | |
| II Samuel 7:1 | And *it came to pass when the king sat in his house, and the Lord had given him rest, on every side, from all his enemies, | Year of the World 2960, Year before Christ 1044. Enemies, before he had made war upon the surrounding nations, 1 Paralipomenon 18:1. |
| II Samuel 7:2 | He said to Nathan the, prophet: *Dost thou see that I dwell in a house of cedar, and the ark of God is lodged within skins? 1 Paralipomenon 17:1. | Nathan. An admirable courtier, (Grotius) and a great saint, Ecclesiasticus xlvii. He was neither too rough, nor too complaisant. --- Cedar. This was the most esteemed species of wood. The palace of the Persian kings, at Ecbatana, was chiefly built of it, and of cypress wood. (Polyb. x.) --- Houses were not there built in such a solid manner, as they are in colder climates. They consisted mostly of wood. --- Skins. The outer veils of the tabernacle were made of skins, as others generally were. (Calmet) --- Hebrew and Chaldean, "of curtains." |
| II Samuel 7:3 | And Nathan said to the king: Go, do all that is in thy heart: because the Lord is with thee. | Thee. David did not, perhaps, consult him as a prophet; and Nathan thought that the proposal was so just, that it might be safely carried into effect. The prophets are not inspired in all their actions. Joseph was of a different opinion from his father, Genesis 48:19. Samuel supposed that Eliab should have been king; (1 Kings 16:6,) and Eliseus confesses, that God had concealed from him the affliction of the woman with whom he lodged, 4 Kings 4:24. (Calmet) --- God afterwards sent the same Nathan to rectify his former decision, that he might not pass sentence, in future, without consulting him. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 7:4 | But it came to pass that night, that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying: | |
| II Samuel 7:5 | Go, and say to my servant David: Thus saith the Lord: Shalt thou build me a house to dwell in? | |
| II Samuel 7:6 | Whereas I have not dwelt in a house from the day that I brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, even to this day: but have walked in a tabernacle, and in a tent. | |
| II Samuel 7:7 | In all the places that I have gone through with all the children of Israel, did ever I speak a word to any one of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed my people Israel, saying: Why have you not built me a house of cedar? | Tribes. 1 Paralipomenon 17:6, by the substitution of p for b, reads Shophete, "judges," which seems more natural. Some farther information is there given and we learn that the reason why David was denied the privilege of building a temple, was because he had been so much engaged in war. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 7:8 | And now thus shalt thou speak to my servant David: Thus saith the Lord of hosts: *I took thee out of the pastures from following the sheep, to be ruler over my people Israel: 1 Kings 16:13.; Psalm 77:70. | |
| II Samuel 7:9 | And I have been with thee wheresoever thou hast walked, and have slain all thy enemies from before thy face: and I have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great ones that are on the earth. | |
| II Samuel 7:10 | And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and I will plant them, and they shall dwell therein, and shall be disturbed no more: neither shall the children of iniquity afflict them any more, as they did before, | Before, provided they be faithful. These promises are conditional. |
| II Samuel 7:11 | From the day that I appointed judges over my people Israel: and I will give thee rest from all thy enemies. And the Lord foretelleth to thee, that the Lord will make thee a house. | House, or give thee children, who shall hold the sceptre. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 7:12 | *And when thy days shall be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. 3 Kings 8:19. | I will establish his kingdom. This prophecy partly relates to Solomon; but much more to Christ, who is called the Son of David in Scripture, and the builder of the true temple, which is the Church, his everlasting kingdom, which shall never fail, nor be cast off for any iniquity of her children. (Challoner) --- God passes over all the children whom David had already, 3 Kings 2:15. The temporal kingdom was enjoyed by David's posterity for a long time, sufficient to verify the expression for ever, as it is often used in Scripture. (Calmet) --- But the spiritual kingdom of the Messias will last till the end of time, and be perfected in eternity. (Haydock) --- In these predictions we must always distinguish the type from the reality. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 7:13 | *He shall build a house to my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 3 Kings 5:5. | |
| II Samuel 7:14 | *I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son: and if he commit any iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men. 1 Paralipomenon 22:10.; Hebrews 1:5. | Men, who are not to be entirely destroyed, like the Chanaanites. (Calmet) --- This is not unlike the human temptation of which St. Paul speaks, 1 Corinthians 10:13. See Psalm 72:5., and 88:33. (Haydock) --- The rod of men denotes war, and stripes signify those punishments which God inflicts. (St. Jerome, Trad.) --- Some parts of this declaration regard Christ; others Solomon, Hebrews 1:5. (Du Hamel) |
| II Samuel 7:15 | *But my mercy I will not take away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before my face. Psalm 88:4.; Psalm 88:37. | |
| II Samuel 7:16 | And thy house shall be faithful, and thy kingdom for ever before thy face, *and thy throne shall be firm for ever. Hebrews 1:8. | Faithful; or continue a long time. (Menochius) (3 Kings 11:38.) --- Where is not the house of David? or how is this accomplished, except in the Church? --- Thy face. Septuagint, "before me," which is conformable to Psalm 88:38. David saw Solomon on the throne, and beheld the Messias in spirit. (Calmet) --- Souls departed still see what regards them, (Sa) if they be happy. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 7:17 | According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak to David. | |
| II Samuel 7:18 | And David went in, and sat before the Lord, and said: Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house that thou hast brought me thus far? | Lord. "More in soul, than by this posture of the body, remaining quiet in meditation and prayer." (Cajetan) --- Vatable says only kings were allowed to pray sitting, (Sa; Menochius) and they must be of the house of Juda. (Maimonides) --- They say the priests always stood in the temple. But Josephus mentions seats of lead for them. (Jewish Wars 7:11.) The Hebrew expression may denote no more, than that David continued for a long time in fervent prayer; Josephus says, prostrate on the ground before the ark. It is not so much the posture of the body as the fervour of the soul, which God regards. See St. Augustine, ad Simp. 2:q. 4.) Pythagoras ordered his disciples to pray sitting; and Homer represents Thetis in that attitude. (Calmet) --- Far, in power and glory. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 7:19 | But yet this hath seemed little in thy sight, O Lord God, unless thou didst also speak of the house of thy servant for a long time to come; for this is the law of Adam, O Lord God. | God. Thus man wishes to be treated. This maxim prevails universally. People seek for their own and their children's happiness; a favour which thou hast graciously promised unto me. (Calmet) --- Thus immortality, and all happiness, were proposed unto the first man. (Menochius) --- Some use an interrogation; "Is this the law of Adam?" (Calmet) --- Protestants, "manner of man." Can this felicity attend a man in his fallen state? Does the greatest friend treat his companion with so much condescension and regard? (Haydock) --- In 1 Paralipomenon 17:17, it is thus expressed, and hast made me remarkable above all men, O Lord God. Osiander translates, "Behold the law of man, of the Lord God." I now discern the mysterious union of the godhead with our humanity, in the person of the Son. (Calmet) --- Luther attributes this version, Haec est ratio hominis, qui Daomius Deus est, to Zisgler; and hence proves the incarnation. Amama and Tarnovius shew the weakness of the proof, though the article of faith be otherwise indubitable. (Haydock) --- David is full of admiration that God should treat a weak mortal in such a manner. (Du Hamel) |
| II Samuel 7:20 | And what can David say more unto thee? for thou knowest thy servant, O Lord God. | Unto thee. To express his sentiments of gratitude. (Menochius) --- What more can he desire? |
| II Samuel 7:21 | For thy word's sake, and according to thy own heart, thou hast done all these great things, so that thou wouldst make it known to thy servant. | Word's sake. Some copies (Haydock) of the Septuagint read "servant's sake," as 1 Paralipomenon xvii. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 7:22 | Therefore thou art magnified, O Lord God, because there is none like to thee, neither is there any God besides thee, in all the things that we have heard with our ears. | |
| II Samuel 7:23 | And what nation is there upon earth, as thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem for a people to himself, and to make him a name, and to do for them great and terrible things, upon the earth, before the face of thy people, whom thou redeemedst to thyself out of Egypt, from the nation and its god? | A name. So that all might praise God, for the favours which he had bestowed upon his people, (Haydock) and admire his power and glory. --- Gods, whom thou didst cast out of Chanaan. (Paralipomenon) (Calmet) --- From, is not expressed in the Vulgate or Hebrew, though Protestants also supply it. (Haydock) --- Some explain Elohim, "gods," of the chief men of the Hebrew nation. The power of the idols was overthrown; (Numbers 33:4,) and the Israelites were rescued both from oppression, and from the service of false gods, Ezechiel xvi. (Calmet) --- Adonai is often substituted for Jehova; as appears from 1 Paralipomenon 17:21, 22. (Kennicott) |
| II Samuel 7:24 | For thou hast confirmed to thyself thy people Israel, to be an everlasting people: and thou, O Lord God, art become their God. | |
| II Samuel 7:25 | And now, O Lord God, raise up for ever the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house: and do as thou hast spoken, | Raise up. As long as the promises were not fulfilled, they seemed to be dormant. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 7:26 | That thy name may be magnified for ever, and it may be said: The Lord of hosts is God over Israel. And let the house of thy servant, David, be established before the Lord. | |
| II Samuel 7:27 | Because thou, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, hast revealed to the ear of thy servant, saying: I will build thee a house: therefore hath thy servant found in his heart to pray this prayer to thee. | In his heart. Literally, "has found his heart," (Haydock) following the inspirations of divine grace, to pray with attention and love, (Calmet) and confidence. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 7:28 | And now, O Lord God, thou art God, and thy words shall be true: for thou hast spoken to thy servant these good things. | |
| II Samuel 7:29 | And now begin, and bless the house of thy servant, that it may endure for ever before thee: because thou, O Lord God, hast spoken it, and with thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever. | Begin. Hebrew, "please, or deign to bless." Septuagint and Jonathan, "begin." (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 8:0 | David's victories, and his chief officers. | |
| II Samuel 8:1 | And it came to pass after this, that David defeated the Philistines, and brought them down, *and David took the bridle of tribute out of the hand of the Philistines. 1 Paralipomenon 18:1. | Tribute. Aquila, and probably St. Jerome, translated, "cubit." Others suppose that Amma, or Meteg-ama, is some unknown place, which David wrested from the hands of the Philistines. It is hardly probable that the Israelites would have paid the latter tribute till the 20th year of his reign, (Calmet) or even till the 12th. (Salien) --- He might now force them to pay tribute. (St. Jerome, etc.) (Haydock) --- Perhaps a letter may have been transposed, and instead of Meteg, we should read, "Geth, the mother," or metropolis, and its dependencies; (1 Paralipomenon 18:1.) or "he took Metec, (Numbers 33:28.) and its mother," Geth, which reconciles the two passages. Chaldean, etc., "he deprived them of the advantage of the rivulet." Septuagint, "David took the separated" place, (Serarius) or the city of Geth. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 8:2 | *And he defeated Moab, and measured them with a line, casting them down to the earth: and he measured with two lines, one to put to death, and one to save alive: and Moab was made to serve David under tribute. | Year of the World 2960. Earth, like criminals condemned to die. (Theodoret) --- Some of them he chose to spare, and made tributary, having levelled the strong places with the ground. (Denis the Carthusian) --- Septuagint intimate that half were destroyed. (Calmet) --- But the Hebrew rather implies that the greatest part was saved, "a full cord to save alive;" (Menochius) unless there were three lots, and only one of them, larger indeed than the rest, spared. (Haydock) --- Death, or slavery, were the portion of all who were taken in war. (Grotius, Jur. 3:4, 20.) --- Lex nulla capto parcit aut poenam impendit. (Seneca) --- Tribute. Hebrew, "brought gifts," which is a softer term. The Moabites were thus punished for former and, probably, for some recent offences. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 8:3 | David defeated also Adarezer, the son of Rohob, king of Soba, when he went to extend his dominion over the river *Euphrates. 1 Paralipomenon 18:3. | Adarezer. He is styled Adadezer in Hebrew and this seems to have been his true name, though it is written Adarezer in Paralipomenon. Adad, or "the sun," was the chief idol of Syria, and the kings inserted the name with their own; as Benadad did. Josephus produces a fragment from Nicolaus of Damascus, in which he says that "Adad was king of Damascus, and of all Syria, except Phoenicia, and was defeated by David....His successors took his name, as the kings of Egypt did that of Ptolemy; and that the third in descent from this king, made an attack upon Samaria," and upon Achab. (Antiquities 7:6.) --- Euphrates, which had been promised by God, Genesis 15:18., and Numbers 24:17. (Calmet) --- Adadezer was probably the aggressor. (Salien) (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 8:4 | And David took from him a thousand and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen, and houghed all the chariot horses: and only reserved of them for one hundred chariots. | A thousand. Protestants supply chariots, (Haydock) after the Septuagint and 1 Paralipomenon (xviii. 4.) which have 7000 horsemen. See how we have attempted to reconcile these texts, 1 Kings 13:5. Perhaps the numbers were expressed by single letters; and the Hebrew final n, (700) has been mistaken for z, (7000) both here and [in] 2 Kings 10:18. Literis numeralibus non verbis antiquitus numeri concipiebantur. (Scaliger, apud Walton prol.) --- "Will any other hypothesis so naturally solve this repeated difficulty?" (Kennicott, Diss. on 1 Chronicles xi. p. 96 and 463.) --- Kimchi thinks that the king's horse-guards are only specified here; and Salien supposes, that those who fought on chariots are also included in Chronicles, as they are often styled horsemen, Isaias 21:7, 9. (Menochius) --- Houghed. Aquila, "destroyed." He rendered them unfit for war, as Josue had done, (Josue 11:6.) supposing that this was the import of the decree, forbidding many horses to be kept, Deuteronomy 17:16. --- Horses is not expressed in Hebrew, though the Protestants supply the word; as also, for. We should translate literally, "He left out of them 100 chariots;" (Haydock) as we read elsewhere, that Adarezer had 1000. (Menochius) --- But this expression being unintelligible, no less than, "he houghed all the chariots," as the text stands at present in the original, may lead us to suspect that this verse has been inaccurately printed. Septuagint, "David paralyzed, (or rendered useless) all the chariots; and 100 chariots were reserved for himself out of them." Josephus says the rest of the 1000 chariots were burnt, 5000 horse slain, and 20,000 foot. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 8:5 | And the Syrians of Damascus came to succour Adarezer, the king of Soba: and David slew of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men. | Men. As Adarezer had brought upon himself the arms of David, perhaps by attempting to succour the Moabites, as he afterwards did the children of Ammon; (chap. 10.) so the king of Damascus was ruined by coming too late to his assistance. This king may be the Adad mentioned by Nicolaus. (B. 4.) (Salien, the year of the world 2993, the 14th year of David.) See ver. 1 and 3. |
| II Samuel 8:6 | And David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus: and Syria served David under tribute: and the Lord preserved David in all his enterprizes, whithersoever he went. | |
| II Samuel 8:7 | And David took the arms of gold, which the servants of Adarezer wore, and brought them to Jerusalem. | Arms. "Quivers," Paralipomenon and Syriac. "Bucklers," Hebrew and Chaldean. "Bracelets," Septuagint. (Calmet) --- These bucklers might be for ornament, like those of Solomon, 3 Kings 10:16. (Salien) --- They were taken afterwards by Sesac, king of Egypt. (Josephus, [Antiquities?] 7:6.) (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 8:8 | And out of Bete, and out of Beroth, cities of Adarezer, king David took an exceeding great quantity of brass. | Beroth, or Boroe. (Calmet) --- Brass. All for the use of the temple, 1 Paralipomenon 18:8. The battle seems to have been fought near Beroth. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 8:9 | And Thou, the king of Emath, heard that David had defeated all the forces of Adarezer. | Emath, or Emesa. Its king, Thou, being alarmed at the ambition of his neighbour Adarezer, (Calmet) was pleased with the victories of a prince from whom he thought he had less to fear, as he lived at a greater distance. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 8:10 | And Thou sent Joram, his son, to king David, to salute him, and to congratulate with him, and to return him thanks; because he had fought against Adarezer, and had defeated him. For Thou was an enemy to Adarezer, and in his hand were vessels of gold, and vessels of silver, and vessels of brass. | Joram, called Adoram in Chronicles. (Calmet) --- His, Joram's hand. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 8:11 | And king David dedicated them to the Lord, together with the silver and gold that he had dedicated of all the nations which he had subdued: | Subdued. This was the custom of most conquerors. But no prince was ever more religious in this respect than David. He had an officer appointed over the sacred treasure, which contained the presents of Samuel, Saul, etc., 1 Paralipomenon 26:26, 28. |
| II Samuel 8:12 | Of Syria, and of Moab, and of the children of Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalec, and of the spoils of Adarezer, the son of Rohob, king of Soba. | |
| II Samuel 8:13 | David also made himself a name, when he returned after taking Syria, in the valley of the salt-pits, killing eighteen thousand: | Name, or triumphal arch. (Rabbins) --- He acquired great fame, 2 Kings 7:9., and Machabees 5:57. (Menochius) --- Syria, which is styled Aram in Hebrew. The Septuagint have read Edom, or Idumea, as the two names have often been confounded, on account of the similarity of the letters. The following verse seems favourable to this reading, as well as the title of the Psalm lix; and 1 Paralipomenon 18:12, says, Abisai....slew of the Edomites, in the valley of the salt-pits, 18,000. It is probable that David was present. This Idumea was on the east of the Dead Sea, and had Bosra for its capital. The salt-pits might be a great plain, about three miles south of Palmyra or Thadmor, which supplies almost all Syria with salt. (Brun.) (Calmet) --- Othes think that the borders of the most salt lake of Sodom are denoted. (Menochius) See Genesis 14:10. |
| II Samuel 8:14 | And he put guards in Edom, and placed there a garrison: and all Edom was made to serve David: and the Lord preserved David in all enterprizes he went about. | Guards, or officers to administer justice in his name, after Joab had killed all the males, during six months, 3 Kings 11:15. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 8:15 | And David reigned over all Israel: and David did judgment and justice to all his people. | All Israel, not only over Juda. (Menochius) --- All the people who dwelt within the promised land, as far as the Euphrates, were forced to acknowledge his dominion. (Haydock) --- People, settling their differences, etc. Kings formerly performed in person, the most important office of rendering justice; whence three kings of Crete are mentioned as judges in the realms below. (Calmet) --- David acted with wisdom and justice. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 8:16 | And Joab, the son of Sarvia, was over the army: and Josaphat, the son of Ahilud, was recorder: | Sarvia, sister of David, 1 Paralipomenon 2:16. --- Army. Joab had acquired such influence over it, that his power was formidable even to David. He was a great warrior, and had contributed more than any other person to establish the throne of his uncle; but he was devoid of justice, and not much unlike Achilles. Jura negat sibi nata, nihil non arrogat armis. (Horace) (Grotius) --- Recorder, or chancellor. (Challoner) --- A commentariis. (Aquila) --- "Remembrancer," (Haydock) or the person who kept a journal of all memorable transactions. The kings of Persia employed people to keep such journals, 1 Esdras 4:15., and Esther 6:1. (Josephus, [Antiquities?] 11:2.) --- The power of these writers was very great, Judges 5:14., and 4 Kings 18:18. (Calmet) --- Reference is often made to their "words of days." They had also to present petitions and memorials from the people. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 8:17 | And Sadoc, the son of Achitob, and Achimelech, the son of Abiathar, were the priests: and Saraias was the scribe: | Achimelech is also called the father of Abiathar, as these two had both names indiscriminately, 1 Kings 21:2. During the contest between the families of Saul and of David, two high priests were acknowledged, in their respective dominions. Sadoc was also permitted to officiate at Gabaon, during the reign of David; and, as Abiathar took part against Solomon, he was invested with the whole authority, and thus were accomplished the predictions made to Phinees and to Heli, Numbers 25:12., and 1 Kings 2:35. (Calmet) --- Yet Salien considers Abiathar as the sole pontiff, from the time that his father was murdered by Saul. Sadoc, in the mean while, was his arch-priest or delegate, at Gabaon; (Haydock) though Abulensis and Josephus acknowledge both as high priests, (1 Paralipomenon 24:3,) officiating by turns. (Menochius) --- Scribe, or secretary. (Challoner) See Judges 5:14. --- Septuagint, "counsellor." He is called Susa, in Chronicles. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 8:18 | And Banaias, the son of Joiada, was over the Cerethi and Phelethi: and the sons of David were the princes. | The Cerethi and Phelithi. The king's guards. (Challoner) --- They were Philistines, and had attached themselves to David while he was at Geth, continuing always faithful to him. We read of them in the Vulgate, under the reign of Joas, 4 Kings 11:19. David selected some out of all Israel, towards the end of his reign, 1 Paralipomenon xxvii. --- Princes: literally, priests; (Cohen) so called, by a title of honour, and not for exercising the priestly functions. (Challoner) --- Sanctius translates, they "were like priests." The book of 1 Paralipomenon (xviii. 17,) explains, were chief about the king. Septuagint, "masters of the palace." David kept them near his person, and employed them as he thought proper: Bertram thinks, in embassies, till after the revolt of Absalom, when Ira took their place, 2 Kings 20:26. (Calmet) --- Protestants, "David's sons were chief rulers." Chaldean, "grandees;" (Haydock) "ministers." (Grotius) (Du Hamel) |
| II Samuel 9:0 | David's kindness to Miphiboseth for the sake of his father Jonathan. | |
| II Samuel 9:1 | And David said: Is there any one, think you, left of the house of Saul, that I may shew kindness to him for Jonathan's sake? | Saul. David was solicitous only about the descendants of Jonathan, who was the eldest son. The rest he afterwards gave up to be crucified, while he ordered the patrimony of Saul to be given to Miphiboseth, who was now about twenty years old. (Salien, the year before Christ 1058.) --- It is rather wonderful that David had not thought of his old friend sooner. But we are not obliged to suppose that he had reigned fifteen years, without being mindful of his repeated promises to Jonathan, 1 Kings 20:42. (Haydock) --- This event took place towards the beginning of his reign. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 9:2 | Now there was of the house of Saul, a servant named Siba: and when the king had called him to him, he said to him: Art thou Siba? And he answered: I am Siba, thy servant. | Servant, of free man of Saul, and a convert. (Josephus) (Menochius) --- Yet he might very well be a Hebrew, who refused to accept his liberty, and continued as superintendent over the rest of his master's house, (ver. 10,) like Eleazar, Joseph, (Genesis xxiv., and xxxix.) or the servant of whom our Saviour speaks, Luke 12:42. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 9:3 | And the king said: Is there any one left of the house of Saul, that I may shew the mercy of God unto him? And Siba said to the king: There is a son of Jonathan left, who is lame of his feet. | |
| II Samuel 9:4 | Where is he? said he. And Siba said to the king: Behold he is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lodabar. | Lodabar, probably on the east side of the Jordan. (Calmet) --- Machir was a powerful man of the tribe of Manasses. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 9:5 | Then king David sent, and brought him out of the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, of Lodabar. | |
| II Samuel 9:6 | And when Miphiboseth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, was come to David, he fell on his face and worshipped. And David said: Miphiboseth? And he answered: Behold thy servant. | |
| II Samuel 9:7 | And David said to him: Fear not, for I will surely shew thee mercy for Jonathan thy father's sake, and I will restore the lands of Saul, thy father, and thou shalt eat bread at my table always. | Father, or grandfather. (Haydock) --- It is thought that all his goods had been confiscated, in consequence of Isboseth's assuming the regal dignity. (Calmet) --- David might give the property to whom he pleased. (Menochius) --- Always. This was a mark of the greatest distinction, Luke 22:30. The Romans sometimes made their slaves free, in this manner, per mensam. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 9:8 | He bowed down to him, and said: Who am I, thy servant, that thou shouldst look upon such a dead dog as I am? | |
| II Samuel 9:9 | Then the king called Siba, the servant of Saul, and said to him: All that belonged to Saul, and all his house, I have given to thy master's son. | Son, Miphiboseth. Some understand less correctly, (Calmet) "I have given to Micha, the son of Miphiboseth, all that belonged to Saul; and, as for Miphiboseth, I give him my table." (Munster; Vatable; Salien) (Menochius) --- Saul's patrimony might be administered by Siba, to support Micha. (Du Hamel) |
| II Samuel 9:10 | Thou therefore, and thy sons, and thy servants, shall till the land for him: and thou shalt bring in food for thy master's son, that he may be maintained: and Miphiboseth, the son of thy master, shall always eat bread at my table. And Siba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. | Servants under him, though all belonged to Miphiboseth. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 9:11 | And Siba said to the king: As thou, my lord the king, hast commanded thy servant, so will thy servant do: and Miphiboseth shall eat at my table, as one of the sons of the king. | My table, if the king shall please so to order. (Sanchez) --- It would seem that Siba did not properly understand the king. (Calmet) --- The Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic, read, perhaps more correctly u, "his," instead of i, "my table," in shulchani. "And Memphibosthai ate at David's table, as one," etc. (Haydock) --- He did not merely eat of the king's table, (ver. 13,) but at it, super mensam, as the Hebrew, Chaldean, and Septuagint express. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 9:12 | And Miphiboseth had a young son, whose name was Micha: and all the kindred of the house of Siba served Miphiboseth. | |
| II Samuel 9:13 | But Miphiboseth dwelt in Jerusalem: because he ate always of the king's table: and he was lame of both feet. | Feet, from five years of age, 2 Kings 4:4. If we add the seven years and a half of his uncle's reign, and suppose that David would take this notice of him, as soon as he had it in his power, after the taking of Jerusalem, we may conclude that he was about thirteen years old when he was presented to the king, and behaved with the most engaging modesty and respect. If he had already a son, (ver. 12,) we may allow a few years more. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 10:0 | The Ammonites shamefully abuse the ambassadors of David: they hire the Syrians to their assistance: but are overthrown with their allies. | |
| II Samuel 10:1 | And *it came to pass after this, that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanon, his son, reigned in his stead. | Year of the World 2967, Year before Christ 1037. |
| II Samuel 10:2 | And David said: *I will shew kindness to Hanon, the son of Naas, as his father showed kindness to me. So David sent his servants to comfort him for the death of his father. But when the servants of David were come into the land of the children of Ammon, 1 Paralipomenon 19:2. | Naas, whom Saul had defeated, and who on that account is supposed to have received his rival more willingly, (Calmet) when he had retreated into the country of Moab, 1 Kings 22:3. After receiving many presents from Naas, he retired to Odollam. (St. Jerome, Tradit.) (Menochius) --- Though the Israelites were not to seek the friendship of these nations, (Deuteronomy 23:6,) they were not forbidden to make a return of gratitude. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 10:3 | The princes of the children of Ammon said to Hanon, their lord: Thinkest thou that for the honour of thy father, David hath sent comforters to thee, and hath not David rather sent his servants to thee to search, and spy into the city, and overthrow it? | It. Thus, by their insinuations, they pervert the good dispositions of their prince, and by too much policy bring ruin on the nation. (Haydock) --- History affords many examples of similar effects of worldly wisdom. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 10:4 | Wherefore Hanon took the servants of David, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut away half of their garments, even to the buttocks, and sent them away. | Away, having forced them as it were to go into mourning for the deceased king. These nations adopted the same customs as the Hebrews: they cut their hair, and rent their garments, to express their deep affliction, Isaias 15:2. The Arabs would deem it a great insult, and a piece of irreligion, to shave their beard. (Darvieux vii. p. 175.) Plutarch (Agesil) observes, that the Lacedemonians obliged those who acted in a cowardly manner in war, to wear only one whisker: and Herodotus (II. 121,) takes notice of a person who, in contempt, cut off the beard on the right cheeks of some soldiers, who were placed to guard the body of his brother, who had been gibbeted, having first made them drunk, that he might take away the body. The garments (Aquila says, "the tunic," Septuagint, "the cloak, or mandua," which is a military garment used in Persia) were cut (Calmet) for the same purpose, like our spencers, (Haydock) that the ambassadors might be exposed to derision, as breeches were not usually worn, (Calmet) except by priests officiating. (Du Hamel) --- This was in contempt of circumcision. (Menochius) --- Yet we cannot suppose, but that the ambassadors would procure something to cover themselves before they arrived at Jericho, where they remained till their beard and the hair of their head (1 Paralipomenon xix.) were grown. The city was not rebuilt, but there were some houses in the territory of that devoted place, Josue 6:26. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 10:5 | When this was told David, he sent to meet them: for the men were sadly put to confusion, and David commanded them, saying: Stay at Jericho, till your beards be grown, and then return. | |
