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2 Samuel
Chapter Twenty-one
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO SECOND SAMUEL 21
A
famine being in the land three years
the Lord was inquired of
to know the
reason of it; and it being answered
that it was on account of Saul's slaughter
of the Gibeonites
they were summoned by David to know what satisfaction they
required for the cruel usage of them
2 Samuel 21:1; to
which they replied
that they only desired seven of Saul's sons to be delivered
up to them
to be hanged by them
which was granted
2 Samuel 21:4;
whose bones
with those of Saul and Jonathan
David buried in the sepulchre of
their fathers
2 Samuel 21:10; and
the chapter is closed with an account of the various battles fought with the
Philistines
in which four of their generals were slain
2 Samuel 21:15.
2 Samuel 21:1 Now there was a
famine in the days of David for three years
year after year; and David
inquired of the Lord.
And the Lord
answered
“It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house
because he killed the Gibeonites.”
YLT
1And there is a famine in
the days of David three years
year after year
and David seeketh the face of
Jehovah
and Jehovah saith
`For Saul and for the bloody house
because that he
put to death the Gibeonites.'
Then there was a famine in the days of David three years
year
after year
.... That is
three years running
one after another; some think
this
though here related
was before the rebellions of Absalom and Sheba
and
not after
and there are several things which may incline to it
as that the
sin of Saul should otherwise be so long unpunished
and that the bones of Saul
and Jonathan were not sooner removed
here related; and that there should be so
many battles the Philistines after they were subdued
as recorded in this
chapter; and in one of the JewishF5Pirke Eliezer
c. 17. writings it
is said
that this was the year after Saul was slain; though
in other copies
of the same book
it is said to be thirty years after; and so in that Abarbinel
used
and who is of the mind that what is here related stands in the order in
which it was
and of the same opinion are some of our best chronologersF6Usser.
Annal. Vet. Test. p. 55. Bedford's Scripture Chronology
p. 558. :
and David inquired of the Lord; before the high priest
by Urim and Thummim
what should be the cause of the famine perhaps suspecting
it was some sins of his; the first year he might take no notice of it
hoping
for a more fruitful season the next year
it arising
as he might suppose
from
some natural cause; the second year he might begin to think it was for some
national sins
but might be remiss in his inquiry into them; but the third year
he was alarmed
and concluded there was something extraordinary and special
and feared it was on his account
and this put him on making inquiry:
and the Lord answered
it is for Saul
and for his
bloody house; on account of the blood shed by him and his family; which answer
must in a good measure relieve the mind of David
if he was fearful it was for
his sins:
because he slew the Gibeonites: which was contrary to
the oath that Joshua and all Israel had given them not to slay them
but save
them alive
Joshua 9:15. When
this was done is not certain; the Jews commonly sayF7T. Bab. Bava
Kama
fol. 119. 1. that he slew them when he slew the priests at Nob
they
being hewers of wood and drawers of water to them
and were slain with them; or
because their maintenance depended on the priests
they being slain
it was in
effect slaying them; but rather this refers to another time
and to other
action or actions of Saul
who sought by various means to destroy these people
and root them out of the land. The Heathens had a notion that barrenness
unfruitfulness
and famine
were inflicted by God for murder. PhilostratusF8Vita
Apollon. Tyanei
l. 3. c. 6. reports of the Ethiopian Indians
that for the
murder of their king
Ganges
their ground was unfruitful
their cattle
starved
their wives abortive
and their cities and houses fell to ruin
until
the murderers were destroyed.
2 Samuel 21:2 2 So
the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were
not of the children of Israel
but of the remnant of the Amorites; the children
of Israel had sworn protection to them
but Saul had sought to kill them in his
zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.
