2Ki 4:1 And a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets had cried to Elisha, saying, My husband, your servant, is dead. And you know that your servant has seen Jehovah. And the lender has come to take my two children to himself for slaves.
2Ki 4:2 And Elisha said to her, What shall I do for you? Tell me. What do you have in the house? And she said, Your handmaid has nothing in the house except a pot of oil.
2Ki 4:3 And he said, Go, beg vessels for yourself from outside, from your neighbors, empty vessels. Do not let them be few.
2Ki 4:4 And you shall go in and shut the door on you, and on your sons, and shall pour out into all these vessels. And you shall set aside the full ones.
2Ki 4:5 And she left him, and shut the door on her and on her sons. They carried to her, and she poured out.
2Ki 4:6 And it happened when the vessels were full, she said to her son, Bring another vessel to me. And he said to her, There is no other vessel; and the oil stopped.
2Ki 4:7 And she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and repay your loan. And you and your sons shall live from the rest.
2Ki 4:8 And the day came that Elisha crossed over to Shunem. And a great woman was there. And she lay hold on him to eat bread. And it happened, as often as he passed by, he turned aside there to eat bread.
2Ki 4:9 And she said to her husband, Behold now, I know that he is a holy man of God who passes by us continually.
2Ki 4:10 Now let us make a little walled roof room, and let us set a bed for him there, and a table, and a chair, and a lampstand. And it shall be, when he comes to us, he shall turn in there.
2Ki 4:11 And the day came when he came in there and turned into the roof room, and lay there.
2Ki 4:12 And he said to his young man Gehazi, Call this Shunammite. And he called her, and she stood before him.
2Ki 4:13 And he said to him, Now say to her, Behold, you have trembled with all this care for us. What shall I do for you? Shall I speak to the king for you, or to the army commander? And she said, I live among my people.
2Ki 4:14 And he said, What then shall I do for her? And Gehazi said, Truly there is no son to her. And her husband is old.
2Ki 4:15 And he said, Call for her. And he called for her. And she stood at the door.
2Ki 4:16 And he said, At this season, according to the time of life you shall embrace a son. And she said, No, my lord, O man of God, do not lie to your handmaid.
2Ki 4:17 And the woman conceived and bore a son, at this season, according to the time of life that Elisha spoke of to her.
2Ki 4:18 And the boy grew, and the day came that he went out to his father, to the reapers.
2Ki 4:19 And he said to his father, My head! My head! And he said to the young man, Carry him to his mother.
2Ki 4:20 And he carried him, and brought him to his mother. And he sat on her knees until noon, and died.
2Ki 4:21 And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door on him, and went out.
2Ki 4:22 And she called to her husband, and said, Please send to me one of the young men, and one of the asses, and I shall run to the man of God, and return.
2Ki 4:23 And he said, Why are you going to him today; it is neither new moon nor sabbath? And she said, Peace.
2Ki 4:24 And she saddled the ass and said to her young man, Lead on, and go. Do not hold back riding for me except I speak to you.
2Ki 4:25 And she went, and came to the man of God, to Mount Carmel. And it happened, when the man of God saw her from afar, he said to his young man Gehazi, Behold, The Shunammite!
2Ki 4:26 Now please run to meet her, and say to her, Is it well with you? Is it well with your husband? Is it well with the boy? And she said, Well.
2Ki 4:27 And she came to the mountain to the man of God, and lay hold on his feet. And Gehazi came near to thrust her away. But the man of God said, Let her alone, for her soul is bitter in her, and Jehovah has hidden it from me, and has not told me.
2Ki 4:28 And she said, Did I ask a son from my lord? Did I not say, Do not deceive me?
2Ki 4:29 And he said to Gehazi, Gird up your loins and take my staff in your hand, and go. When you meet a man, you shall not greet him. And when a man shall greet you, you shall not answer him. And you shall lay my staff on the face of the boy.
2Ki 4:30 And the mother of the boy said, As Jehovah lives, and your soul lives, I will not leave you. And he rose up and went after her.
2Ki 4:31 And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff on the face of the boy. But there was no voice, and there was no hearing. And he turned back to meet him, and told him, saying, The boy has not awakened.
2Ki 4:32 And Elisha came into the house. And, behold, the boy was dead, laid out on his bed.
2Ki 4:33 And he went in and shut the door on both of them, and prayed to Jehovah.
2Ki 4:34 And he went up and lay down on the boy, and put his mouth on his mouth, and his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands, and stretched himself on him. And the flesh of the boy became warm.
2Ki 4:35 And he returned, and walked in the house, once here and once there. And he went up and stretched himself on him. And the boy sneezed seven times, and the boy opened his eyes.
2Ki 4:36 And he called Gehazi and said, Call this Shunammite. And he called her, and she came in to him. And he said, Take up your son.
2Ki 4:37 And she went in and fell at his feet, and bowed to the earth, and took up her son, and went out.
2Ki 4:38 And Elisha returned to Gilgal. And the famine was in the land. And the sons of the prophets were sitting before him. And he said to his young man, Set on the big pot and boil soup for the sons of the prophets.
2Ki 4:39 And one went out to the field to gather herbs, and found a vine of the field, and gathered gourds from it in the field. And with the lap of his garment full, he came in and shredded them into the pot of soup; for they did not know.
2Ki 4:40 And they poured out for the men to eat. And it happened, when they were eating the soup, they cried out and said, Death is in the pot O man of God! And they were not able to eat.
2Ki 4:41 And he said, Then bring meal. And he threw into the pot, and said, Pour out for the people and they shall eat. And there was no evil thing in the pot.
2Ki 4:42 And a man came from Baal-shalisha and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley, and ripe ears of grain in his sack. And he said, Give to the people, and they may eat.
2Ki 4:43 And his servant said, What? Should I set this before a hundred men? And he said, Give to the people, and they shall eat. For so says Jehovah, Eat and have some left.
2Ki 4:44 And he set before them, and they ate, and left some of it, according to the Word of Jehovah.

2Ki 3:1 And Jehoram the son of Ahab reigned over Israel in Samaria, in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah; and he reigned twelve years.
2Ki 3:2 And he did that which was evil in the eyes of Jehovah; only not like his father and his mother. For he put away the pillar of Baal that his father had made.
2Ki 3:3 But he clung to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. He did not turn aside from it.
2Ki 3:4 And Mesha the king of Moab was a sheepmaster. And he paid a hundred thousand lambs to the king of Israel and a hundred thousand rams with wool.
2Ki 3:5 And it happened when Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
2Ki 3:6 And King Jehoram went out in that day from Samaria, and called up all Israel.
2Ki 3:7 And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up. I am as you; my people as your people; my horses as your horses.
2Ki 3:8 And he said, Which way shall we go up? And he answered, The way through the wilderness of Edom.
2Ki 3:9 And the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom. And they made a circuit of seven days’ journey. And there was no water for the army, and for the livestock that were at their feet.
2Ki 3:10 And the king of Israel said, Alas, that Jehovah has called these three kings to deliver them into the hand of Moab!
2Ki 3:11 And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of Jehovah, that we may inquire of Jehovah by him? And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.
2Ki 3:12 And Jehoshaphat said, The Word of Jehovah is with him. And the king of Israel, and Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom went down to him.
2Ki 3:13 And Elisha said to the king of Israel, What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father, and to the prophets of your mother. And the king of Israel said to him, No, for Jehovah has called these three kings in order to give them into the hand of Moab.
2Ki 3:14 And Elisha said, As Jehovah of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely, if I did not regard the face of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah I would not look toward you, nor see you.
2Ki 3:15 And now, bring a minstrel to me. And it happened when the minstrel played, the hand of Jehovah was on him.
2Ki 3:16 And he said, So says Jehovah, Make this valley full of ditches.
2Ki 3:17 For so says Jehovah, You shall not see wind nor shall you see rain. Yet that stream bed shall be filled with water, so that you may drink, both you and your livestock, and your animals.
2Ki 3:18 But this is a light thing in the eyes of Jehovah; He also has given Moab into your hand.
2Ki 3:19 And you shall strike every fortified city, and every choice city. And you shall fell every good tree, and you shall stop all the fountains of water. And you shall mar every good lot with stones.
2Ki 3:20 And it happened in the morning, when the food offering was caused to go up, behold, water came by the way of Edom; and the country was filled with water.
2Ki 3:21 And all Moab had heard that the kings had come up to fight against them. And they were called together, everyone able to gird on a girdle, and upward. And they stood by the border.
2Ki 3:22 And they rose up early in the morning. And the sun was shining on the water, and the Moabites saw the water on the opposite side as red as blood.
2Ki 3:23 And they said, This is blood. The kings fighting have fought one another, and they each man struck his neighbor. And now to the plunder, Moab!
2Ki 3:24 And they came to the camp of Israel. And the Israelites rose up and struck the Moabites. And they fled from before them. And striking they struck Moab.
2Ki 3:25 And they broke down the cities; and they each man cast his stone on every good piece of land, and filled it. And they stopped every fountain of water. And they felled every good tree, until there was left only Kir-haraseth with its stones. But the slingers surrounded it and struck it.
2Ki 3:26 And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too strong for him, then he took with him seven hundred men who drew swords to break through to the king of Edom. And they were not able.
2Ki 3:27 And he took his son, the firstborn who would reign in his place and caused him to go up for a burnt offering on the wall. And there was great wrath against Israel. And they left him and returned to the land.

2Ki 2:1 And it happened, when Jehovah was to cause Elijah to go up to Heaven in a tempest, Elijah and Elisha went from Gilgal.
2Ki 2:2 And Elijah said to Elisha, Please stay here, for Jehovah has sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said, As Jehovah lives, and your soul lives, I will not leave you. And they went down to Bethel.
2Ki 2:3 And the sons of the prophets in Bethel came out to Elisha, and said to him, Do you know that today Jehovah will take your lord from your head? And he said, Yes, I know. Keep silent.
2Ki 2:4 And Elijah said to him, Elisha, please stay here, for Jehovah has sent me to Jericho. And he said, As Jehovah lives, and your soul lives, I will not leave you. And they came into Jericho.
2Ki 2:5 And the sons of the prophets in Jericho came near to Elisha, and said to him, Do you know that today Jehovah will take away your lord from your head? And he said, Yes, I know. Keep silent.
2Ki 2:6 And Elijah said to him, Please stay here, for Jehovah has sent me to the Jordan. And he said, As Jehovah lives, and your soul lives, I will not leave you. And they went on, both of them.
2Ki 2:7 And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went on and stood afar off, across from them. And they both stood by the Jordan.
2Ki 2:8 And Elijah took his mantle, and rolled it up, and struck the waters. And they were divided here and there, so that they both went over on dry ground.
2Ki 2:9 And it happened, when they were crossing, Elijah said to Elisha, Ask what I shall do for you before I am taken from you. And Elisha said, Then let there now be a double portion of your spirit on me.
2Ki 2:10 And he said, You have asked a hard thing. If you shall see me taken from you, it shall be so to you. And if not, it shall not be.
2Ki 2:11 And it happened, as they were going on and speaking, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire came. And they separated between them both, and Elijah went up in a tempest to Heaven.
2Ki 2:12 And Elisha was watching, and he was crying, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen! And he did not see him again. And he took hold on his garments and tore them into two pieces.
2Ki 2:13 And he lifted up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and turned back and stood on the lip of the Jordan.
2Ki 2:14 And he took Elijah’s mantle that had fallen from him, and struck the waters, and said, Where is Jehovah the God of Elijah, even He? And he struck the waters; and they were split in two here and there, and Elisha crossed over.
2Ki 2:15 And when they saw him, the sons of the prophets across in Jericho, then they said, The spirit of Elijah has rested on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed to the earth to him.
2Ki 2:16 And they said to him, Behold, now, there are with your servants fifty men, mighty sons. Please let them go, and they shall seek your lord, lest the Spirit of Jehovah has taken him up and has cast him on one of the mountains, or into one of the valleys. And he said, You shall not send.
2Ki 2:17 And they pressed on him until he was ashamed. And he said, Send. And they sent fifty men, and they sought three days and did not find him.
2Ki 2:18 And they returned to him, and he was staying in Jericho. And he said to them, Did I not say to you, Do not go?
2Ki 2:19 And the men of the city said to Elisha, Behold, now, the site of the city is good, as my lord sees, but the waters are bad; and the ground causes barrenness.
2Ki 2:20 And he said, Bring a new dish to me, and put salt there. And they took it to him.
2Ki 2:21 And he went out to the source of the waters and threw salt there, and said, So says Jehovah, I have given healing to these waters; there shall not be death and sterility there any more.
2Ki 2:22 And the waters were healed to this day, according to the word of Elisha that he spoke.
2Ki 2:23 And he went up from there to Bethel. And he was going up in the highway. And little boys came out from the city and mocked him, and said to him, Go up, bald head! Go up, bald head!
2Ki 2:24 And he turned behind him and saw them, and declared them vile in the name of Jehovah. And two bears came out of the forest and tore forty two boys of them.
2Ki 2:25 And he went from there to Mount Carmel, and from there he returned to Samaria.