| II Samuel 10:6 | And the children of Ammon seeing that they had done an injury to David, sent and hired the Syrians of Rohob, and the Syrians of Soba, twenty thousand footmen, and of the king of Maacha a thousand men, and of Istob twelve thousand men. | Rohob, the capital, between Libanus and Antilibanus. --- Soba was subject to Adarezer, 2 Kings 8:3. --- Maacha, at the foot of Hermon. --- Istob (Hebrew ish tob) signifies, the man, or prince, or "the master of Tob," (Calmet) where Jephte lived, Judges 11:5. (Du Hamel) (Salien) --- Josephus thinks that Istob is the name of a fourth king, who, together with the king of Micha, brought 22,000 into the field. The first he styles king "of the Mesopotamians," (1 Paralipomenon 19:6.) which Salien explains of the country between Abana and Pharphar, the two great rivers of Syria, (4 Kings 5:12,) though, on this occasion, he allows that Adarezer hired forces from the utmost parts beyond the Euphrates. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 10:7 | And when David heard this, he sent Joab, and the whole army of warriors. | Warriors. The outrage offered to the ambassadors was a sufficient reason. The king of Ammon might have refused to receive them; but he could not, with any propriety, treat them with scorn. "The right of ambassadors has both a divine and human sanction." (Cicero, contra Verrem 3.) --- The Romans have frequently waged war to revenge such wrongs. (Grotius, Jur. 2:18.) |
| II Samuel 10:8 | And the children of Ammon came out, and set their men in array at the entering in of the gate: but the Syrians of Soba, and of Rohob, and of Istob, and of Maacha, were by themselves in the field. | Ammon. David was disposed to have lived in peace with this nation: but they voluntarily provoked his arms, after he had made such havoc upon all the neighbouring idolaters, and thus draw down the scourge of Providence; who suffers those to be blinded whom he has resolved to punish. The preparations for this war seem to have been greater than usual, and it continued for a longer period, and in the end proved destructive to all. (Haydock) --- Gate of Medaba. (Paralipomenon) Besides the 33,000 auxiliaries (ver. 6) and the natives, 32,000 chariots of war were hired from beyond the Euphrates, 1 Paralipomenon 19:7. |
| II Samuel 10:9 | Then Joab, seeing that the battle was prepared against him, both before and behind, chose of all the choice men of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians: | |
| II Samuel 10:10 | And the rest of the people he delivered to Abisai, his brother, who set them in array against the children of Ammon. | |
| II Samuel 10:11 | And Joab said: If the Syrians are too strong for me, then thou shalt help me: but if the children of Ammon are too strong for thee, then I will help thee. | |
| II Samuel 10:12 | Be of good courage, and let us fight for our people, and for the city of our God: and the Lord will do what is good in his sight. | City, Jerusalem, the metropolis; or, all the cities of Israel. (Paralipomenon) |
| II Samuel 10:13 | And Joab, and the people that were with him, began to fight against the Syrians: and they immediately fled before him. | |
| II Samuel 10:14 | And the children of Ammon seeing that the Syrians were fled, they fled also before Abisai, and entered into the city: and Joab returned from the children of Ammon, and came to Jerusalem. | |
| II Samuel 10:15 | Then the Syrians, seeing that they had fallen before Israel, gathered themselves together. | Together, expecting that David would punish them farther. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 10:16 | *And Adarezer sent and fetched the Syrians, that were beyond the river, and brought over their army: and Sobach, the captain of the host of Adarezer, was their general. | Year of the World 2968, Year before Christ 1036. |
| II Samuel 10:17 | And when this was told David, he gathered all Israel together, and passed over the Jordan, and came to Helam: and the Syrians set themselves in array against David, and fought against him. | Helam. Ptolemy mentions Alamata, on the Euphrates. But perhaps we ought to read the Hebrew Lehem, "he came upon them." See 1 Paralipomenon 19:17. Some translate, "he came to their army." |
| II Samuel 10:18 | And the Syrians fled before Israel, and David slew of the Syrians the men of seven hundred chariots, and forty thousand horsemen: and smote Sobach, the captain of the army, who presently died. | Hundred. Paralipomenon, thousand, allowing ten men for each chariot. (Du Hamel; Menochius) --- The men is omitted in both texts. See 2 Kings 8:4. (Haydock) --- Horsemen. Paralipomenon reads, footmen, supplying what is here omitted, (Salien) so that 87,000 Syrians perished, unless there be a mistake of the transcribers. (Calmet) --- Smote, though not perhaps with his own hand, as he slew so many thousands by means of his army. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 10:19 | And all the kings that were auxiliaries of Adarezer, seeing themselves overcome by Israel, were afraid and fled away, eight and fifty thousand men, before Israel. And they made peace with Israel, and served them: and the Syrians were afraid to help the children of Ammon any more. | Before Israel. Hebrew and Septuagint only read, "And when all the kings, servants of Adarezer, saw that they were smitten before Israel, they made peace with Israel, and served them," etc. (Haydock) --- The addition is not found in the ancient version of St. Jerome. These tributary kings lived in Syria, and some perhaps beyond the Euphrates. See Psalm lix. (Calmet) --- The army had consisted of 145,000 men. After the loss of 87,000, the servants of Adarezer went over to David, and served him, Paralipomenon. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 11:0 | David falleth into the crime of adultery with Bethsabee: and not finding other means to conceal it, causeth her husband, Urias, to be slain: then marrieth her, and she beareth him a son. | |
| II Samuel 11:1 | And *it came to pass at the return of the year, at the time when kings go forth to war, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel, and they ravaged the country of the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabba: but David remained in Jerusalem. 1 Paralipomenon 20. | Year of the World 2969, Year before Christ 1035. Year. Hebrew, "at the end of the year," (Chaldean; Syriac) which may be explained either of the year after the preceding engagement, or at the end of the civil year, in the autumnal equinox, (Calmet) or of the sacred year, which begins in the spring, (Haydock) when kings more commonly go to battle, about the month of March. (Menochius) --- In hot countries they make a campaign also in autumn. --- Ammon. They had not been sufficiently chastised, as they had saved themselves within their strong cities. They had added to their other crimes, that of stirring up the Syrians against David. (Calmet) --- Rabba, the capital of Ammon, which Polybius calls "Rabatamana." See 2 Kings 5:8. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 11:2 | In the mean time it happened that David arose from his bed after noon, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and he saw from the roof of his house, a woman washing herself, over-against him: and the woman was very beautiful. | Noon. He had been reposing, according to custom, 2 Kings 4:7. (Calmet) --- But the devil was not idle. He was meditating a temptation and crime, which involved a great part of the remainder of David's life in misery. (Haydock) --- He had reigned 18 years, and lived 48, almost without blame. (Salien, the year of the world 2998.) --- His house, as the Hebrew explains it. The Vulgate might insinuate that the woman was upon "the roof of her house." But she was probably in her garden, as the Jews have their baths in the open air. They are frequently obliged to purify themselves. (Calmet) --- The house must have been very near David's palace. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 11:3 | And the king sent, and inquired who the woman was. And it was told him, that she was Bethsabee, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Urias, the Hethite. | Eliam. By a transposition of letters, he is called Ammiel, in 1 Paralipomenon 3:5. Both words signify "my people is God's." This son of Achitophel (chap. 23:34,) was one of David's valiant men, as well as Urias, who is styled the Hethite, being born at Eth; (St. Jerome; Salien) or on account of his extraction, or because he or his ancestors (Haydock) had performed some great exploit against that nation; as Germanicus, Africanus, etc., received those titles among the Romans, for conquering the Germans, etc. (Calmet) --- Eth was a place near Hebron. (Adrichomius 128.) (Menochius) --- The name of Bethsabee is also different in Paralipomenon; the last b in Hebrew being changed into V. Both-shua, both-al-i-ám; instead of Both-shobá, both-ám-i-al. (Haydock) (Kennicott) --- The grandfather of Bethsabee is supposed to have revolted against David, to revenge the wrong done to her. (Tirinus; Cornelius a Lapide) "Let the weak tremble at the fall of the strong." (St. Augustine, in Psalm l.) |
| II Samuel 11:4 | And David sent messengers, and took her, and she came in to him, and he slept with her: *and presently she was purified from her uncleanness: Leviticus 15:18. | Purified. Literally, "sanctified." Hebrew and Septuagint, "for she was, " etc. (Haydock) --- Hoc ideo additum ne miraremur illico eam concepisse. (Grotius; Aristotle, Anim. 7:20. --- Women were obliged to bathe after such actions, Leviticus 15:18. |
| II Samuel 11:5 | And she returned to her house, having conceived. And she sent and told David, and said: I have conceived. | |
| II Samuel 11:6 | And David sent to Joab, saying: Send me Urias, the Hethite. And Joab sent Urias to David. | |
| II Samuel 11:7 | And Urias came to David. And David asked how Joab did, and the people, and how the war was carried on. | |
| II Samuel 11:8 | And David said to Urias: Go into thy house, and wash thy feet. And Urias went out from the king's house, and there went out after him a mess of meat from the king. | Feet. As they did not wear stockings, this practice was very common after a journey. David thus insinuated that Urias might take his rest, and go to his wife, that so he might suppose that the child was his own, and the crime of Bethsabee might be concealed. (Calmet) --- King, as a mark of honour, but in reality that he might be more excited to indulge his pleasures. (Abulensis) (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 11:9 | But Urias slept before the gate of the king's house, with the other servants of his lord, and went not down to his own house. | House, in the court, for the guards. See Athen. 5:2., etc. |
| II Samuel 11:10 | And it was told David by some that said: Urias went not to his house. And David said to Urias: Didst thou not come from thy journey? why didst thou not go down to thy house? | Journey, of thirty hours' length. (Adrichomius) |
| II Samuel 11:11 | And Urias said to David: The ark of God, and Israel and Juda dwell in tents, and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, abide upon the face of the earth: and shall I go into my house, to eat and to drink, and to sleep with my wife? by thy welfare, and by the welfare of thy soul, I will not do this thing. | Ark. Most people suppose that the ark and the priests were before Rabba, as they seem to have been present in all expeditions of consequence. (Menochius) (Calmet) --- But, at any rate, the ark was covered with skins or veils, even in the tabernacle at Gabaon, or at Sion. (Haydock) --- Thing. He binds himself by an oath not to gratify his natural inclinations, that the king might desist from pressing him any farther. (Salien) --- But David resolves to endeavour to make him forget his oath, during the moments of intoxication. The valour and temperance of Urias, and divine Providence, render all his craft useless; and a concatenation of crimes cannot hide the original offence. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 11:12 | Then David said to Urias: Tarry here to-day also, and to-morrow I will send thee away. Urias tarried in Jerusalem that day and the next. | |
| II Samuel 11:13 | And David called him to eat and to drink before him, and he made him drunk: and he went out in the evening, and slept on his couch, with the servants of his lord, and went not down into his house. | Couch. It seems he was one of the guards. Josephus says he was Joab's armour-bearer, (Antiquities 7:7.) and one of David's heroes, 2 Kings 23:39. |
| II Samuel 11:14 | And when the morning was come, David wrote a letter to Joab: and sent it by the hand of Urias, | Morning of the fourth day, as Urias staid three nights at Jerusalem. It is not clear that he was intoxicated the last of them. On that night David permitted him to act as he should think proper; and finding that he obstinately persisted in the resolution of not going to sleep with his wife, he had recourse to the last and most barbarous expedient of making way for his own marriage with the woman, as he saw this was the only method left for him to save her honour. The utmost expedition was requisition, as many days must have elapsed before she perceived her situation; (Haydock) and if many more should pass over, it would be manifest to the world that she had been guilty of adultery, and must either be stoned, or, if David spared her, he must bear the blame. (Salien) --- Urias. The fable of Bellerophon being sent by Proetus to Jobates, king of Syria, with a letter, desiring the king to put the bearer to death, seems to have been copied from this history. Their letters have become proverbial. (St. Chrysostom) Aha Bellerophontem jam tuus me fecit filius, Egomet tabellas detuli ut vincirer. (Plaut. Bacchide.) |
| II Samuel 11:15 | Writing in the letter: Set ye Urias in the front of the battle, where the fight is hottest: and leave ye him, that he may be wounded, and die. | Die. We no longer behold the genius of that David who would not hurt his persecutor. What a change does a shameful passion introduce in the whole conduct of a man! and how does one false step conduct from one abyss to another! Proprium humani ingenii est odisse quem laeseris. (Tacitus) --- David could no longer bear the sight of a man whom he had injured so grievously. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 11:16 | Wherefore, as Joab was besieging the city, he put Urias in the place where he knew the bravest men were. | |
| II Samuel 11:17 | And the men coming out of the city, fought against Joab, and there fell some of the people of the servants of David, and Urias, the Hethite, was killed also. | Also. Hence David prays with reason; Deliver me from blood (sanguinibus) of many slain. He was answerable for all (Cajetan) |
| II Samuel 11:18 | Then Joab sent, and told David all things concerning the battle. | |
| II Samuel 11:19 | And he charged the messenger, saying: When thou hast told all the words of the battle to the king, | |
| II Samuel 11:20 | If thou see him to be angry, and he shall say: Why did you approach so near to the wall to fight? knew you not that many darts are thrown from above, off the wall? | |
| II Samuel 11:21 | Who killed Abimelech, the son of Jerobaal? *did not a woman cast a piece of a mill-stone upon him from the wall, and slew him in Thebes? Why did you go near the wall? Thou shalt say: Thy servant Urias, the Hethite, is also slain. Judges 9:53. | Jerobaal? Hebrews write Jeroboseth, to avoid the mention of Baal, as they also do with respect to the name of Isboseth, who was probably called Isbaal. (Calmet) See Judges, 9:57. --- Joab supposed that David might probably adduce this instance, to shew the danger of approaching too near the wall, as it had proved destructive to part of his army, and had been fatal to Abimelech. But it seems the messenger did not allow him time to express any resentment, before he told him the agreeable news, which he desired so much to hear [in] ver. 24. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 11:22 | So the messenger departed, and came and told David all that Joab had commanded him. | |
| II Samuel 11:23 | And the messenger said to David: The men prevailed against us, and they came out to us into the field: and we vigorously charged and pursued them, even to the gate of the city. | |
| II Samuel 11:24 | And the archers shot their arrows at thy servants, from off the wall above: and some of the king's servants are slain, and thy servant Urias, the Hethite, is also dead. | |
| II Samuel 11:25 | And David said to the messenger: Thus shalt thou say to Joab: Let not this thing discourage thee, for various is the event of war: and sometimes one, sometimes another, is consumed by the sword: encourage thy warriors against the city, and exhort them, that thou mayst overthrow it. | |
| II Samuel 11:26 | And the wife of Urias heard that Urias, her husband, was dead, and she mourned for him. | For him. We may apply to her tears those words of Lucan: -----Lachrymas non spontè cadentes p style="margin-left: 40px"p>Effudit, gemitusque expressit pectore laeto. "None affected more sorrow for the death of Germanicus, than those who rejoiced the most at that event." (Tacitus, An. ii.) --- The mourning for the dead usually lasted seven days; (Ecclesiasticus 22:13.) and after that period, David seems to have married Bethsabee. (Abulensis, q. 21.) |
| II Samuel 11:27 | And the mourning being over, David sent and brought her into his house, and she became his wife, and she bore him a son: and this thing which David had done, was displeasing to the Lord. | Lord; not that David had married the woman, but on account of his former conduct towards her and her husband. (Menochius) --- The canon law forbids the marriages of those who have been accomplices in the death of their former partner; and some have thought that this marriage of David was null. But this is inaccurate; and the fruits of it were (Calmet) all deeded legitimate. See 1 Paralipomenon 3:5. (Haydock) --- The Rabbins even pretend that David was guilty of no sin in marrying Bethsabee during the life-time of Urias; as the latter, they say, must have given her a bill of divorce when he went to war. (Grotius) --- But why should we excuse an action which was so severely condemned and punished by God? (Chap. 12:1., etc., and Psalm l.) (Calmet) --- In David's conduct, we here behold a complication of the basest passions of lust and cruelty; which make David neglect the sanctity of an oath, (ver. 11) and attempt to ruin, by drunkenness, the soul of one to whom he was much indebted; and, afterwards, to expose him to an untimely death, perhaps without repentance; if indeed Urias exceeded the bounds of moderation. This however is not certain; as the word drunk is often used to denote a degree of blameless conviviality, Genesis 43:34. Yet the design of David was equally criminal. How soon may the man according to God's own heart, fall from his elevated station into the depth of the abyss! Wherefore let him that thinketh himself to stand, take heed lest he fall, 1 Corinthians 10:12. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 12:0 | Nathan's parable. David confesseth his sin, and is forgiven: yet so as to be sentenced to most severe temporal punishments. The death of the child. The birth of Solomon. The taking of Rabbath. | |
| II Samuel 12:1 | And *the Lord sent Nathan to David: and when he was come to him, he said unto him: There were two men in one city, the one rich, and the other poor. | Year of the World 2970, Year before Christ 1034. Unto him, after the birth of the child. A whole year had nearly elapsed, and David continued blind and impenitent. The spirit of prophecy had left him; and, though he was clear-sighted, and equitable enough to punish the faults of others, he could not discern his own picture, till Nathan had removed the veil. The prophet acted with the utmost prudence, and did not condemn the king till he had pronounced sentence on himself. It is commonly supposed that the interview was private. St. Chrysostom believes that the chief lords of the court were present; which would enhance the discretion of Nathan, as well as David's humility. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 12:2 | The rich man had exceeding many sheep, and oxen. | |
| II Samuel 12:3 | But the poor man had nothing at all but one little ewe-lamb, which he had bought and nourished up, and which had grown up in his house, together with his children, eating of his bread, and drinking of his cup, and sleeping in his bosom: and it was unto him as a daughter. | Daughter. All these expressions tended to shew the affection of the owner for this pet lamb. (Haydock) --- In Arabia, one of the finest is commonly fed in the house along with the children. (Bochart, Anim. T. 1:B. 2:46.) --- It is not necessary that every word of this parable should have been verified in Bethsabee. (Calmet) --- Many things are usually added for ornament. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 12:4 | And when a certain stranger was come to the rich man, he spared to take of his own sheep and oxen, to make a feast for that stranger, who was come to him; but took the poor man's ewe, and dressed it for the man that was come to him. | To him. This wanton cruelty caused David to pronounce him deserving of death; as simple theft was punished with only a four-fold restitution, Exodus 22:1. Judges sometimes diminish, and at other times increase, the severity of the law, according to the dispositions of the offenders, which lawgivers could not exactly foresee. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 12:5 | And David's anger being exceedingly kindled against that man, he said to Nathan: As the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this is a child of death. | |
| II Samuel 12:6 | *He shall restore the ewe four-fold, because he did this thing, and had no pity. Exodus 22:1. | Fold. Septuagint, "seven-fold," which Grabe corrects by the Hebrew. (Haydock) --- David lost four of his sons; the first born of Bethsabee, Amnon, Absalon, and Adonias: and saw his daughter Thamar, (Calmet) and his ten inferior wives, dishonoured, in punishment of his crime. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 12:7 | And Nathan said to David: Thou art the man. Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel: I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee from the hand of Saul, | The man, against whom thou hast pronounced sentence, and who has treated thy neighbour with still less pity. (Haydock) -----Mutato nomine de te Fabula narratur.----- (Horace) |
| II Samuel 12:8 | And gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and Juda: and if these things be little, I shall add far greater things unto thee. | Wives. We know of none that David married. But, as king, he enjoyed alone that privilege. (Grotius) (Chap. 3:7., and 16:21.) --- Unto thee. Hebrew, "I would have given thee such and such." (Calmet) --- Septuagint, "I will moreover give thee like unto these;" a continuation of prosperity. (Haydock) --- This singular love, which God was still disposed to manifest unto David, touched his heart with peculiar force. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 12:9 | Why therefore hast thou despised the word of the Lord, to do evil in my sight? Thou hast killed Urias, the Hethite, with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. | |
| II Samuel 12:10 | Therefore, the sword shall never depart from thy house, because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Urias, the Hethite, to be thy wife. | House. What a dismal scene opens itself to our view during the remaining part of David's reign! (Haydock) --- Scarcely one of his successors was free from war; even Solomon was disturbed by the rebellion of Jeroboam, etc., and many of David's family and descendants came to an untimely end, ver. 6. (Calmet) --- Six sons of Josaphat, all Joram's, except one, Josias, the children of Sedecias, etc., 4 Kings xxv., etc. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 12:11 | Thus saith the Lord: Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thy own house, and I will take thy wives before thy eyes, *and give them to thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. 2 Kings 16:21. | I will raise, etc. All these evils, inasmuch as they were punishments, came upon Daivd by a just judgment of God, for his sin; and therefore God says, I will raise, etc. But inasmuch as they were sins, on the part of Absalom and his associates, God was not the author of them, but only permitted them. (Challoner) --- God permitted the wicked prince to succeed for some time, that he might punish David. (Calmet) --- Neighbour, most dearly beloved. To be treated ill by such a one, is doubly severe, Psalm 54:15. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 12:12 | For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing in the sight of all Israel, and in the sight of the sun. | Sun, publicly, 2 Kings 16:22. How abominable soever this conduct of an unnatural son must have been to God, he says, I will do this; because, when he might have prevented it by a more powerful grace, or by the death of the delinquent, he suffered him to carry his infernal project into execution. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 12:13 | And David said to Nathan: I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said to David: *The Lord also hath taken away thy sin: thou shalt not die. Ecclesiasticus 47:13. | Sinned. His confession was sincere, and very different from that of Saul, 1 Kings 15:24. "The expression was the same; but God saw the difference of the heart." (St. Augustine, contra Faust. 22:27.) --- Sin. He has remitted the fault and the eternal punishment, and he has greatly diminished the temporal chastisement, and will not inflict instant death, as he seemed to have threatened, ver. 10. (Calmet) --- "The speedy remission shewed the greatness of the king's repentance." (St. Ambrose, Apol. 2.) |
| II Samuel 12:14 | Nevertheless, because thou hast given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, for this thing, the child that is born to thee, shall surely die. | Occasion. Literally, "made" almost, in the same sense, as God threatened to do, what was effected by Absalom, ver. 12. David did not co-operate with the malice of infidels; but he was responsible for it: in as much as he had committed an unlawful action, which gave them occasion to blaspheme God, as if he had not been able to foresee this scandalous transaction. Thus God and religion are often vilified, on account of the misconduct of those who have the happiness to be well informed, but do not live up to their profession: but this mode of argumentation is very fallacious and uncandid. It ought, however, to be a caution to the servants of the true God, never to do any thing which may have such fatal consequences; and alienate the minds of weak men from the truth. --- Die. Thus infidels would see, that God did not suffer David to pass quite unpunished. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 12:15 | And Nathan returned to his house. The Lord also struck the child which the wife of Urias had borne to David, and his life was despaired of. | Of. Hebrew, "it was sick" (Calmet) of a fever. |
| II Samuel 12:16 | And David besought the Lord for the child: and David kept a fast, and going in by himself, lay upon the ground. | A fast, (jejunavit jejunio) denotes, with more than ordinary rigour. (Salien) --- By himself. Hebrew, "he went in, and lay all night upon the ground." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 12:17 | And the ancients of his house came to make him rise from the ground: but he would not, neither did he eat meat with them. | |
| II Samuel 12:18 | And it came to pass on the seventh day that the child died: and the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead. For they said: Behold, when the child was yet alive, we spoke to him, and he would not hearken to our voice: how much more will he afflict himself, if we tell him that the child is dead? | Day. After his birth, when he had received circumcision; (Salien) or on the 7th day since the commencement of his malady. (Calmet; Menochius) |
| II Samuel 12:19 | But when David saw his servants whispering, he understood that the child was dead: and he said to his servants: Is the child dead? They answered him: He is dead. | |
| II Samuel 12:20 | Then David arose from the ground, and washed and anointed himself: and when he had changed his apparel, he went into the house of the Lord, and worshipped; and then he came into his own house, and he called for bread, and ate. | |
| II Samuel 12:21 | And his servants said to him: What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive: but after the child was dead, thou didst rise up and eat bread. | |
| II Samuel 12:22 | And he said: While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept for him: for I said: Who knoweth whether the Lord may not give him to me, and the child may live? | |
| II Samuel 12:23 | But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Shall I be able to bring him back any more? I shall go to him rather: but he shall not return to me. | To me. No instance of any one being raised from the dead had yet occurred; though David did not disbelieve its possibility. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 12:24 | And David comforted Bethsabee, his wife, and went in unto her, and slept with her: *and she bore a son, and he called his name Solomon, and the Lord loved him. | Year of the World 2971, Year before Christ 1033. Wife. She had partaken in his affliction and repentance. The Jews say that David told her the divine oracle, which is mentioned [in] 3 Kings 1:13, 17., that her next son should succeed to the throne. Salien (the year of the world 3000) supposes that he was conceived in May, two months after the death of Bethsabee's first-born, and came into the world about the time of the Passover. --- Solomon, "the pacific." See 1 Paralipomenon 22:9. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 12:25 | And he sent, by the hand of Nathan, the prophet, and called his name, Amiable to the Lord, because the Lord loved him. | Amiable to the Lord. Or beloved of the Lord. In Hebrew, Yedideya. (Challoner) --- Loved him, is not expressed in Hebrew, "because of the Lord." (Haydock) --- Theodotion, "in the word, or agreeably to, the order of the Lord." Solomon never went by the name which God here gives him, (Calmet) except in this place. (Menochius) --- It shews the gratuitous predilection which God had for him; but affords no proof of his predestination to glory, of which there is too much reason to doubt. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 12:26 | *And Joab fought against Rabbath, of the children of Ammon, and laid close siege to the royal city. 1 Paralipomenon 20:1. | |