YLT
2And the king calleth for
the Gibeonites
and saith unto them -- as to the Gibeonites
they [are] not of
the sons of Israel
but of the remnant of the Amorite
and the sons of Israel
had sworn to them
and Saul seeketh to smite them in his zeal for the sons of
Israel and Judah –
And the king called the Gibeonites
.... Sent messengers unto
them
and summoned them to come to him:
and said unto them; what is expressed in 2 Samuel 21:3; for
what follows is in a parenthesis:
(now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel; originally
though they were proselyted to the Jewish religion
and were employed in the
menial services of the sanctuary:
but of the remnant of the Amorites; they were the remains of
the old Canaanites
who sometimes in general were called Amorites
otherwise
the Gibeonites were called Hivites; see Joshua 9:7
and the children of Israel had sworn unto them; by their
princes
as Joshua; yet:
and Saul
contrary to this oath
sought to slay them in his zeal
to the children of Israel and Judah); pretending a great
concern for them
for their honour and profit; that these men ought not to live
in their cities
and take the bread out of their mouths
and be employed in the
service of the sanctuary; but that they ought to be expelled
and even cut off
being the old inhabitants of the land
the Lord ordered to be destroyed; and
that though the Israelites had given an oath to the contrary
they were drawn
into it by guile and deceit
and therefore not binding upon them; hence he
sought by all means to harass and oppress them
and slew many of them
and
destroyed them out of their cities
that they might be possessed by Judah and
Benjamin; see 2 Samuel 4:2
compared with Joshua 9:17.
2 Samuel 21:3 3 Therefore David said to
the Gibeonites
“What shall I do for you? And with what shall I make atonement
that you may bless the inheritance of the Lord?”
YLT
3yea
David saith unto the
Gibeonites
`What do I do for you? and with what do I make atonement? and bless
ye the inheritance of Jehovah.'
Wherefore David said unto the Gibeonites
what shall I do for you
.... By way of
satisfaction for the injuries done them:
and wherewith shall I make the atonement; for the
offences committed
that so the wrath that was gone forth against the land in a
famine might be appeased:
that ye may bless the inheritance of the Lord? pray for a
blessing upon the land which the Lord had chosen for his inheritance
and given
as such to the people of Israel
that rain might descend upon it
and make it
fruitful.
2 Samuel 21:4 4 And the Gibeonites said to
him
“We will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house
nor shall you
kill any man in Israel for us.” So he said
“Whatever you say
I will do for
you.”
YLT
4And the Gibeonites say to
him
`We have no silver and gold by Saul and by his house
and we have no man
to put to death in Israel;' and he saith
`What ye are saying I do to you.'
And
the Gibeonites said unto him
.... In reply to his
motion:
we will have no silver nor gold of Saul
nor of his house; this shall
not be the ransom or atonement; it was not silver and gold Saul took from them
but the lives of their brethren
and therefore they insist upon life for life:
neither for us shall thou kill any man in Israel; who were not
of the house of Saul; they did not desire any man should die
but who were of
that family by whom they had suffered:
and he said
what you shall say
that will I do for you; whether by
inflicting pecuniary fines
or punishing with death
which latter seems to be
what they suggested
and afterwards insisted on; whatever
according to law and
justice
was required
he was ready to do it for them.
2 Samuel 21:5 5 Then they answered the
king
“As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us
that we
should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel
YLT
5And they say unto the king
`The man who consumed us
and who devised against us -- we have been destroyed
from stationing ourselves in all the border of Israel –
And they answered the king
.... Declaring expressly
what they would have done: the man that consumed us; meaning Saul
who lessened
their number by cruel oppressions of some
and by taking away the lives of
others:
and that devised against us
that we should be destroyed
from remaining in any of the coasts of Israel; who had formed schemes
and published edicts
for banishing them out of the land; perhaps at the same
time that he put away wizards and those that had familiar spirits out of the
land
under the same pretence for zeal for the glory of God
and the good of
the people of the land
1 Samuel 28:3.
2 Samuel 21:6 6 let seven men of his
descendants be delivered to us
and we will hang them before the Lord in Gibeah of
Saul
whom the Lord
chose.” And the king said
“I will give them.”
YLT
6let there be given to us
seven men of his sons
and we have hanged them before Jehovah
in the height of
Saul
the chosen of Jehovah.' And the king saith
`I do give;'
Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us
.... They
settled upon this number
either because they were seven
and no more of the
Gibeonites
whom Saul slew
as the Jew sayF9T. Hieros. Kiddushin
fol. 65. 2. ; two hewers of wood
two drawers of water
a keeper (of a
synagogue)
a scribe
and a servant; but perhaps the true reason was
they knew
there were no more besides Mephibosheth
for whom David had a great respect
and therefore required no more:
and we will hang them up unto the Lord; not to
gratify a revengeful spirit of theirs
but in honour to the justice of God
and
to appease his wrath:
in Gibeah of Saul
whom the Lord did choose; which was
Saul's native place
and where he always lived; so that to hang them there was
to the greater disgrace of him and his family; and he being chosen of the Lord
to be a king of Israel
was an aggravation of his crime in violating the oath
made to the Gibeonites
and the king said
I will give them; for though he
had sworn to Saul that he would not cut off his seed
yet as he had a divine
direction in this case
as appears by the Lord's being pleased with it
and was
entreated for the land by it
this oath of his was dispensed with; nor did he
cut them off himself but delivered them to others
according to the will of
God.