2Ki 1:1 And Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab.
2Ki 1:2 And Ahaziah fell through the lattice-work in his upper room in Samaria, and was sick. And he sent messengers and said to them, Go, ask of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron if I will recover from this sickness.
2Ki 1:3 And an angel of Jehovah spoke to Elijah the Tishbite, Rise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, Is it because there is not a God in Israel that you are going to ask of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron?
2Ki 1:4 And so Jehovah says this, You shall not come down from that bed on which you have gone up, but dying you shall die. And Elijah departed.
2Ki 1:5 And the messengers returned to him. And he said to them, What is this, that you have turned back?
2Ki 1:6 And they said to him, A man came up to meet us, and said to us, Go, return to the king who sent you. And you shall say to him, So says Jehovah, Is it because there is not a God in Israel that you are sending to ask of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron? Therefore, you shall not come down from the bed on which you have gone up, for dying you shall die.
2Ki 1:7 And he said to them, What was the fashion of the man who came up to meet you and spoke these words to you?
2Ki 1:8 And they said to him, A hairy man, and a girdle of leather was girded about his loins. And he said, He is Elijah the Tishbite.
2Ki 1:9 And the king sent to him the commander of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him. And behold, he was sitting on the top of the hill. And he spoke to him, O man of God, the king has said, Come down.
2Ki 1:10 And Elijah answered and said to the commander of fifty, And if I am a man of God, fire will come down from the heavens and consume you and your fifty. And fire came down from the heavens and consumed him and his fifty.
2Ki 1:11 And he turned and sent another commander of fifty and his fifty to him. And he answered and said to him, O man of God, so says the king, Hurry, come down.
2Ki 1:12 And Elijah answered and said to them, If I am a man of God, fire will come down from the heavens and will consume you and your fifty. And fire from God came down from the heavens and consumed him and his fifty.
2Ki 1:13 And he turned and sent a third commander of fifty and his fifty. And the third commander of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and begged him, and said to him, O man of God, please let my life and the life of your servants, these fifty, be precious in your eyes.
2Ki 1:14 Behold, fire has come down from the heavens and has consumed the two commanders of the former fifties and their fifties. And now let my life be precious in your eyes.
2Ki 1:15 And the Angel of Jehovah spoke to Elijah, Go down with him. Do not be afraid of him. And he rose up and went down with him to the king.
2Ki 1:16 And he said to him, So says Jehovah, Because you have sent messengers to ask of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, is it because there is not a God in Israel to inquire of His Word? Therefore, you shall not come down from the bed on which you have gone up, for dying you shall die.
2Ki 1:17 And he died, according to the Word of Jehovah that Elijah spoke. And Jehoram reigned in his place, in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, for he had no son.
2Ki 1:18 And the rest of the acts of Ahaziah that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Matters of the Days of the Kings of Israel?

Introduction to the Books of the Bible

The Book of Job

Author
Although most of the book consists of the words of Job and his friends, Job himself was not the author. We may be sure that the author was an Israelite, since he (not Job or his friends) frequently uses the Israelite covenant name for God (Yahweh; NIV “the Lord” ). In the prologue (chs. 1-2), divine discourses (38:1- 42:6) and epilogue (42:7-17) “Lord” occurs a total of 25 times, while in the rest of the book (chs. 3-37) it appears only once (12:9).

This unknown author probably had access to a tradition (oral or written) about an ancient righteous man who endured great suffering with remarkable ” perseverance” (Jas 5:11; see note there) and without turning against God (see Eze 14:14,20), a tradition he put to use for his own purposes. While the author preserves much of the archaic and non-Israelite flavor in the language of Job and his friends, he also reveals his own style as a writer of wisdom literature. The book’s profound insights, its literary structures and the quality of its rhetoric display the author’s genius.

Date
Two dates are involved: (1) that of Job himself and (2) that of the composition of the book. The latter could be dated anytime from the reign of Solomon to the time of Israel’s exile in Babylonia. Although the author was an Israelite, he mentions nothing of Israel’s history. He had an account of a non-Israelite sage Job (1:1) who probably lived in the second millennium b.c. (2000-1000). Like the Hebrew patriarchs, Job lived more than 100 years (42:16). Like them, his wealth was measured in livestock and servants (1:3), and like them he acted as priest for his family (1:5). The raiding of Sabean (1:15) and Chaldean (1:17) tribes fits the second millennium, as does the mention of the k e ?s i ?£t a h, “a piece of silver,” in 42:11 (see Ge 33:19; Jos 24:32). The discovery of a Targum (Aramaic paraphrase) on Job dating to the first or second century b.c. (the earliest written Targum yet discovered) makes a very late date for composition highly unlikely.

Language and Text
In many places Job is difficult to translate because of its many unusual words and its style. For that reason, modern translations frequently differ widely. Even the pre-Christian translator(s) of Job into Greek (the Septuagint) seems often to have been perplexed. The Septuagint of Job is about 400 lines shorter than the accepted Hebrew text, and it may be that the translator(s) simply omitted lines he (they) did not understand. The early Syriac (Peshitta), Aramaic (Targum) and Latin (Vulgate) translators had similar difficulties.

Setting and Perspective
While it may be that the author intended his book to be a contribution to an ongoing high-level discussion of major theological issues in an exclusive company of learned men, it seems more likely that he intended his story to be told to godly sufferers who like Job were struggling with the crisis of faith brought on by prolonged bitter suffering. He seems to sit too close to the suffering- to be more the sympathetic and compassionate pastor than the detached theologian or philosopher. He has heard what the learned theologians of his day have been saying about the ways of God and what brings on suffering, and he lets their voices be heard. And he knows that the godly sufferers of his day have also heard the “wisdom” of the learned and have internalized it as the wisdom of the ages. But he also knows what “miserable comfort” (16:2) that so-called wisdom gives- that it ony rubs salt in the wounds and creates a stumbling-block for faith. Against that wisdom he has no rational arguments to marshal. But he has a story to tell that challenges it at its very roots and speaks to the struggling faith of the sufferer. In effect he says to the godly sufferer, “Forget the logical arguments spun out by those who sit together at their ease and discuss the ways of God, and forget those voices in your own heart that are little more than echoes of their pronouncements. Let me tell you a story.”

Theological Theme and Message
When good people (those who “fear God and shun evil,” 1:1) suffer, the human spirit struggles to understand. Throughout recorded history people have asked: How can this be? If God is almighty and “holds the whole world in his hands” and if he is truly good, how can he allow such an outrage? The way this question has often been put leaves open three possibilities: (1) God is not almighty after all; (2) God is not just (is not wholly good but has a demonic streak in him); (3) humans may be innocent. In ancient Israel, however, it was indisputable that God is almighty, that he is perfectly just and that no human is pure in his sight. These three assumptions were also fundamental to the theology of Job and his friends. Simple logic then dictated the conclusion: Every person’s suffering is indicative of the measure of their guilt in the eyes of God. In the abstract, this conclusion appeared inescapable, logically imperative and theologically satisfying.

But what thus appeared to be theologically self-evident and unassailable in the abstract was often in radical tension with actual human experience. There were those whose godliness was genuine, whose moral character was upright and who had kept themselves from great transgression, but who nonetheless were made to suffer bitterly (see, e.g., Ps 73). For these the self-evident theology brought no consolation and offered no guidance. It only gave rise to a great enigma. And the God to whom the sufferer was accustomed to turn in moments of need himself became the overwhelming enigma. This theology left innocent sufferers imprisoned in windowless cells to agonize over their crisis of faith. In the speeches of chs. 3-37, we hear on the one hand the flawless logic but wounding thrusts of those who insisted on the traditional theology, and on the other hand the writhing of soul of the righteous sufferer struggling with the great enigma even while being wounded by his well-intended, theologically orthodox friends (see note on 5:27). Their learned theology had no helpful, encouraging or comforting word for a truly godly sufferer.

The author of the book of Job broke out of the tight, logical mold of the traditional orthodox theology of his day. He saw that it led to a dead end, that it had no way to cope with the suffering of godly people. It could only deny the reality of the experienced anomaly and add to the pain and inner turmoil of the sufferer. Instead of logical arguments, he tells a story. And in his story he shifts the angle of perspective. All around him, among theologians and common people alike, were those who attempted to solve the “God problem” in the face of human suffering (are the ways of God just?) at the expense of humans (they must all deserve what they get). Even those who were suffering were told they must see matters in that light. The author of Job, on the other hand, gave encouragement to godly suffers by showing them that their suffering provided an occasion like no other for exemplifying what true godliness is for human beings.

He begins by introducing a third party into the equation. The relationship between God and humans is not exclusive and closed. Among God’s creatures there is the great adversary (see chs. 1-2). Incapable of contending with God hand to hand, power pitted against power, he is bent on frustrating God’s creation enterprise centered on God’s relationship with the creature that bears his image. As tempter he seeks to alienate humans from God (see Ge 3; Mt 4:1); as accuser (one of the names by which he is called, ?s a ?£t a n, means “accuser” ) he seeks to alienate God from humans (see Zec 3:1; Rev 12:9-10). His all-consuming purpose is to drive an irremovable wedge between God and humans to effect an alienation that cannot be reconciled.

In his story, the author portrays this adversary in his boldest and most radical assault on God and godly people in the special and intimate relationship that is dearest to them both. When God calls up the name of Job before the accuser and testifies to his righteousness- this creature in whom God takes special delight- Satan attempts with one crafty thrust both to assail God’s beloved and to show up God as a fool. True to one of his modes of operation, he accuses Job before God. He charges that Job’s godliness is evil. The very godliness in which God takes such delight lacks all integrity; it is a terrible sin. Job’s godliness is mere self-serving; he is righteous only because it pays. If God will only let Satan tempt Job by breaking the link between righteousness and blessing, he will expose this man and all righteous people as the frauds they are.

It is the adversary’s ultimate challenge. He is sure he has found an opening to accomplish his purpose in the very structure of creation. Humans are totally dependent on God for their very lives and well-being. That fact can occasion one of humankind’s greatest temptations: to love the gifts rather than the Giver, to try to please God merely for the sake of his benefits, to be “religious” and “good” only because it pays. Satan’s accusation of Job is that this is the deep truth concerning his apparently godly and upright conduct- that this is, in fact, the deep truth about the godliness of all righteous people. If he is right, if the godliness of the righteous in whom God delights can be shown to be evil, then a chasm of alienation stands between God and human beings that cannot be bridged. Then even the redemption of human beings is unthinkable, for the godliest among them would be shown to be the most ungodly. God’s whole enterprise in creation and redemption would be shown to be radically flawed, and God can only sweep it all away in awful judgment.