| II Samuel 12:27 | And Joab sent messengers to David, saying: I have fought against Rabbath, and the city of waters is about to be taken. | The city of waters. Rabbath, the royal city of the Ammonites, was called the city of waters, from being encompassed with waters. (Challoner) See 2 Kings 5:8. --- The Hebrew in the preceding verse seems to insinuate, (Haydock) that "he had taken the royal city." But he was only on the point of doing it, or had, perhaps, made himself master of some part of it. Here the Hebrew, "I have taken," may be explained in the same sense, unless the city of waters were the lower part of Rabbath, lying on the Jaboc. Junius translates, "He cut off the waters, which entered the city;" and Josephus favours this explanation. It seems the siege lasted about two years. (Calmet) --- Antiochus took this city, by depriving the inhabitants of water. (Polybius v.) |
| II Samuel 12:28 | Now, therefore, gather thou the rest of the people together, and besiege the city and take it: lest, when the city shall be wasted by me, the victory be ascribed to my name. | Take it. The higher, and more impregnable part; which honour Joab reserved for David. |
| II Samuel 12:29 | Then David gathered all the people together, and went out against Rabbath: and after fighting, he took it. | |
| II Samuel 12:30 | And he took the crown of their king from his head, the weight of which was a talent of gold, set with most precious stones; and it was put upon David's head, and the spoils of the city, which were very great, he carried away. | King. Hebrew, Malcam, "their king." Moloc, "king," or the chief idol of the Ammonites. It was forbidden to use the ornaments of the idols on Chanaan, but not of other nations. This crown might be worth a talent, on account of the gold and precious stones; (1 Paralipomenon 20:2.; Sanchez; Bochart,) or it might weigh so much as almost 87 pounds, (Calmet) or above 113 pounds English. (Haydock) --- Such immence crowns were sometimes suspended for ornament, over the throne; as Benjamin of Tudela says was done by the emperor Commenes. Pliny describes one of nine pounds; and Athenaeus (V. 8,) another of 80 cubits, or 40 yards (Haydock) in circumference. (Calmet) --- The idol, or the king of Ammon, (Menochius) might have one of the like nature, suspended. The Rabbins say David caused it to hand in the air by means of a load-stone; as if it would attract gold! (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 12:31 | And bringing forth the people thereof, he sawed them, and drove over them chariots armed with iron: and divided them with knives, and made them pass through brick-kilns: so did he to all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David returned with all the army to Jerusalem. | Sawed. Hebrew, "he put them under saws, and under rollers of iron, and under knives," etc. (Haydock) --- The Jews say that Isaias was killed by being sawed asunder; to which punishment St. Paul alludes, Hebrews 11:37. (Menochius) --- Brick-kilns, or furnaces, Psalm 20:10. (Muis) --- Daniel and his companions were thrown into the fiery furnace, Daniel 3:6, 11., and Esther 13:7. (Calmet) --- Some condemn David of excessive cruelty on this occasion. (Tirinus; Sanctius) --- But the Scripture represents his conduct as irreproachable, except in the affair of Urias; (3 Kings 15:5,) and at this distance of time, we know not the motives which might have actuated him to treat his enemy with such severity. The Ammonites had probably exercised similar cruelties on his subjects. See 1 Kings 11:2., and Amos 1:13. (Calmet) --- They had shamefully violated the law of nations, and had stirred up various kings against David. (Menochius) --- Salien blames Joab for what may seem too cruel. But, though he was barbarous and vindictive, we need not condemn him on this occasion, no more than his master; as we are not to judge of former times by our own manners. (Haydock) --- War was then carried on with great cruelty. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 13:0 | Amnon ravisheth Thamar. For which Absalom killeth him, and flieth to Gessur. | |
| II Samuel 13:1 | And *it came to pass after this, that Amnon, the son of David, loved the sister of Absalom, the son of David, who was very beautiful; and her name was Thamar. | Year of the World 2972, Year before Christ 1032. Thamar was born of Maacha, as well as Absalom. |
| II Samuel 13:2 | And he was exceedingly fond of her, so that he fell sick for the love of her: for as she was a virgin, he thought it hard to do any thing dishonestly with her. | Her. He had seen her on some solemn occasions, when virgins were allowed to go out, well attended. At other times they were so strictly guarded, that Amnon thought it almost impossible to gratify his passion, (Calmet) which made him grow pale. He afterwards feigned himself to be more sickly than he really was, ver. 6. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:3 | Now Amnon had a friend, named Jonadab, the son of Semmaa, the brother of David, a very wise man: | A very wise man. That is, a crafty and subtle man: for the counsel he gave on this occasion shews that his wisdom was but carnal and worldly. (Challoner) --- Jonadab seems to be styled Jonathan, 2 Kings 21:21. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 13:4 | And he said to him: Why dost thou grow so lean from day to day, O son of the king? why dost thou not tell me the reason of it? And Amnon said to him: I am in love with Thamar, the sister of my brother Absalom. | King? to whom every indulgence must be allowed. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 13:5 | And Jonadab said to him: Lie down upon thy bed, and feign thyself sick: and when thy father shall come to visit thee, say to him: Let my sister Thamar, I pray thee, come to me, to give me to eat, and to make me a mess, that I may eat it at her hand. | To me. Hebrew, "and give me meat, and dress the meat in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it," etc. (Haydock) --- He pretends to be disgusted with food, (Calmet) unless he see his sister make it ready. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:6 | So Amnon lay down, and made as if he were sick: and when the king came to visit him, Amnon said to the king: I pray thee, let my sister Thamar come, and make in my sight two little messes, that I may eat at her hand. | Messes. Hebrew, "cakes, or cordials;" what might refresh the heart, and give an appetite. The queen of Perdiccas, of Macedon, baked bread for her servants. (Herodotus 8:137.) (Genesis 18:6.) |
| II Samuel 13:7 | Then David sent home to Thamar, saying: Come to the house of thy brother Amnon, and make him a mess. | |
| II Samuel 13:8 | And Thamar came to the house of Amnon, her brother: but he was laid down: and she took meal and tempered it: and dissolving it in his sight, she made little messes. | |
| II Samuel 13:9 | And taking what she had boiled, she poured it out, and set it before him, but he would not eat: and Amnon said: Put out all persons from me. And when they had put all persons out, | Out. This conveys the idea of something liquid. (Calmet) --- It was a thin wafer, (Haydock) or cake, of which there were different sorts. |
| II Samuel 13:10 | Amnon said to Thamar: Bring the mess into the chamber, that I may eat at thy hand. And Thamar took the little messes which she had made, and brought them into her brother Amnon, in the chamber. | Chamber. Hebrew Chadera, "bed-place," (Canticle of Canticles 1:4.) where Amnon was lying. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 13:11 | And when she had presented him the meat, he took hold of her, and said: Come, lie with me, my sister. | |
| II Samuel 13:12 | She answered him: Do not so, my brother, do not force me: for no such thing must be done in Israel. Do not thou this folly. | Folly, or impiety, so directly contrary to the law, 9Leviticus 18:6.; Leviticus 18:9.; Leviticus 18:11.) (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:13 | For I shall not be able to bear my shame, and thou shalt be as one of the fools in Israel: but rather speak to the king, and he will not deny me to thee. | Thee. Was she ignorant that such marriages could not be allowed? (Calmet) --- Some think she was. (Grotius) (Menochius) --- Others believe that, in her present situation, she said what first came into her head, to get out of the hands of her brother. The Rabbins pretend that she was conceived before David married her mother, and that the latter was a pagan; so that they suppose there was no relationship between Thamar and Amnon. But this is all asserted without proof. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 13:14 | But he would not hearken to her prayers, but being stronger, overpowered her, and lay with her. | |
| II Samuel 13:15 | Then Amnon hated her with an exceeding great hatred: so that the hatred, wherewith he hated her, was greater than the love with which he had loved her before. And Amnon said to her: Arise, and get thee gone. | Before. Such changes are not unfrequent in those who give way to disorderly passions, as Aristotle (prob. iv.) proves. Semiramis slew her lovers, and among the rest her own son. (Tirinus) --- God caused Amnon to be stung with remorse, and the evil spirit pushed him on to extremities, which filled the palace with scandal and bloodshed. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 13:16 | She answered him: This evil, which now thou dost against me, in driving me away, is greater than that which thou didst before. And he would not hearken to her. | Greater, as being more public; (Tirinus) and all would think her guilty of some horrible misdemeanor. (Haydock) --- It made the divulging of the crime in some degree necessary. (Menochius) --- Unhappy woman! why did she not cry out, at least, before the perpetration of the act, as the law directed? (Deuteronomy 22:24.) (Salien, the year of the world 3000.) |
| II Samuel 13:17 | But calling the servants that ministered to him, he said: Thrust this woman out from me: and shut the door after her. | |
| II Samuel 13:18 | And she was clothed with a long robe: for the king's daughters, that were virgins, used such kind of garments. Then his servant thrust her out; and shut the door after her. | Robe. Hebrew passim; long and variegated, like Joseph's, Genesis 37:3. The Septuagint call it, karpotos, to insinuate that it was "adorned with fruits," etc. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:19 | And she put ashes on her head, and rent her long robe, and laid her hands upon her head, and went on crying. | Head, as if to hide her face, Ezechiel 27:30., and Jeremias 2:37. So Mezentius: "Canitiem immundo deformat pulvere et ambas Ad Coelum tendit palmas."----- (Virgil, Aeneid x.) See Homer, Iliad 2. (Calmet) --- Crying, that no one might think she had consented. (Menochius) --- She probably went directly to her brother's house, and related the affair to him; or he met her in this condition. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 13:20 | And Absalom, her brother, said to her: Hath thy brother Amnon lain with thee? but now, sister, hold thy peace, he is thy brother: and afflict not thy heart for this thing. So Thamar remained pining away in the house of Absalom her brother. | Brother. His disgrace will fall upon the whole royal family, and the king will not bring him to punishment, like another. (Calmet) --- Away. Hebrew and Chaldean, "desolate." (Menochius) --- Septuagint, "like a widow." |
| II Samuel 13:21 | And when king David heard of these things he was exceedingly grieved: and he would not afflict the spirit of his son Amnon, for he loved him, because he was his first-born. | And he, etc. This is not in Hebrew, etc., nor in St. Jerome's version. Josephus and some copies of the Septuagint read it. But the reason here alleged would not suffice to excuse David. (Calmet) --- He might think that, as he had shewn such a bad example himself, he could not with a good grace punish others. (Sanctius) --- This however was requisite, as long as he was king. Whatever faults he might have fallen into, he was not on that account to suffer crimes to remain unpunished; (Haydock) and it is supposed that he testified his resentment to Amnon; (Salien, etc.) though the Scripture be silent thereon. (Haydock) --- Abulensis condemns him for too great remissness. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 13:22 | But Absalom spoke not to Amnon, neither good nor evil: for Absalom hated Amnon, because he had ravished his sister Thamar. | |
| II Samuel 13:23 | And it came to pass, after two years, *that the sheep of Absalom were shorn in Baalhasor, which is near Ephraim: and Absalom invited all the king's sons: | Year of the World 2974, Year before Christ 1030. Two. Hebrew, "full years." He waited so long, that he might put his murderous designs in execution with less suspicion. (Haydock) --- Sheep. It was esteemed the best husbandry, "to have fine flocks;" bene pascere: (Cato) even for the nobility. --- Ephraim, or Ephrem; (John 11:54.) probably near Bethel. (Josephus, Jewish Wars 5:33.) (Calmet) --- Nabal had made a feast on a similar occasion, 1 Kings xxv. Absalom invites his father to avoid suspicion; (Menochius) though he would be glad at his refusing to come, unless perhaps he would not have hesitated to order his brother to be murdered in his very presence, in order to punish both. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:24 | And he came to the king, and said to him: Behold thy servant's sheep are shorn: Let the king, I pray, with his servants, come to his servant. | |
| II Samuel 13:25 | And the king said to Absalom: Nay, my son, do not ask that we should all come, and be chargeable to thee. And when he pressed him, and he would not go, he blessed him. | Blessed him, wishing him joy. Absalom kept a separate establishment, and had many children, 2 Kings 14:27. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 13:26 | And Absalom said: If thou wilt not come, at least let my brother, Amnon, I beseech thee, come with us. And the king said to him: It is not necessary that he should go with thee. | Amnon. He mentions him as the eldest, and that David might suppose that they were perfectly reconciled. (Calmet) --- The unhappy father seems for a long time to have expressed a reluctance and foreboding. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:27 | But Absalom pressed him, so that he let Amnon and all the king's sons go with him. And Absalom made a feast, as it were the feast of a king. | |
| II Samuel 13:28 | And Absalom had commanded his servants, saying: Take notice when Amnon shall be drunk with wine, and when I shall say to you: Strike him, and kill him; fear not: for it is I that command you: take courage, and be valiant men. | It is I: the blame will fall on me; I will rescue all from danger. These servants were probably infidels, of Gessur, and fled with their master. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 13:29 | And the servants of Absalom did to Amnon, as Absalom had commanded them. And all the king's sons arose, and got up every man upon his mule, and fled. | Mule. This is the first time we find these animals used to ride on. The judges had fair asses. These mules were not the offspring of horses and asses. They bear young in Syria, (Aristotle, anim. 6:24.) and are little inferior to horses in size, though they are shaped like our mules. (Aristotle, anim. xxxvi.) |
| II Samuel 13:30 | And while they were yet in the way, a rumour came to David, saying: Absalom hath slain all the king's sons, and there is not one of them left. | Left. Fame often magnifies. (Menochius) --- Crescit eundo. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:31 | Then the king rose up, and rent his garments, and fell upon the ground: and all his servants, that stood about him, rent their garments. | |
| II Samuel 13:32 | But Jonadab, the son of Semmaa, David's brother, answering, said: Let not my lord the king think, that all the king's sons are slain: Amnon only is dead, for he was appointed by the mouth of Absalom from the day that he ravished his sister, Thamar. | Mouth. Chaldean [and] Syriac, "heart." Aquila, "because Absalom was in wrath against him." He had resolved upon his destruction. (Calmet) --- Perhaps he had expressed his intention to some of the court; and this Jonadab (by whose means the crime had been committed, ver. 5) had heard of it. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:33 | Now, therefore, let not my lord the king take this thing into his heart, saying: All the king's sons are slain: for Amnon only is dead. | |
| II Samuel 13:34 | But Absalom fled away: and the young man that kept the watch, lifted up his eyes and looked: and behold there came much people by a bye-way on the side of the mountain. | Mountain. Olivet. (Calmet) --- They had not kept the high road through fear of Absalom; (Abulensis) who, on his part, fled out of the country, as no city of refuge was able to protect wilful murderers. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 13:35 | And Jonadab said to the king: Behold the king's sons are come: as thy servant said, so it is. | |
| II Samuel 13:36 | And when he made an end of speaking, the king's sons also appeared: and, coming in, they lifted up their voice, and wept: and the king also, and all his servants, wept very much. | |
| II Samuel 13:37 | But Absalom fled, and went to Tholomai, the son of Ammiud, the king of Gessur. And David mourned for his son every day. | Tholomai, or Tholmai, (Haydock; 2 Kings 3:3.) his maternal grandfather. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 13:38 | And Absalom, after he was fled, and come into Gessur, was there three years. And king David ceased to pursue after Absalom, because he was comforted concerning the death of Amnon. | Ceased. We do not read that he had pursued Absalom before. (Calmet) --- Now he laid aside all thoughts of punishing him, as he began even to desire to see him again, when he reflected that Amnon had deserved death. (Haydock) --- Hebrew also, "he burnt with a secret desire to receive Absalom," 2 Kings 14:1. (Jonathan; Vatable, etc.) (Calmet) --- Protestants, "the soul of king David longed to go forth unto," etc. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 14:0 | Joab procureth Absalom's return, and his admittance to the king's presence. | |
| II Samuel 14:1 | And *Joab, the son of Sarvia, understanding that the king's heart was turned to Absalom, | Year of the World 2977, Year before Christ 1027. |
| II Samuel 14:2 | Sent to Thecua, and fetched from thence a wise woman: and said to her: Feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on mourning apparel, and be not anointed with oil, that thou mayst be as a woman that had a long time been mourning for one dead. | Thecua, twelve miles south of Jerusalem. (St. Jerome) --- Joab causes this unknown woman to come from the country to conceal his design, (Calmet) hoping that Absalom would be his father's successor. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 14:3 | And thou shalt go in to the king, and shalt speak to him in this manner. And Joab put the words in her mouth. | |
| II Samuel 14:4 | And when the woman of Thecua was come in to the king, she fell before him upon the ground, and worshipped, and said: Save me, O king. | Save me. So the Jews frequently repeated Hosanna; and David addressed God, save us, 1 Paralipomenon 16:35. (Tirinus) |
| II Samuel 14:5 | And the king said to her: What is the matter with thee? She answered: Alas, I am a widow woman: for my husband is dead. | Dead. Some conclude from ver. 16, that this is a true history; but it appears rather, that it was only a parable, (ver. 19.; Calmet) invented by Joab. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 14:6 | And thy handmaid had two sons: and they quarrelled with each other in the field, and there was none to part them: and the one struck the other, and slew him. | |
| II Samuel 14:7 | And behold the whole kindred rising against thy handmaid, saith: Deliver him that hath slain his brother, that we may kill him for the life of his brother, whom he slew, and that we may destroy the heir: and they seek to quench my spark which is left, and will leave my husband no name, nor remainder upon the earth. | Heir. She expresses their sentiments more than their words. (Calmet) --- Some of the relations might desire to obtain the inheritance. (Menochius) See Numbers 35:18. --- Spark. Posterity is often denoted by a lamp, 2 Kings 21:17. Hebrew and Septuagint, "my coal," reserved to enkindle my fire, (Calmet) or to perpetuate our name in Israel, (Haydock) or that of his father, to whose title the son succeeded. The mother could claim no inheritance. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 14:8 | And the king said to the woman: Go to thy house, and I will give charge concerning thee. | |
| II Samuel 14:9 | And the woman of Thecua said to the king: Upon me, my lord, be the iniquity, and upon the house of my father: but may the king and his throne be guiltless. | Guiltless, if the murderer be not brought to execution. I am willing to bear all the blame and punishment. (Calmet) --- Abigail and Rebecca speak in the same manner, 1 Kings 25:24., and Genesis 27:13. (Tirinus) --- Though kings may not pardon as they please, yet in this instance David might protect the widow's son, as there was no witness to prove that he had committed the murder. (Menochius) --- The woman was not satisfied with the former promise. She wished to extort something more decisive. She intimates that the danger is pressing, and if any misfortune should arrive, she cannot impute it to the king, (Calmet) which gives him occasion to encourage her the more. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 14:10 | And the king said: If any one shall say ought against thee, bring him to me, and be shall not touch thee any more. | |
| II Samuel 14:11 | And she said: Let the king remember the Lord his God, that the next of kin be not multiplied to take revenge, and that they may not kill my son. And he said: As the Lord liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth. | Multiplied, or overwhelm me with their numbers. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 14:12 | Then the woman said: Let thy handmaid speak one word to my lord the king. And he said: Speak. | |
| II Samuel 14:13 | And the woman said: Why hast thou thought such a thing against the people of God? and why hath the king spoken this word, to sin, and not bring home again his own exile? | Exile, the banished Absalom, (Haydock) who, in similar circumstances, has only committed a crime like that which the king is willing to pardon at the entreaty of a poor widow; though all the people of God seem interested for the welfare of Absalom, whom they look upon as the heir apparent. This was the drift of the whole parable. (Calmet) --- To sin, may be referred to Absalom, who might be driven by despair to worship idols. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 14:14 | We all die, and like unto waters that return no more, we fall down into the earth: *neither will God have a soul to perish, but recalleth; meaning that he that is cast off, should not altogether perish. Ezechiel 18:32.; Ezechiel 33:11. | Earth; so great was the distress of the people at the absence of their darling prince. (Haydock) --- His death would not bring Amnon to life again. We must not cherish sentiments of eternal enmity. --- Perish. Chaldean, "a just judge cannot take the money of iniquity." Le Clerc, "And cannot the prince (or judge) pardon a man, and devise means to leave his son no longer in exile?" (Calmet) --- Protestants, "neither doth God respect any person; yet doth he devise means, that his banished son be not expelled from him." Let the king imitate this example. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 14:15 | Now therefore I am come, to speak this word to my lord the king, before the people. And thy handmaid said: I will speak to the king; it may be the king will perform the request of his handmaid. | Before the people. Hebrew also, "through fear, or respect for the people," who generally wished that Absalom might return. (Haydock) --- Joab was present, (ver. 21) and no doubt many others; who, if requisite, might join their prayers with hers. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 14:16 | And the king hath hearkened to me, to deliver his handmaid out of the hand of all that would destroy me, and my son together, out of the inheritance of God. | Me. She identifies her cause with that of her son, as if she could not survive his death; or, at least, could not retain the inheritance, if he should perish. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 14:17 | Then let thy handmaid say, that the word of my lord the king be made as a sacrifice. *For even as an angel of God, so is my lord the king, that he is neither moved with blessing nor cursing; wherefore the Lord thy God is also with thee. 1 Kings 29:9. | Sacrifice; perfect and inviolable. (Tirinus) --- Cursing, provided he be in the right. (Menochius) --- Hebrew, "the king to discern (hear) good and bad;" of consummate wisdom; (ver. 20.; Haydock) so that no one can impose upon him. |
| II Samuel 14:18 | And the king answering, said to the woman: Hide not from me the thing that I ask thee. And the woman said to him: Speak, my lord the king. | |
| II Samuel 14:19 | And the king said: Is not the hand of Joab with thee in all this? The woman answered, and said: By the health of thy soul, my lord king, it is neither on the left hand, nor on the right, in all these things, which my lord the king hath spoken: for thy servant Joab, he commanded me, and he put all these words into the mouth of thy handmaid. | Right, but he hath ordered me to say all these things. Joab had given her leave to make this declaration, as he perceived that the king's heart was already inclined towards Absalom, ver. 1. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 14:20 | That I should come about with this form of speech, thy servant Joab commanded this: but thou, my lord the king, art wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to understand all things upon earth. | |
| II Samuel 14:21 | And the king said to Joab: Behold I am appeased, and have granted thy request: Go, therefore, and fetch back the boy Absalom. | Boy. This expression might tend to excuse what he had done amiss; as it shewed also the tenderness of David for Absalom. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 14:22 | And Joab falling down to the ground upon his face, adored, and blessed the king: and Joab said: This day thy servant hath understood, that I have found grace in thy sight, my lord the king: for thou hast fulfilled the request of thy servant. | Blessed. That is, praised, and gave thanks to the king. |
| II Samuel 14:23 | Then Joab arose and went to Gessur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. | |
| II Samuel 14:24 | But the king said: Let him return into his house, and let him not see my face. So Absalom returned into his house, and saw not the king's face. | Face, though he lived in Jerusalem. (Calmet) --- This was done, in order that he might enter seriously into himself, and avoid similar excesses. (Menochius) --- He felt this privation more than exile. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 14:25 | But in all Israel there was not a man so comely, and so exceedingly beautiful, as Absalom: from the sole of the foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. | |
| II Samuel 14:26 | And when he polled his hair (now he was polled once a year, because his hair was burdensome to him) he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred sicles, according to the common weight. | A year. Hebrew and Septuagint, "from the end of the days to days." --- Chaldean, "as it was convenient." But the Vulgate seems the best, (Calmet) and is followed by the Protestant version. (Haydock) --- Sicles, including all his hair. The Hebrews wore their hair very long. It does not commonly grow above four inches in a year; so that the hair which was cut off could not weigh 200 sicles. (Calmet) --- Weight. Hebrew, "after the king's stone," Beeben; but one manuscript has Boshkol, with the Septuagint, "after the king's sicle (Kennicott) weight," at Babylon, as Pelletier supposes that this work was written towards the end of the captivity. He allows that Absalom's hair might weigh almost 31 ounces. Some women wear above 32 ounces, if we may believe the hair-dressers. Some suppose that r (200) has been substituted instead of d (4) or c, (20) etc. But all are not convinced that the Hebrews formerly marked the numbers by letters. Septuagint have, "100 sicles," (Calmet) which some attempt to reconcile with the common reading, by saying, that they speak of the sicles of the sanctuary, which were double the weight of the king's sicle. Yet the Alexandrian and Vatican copies agree with the Vulgate: (Haydock) and of this distinction of weights there is no proof. The Rabbins assert that the value, and not the weight, of Absalom's hair is given; (Calmet) and that he made a present of his hair to some of his friends, who sold it to the ladies of Jerusalem, to adorn their heads. (Sanctius) --- Tirinus adopts this sentiment, and ridicules those who say that the weight is meant; as he says, 200 sicles would be equivalent to 8.75 Roman pounds, which comes near to Arbuthnot's calculation in English. (Haydock) --- Bochart reduces the weight to four such pounds, each consisting of twelve ounces; and he supposes that the hair was so heavy, on account of the gold dust with which it was covered, according to the fashion of those times. (Josephus, [Antiquities?] 8:1.) --- But this weight would be only accidental. (Calmet) --- Josephus ([Antiquities?] 7:8.) intimates, that Absalom's hair was "cut every eight days," or "for the space of eight days." It is quite incredible that it should weigh 200 sicles, or five minae of Alexandria, each consisting of twelve ounces. The Latin interpreter reads, "every eight months." (Calmet) --- St. Epiphanius and Hero have 125 sicles, or about 31 ounces. (Haydock) --- The Babylonian sicle, here mentioned, was only the third part of that used by the Hebrews. (Du Hamel) |
| II Samuel 14:27 | And there were born to Absalom three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Thamar; and she was very beautiful. | Sons, who all died before their father, 2 Kings 18:18. --- Thamar, in memory of his sister; (Abulensis) or this Thamar received the name from her aunt, who resided with Absalom. (Menochius) --- Some Greek and Latin copies add, that she was married to Roboam, the son of Solomon, by whom he had Abias. But this addition is of no authority, and can hardly be reconciled with chronology. We read that Roboam espoused Maaca, the daughter of Absalom; (2 Paralipomenon 11:20.) but she might be only his grand-daughter, by Thamar. (Calmet) --- Josephus had adopted this addition. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 14:28 | And Absalom dwelt two years in Jerusalem, and saw not the king's face. | |
| II Samuel 14:29 | *He sent therefore to Joab, to send him to the king: but he would not come to him. And when he had sent the second time, and he would not come to him, | Year of the World 2979, Year before Christ 1025. To him. Joab, like a crafty courtier, would neither disoblige the king nor the prince, and therefore wished not to meddle in this affair; as he might either excite the suspicions of the one, or the resentment of the other. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 14:30 | He said to his servants: You know the field of Joab, near my field, that hath a crop of barley: go now and set it on fire. So the servants of Absalom set the corn on fire. And Joab's servants coming, with their garments rent, said: The servants of Absalom have set part of the field on fire. | |