2 Samuel 21:7 7 But the king spared
Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan
the son of Saul
because of the Lord’s oath that was
between them
between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.
YLT
7and the king hath pity on
Mephibosheth son of Jonathan
son of Saul
because of the oath of Jehovah that
[is] between them
between David and Jonathan son of Saul;
But the king spared Mephibosheth
the son of Jonathan
the son of
Saul
.... As they did not name particular persons
only required seven
sons
it was at the option of the king what sons to deliver to them
and
therefore kept back Mephibosheth
who is thus described
to distinguish him
from a son of Saul's of the same name
after mentioned:
because of the Lord's oath that was between them
between
David and Jonathan the son of Saul; not merely or only out
of affection to Mephibosheth
but because of the oath
that he might not be
guilty of the same crime Saul was in slaying the Gibeonites.
2 Samuel 21:8 8 So the king took Armoni
and Mephibosheth
the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah
whom she bore to
Saul
and the five sons of Michal[a] the
daughter of Saul
whom she brought up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the
Meholathite;
YLT
8and the king taketh the two
sons of Rizpah daughter of Aiah
whom she bore to Saul
Armoni and
Mephibosheth
and the five sons of Michal daughter of Saul whom she bare to
Adriel son of Barzillai the Meholathite
But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah
.... Saul's
concubine
2 Samuel 3:7
whom she bare unto Saul
Armoni and Mephibosheth; of whom we
read nowhere else; after the name of the latter
it is probable
Jonathan's son
was called
before mentioned:
and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul
whom she brought
up for Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite; Michal had no
children to the day of her death
nor was she the wife of Adriel
but Merab her
sister
1 Samuel 18:19;
wherefore these sons were not whom she "bare"
as the word used
signifies
but
as we rightly render it
whom she "brought up" or
educated
so the Targum
her sister being dead; and so the Jews sayF11T.
Bab. Sanhedrin
fol. 19. 2.
Merab brought them forth
and Michal brought them
up
therefore they were called by her name; or the words may be supplied thus
"and the five sons of the sister of Michal"
and
as in 2 Samuel 21:19
is
supplied
"the brother of Goliath". Barzillai is here called
the Meholathite
to distinguish him from Barzillai the Gileadite
spoken of in
a former chapter
see 2 Samuel 17:27.
2 Samuel 21:9 9 and he delivered them into
the hands of the Gibeonites
and they hanged them on the hill before the Lord. So they fell
all seven together
and were put to death in the days of harvest
in the
first days
in the beginning of barley harvest.
YLT
9and giveth them into the
hand of the Gibeonites
and they hang them in the hill before Jehovah; and the
seven fall together
and they have been put to death in the days of harvest
in
the first [days]
the commencement of barley-harvest.
And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites
.... The two
sons of Rizpah and the five sons of Merab
two sons of Saul and five grandsons:
and they hanged them in the hill before the Lord; in the hill
at Gibeah
that they might be seen by all that passed by
and serve to deter
from such evils
which brought on them that punishment; gibbetings or
crucifixions were commonly made on hills and mountainsF12Vid.
Lipsium de Cruce
l. 3. c. 13. : the phrase
"before the Lord"
is
either the same as "unto the Lord"
2 Samuel 21:6; to
make atonement to the Lord
and in his sight; or it denotes that it was done
publicly before the sun
and in the sight of it; for it cannot mean before the
ark
the symbol of the divine Presence
for that was not there:
and they fell all seven together; they were
hanged together
and died at one and the same time:
and were put to death in the days of harvest
in the first days
in the beginning of barley harvest; which began at the
passover
the morrow after the first day of the feast
Leviticus 23:10;
which was the sixteenth of Nisan
on which day
the Jews sayF13Bemidbar
Rabba
fol. 190. 1.
these men were hanged
and which must be about the
beginning of our April.