The accusation, once raised, cannot be ignored, and it cannot be silenced- not even by destroying the accuser; it strikes too deeply into the very structure of creation and is rooted too deeply in the human condition within that structure. So God lets the adversary have his way with Job (within specified limits) so that God and righteous Job may be vindicated and the great accuser silenced. From this comes Job’s profound anguish, robbed as he is of every sign of God’s favor so that God becomes for him the great enigma. And his righteousness is also assailed on earth through the logic of the orthodox theology of his friends. Alone he agonizes. But he knows in the depths of his heart that his godliness has been authentic and that someday he will be vindicated (see 13:18; 14:13-17; 16:19; 19:25-27). And in spite of all, though he may curse the day of his birth (ch. 3) and chide God for treating him unjustly (9:28-35)- the uncalculated outcry of a distraught spirit- he will not curse God (as his wife, the human nearest his heart, proposed; see 2:9). In fact, what pains him most is God’s apparent alienation from him.

So the adversary is silenced, and God’s delight in the godly is vindicated. Robbed of every sign of God’s favor, Job refuses to repudiate his Maker. He faces toward God with anguish, puzzlement, anger and bitter complaints, but never turns his back on him to march off- godless- into the dark night. His whole being yearns, not for God’s gifts as such, but for a sign of God’s favor (cf. Ps 42). Godly Job, dependent creature that he is, passes the supreme test occasioned by his creaturely condition and the adversary’s accusation.

This first test of Job’s godliness inescapably involves a second that challenges his godliness at a level no less deep than the first. For the test that sprang from Satan’s accusation to be real, Job has to be kept in the dark about the goings-on in God’s council chamber. But Job belongs to a race of creatures endowed with wisdom, understanding and insight (something of their godlikeness) that cannot rest until it knows and understands all it can about the creation and the ways of God. For that reason, Job’s sudden loss of all that makes life good- every good gift from God- cries out for explanation and puts human wisdom to a supreme test. Job’s friends confidently assume that the logic of their theology can account for all God’s ways. However, Job’s experience makes bitterly clear to him that their “wisdom” cannot fathom the truth of his situation. Yet Job’s wisdom is also at a loss to understand. Still, he demands of God an explanation; he wants to reason matters out with God as his equal. When the dialogue between Job and his three wise friends finally stalemates, and before Job’s last defense (chs. 29-31), the vain attempt of a brash younger voice to explain Job’s plight, and Yahweh’s own breaking-in on the scene, the author introduces a poetic essay on wisdom (ch. 28) that exposes the limits of all human wisdom. The wisdom God has given human beings can indeed understand creaturely things, but from these creaturely things humans cannot learn all of God’s ways. For them the supreme wisdom is to “fear”¦the Lord”¦and to shun evil” (see v. 28)- the very wisdom that had marked Job’s life all the while (see 1:8). Standing as it does at a major juncture between the dialogue and the final major speeches, this authorial commentary on what has been going on in the stalemated dialogue anticipates God’s final word to Job, which silences his arguments and defenses. In the end Job passes the second supreme test of his godliness- of all true godliness- namely, to live by the wisdom God gave him (28:28) even while acknowledging the limits of human wisdom. But that insight and Job’s acceptance of it came only after the long night of suffering and a new hearing of the voice of the Creator speaking from behind the glory curtain of the creation.

In the end the adversary is silenced. Job’s friends are silenced. Job is silenced. But God is not. And when he speaks, it is to the godly Job that he speaks, bringing the silence of regret for hasty words in days of suffering and the silence of repose in the ways of the Almighty (see 38:1- 42:6). Furthermore, as his heavenly friend, God hears Job’s intercessions for his associates (42:8-10), and he restores Job’s blessed state (42:10-17).

In summary, the author’s pastoral word to godly sufferers is that God treasures their righteousness above all else. And Satan knows that if he is to thwart the all-encompassing purpose of God, he must assail the godly righteousness of human beings (see 1:21-22; 2:9-10; 23:8,10; cf. Ge 15:6). At stake in the suffering of the truly godly is the outcome of the titanic struggle between the great adversary and God. At the same time the author gently reminds the godly sufferer that true godly wisdom is to reverently love God more than all his gifts and to trust the wise goodness of God even though his ways are at times past the power of human wisdom to fathom. So here is presented a profound, but painfully practical, drama that wrestles with the wisdom and justice of the Great King’s rule. Righteous sufferers must trust in, acknowledge, serve and submit to the omniscient and omnipotent Sovereign, realizing that some suffering is the result of unseen, spiritual conflicts between the kindgom of God and the kingdom of Satan- between the kingdom of light and the kingdom of darkness (cf. Eph 6:10-18).

Literary Form and Structure
Like some other ancient compositions, the book of Job has a sandwich literary structure: prologue (prose), main body (poetry), and epilogue (prose), revealing a creative composition, not an arbitrary compilation. Some of Job’s words are lament (cf. ch. 3 and many shorter poems in his speeches), but the form of lament is unique to Job and often unlike the regular format of most lament psalms (except Ps 88). Much of the book takes the form of legal disputation. Although the friends come to console him, they end up arguing over the reason for Job’s suffering. The argument breaks down in ch. 27, and Job then proceeds to make his final appeal to God for vindication (chs. 29-31). The wisdom poem in ch. 28 appears to be the words of the author, who sees the failure of the dispute as evidence of a lack of wisdom. So in praise of true wisdom he centers his structural apex between the three cycles of dialogue-dispute (chs. 3-27) and the three monologues: Job’s (chs. 29-31), Elihu’s (chs. 32-37) and God’s (38:1- 42:6). Job’s monologue turns directly to God for a legal decision: that he is innocent of the charges his counselors have leveled against him. Elihu’s monologue- another human perspective on why people suffer- rebukes Job but moves beyond the punishment theme to the value of divine chastening and God’s redemptive purpose in it. God’s monologue gives the divine perspective: Job is not condemned, but neither is a logical or legal answer given to why Job has suffered. That remains a mystery to Job, though the readers are ready for Job’s restoration in the epilogue because they have had the heavenly vantage point of the prologue all along. So the literary structure and the theological significance of the book are beautifully tied together.

Outline

Prologue (chs. 1-2)

Job’s Happiness (1:1-5)

Job’s Testing (1:6- 2:13)

Satan’s first accusation (1:6-12)

Job’s faith despite loss of family and property (1:13-22)

Satan’s second accusation (2:1-6)

Job’s faith during personal suffering (2:7-10)

The coming of the three friends (2:11-13)

Dialogue-Dispute (chs. 3-27)

Job’s Opening Lament (ch. 3)

First Cycle of Speeches (chs. 4-14)

Eliphaz (chs. 4-5)

Job’s reply (chs. 6-7)

Bildad (ch. 8)

Job’s reply (chs. 9-10)

Zophar (ch. 11)

Job’s reply (chs. 12-14)

Second Cycle of Speeches (chs. 15-21)

Eliphaz (ch. 15)

Job’s reply (chs. 16-17)

Bildad (ch. 18)

Job’s reply (ch. 19)

Zophar (ch. 20)

Job’s reply (ch. 21)

Third Cycle of Speeches (chs. 22-26)

Eliphaz (ch. 22)

Job’s reply (chs. 23-24)

Bildad (ch. 25)

Job’s reply (ch. 26)

Job’s Closing Discourse (ch. 27)

Interlude on Wisdom (ch. 28)

Monologues (29:1- 42:6)

Job’s Call for Vindication (chs. 29-31)

His past honor and blessing (ch. 29)

His present dishonor and suffering (ch. 30)

His protestations of innocence and final oath (ch. 31)

Elihu’s Speeches (chs. 32-37)

Introduction (32:1-5)

The speeches themselves (32:6- 37:24)

First speech (32:6- 33:33)

Second speech (ch. 34)

Third speech (ch. 35)

Fourth speech (chs. 36-37)

Divine Discourses (38:1- 42:6)

God’s first discourse (38:1- 40:2)

Job’s response (40:3-5)

God’s second discourse (40:6- 41:34)

Job’s repentance (42:1-6)

Epilogue (42:7-17)

God’s Verdict (42:7-9)

Job’s Restoration (42:10-17)

Introduction to the Books of the Bible

The Book of Ruth

Title
The book is named after one of its main characters, a young woman of Moab, the great-grandmother of David and an ancestress of Jesus (4:21-22; Mt 1:1,5). The only other Biblical book bearing the name of a woman is Esther.

Background
The story is set in the time of the judges, a time characterized in the book of Judges as a period of religious and moral degeneracy, national disunity and frequent foreign oppression. The book of Ruth reflects a time of peace between Israel and Moab (contrast Jdg 3:12-30). Like 1Sa 1-2, it gives a series of intimate glimpses into the private lives of the members of an Israelite family. It also presents a delightful account of the remnant of true faith and piety in the period of the judges, relieving an otherwise wholly dark picture of that era.

Author and Date of Writing
The author is unknown. Jewish tradition points to Samuel, but it is unlikely that he is the author because the mention of David (4:17,22) implies a later date. Further, the literary style of Hebrew used in Ruth suggests that it was written during the period of the monarchy.

Theme and Theology
The importance of faithful love in human relationships among God’s kingdom people is powerfully underscored. The author focuses on Ruth’s unswerving and selfless devotion to desolate Naomi (1:16-17; 2:11-12; 3:10; 4:15) and on Boaz’s kindness to these two widows (chs. 2-4). He presents striking examples of lives that embody in their daily affairs the self-giving love that fulfills God’s law (Lev 19:18; cf. Ro 13:10). Such love also reflects God’s love, in a marvelous joining of human and divine actions (compare 2:12 with 3:9). In God’s benevolence such lives are blessed and are made a blessing.

It may seem surprising that one who reflects God’s love so clearly is a Moabitess (see map, p. 486). Yet her complete loyalty to the Israelite family into which she has been received by marriage and her total devotion to her desolate mother-in-law mark her as a true daughter of Israel and a worthy ancestress of David. She strikingly exemplifies the truth that participation in the coming kingdom of God is decided, not by blood and birth, but by the conformity of one’s life to the will of God through the “obedience that comes from faith” (Ro 1:5). Her place in the ancestry of David signifies that all nations will be represented in the kingdom of David’s greater Son.

As an episode in the ancestry of David, the book of Ruth sheds light on his role in the history of redemption. Redemption is a key concept throughout the account; the Hebrew word in its various forms occurs 23 times. The book is primarily a story of Naomi’s transformation from despair to happiness through the selfless, God-blessed acts of Ruth and Boaz. She moves from emptiness to fullness (1:21; 3:17; see notes on 1:1,3,5-6,12,21-22; 3:17; 4:15), from destitution (1:1-5) to security and hope (4:13-17). Similarly, Israel was transformed from national desperation at the death of Eli (1Sa 4:18) to peace and prosperity in the early days of Solomon (1Ki 4:20-34; 5:4) through the selfless devotion of David, a true descendant of Ruth and Boaz. The author thus reminded Israel that the reign of the house of David, as the means of God’s benevolent rule in Israel, held the prospect of God’s promised peace and rest. But this rest would continue only so long as those who participated in the kingdom- prince and people alike- reflected in their daily lives the selfless love exemplified by Ruth and Boaz. In Jesus, the great “son of David” (Mt 1:1), and his redemptive work, the promised blessings of the kingdom of God find their fulfillment.

Literary Features
The book of Ruth is a Hebrew short story, told with consummate skill. Among historical narratives in Scripture it is unexcelled in its compactness, vividness, warmth, beauty and dramatic effectiveness- an exquisitely wrought jewel of Hebrew narrative art.