| II Samuel 14:31 | Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom to his house, and said: Why have thy servants set my corn on fire? | |
| II Samuel 14:32 | And Absalom answered Joab: I sent to thee, beseeching thee to come to me, that I might send thee to the king, to say to him: Wherefore am I come from Gessur? It had been better for me to be there. I beseech thee, therefore, that I may see the face of the king: and if he be mindful of my iniquity, let him kill me. | |
| II Samuel 14:33 | So Joab going in to the king, told him all: and Absalom was called for, and he went in to the king: and prostrated himself on the ground before him: and the king kissed Absalom. | Kissed Absalom, and thus was reconciled to his prodigal son, Luke 15:20. The ungrateful wretch only took occasion, from his father's goodness, to alienate the minds of the people from him, by insinuating that he neglected the welfare of the people. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 15:0 | Absalom's policy and conspiracy. David is obliged to flee. | |
| II Samuel 15:1 | Now *after these things Absalom made himself chariots, and horsemen, and fifty men, to run before him. | Year of the World 2980, Year before Christ 1024. Before him. Romulus instituted the 300 guards, whom he called Celeres, for the like purpose. (Calmet) --- Absalom's ambition could not wait patiently for the death of his father, who was not yet sixty years old, and had been first anointed forty years before, ver. 7. He looked upon himself as the heir apparent, Amnon being now slain, and Cheliab (or Daniel) either dead, as it is thought, or unfit for government, while Solomon was only eight years old. (Salien) --- The quality of his mother, and his own personal qualifications, made him despise his brethren, and he began to assume the equipage of a king. (Calmet) --- David considered this as only the effect of juvenile vanity, and he had not a mind to irritate him, without the utmost necessity. (Salien) --- Hebrew, "Absalom prepared for himself a chariot, (Protestants, chariots) and horses," etc. (Haydock) --- It is not certain whether he had any other horsemen but those who mounted the chariots. Horses were then very scarce in Israel. (Calmet) --- Adonias afterwards imitated his brother's ambition, during his father's life; (3 Kings 1:5.) so that evil was continually raised up against David, out of his own house, 2 Kings 12:11. |
| II Samuel 15:2 | And Absalom, rising up early, stood by the entrance of the gate, and when any man had business to come to the king's judgment, Absalom called him to him, and said: Of what city art thou? He answered, and said: Thy servant is of such a tribe of Israel. | Israel. Absalom rises early for wickedness. He assumes the character of a most zealous and disinterested judge, as if to contrast his conduct with the remissness of some appointed by the king; though the Holy Ghost bears witness to the integrity of David, 2 Kings 8:15. Who would not be deceived by such appearances, if the arts of hypocrites had not taught us to examine things to the bottom, and to be upon our guard? If thy eye be evil, thy whole body will be darksome. [Matthew 6:23.] The intention decides all. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 15:3 | And Absalom answered him: Thy words seem to me good and just. But there is no man appointed by the king to hear thee. And Absalom said: | |
| II Samuel 15:4 | O that they would make me judge over the land, that all that have business might come to me, and I might do them justice. | |
| II Samuel 15:5 | Moreover, when any man came to him to salute him, he put forth his hand, and took him, and kissed him. | Kissed him. Engaging affability! How often abused by the ambitious, for similar purposes! (Haydock) --- Thus acted Otho. Protendens manum, adorare vulgus, jacere oscula et omnia serviliter pro dominatione. (Tacitus, Hist. i.) --- "Stretching out his hand, he bowed to the common people, dispensed his kisses at random, and performed all the acts of servility to obtain the throne." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 15:6 | And this he did to all Israel that came for judgment, to be heard by the king, and he enticed the hearts of the men of Israel. | Enticed. Hebrew, "stole." The people were not aware of his designs. (Calmet) --- Absalom rendered them dissatisfied with the present government, and led them to expect better days, under his administration. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 15:7 | And after forty years, Absalom said to king David: Let me go, and pay my vows which I have vowed to the Lord in Hebron. | Forty, which Vatable dates from the time when the people petitioned for a king; Salien, from the first anointing of David. (Menochius) --- It is probable enough that this number has been substituted instead of four, which Josephus, Theodoret, Syriac, Arabic, and many Latin manuscripts read; and Absalom would employ this term in securing the interest of Israel, before he declared himself openly their king. (Calmet) --- He had been so long at Jerusalem, since his return. (Salien) --- The canon of Hebrew verity, supposed to be made about the ninth century, is said (by Martinnay; Haydock) to be altered by some correcting hand, from four to forty. (Kennicott) --- This is the famous Memmian canon, which Theodulph, bishop of Orleans, is believed to have ordered, as the standard of truth, according to the Hebrew copies of that day: (Haydock) and this seems to have guided the Ben. editor of St. Jerome's works, and of his translation; so that it is no wonder if "the printed copies agree in so many places with the corrupted Hebrew." Canon Memmianus purè leget juxta Hebraeum, quod nos edidimus. (Note on 2 Paralipomenon 13:3, 17.) The Vulgate of Sixtus V, in that passage, as well as in the present, reads the smaller numbers, as he was guided by the best Latin copies, whereas Clement VIII has also consulted "the Hebrew fountains." The former, says Kennicott, (Diss. 2:p. 205) "seems to have been printed on a juster plan....and the old Latin version is likely to be found more pure in the edition of Sixtus than in that of Clement, since the latter seems to have corrected his Latin by the modern (i.e., the corrupted) Hebrew copies." Dr. James observes, that "almost all the Latin editions received in the Church, for many years, (preceding 1590) agree with Sixtus," who here reads quatuor, with many others; so that Grotius is well supported in having pronounced so decisively, "without doubt there is a mistake, two letters having been added at the end of arbá. The thing itself declares that four years had elapsed." (Kennicott) --- It appears to be indubitable, that some mistakes have taken place with regard to numbers. But that this place is incorrect may not be so certain, as the chronology of Salien, Usher, etc., explains it well enough. The Hebrew text was esteemed more correct when the last editions of St. Jerome, and of the Vulgate, were given, than it is at present. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 15:8 | For thy servant made a vow, when he was in Gessur of Syria, saying: If the Lord shall bring me again into Jerusalem, I will offer sacrifice to the Lord. | Lord. The pretext seemed very bad, since he ought not to have delayed so long to perform his vow. Moreover, the usual places for sacrifice were Gabaon or Sion. But Absalom might plead a respect for the patriarchs, who were buried at Hebron. (St. Jerome, Trad.) (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 15:9 | And king David said to him: Go in peace. And he arose, and went to Hebron. | |
| II Samuel 15:10 | And Absalom sent spies into all the tribes of Israel, saying: As soon as you shall hear the sound of the trumpet, say ye: Absalom reigneth in Hebron. | Spies, or men to give a plausible appearance to his ambition, and to insinuate that all was done according to order, and with David's approbation. "The first word (or step) is the most difficult," on such occasions; (Tacitus, Hist. ii.; Grotius) and those who find themselves incautiously entangled, find a repugnance to recede. (Haydock) --- Reigneth. He was solemnly anointed, 2 Kings 19:10. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 15:11 | Now there went with Absalom two hundred men out of Jerusalem that were called, going with simplicity of heart, and knowing nothing of the design. | Design. Their hearts had been stolen, ver. 6. They only meant to do honour to the prince, but by no means to join in his rebellion, like the rest. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:12 | Absalom also sent for Achitophel, the Gilonite, David's counsellor, from his city, Gilo. And while he was offering sacrifices, there was a strong conspiracy, and the people running together increased with Absalom. | Achitophel, the grandfather of Bethsabee; to revenge whose dishonour, he had instigated the young prince to revolt, and had planned his rebellion; (Salien) so that he was every ready to lend his assistance. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:13 | And there came a messenger to David, saying: All Israel, with their whole heart, followeth Absalom. | Absalom. How came they to abandon a king, appointed by heaven, and adorned with so many virtues? God was resolved to punish him. Many are always desirous of novelty. David had lately been guilty of two scandalous crimes. Joab remained unpunished, and arrogant; the judges neglected their duty, etc., ver. 3. Some had still a partiality for the family of Saul. (Calmet) (Grotius) |
| II Samuel 15:14 | And David said to his servants, that were with him in Jerusalem: Arise, and let us flee: for we shall not escape else from the face of Absalom: make haste to go out, lest he come and overtake us, and bring ruin upon us, and smite the city with the edge of the sword. | Ruin, of a house falling. Hebrew, "evil." David gives way to the fury of the rebels, hoping that they will enter into themselves, without bloodshed. He departs on foot, like a penitent, acknowledging the justice of God. Fear does not prompt him to leave Jerusalem, which was a place of such strength, (chap. 5:6.) nor are his attendants abandoned on a sudden by that courage, which made some of them a match for a whole army. David disposes of all things with great coolness and prudence. (Calmet) --- He wishes to appease God. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 15:15 | And the king's servants said to him: Whatsoever our lord the king shall command, we, thy servants, will willingly execute. | |
| II Samuel 15:16 | And the king went forth, and all his household on foot: *and the king left ten women, his concubines, to keep the house. | Year of the World 2981. Concubines. That is, wives of an inferior degree, (Challoner; Genesis xxv.; Worthington) who might perhaps have some influence to pacify the rioters. |
| II Samuel 15:17 | And the king going forth, and all Israel, on foot, stood afar off from the house: | House, or palace, (Haydock) at the foot of the walls, (Calmet) that all who were well disposed, might join the king's standard. Hebrew, "in a place that was far off;" (Haydock) or, "this house of flight (this family of David, in flight) stopped." (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:18 | And all his servants walked by him, and the bands of the Cerethi, and the Phelethi, and all the Gethites, valiant warriors, six hundred men, who had followed him from Geth on foot, went before the king. | Phelethi, the king's foreign guards, of Philistine extraction, 2 Kings 8:18. --- Gethites, who had been probably induced to enter his service by Ethai, ver. 19. (Calmet) --- Men. This number David kept up, in honour of those valiant companions who had defended him at Odollam, etc. (Salien) --- It is observable, that David is attended only by his own family, and by strangers; representing Jesus Christ, who rejects the Synagogue and its sacrifices, while he makes choice of the Gentiles. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:19 | And the king said to Ethai, the Gethite: Why comest thou with us? return and dwell with the king; for thou art a stranger, and art come out of thy own place. | Ethai. Many assert that he was the son of Achis, and had embraced the true religion. (Menochius) --- King; Absalom, who will not molest you. (Haydock) --- Some translate the Hebrew, "Return from the king." (Syriac [and] Arabic) |
| II Samuel 15:20 | Yesterday thou camest, and to-day shalt thou be forced to go forth with us? but I shall go whither I am going: return thou, and take back thy brethren with thee, and the Lord will shew thee mercy, and truth, because thou hast shewed grace and fidelity. | The Lord. Hebrew, "mercy and truth with thee." As thou hast acted towards me, so mayest thou be rewarded. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 15:21 | And Ethai answered the king, saying: As the Lord liveth, and as my lord the king liveth: in what place soever thou shalt be, my lord the king, either in death, or in life, there will thy servant be. | |
| II Samuel 15:22 | And David said to Ethai: Come, and pass over. And Ethai, the Gethite, passed, and all the men that were with him, and the rest of the people. | |
| II Samuel 15:23 | And they all wept with a loud voice, and all the people passed over: the king also himself went over the brook Cedron, and all the people marched towards the way that looketh to the desert. | Cedron. Hebrew nachal Kidron, may signify, "the shady torrent," or "vale," as it is styled by Josephus. It does not take its name from cedars. It is dry in summer, and when filled with water, in only three steps across. (Doubdan xxvii.) --- Desert, of Bethel, (Calmet) or of Jericho, where St. John the Baptist and our Saviour dwelt for some time. David passed over Kedron, only after he had dismissed the priests. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 15:24 | And Sadoc, the priest, also came, and all the Levites with him, carrying the ark of the covenant of God, and they set down the ark of God: and Abiathar went up, till all the people that was come out of the city had done passing. | Went up to the ark, or along with the rest. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:25 | And the king said to Sadoc: Carry back the ark of God into the city: if I shall find grace in the sight of the Lord, he will bring me again, and will shew me both it, and his tabernacle. | City. Abiathar had consulted the Lord for David, and received no answer; whence the king concluded that he had not suffered enough. (Menochius) --- David displays a faith which could hardly have been expected of the carnal Jews. He confesses that God will reward the virtuous, and punish the wicked, independently of the ark, the symbol of his presence, and of which he deemed himself unworthy. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:26 | But if he shall say to me: Thou pleasest me not; I am ready: let him do that which is good before him. | |
| II Samuel 15:27 | And the king said to Sadoc, the priest: O seer, return into the city in peace: And let Achimaas, thy son, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar, your two sons, be with you. | Seer, supposing he was high priest, along with Abiathar, he might be thus addressed as one who consulted God by the ephod, as he might also, if he presided over the prophets, like Chonenias, 1 Paralipomenon 15:22. (Dionysius) (Menochius) --- Hebrew, "Art not thou a seer?" a prudent man, who may be of greater service to me in the city; (Haydock; or) seest thou not "the state of my affairs?" Septuagint, "See and return." Follow my advice, or then act as your own wisdom dictates. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:28 | Behold I will lie hid in the plains of the wilderness, till there come word from you to certify me. | |
| II Samuel 15:29 | So Sadoc and Abiathar carried back the ark of God into Jerusalem: and they tarried there. | |
| II Samuel 15:30 | But David went up by the ascent of Mount Olivet, going up and weeping, walking barefoot, and with his head covered; and all the people that were with him, went up with their heads covered, weeping. | Weeping, etc. David on this occasion wept for his sins, which he knew were the cause of all his sufferings. (Challoner) --- Barefoot, like a criminal, or one in mourning, Isaias 20:4., and Ezechiel 24:17. (Calmet) --- Covered, that the people might not see him. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 15:31 | And it was told David, that Achitophel also was in the conspiracy with Absalom; and David said: Infatuate, O Lord, I beseech thee, the counsel of Achitophel. | Infatuate: "render useless;" (Theodotion) "dissipate," Septuagint. (Calmet) --- God hindered the wise counsel of Achitophel from being regarded. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 15:32 | And when David was come to the top of the mountain, where he was about to adore the Lord, behold Chusai, the Arachite, came to meet him with his garment rent, and his head covered with earth. | The Lord, before he lost sight of the holy city, where the ark was kept. (Calmet) --- Arachite, a convert, (Menochius) from Arach, or Edessa. (St. Jerome, Trad. in Genesis x.) |
| II Samuel 15:33 | And David said to him: If thou come with me, thou wilt be a burden to me. | To me, as he was perhaps advanced in years, though very prudent. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 15:34 | But if thou return into the city, and wilt say to Absalom, I am thy servant, O king: as I have been thy father's servant, so I will be thy servant: thou shalt defeat the counsel of Achitophel. | Defeat; (dissipabis) "render of no effect." (Haydock) --- Thus princes keep spies in an enemy's country. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 15:35 | And thou hast with thee Sadoc, and Abiathar, the priests: and what thing soever thou shalt hear out of the king's house, thou shalt tell it to Sadoc, and Abiathar, the priests. | |
| II Samuel 15:36 | And there are with them their two sons, Achimaas, the son of Sadoc, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar: and you shall send by them to me every thing that you shall hear. | |
| II Samuel 15:37 | Then Chusai, the friend of David, went into the city, and Absalom came into Jerusalem. | |
| II Samuel 16:0 | Siba bringeth provisions to David. Semei curseth him. Absalom defileth his father's wives. | |
| II Samuel 16:1 | And *when David was a little past the top of the hill, behold Siba, the servant of Miphiboseth, came to meet him, with two asses, laden with two hundred loaves of bread, and a hundred bunches of raisins, a hundred cakes of figs, and a vessel of wine. | Year of the World 2981, Year before Christ 1023. Siba was a mean character, but of sufficient discernment to judge that David would gain the day. He came to calumniate his master; and David paid too much attention to him, though his testimony would not have been received in a court of judicature. (Calmet) --- We must reflect that the mind of David was full of trouble, and devoid of suspicion. (Haydock) --- But he did wrong (Worthington) in condemning Miphiboseth unheard. --- Raisins. See 1 Kings 25:18. (Calmet) --- Figs; (palatharum) which are often called caricarum. (Menochius) --- Hebrew mea kayits, "a hundred of summer" fruits, like fresh grapes, (Numbers 13:21.) and other fruits, gathered after harvest time, Micheas 7:1. |
| II Samuel 16:2 | And the king said to Siba: What mean these things? And Siba answered: The asses are for the king's household to sit on: and the loaves and the figs for thy servants to eat, and the wine to drink, if any man be faint in the desert. | Loaves. Hebrew, "and to fight." But the Septuagint and the Masorets reject the letter l, which causes the difference. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 16:3 | And the king said: Where is thy master's son? *And Siba answered the king: He remained in Jerusalem, saying: To-day will the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father. 2 Kings 19:27. | Father: a very improbable story, as the son of Jonathan was lame, and all Israel had declared for Absalom. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 16:4 | And the king said to Siba: I give thee all that belonged to Miphiboseth. And Siba said: I beseech thee, let me find grace before thee, my lord the king. | All. In the East, crimes are generally punished with the loss of goods. (Calmet) --- Kings. He intimates that he had not spoken against his master, with a design to obtain his effects. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 16:5 | And king David came as far as Bahurim: and behold there came out from thence a man of the kindred of the house of Saul, named Semei, the son of Gera; and coming out, *he cursed as he went on. 3 Kings 2:8. | Bahurim, a fortress of Benjamin, about an hour's walk east of Bethania. (Adrichomius xxviii.) --- It signifies, "chosen youths;" and it is called Almut, or Almon, "youth," 1 Paralipomenon 6:60, etc. Hither Phaltiel conducted Michol, 2 Kings 3:16. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 16:6 | And he threw stones at David, and at all the servants of king David: and all the people, and all the warriors walked on the right, and on the left side of the king. | |
| II Samuel 16:7 | And thus said Semei, when he cursed the king: Come out, come out, thou man of blood, and thou man of Belial. | Belial; contemner of the laws, and murderer. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 16:8 | The Lord hath repaid thee for all the blood of the house of Saul: because thou hast usurped the kingdom in his stead, and the Lord hath given the kingdom into the hand of Absalom, thy son: and behold thy evils press upon thee, because thou art a man of blood. | |
| II Samuel 16:9 | And Abisai, the son of Sarvia, said to the king: Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? I will go, and cut off his head. | Dog. David's nephew was moved with indignation. He could easily have punished the insolence of Semei. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 16:10 | And the king said: What have I to do with you, ye sons of Sarvia? Let him alone, and let him curse: for the Lord hath bid him curse David: and who is he that shall dare say, why hath he done so? | ---11. Hath bid him curse. Not that the Lord was the author of Semei's sin, which proceeded purely from his own malice, and the abuse of his free-will; but that knowing and suffering his malicious disposition to break out on this occasion, he made use of him as his instrument to punish David for his sins. (Challoner) --- He adored the justice of God; who is often said to do what he does not hinder, or what he only permits. (Estius) --- David is here a noble figure of Jesus Christ, excusing his executioners, (Haydock) and receiving the insults of the Jews, without complaining. (Calmet) --- If Semei had not been guilty of sin, but acted according to God's will, he could not have been justly punished, 3 Kings 2:(Worthington) |
| II Samuel 16:11 | And the king said to Abisai, and to all his servants: Behold my son, who came forth from my bowels, seeketh my life: how much more now a son of Jemini? let him alone, that he may curse as the Lord hath bidden him: | |
| II Samuel 16:12 | Perhaps the Lord may look upon my affliction, and the Lord may render me good for the cursing of this day. | Affliction, of which he makes a sort of sacrifice, being convinced that God will not reject the contrite and humble heart, Psalm 50:19. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 16:13 | And David, and his men with him, went by the way. And Semei, by the hill's side, went over-against him, cursing, and casting stones at him, and scattering earth. | Earth, like a man in fury, Acts 22:23. |
| II Samuel 16:14 | And the king, and all the people with him, came weary, and refreshed themselves there. | There, on the hill side, (Haydock) at Bahurim, ver. 5. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 16:15 | But Absalom and all his people came into Jerusalem, and Achitophel was with him. | |
| II Samuel 16:16 | And when Chusai, the Arachite, David's friend, was come to Absalom, he said to him: God save thee, O king; God save thee, O king. | Arachite; perhaps descended from the ancient Arachites, who dwelt near Arad and Tripoli, where the pretended Sabbatic river is said to flow; (Josephus, Jewish Wars 12:13.) or rather, as the names are written in a different manner, this person might be a native of Arachi, in Benjamin, west of Bethel, Josue 16:2. (Calmet) See 2 Kings 15:32. --- Friend. This was his peculiar title of office, 1 Paralipomenon 27:33. (Calmet) --- King. (Salve.) Literally, "Hail, O King," in both places. The salutation is repeated for greater emphasis. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 16:17 | And Absalom said to him: Is this thy kindness to thy friend? Why wentest thou not with thy friend? | Friend. He rather accuses him of treachery. (Haydock) --- But he does not mention the name of king, or of father, lest it should too plainly speak his own condemnation, as an ungrateful rebel. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 16:18 | And Chusai answered Absalom: Nay: for I will be his whom the Lord hath chosen, and all this people, and all Israel, and with him will I abide. | Chosen. (Vox populi, vox Dei) Private people are not commonly able, or allowed, to judge of the right, which the prince has to the throne. But here Absalom was manifestly an usurper; and many still adhered to David. (Calmet) --- Chusai assumes the character of a courtier, and flatters the prince; (Salien) who ought to have been on his guard. See 2 Kings 15:34. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 16:19 | Besides this, whom shall I serve? is it not the king's son? As I have served thy father, so will I serve thee also. | |
| II Samuel 16:20 | And Absalom said to Achitophel: Consult what we are to do. | |
| II Samuel 16:21 | And Achitophel said to Absalom: Go in to the concubines of thy father, whom he hath left to keep the house: that when all Israel shall hear that thou hast disgraced thy father, their hands may be strengthened with thee. | Their hands may be strengthened, etc. The people might apprehend lest Absalom should be reconciled to his father; and therefore they followed him with some fear of being left in the lurch, till they saw such a crime committed, as seemed to make a reconciliation impossible. (Challoner) --- This was the most heinous outrage that a son could offer to his father. Jacob resented it to the last, Genesis 49:4. Amyntor devoted his son Phoenix to all the furies, for a similar offence. (Homer, Iliad ix.) Armais treated the wives of his brother Sesostris in this manner, when he had resolved to rebel. (Josephus, contra Apion i.) |
| II Samuel 16:22 | *So they spread a tent for Absalom on the top of the house; and he went in to his father's concubines before all Israel. 2 Kings 12:11. | Israel, who saw him enter the tents, (Calmet) on the flat roof, 2 Kings 11:2., and 12:11. (Haydock) --- The wives of the conquered king were reserved for the victor. Smerdis married all the wives of his predecessor, Cambyses. (Herodotus 3:68, 83.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 16:23 | Now the counsel of Achitophel, which he gave in those days, was as if a man should consult the oracle of God: so was all the counsel of Achitophel, both when he was with David, and when he was with Absalom. | Absalom. It tended to promote the end which was desired, (Haydock) whether good or bad. His prudence is hyperbolically compared with the divine oracles; (Menochius) and his authority must have had great weight, since David began to take precautions, only after he had heard that Achitophel had joined the rebels; and Absalom was persuaded (Calmet) to perpetrate so foul and unnatural a crime publicly, no one daring to make any opposition. Chusai was silent; as he was aware that, if he began to contradict this counsellor at first, he would only incur suspicion. (Haydock) --- The unjust commonly endeavour by all means to attach people to themselves: but God, in the end, turns their counsels against themselves. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 17:0 | Achitophel's counsel is defeated by Chusai: He sendeth intelligence to David. Achitophel hangeth himself. | |
| II Samuel 17:1 | And* Achitophel said to Absalom: I will choose me twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night. | Year of the World 2981. This night. Achitophel has a mind to shew that he is not only an able statesman, but a good general. (Haydock) --- On such occasions, expedition is of the utmost consequence, that the people may not have time to enter into themselves, or to concentrate about their lawful king. "Nothing is more delightful than haste in civil discord, where action is more requisite than consultation." By delays, "he would give the wicked an opportunity to repent, and the good would unite together. Crimes are confirmed by rushing on; good counsels by deliberation." Scelera impetu; bona consilia mora valescere. (Tacitus, Hist. i.) |
| II Samuel 17:2 | And coming upon him, (for he is now weary, and weak-handed) I will defeat him: and when all the people is put to flight that is with him, I will kill the king, who will be left alone. | Handed. He has not had time to collect forces. --- Alone. Hebrew also, "the king also;" so that the people will be saved by flight. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 17:3 | And I will bring back all the people, as if they were but one man: for thou seekest but one man: and all the people shall be in peace. | One man. They will return with such unanimity, when their leader is cut off. (Menochius) --- David was the one man whom his son desired to kill, as the latter was the only one whom David ordered to be spared, 2 Kings 18:5. (Haydock) --- Hebrew seems rather transposed: "I will bring back all the people to thee, as all the people, whom thou seekest, are returned; and all the people shall be in peace:" or, ... "when all those, whom thou desirest, shall be returned, etc. (Calmet) --- Septuagint, "as a bride returns to her husband; only the soul of one thou seekest, and peace shall be to all the people." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 17:4 | And his saying pleased Absalom, and all the ancients of Israel. | |
| II Samuel 17:5 | But Absalom said: Call Chusai, the Arachite, and let us hear what he also saith. | |
| II Samuel 17:6 | And when Chusai was come to Absalom, Absalom said to him: Achitophel hath spoken after this manner: shall we do it or not? what counsel dost thou give? | |
| II Samuel 17:7 | And Chusai said to Absalom: The counsel that Achitophel hath given this time is not good. | This time, though he displays such prudence on all other occasions; or, "at this time" the situation of affairs is such, that it may prove dangerous to push people, who are already desperate, to extremities. Here we behold, how different sentiments may appear equally plausible. (Haydock) --- Mind, reduced to despair. The maxim is beautiful, as well as the comparison. See Osee 13:7., Proverbs 17:12., and Lamentations 3:10. --- People. Hebrew adds, "in the night;" or, "he will not suffer the people to pass the night" in repose. (Calmet) --- He will not entrust his person to a faithless multitude, but will be surrounded with a chosen band, with whom he may escape, even though the rest should flee. (Haydock) --- Achitophel had represented David abandoned by his men. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 17:8 | And again Chusai said: Thou knowest thy father, and the men that are with him, that they are very valiant, and bitter in their mind, as a bear raging in the wood when her whelps are taken away: and thy father is a warrior, and will not lodge with the people. | |