2 Samuel 21:10 10 Now Rizpah the daughter of
Aiah took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the rock
from the beginning
of harvest until the late rains poured on them from heaven. And she did not
allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field
by night.
YLT
10And Rizpah daughter of Aiah
taketh the sackcloth
and stretcheth it out for herself on the rock
from the
commencement of harvest till water hath been poured out upon them from the
heavens
and hath not suffered a fowl of the heavens to rest upon them by day
or the beast of the field by night.
And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth
.... Both as a
token of mourning for her sons
and as fittest to defend from the weather
the
heat by day of cold by night:
and spread it for her upon the rock; the hill on which her
sons were hanged; this she spread as a canopy or tent to sit under
and be
covered with it; not to cover the bodies with it
but herself
and where she
sat to mourn the loss of her sons
and to watch their bodies
that they might
not be devoured by birds and breasts of prey
as after observed: and here she
sat
from the beginning of harvest until water dropped on them out of
heaven; that is
as the Jews sayF14Bemidbar Rabba
fol. 190.
1.
from the sixteenth of Nisan
when barley harvest began
to the seventeenth
of Marchesvan
when the former rain fell; that is
from the beginning of April
to the beginning of October: but it is not likely that she continued so long
watching the bodies
nor would there be any need of it to keep the birds and
beasts from them; for after they had hung so many months
there would be
nothing left for them; but rather the meaning is
that she continued there
until it pleased God to send rain from heaven
which had been restrained
and a
famine came upon it
because of the ill usage of the Gibeonites: and very
probably the order from the king was
that the bodies should hang till rain
came
that it might be observed what was the reason of their suffering; and no
doubt Rizpah sat there praying that rain might come
and which
as Abarbinel
thinks
came in a few days after
though not usual in summertime; but this was
an extraordinary case
as in 1 Samuel 12:17; and
was done to show the Lord was entreated for the land; and so Josephus saysF15Antiqu.
l. 7. c. 12. sect. 1.
that upon the hanging up of these men
God caused it to
rain immediately
and restored the earth to its former fruitfulness. According
to the law in Deuteronomy 21:22
the bodies should have been taken down and buried the same day: but these men
suffered not for their own personal
sins
but for the sins of others
and to
avert a public calamity
and therefore must hang till that was removed; nor
were they executed by men bound by that law; and besides their continuing on
the tree was according to the will of God
till he was entreated
who could
dispense with this law; to which may be added
the ceremonial and judicial
laws
of which this was one
gave place to those of a moral natureF16See
Stillingfleet's Origines Sacr. p. 140.
as this did to that of sanctifying the
name of God in a public manner; hence the saying of one of the Rabbins upon
thisF17T. Bab. Yebamot
fol. 79. 1.
which is by many wrongly
expressed
"it is better that one letter should be rooted out of the law
than that the name of God should not be sanctified openly;'that is
a lesser
precept give way to a greater
or a ceremonial precept to a moral one
such as
the sanctification of the name of God is:
and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day; as it is
usual for crowsF18"---- non pasces in cruce corvos"
Horat. Epist
l. 1. Epist. 16. ver. 48. and ravens
and such sort of birds
to
light on bodies thus hung up
and pick their flesh:
nor the beasts of the field by night; for it seems
it was usual to make the gibbets
and so in some other nations the crosses
so
low
that wild beasts could easily come at the bodies and devour them; so
Blandina was hung upon a tree so low
that she might be exposed to the wild
beasts to feed upon her
but not one of them would touch her bodyF19Euseb.
Eccl. Hist. l. 5. c. 1. Vid. Lipsium de Cruce
l. 3. c. 11. & l. 3. c. 13.
; now Rizpah
by her servants
had ways and means to frighten away the birds
and beasts from doing any injury to the carcasses.
2 Samuel 21:11 11 And David was told what
Rizpah the daughter of Aiah
the concubine of Saul
had done.
YLT
11And it is declared to David
that which Rizpah daughter of Aiah
concubine of Saul
hath done
And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah
the
concubine of Saul
had done. Whether this was told out of good will or
ill will is not certain; however
it was not disagreeable to David
but served
to move pity and compassion in him to the woman
and to stir him up to give an
honourable interment to Saul and his sons; and which would show that this fact
was not done out of personal pique and revenge to his family
but in obedience
to the will of God
and the honour of his name.