Marvelously symmetrical throughout (see Outline), the action moves from a briefly sketched account of distress (1:1-5; 71 words in Hebrew) through four episodes to a concluding account of relief and hope that is drawn with equal brevity (4:13-17; 71 words in Hebrew). The crucial turning point occurs exactly midway (see note on 2:20). The opening line of each of the four episodes signals its main development (1:6, the return; 2:1, the meeting with Boaz; 3:1, finding a home for Ruth; 4:1, the decisive event at the gate), while the closing line of each episode facilitates transition to what follows (see notes on 1:22; 2:23; 3:18; 4:12). Contrast is also used to good effect: pleasant (the meaning of “Naomi” ) and bitter (1:20), full and empty (1:21), and the living and the dead (2:20). Most striking is the contrast between two of the main characters, Ruth and Boaz: The one is a young, alien, destitute widow, while the other is a middle-aged, well-to-do Israelite securely established in his home community. For each there is a corresponding character whose actions highlight, by contrast, his or her selfless acts: Ruth- Orpah, Boaz- the unnamed kinsman.

When movements in space, time and circumstance all correspond in some way, a harmony results that both satisfies the reader’s artistic sense and helps open doors to understanding. The author of Ruth keeps his readers from being distracted from the central story- Naomi’s passage from emptiness to fullness through the selfless acts of Ruth and Boaz (see Theme and Theology). That passage, or restoration, first takes place in connection with her return from Moab to the promised land and to Bethlehem (“house of food” ; see note on 1:1). It then progresses with the harvest season, when the fullness of the land is gathered in. All aspects of the story keep the reader’s attention focused on the central issue. Consideration of these and other literary devices (mentioned throughout the notes) will aid understanding of the book of Ruth.

Outline

Introduction: Naomi Emptied (1:1-5)

Naomi Returns from Moab (1:6-22)

Ruth Clings to Naomi (1:6-18)

Ruth and Naomi Return to Bethlehem (1:19-22)

Ruth and Boaz Meet in the Harvest Fields (ch. 2)

Ruth Begins Work (2:1-7)

Boaz Shows Kindness to Ruth (2:8-16)

Ruth Returns to Naomi (2:17-23)

Naomi Sends Ruth to Boaz’s Threshing Floor (ch. 3)

Naomi Instructs Ruth (3:1-5)

Boaz Pledges to Secure Redemption (3:6-15)

Ruth Returns to Naomi (3:16-18)

Boaz Arranges to Fulfill His Pledge (4:1-12)

Boaz Confronts the Unnamed Kinsman (4:1-8)

Boaz Buys Naomi’s Property and Announces His Marriage to Ruth (4:9-12)

Conclusion: Naomi Filled (4:13-17)

Epilogue: Genealogy of David (4:18-22)

Introduction to the Books of the Bible

The Book of Judges

Title
The title refers to the leaders Israel had from the time of the elders who outlived Joshua until the time of the monarchy. Their principal purpose is best expressed in 2:16: “Then the Lord raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of . . . raiders.” Since it was God who permitted the oppressions and raised up deliverers, he himself was Israel’s ultimate Judge and Deliverer (11:27; see 8:23, where Gideon, a judge, insists that the Lord is Israel’s true ruler).

Author and Date
Although tradition ascribes the book to Samuel, the author is actually unknown. It is possible that Samuel assembled some of the accounts from the period of the judges and that such prophets as Nathan and Gad, both of whom were associated with David’s court, had a hand in shaping and editing the material (see 1Ch 29:29).

The date of composition is also unknown, but it was undoubtedly during the monarchy. The frequent expression “In those days Israel had no king” (17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25) suggests a date after the establishment of the monarchy. The observation that the Jebusites still controlled Jerusalem (1:21) has been taken to indicate a time before David’s capture of the city c. 1000 b.c. (see 2Sa 5:6-10). But the new conditions in Israel alluded to in chs. 17-21 suggest a time after the Davidic dynasty had been effectively established (tenth century b.c.).

Themes and Theology
The book of Judges depicts the life of Israel in the promised land from the death of Joshua to the rise of the monarchy. On the one hand, it is an account of frequent apostasy, provoking divine chastening. On the other hand, it tells of urgent appeals to God in times of crisis, moving the Lord to raise up leaders (judges) through whom he throws off foreign oppressors and restores the land to peace.

With Israel’s conquest of the promised land through the leadership of Joshua, many of the covenant promises God had made to their ancestors were fulfilled (see Jos 21:43-45). The Lord’s land, where Israel was to enter into rest, lay under their feet; it remained only for them to occupy it, to displace the Canaanites and to cleanse it of paganism. The time had come for Israel to be the kingdom of God in the form of an established commonwealth on earth.

But in Canaan Israel quickly forgot the acts of God that had given them birth and had established them in the land. Consequently they lost sight of their unique identity as God’s people, chosen and called to be his army and the loyal citizens of his emerging kingdom. They settled down and attached themselves to Canaan’s peoples together with Canaanite morals, gods, and religious beliefs and practices as readily as to Canaan’s agriculture and social life.

Throughout Judges the fundamental issue is the lordship of God in Israel, especially Israel’s acknowledgment of and loyalty to his rule. His kingship over Israel had been uniquely established by the covenant at Sinai (Ex 19-24), which was later renewed by Moses on the plains of Moab (Dt 29) and by Joshua at Shechem (Jos 24). The author accuses Israel of having rejected the kingship of the Lord again and again. They stopped fighting the Lord’s battles, turned to the gods of Canaan to secure the blessings of family, flocks and fields, and abandoned God’s laws for daily living. In the very center of the cycle of the judges (see Outline), Gideon had to remind Israel that the Lord was their King (see note on 8:23). The recurring lament, and indictment, of chs. 17-21 (see Outline) is: “In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit” (see note on 17:6). The primary reference here is doubtless to the earthly mediators of the Lord’s rule (i.e., human kings), but the implicit charge is that Israel did not truly acknowledge or obey her heavenly King either.

Only by the Lord’s sovereign use of foreign oppression to chasten his people- thereby implementing the covenant curses (see Lev 26:14-45; Dt 28:15-68)- and by his raising up deliverers when his people cried out to him did he maintain his kingship in Israel and preserve his embryonic kingdom from extinction. Israel’s flawed condition was graphically exposed; they continued to need new saving acts by God in order to enter into the promised rest (see note on Jos 1:13).

Out of the recurring cycles of disobedience, foreign oppression, cries of distress, and deliverance (see 2:11-19; Ne 9:26-31) emerges another important theme- the covenant faithfulness of the Lord. The amazing patience and long-suffering of God are no better demonstrated than during this unsettled period.

Remarkably, this age of Israel’s failure, following directly on the redemptive events that came through Moses and Joshua, is in a special way the OT age of the Spirit. God’s Spirit enabled people to accomplish feats of victory in the Lord’s war against the powers that threatened his kingdom (see 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 13:25; 14:6,19; 15:14; see also 1Sa 10:6,10; 11:6; 16:13). This same Spirit, poured out on the church following the redemptive work of the second Joshua (Jesus), empowered the people of the Lord to begin the task of preaching the gospel to all nations and of advancing the kingdom of God (see notes on Ac 1:2,8).

Background
Fixing precise dates for the judges is difficult and complex. The dating system followed here is based primarily on 1Ki 6:1, which speaks of an interval of 480 years between the exodus and the fourth year of Solomon’s reign. This would place the exodus c. 1446 b.c. and the period of the judges between c. 1380 and the rise of Saul, c. 1050. Jephthah’s statement that Israel had occupied Heshbon for 300 years (11:26) generally agrees with these dates. And the reference to “Israel” in the Merneptah Stele demonstrates that Israel was established in Canaan before 1210 b.c. (see chart, p. xxiii).
Some maintain, however, that the number 480 in 1Ki 6:1 is somewhat artificial, arrived at by multiplying 12 (perhaps in reference to the 12 judges) by 40 (a conventional number of years for a generation). They point out the frequent use of the round numbers 10, 20, 40 and 80 in the book of Judges itself. A later date for the exodus would of course require a much shorter period of time for the judges (see Introduction to Exodus: Chronology; see also note on 1Ki 6:1).

Literary Features
Even a quick reading of Judges discloses its basic threefold division: (1) a prologue (1:1- 3:6), (2) a main body (3:7- 16:31) and (3) an epilogue (chs. 17-21). Closer study brings to light a more complex structure, with interwoven themes that bind the whole into an intricately designed portrayal of the character of an age.

The prologue (1:1- 3:6) has two parts, and each serves a different purpose. They are not chronologically related, nor does either offer a strict chronological scheme of the time as a whole. The first part (1:1- 2:5) sets the stage historically for the narratives that follow. It describes Israel’s occupation of the promised land- from their initial success to their large-scale failure and divine rebuke.

The second part (2:6- 3:6) indicates a basic perspective on the period from the time of Joshua to the rise of the monarchy, a time characterized by recurring cycles of apostasy, oppression, cries of distress and gracious divine deliverance. The author summarizes and explains the Lord’s dealings with his rebellious people and introduces some of the basic vocabulary and formulas he will use in the later narratives: “did evil in the eyes of the Lord,” 2:11 (see 3:7,12; 4:1; 6:1; 10:6); “handed them over to,” 2:14 (see 6:1; 13:1); and “sold them,” 2:14 (see 3:8; 4:2; 10:7).

The main body of the book (3:7- 16:31), which gives the actual accounts of the recurring cycles (apostasy, oppression, distress, deliverance), has its own unique design. Each cycle has a similar beginning (“the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord” ; see note on 3:7) and a recognizable conclusion (“the land had peace . . . years” or “led Israel . . . years” ; see note on 3:11). The first of these cycles (Othniel; see 3:7-11 and note) provides the “report form” used for each successive story of oppression and deliverance.

The remaining five cycles form the following narrative units, each of which focuses on one of the major judges:

Ehud (3:12-30), a lone hero from the tribe of Benjamin who delivers Israel from oppression from the east.

Deborah (chs. 4-5), a woman from one of the Joseph tribes (Ephraim, west of the Jordan) who judges at a time when Israel is being overrun by a coalition of Canaanites under Sisera.

Gideon and his son Abimelech (chs. 6-9), whose story forms the central account. In many ways Gideon is the ideal judge, evoking memory of Moses, while his son is the very antithesis of a responsible and faithful judge.

Jephthah (10:6- 12:7), a social outcast from the other Joseph tribe (Manasseh, east of the Jordan) who judges at a time when Israel is being threatened by a coalition of powers under the king of Ammon.

Samson (chs. 13-16), a lone hero from the tribe of Dan who delivers Israel from oppression from the west.
The arrangement of these narrative units is significant. The central accounts of Gideon (the Lord’s ideal judge) and Abimelech (the anti-judge) are bracketed by the parallel narratives of the woman Deborah and the social outcast Jephthah- which in turn are framed by the stories of the lone heroes Ehud and Samson. In this way even the structure focuses attention on the crucial issue of the period of the judges: Israel’s attraction to the Baals of Canaan (shown by Abimelech; see note on 9:1-57) versus the Lord’s kingship over his people (encouraged by Gideon; see note on 8:23).

The epilogue (chs. 17-21) characterizes the era in yet another way, depicting religious and moral corruption on the part of individuals, cities and tribes. Like the introduction, it has two divisions that are neither chronologically related nor expressly dated to the careers of specific judges. The events must have taken place, however, rather early in the period of the judges (see notes on 18:30; 20:1,28).

By dating the events of the epilogue only in relationship to the monarchy (see the recurring refrain in 17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25), the author contrasts the age of the judges with the better time that the monarchy inaugurated, undoubtedly having in view the rule of David and his dynasty (see note on 17:1- 21:25). The book mentions two instances of the Lord’s assigning leadership to the tribe of Judah: (1) in driving out the Canaanites (1:1-2), and (2) in disciplining a tribe in Israel (20:18). The author views the ruler from the tribe of Judah as the savior of the nation.

The first division of the epilogue (chs. 17-18) relates the story of Micah’s development of a paganized place of worship and tells of the tribe of Dan abandoning their allotted territory while adopting Micah’s corrupted religion. The second division (chs. 19-21) tells the story of a Levite’s sad experience at Gibeah in Benjamin and records the disciplinary removal of the tribe of Benjamin because it had defended the degenerate town of Gibeah.

