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2 Samuel 10

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Ammon Insults David's Envoys 1–5

1
And it came to pass after this, that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his stead.
2
Then said David, I will shew kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father shewed kindness unto me. And David sent to comfort him by the hand of his servants for his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon. ​
3
And the princes of the children of Ammon said unto Hanun their lord, Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? hath not David rather sent his servants unto thee, to search the city, and to spy it out, and to overthrow it? ​
4
Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away. ​
5
When they told it unto David, he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed: and the king said, Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return. ​

The First Battle Against Ammon and Syria 6–14

6
And when the children of Ammon saw that they stank before David, the children of Ammon sent and hired the Syrians of Bethrehob, and the Syrians of Zoba, twenty thousand footmen, and of king Maacah a thousand men, and of Ishtob twelve thousand men. ​
7
And when David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the host of the mighty men.
8
And the children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array at the entering in of the gate: and the Syrians of Zoba, and of Rehob, and Ishtob, and Maacah, were by themselves in the field.
9
When Joab saw that the front of the battle was against him before and behind, he chose of all the choice men of Israel, and put them in array against the Syrians: ​
10
And the rest of the people he delivered into the hand of Abishai his brother, that he might put them in array against the children of Ammon.
11
And he said, If the Syrians be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me: but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will come and help thee. ​
12
Be of good courage, and let us play the men for our people, and for the cities of our God: and the LORD do that which seemeth him good. ​
13
And Joab drew nigh, and the people that were with him, unto the battle against the Syrians: and they fled before him.
14
And when the children of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fled, then fled they also before Abishai, and entered into the city. So Joab returned from the children of Ammon, and came to Jerusalem.

David Leads the Decisive Victory Over Syria 15–19

15
And when the Syrians saw that they were smitten before Israel, they gathered themselves together. ​
16
And Hadarezer sent, and brought out the Syrians that were beyond the river: and they came to Helam; and Shobach the captain of the host of Hadarezer went before them. ​
17
And when it was told David, he gathered all Israel together, and passed over Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Syrians set themselves in array against David, and fought with him. ​
18
And the Syrians fled before Israel; and David slew the men of seven hundred chariots of the Syrians, and forty thousand horsemen, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, who died there. ​
19
And when all the kings that were servants to Hadarezer saw that they were smitten before Israel, they made peace with Israel, and served them. So the Syrians feared to help the children of Ammon any more. ​

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

Study Notes for 2 Samuel 10

Verse 2

shew kindness unto Hanun — Chesed again, as in 2 Sam 9:1, now toward the Ammonite king ‘as his father shewed kindness unto me’; Scripture does not say what Nahash did. ‘Comfort’ is nacham, to console, the verb behind the ‘comforters’ the princes name in v.3. The servants go ‘for his father’, who had died (v.1).

Verse 3

to spy it out — The princes’ charge uses ragal, to spy, the word of Joseph’s ‘Ye are spies’ (Gen 42:9). Their question turns David’s ‘comfort’ (nacham) into reconnaissance of ‘the city’ for its overthrow. ‘Honour’ is kabad, to give weight to a person, and they deny that David is doing that for Nahash.

Verse 4

the one half of their beards — The garment is cut ‘in the middle, even to their buttocks’. Shethah, buttocks, occurs only here and in Isa 20:4, where captives are led away ‘with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt’. The insult falls on David’s servants, sent only to comfort.

Verse 5

greatly ashamed — Kalam, to be humiliated, the word Chronicles repeats (1 Chr 19:5). David ‘sent to meet them’ and bade them stay at Jericho ‘until your beards be grown’ (tsamach, to sprout). Jericho is the city Joshua took and burned (Josh 6:24).

Verse 6

they stank before David — Ba’ash, to stink, the verb of Jacob’s ‘to make me to stink among the inhabitants of the land’ (Gen 34:30) and of Achish’s belief that David had made Israel ‘utterly to abhor him’ (1 Sam 27:12). Chronicles says they ‘made themselves odious to David’ and sent ‘a thousand talents of silver’ to hire chariots (1 Chr 19:6).

Verse 9

he chose of all the choice men — Bachar twice: Joab chose the choice men of Israel and set them against the Syrians, who in v.8 stood ‘by themselves in the field’. The rest of the people go under his brother Abishai against Ammon (v.10), so the host is divided between the two fronts.

Verse 11

If the Syrians be too strong for me — ‘Too strong’ is chazaq, used for both armies, and the ‘help’ is yeshuah in the first clause and yasha in the second, the words of deliverance. Abishai is to help Joab if the Syrians prevail, and Joab will come to Abishai if Ammon does.

Verse 12

play the men — Chazaq again: ‘Be of good courage’ and ‘play the men’ are the same verb as the ‘too strong’ of v.11. ‘The cities of our God’ names what the war is for, and ‘that which seemeth him good’ is literally what is good in his eyes, the submission of Eli’s ‘let him do what seemeth him good’ (1 Sam 3:18).

Verse 15

they were smitten — Nagaph, to strike, the verb used again when the kings that were servants to Hadarezer see ‘that they were smitten before Israel’ (v.19). The Syrians answer the first defeat: they ‘gathered themselves together’ (acaph), and v.16 shows who they gather.

Verse 16

beyond the river — ‘The river’ (nahar) is the Euphrates, named in 2 Sam 8:3 as the border David went to recover from Hadadezer king of Zobah, the king called Hadarezer here. His captain Shobach leads the host to Helam, where v.17 has Israel meet it.

Verse 17

he gathered all Israel together — Acaph, the verb the Syrians used of themselves in v.15, now of David: both sides gather. He ‘passed over Jordan’ and comes to Helam, so the king leads this battle himself, unlike the first in v.7, where he ‘sent Joab’.

Verse 18

Shobach … who died there — The captain of Hadarezer’s host (v.16) falls at Helam together with the Syrian chariot-men. Hadadezer had already lost a thousand chariots to David when he went to the Euphrates (2 Sam 8:3–4).

Verse 19

served them — Hadarezer’s kings are called ‘servants’ (ebed) and become servants of Israel by the verb abad, the same root. They ‘made peace’ (shalam) after seeing they were ‘smitten’ (v.15), and the Syrians ‘feared to help’ Ammon, as 2 Sam 8:6 records of Damascus: they ‘became servants to David’.