| II Samuel 17:9 | Perhaps he now lieth hid in pits, or in some other place where he list: and when any one shall fall at the first, every one that heareth it, shall say: There is a slaughter among the people that followed Absalom. | First. Hebrew, "If they attack them at first." (Calmet) --- Report will easily represent the engagement as unfavourable to Absalom; and this will be readily believed, as all are convinced of David's valour. (Haydock) --- Nothing ought to be risked in such beginnings. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 17:10 | And the most valiant man, whose heart is as the heart of a lion, shall melt for fear: for all the people of Israel know thy father to be a valiant man, and that all who are with him are valiant. | Man. Hebrew, "the son of valour himself." Achitophel, or any other. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 17:11 | But this seemeth to me to be good counsel: Let all Israel be gathered to thee, from Dan to Bersabee, as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered: and thou shalt be in the midst of them. | Of them, their general. Hebrew, "and thy face shall go to battle," Exodus 23:14. |
| II Samuel 17:12 | And we shall come upon him in what place soever he shall be found: and we shall cover him, as the dew falleth upon the ground, and we shall not leave of the men that are with him, not so much as one. | Dew, which there falleth every night, in summer, like rain, Deuteronomy 33:28. Some of the light armed troops of the Romans were called Rorarii, because they fell upon the enemy, and began the battle. |
| II Samuel 17:13 | And if he shall enter into any city, all Israel shall cast ropes round about that city, and we will draw it into the river: so that there shall not be found so much as one small stone thereof. | Ropes, armed with hooks, to pull down the walls, and to move the battering engines. All the discourse of Chusai tends to fill the mind of the young prince with vanity; as if he could overcome all opposition when surrounded with the armies of Israel, (Calmet) at the head of which he would appear, instead of Achitophel, ver. 1. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 17:14 | And Absalom, and all the men of Israel, said: The counsel of Chusai, the Arachite, is better than the counsel of Achitophel: and by the will of the Lord, the profitable counsel of Achitophel, was defeated, that the Lord might bring evil upon Absalom. | Profitable, to the cause of Absalom, more than that of Chusai, which was also very plausible. (Haydock) --- Lord. The Scripture always directs us to fix our thoughts on God, as the arbiter of all human affairs. (Calmet) --- Hebrew, "for the Lord had ordained to dissipate the good counsel," etc. (Haydock) --- "Plerumque qui fortunam mutaturus est consilia corrumpit, efficitque, quod miserrimum est, ut quod accidit, etiam meritò accidisse videatur, et casus in culpam transeat," Peterc. ii. |
| II Samuel 17:15 | And Chusai said to Sadoc, and Abiathar, the priests: Thus and thus did Achitophel counsel Absalom, and the ancients of Israel: and thus and thus did I counsel them. | Thus. He discloses the secrets of the person who had consulted him, (Calmet) as his engagements to David and to his country were prior, and more to be observed, to prevent the effects of civil war. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 17:16 | Now therefore send quickly, and tell David, saying: Tarry not this night in the plains of the wilderness, but without delay pass over: lest the king be swallowed up, and all the people that is with him. | Over the Jordan, that it might be some sort of barrier, in case Absalom changed his mind, to follow the advice of Achitophel. |
| II Samuel 17:17 | And Jonathan and Achimaas stayed by the fountain Rogel: and there went a maid and told them: and they went forward, to carry the message to king David, for they might not be seen, nor enter into the city. | Rogel, near Jerusalem, on the east. (Menochius) --- Maid, under the pretence of washing linen. (St. Jerome, Trad.) |
| II Samuel 17:18 | But a certain boy saw them, and told Absalom: but they making haste, went into the house of a certain man in Bahurim, who had a well in his court, and they went down into it. | It, as it was level with the ground; so that a cloth being spread over it, prevented all suspicion. It had no water. |
| II Samuel 17:19 | And the woman took, and spread a covering over the mouth of the well, as it were to dry sodden barley: and so the thing was not known. | Barley, which was afterwards fried with oil, and eaten. Ptisanas may also denote wheat, etc. Grana contusa. (Theodotion) --- "Figs." (Calmet) --- Septuagint have the original (hariphoth) untranslated. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 17:20 | And when Absalom's servants were come into the house, they said to the woman: Where is Achimaas, and Jonathan? and the woman answered them: They passed on in haste, after they had tasted a little water. But they that sought them, when they found them not, returned into Jerusalem. | Water. Hebrew, "they have crossed the brook of water." (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 17:21 | And when they were gone, they came up out of the well, and going on, told king David, and said: Arise, and pass quickly over the river: for this manner of counsel has Achitophel given against you. | |
| II Samuel 17:22 | So David arose, and all the people that were with him, and they passed over the Jordan, until it grew light, and not one of them was left that was not gone over the river. | River. Hebrew, "Jordan." (Haydock) --- They had travelled twenty leagues in the day and night after their departure from Jerusalem. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 17:23 | But Achitophel, seeing that his counsel was not followed, saddled his ass, and arose, and went home to his house and to his city: and putting his house in order, hanged himself, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father. | Order, making his will. (Menochius) --- Hanged himself. Some Rabbins pretend that he died of quinsey, or suffocated with grief. But it is almost universally believed that he set a pattern to Judas, the traitor, in this mode of dying, as well as in perfidy. He was aware that Absalom was undone, and vexed that his counsel had been disregarded. The most prudent of this world are often blind to their own welfare. The Jews had not yet begun to refuse the rites of sepulture to suicides. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 17:24 | But David came to the camp, and Absalom passed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. | To the camp. The city of Mahanaim, the name of which in Hebrew, signifies The Camp. It was a city of note at that time; as appears from its having been chosen by Isboseth for the place of his residence. (Challoner) --- The Vulgate often translates Mahanaim, or Manaim. See 2 Kings 2:8, 12. (Haydock) --- Him. It is not known how soon. But he probably waited till he had collected his forces. David had done the like, and was joined by the king of Ammon, ver. 27. |
| II Samuel 17:25 | Now Absalom appointed Amasa in Joab's stead, over the army: and Amasa was the son of a man who was called Jethra of Jezrael, who went in to Abigail, the daughter of Naas, the sister of Sarvia, who was the mother of Joab. | Jazrael, or Israel. (Du Hamel) --- Gortius would read Ismael, as 1 Paralipomenon 2:17, Jether, the Ismaelite. (Haydock) --- Went in. This expressing makes Sanchez believe that Amasa was illegitimate. (Menochius) --- Naas is either the name of Isai's wife, or rather the latter had both names, 1 Paralipomenon 2:13, 16. Septuagint read Jesse, in the edition of Complut.; in others, Naas. (Calmet) --- Joab; so that these two were own cousins, and both nephews of David. |
| II Samuel 17:26 | And Israel camped with Absalom in the land of Galaad. | |
| II Samuel 17:27 | And when David was come to the camp, Sobi, the son of Naas, of Rabbath, of the children of Ammon, and Machir, the son of Ammihel of Lodabar, and Berzellai, the Galaadite, of Rogelim, | Camp, ver. 24. (Haydock) --- Sobi, whom David had set upon the throne, instead of Hanon, 2 Kings 10. --- Machir, who had the care of Miphiboseth, 2 Kings 9:4. --- Berzellai. See 2 Kings 19:31. |
| II Samuel 17:28 | Brought him beds, and tapestry, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and meal, and parched corn, and beans, and lentils, and fried pulse, | Beds, with all the necessary furniture, coverlets, etc. Roman Septuagint, "ten beds, with fur on both sides." --- Tapestry. Some would translate, "bottles," (Chaldean) or "cauldrons;" (Roman Septuagint) but other editions agree with the Vulgate. --- Vessels. These are necessary, as much as things of greater magnificence. Precious metals were then rarely used in the kitchen. --- Pulse, (cicer) or "parched peas." Hebrew kali, is thus twice translated, as it had been rendered parched corn. It signifies any thing "parched." The ancients made great use of such food in journeys, as the Ethiopians and Turks do still. (Athen. 2:13.; Busbec. iii.; Bellon. 2:53.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 17:29 | And honey, and butter, and sheep, and fat calves; and they gave to David and the people that were with him, to eat: for they suspected that the people were faint with hunger and thirst in the wilderness. | Calves. Many translate the Hebrew, "cheese of kine." (Theodotion) --- "Calves fed with milk." (Haydock) --- Wilderness, where they had been; unless this be placed out of its natural order. (Calmet) --- The value of a present depends greatly on the time when it is made. (Haydock) --- "How much dost thou esteem a hospitable reception in a wilderness?" etc. (Seneca, Ben. 6:15.) |
| II Samuel 18:0 | Absalom is defeated, and slain by Joab. David mourneth for him. | |
| II Samuel 18:1 | And* David having reviewed his people, appointed over them captains of thousands, and of hundreds, | Year of the World 2981, Year before Christ 1023. Hundreds. Josephus only allows David 4000 men. But his army seems to have been pretty numerous, since he divides it into three parts, and appoints three head commanders, with officers of a thousand, etc., under them. See ver. 4. (Calmet) --- He designed to lead them to battle himself, if the people had not dissuaded him. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 18:2 | And sent forth a third part of the people under the hand of Joab; and a third part under the hand of Abisai, the son of Sarvia, Joab's brother; and a third part under the hand of Ethai, who was of Geth: and the king said to the people: I also will go forth with you. | |
| II Samuel 18:3 | And the people answered: Thou shalt not go forth: for if we flee away, they will not much mind us: or if half of us should fall, they will not greatly care: for thou alone art accounted for ten thousand: it is better, therefore, that thou shouldst be in the city to succour us. | Ten thousand, "like us." (Hebrew) (Calmet) --- Succour us, "by praying for us." (Chaldean) or by sending reinforcements, where they may be necessary. (Menochius) --- David was persuaded "to reserve himself (like Otho) for the interest of the state, at a distance from the danger of battle." (Tacitus, An. ii.) |
| II Samuel 18:4 | And the king said to them: What seemeth good to you, that will I do. And the king stood by the gate: and all the people went forth by their troops, by hundreds and by thousands. | |
| II Samuel 18:5 | And the king commanded Joab, and Abisai, and Ethai, saying: Save me the boy Absalom. And all the people heard the king giving charge to all the princes concerning Absalom. | Save me: do not hurt, ver. 12. St. Augustine (Doct. 3:23.) concludes, that David wished to allow his son time for repentance. (Menochius) --- He seems to have been sure of victory. (Abulensis) |
| II Samuel 18:6 | So the people went out into the field against Israel, and the battle was fought in the forest of Ephraim. | Ephraim, where the men of that tribe had formerly signalized themselves, Judges vii., and viii., and xii. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 18:7 | And the people of Israel were defeated there by David's army, and a great slaughter was made that day of twenty thousand men. | |
| II Samuel 18:8 | And the battle there was scattered over the face of all the country, and there were many more of the people whom the forest consumed, than whom the sword devoured that day. | Country; people fighting in great numbers. But the army of Absalom was soon dispersed. (Haydock) --- Consumed, viz., by pits and precipices: (Challoner) "wild beasts." (Syriac, etc.) Many also died of their wounds, and were slain in the wood; (Calmet) so that not less, probably, than 50,000 perished on this fatal day. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 18:9 | And it happened that Absalom met the servants of David, riding on a mule: and as the mule went under a thick and large oak, his head stuck in the oak: and while he hung between the heaven and the earth, the mule on which he rode passed on. | Oak, between the branches, which hindered him from escaping. (Calmet) --- His beautiful curls got also entangled. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 18:10 | And one saw this and told Joab, saying: I saw Absalom hanging upon an oak. | |
| II Samuel 18:11 | And Joab said to the man that told him: If thou sawest him, why didst thou not stab him to the ground, and I would have given thee ten sicles of silver, and a belt? | Silver, somewhat above a guinea: sicles are not expressed in Hebrew. (Haydock) --- Belt, the richest part of armour. Jonathan and Ajax made presents of their belts to David and Hector, 1 Kings 18:4. (Homer, Iliad H.) See Job 13:18. The Romans wore very splendid belts. Balteus et notis fulserunt cingula bullis. (Claud., Proserp. ii.) |
| II Samuel 18:12 | And he said to Joab: If thou wouldst have paid down in my hands a thousand pieces of silver, I would not lay my hands upon the king's son: for, in our hearing, the king charged thee, and Abisai, and Ethai, saying: Save me the boy Absalom. | Save. Protestants, "beware that none touch the young man." |
| II Samuel 18:13 | Yea, and if I should have acted boldly against my own life, this could not have been hid from the king, and wouldst thou have stood by me? | My own. Some copies of the Hebrew and Septuagint read, "his;" others, my, etc. The soldier would have acted against his conscience, and exposed his life to danger, if he had transgressed the king's order. (Haydock) --- By me? or, omitting the mark of interrogation, "Thou wouldst have declared thyself against me." (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 18:14 | And Joab said: Not as thou wilt, but I will set upon him in thy sight. So he took three lances in his hand, and thrust them into the heart of Absalom: and whilst he yet panted for life, sticking on the oak, | Sight. Hebrew, "I will not tarry thus with thee." I will not stand to refute these reasons, nor imitate thy example. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 18:15 | Ten young men, armour-bearers of Joab, ran up, and striking him, slew him. | Ten. Naharai alone is specified, 2 Kings 23:37. Why he had ten does not appear. (Calmet) --- Slew him, inflicting many wounds on him; though Joab had already done sufficient. (Haydock) --- These men abused his corpse, as if to revenge the insult offered to David's ten wives. (Salien) --- It is asked whether Joab did wrong? He consulted the public welfare, rather than the parental affection of the king for a son, whom the law condemned to die for rebellion, incest, and murder, Leviticus 18:29., and 2 Kings 13:28. But still he was not a proper judge to inflict this death in cold blood; and thus to render the salvation of Absalom's soul more desperate. David would, however, have done well to have punished this son, as incorrigible and dangerous to the state. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 18:16 | And Joab sounded the trumpet, and kept back the people from pursuing after Israel in their flight, being willing to spare the multitude. | |
| II Samuel 18:17 | And they took Absalom, and cast him into a great pit in the forest, and they laid an exceeding great heap of stones upon him: but all Israel fled to their own dwellings. | Him. Thus was the law executed upon Absalom, Deuteronomy 21:18. (St. Jerome) (Menochius) -- History scarcely affords a more detestable character; and his punishment was no less terrible than instructive. He was a figure of the Jews persecuting Jesus Christ, while he gave his blood for the redemption of these his enemies, and prayed for them. As they continued obdurate, they were held up as objects of horror both to heaven and to all nations, like Absalom suspended on the tree, and rejected by heaven and earth. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 18:18 | Now Absalom had reared up for himself, in his life-time, a pillar, which is in the king's valley: for he said: I have no son, and this shall be the monument of my name. And he called the pillar by is own name, and it is called the hand of Absalom, to this day. | No son. The sons mentioned above, 2 Kings 14:27, were dead when this pillar was erected; unless we suppose he raised this pillar before they were born: (Challoner) or meant this pillar to perpetuate his memory, when they should be no more. (Josephus, [Antiquities?] 7:9.) --- This author says that it was a pillar of marble; so that it is different from that which Doubdan (15) mentions, observing , that all who pass throw a stone at it. Thus was his vanity chastised! --- Hand, work. So Martial (VIII. 51.) says of a vial! Mentoris haec manus est an, Polyclete, tua? (Menochius) --- The same word is translated, triumphal arch, 1 Kings 15:12. (G.[Calmet?]) |
| II Samuel 18:19 | And Achimaas, the son of Sadoc, said: I will run and tell the king, that the Lord hath done judgment for him from the hand of his enemies. | |
| II Samuel 18:20 | And Joab said to him: Thou shalt not be the messenger this day, but shalt bear tidings another day: this day I will not have thee bear tidings, because the king's son is dead. | |
| II Samuel 18:21 | And Joab said to Chusi: Go, and tell the king what thou hast seen. Chusi bowed down to Joab, and ran. | Chusi: perhaps, of Ethiopian extraction. (Grotius) |
| II Samuel 18:22 | Then Achimaas, the son of Sadoc, said to Joab again: Why might not I also run after Chusi? And Joab said to him: Why wilt thou run, my son? thou wilt not be the bearer of good tidings. | Tidings. People of reputation did not wish to perform this office, 3 Kings 2:42. Hebrew, "these tidings will bring thee nothing;" or, "do not suit thee." (Calmet) --- Protestants, "seeing thou hast no tidings ready?" (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 18:23 | He answered: But what if I run? And he said to him: Run. Then Achimaas, running by a nearer way, passed Chusi. | |
| II Samuel 18:24 | And David sat between the two gates: and the watchman that was on the top of the gate upon the wall, lifting up his eyes, saw a man running alone. | Two gates, one leading into the town, the other into the country. In the middle was a chamber for public meetings, and another above, Job 29:7. On the roof a guard was stationed on this occasion. |
| II Samuel 18:25 | And crying out, he told the king: and the king said: If he be alone, there are good tidings in his mouth. And as he was coming apace and drawing nearer, | Mouth. If the army had been routed, all would have been in confusion. (Calmet) --- Now they are employed in plundering the vanquished. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 18:26 | The watchman saw another man running, and crying aloud from above, he said: I see another man running alone. And the king said: He, also, is a good messenger. | |
| II Samuel 18:27 | And the watchman said: The running of the foremost seemeth to me like the running of Achimaas, the son of Sadoc. And the king said: He is a good man: and cometh with good news. | |
| II Samuel 18:28 | And Achimaas crying out, said to the king: God save thee, O king. And falling down before the king with his face to the ground, he said: Blessed be the Lord thy God, who hath shut up the men that have lifted up their hands against my lord the king. | Shut up; frustrated the attempts of the enemy, and consigned many to the grave. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 18:29 | And the king said: Is the young man, Absalom, safe? And Achimaas said: I saw a great tumult, O king, when thy servant Joab sent me thy servant: I know nothing else. | Else. This was false, ver. 20. (Calmet) --- But he wished not to communicate the bad news; for which reason he had got first to the king. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 18:30 | And the king said to him: Pass, and stand here. | |
| II Samuel 18:31 | And when he had passed, and stood still, Chusi appeared: and coming up, he said: I bring good tidings, my lord the king: for the Lord hath judged for thee this day, from the hand of all that have risen up against thee. | |
| II Samuel 18:32 | And the king said to Chusi: Is the young man, Absalom, safe? And Chusi answering him, said: Let the enemies of my lord the king, and all that rise against him unto evil, be as the young man is. | Is. This was as much as to tell plainly that he was dead, (Menochius) or at least, a prisoner. But David understood him right. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 18:33 | The king therefore being much moved, went up to the high chamber over the gate, and wept. And as he went, he spoke in this manner: *My son, Absalom; Absalom, my son: would to God that I might die for thee, Absalom my son, my son Absalom. 2 Kings 19:4. | Wept, in private. (Menochius) --- Would. David lamented the death of Absalom, because of the wretched state in which he died; and therefore would have been glad to have saved his life, even by dying for him. In this he was a figure of Christ weeping, praying, and dying for his rebellious children, and even for them that crucified him. (Challoner; St. Ambrose (de Ob. Valent.); Theodoret, q. 35.) --- David had presently ceased to weep for the son of Bethsabee, because he had reason to hope that he was saved. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:0 | David, at the remonstrances of Joab, ceaseth his mourning. He is invited back, and met by Semei and Miphiboseth: a strife between the men of Juda and the men of Israel. | |
| II Samuel 19:1 | And *it was told Joab, that the king wept and mourned for his son: | Year of the World 2981. |
| II Samuel 19:2 | And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all the people: for the people heard say that day: The king grieveth for his son. | Mourning, as is commonly the case in civil wars. The king being oppressed with grief, a triumph was out of season. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:3 | And the people shunned the going into the city that day, as the people would do that hath turned their backs, and fled away from the battle. | Shunned. Hebrew, "stole away," fearing to enter; though they did at last, in a clandestine manner, (Calmet) by another gate. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:4 | And the king covered his head, and cried with a loud voice: O my son Absalom, O Absalom my son, O my son. | Head, continuing to mourn. See 2 Kings 15:30. --- Absalom. The name is often repeated, as is usual on such occasions. (Virgil, Ec. v.) --- Thus Bion says, "I bewail Adonis. The beautiful Adonis is no more," etc. |
| II Samuel 19:5 | Then Joab, going into the house to the king, said: Thou hast shamed this day the faces of all thy servants, that have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons, and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy wives, and the lives of thy concubines. | Shamed; deceived the expectations. See Joel 2:12. Joab was one of those who spoil all their services by ostentation and rudeness. Like the first Anthony, Immodicus lingua, obsequii insolens, nimius commemorandis quae meruisset. (Tacitus, Hist. iv.) --- He speaks to David, his king, as one friend would not do to another. "That sort of men is truly odious, who upbraid with their kindness; which those who have experienced, rather than the authors, ought to remember." (Cicero, Amicit.) |
| II Samuel 19:6 | Thou lovest them that hate thee, and thou hatest them that love thee: and thou hast shewed this day, that thou carest not for thy nobles, nor for thy servants: and I now plainly perceive, that, if Absalom had lived, and all we had been slain, then it would have pleased thee. | Thee. What insolence! Kings are often forced to brook the affronts of their higher servants, as well as other masters. There is a gradation in human affairs, which makes the next in dignity and power think himself equal to the highest. Similis ero altissimo, Isaias 14:14. (Haydock) --- David sincerely desired the welfare of all his people, as well as of Absalom. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:7 | Now therefore arise, and go out, and speak to the satisfaction of thy servants: for I swear to thee by the Lord, that if thou wilt not go forth, there will not tarry with thee so much as one this night: and that will be worse to thee, than all the evils that have befallen thee, from thy youth until now. | To. (satisfac). Hebrew, "speak to the heart," etc., with a cheerful countenance, to testify that their services will be rewarded. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:8 | Then the king arose, and sat in the gate: and it was told to all the people, that the king sat in the gate: and all the people came before the king: but Israel fled to their own dwellings. | Israel, the rebels, as distinguished form Juda, or those who adhered to David; though many of all the tribes had sided with Absalom, ver. 11. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 19:9 | And all the people were at strife in all the tribes of Israel, saying: The king delivered us out of the hand of our enemies, and he saved us out of the hand of the Philistines: and now he is fled out of the land for Absalom. | |
| II Samuel 19:10 | But Absalom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in the battle: how long are you silent, and bring not back the king? | Silent; inactive and indifferent, as this word often denotes, Josue 10:12. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:11 | And king David sent to Sadoc, and Abiathar, the priests, saying: Speak to the ancients of Juda, saying: Why are you the last to bring the king back to his house? (For the talk of all Israel was come to the king in his house.) | Priests, whose influence was very great. (Haydock) --- Last. David, like an able politician, shews the men of his own tribe, how dishonourable it will be for them to be outdone by the rest. (Calmet) --- Talk: reported by a solemn embassy. (St. Jerome, Trad.) (Menochius) --- Septuagint logos, "the word, (Haydock) council," etc. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 19:12 | You are my brethren, you are my bone and my flesh, why are you the last to bring back the king? | |
| II Samuel 19:13 | And say ye to Amasa: Art not thou my bone and my flesh? So do God to me, and add more, if thou be not the chief captain of the army before me always, in the place of Joab. | Flesh? Amasa was his nephew, and as he had been appointed general by Absalom, his influence would be the greatest to bring back those who had given into the delusion. A sense of his misconduct would also render him more humble, and easier to manage than Joab, whose insolence caused him to be insupportable to the king. David designed to transfer the authority of the latter, (Calmet) which he had now enjoyed 23 years, since the taking of Sion. David's promise did not oblige him to keep Joab in that office for life, if his conduct should prove unsatisfactory. Hence he appointed Amasa to pursue the rebels, and afterwards Abisai, setting Joab aside. But the haughty warrior supplanted both, and retained the command, as it were in spite of his sovereign, 2 Kings 20:4, 15., etc. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 19:14 | And he inclined the heart of all the men of Juda, as it were of one man: and they sent to the king, saying: Return thou and all thy servants. | And he; God, David, or rather Amasa. (Calmet) --- All contributed, in different degrees, to bring about this happy union. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 19:15 | And the king returned, and came as far as the Jordan, and all Juda came as far as Galgal to meet the king, and to bring him over the Jordan. | Galgal, and thence proceeded across the Jordan, (Calmet) an hour and a half's walk. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:16 | *And Semei, the son of Gera, the son of Jemini, of Bahurim, made haste and went down with the men of Juda, to meet king David, 3 Kings 2:8. | Semei, who had cursed David in his adversity, is now ready to fawn upon him, when he sees him restored to his throne. He was chief of a thousand, in Benjamin. |
| II Samuel 19:17 | With a thousand men of Benjamin, and Siba, the servant of the house of Saul: and his fifteen sons, and twenty servants were with him: and going over the Jordan, | Over, or "into:" (irrumpentes.; Haydock) probably on horseback. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:18 | They passed the fords before the king, that they might help over the king's household, and do according to his commandment. And Semei, the son of Gera, falling down before the king, when he was come over the Jordan, | Fords. Hebrew also, "they took over the ferry-boat;" (Calmet) or, "there went across a ferry-boat to carry over the," etc. |
| II Samuel 19:19 | Said to him: Impute not to me, my lord, the iniquity, nor remember the injuries of thy servant, on the day that thou, my lord, the king, wentest out of Jerusalem, nor lay it up in thy heart, O king. | |
| II Samuel 19:20 | For I, thy servant, acknowledge my sin: and therefore, I am come this day the first of all the house of Joseph, and am come down to meet my lord the king. | Joseph. Semei was a Benjamite: but Joseph designates all the Israelites, except those of Juda, (Worthington) as these two possessed the birth-right of Ruben, 1 Paralipomenon 5:1. (Menochius) See Psalm 79:1., and Zacharias 10:6. --- But we may translate with the Septuagint, "before all the house of Joseph." (Chaldean, Syriac, etc.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:21 | But Abisai, the son of Sarvia, answering said: Shall Semei, for these words not be put to death, because he cursed the Lord's anointed? | |
| II Samuel 19:22 | And David said: What have I to do with you, ye sons of Sarvia? why are you a satan this day to me? shall there any man be killed this day in Israel? do not I know that this day, I am made king over Israel? | Sons. He refers to the preceding opposition of Joab, whom Abisai was beginning to imitate. (Haydock) --- Satan; adversary, Matthew 16:23. --- This day. Formerly, no one was to be put to death on days of rejoicing, and the prisoners were liberated when the king ascended the throne. A malefactor continued for a long time to be set free on the day of the passover, Matthew 27:15. (Calmet) --- The Romans would never punish any one with death, on the days "whenever (Augustus) entered the city." (Suetonius lvii.) --- David considers this memorable day as a new epoch of his sovereignty, and will not suffer it to be rendered sorrowful. See 1 Kings 11:13. (Haydock) --- The punishment of Semei might have had the most pernicious consequences, as the rest of Israel would have feared a similar treatment. (Menochius) --- (Salien, the year of the world 3010.) |