The two divisions have several interesting parallels:

Both involve a Levite’s passing between Bethlehem (in Judah) and Ephraim across the Benjamin-Dan corridor.

Both mention 600 warriors- those who led the tribe of Dan and those who survived from the tribe of Benjamin.

Both conclude with the emptying of a tribal area in that corridor (Dan and Benjamin).

Not only are these Benjamin-Dan parallels significant within the epilogue, but they also form a notable link to the main body of the book. The tribe of Benjamin, which in the epilogue undertook to defend gross immorality, setting ties of blood above loyalty to the Lord, was the tribe from which the Lord raised up the deliverer Ehud (3:15). The tribe of Dan, which in the epilogue retreated from its assigned inheritance and adopted pagan religious practices, was the tribe from which the Lord raised up the deliverer Samson (13:2,5). Thus the tribes that in the epilogue depict the religious and moral corruption of Israel are the very tribes from which the deliverers were chosen whose stories frame the central account of the book (Gideon-Abimelech).

The whole design of the book from prologue to epilogue, the unique manner in which each section deals with the age as a whole, and the way the three major divisions are interrelated clearly portray an age gone awry- an age when “Israel had no king” and “everyone did as he saw fit” (see note on 17:6). Of no small significance is the fact that the story is in episodes and cycles. It is given as the story of all Israel, though usually only certain areas are directly involved. The book portrays the centuries after Joshua as a time of Israelite unfaithfulness to the Lord and of their surrender to the allurements of Canaan. Only by the mercies of God was Israel not overwhelmed and absorbed by the pagan nations around them. Meanwhile, however, the history of redemption virtually stood still- awaiting the forward movement that came with the Lord’s servant David and the establishment of his dynasty.

Outline

Prologue: Incomplete Conquest and Apostasy (1:1- 3:6)

First Episode: Israel’s Failure to Purge the Land (1:1- 2:5)

Second Episode: God’s Dealings with Israel’s Rebellion (2:6- 3:6)

Oppression and Deliverance (3:7- 16:31)

Major Judges Minor Judges

A. Othniel Defeats Aram Naharaim (3:7-11)

B. Ehud Defeats Moab (3:12-30) 1. Shamgar (3:31)

C. Deborah Defeats Canaan (chs. 4-5)

D. Gideon Defeats Midian (chs. 6-8)

(Abimelech, the anti-judge, ch. 9)

2 .Tola (10:1-2)

3 .Jair (10:3-5)

E. Jephthah Defeats Ammon (10:6- 12:7)

4 .Ibzan (12:8-10)

5. Elon (12:11-12)

6. Abdon (12:13-15)

F. Samson Checks Philistia (chs. 13-16)

Epilogue: Religious and Moral Disorder (chs. 17-21)

First Episode (chs. 17-18; see 17:6; 18:1)

Micah’s corruption of religion (ch. 17)

The Danites’ departure from their tribal territory (ch. 18)

Second Episode (chs. 19-21; see 19:1; 21:25)

Gibeah’s corruption of morals (ch. 19)

The Benjamites’ near removal from their tribal territory (chs. 20-21)

Introduction to the Books of the Bible

The Book of Joshua

The Conquest and the Ethical Question of War
Many readers of Joshua (and other OT books) are deeply troubled by the role that warfare plays in this account of God’s dealings with his people. Not a few relieve their ethical scruples by ascribing the author’s perspective to a pre-Christian (and sub-Christian) stage of moral development that the Christian, in the light of Christ’s teaching, must repudiate and transcend. Hence the main thread of the narrative line of Joshua is an offense to them.

It must be remembered, however, that the book of Joshua does not address itself to the abstract ethical question of war as a means for gaining human ends. It can only be understood in the context of the history of redemption unfolding in the Pentateuch, with its interplay of divine grace and judgment. Of that story it is the direct continuation.

Joshua is not an epic account of Israel’s heroic generation or the story of Israel’s conquest of Canaan with the aid of her national deity. It is rather the story of how God, to whom the whole world belongs, at one stage in the history of redemption reconquered a portion of the earth from the powers of this world that had claimed it for themselves, defending their claims by force of arms and reliance on their false gods. It tells how God commissioned his people to serve as his army under the leadership of his servant Joshua, to take Canaan in his name out of the hands of the idolatrous and dissolute Canaanites (whose measure of sin was now full; see Ge 15:16 and note). It further tells how he aided them in the enterprise and gave them conditional tenancy in his land in fulfillment of the ancient pledge he had made to Israel’s ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Joshua is the story of the kingdom of God breaking into the world of nations at a time when national and political entities were viewed as the creation of the gods and living proofs of their power. Thus the Lord’s triumph over the Canaanites testified to the world that the God of Israel is the one true and living God, whose claim on the world is absolute. It was also a warning to the nations that the irresistible advance of the kingdom of God would ultimately disinherit all those who opposed it, giving place in the earth only to those who acknowledge and serve the Lord. At once an act of redemption and judgment, it gave notice of the outcome of history and anticipated the final destiny of humankind and the creation.

The battles for Canaan were therefore the Lord’s war, undertaken at a particular time in the program of redemption. God gave his people under Joshua no commission or license to conquer the world with the sword but a particular, limited mission. The conquered land itself would not become Israel’s national possession by right of conquest, but it belonged to the Lord. So the land had to be cleansed of all remnants of paganism. Its people and their wealth were not for Israel to seize as the booty of war from which to enrich themselves (as Achan tried to do, ch. 7) but were placed under God’s ban (were to be devoted to God to dispense with as he pleased). On that land Israel was to establish a commonwealth faithful to the righteous rule of God and thus be a witness (and a blessing) to the nations. If Israel became unfaithful and conformed to Canaanite culture and practice, it would in turn lose its place in the Lord’s land- as Israel almost did in the days of the judges, and as it eventually did in the exile.

War is a terrible curse that the human race brings on itself as it seeks to possess the earth by its own unrighteous ways. But it pales before the curse that awaits all those who do not heed God’s testimony to himself or his warnings- those who oppose the rule of God and reject his offer of grace. The God of the second Joshua (Jesus) is the God of the first Joshua also. Although now for a time he reaches out to the whole world with the gospel (and commissions his people urgently to carry his offer of peace to all nations), the sword of his judgment waits in the wings- and his second Joshua will wield it (Rev 19:11-16; see notes there).

Title and Theological Theme
Joshua is a story of conquest and fulfillment for the people of God. After many years of slavery in Egypt and 40 years in the desert, the Israelites were finally allowed to enter the land promised to their fathers. Abraham, always a migrant, never possessed the country to which he was sent, but he left to his children the legacy of God’s covenant that made them the eventual heirs of all of Canaan (see Ge 15:13,16,18; 17:8). Joshua was destined to turn that promise into reality.
Where Deuteronomy ends, the book of Joshua begins: The tribes of Israel are still camped on the east side of the Jordan River. The narrative opens with God’s command to move forward and pass through the river on dry land. Then it relates the series of victories in central, southern and northern Canaan that gave the Israelites control of all the hill country and the Negev. It continues with a description of the tribal allotments and ends with Joshua’s final addresses to the people. The theme of the book, therefore, is the establishment of God’s people Israel in the Lord’s land, the land he had promised to give them as their place of “rest” in the earth (1:13,15; 21:44; 22:4; 23:1; see also Dt 3:20 and note; 12:9-10; 25:19; 1Ki 5:4 and note; 8:56). So the Great King’s promise to the partriarchs and Moses to give the land of Canaan to the chosen people of his kingdom is now historically fulfilled (1:1-6; 21:43-45).

In the story the book tells, three primary actors play a part: “the Lord” (as Israel’s God), his servant Joshua, and his people Israel (the last a collective “character” in the story). We meet all three immediately in ch. 1, where all three are clearly presented in the distinctive roles they will play in the story that follows. Ch. 1 also introduces the reader to the main concern of the book as a whole.

The role of the central human actor in the events narrated here is reinforced by the name he bears. Earlier in his life Joshua was called simply Hoshea (Nu 13:8,16), meaning “salvation.” But later Moses changed his name to Joshua, meaning “The Lord saves” (or “The Lord gives victory” ). When this same name (the Greek form of which is Jesus; see NIV text note on Mt 1:21) was given to Mary’s firstborn son, it identified him as the servant of God who would complete what God did for Israel in a preliminary way through the first Joshua, namely, overcome all powers of evil in the world and bring God’s people into their eternal “rest” (see Heb 4:1-11 and notes).

In the Hebrew Bible the book of Joshua initiates a division called the Former Prophets, including also Judges, Samuel and Kings. These are all historical in content but are written from a prophetic standpoint. They do more than merely record the nation’s history from Moses to the fall of Judah in 586 b.c. They prophetically interpret God’s covenant ways with Israel in history- how he fulfills and remains true to his promises (especially through his servants such as Joshua, the judges, Samuel and David) and how he deals with the waywardness of the Israelites. In Joshua it was the Lord who won the victories and “gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers” (21:43).

Author and Date
In the judgment of many scholars Joshua was not written until the end of the period of the kings, some 800 years after the actual events. But there are significant reasons to question this conclusion and to place the time of composition much earlier. The earliest Jewish traditions (Talmud) claim that Joshua wrote his own book except for the final section about his funeral, which is attributed to Eleazar son of Aaron (the last verse must have been added by a later editor).

On at least two occasions the text reports writing at Joshua’s command or by Joshua himself. We are told that when the tribes received their territories, Joshua instructed his men “to make a survey of the land and write a description of it” (18:8). Then in the last scene of the book, when Joshua led Israel in a renewal of the covenant with the Lord, it is said that “he drew up decrees and laws” (24:25). On another occasion the narrator speaks as if he had been a participant in the event; he uses the pronouns “we” and “us” (5:1,6).

Moreover, the author seems to be familiar with ancient names of cities, such as “the Jebusite city” (15:8; 18:16,28) for Jerusalem, Kiriath Arba (14:15; 15:54; 20:7; 21:11) for Hebron, and Greater Sidon (11:8; 19:28) for what later became simply Sidon. And Tyre is never mentioned, probably because in Joshua’s day it had not yet developed into a port of major importance.

But if some features suggest an author of Joshua’s own lifetime, others point to a writer of a somewhat later period. The account of the long day when the sun stood still at Aijalon is substantiated by a quotation from another source, the Book of Jashar (10:13). This would hardly be natural for an eyewitness of the miracle who was writing shortly after it happened. Also, there are 12 instances where the phrase “until this day” occurs.

It seems safe to conclude that the book draws on early sources. It may date from the beginning of the monarchy. Some think that Samuel may have had a hand in shaping or compiling the materials of the book, but in fact we are unsure who the final author or editor was.

The Life of Joshua
Joshua’s remarkable life was filled with excitement, variety, success and honor. He was known for his deep trust in God and as “a man in whom is the spirit” (Nu 27:18). As a youth he lived through the bitter realities of slavery in Egypt, but he also witnessed the supernatural plagues and the miracle of Israel’s escape from the army of the Egyptians when the waters of the sea opened before them. In the Sinai peninsula it was Joshua who led the troops of Israel to victory over the Amalekites (Ex 17:8-13). He alone was allowed to accompany Moses up the holy mountain where the tablets of the law were received (Ex 24:13-14). And it was he who stood watch at the temporary tent of meeting Moses set up before the tabernacle was erected (Ex 33:11).

Joshua was elected to represent his own tribe of Ephraim when the 12 spies were sent into Canaan to look over the land. Only Joshua and Caleb, representing the tribe of Judah, were ready to follow God’s will and take immediate possession of the land (see Nu 14:26-34). The rest of the Israelites of that generation were condemned to die in the desert. Even Moses died short of the goal and was told to turn everything over to Joshua. God promised to guide and strengthen Joshua, just as he had Moses (Dt 31:23; cf. Jos 1:5 and note).