2 Samuel 21:12 12 Then David went and took
the bones of Saul
and the bones of Jonathan his son
from the men of Jabesh
Gilead who had stolen them from the street of Beth Shan
[b] where the
Philistines had hung them up
after the Philistines had struck down Saul in
Gilboa.
YLT
12and David goeth and taketh
the bones of Saul
and the bones of Jonathan his son
from the possessors of
Jabesh-Gilead
who had stolen them from the broad place of Beth-Shan
where the
Philistines hanged them
in the day of the Philistines smiting Saul in Gilboa;
And David went and took the bones of Saul
and the bones of
Jonathan his son
from the men of Jabeshgilead
.... Which
according to
BuntingF20Travels
&c. p. 122
143.
was fifty two miles from
Jerusalem; though perhaps David did not go thither in person to fetch them
but
by his messengers
see 2 Samuel 21:14
which had stolen them from the street of Bethshan
where the
Philistines had hanged them
when the Philistines had slain Saul in Gilboa; the history
of all which see in 1 Samuel 31:8.
2 Samuel 21:13 13 So he brought up the bones
of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there; and they gathered the
bones of those who had been hanged.
YLT
13and he bringeth up thence
the bones of Saul
and the bones of Jonathan his son
and they gather the bones
of those hanged
And he brought up from thence the bones of Saul
and the bones of
Jonathan his son
.... Which had been buried there under an oak
1 Chronicles 10:12
and they gathered the bones of them that were hanged; the seven
sons of Saul
who had been lately hanged; who either had hung so long that
their flesh was consumed
and the bones dropped upon the ground
from whence
they gathered them; or they took them down and burnt the flesh off of them
and
took the bones to bury them
which was not usually doneF21Lipsins de
Cruce
l. 2. c. 16. .
2 Samuel 21:14 14 They buried the bones of
Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zelah
in the tomb of
Kish his father. So they performed all that the king commanded. And after that
God heeded the prayer for the land.
YLT
14and bury the bones of Saul
and of Jonathan his son in the land of Benjamin
in Zelah
in the burying-place
of Kish his father
and do all that the king commanded
and God is entreated
for the land afterwards.
And the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son
.... Together
with those who had been hanged:
buried they in the country of Benjamin in Zelah; a city in the
tribe of Benjamin
Joshua 18:28
in the sepulchre of Kish his father; the father of Saul
1 Samuel 9:1; and
which
according to FullerF23Pisgah-Sight
B. 2. c. 12. p. 258.
and the position of it in his map
was not far from the hill on which the seven
sons of Saul were hanged:
and they performed all that the king commanded; that is
David's messengers and servants did; they fetched the bones of Saul and
Jonathan from Jabeshgilead
and buried them with those of his seven sons
hanged
in the burying place of his father Kish
and made a general mourning
for them; for the Jews sayF24Bemidbar Rabba
ut supra. (fol. 190.
1.)
that by David's order Saul's coffin was carried through every tribe
and
men
women
and children
came out and expressed concern:
and after that God was entreated for the land; not after the
burial of the said persons
but after the seven men were hanged up; by this the
wrath of God was appeased
which was seen by his sending rain and fruitful
seasons
so that the famine ceased.
2 Samuel 21:15 15 When the Philistines were
at war again with Israel
David and his servants with him went down and fought
against the Philistines; and David grew faint.
YLT
15And again have the
Philistines war with Israel
and David goeth down
and his servants with him
and they fight with the Philistines; and David is weary
Moreover the Philistines had yet war again with Israel
.... Besides
what is before recorded in this and the preceding book; being animated to it
partly by the number of giants among them
and partly by the decline of David's
life
and it may be chiefly by the insurrections and rebellions in Israel;
though some think that these battles were not after the rebellions of Absalom
and Sheba
and the affair of the Gibeonites
though here recorded; but before
and quickly after the war with the Ammonites
next to which they are placed in 1 Chronicles 20:1;
but they seem to be placed here in their proper order:
and David went down
and his servants with him; to the borders
of the Philistines
perceiving they were preparing to make war against him:
and fought against the Philistines; engaged in a battle with
them:
and David waxed faint; in the battle
not able
to bear the fatigues of war
and wield his armour as he had used
being in the
decline of life; after he had been engaged a while
his spirits began to fail
not through fear
but through feebleness; but
according to Josephus
it was
through weariness in pursuing the enemy put to flight
which the following
person perceived
and turned upon himF25Antiqu. l. 7. c. 12. sect.