| II Samuel 19:23 | And the king said to Semei: Thou shalt not die. And he swore unto him. | Die, during my life, (Menochius) or by my hand, without some farther transgression. Hence the oath is worded, I will not kill thee with the sword, 3 Kings 2:8. (Haydock) --- Solomon was charged not to let his crime pass unpunished. But he did not kill him till he had shewed his disobedience. (Calmet) --- The oaths of parents do not always (Haydock) pertain to their heirs. (Grotius) |
| II Samuel 19:24 | And Miphiboseth, the son of Saul, came down to meet the king, and he had neither washed his feet, nor trimmed his beard: nor washed his garments, from the day that the king went out, until the day of his return in peace. | Feet, which was very requisite in those countries, to prevent a disagreeable smell, for which the Jews were noted. (Martial 4:4.) --- Ammianus (2) speaking of the emperor Marcus says, Cum Palestinam transiret, foetentium Juaedorum et tumultuantium saepe taedio percitur. Some have thought that this odour was removed by baptism. (Basnage, T. 3:p. 194.) Roman Septuagint adds, "neither had he cut his nails, nor (made or) dressed his mustaches," or upper lip. The chin, as far as the ears, was not shaved by the Jews. To cut all the hair was a mark of sorrow, no less than to neglect dressing it. See Leviticus 21:5. (Calmet) --- By the external appearance of Miphiboseth, David might be convinced that he had indulged his grief for a long time; (Menochius) which might serve to remove the ill impressions which he had received against the helpless son of his friend Jonathan. |
| II Samuel 19:25 | And when he met the king, at Jerusalem, the king said to him: Why camest thou not with me, Miphiboseth? | Met. Protestants, "was come to Jerusalem, to meet the king." (Haydock) --- But his usual residence was in the city, where Siba had left him, 2 Kings 16:3. We should therefore translate, "And coming to meet the king at his arrival in Jerusalem." (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:26 | And he answering, said: My lord king, my servant despised me: for I thy servant spoke to him to saddle me an ass, that I might get on and go with the king: for I thy servant am lame. | Despised. Hebrew and Chaldean, "acted treacherously with me." (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:27 | *Moreover he hath also accused me, thy servant, to thee, my lord the king: but **thou, my lord the king, art as an angel of God, do what pleaseth thee. 2 Kings 16:3.; 2 Kings 14:17, 20.; 1 Kings 29:9. | God. It is not necessary for me to say any more in my defence. Thou art convinced of my innocence; and the accusation was in itself improbable, as I could never expect to be better treated by another king. I am resigned to abide by thy decision. (Haydock) --- I cannot complain. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:28 | For all of my father's house were no better than worthy of death before my lord the king; and thou hast set me, thy servant, among the guests of thy table: what just complaint therefore have I? or what right to cry any more to the king? | Death, on account of Saul's persecution, and his sons assuming the purple; so that all his adherents might have been justly slain. (Calmet) --- Cry, as if I had been wronged. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:29 | Then the king said to him: Why speakest thou any more? what I have said is determined: thou and Siba divide the possessions. | More. Hebrew adds, "concerning thy affairs. I have said, Thou and Siba divide the inheritance." (Haydock) --- Thou as the owner, Siba as the administrator, or steward, as he was before. (Jun. Malv.[Junius?; Malvenda?]) --- Sanchez thinks that David made a compensation to Miphiboseth, for what he left in the hands of his servant, as he did not wish to disturb the harmony of the day, nor to inflict any punishment on offenders. (Menochius) --- But most interpreters accuse David of injustice, in suffering Siba to reap the fruits of his perfidy, etc. (Salien) (Calmet, etc.) --- It is not probable, however, that he would deviate from his wonted generosity, nor suffer Miphiboseth to be injured, if he were convinced of his innocence. Perhaps he might judge it expedient that Siba should have a separate establishment, as he was now unfit to act in his former capacity, and had shewn some sort of affection towards his sovereign, when his own son, and most of his subjects, had revolted against him. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 19:30 | And Miphiboseth answered the king: Yea, let him take all, for as much as my lord, the king, is returned peaceably into his house. | House. He is all to me. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:31 | Berzellai also, the Galaadite, coming down from Rogelim, brought the king over the Jordan, being ready also to wait on him beyond the river. | |
| II Samuel 19:32 | *Now Berzellai, the Galaadite, was of a great age, that is to say, fourscore years old, and he provided the king with sustenance when he abode in the camp: for he was a man exceedingly rich. 3 Kings 2:7. | Camp; Mahanaim, 2 Kings 17:28. |
| II Samuel 19:33 | And the king said to Berzellai: Come with me, that thou mayst rest secure with me in Jerusalem? | Secure. Septuagint, "I will continually nourish thy old age." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 19:34 | And Berzellai said to the king: How many are the days of the years of my life, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem? | |
| II Samuel 19:35 | *I am this day fourscore years old; are my senses quick to discern sweet and bitter? or can meat or drink delight thy servant? or can I hear any more the voice of singing-men and singing-women? why should thy servant be a burden to my lord the king? 2 Kings 17:27. | Burden, as I am unfit for any service. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 19:36 | I, thy servant, will go on a little way from the Jordan with thee: I need not this recompense. | With thee. He did not proceed as far as Galgal; (Haydock) but took his leave of the king, intimating, what we never witness at the present day, that he was too old to enjoy the pleasures of a court! (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:37 | But I beseech thee let thy servant return, and die in my own city, and be buried by the sepulchre of my father, and of my mother. But there is thy servant Chamaam, let him go with thee, my lord the king, and do to him whatsoever seemeth good to thee. | Chamaam, is supposed to have been the son of the good old man. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:38 | Then the king said to him: Let Chamaam go over with me, and I will do for him whatsoever shall please thee, and all that thou shalt ask of me, thou shalt obtain. | |
| II Samuel 19:39 | And when all the people and the king had passed over the Jordan, the king kissed Berzellai, and blessed him: and he returned to his own place. | |
| II Samuel 19:40 | So the king went on to Galgal, and Chamaam with him. Now all the people of Juda had brought the king over, and only half of the people of Israel were there. | There; coming up, for the most part, after the king had crossed the river. They had intended to have escorted him from Mahanaim. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 19:41 | Therefore all the men of Israel running together to the king, said to him: Why have our brethren, the men of Juda, stolen thee away, and have brought the king and his household over the Jordan, and all the men of David with him? | Stolen; as if the king were not the common father of all. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 19:42 | And all the men of Juda answered the men of Israel: Because the king is nearer to me: why art thou angry for this matter? have we eaten any thing of the king's, or have any gifts been given us? | Nearer related. (Haydock) --- Us. What advantage have we gained? or, what have you lost? (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 19:43 | And the men of Israel answered the men of Juda, and said: I have ten parts in the king more than thou, and David belongeth to me more than to thee: why hast thou done me a wrong, and why was it not told me first, that I might bring back my king? And the men of Juda answered more harshly than the men of Israel. | Ten parts. They might have said they were twelve tribes for one; and though the tribe of Juda was more numerous than many others, it was not equal to them all. (Calmet) --- But the disproportion was by no means so great as ten to one; so that the Israelites unjustly pretended, that they had so much greater pretensions to the honour of bringing the king to his capital, in a sort of triumph. David might perhaps have waited a little longer, (Haydock) and shewed less predilection for his own tribe. (Calmet) (Salien) --- But what obligation was there for either? He had been long enough from Jerusalem, and eager to return, as soon as Amasa brought to him the tribe of Juda, and several of Benjamin, ver. 16. What hindered the rest from coming in time? They seem to have pretended more loyalty than they really possessed; otherwise they would not have joined in every rebellion. (Haydock) --- First. Hebrew may be, "did not I first propose the bringing back the king?" ver. 11. (Calmet) --- Israel. Tostat says, it is probable Juda asserted that the king did not, at all, belong to Israel; and hence Seba repeated the words with indignation, 2 Kings 20:1. It is wonderful that David did not repress this altercation. Abulensis supposes that he leaned too much towards his own tribe; for which, if true, we behold he was soon chastised; as God is always ready to reward or punish his servants. (Salien) --- But all that David said is not recorded. He could hardly have continued silent. All his endeavours to appease the sedition were, however, rendered abortive, by the evil dispositions of his subjects. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:0 | Seba's rebellion. Amasa is slain by Joab. Abela is besieged; but upon the citizens casting over the wall the head of Seba, Joab departeth with his army. | |
| II Samuel 20:1 | And *there happened to be there a man of Belial, whose name was Seba, the son of Bochri, a man of Jemini: and he sounded the trumpet, and said: We have no part in David, nor inheritance in the son of Isai: return to thy dwellings, O Israel. | Year of the World 2981, Year before Christ 1023. Belial. Septuagint, "lawless." --- Jemini. The tribe of Benjamin continued to be rather disaffected. (Haydock) --- Part. This was an usual mode of expressing a disunion, 3 Kings 12:16., and Acts 8:21. (Calmet) --- See 2 Kings 19:43. (Haydock) Seba was perhaps a kinsman of Saul, (Menochius) in some command. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 20:2 | And all Israel departed from David, and followed Seba, the son of Bochri: but the men of Juda stuck to their king from the Jordan unto Jerusalem. | Jordan, near which the contest had happened. Some chosen troops attended Seba to the north, while the rest went home. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:3 | And when the king was come into his house at Jerusalem, he took the ten women, his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, allowing them provisions; but went not in unto them: so they were shut up unto the day of their death, living in widowhood. | Widowhood, or celibacy, (Menochius) like nuns. (Grotius; Salien) --- David could not with propriety approach to them, (Estius) as they resembled his daughters-in-law; (Leviticus 18:15.; Menochius) and no other person could marry them, while he was still their husband. (Haydock) --- The punishment of seclusion was very small in the East, where women seldom go out. The Jews assert, that the widows of the Hebrew kings could not marry again. (Selden, Uxor. 1:10.) --- The like custom formerly prevailed in Spain. (Council of Toledo, 13:3., A.D. 383.; [Council] of Saragossa, canon 5., A.D. 692.) So great was the respect for the king, or the apprehension, lest those who married their widows, should aspire to the throne. |
| II Samuel 20:4 | And the king said to Amasa: Assemble to me all the men of Juda against the third day, and be thou here. | Here, to be invested with the command over the army, and to pursue Seba. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 20:5 | So Amasa went to assemble the men of Juda, but he tarried beyond the set time which the king had appointed him. | Him, owing to some insuperable difficulties. He was not long behind, since he joined the forces at Gabaon, where he was treacherously slain by the envious Joab. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:6 | And David said to Abisai: Now will Seba, the son of Bochri, do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou, therefore, the servants of thy lord, and pursue after him, lest he find fenced cities, and escape us. | Lord, the king; or perhaps Joab. (Menochius) --- A select company always attended the king; and some of these he sent, for greater expedition, to attack Seba, before he had become too strong. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:7 | So Joab's men went out with him, and the Cerethi and the Phelethi: and all the valiant men went out of Jerusalem, to pursue after Seba, the son of Bochri. | Men. It seems Joab accompanied them, though in a manner divested of his command, by the king's appointing Amasa, and then Abisai, to his exclusion. After the slaughter of the former, he resumed his authority; (ver. 10) and David was forced to acquiesce, for fear of another civil war, reserving his punishment for more peaceable times. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:8 | And when they were at the great stone, which is in Gabaon, Amasa came and met them. And Joab had on a close coat of equal length with his habit, and over it was girded with a sword, hanging down to his flank in a scabbard, made in such manner as to come out with the least motion and strike. | Stone, where Abner and Joab had formerly joined battle, 2 Kings 2:(Menochius) --- Habit, or body. --- Flank; they usually hung at the thigh, Psalm 44:4. --- Strike: the scabbard was very wide; so that, when it was hanging very high, it would easily fall out, when he stooped; and thus afford Joab an opportunity of stabbing Amasa, without suspicion. (Calmet) --- Protestants, "Joab's garment, that he had put on, was girded unto him, and upon it a girdle with a sword, fastened upon his loins, in the sheath thereof, and as he went forth, it fell out." |
| II Samuel 20:9 | And Joab said to Amasa: God save thee, my brother. *And he took Amasa by the chin with his right hand to kiss him. 3 Kings 2:5. | God, etc. Literally, "Hail, my brother." (Haydock) --- Kiss him. "In former times it was the custom, in Greece, for supplicants to touch the chin, (Pliny, [Natural History?] 11:45.) having the left hand upon the person's knees. (Homer, Iliad A.) The touched a woman's cheeks; (Euripides, Hecuba.) or, among the Hebrews, her chin, Canticle of Canticles 2:6. The Turks and Arabs still kiss the beard, with the utmost reverence. (Thevenot xxii.; Darvieux, 2 Kings 7.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 20:10 | But Amasa did not take notice of the sword which Joab had, and he struck him in the side, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and gave him not a second wound, and he died. And Joab, and Abisai, his brother, pursued after Seba, the son of Bochri. | Struck him with his left hand. (Haydock) --- Side. The same word is, elsewhere, translated groin; Septuagint, "loin." Moderns commonly render "in the fifth rib," 2 Kings 2:23., and 3:27., and 4:6. (Calmet) --- Josephus, "the belly." |
| II Samuel 20:11 | In the mean time, some men of Joab's company, stopping at the dead body of Amasa, said: Behold he that would have been in Joab's stead, the companion of David. | Some men. The same author [Josephus?] and the Hebrew only mention "one of," etc. (Haydock) --- Behold. Thus they insult over him, being attached to Joab. Hebrew, "Who loves Joab? and who is David? Let him follow Joab;" or, "Who is this who wished to supplant Joab? and who desired to be in David's favour, after Joab? (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 20:12 | And Amasa, embrued with blood, lay in the midst of the way. A certain man saw this, that all the people stood still to look upon him, so he removed Amasa out of the high-way, into the field, and covered him with a garment, that they who passed might not stop on his account. | A certain. Hebrew, "the man" stationed by Joab, near the body, to inform those who passed, that he had been justly slain. Josephus, ([Antiquities?] 7:10,) who observes, that this crime of Joab proceeded from envy, and was less deserving of excuse than the murder of Abner. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:13 | And when he was removed out of the way, all the people went on following Joab, to pursue after Seba, the son of Bochri. | |
| II Samuel 20:14 | Now he had passed through all the tribes of Israel unto Abela and Bethmaacha: and all the chosen men were gathered together unto him. | Tribes, north-west of the Jordan. (Calmet) --- Abela and Bathmaacha. Cities of the tribe of Nephtali. (Challoner) --- The former is called simply Abel (4 Kings 15:29.; Calmet) as it is here by the Protestant version. (Haydock) --- It is also called Abyla, (Luke 3:1,) and Hoba, (Genesis 14:15.; Calmet) between Damascus and Paneas, (Eusebius) situated on the borders of Syria, as well as Beth Maaca, or "the canton of Maacha," or Machati, Josue 12:5. --- Chosen. Hebrew Berim, (which is translated "Berites," by the Protestants.; Haydock) is derived from Bara, "to choose," by St. Jerome. Septuagint have read áirim, "cities." Some suppose that the inhabitants of Bahurim (near Mount Ephraim, ver. 21, where Semei, a relation of Saul, and many disaffected people resided) shut themselves up with him in Abela. |
| II Samuel 20:15 | And they came, and besieged him in Abela, and in Bethmaacha, and they cast up works round the city, and the city was besieged: and all the people that were with Joab, laboured to throw down the walls. | Works. Hebrew, a bank, or terrace against the city, and it stood in the trench; (Haydock) so that the town ditch was filled up, (Grotius) or terraces were raised, from which archers assailed the besieged. Joab made a ditch to defend his men from foreign assailants; and he had already taken the outward wall, so that the town could not hold out for any length of time. --- The walls. St. Jerome thinks with battering rams: but they were not yet invented. (Calmet) --- They undermined the walls, while some attempted to pull them down with hooks and ropes, 2 Kings 17:13. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:16 | And a wise woman cried out from the city: Hear, hear, and say to Joab: Come near hither, and I will speak with thee. | Say to Joab. This woman was noted for her prudence, and it was hoped that her words would have more influence to disarm Joab. She addresses those who were nearest the wall, that she may have an interview with the general, at the request of her fellow-citizens. |
| II Samuel 20:17 | And when he was come near to her, she said to him: Art thou Joab? And he answered: I am. And she spoke thus to him: Hear the words of thy handmaid. He answered: I do hear. | |
| II Samuel 20:18 | And she again said: A saying was used of old as a proverb: They that inquire, let them inquire in Abela: And so they made an end. | End of their disputes, (Haydock) as Abela was remarkable for its wise counsellors, (Menochius) and equitable decisions; (Haydock) so that many came, from a distance, to consult the learned of this city. (Calmet) --- Others suppose that she refers to the law, which ordains that peace shall first be proposed, and, if this had been done, the affair would long ago have been decided, Deuteronomy 20:10. (Jonathan; Estius; etc.) --- Hebrew, "They spoke a word at first: Let them ask at Abela, and so they shall make an end." Much must be supplied to make the text conformable to the former explication. We may translate, "They said, in ancient times: Let those who require more, go seek at Abela: so they finished their discourse." (Calmet) --- Protestants, "They shall surely ask counsel at Abel: and so they ended the matter." |
| II Samuel 20:19 | Am not I she that answer truth in Israel, and thou seekest to destroy the city, and to overthrow a mother in Israel? Why wilt thou throw down the inheritance of the Lord? | Truth. Hebrew, "I am peaceable, faithful in Israel." (Haydock) --- I am one of the cities most inclined to peace, and to the king's service, noted for lessons of loyalty. (Calmet) --- Probably there was an academy here. (Menochius) --- Mother, city, or metropolis. The Hebrews styled the inferior towns, daughters. (Calmet) --- Lord, a city belonging to Israel. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:20 | And Joab answering, said: God forbid, God forbid that I should; I do not throw down, nor destroy. | God, (Absit.) Literally, "Far be it, far be it from me;" as we need not put the name of God in the mouth of this profane man, without reason. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 20:21 | The matter is not so; but a man of Mount Ephraim, Seba, the son of Bochri, by name, hath lifted up his hand against king David: deliver him only, and we will depart from the city. And the woman said to Joab: Behold his head shall be thrown to thee from the wall. | |
| II Samuel 20:22 | So she went to all the people, and spoke to them wisely: and they cut off the head of Seba, the son of Bochri, and cast it out to Joab. And he sounded the trumpet, and they departed from the city, every one to their home: And Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king. | |
| II Samuel 20:23 | *So Joab was over all the army of Israel: and Banaias, the son of Joiada, was over the Cerethites and Phelethites. 2 Kings 8:16. | |
| II Samuel 20:24 | But Aduram over the tributes: and Josaphat, the son of Ahilud, was recorder. | |
| II Samuel 20:25 | And Siva was scribe: and Sadoc and Abiathar, priests. | |
| II Samuel 20:26 | And Ira, the Jairite, was the priest of David. | Jairite, a descendant of Jair, (Calmet) son of Manasses. (Haydock) --- Priest. Hebrew cohen, respected like a priest, (Haydock) chief favourite, (Worthington) the Rab., (Chaldean) chief counsellor of David, (Vatable) almoner, etc. It is not certain that he was of the family of Aaron, or qualified to be the domestic chaplain of the king. See 2 Kings 8:16, etc. No other king of Israel had an officer to whom this title was given. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 21:0 | A famine of three years, for the sin of Saul against the Gabaonites; at whose desire, seven of Saul's race are crucified. War again with the Philistines. | |
| II Samuel 21:1 | And *there was a famine in the days of David for three years successively: and David consulted the oracle of the Lord. And the Lord said: It is for Saul and his bloody house, because he slew the Gabaonites. | Year of the World 2983, Year before Christ 1021. Of David, after the revolt of Seba. (Calmet) --- House. It seems the family and chief officers of Saul, had concurred in his cruelty and unjust zeal. Hence many of them might be still living, to undergo this chastisement; and the rest of the people were guilty of some faults. (Haydock) --- If they had been perfectly innocent, still God is the dispenser of his own gifts. He is under no obligation of sending health and peace to his creatures. The just often derive greater advantage from crosses than from prosperity. The exemplary punishment of Saul's family was a lesson to kings, and to all mankind, to teach them how they ought to observe justice and the sanctity of oaths. --- Gabaonites; probably after the slaughter of the priests, at Nobe, 1 Kings 22:19. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 21:2 | Then the king calling for the Gabaonites, said to them: (Now the Gabaonites were not of the children of Israel, but the remains of the Amorrhites: *and the children of Israel had sworn to them, and Saul sought to slay them out of zeal, as it were, for the children of Israel and Juda.) Josue 9:16. | Amorrhites, by which name all the nations of Chanaan were frequently designated, Genesis 15:16. (Menochius) --- They were properly Hevites. --- Juda. As if Josue, and all succeeding governors, had acted wrong, Exodus 23:33., and Josue 6:19. Saul ought, at least, to have consulted God. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 21:3 | David, therefore, said to the Gabaonites: What shall I do for you? and what shall be the atonement for you, that you may bless the inheritance of the Lord? | Atonement, to expiate the injury done to you by Saul; (Menochius) and that you may turn your curses into blessings. The ancients were convinced, that God attends to the imprecations of the innocent. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 21:4 | And the Gabaonites said to him: We have no contest about silver and gold, but against Saul, and against his house: neither do we desire, that any man be slain of Israel. And the king said to them: What will you, then, that I should do for you? | Gold. It is supposed that David made them an offer of some. (Salien, the year before Christ 1040.) --- Israel besides. At first they required all the progeny of Saul, nine in number, to be crucified: but, at David's request, and intimation that he had sworn to protect the sons of Jonathan, Miphiboseth and Micha, (Haydock) they were content with the death of seven. (Menochius) --- They insist upon the law of retaliation. (Salien) --- The custom of delivering up criminals to be executed by the relations of the injured dead, still subsists in the East. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 21:5 | And they said to the king: The man that crushed us and oppressed us unjustly, we must destroy in such manner, that there be not so much as one left of his stock in all the coasts of Israel. | |
| II Samuel 21:6 | Let seven men of his children be delivered unto us, that we may crucify them to the Lord, in Gabaa of Saul, once the chosen of the Lord. And the king said: I will give them. | Chosen. Some think it improbable that they should give Saul this title; and Castalion would substitute ber, "in the mountain," (ver. 9) instead of béchir, "anointed," a title which Junius, however, refers to David: "O thou anointed," etc. (Calmet) --- But why might not these people recognize this character in Saul, which would make the punishment more disgraceful, as they chose the city of Saul, in preference, for the execution of his unhappy offspring? (Haydock) --- Them, having received an order from God, lest the people might suspect that he was gratifying his private revenge. (Estius) (Josephus, [Antiquities?] 7:10, 12.) |
| II Samuel 21:7 | *And the king spared Miphiboseth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath of the Lord, that had been between David and Jonathan, the son of Saul. 1 Kings 18:3. | |
| II Samuel 21:8 | So the king took the two sons of Respha, the daughter of Aia, whom she bore to Saul, Armoni, and Miphiboseth: and the five sons of Michol, the daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Hadriel, the son of Berzellai, that was of Molathi, | Of Michol. They were the sons of Merob, who was married to Hadriel; but they are here called the sons of Michol, because she adopted them, and brought them up as her own: (Challoner; Chaldean; St. Jerome, Trad.) or Merob was called Michol; (Sa) or, what seems most probable, from the word she bore being used, (Cajetan) and as two sisters would hardly have the same name, (Haydock) Michol has crept into the text instead of Merob. (Capel.; Salien; Calmet) (1 Kings 25:44.) |
| II Samuel 21:9 | And gave them into the hands of the Gabaonites: and they crucified them on a hill before the Lord: and these seven died together in the first days of the harvest, when the barley began to be reaped.* | Year of the World 2986, Year before Christ 1018. Lord. The prophets had frequented this hill, 1 Kings 8:4, 13. So the Gabaonites crucified these seven, before an ancient altar, as victims to appease God's anger, (Calmet) for the treaty with them having been violated, (Haydock) particularly after they had embraced the true religion. (Salien) (Deuteronomy 10:19.) --- Barley, about Easter. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 21:10 | And Respha, the daughter of Aia, took hair-cloth, and spread it under her upon the rock, from the beginning of the harvest, till water dropped upon them out of heaven: and suffered neither the birds to tear them by day, nor the beasts by night. | Hair-cloth, to sleep on, occasionally. --- Heaven. The famine had been caused by drought. As soon therefore as rain fell, David was assured that God was appeased. He had suffered the bodies to hang so long, for that purpose, though commonly they were to be taken down before night. (Menochius) --- Respha is supposed, by some, to have guarded the bodies from spring till the rain fell in autumn. But the former opinion seems more plausible. We here behold the custom of watching by the bodies of the dead. See Homer, Iliad xxiii. --- Beasts. The gibbets were formerly very low. (Calmet) --- Thus Blandina was exposed to wild beasts. (Eusebius, Hist. 5:1.) |
| II Samuel 21:11 | And it was told David, what Respha, the daughter of Aia, the concubine of Saul, had done. | Done. Her piety and affliction were extraordinary. She had been brought up in delicacies, and was a person of uncommon beauty, so as to captivate Abner, 2 Kings 3:8. She must now have been advanced in years. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 21:12 | And David went, and took the bones of Saul, and the bones of Jonathan, his son, from the men of Jabes Galaad, *who had stolen them from the street of Bethsan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when they had slain Saul in Gelboe. 1 Kings 31:12. | |
| II Samuel 21:13 | And he brought from thence the bones of Saul, and the bones of Jonathan, his son: and they gathered up the bones of them that were crucified, | |
| II Samuel 21:14 | And they buried them with the bones of Saul, and of Jonathan, his son, in the land of Benjamin, in the side, in the sepulchre of Cis, his father: and they did all that the king had commanded, and God shewed mercy again to the land after these things. | Side of the mountain, or in distinct cavities. (Calmet) --- Many suppose that Tselá, or Sela, is the name of a place (Menochius) not far from Gabaa, Josue 18:28. (Calmet) --- Many proper names are thus translated. (Du Hamel) |
| II Samuel 21:15 | And the Philistines made war again against Israel, and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philistines. And David growing faint, | Again: it is not certain at what time. Some think it was towards the beginning of David's reign, since he leads his men to battle; or the Philistines might have made an irruption into his dominions, about three years after the death of Absalom. (Calmet) --- David had offered to put himself at the head of the army, against his son, 2 Kings 18:2. (Haydock) --- Faint. He was now sixty-four years old. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 21:16 | Jesbibenob, who was of the race of Arapha, *the iron of whose spear weighed three hundred ounces, being girded with a new sword, attempted to kill David; 1 Kings 17:7. | Jesbibenob may signify, "Jesbi, the son of Ob." Septuagint, "Jesbe, of Nob, who was of the race of the giants." Arapha seems to have been one of great fame, (ver. 18, 21, 22) who had several children; unless other giants assumed his name. (Calmet) --- Ounces. Hebrew, "sicles of brass, in weight." Sicles is only understood, as on similar occasions. Neither is sword expressed; (Haydock) so that some think he had on a new suit of armour. Symmachus, "a sword." Roman Septuagint, "a club." The weight of the whole spear is specified in Hebrew, Septuagint, etc., (Calmet) as weighing "300---of brass," (Haydock) of which metal it seems to have been formed, as the Jews had no such money till after the captivity. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 21:17 | And Abisai, the son of Sarvia, rescued him, and striking the Philistine, killed him. Then David's men swore unto him, saying: Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, lest thou put out the lamp of Israel. | Lamp; glory and protection. Achilles reproaches himself for not having been "a light to" his friend. (Homer, Iliad S.) |