Joshua was God’s chosen servant (see 24:29 and note on Dt 34:5) to bring Moses’ work to completion and establish Israel in the promised land. To that special divine appointment he was faithful- as the leader of God’s army, as the administrator of God’s division of the land and as God’s spokesman for promoting Israel’s covenant faithfulness. In all this he was a striking OT type (foreshadowing) of Christ (see notes on Heb 4:1,6-8).

Historical Setting
At the time of the Israelite migration into Canaan the superpowers of the ancient Near East were relatively weak. The Hittites had faded from the scene. Neither Babylon nor Egypt could maintain a standing military presence in Canaan, and the Assyrians would not send in their armies until centuries later.

As the tribes circled east of the Dead Sea, the Edomites refused them passage, so Israel bypassed them to the east. However, when Sihon and Og, two regional Amorite kings of Transjordan, tried to stop the Israelites, they were easily defeated and their lands occupied. Moab was forced to let Israel pass through her territory and camp in her plains. Also the Midianites were dealt a severe blow.

Biblical archaeologists call this period the Late Bronze Age (1550-1200 b.c.). Today thousands of artifacts give testimony to the richness of the Canaanite material culture, which was in many ways superior to that of the Israelites. When the ruins of the ancient kingdom of Ugarit were discovered at modern Ras Shamra on the northern coast of Syria (see chart, p. xxiii), a wealth of new information came to light concerning the domestic, commercial and religious life of the Canaanites. From a language close to Hebrew came stories of ancient kings and gods that revealed their immoral behavior and cruelty. In addition, pagan temples, altars, tombs and ritual vessels have been uncovered, throwing more light on the culture and customs of the peoples surrounding Israel.

Excavations at the ancient sites of Megiddo, Beth Shan and Gezer show how powerfully fortified these cities were and why they were not captured and occupied by Israel in Joshua’s day. Many other fortified towns were taken, however, so that Israel became firmly established in the land as the dominant power. Apart from Jericho and Ai, Joshua is reported to have burned only Hazor (11:13), so attempts to date these events by destruction levels in the mounds of Canaan’s ancient cities are questionable undertakings. It must also be remembered that other groups were involved in campaigns in the region about this time, among whom were Egyptian rulers and the Sea Peoples (including the Philistines). There had also been much intercity warfare among the Canaanites, and afterward the period of the judges was marked by general turbulence.

Much of the data from archaeology appears to support a date for Joshua’s invasion c. 1250 b.c. This fits well with an exodus that would then have taken place 40 years earlier under the famous Rameses II, who ruled from the Nile delta at a city with the same name (Ex 1:11). It also places Joseph in Egypt in a favorable situation. Four hundred years before Rameses II the pharaohs were the Semitic Hyksos, who also ruled from the delta near the land of Goshen.

On the other hand, a good case can be made for the traditional viewpoint that the invasion occurred c. 1406 b.c. The oppression would have taken place under Amunhotep II after the death of his father Thutmose III, who is known to have used slave labor in his building projects. The earlier date also fits better with the two numbers found in Jdg 11:26 and 1Ki 6:1, since it allows for an additional 150 years between Moses and the monarchy. See also Introductions to Genesis: Author and Date of Writing; Exodus: Chronology; Judges: Background; and note on 1Ki 6:1.

Outline

The Entrance into the Land (1:1- 5:12)

The Exhortations to Conquer (ch. 1)

The Reconnaissance of Jericho (ch. 2)

The Crossing of the Jordan (chs. 3-4)

The Consecration at Gilgal (5:1-12)

The Conquest of the Land (5:13- 12:24)

The Initial Battles (5:13- 8:35)

The victory at Jericho (5:13- 6:27)

The failure at Ai because of Achan’s sin (ch. 7)

The victory at Ai (8:1-29)

The covenant renewed at Shechem (8:30-35)

The Campaign in the South (chs. 9-10)

The treaty with the Gibeonites (ch. 9)

The long day of Joshua (10:1-15)

The southern cities conquered (10:16-43)

The Campaign in the North (ch. 11)

The Defeated Kings of Canaan (ch. 12)

The Distribution of the Land (chs. 13-21)

The Areas Yet to Be Conquered (13:1-7)

The Land Assigned by Moses to the Tribes in Transjordan (13:8-33)

The Division of the Land of Canaan (chs. 14-19)

Introduction (14:1-5)

The town given to Caleb (14:6-15)

The lands given to Judah and “Joseph” at Gilgal (chs. 15-17)

The allotments for Benjamin, Simeon, Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali and Dan at Shiloh (18:1- 19:48)

The town given to Joshua (19:49-51)

The Cities Assigned to the Levites (chs. 20-21)

The 6 cities of refuge (ch. 20)

The 48 cities of the priests (ch. 21)

Epilogue: Tribal Unity and Loyalty to the Lord (chs. 22-24)

The Altar of Witness by the Jordan (ch. 22)

Joshua’s Farewell Exhortation (ch. 23)

The Renewal of the Covenant at Shechem (24:1-28)

The Death and Burial of Joshua and Eleazar (24:29-33)

Zion
Dormition Church, situated on the modern “Mount Zion”Zion (Hebrew: ?¦, tziyyon; Tiberian vocalization: tsiyyn; transliterated Zion or Sion) is a term that most often designates the land of Israel and its capital Jerusalem. The word is found in texts dating back almost three millennia. It originally referred to a specific mountain near Jerusalem (Mount Zion), on which stood a Jebusite fortress of the same name that was conquered by David and renamed the City of David.

“Zion” came to be applied to the section of Jerusalem where the fortress stood, and later became synonymous with Jerusalem. “Zion” is also a metonym for Solomon’s Temple. Today, “Zion” is often used metaphorically, to symbolize Jerusalem and the Promised Land to come, in which God dwells among his chosen people.

Mount Zion is also the modern name of a hill south of the Old City’s Armenian Quarter – the result of a misnomer dating from the Middle Ages when pilgrims mistook the relatively large, flat summit for the original site of the City of David. The Dormition Church (right) is located upon that hill.

Modern use
For other uses, see Zion (disambiguation).

Zionism
Main article: Zionism Zionism is a national liberation movement[1], a political movement and an ideology that supports a homeland for the Jewish people in the Land of Israel, where the Jewish nation originated over 3,200 years ago and where Jewish kingdoms and self-governing states existed up to the 2nd century CE. While Zionism is based in part upon religious tradition linking the Jewish people to the Land of Israel, the modern movement was originally secular, beginning largely as a response to rampant antisemitism in Europe during the 19th century. After a number of advances and setbacks, and after the Holocaust had destroyed Jewish society in Europe, the Zionist movement culminated in the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.

Anti-slavery
The Jewish longing for Zion, starting with the deportation and enslavement of Jews during the Babylonian captivity, was adopted as a metaphor by Christianized Black slaves. Thus, Zion symbolizes a longing by wandering peoples for a safe homeland. This could be a literal place such as in Ethiopia for Rastafari for example. For others, it has taken on a more spiritual meaning- a safe spiritual homeland, like in heaven, or a kind of peace of mind in one’s present life. Also the pronunciation of Zion in Ethiopia is Tsion.

Latter-day Saint usage of the term Zion
Main article: Zion (Mormonism) Zion is a term with broad significance in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In addition to its Biblical meaning referring to Jerusalem, Mormons see Zion more broadly as any city in which the people are unified and are “pure in heart,” with no contention and no poor among them based on living the Law of Consecration. In specific scriptural references, the term refers to the central physical location or city to which Latter-day Saints have historically gathered, which has included Kirtland, Ohio; Independence, Missouri; and Nauvoo, Illinois. In a more metaphorical sense, Zion represents a unified society of Latter-day Saints, unified as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or with others willing to live the law of consecration. Under this interpretation one can strive to make even one’s own home “Zion”. Zion also refers to what Latter-day Saints generally believe will be the New Jerusalem, a physical, Millennial city expected to be headquartered in Jackson County, Missouri.

Rastafari Movement
For Rastafarians, Zion is to be found in Africa, and more specifically in Ethiopia, where the term is also in use. Some Rastas believe themselves to represent the Children of Israel in modern times, and their goal is to repatriate to Africa, or to Zion. Rasta reggae music is peppered with references to Zion; among the best-known examples are the Bob Marley songs ‘”Zion Train” and “Iron Lion Zion.” In recent years, such references have also “crossed over” into pop music thanks to artists like Matisyahu, Sublime, Lauryn Hill, Boney M (Rivers of Babylon), Dreadzone with the reggae-tinged track “Zion Youth” and Damian Marley, who released his track “Road to Zion” featuring Nas in 2005.

garitic Texts and the Bible
In texts uncovered at Ugarit, references to “Zephon” (Tsephon) have been identified with the Syrian mountain Jebel Aqra. In these texts, the mountain is the holy place of the gods, where the god known as the “Lord” reigns over the divine assembly. The word “Zephon” is a common Semitic word for “North”, and some have considered it to be possibly cognate with the Hebrew name Zion (Tsiyyon). Psalm 48:2 mentions both terms together: “…Har-Tsiyyon yarktey Tsafon…” (“Mount Zion on the Northern side”), usually taken to refer to the north side of Mount Zion, not necessarily indicating that Zion is found to the North.

The Daughter of Zion
A recruitment poster published in American Jewish magazines. Daughter of Zion (representing the Jewish people): I want your Old New Land! Join the Jewish regiment.The location of the Temple was neither a mountain nor a city, nor even the highest elevation near the city, but rather a smallish hill (Mount Moriah), and this hill is sometimes considered to be what is meant by the phrase “Daughter of Zion” – as though the Temple Mount is the “daughter” of Mount Zion. Another cryptic verse, Zechariah 4:7, seems to refer to this hill, but is also ambiguous, depending on the punctuation. In Hebrew it reads “Mi attah Har-haGadol lifnei Zerubbabel l’mishor…”; the plain text has no punctuation, but the Masoretic text puts a pause following Har-haGadol, to mean “What are you, great mountain? Before Zerubbabel, [you will become just] a plain…” However, if the pause is placed following Zerubbabel, it would mean instead “What are you, “great mountain” before Zerubbabel? [You are just] a plain…” Since this hill is where Zerubbabel built the Second Temple, it appears to be a reference to the “Daughter of Zion” (the hill), as distinct from Zion (the mountain).