1. .
2 Samuel 21:16 16 Then Ishbi-Benob
who was
one of the sons of the giant
the weight of whose bronze spear was three
hundred shekels
who was bearing a new sword
thought he could
kill David.
YLT
16and Ishbi-Benob
who [is]
among the children of the giant -- the weight of his spear [is] three hundred
[shekels] weight of brass
and he is girded with a new one -- speaketh of
smiting David
And Ishbibenob
which was of the sons of the giant
.... Of
Goliath
or of a giant
of the race of them:
the weight of whose spear weighed three hundred shekels
of brass in weight; which must be understood either of the wood of it
or of the
head of it
the flaming point of it
as many interpret it; and if so
it was
but half the weight of Goliath's spear
unless there was any difference of the
weight of iron and of brass
see 1 Samuel 17:7
he being girded with a new sword; or rather
with a new girdle
as the Targum; and so Jarchi
which might be given him as a
mark of honour
or as a token of his having a commission in the army:
thought to have slain David; his aim was at him
and
perceiving him faint and feeble
thought to take the advantage of it
and
dispatch him.
2 Samuel 21:17 17 But Abishai the son of
Zeruiah came to his aid
and struck the Philistine and killed him. Then the men
of David swore to him
saying
“You shall go out no more with us to battle
lest you quench the lamp of Israel.”
YLT
17and Abishai son of Zeruiah
giveth help to him
and smiteth the Philistine
and putteth him to death; then
swear the men of David to him
saying
`Thou dost not go out again with us to
battle
nor quench the lamp of Israel.'
But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him
.... Observing
him in danger
made haste to his relief:
and smote the Philistine
and killed him; it seems as
if Abishai engaged with the Philistine
and killed him; but inasmuch as it will
bear to be interpreted of David
and since the four giants here and hereafter
mentioned are said to fall by the hand of David and his servants
2 Samuel 21:22
it
may be thought that this man fell by his hand; seeing it is clear that all the
rest fell by the hands of his servants:
then the men of David sware unto him; after they
had observed the danger he was exposed unto
and how narrowly he escaped with
his life:
saying
thou shalt go no more with us to battle; they had
persuaded him not to go to the battle with Absalom; they had suffered him to go
with them now
he being
no doubt
forward and pressing to it; but now they
were resolute
and determined he should never go more:
that thou quench not the light of Israel; signifying
that their glory and prosperity depended on his life
and that
should he be
taken away
they should be in affliction and adversity
their honour and their
happiness would be at an end; the Targum is
"thou mayest not extinguish
the kingdom of Israel
'the light and glory of it.
2 Samuel 21:18 18 Now it happened afterward
that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob. Then Sibbechai the
Hushathite killed Saph
[c] who was
one of the sons of the giant.
YLT
18And it cometh to pass
afterwards
that the battle is again in Gob with the Philistines
then hath
Sibbechai the Hushathite smitten Saph
who [is] among the children of the
giant.
And it came to pass after this
.... After the former
battle:
that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Gob; in 1 Chronicles 20:4
it is called Gezer; either the place had two names
or these two places were
near each other; so that the battle may be said to be fought both at the one
and at the other
being fought equally near to both:
then Sibbechai the Hushathite slew Saph
which was of the
sons of the giant; who is called Sippai
1 Chronicles 20:4;
he had his name from the lintel of a door
being as high as one
so tall that
he could scarce go under one. Sibbechai was one of David's worthies
1 Chronicles 11:29;
perhaps a descendant of Hushah
who sprung from Judah
1 Chronicles 4:4.
2 Samuel 21:19 19 Again there was war at Gob
with the Philistines
where Elhanan the son of Jaare-Oregim[d] the
Bethlehemite killed the brother of Goliath the Gittite
the shaft of
whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
YLT
19And the battle is again in
Gob with the Philistines
and Elhanan son of Jaare-Oregim
the Beth-Lehemite
smiteth [a brother of] Goliath the Gittite
and the wood of his spear [is] like
a beam of weavers.