| II Samuel 21:18 | *There was also a second battle in Gob against the Philistines: then Sobochai, of Husathi, slew Saph, of the race of Arapha, of the family of the giants. 1 Paralipomenon 20:4. | Gob, as Gazer was called by the Philistines; (1 Paralipomenon 20:4.; Salien) unless (Haydock) the former word be a mistake of the transcriber. (Calmet) --- Septuagint (Alexandrian) reads, Geth. (Haydock) --- Sobochai, one of David's valiant men, 1 Paralipomenon 11:29. --- Saphai is added in 1 Chron. 20. |
| II Samuel 21:19 | And there was a third battle in Gob against the Philistines, in which Adeodatus, the son of the Forrest, an embroiderer, of Bethlehem, slew Goliath, the Gethite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver's beam. | Adeodatus, the son of Forrest. So it is rendered in the Latin Vulgate, by giving the interpretation of the Hebrew names, which are Elhanan, the son of Jaare. (Challoner) --- We should translate all the proper names, or none; as the present mode is extremely perplexing. Adeodatus might therefore be rendered, "God given;" (Dieudonné, as the French have it, though they will not translate Saltus, but leave Jaare) or, if Adeodatus must remain, as it is sometimes a proper name, why may not Saltus? A mere English reader might suppose that Forrest was a Hebrew name, and, with Swift in jest, maintain the high antiquity of our language. (Haydock) --- Regularly proper names should be retained. (Calmet) --- But the learned have often chosen to give the import of foreign names, in the language in which they have been writing. See Du Thou's History. Thus Dubois is styled Sylvius; Newman, Neander; etc. --- An embroiderer. Protestants make this a part of the man's name, "Jaare-oregim." Septuagint, "the son of Ariorgeim." In 1 Paralipomenon 20, no notice is taken of his profession. (Haydock) --- That passage will evince that Elhanan is not the same with David, as some would infer from the mention of Goliath's death, but the son of Jair, uncle of Joab, (chap. 33:24.) who was born at Bethlehem, though the verse in Paralipomenon would insinuate less correctly, that the giant's name was Lechem, thus, "Elehanan....slew Lechem, the brother," etc., as the copyist had written ath instead of bith. (Calmet) --- Our version has not this mistake: "Adeodatus, the son of Saltus, a Bethlehemite, slew the brother of Goliath, the Gethite," etc., 1 Paralipomenon 20:5. (Haydock) --- "It would be difficult to find a passage more disfigured than the present; and, without the help of the Paralipomenon, it would be impossible to make it out." (Calmet) --- Kennicott makes a similar remark. (Diss. 1:and ii.) But he believes that the Book of Chronicles, though the latest, and usually the most corrupt, of the Old Testament, is here perfectly correct; and that the passage before us is strangely corrupted, "Jaare Oregim, a Bethlehemite," being placed instead of , ..."Jaor slew Lahmi," as he thinks that oregim, "weavers," has been inserted from the line below, p. 79. Josephus ([Antiquities?] 7:10.) relates this transaction as follows, "When the king had sent a fresh army against them, Nephan, his relation, displayed the greatest valour. For engaging in a single combat with the bravest man of the Philistines, and killing his antagonist, he caused the rest to turn their backs, and many of the enemy fell in that battle." Thus he evades all the difficulty, adding much out of his own head; and by Nephan, designating Elehanan, the son of his (Joab's) uncle, (chap. 23:24.) or Dodo, a word which the Vulgate renders patrui ejus, "his paternal uncle," though it hath a wider signification, and denotes other relations. Hence, as Joab was the nephew of David, this brave man might be in the same degree, and born of one of the children of Isai; or, perhaps, Josephus infers that he was a kinsman of David, because he was of the same city. (Haydock) --- Goliath. He might have the same name as his brother, who had been slain by David forty-three years before; (Salien) or the title of brother may only signify, that this giant resembled the former in size and strength, Proverbs 18:9. --- Beam. See 1 Kings 17:7. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 21:20 | A fourth battle was in Geth: where there was a man of great stature, that had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each foot, four and twenty in all, and he was of the race of Arapha. | Fourth. Josephus says this was the last war with the Philistines; and Tostat supposes, that they wished to retake the city of Geth. (Salien) --- Stature, or "of contradiction." (Aquila) --- Hebrew Madon. Septuagint leave it as the proper name of a place, "Madon," specified [in] Josue 11:1., and 12:19. Capel would read, "a man of Madian." --- Six. Such people were styled Sedigiti, among the Romans. The daughters of Horatius were thus distinguished, as well as the poet Volcatius. (Pliny, [Natural History?] 11:43.) |
| II Samuel 21:21 | And he reproached Israel: and Jonathan, the son of Samaa, the brother of David, slew him. | |
| II Samuel 21:22 | These four were born of Arapha, in Geth, and they fell by the hand of David, and of his servants. | Of David, who was present, though it does not appear that he slew any of the four. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 22:0 | King David's psalm of thanksgiving for his deliverance from all his enemies. | |
| II Samuel 22:1 | And David spoke to the Lord the words of this canticle, in the day that the Lord delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul. | Spoke, etc. By comparing this with the 17th Psalm, we may be convinced how much the Hebrew varies, particularly if we examine also the manuscripts. Kennicott specifies no less than 600 variations in this one canticle, and refutes the opinion of those who say that the 17th Psalm is a second edition, corrected by David's own hand, as the manuscripts frequently shew the inaccuracies of the printed copies. He has collated them with Walton's Polyglott. The variations are not however all distinct from each other, sometimes twenty manuscripts having the same various readings, and many of them relate to the letter V. See Diss. ii., p. 565. We shall give the explication in the order of the Psalms. The collation of parallel passages is of infinite advantage. Frequently (Haydock) the words differ so as to explain one another. --- Saul. He is specified as the most dangerous. David, by divine inspiration, thanks God for his deliverance from all his enemies, both corporal and spiritual, enjoying peace of mind on account of his sins being forgiven, and all his opponents repressed. (Worthington) --- This year, the thirty-seventh of David's reign, was free from any commotion. Yet the king seems to have given way to a little vanity, on account of the many valiant men whom God had collected in his service; (chap. 23.) and hence he consented to the unfortunate resolution of numbering his subjects. (Salien, the year of the world 3016.) |
| II Samuel 22:2 | And he said: *The Lord is my rock, and my strength, and my saviour. Psalm 17:3. | |
| II Samuel 22:3 | God is my strong one, in him will I trust: my shield, and the horn of my salvation: he lifteth me up, and is my refuge: my saviour, thou wilt deliver me from iniquity. | |
| II Samuel 22:4 | *I will call on the Lord who is worthy to be praised: and I shall be saved from my enemies. Psalm 17:4. | |
| II Samuel 22:5 | For the pangs of death have surrounded me: the floods of Belial have made me afraid. | |
| II Samuel 22:6 | The cords of hell compassed me: the snares of death prevented me. | |
| II Samuel 22:7 | In my distress, I will call upon the Lord, and I will cry to my God: and he will hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry shall come to his ears. | Temple. David was now busy in making preparations for it. |
| II Samuel 22:8 | The earth shook and trembled, the foundations of the mountains were moved and shaken, because he was angry with them. | |
| II Samuel 22:9 | A smoke went up from his nostrils, and a devouring fire out of his mouth: coals were kindled by it. | |
| II Samuel 22:10 | He bowed the heavens, and came down: and darkness was under his feet. | |
| II Samuel 22:11 | And he rode upon the Cherubims, and flew: and slid upon the wings of the wind. | Upon. Cordell (Menochius) would translate the Hebrew, "as in contest." |
| II Samuel 22:12 | He made darkness a covering round about him: dropping waters out of the clouds of the heavens. | |
| II Samuel 22:13 | By the brightness before him, the coals of fire were kindled. | Kindled. The words abju abru seem to be wanting here, as they are found in Syriac, Arabic and the Psalm. Kennicott would render this most striking image, "at the brightness of his presence his clouds removed; They kindled into coals of fire," etc. (Diss. i.) |
| II Samuel 22:14 | The Lord shall thunder from heaven: and the Most High shall give forth his voice. | Shall. Hebrew as well in the past tense. "The Lord thundered," etc. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 22:15 | He shot his arrows, and scattered them: his lightning, and consumed them. | |
| II Samuel 22:16 | And the overflowings of the sea appeared, and the foundations of the world were laid open at the rebuke of the Lord, at the blast of the spirit of his wrath. | Overflowings. Hebrew, "channels," the waters receding as at the Red Sea, [Exodus 14:21,] and at the passage of the Jordan. [Josue 3:13.] |
| II Samuel 22:17 | He sent from on high, and took me, and drew me out of many waters. | |
| II Samuel 22:18 | He delivered me from my most mighty enemy, and from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me. | |
| II Samuel 22:19 | He prevented me in the day of my affliction, and the Lord became my stay. | |
| II Samuel 22:20 | And he brought me forth into a large place, he delivered me, because I pleased him. | |
| II Samuel 22:21 | The Lord will reward me according to my justice: and according to the cleanness of my hands he will reward me. | |
| II Samuel 22:22 | Because I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God. | God. Perhaps David might have written this before his fall; or, if afterwards, his sincere repentance had restored him to his former state. |
| II Samuel 22:23 | For all his judgments are in my sight: and his statutes I have not removed from me. | |
| II Samuel 22:24 | And I shall be perfect with him: and shall keep myself from my iniquity. | |
| II Samuel 22:25 | And the Lord will recompense me according to my justice: and according to the cleanness of my hands in the sight of his eyes. | |
| II Samuel 22:26 | With the holy one, thou wilt be holy: and with the valiant perfect. | Holy; treating all according to their deserts. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 22:27 | With the elect, thou wilt be elect: and with the perverse, thou wilt be perverted. | |
| II Samuel 22:28 | And the poor people thou wilt save: and with thy eyes, thou wilt humble the haughty. | |
| II Samuel 22:29 | For thou art my lamp, O Lord: and thou, O Lord, wilt enlighten my darkness. | Lamp. Hebrew Thair, "thou wilt light" my lamp, seems deficient; as it is found in some manuscripts, Syriac, Arabic, Psalm xvii., etc. (Kennicott) |
| II Samuel 22:30 | For through thee I shall be girded and run: through my God I shall leap over the wall. | |
| II Samuel 22:31 | As for God, his way is spotless, the word of the Lord is tried by fire: he is the shield of all that trust in him. | |
| II Samuel 22:32 | Who is God but the Lord: and who is strong but our God? | |
| II Samuel 22:33 | God, who hath girded me with strength: and made my way perfect. | |
| II Samuel 22:34 | *Who maketh my feet like the feet of harts, and setteth me upon my high places. Psalm 144:1. | |
| II Samuel 22:35 | Who teacheth my hands to war: and maketh my arms like a bow of brass. | |
| II Samuel 22:36 | Thou hast given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy mildness hath multiplied me. | |
| II Samuel 22:37 | Thou shalt enlarge my steps under me: and my ancles shall not fail. | |
| II Samuel 22:38 | I will pursue after my enemies, and crush them: and will not return again till I consume them. | |
| II Samuel 22:39 | I will consume them, and break them in pieces, so that they shall not rise: they shall fall under my feet. | |
| II Samuel 22:40 | Thou hast girded me with strength to battle: thou hast made them that resisted me to bow under me. | |
| II Samuel 22:41 | My enemies, thou hast made to turn their back to me: and them that hated me, and I shall destroy them. | |
| II Samuel 22:42 | They shall cry, and there shall be none to save: to the Lord, and he shall not hear them. | |
| II Samuel 22:43 | I shall beat them as small as the dust of the earth: I shall crush them, and spread them abroad like the mire of the streets. | |
| II Samuel 22:44 | Thou wilt save me from the contradictions of my people: thou wilt keep me to be the head of the Gentiles: the people which I know not, shall serve me. | Me. Though David conquered some Gentiles, and some were converted to the true faith under the Old Testament, yet the fulness of the Gentiles belongs to the Church of Christ, the perpetual stability of which is here foretold, ver. 51. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 22:45 | The sons of the stranger will resist me, at the hearing of the ear they will obey me. | |
| II Samuel 22:46 | The strangers are melted away, and shall be straitened in their distresses. | |
| II Samuel 22:47 | The Lord liveth, and my God is blessed: and the strong God of my salvation shall be exalted: | |
| II Samuel 22:48 | God, who giveth me revenge, and bringest down people under me. | |
| II Samuel 22:49 | Who bringest me forth from my enemies, and liftest me up from them that resist me: *from the wicked man, thou shalt deliver me. Psalm 17:49. | |
| II Samuel 22:50 | *Therefore will I give thanks to thee, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and will sing to thy name. Romans 15:9. | |
| II Samuel 22:51 | Giving great salvation to his king, and shewing mercy to David, his anointed, and to his seed for ever. | |
| II Samuel 23:0 | The last words of David. A catalogue of his valiant men. | |
| II Samuel 23:1 | Now these are David's last words. David, the son of Isai, said: The man to whom it was appointed concerning the Christ of the God of Jacob, *the excellent psalmist of Israel, said: Acts 2:10. | Last words, which he spoke by inspiration, (Menochius) or which may be considered as the conclusion of his Psalms, and inserted after the 71st, (Calmet) or as a preface or summary of those divine canticles; (Du Hamel) or they relate to the last ages, and to the Messias, (Chaldean) the end of the law. (Haydock) --- Some think it has not been inserted among the Psalms, as not being written in verse: (Sanctius) but it is composed in the true spirit of the Hebrew poetry, though very obscure. --- Christ, who should be born of him; or David himself was appointed to be "the king" of God's people. Septuagint, "he whom God raised up, the Christ of," etc. Hebrew, "sovereign anointed of," etc. --- Psalmist. The Holy Spirit directs David to speak in his own praise. His Psalms were always most highly esteemed in Israel. (Calmet) --- Said. This preamble may remind us of a similar one of Balaam, Numbers 24:3. The prophets generally declare who they are. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:2 | The Spirit of the Lord hath spoken by me, and his word by my tongue. | Tongue. Nothing could more decisively prove the inspiration of the sacred books. |
| II Samuel 23:3 | The God of Israel said to me, the strong one of Israel spoke, the ruler of men, the just ruler in the fear of God. | Strong one. This is one of the most common titles of God, 1 Kings 2:2. Hebrew, "the rock." --- In the fear. Hebrew, "of the fear;" that is, of the just, who live in the fear of God. Such abstract expressions are frequent; so "the son of the captivity, of riches," etc., means a captive or a rich man. (Calmet) --- God spoke such words to David as tended to promote solid virtue and piety. (Haydock) --- We may explain the ruler, etc., of the Messias, who shall diffuse grace and glory throughout the earth. Protestants, "He that ruleth over men, must be just, ruling in the fear of God." An excellent lesson for all in power. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:4 | As the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, shineth in the morning, without clouds, and as the grass springeth out of the earth by rain. | As the light, etc. So shall be the kingdom of Christ. (Challoner) --- Hebrew, "Like the morning light, shall the sun arise." But is this sense? Is not the sun the light of the morning? The oldest Hebrew manuscript in England has the word Jehova before Sun, which seems to have been acknowledged by the Septuagint, though now unintelligible; and thus we are freed from this difficulty, and the passage is proved to be prophetical of the great sun of justice, Malachias 4:2., and Isaias 60:2. (Kennicott, Dis. i., p. 471.) --- The Hebrew is extremely obscure. (Calmet) --- Protestants, And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springeth out of the earth by clear shining after rain. (Haydock) --- These comparisons may be applied to the Psalms and other inspired writings, which enlighten the eyes; (Psalm 18:9,) or to Christ, whose glory surpasses that of the sun, (Psalm 71:5,) and whose graces produce the just, Isaias 45:8. (Menochius) --- We might expect that David was going to compare the glory of his reign and of his family, with that of the rising sun, Judges 5:31. But he does not finish the comparison, being filled with a sense of his own misery. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 23:5 | Neither is my house so great with God, that he should make with me an eternal covenant, firm in all things, and assured. For he is all my salvation, and all my will: neither is there ought thereof, that springeth not up. | Neither is my house, etc. As if he should say: This everlasting covenant was not due to my house: but purely owing to his bounty, who is all my salvation, and my will; that is, who hath always saved me, and granted me what I desired of him; so that I and my house, through his blessing, have sprung up, and succeeded in all things. (Challoner) --- He clearly distinguishes between the covenant made with him as to his earthy kingdom, and that which regards Christ. (Worthington) --- Even the former should be of long duration, Psalm 131:11. (Haydock) --- Up. Hebrew seems to contradict all that had gone before; "for it shall not flourish." (Calmet) --- Protestants, "although he make it not to grow;" (Haydock) unless we read with an interrogation, "And shall not my family flourish?" which was a natural reverence to ver. 4. (Calmet) --- God had blessed David with the dew of heaven, and with the fatness of the earth. (Menochius) --- His glory and happiness should not be of short duration, like the brightest summer-day, or a transient flower. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:6 | But transgressors shall all of them be plucked up as thorns, which are not taken away with hands. | But. This word is neglected by the Septuagint, who enjoin this to the preceding verse. "Because the lawless man shall not flourish. They are all like thorns thrust out, for they shall not be handled," lest they prick. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:7 | And if a man will touch them, he must be armed with iron, and with the staff of a lance: but they shall be set on fire, and burnt to nothing. | |
| II Samuel 23:8 | *These are the names of the valiant men of David. Jesbaham, sitting in the chair, was the wisest chief among the three; he was like the most tender little worm of the wood, who killed eight hundred men at one onset. 1 Paralipomenon 11:11. | Jesbaham, the son of Hachamoni. For this was the name of this hero, as appears from 1 Chronicles 11:11. (Challoner) --- But then sitting, etc., should not be retained. (Haydock) --- Most tender, etc. He appeared like one tender and weak, but was indeed most valiant and strong. It seems the Latin has here given the interpretation of the Hebrew name of the hero, to whom Jesbaham was like, instead of the name itself, which was Adino the Eznite, one much renowned of old for his valour. (Challoner) --- The Vulgate has, contrary to custom, translated many of the proper names. (Calmet) --- The French version would suppose that Adino, the Heznite, was the hero's name; and queen Elizabeth's version (1599) is, "He that sat in the seat of wisdom, being chief of the princes, was Adino, the Eznite." (Haydock) --- But no such person is mentioned any where else, in the Bible; and these words have been corrupted, like many others in this chapter, as may be gathered from collating it with Chronicles, etc. Kennicott was encouraged to continue, if not to begin his labours, to shew the imperfection of the printed Hebrew, by comparing these passages, though he had formerly imagined that the text had been preserved in its original purity. See Diss. 2:p. 496. He shews the inaccuracy of queen Elizabeth's version, and observes that some have very abruptly inferred, that David was the first of his own mighty men, from the Vulgate, which is literally, "These are the names of the valiant men of David. Sitting in the chair, the most wise prince among the three. The same is like the most tender," etc. No name is here specified, (Haydock) though the catalogue be given expressly to honour their names. --- In the chair. Hebrew Bashebeth, "seems to be carelessly transcribed in here from the line above," as Oregim was taken from the subsequent line, 2 Kings 21:19. --- Wisest. Hebrew, "the Hachmonite." --- Three; it is in Hebrew, "the third;" and in Chronicles thirty, improperly. Protestants, "the Tachmonite, that sat in the seat, chief among the captains, (the same was Adino, the Eznite) against 800 whom he slew at one time," is therefore inaccurate. --- Tachmonite has the th corrupted, from e, which stands for ben, "the son of Hachmoni;" though, as the father of Jashobeam was Zadiel, it would be better rendered the Hachmonite, being his family or local name. It is not always possible to know which is meant. The ellipsis in the Protestant version, and the confounding of Jashobeam with Adino, cannot be excused. Adinu seems to be (Haydock) corrupted from áuror, (as ver. 18, and 1 Paralipomenon) "lifted up;" eatsnu, a word retained in the Arabic language, for "his spear;" (Vulgate) wood. Le Clerc reads eatsni, which he deems inexplicable, no less than Adinu: but the best copies have eatsnu; so that we need not reject it. --- Killed, or "wounded," is the general interpretation of elol; but it signifies also, "a soldier." --- Eight is three, in Paralipomenon. Similar mistakes have probably arisen from the use of numeral letters. See 4 Kings 8:26. We read, that Abisai lifted up his spear against 300. This was, perhaps, an usual number for a regiment of three companies, 1 Kings 29:2. Both Jesbahan and Abisai ventured to contend, singly, with so superior a force; but the latter displayed rather less valour, so that he did not attain unto the glory of the former; which he ought to have done, if both had killed the same number. Kennicott would therefore translate, "These are the names of the mighty men, whom David had: Jashobeam, the Hachmonite, chief of the Three: He lifted up his spear against 300 soldiers, at one time." He observes that thirty-seven heroes are particularly specified: (ver. 39) Joab, (the captain-general) Jashobeam, Eleazar, Shammah, (the first ternary) Abishai, Benaiah, and Asael; (the second ternary) after whom follow thirty, whose exploits are not recorded. If any should still maintain that this verse is correct, we must say (Haydock) that Adino is a different person from Jesbaham, (as the Vulgate reads it, 1 Paralipomenon) and that he killed 800; whereas the latter was only like him, in as much as he slew 300. (Menochius) --- The marvellous is greatly diminished by substituting 300 instead of 800, and by allowing that the heroes contended with, though they might not kill, the whole company of 300 soldiers. See Kennicott. It seems most rational to admit some corrections, to which we are led by the Septuagint, "Jesbaath, (Vatican, Jesbosthe, the Chanaanite) the son of Thakemoni. He was the chief of the three. Adino, the Asonean, is useless, (Calmet) as a proper name: when corrected, it is rendered, (Haydock) "he drew," etc. Whence have they taken this, as it is not in Hebrew at present, unless they read, (Calmet) áuror, elevavit, "he lifted up his spear." (Kennicott) --- The number of 300 slain by one man, in one engagement, is also more credible than 800. (Calmet) --- Josephus increases the number to 900; but then he supposes they were slain in various battles. "The king had thirty-eight, chiefly renowned for their achievements....The first, Issaimos, the son of Achamani, who rushing, not once, but frequently, into the midst of the enemy, did not cease from slaughtering till he had killed 900." We may observe that he increases the number of the mighty men. (Haydock) --- Delany reduces it to thirty-six, though he afterwards reckons thirty-seven, erroneously making thirty-one commanders of the third order, when he ought to have allowed the odd one to be the captain-general, and placed him before the two ternaries. Lightfoot also reckons thirty-six, and mentions them in this remarkably false order: 1, Joab; 2, Adino, of Ezni, called Jashobeam, by office; 3, Eleazar. And in the second rank: 1, Abishai; 2, Shammah; 3, Benaiah. (Kennicott) --- All these officers were styled, Shalischim. See Exodus 14:7. (Calmet) --- A body of "Thirty" was, perhaps, originally formed by David; and, though he afterwards admitted a greater number, they all went by the first name. (Salien) |
| II Samuel 23:9 | After him was Eleazar, the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, one of the three valiant men that were with David, when they defied the Philistines, and they were there gathered together to battle. | Dodo. In Latin, Patrui ejus, which is the interpretation of the Hebrew name Dodo. The same occurs in ver. 24, (Challoner) and signifies, "of his paternal uncle." (Haydock) --- Septuagint read Dudia, (Calmet) "of his father's brother." He, or his father, is styled Dudai, 1 Paralipomenon 27:4. (Calmet) --- Septuagint (Alexandrian) translates both Dodo and Dodi, "the son of his father's brother," the son of Sousei, or (Vatican) Doudei. Dodi seems to be the more accurate here, as he is thus more distinguished from Dodo, ver. 24., and Chronicles 5:26.[1 Paralipomenon 11:26.?] --- Defied. Hebrew is incorrect, and ought to be a proper name as is evident from the word there. Josephus calls it, arasamo, (perhaps originally, aphasdamo) Chronicles, Pasdammim, or Ephesdammim, 1 Kings 17:1. It is hardly probable that the Hebrews should defy or upbraid the Philistines, and immediately run away. We should therefore translate with 1 Paralipomenon men. "He was with David at Pasdammim. And when the Philistines were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away, he arose," etc. (Kennicott) |
| II Samuel 23:10 | And when the men of Israel were gone away, he stood and smote the Philistines till his hand was weary, and grew stiff with the sword: and the Lord wrought a great victory that day: and the people that were fled away, returned to take spoils of them that were slain. | Sword; holding it, and exerting himself so long; (Sanctius) or on account of the blood, which glued, as it were, his hand to the sword. (Josephus) (Menochius) --- This verse, and as far as troop in the following, is omitted in 1 Paralipomenon; so that Semma is not so much as mentioned, (Haydock) and of course the number thirty seven cannot be found. (Kennicott) --- Perhaps Samaoth may be the same hero, 1 Paralipomenon 2:17., and 27:8. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 23:11 | And after him was Semma, the son of Age, of Arari. And the Philistines were gathered together in a troop: for there was a field full of lentils. And when the people were fled from the face of the Philistines, | Troop. Hebrew Lachaya, has been much controverted: but it appears to be the name of Lechi, or Lehi, "the jaw-bone," (Josephus and Septuagint Complut.) so memorable for the exploit of Samson. (Bochart, Anim. p. 1. B. 2:15.) --- Vulgate literally, in statione, "in a station." Some copies of the Septuagint, "against wild beasts;" "To hunt wild beasts," Syriac and Arabic. But it is most probably the name of a place. (Calmet) --- Lentils. (1 Paralipomenon) Barley seems more correct, as the field could not be full of both at the same time; (Haydock) and barley is of more general utility. (Kennicott) --- Yet some would assert, that there was barley in one part and lentils in the other. (Buxtorf, etc.) |
| II Samuel 23:12 | He stood in the midst of the field, and defended it, and defeated the Philistines: and the Lord gave a great victory. | |
| II Samuel 23:13 | Moreover, also before this, these three who were princes *among the thirty, went down, and came to David, in the harvest time, into the cave of Odollam: and the camp of the Philistines was in the valley of the giants. 1 Paralipomenon 11:15. | Before this. The exploits performed before the death of Goliath have been recorded. The following took place soon after the taking of Jerusalem. Hebrew simply, "And three of the Schalischim came to David at harvest-time, (Paralipomenon more correctly, to the rocks,) and into the cave," etc. (Calmet) --- Three is undoubtedly the proper word, though the printed Hebrew copies have thirty in the text; except the most ancient edition of Ximenes, 1515, which retains three, with all the versions, and some Hebrew manuscripts and as the ver. 17. itself reads among would be better above; (ver. 23,) as the three officers aforesaid were not of the body of thirty, but of a still higher order. --- Harvest. Hebrew el Katsir, is never used elsewhere in this sense; and the Septuagint have left the latter word as a proper name, "at Kasoar;" etsur seems to have been the original word, as in Paralipomenon, "to the rock." Such places had frequently caverns or strong holds, 1 Kings 24:1, 4. --- Camp. The Septuagint also seem to have read méne, as in Paralipomenon, instead of eith, which never occurs, for "a troop." (Kennicott) --- This camp was distant from the station at Bethlehem, (Menochius) which was distant from Jerusalem "two hours travel." (Maundrell) --- Giants, or Raphaim, 2 Kings 21:18. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 23:14 | And David was then in a hold: and there was a garrison of the Philistines then in Bethlehem. | Garrison. Literally, "station," (Haydock) or advanced guard. --- In. The b is omitted in Hebrew, as on many other occasions; (4 Kings 14:14.; Kennicott) owing perhaps to the following words beginning with the same letter. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:15 | And David longed, and said: O that some man would get me a drink of the water out of the cistern, that is in Bethlehem, by the gate. | Gate. David had been educated in that town. (Menochius) --- He expresses his wish to see his native place delivered from the hands of the enemy, more than for water; (Sanctius; Kennicott) or being very thirsty, he speaks his sentiments without designing that any should attempt to procure him the water. (Calmet) --- The three valiant men considered his desire as a law. (Menochius) --- They were not to be condemned of rashness, though it would have been such in ordinary men. (Salien) --- David only intended to try the valour of his soldiers. When they brought the water he would not drink, judging that precious things should be offered to God. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 23:16 | And the three valiant men broke through the camp of the Philistines, and drew water out of the cistern of Bethlehem, that was by the gate, and brought it to David: but he would not drink, but offered it to the Lord, | Camp, or station of soldiers, ver. 13, 14. --- Offered it, as "a libation," according to the Hebrew and Septuagint. Vayasec is commonly used; but vinsoc, in Paralipomenon is the truer reading, as "it contains the three radical letters; and it were greatly to be wished that the verbs in every other place had also those radical letters restored, which have been omitted by the Masorets, and supplied by their punctuations." (Kennicott, Dis. I. p. 154.) --- Lord, as a sacrifice, worthy of him, and to teach his followers to be temperate, (Menochius) and not to expose their lives unnecessarily. (Haydock) -- "He had formerly indulged himself in forbidden pleasures." (St. Gregory) --- David thus asked pardon for having, undesignedly, hazarded the lives of his men, (Kennicott) and gave thanks for their safe return. (Josephus) --- A libation of water was solemnly made, 1 Kings 7:6. The pagans used water when they had no wine, as they never sat down to meat, or offered sacrifice, without making a libation. (Calmet) See Homer, Iliad H.; Virgil, Aeneid 8:279. Dixit et in mensa laticum libavit honorem. (Virgil, Aeneid 1:740.) |