2Sa 24:1 And again the anger of Jehovah glowed against Israel, and moved David against them, to say, Go, number Israel and Judah.
2Sa 24:2 And the king said to Joab, the commander of the army with him, Go now to and fro through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, and number the people, that I may know the number of the people.
2Sa 24:3 And Joab said to the king, Yea, may Jehovah your God add to the people, however many they may be, a hundredfold. And may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king delight in this thing?
2Sa 24:4 But the word of the king prevailed against Joab, and against the army commanders. And Joab and the army commanders went out from the presence of the king to number the people of Israel.
2Sa 24:5 And they crossed over the Jordan and camped in Aroer, on the right of the city, in the middle of the Valley of Gad, and to Jazer.
2Sa 24:6 And they came into Gilead, and to the land of Tahtim-hodshi. And they came to Dan-jaan, and around to Sidon.
2Sa 24:7 And they came into the fortress of Tyre, and all the cities of the Hivite, and of the Canaanite. And they went out to the south of Judah, to Beer-sheba.
2Sa 24:8 And they went to and fro through all the land, and came in to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.
2Sa 24:9 And Joab gave the count from the numbering of the people to the king. And Israel was eight hundred thousand mighty men drawing sword; and the men of Judah five hundred thousand men.
2Sa 24:10 And after he had numbered the people, the heart of David struck him. And David said to Jehovah, I have sinned greatly in that which I have done. And now, O Jehovah, I pray, take away the iniquity of your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.
2Sa 24:11 And David rose up in the morning; and the Word of Jehovah came to Gad the prophet, David’s seer, saying,
2Sa 24:12 Go and you shall speak to David, So says Jehovah, I am setting up three things for you; you choose one of them and I will do it for you.
2Sa 24:13 And Gad came in to David and told him, and said to him, Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or shall you flee before your adversary three months, and they pursue you? Or shall three days’ plague come into your land? Now consider, and see what I shall take back to Him who sent word to me.
2Sa 24:14 And David said, Because of this it is great distressing to me. Let us fall now into the hand of Jehovah, for many are His mercies; and do not let me fall into the hand of man.
2Sa 24:15 And Jehovah sent a plague on Israel from the morning even to the time appointed. And from Dan even to Beer-sheba seventy thousand of the people died.
2Sa 24:16 And the angel put forth his hand to Jerusalem, to destroy it. And Jehovah had pity as to the evil, and said to the angel who was destroying among the people, Enough! Now drop your hand. And the angel of Jehovah was near the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
2Sa 24:17 And when he saw the angel who was striking among the people, David spoke to Jehovah and said, Behold, I have sinned. Yea, I have acted perversely. And these, the flock, what have they done? Now let your hand be on me, and on my father’s house.
2Sa 24:18 And Gad came in to David on that day and said to him, Go up, raise up an altar to Jehovah in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite.
2Sa 24:19 And David went up according to Gad’s word, as Jehovah commanded.
2Sa 24:20 And Araunah looked and saw the king and his servants crossing over to him. And Araunah went out and bowed himself to the king, his nose to the earth.
2Sa 24:21 And Araunah said, Why has my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To buy the threshing-floor from you, in order to build an altar to Jehovah; and the plague will be stayed from the people.
2Sa 24:22 And Araunah said to David, Let my lord the king take and offer up that which is good in his eyes. Behold, the oxen for a burnt offering, and the threshing instruments, and the yokes of the oxen for wood.
2Sa 24:23 O king, all these Araunah gives to the king. And Araunah said to the king, May Jehovah your God accept you.
2Sa 24:24 And the king said to Araunah, No, for buying I will buy from you for a price, and I will not offer to Jehovah my God burnt offerings for nothing. And David bought the threshing-floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
2Sa 24:25 And David built an altar there to Jehovah, and offered burnt offering and peace offerings. And Jehovah was entreated for the land; and the plague was stayed from Israel.

2Sa 23:1 And these are the last words of David, the saying of David the son of Jesse, and the saying of the man raised on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet singer of Israel:
2Sa 23:2 The Spirit of Jehovah has spoken by me, and His Word is on my tongue.
2Sa 23:3 The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me: One ruling over man righteously, who rules in the fear of God,
2Sa 23:4 is as the light of the morning, as the sun shines; a morning without clouds; through shining after rain the tender grass sprouts from the earth.
2Sa 23:5 For is not my house so with God? For He has made an everlasting covenant with me, ordered in all things, and sure; for all my salvation, and all my desire, will He not make it grow?
2Sa 23:6 As to the ungodly, all of them shall be as a thorn driven away; for they cannot be taken by the hand;
2Sa 23:7 but the man who shall touch them must be armed with iron and the shaft of a spear; they shall be utterly burned with fire in their place.
2Sa 23:8 These are the names of the mighty ones who were called to David: He who sits in the seat of the Tachmonite, chief of the captains; He was called Adino the Eznite, because of the eight hundred he killed at one time.
2Sa 23:9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo, the son of the Ahohite. He was of the three mighty men with David when they taunted the Philistines, when they were gathered there to battle; and the men of Israel went up;
2Sa 23:10 he rose up and struck the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clung to the sword. And Jehovah worked a great salvation on that day, and the people returned after him only to plunder.
2Sa 23:11 And next was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines had gathered into a company, and there was a plot of the field full of lentils, and the people had fled before the Philistines.
2Sa 23:12 And he set himself in the midst of the plot, and delivered it, and struck the Philistines. And Jehovah worked out a great salvation.
2Sa 23:13 And three of the thirty commanders went down and came to the harvest, to David, to the cave of Adullam. And the company of the Philistines was camping in the Valley of the Giants.
2Sa 23:14 And David was then in a stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Bethlehem.
2Sa 23:15 And David longed, and said, Who shall give me drink from the water of the well of Bethlehem beside the gate?
2Sa 23:16 And the three mighty ones cut through the camp of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem beside the gate, and took it up, and brought it to David. But he was not willing to drink it, and poured it out to Jehovah;
2Sa 23:17 and said, Far be it from me, O Jehovah, to do this; is it not the blood of the men who went with their lives? And he was not willing to drink it. The three mighty ones did these things.
2Sa 23:18 And Abishai the son of Zeruiah, the brother of Joab, was the commander of three. And he raised up his spear against three hundred, and killed them. And to him was a name among the three.
2Sa 23:19 With honor he was honored more than the three. And he was the commander to them, but he did not come to the first three.
2Sa 23:20 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada from Kabzeel, a son of a mighty man, great in deeds; he killed two lionlike men of Moab. And he went down and killed a lion in the middle of a pit in a day of snow.
2Sa 23:21 And he killed an Egyptian, a man of form; and a spear was in the Egyptian’s hand; and he went down to him with a staff and tore away the spear from the Egyptian’s hand, and killed him with his own spear.
2Sa 23:22 Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did these things, and had a name among three mighty ones.
2Sa 23:23 He was more honored than the thirty, but he did not come to the first three. And David set him over his guard.
2Sa 23:24 Asahel the brother of Joab was of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Bethlehem;
2Sa 23:25 Shammah the Harodite; Elika the Harodite;
2Sa 23:26 Helez the Paltite; Ira the son of Ikkesh, the Tekoite;
2Sa 23:27 Abiezer the Anathothite; Mebunnai the Hushathite;
2Sa 23:28 Zalmon the Ahohite; Maharai the Netophathite;
2Sa 23:29 Heleb the son of Baanah, a Netophathite; Ittai the son of Ribai out of Gibeah, of the sons of Benjamin;
2Sa 23:30 Benaiah the Pirathonite; Hiddai of the torrents of Gaash;
2Sa 23:31 Abialbon the Arbathite; Azmaveth the Barhumite;
2Sa 23:32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite, of the sons of Jashen; Jonathan;
2Sa 23:33 Shammah the Hararite; Ahiam the son of Sharar, the Hararite;
2Sa 23:34 Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maachathite; Eliam the son of Ahithophel, the Gilonite;
2Sa 23:35 Hezrai the Carmelite; Paarai the Arbite;
2Sa 23:36 Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah; Bani of Gad;
2Sa 23:37 Zelek of Ammon; Naharai the Beerothite, armor-bearer to Joab the son of Zeruiah;
2Sa 23:38 Ira the Ithrite; Gareb, an Ithrite;
2Sa 23:39 Uriah the Hittite; thirty seven in all.

2Sa 22:1 And David spoke to Jehovah the words of this song in the day Jehovah delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul.
2Sa 22:2 And he said: Jehovah is my rock and my fortress, and my Deliverer.
2Sa 22:3 My God is my rock; I shall take refuge in Him; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge! My Savior, You shall save me from violence.
2Sa 22:4 I call on Jehovah, the One to be praised; and I shall be saved from my enemies.
2Sa 22:5 When the waves of death surround me, the floods of the ungodly terrify me,
2Sa 22:6 the cords of Sheol are all around me, the snares of death confronted me.
2Sa 22:7 In my distress I called on Jehovah, and I called to my God. And He heard my voice from His temple, and my cry was in His ears.
2Sa 22:8 And the earth shook and trembled, the foundations of the heavens were troubled, and were shaken; for He was angry.
2Sa 22:9 Smoke rose up in His nostrils, and fire devoured out of His mouth; coals were kindled by it.
2Sa 22:10 And He bowed the heavens and came down, and thick darkness was under His feet.
2Sa 22:11 And He rode on a cherub, and did fly, and was seen on the wings of the wind.
2Sa 22:12 And He made darkness pavilions all around Him, the gathering of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
2Sa 22:13 From the brightness before Him were brands of fire kindled!
2Sa 22:14 Jehovah thundered from the heavens, and the Most High gave forth His voice.
2Sa 22:15 And He sent forth arrows and scattered them; lightning, and troubled them;
2Sa 22:16 and the channels of the sea were seen; the world’s foundations were revealed by the rebuke of Jehovah, from the blast of the breath of His nostrils.
2Sa 22:17 He sent from above; He took me; He drew me out of many waters.
2Sa 22:18 He delivered me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me; for they were stronger than me.
2Sa 22:19 They confronted me in the day of my calamity, and Jehovah was my support;
2Sa 22:20 and He brought me out to a large place; He delivered me, for He delighted in me.
2Sa 22:21 Jehovah rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands, He has repaid me.
2Sa 22:22 For I have kept the ways of Jehovah, and have not acted wickedly against my God.
2Sa 22:23 For all His judgments were before me. As to His statutes, I did not turn away from them.
2Sa 22:24 And I was blameless before Him, and I kept myself from my iniquity.
2Sa 22:25 And Jehovah returned to me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness in His eyes.
2Sa 22:26 With the faithful You show Yourself kind. With the upright man, You will show Yourself upright.
2Sa 22:27 With the pure, You will show Yourself pure, and with the perverted You will appear perverse.
2Sa 22:28 And You shall save the afflicted people, and Your eyes are on the haughty, whom You bring low.
2Sa 22:29 For You are my lamp, O Jehovah; and Jehovah shall light up my darkness.
2Sa 22:30 For by You I have run through a troop; by my God I have leaped over a wall.
2Sa 22:31 As for God, His way is perfect; the Word of Jehovah is tested; He is a shield to all those who seek refuge in Him.
2Sa 22:32 For who is God except Jehovah? And who is a rock except our God?
2Sa 22:33 God is my strong fortress; and He sets the blameless free in his way,
2Sa 22:34 making my feet like hinds’ feet, even causing me to stand on my high places;
2Sa 22:35 teaching my hands for battle, so that my hands may bend a bow of bronze.
2Sa 22:36 And You have given to me the shield of Your salvation; and Your condescension has made me great.
2Sa 22:37 You have enlarged my steps under me, and my feet have not slipped.
2Sa 22:38 I have pursued my enemies and destroyed them; and I did not turn until they were consumed.
2Sa 22:39 And I consumed them, and struck them, and they did not rise; but fell under my feet.
2Sa 22:40 Yea, You girded me with might for battle; You caused those rising against me to bow under me.
2Sa 22:41 And You gave to me the necks of my enemies; those hating me I silenced.
2Sa 22:42 They looked, and there was none to save; to Jehovah, and He did not answer them.
2Sa 22:43 And I beat them as the dust of the earth; I crushed them small as the mire of the streets; I spread them out.
2Sa 22:44 And You delivered me from the strivings of my people; You kept me as the head of the nations; a people I have not known served me.
2Sa 22:45 The sons of strangers submit to me; at the hearing of the ear they listen to me.
2Sa 22:46 The sons of strangers fade away, and shall come trembling out of their strongholds.
2Sa 22:47 Jehovah lives! And blessed is the Rock, and exalted be the God, the Rock of my salvation.
2Sa 22:48 He is God who is giving vengeance for me, and brings down peoples under me,
2Sa 22:49 and brings me forth from my enemies; yea, You raise me up above those rising up against me; You deliver me from the violent man.
2Sa 22:50 On account of this I will confess You, Jehovah, among nations; and I will sing praise to Your name.
2Sa 22:51 A tower of salvation is He to His king; even doing mercy to His anointed, to David and to his seed, until forever!