And there was again a battle in Gob with the Philistines
.... Another
battle with them in the same place:
where Elhanan the son of Jaareoregim
a Bethlehemite
slew the
brother of Goliath the Gittite; the word
"brother" is rightly supplied from 1 Chronicles 20:5;
where his name is said to be Lahmi
for not Goliath himself was slain
though
some so interpret it
and take Elhanan to be David; so Jarchi
and with which
agrees the Targum; but he was slain not at Gob
but in the valley of Elah
nor
had David any such name as Elhanan; he was one of David's worthies
2 Samuel 23:24;
where he is called the son of Dodo
and in 1 Chronicles 20:5
the son of Jair; and Lahmi there may not be the name of Goliath's brother
but
as here
the country name of Elhanan; for the wordsF26Vid. Buxtorf.
Anticritic. par. 2. c. 2. p. 421. there may be rendered
"and Elhanan the
son of Jair
the Lehemite (i.e. the Bethlehemite)
slew the brother of Goliath
the Gittite
'and so perfectly agrees
with this:
the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam; not of
Goliath's brother
but of Goliath himself
1 Samuel 17:7.
2 Samuel 21:20 20 Yet again there was war at
Gath
where there was a man of great stature
who had six fingers on
each hand and six toes on each foot
twenty-four in number; and he also was
born to the giant.
YLT
20And the battle is again in
Gath
and there is a man of stature
and the fingers of his hands [are] six
and the toes of his feet [are] six
twenty and four in number
and he also hath
been born to the giant
And there was yet a battle in Gath
.... Besides the battles
in the above place or places; for this does not necessarily suppose that one of
the said battles had been there
only that this
which was another battle
had
been there:
where was a man of great stature; for so the
sense of the word appears to be from 1 Chronicles 20:6;
though here it signifies a man of strife and contention
a man of war
and both
were true of him:
that had on every hand six fingers
and on every foot six toes
four and twenty in number; twelve fingers on his two hands
and twelve
toes on his two feet. PlinyF1Nat. Hist. l. 11. c. 43. speaks of one
M. Curiatius
a patrician
who had two daughters that had six fingers on an
hand
and were called "Sedigitae"
six-fingered; and of Volcatius
a
famous poet
called "Sedigitus"
or six-fingered
for the same
reason; and elsewhere
from other writersF2Megasthenes apud ib. l.
7. c. 2. he makes mention of a people that had eight toes each foot; so CtesiasF3In
Indicis
c. 31. speaks of a people in the mountains of India
which have eight
fingers on each hand
and eight toes on each foot
both men and women:
and he also was born to the giant; a son of a giant.
2 Samuel 21:21 21 So when he defied Israel
Jonathan the son of Shimea
[e] David’s
brother
killed him.
YLT
21and he reproacheth Israel
and smite him doth Jonathan son of Shimeah
brother of David;
And when he defied Israel
.... The armies of
Israel
as Goliath had done some years ago
1 Samuel 17:10
Jonathan the son of Shimea the brother of David slew him; this brother
of David is called Shammah
1 Samuel 16:9; and
Shimma
1 Chronicles 2:13;
this son of his is another man from Jonadab his son
who was famous for his
subtlety as this was for his valour
2 Samuel 13:3. The
Jews sayF4Hieron. Trad. Heb. fol. 76. D. this was Nathan the
prophet
a son of Shammah.
2 Samuel 21:22 22 These four were born to
the giant in Gath
and fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his
servants.
YLT
22these four have been born
to the giant in Gath
and they fall by the hand of David
and by the hand of
his servants.
These four were born to the giant in Gath
.... Not to
Goliath
for one of them was his brother
but to some giant or another of that
place
for which it was famous; they were all of them of the race of the
giants; and so the Septuagint version
they were"the offspring of the
giants in Gath
whose family was Repha;'and this Repha
or Arepha
as the
Vulgate Latin version
according to Abarbinel
was a woman of the daughters of
the giants; the TalmudistsF5T. Bab. Sotah. fol. 42. 2. make her to
be the same with Orpah
1:4. These giants
it is
highly probable
were the descendants of the Anakim which remained in Gath
after they were cut off by Joshua in other places
Joshua 11:22
and fell by the hand of David
and by the hand of his servants; the first
Ishbibenob
fell by the hand of David assisted by Abishai
and the other three
by the persons mentioned.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)