| II Samuel 23:17 | Saying: The Lord be merciful to me, that I may not do this: Shall I drink the blood of these men that went, and the peril of their lives? therefore he would not drink. These things did these three mighty men. | Drink. This word is acknowledged in 1 Paralipomenon and in all the ancient versions. (Kennicott) --- Protestants supply, "Is not this the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives?" Instead of Jehova, (Haydock) which ought to have m prefixed, we find maleim; (1 Paralipomenon) a word never used in such solemn appeals to the Lord. This seems owing to the superstition of the Jews, who would not pronounce the former name, perhaps in imitation of the heathens, who kept the names of their tutelar gods secret, lest the enemy might call them out, and thus obtain possession of the country. See Macrob. 3:9. No mention is made of the Romans making use of this mode of evocation at the last siege of Jerusalem, as they were unacquainted with the true name of God. Virgil (II. 351,) writes,--- Excessere omnes Adytis Arisque relictis, Dii quibus imperium hoc steterat.----- See Servius; Kennicott. |
| II Samuel 23:18 | Abisai, also the brother of Joab, the son of Sarvia, was chief among three: and he lifted up his spear against three hundred, whom he slew; and he was renowned among the three, | Three. Septuagint (Alexandrian) and Josephus read "six hundred," (Haydock) against all the rest. |
| II Samuel 23:19 | And the noblest of three, and was their chief; but to the three first he attained not. | Three. Hebrew haci, seems to be mistaken for bossnim, "above two;" as one of the Greek versions in the Hexapla renders it, with the Septuagint. "Of the three he was more honourable than two; therefore he was their captain, and yet to," etc. Thus we see a double ternary fully established, ver. 8. (Kennicott) |
| II Samuel 23:20 | And Banaias, the son of Joiada, a most valiant man, of great deeds, of Cabseel: he slew the two lions of Moab, and he went down, and slew a lion in the midst of a pit, in the time of snow. | Banaias. The v at the end of this man's name, is wanting in Paralipomenon. It serves to distinguish him more from one of the Thirty, who was the 11th captain in waiting on the king; (1 Paralipomenon 27:14,) whereas this was the third, (1 Paralipomenon v.) and one of great renown, 3 Kings 1:32. --- Lions. Hebrew ari, "a lion;" and el, "god," designate people "of extraordinary valour." (Kennicott) --- Hence the Arabians give the title to Ali, the son-in-law of Mahammed. (Bochart, Anim. 3:1. --- These two were noblemen, (Chaldean) giants, (Josephus) or fortresses; (Vatable) namely, Areopolis, which is divided into two parts by the Arnon. (Calmet) --- Some suppose that he slew three real lions. The last, being in such a confined situation, enhanced his merit. (Cajetan) (Menochius) --- The Alexandrian copy of the Septuagint has a great omission of the words between slew, occasioned by the word recurring twice; as also ver. 21. Dr. Milles attributes the omission of the famous text 1 John 5:7, to a similar case; marturountis, being found in the subsequent verse. "Proclivi admodum errore, quod norunt, quibus cum veteribus membranis res est." 2nd edition. --- "A source of frequent mistakes, as all know who have consulted old manuscripts." |
| II Samuel 23:21 | He also slew an Egyptian, a man worthy to be a sight, having a spear in his hand: but he went down to him with a rod, and forced the spear out of the hand of the Egyptian, and slew him with his own spear. | Sight, for size. (Josephus) --- Hebrew, "a man of great aspect," which 1 Paralipomenon properly explains "five cubits high." --- Hand. Septuagint supply what seems to be omitted, "like a weaver's beam," (Kennicott) as it is found in Paralipomenon. --- Rod, or rather "a staff," like David's, 1 Kings 17:43., and 40:43. (Haydock) --- Some men, with a stick or codgel, will not fear to encounter a man armed; (Calmet) as we see exemplified in Q. Curtius, (IX. 7,) where Dioxippus, the Athenian wrestler, overcame Horratas of Macedon, who had challenged him out in a fit of drunkenness. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:22 | These things did Banaias, the son of Joiada. | |
| II Samuel 23:23 | And he was renowned among the three valiant men, who were the most honourable among the thirty: but he attained not to the first three: And David made him of his privy council. | Who were. Hebrew, "he was honourable above the thirty." Septuagint erroneously read three; as he was only the second in this series, though superior to the body of thirty. See ver. 13. The versions seem here perplexed, for want of observing this distinction of ranks. --- Council. Hebrew, "over his obedience," or "guard." (Josephus) (Chap. 20:23.) --- Septuagint, "over his own country," mosspéthu, instead of the present el mishmahto, super auscultationem suam: or rather mossmorthu, custodiam suam. (Grotius; Kennicott) --- Banaias held a very distinguished rank among the officers at court. He was like the king's eye and ear. (Haydock) --- These titles were given to some by the eastern kings. (Apuleius, Mundo.; Brisson. Pers. i.) --- Midas was said to have such great ears, only on account of his spies. (Conon. narrat, i.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 23:24 | Asael, the brother of Joab, was one of the thirty; Elehanan, the son of Dodo, of Bethlehem, | Was one. Hebrew the preposition b is here used, which signifies "above;" as ver. 13. and 23. and as Junius renders it. (Haydock) --- "Asael....was head of the thirty." (Arabic) --- He could not be one of that body, as the number is complete without him, and he is necessary to fill up the second ternary. The Book of Chronicles does not point this out with so much precision as it had been already done. (Kennicott) --- Asael was slain by Abner, 2 Kings 2:23. He was captain of the fourth band, 1 Paralipomenon 27:7. --- Elehanan, the first of the thirty. --- Dodo. Literally, patrui ejus, "of his (Asael's) uncle," which might, perhaps, be as well translated as 1 Paralipomenon 11:26. See 2 Kings 21:19. The Septuagint give both, "Dodei, the son of his father's brother," as ver. 9; (Haydock) or "rather those two translations are by some transcriber, or editor, injudiciously thrown together." (Kennicott) |
| II Samuel 23:25 | Semma, of Harodi, Elica, of Harodi, | Semma. The same with the third hero, though his country is differently written, ver. 11. (Calmet) --- But this is very improbable, as the number of 37 would be thus destroyed. The former was an Hararite. The Septuagint style the present captain, Samoth, in 1 Paralipomenon; Vulgate Sammoth; and the Ald. copy has Semoth here. He was the fifth captain; (1 Paralipomenon 27:8,) and the four subsequent ones relieved each other in waiting on the king. --- Harodi, more correct than Arorite, 1 Paralipomenon, (Haydock) as the Septuagint also there terminate with di. --- Elica is omitted, 1 Paralipomenon xi., (Kennicott) as he perhaps died soon; and Zabad succeeding to his honours, comes at the end of these 30 heroes, Ibid. ver. 30.[1 Paralipomenon 11:41.?] (Junius) |
| II Samuel 23:26 | Heles, of Phalti, Hira, the son of Acces, of Thecua, | Phalti. Paralipomenon, Phalonite. (Haydock) --- Nu has been mistaken for t. This is the seventh captain in waiting. Hebrew, "Heletz, the Pelonite." It will suffice here to express how Kennicott would write the names of the following mighty men; referring for more particulars to his learned Diss. on 1 Chronicles xi., and to the notes on that chapter, ver. 28, etc. In the body of 30, he places, 1. Elehanan, the son of Dodo, of Bethlehem; 2. Shamhoth, the Harodite; 3. Elika, the Harodite; (supplied by Zabad) 4. Heletz, the Pelonite; 5. Ira, the son of Ikkesh, the Tekoite; 6. Abiezer, the Anathothite; 7. Sibbecai, the Hushathite; (as 2 Kings 21:18., 1 Paralipomenon 20:4., and 27:11,) 8. Ilai, the Ahohite; 9. Maharai, the Netophathite; 10. Heled, the son of Baanah, the Netophathite; 11. Ithai, the son of Ribai, of Gibea, of the sons of Benjamin; 12. Benaiah, the Pirathonite; 13. Hurai, of the brooks of Gaash; 14. Abialbon, the Arbathite; 15. Azmaveth, the Bahurimite; 16. Elihaba, the Shaalbonite; 17. Gouni, (a word lost in Hebrew) of the sons of Hassum; 18. Jonathan, the son of Shamha, the Hararite; (see 2 Kings 21:21,) 19. Ahiham, the son of Shacar, the Hararite; 20. Eliphelet, the son of Abasbai, the Maacathite; 21. Eliam, the son of Ahithophel, the Gilonite; 22. Hetzrai, the Carmelite; 23. Naarai, the son of Azbai; 24. Joal, the brother of Nathan, of Tzobah; (see 1 Paralipomenon) 25. Bani, the Gadite; 26. Tzelek, the Ammonite; 27. Naharai, the Barothite, armour-bearer of Joab, the son of Zeruiah; 28. Ira, the Ithrite; 29. Gareb, the Ithrite; 30. Uriah, the Hethite. After these follow Zabad and 15 other brave men, though less renowned than the preceding, 1 Paralipomenon 11:42. It is a pity that the Masorets have introduced a new mode of pronunciation, and that it has been adopted by the Protestants, so that it is almost impossible to recognize in their work the scriptural names of the most ancient versions of the Septuagint and Vulgate. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:27 | Abiezer, of Anathoth, Mobonnai, of Husati, | Mobonnai. Septuagint have translated the Hebrew, "of the sons," mobni, (Kennicott) which is corrupted from sobci, or (Haydock) Sobbochai, who was a Husathite, 1 Paralipomenon 11:29. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 23:28 | Selmon, the Ahohite, Maharai, the Netophathite, | Selmon, or Ilai. |
| II Samuel 23:29 | Heled, the son of Baana, also a Netophathite, Ithai, the son of Ribai, of Gabaath, of the children of Benjamin, | Heled. Hebrew ends improperly in b. |
| II Samuel 23:30 | Banaia, the Pharathonite, Heddai, of the torrent Gaas, | Heddai: d is exchanged for r in Paralipomenon Hurai. |
| II Samuel 23:31 | Abialbon, the Arbathite, Azmaveth, of Beromi, | Abialbon, or Abiel. --- Beromi, or Azmoth, a Bauramite. |
| II Samuel 23:32 | Eliaba, of Salaboni: of the sons of Jassen, Jonathan, | Jonathan. David's nephew, (1 Paralipomenon) of the sons of Assem, a Gezonite. This ought, perhaps, to be "Gouni, of the sons," etc., otherwise the name will be lost, contrary to the design of the sacred writer. The verse is not terminated at Jonathan. But he was the son of Sage, (or rather of Semma, as here, ver. 33) an Ararite, 1 Paralipomenon. (Haydock) --- Sage was also the son of Samma, (ver. 11,) as Sage and Age are visibly the same; (Calmet) though of this we may doubt. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:33 | Semma, of Orori, Aliam, the son of Sarar, the Arorite, | Aliam, etc. Paralipomenon, Ahiam, the son of Sachar. The change is easy. |
| II Samuel 23:34 | Eliphelet, the son of Aasbai, the son of Machati, Eliam, the son of Achitophel, the Gelonite, | Eliphelet, etc., or Eliphal, the son of Ur; Hepher, a Macherathite; Ahia, a Phelonite; Hesro, a Carmelite. See 1 Paralipomenon 11:35. |
| II Samuel 23:35 | Hesrai, of Carmel, Pharai, of Arbi, | Arbi. Paralipomenon, "Naari, the son of Azbai." (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:36 | Igaal, the son of Nathan, of Soba, Bonni, of Gadi, | Igaal, or Joel, the brother of Nathan. To reconcile these texts, we may say the person was adopted by his brother, or had married his daughter, which was not prohibited by the law. --- Bonni, or Mibahar, the son of Agarai. |
| II Samuel 23:37 | Selec, of Ammoni, Naharai, the Berothite, armour-bearer of Joab, the son of Sarvia, | Bearer, or "squire." (Worthington) --- He is the only one specified, though there were others. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 23:38 | Ira, the Jethrite, Gareb, also a Jethrite; | |
| II Samuel 23:39 | Urias, the Hethite; thirty and seven in all. | Urias, the husband of Bethsabee. We have observed (ver. 25,) that in Paralipomenon the number of 37 is completed by Zabad, instead of Elica. (Haydock) --- Only 36 are specified in these catalogues, as the name of the sixth hero (ver. 18,) is omitted, whom some take to be Sobati, Jonathan, (chap. 21:22,) Joiada, (ver. 20,) or Joab. (Calmet) --- But the truth is, Joab is not mentioned here at all, as he was sufficiently known for the chief; (1 Paralipomenon 11:6,) and he makes up the number of 37. The sixth, therefore, was Asael; (ver. 24,) and after him there are exactly 30. For though Gouni be lost, (ver. 32,) Semma is substituted in the following verse. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 24:0 | David numbereth the people: God sendeth a pestilence, which is stopt by David's prayer and sacrifice. | |
| II Samuel 24:1 | And *the anger of the Lord was again kindled against Israel, and stirred up David among them, saying: Go, number Israel and Juda. 1 Paralipomenon 21. | Year of the World 2987, Year before Christ 1017. Stirred up, etc. This stirring up, was not the doing of God, but of satan; as it is expressly declared, 1 Chronicles 21:1. (Challoner) --- David was moved by vanity, etc., thus to displease God. --- Among. Hebrew, "against;" as the king could have done nothing more prejudicial to his people, 70,000 of whom perished on this occasion, ver. 15. (Haydock) --- We might also translate, "The anger of the Lord continued against Israel: for David, for their misfortune, was moved to say, Go," etc., as this would obviate the harshness of the expression. (Calmet) --- However, as it is the same in the Septuagint, etc., and as similar words do not prove that God is the author of sin, we may explain this in the same sense, allowing that he suffered the evil to take place, knowing how to draw good out of it. (St. Augustine, etc.) (Haydock) --- Some take this Satan to be an evil counsellor. (Calmet) --- The devil may be styled "the fury of God?" as he is his creature, though rebellious. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 24:2 | And the king said to Joab, the general of his army: Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Bersabee, and number ye the people, that I may know the number of them. | Them. He was led by curiosity. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 24:3 | And Joab said to the king: The Lord thy God increase thy people, and make them as many more as they are now, and again multiply them a hundred-fold in the sight of my lord the king, but what meaneth my lord the king by this kind of thing? | Thing. He speaks in stronger terms, and adds, (1 Paralipomenon 21:3,) which may be imputed as a sin to Israel. Joab was not extremely religious: yet he perceived the evil consequences, and, along with the other captains, expressed his sentiments with more respect than on former occasions. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 24:4 | But the king's words prevailed over the words of Joab, and of the captains of the army: and Joab, and the captains of the soldiers, went out from the presence of the king, to number the people of Israel. | |
| II Samuel 24:5 | And when they had passed the Jordan, they came to Aroer, to the right side of the city, which is in the vale of Gad. | Gad, at the eastern extremity, on the banks of the Arnon. |
| II Samuel 24:6 | And by Jazer they passed into Galaad, and to the lower land of Hodsi, and they came into the woodlands of Dan. And going about by Sidon, | Hodsi. Alexandrian Septuagint, (5) "of Gad and Eliazer, (6) and they came into Galaad, and into the land of Ethaon Adasai, and they went into Dan Jaran." The other editions vary. Hebrew means, "to the land of new subjects," or "lately conquered" (Junius) from the Agarites, (1 Paralipomenon 5:10,) which agrees with this situation. (Calmet; Lyranus) --- The commissioners first took an account of the tribe of Ruben, (Menochius) and then proceeded northward, till they returned from Dan towards the south. (Haydock) --- Woodlands. St. Jerome reads jár, instead of ján. By transposing a letter, áin would signify Dan, "the spring," which feeds the Jordan. |
| II Samuel 24:7 | They passed near the walls of Tyre, and all the land of the Hevite, and the Chanaanite, and they came to the south of Juda, into Bersabee: | Tyre, the ancient; about 4000 paces from the new city, which stands in an island. (Strabo xvi.) See Josue 19:29. |
| II Samuel 24:8 | And having gone through the whole land, after nine months and twenty days, they came to Jerusalem. | Land. Yet they did not number the Levites or Benjamin, nor even the rest exactly, as Joab acted with reluctance, 1 Paralipomenon 21:6., and 27:24. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 24:9 | And Joab gave up the sum of the number of the people to the king, and there were found of Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men that drew the sword: and of Juda, five hundred thousand fighting men. | Eight....and five. Theodotion says nine and four, which comes to the same sum. (Haydock) --- But 1 Paralipomenon 21:5, reads, eleven hundred thousand, and four hundred and seventy thousand fighting men: though even there the Arabic version has the number here specified, which is less incredible. The fighting men are not above a fifth part of the population; and we may allow that David might have about seven million subjects. It seems, therefore, best to abandon the latter number as incorrect, since all commentators confess that similar mistakes have been made by the transcribers; and to maintain the contrary, would be indirectly to throw the blame upon the sacred writers. (Calmet) --- Yet some account for the variation, by saying, that Joab gave not in the full number here, (Menochius; Abulensis; etc.) which seems contrary to the text, there were found, etc. (Haydock) --- Cornelius a Lapide supposes, that the excess of number was occasioned by the subsequent list of the Levites, etc. But could they amount to so many? (Calmet) --- And what proof is there that they were numbered, after the anger of God had manifested itself so severely? (Haydock) --- Others affirm, that Joab did not take an account of the 288,000 chosen out of the twelve tribes, that 24,000 of them might guard the palace by turns, in each of the twelve months, 1 Paralipomenon 27:1. (Bochart, Anim. p. 1. B. 2:37.; Grotius; etc.) --- But thus there will be 18,000 more than even in Paralipomenon, where we find in all 1,570,000, though the tribe of Juda have fewer, by 30,000, than in this book. To account for this, some say, (Haydock) the proselytes are here taken in, or the inhabitants of all the territory, which was at first assigned to Juda, Josue 19:29. (Menochius) --- All this is conjecture, (Haydock) and must remain among the systems of history. (Calmet) --- If Joab chose to diminish the numbers of Israel, why has he increased those of Juda? Did he wish to flatter the king's vanity, or partiality for his own tribe? It is difficult to say what interest Joab could have in withholding the truth; and for the sacred historian to countenance his delusion, would expose us to the same danger of mistake, and overthrow the authority of Scripture, no less than if the author had been liable to error, and uninspired. It seems, therefore, most rational to suppose that we have here the true list of the warriors, and that the book of Paralipomenon has been injured by the negligence of transcribers, as it has on many other occasions. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 24:10 | *But David's heart struck him, after the people were numbered: and David said to the Lord: I have sinned very much in what I have done: but I pray thee, O Lord, to take away the iniquity of thy servant, because I have done exceeding foolishly. 1 Kings 24:6. | David's heart struck him, after the people were numbered. That is, he was touched with a great remorse for the vanity and pride which had put him upon numbering the people. (Challoner) --- His sin must have been internal, and probably involved a secret confidence in his riches and power, without referring all to God, (Haydock) or trusting entirely in him. (St. Ambrose, poen. C. 9.; St. Augustine, contra Faust. 22:66., etc.) --- There was otherwise no prohibition for David's taking this account, (Calmet) which is so natural for a prince, and may frequently prove of great service. (Haydock) --- Josephus ([Antiquities?] 7:13.) and others assert, that he neglected to require the payment of half a sicle. (Tirinus; Estius) --- But where does God complain of this neglect? and how do they know that the injunction which was once given to Moses, when the tabernacle was to be furnished, (Exodus 30:12.) was to remain in force afterwards? Oleaster (on Exodus) says David acted against God's intention, who had promised that the Israelites should be innumerable. But this reason seems childish; and did not the king abstain, on that very account, from numbering any but those who were fit for war? (1 Paralipomenon 27:23.) (Calmet) --- Struck him. Contrition and confession are specified here, as satisfaction is, ver. 12. Temporal sufferings are inflicted, even after the sin has been remitted, ver. 16. (Worthington) |
| II Samuel 24:11 | And David arose in the morning, and the word of the Lord came to Gad, the prophet, and the seer of David, saying: | And seer. This was a peculiar distinction of the prophet, (Haydock) who was appointed to direct David, (Menochius) to whom he had been long attached, 1 Kings 22:5. (Calmet0 |
| II Samuel 24:12 | Go, and say to David: Thus saith the Lord: I give thee thy choice of three things, choose one of them, which thou wilt, that I may do it to thee. | |
| II Samuel 24:13 | And when Gad was come to David, he told him, saying: Either seven years of famine shall come to thee in thy land: or thou shalt flee three months before thy adversaries, and they shall pursue thee: or for three days, there shall be a pestilence in thy land. Now therefore deliberate, and see what answer I shall return to him that sent me. | Seven. Paralipomenon, three; which makes the contrast more striking. (Haydock) --- The Septuagint, and some copies of the Arabic version, have the latter number. (Calmet) --- Gad might first propose seven, and then reduce it to three. (Menochius) --- But did the prophet deliver the message twice? Usher pleads for the truth of both numbers, though he says, "It was always my opinion, that the Hebrew copy of the Old Testament has been no less exposed to the errors of writers, than that of the New, and all other books." (Synt. p. 219.) Boxtorf also declares, "it is better piously to believe that both is right." Why? "because both is written." (Antic. p. 401 and 420!) The contradiction, in fact, seems to have been occasioned by the mistake of a numeral letter, g (3) for z (7). (Kennicott) --- Usher, Malvenda, etc., adopt an hypothesis, beautiful enough, but destitute of proof, when they say that God proposed three years in punishment of David's criminal curiosity. But as that famine would have immediately followed the three years' scarcity, already endured, (chap. 21.) and during the seventh, or sabbatical year, nothing could be reaped, the famine would thus rage for seven years. (Calmet) Salien places the 62nd sabbatical year at this very time, the year of the world 3017, and terminates the famine occasioned by the cruel injustice of Saul, the year before Christ 1013, which cannot agree with the aforesaid system. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 24:14 | And David said to Gad: I am in a great strait: *but it is better that I should fall into the hands of the Lord (for his mercies are many) than into the hands of men. Daniel 13:23. | Lord, and be exposed to the violence of pestilence, which attacks both rich and poor; whereas the rich can frequently escape the dangers of war, or of famine. (Calmet) --- David knew that he had sinned, and he did not wish to screen himself from suffering the temporal punishment due to sin. (Haydock) --- God punishes us equally by the hand of men, as by other means; but the king thus intimates, that he looks upon Him as an indulgent father, who is less severe than the ministers of justice. (Menochius) |
| II Samuel 24:15 | And the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel, from the morning unto the time appointed, and there died of the people from Dan to Bersabee, seventy thousand men. | And. Septuagint insert, "And David chose death, (the pestilence, as they usually render it; Salien). And it was the time of the wheat-harvest. And the Lord gave death in Israel, from morning till dinner-time." (Haydock) --- Appointed, for three days; though before the end of the last, God took pity on the people, ver 16. (Calmet) --- Bochart thinks the pestilence ceased to rage at some hour of the first day. Syriac and Arabic, "till the sixth hour." |
| II Samuel 24:16 | And when the angel of the Lord had stretched out his hand over Jerusalem, to destroy it, the Lord had pity on the affliction, and said to the angel that slew the people: It is enough: now hold thy hand: And the angel of the Lord was by the threshing-floor of Areuna, the Jebusite. | Areuna. Hebrew styles him, Araniah, (ver. 18.; Calmet) i being substituted for u, and placed after n. He is called Ornan, 1 Paralipomenon 21:18, (Haydock) and has the title of Jebusite, as he was originally of that nation, and had been permitted to retain his effects, on his embracing the true religion. Moria was his property, and seems not to have been much inhabited. It was not yet enclosed within the city walls. Here David saw the angel, in the air, ready to strike the inhabitants, and heard the voice from heaven. (Calmet) --- He had already witnessed the death of many in the city, 1 Paralipomenon 21:14. The angel waited for God's orders how many to destroy. (Haydock) --- He did not sheath his sword till David had offered sacrifice to appease the Lord; (ver. 21) though others think that the sacrifice was to thank God for the deliverance. (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 24:17 | And David said to the Lord, when he saw the angel striking the people: It is I, I am he that have sinned, I have done wickedly: these that are the sheep, what have they done? let thy hand, I beseech thee, be turned against me, and against my father's house. | Are, like sheep. (Menochius) --- They were not accountable for the fault of their shepherd, or king; nor were they punished for it, (Haydock) but for joining in the revolts of Absalom, Seba, etc., (Salien) as well as for other secret offences. (Haydock) --- Some groundlessly condemn the people, for entertaining sentiments of pride, along with David. Both king and people suffer, when either draws down the vengeance of heaven. |
| II Samuel 24:18 | And Gad came to David that day, and said: Go up and build an altar to the Lord, in the threshing-floor of Areuna, the Jebusite. | Altar. This was done by a positive order. People still had the liberty of sacrificing on the heights of Gabaon. (Calmet) --- This place was honoured with the tabernacle; and David would have gone thither, if he had not been so much terrified, 1 Paralipomenon 21:30. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 24:19 | And David went up according to the word of Gad, which the Lord had commanded him. | |
| II Samuel 24:20 | And Areuna looked, and saw the king and his servants coming towards him: | |
| II Samuel 24:21 | And going out he worshipped the king, bowing with his face to the earth, and said: Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said to him: To buy the threshing-floor of thee, and build an altar to the Lord, that the plague, which rageth among the people, may cease. | |
| II Samuel 24:22 | And Areuna said to David: Let my lord the king take, and offer, as it seemeth good to him: thou hast here oxen for a holocaust, and the wain, and the yokes of the oxen for wood. | Wain. So Josephus reads. Septuagint, "wheels." Hebrew, "rollers," to beat out the corn. (Calmet) --- Protestants, "threshing instruments, and other instruments of the oxen for wood." Paralipomenon adds, that Areuna offered wheat, and saw the angel, as his four sons, and probably most of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, did. |
| II Samuel 24:23 | All these things, Areuna, as a king gave to the king: And Areuna said to the king: The Lord thy God receive thy vow. | As a king. Literally, king Areuna:" e may have been substituted for c, "like," though the latter word is often understood. (Haydock) --- Some suppose that he was formerly king of the Jebusites, (Vatable) or one of their descendants, (Grotius) or possessed of great riches, etc. But why is the title never given to him elsewhere? (Bochart) --- The Septuagint, Syriac, and many Latin copies, do not recognize it; nor was it found in the Chaldean, in the 12th age [12th century]. Yet without making any changes, we may translate, "O king, Areuna has given all these things to the king." The Jews often speak of themselves in the third person, out of respect. (Le Clerc.) (Calmet) |
| II Samuel 24:24 | And the king answered him, and said: Nay, but I will buy it of thee, at a price, and I will not offer to the Lord my God holocausts, free-cost. So David bought the floor, and the oxen, for fifty sicles of silver: | Free-cost, or given gratis. This shews that subjects have property, otherwise they could only yield what was due to the king, as his own. (Worthington) --- Silver. Septuagint, "for the silver of fifty sicles." (Haydock) --- Bochart explains for the money of 50 sicles of gold, which make 600 sicles of silver. Gold was formerly as twelve to one, compared with silver. (Plato in Hipparcho.) --- But the best method of reconciling this passage with 1 Paralipomenon is to say, that David gave the 50 sicles for the oxen and floor, and afterwards purchased the whole piece of ground for 600 (Calmet) sicles of gold, (or 902l. 5s. sterling.; Haydock) being informed that the temple was to be erected there, (Calmet) where Isaac had formerly been brought to be sacrificed. (Menochius) --- We might also make a colon, or pause, at floor, as if its price were specified elsewhere, and the fifty sicles were given for the oxen. (Du Hamel; Menochius) --- The sum amounts to only about 1l. 14s. (Haydock) |
| II Samuel 24:25 | And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered holocausts and peace-offerings: and the Lord became merciful to the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel. | Holocausts; a second time. The former victims had been consumed by fire from heaven, 1 Paralipomenon 26:28. (Calmet) |