2Sa 21:1 And there was a famine in the days of David, three years, year after year. And David sought the face of Jehovah. And Jehovah said, It is for Saul and for his bloody house, because he killed the Gibeonites.
2Sa 21:2 And the king called for the Gibeonites and said to them (as to the Gibeonites, they were not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel had sworn to them) and Saul sought to strike them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah.
2Sa 21:3 And David said to the Gibeonites, What shall I do for you? And with what shall I atone, and you bless the inheritance of Jehovah?
2Sa 21:4 And the Gibeonites said to him, We will have neither silver nor gold by Saul and by his house. Also, we will have no man in Israel put to death. And he said, What you say, I will do for you.
2Sa 21:5 And they said to the king, The man who destroyed us and schemed against us that we be wasted from standing in all the border of Israel was Saul.
2Sa 21:6 Let be given to us seven men of his sons to us. And we will expose them to Jehovah in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of Jehovah. And the king said, I will deliver them.
2Sa 21:7 But the king spared Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth the son of Saul because of the oath of Jehovah that was between them, between David and Jonathan, the son of Saul.
2Sa 21:8 And the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth. And he took the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite.
2Sa 21:9 And he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites. And they exposed them in the mountain before Jehovah. And the seven fell together. And they were executed in the days of harvest, in the first days, in the beginning of barley harvest.
2Sa 21:10 And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and stretched it out for herself on the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water poured on them out of the heavens. And she did not allow a bird of the heavens to rest on them by day nor the beast of the field by night.
2Sa 21:11 And that which Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, Saul’s concubine, had done was told to David.
2Sa 21:12 And David went and took the bones of Saul, and the bones of his son Jonathan from the rulers of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the plaza of Beth-shan, there where the Philistines hanged them in the day the Philistines struck Saul in Gilboa.
2Sa 21:13 And he brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of his son Jonathan from there, and they gathered up the bones of those hanged.
2Sa 21:14 And they buried the bones of Saul and of his son Jonathan in the land of Benjamin, in Zelah, in the burying place of his father Kish, and did all that the king had commanded. And afterward God heard prayer for the land.
2Sa 21:15 And again the Philistines warred with Israel. And David went down, and his servants with him. And they fought with the Philistines. And David was weary.
2Sa 21:16 And Ishbibenob, who was of the sons of Rapha the giant, the weight of his spear being three hundred bronze shekels in weight, and was girded with a new sword, even he said to strike David.
2Sa 21:17 And Abishai the son of Zeruiah helped him, and struck the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David swore to him, saying, You shall not again go out with us to battle, that you not cause the lamp of Israel to go out.
2Sa 21:18 And it happened after this that the battle was again in Gob of the Philistines. Then Sibbechai the Hushathite struck Saph, who was among the sons of Rapha.
2Sa 21:19 And again the battle was in Gob with the Philistines, and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Bethlehemite struck one of Goliath the Gittite, and the wood of his spear was like a weaver’s beam.
2Sa 21:20 And again the battle was in Gath, and there was a man of stature, and the fingers of his hands were six, and the fingers of his feet six, twenty four in number. And he also had been born to Rapha.
2Sa 21:21 And he cursed Israel; and Jonathan, the son of David’s brother Shimeah, struck him.
2Sa 21:22 These four here born to Rapha the giant in Gath. And they fell by the hand of David, by the hand of his servants.

2Sa 20:1 And a man of worthlessness happened to be there, and his name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a man of Benjamin. And he blew the ram’s horn and said, We have no part in David, and we have no inheritance in the son of Jesse. Each man to his tents, O Israel.
2Sa 20:2 And every man of Israel went up from following David, going after Sheba the son of Bichri. But the men of Judah clung to their king, from the Jordan even to Jerusalem.
2Sa 20:3 And David came into his house at Jerusalem. And the king took the ten women, the concubines whom he had left to guard the house, and fed them. But he did not go in to them, and they were shut up to the day of their death in widowhood.
2Sa 20:4 And the king said to Amasa, Call for me the men of Judah within three days; and you stand here.
2Sa 20:5 And Amasa went to call Judah, but delayed beyond the set time which he had set for him.
2Sa 20:6 And David said to Abishai, Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do more evil to us than Absalom. You take the servants of your lord and pursue him, that he not find fortified cities for himself, and deliver himself from our eye.
2Sa 20:7 And the men of Joab went out after him, and the Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men. And they went out from Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.
2Sa 20:8 They were near the great stone in Gibeon, and Amasa had gone before them. And Joab was girded with his war coat as his clothing; and over it was a belt with a sword fastened on his loins in its sheath. And as he went out, it fell out.
2Sa 20:9 And Joab said to Amasa, Is it well with you, my brother? And Joab’s right hand took hold of Amasa’s beard to give a kiss to him.
2Sa 20:10 And Amasa was not on guard against the sword in Joab’s hand. And he struck him with it in the fifth rib, and poured out his bowels to the ground, and did not strike him again. And he died. And Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba the son of Bichri.
2Sa 20:11 And a man stood beside him, of the young men of Joab; and he said, Whoever delights in Joab, and whoever is for David follow after Joab!
2Sa 20:12 And Amasa was wallowing in blood in the middle of the highway. And the man saw that all the people stood still. And he turned Amasa away from the highway to the field, and threw a garment over him, when he saw that all who came beside him stood still.
2Sa 20:13 When he was taken from the highway, every man passed on after Joab to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.
2Sa 20:14 And he went through all the tribes of Israel to Abel, and to Beth-maachah, and to all the Berites. And they were gathered, and went after him also.
2Sa 20:15 And they went in and lay siege against him in Abel-beth-maachah, and mounded up a siege-mound against the city. And it stood against the outermost wall, and all the people with Joab were undermining, to cause the wall to fall.
2Sa 20:16 And a wise woman called out of the city, Hear! Hear! Please say to Joab, Come near here and I will speak to you.
2Sa 20:17 And he came near to her. And the woman said, Are you Joab? And he said, I am. And she said to him, Hear the words of your handmaid. And he said, I am hearing.
2Sa 20:18 And she spoke, saying, They spoke often in days gone by, saying, Asking they will ask at Abel, and so they ended all dispute.
2Sa 20:19 I am of the peaceful, faithful ones of Israel. You are seeking to destroy a city, and a mother in Israel. Why will you swallow up the inheritance of Jehovah?
2Sa 20:20 And Joab answered and said, Far be it! Far be it from me that I should swallow up or destroy.
2Sa 20:21 The case is not such. For a man of the hills of Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri is his name, has lifted up his hand against the king, against David. If you will give him up by himself, then I will go away from the city. And the woman said to Joab, Behold, his head will be thrown over the wall to you.
2Sa 20:22 And the woman came to all the people in her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri and threw it to Joab. And he blew the ram’s horn, and they were dispersed from the city, each man to his tents. And Joab went back to Jerusalem to the king.
2Sa 20:23 And Joab was over all the army of Israel, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the Cherethites and over the Pelethites.
2Sa 20:24 And Adoram was over the forced labor, and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder.
2Sa 20:25 And Sheva was the scribe, and Zadok and Abiathar the priests.
2Sa 20:26 And also Ira the Jairite was a priest to David.

2Sa 19:1 And it was announced to Joab, Behold, the king is weeping and mourning over Absalom.
2Sa 19:2 And the deliverance on that day became mourning to all the people, for the people had heard on that day, saying, The king is grieving for his son.
2Sa 19:3 And the people stole away on that day to go into the city, as the people steal away who are ashamed as they flee in battle.
2Sa 19:4 And the king had covered his face. Yea, the king cried with a loud voice, My son Absalom! Absalom my son, my son!
2Sa 19:5 And Joab came in to the king to the house, and said, You have put to shame today the faces of all your servants, those delivering your life today, and the life of your sons, and of your daughters, and the life of your wives, and the life of your concubines,
2Sa 19:6 by loving those who hate you, and by hating those who love you, for you have declared today that there are no leaders nor servants to you. For I know today that if Absalom were alive and all of us dead today, that it would be right in your eyes.
2Sa 19:7 And now rise up; go out and speak to the heart of your servants. For I have sworn by Jehovah that if you do not go out, not a man shall remain with you tonight. And this would be worse for you than all the evil that has come on you from your youth until now.
2Sa 19:8 And the king rose up and sat in the gate. And they announced it to all the people, saying, Behold, the king is sitting in the gate. And all the people came in before the king. And Israel had fled, each one to his tents.
2Sa 19:9 And it happened, all the people were quarreling through all the tribes of Israel, saying, The king delivered us out of the hand of our enemies. Yea, he himself delivered us out of the hand of the Philistines. And now he has fled out of the land because of Absalom.
2Sa 19:10 And Absalom whom we anointed over us is dead in battle. And now why are you silent as to bringing back the king?
2Sa 19:11 And King David sent to Zadok and Abiathar the priests, saying, Speak to the elders of Judah, saying, Why are you the last to bring back the king to his house? For the word of all Israel had come to the king, to his house.
2Sa 19:12 You are my brother; you are my bone and my flesh. And why are you the last to bring back the king?
2Sa 19:13 And say to Amasa, Are you not my bone and my flesh? So shall God do to me, and more so He shall do, if you are not commander of the army before me all the days, instead of Joab.
2Sa 19:14 And he inclined the heart of all the men of Judah as one man, and they sent to the king, Return, you and all your servants.
2Sa 19:15 And the king returned and came in to the Jordan. And Judah had come to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to bring the king over the Jordan.
2Sa 19:16 And Shimei, the son of Gera, the Benjamite, from Bahurim, hastened and came down with the men of Judah to meet King David.
2Sa 19:17 And a thousand men were with him from Benjamin; also Ziba, the servant of the house of Saul, and his thirteen sons and his twenty servants with him. And they had rushed over the Jordan before the king.
2Sa 19:18 And they had crossed over the ford to carry over the king’s household, and to do the good in his eyes. And Shimei the son of Gera had fallen before the face of the king as he crossed over the Jordan.
2Sa 19:19 And he said to the king, Do not let my lord charge iniquity to me, nor shall you remember that which your servant perversely did in the day that my lord the king went out from Jerusalem, for the king to take it to his heart.
2Sa 19:20 For your servant knows that I have sinned; and behold, I come today, the first of the house of Joseph, to go down to meet my lord the king.
2Sa 19:21 And Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said, Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the anointed of Jehovah?
2Sa 19:22 And David said, What have I to do with you, O sons of Zeruiah, that you are as my foe today? Shall any man be executed today in Israel? For do I not know that today I am king over Israel?
2Sa 19:23 And the king said to Shimei, You shall not die. And the king swore to him.
2Sa 19:24 And Mephibosheth the son of Saul had come down to meet the king. And he had not dressed his feet, nor had shaved his upper lip. Yea, he had not washed his garment, even from the day that he went away till the day that he came in peace.
2Sa 19:25 And it happened when he had come to Jerusalem to meet the king, the king said to him, Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?
2Sa 19:26 And he said, My lord, O king, my servant deceived me. For your servant said, I will saddle the ass for myself and ride on it and go with the king, for your servant is lame.
2Sa 19:27 And he spoke slander against your servant to my lord the king. And my lord the king is as a messenger of God; yet you do that which is good in your eyes.
2Sa 19:28 For all the house of my father would be nothing except men of death before my lord the king, and you have set your servant among those eating at your table. And what right is there to me any more, even to cry any more to the king?
2Sa 19:29 And the king said to him, Why do you speak any more of your matters? I have said, You and Ziba share the land.
2Sa 19:30 And Mephibosheth said to the king, Yes, let him take all, since my lord the king has come in peace to his house.
2Sa 19:31 And Barzillai the Gileadite had gone down from Rogelim and had crossed over the Jordan with the king, to send him away over the Jordan.
2Sa 19:32 And Barzillai was very old, a son of eighty years, and he had sustained the king as he abode in Mahanaim, for he was a very great man.
2Sa 19:33 And the king said to Barzillai, You pass over with me and I will sustain you with me in Jerusalem.
2Sa 19:34 And Barzillai 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?
2Sa 19:35 I am a son of eighty years today. Can I distinguish between good and evil? Can your servant taste that which I am eating, and that which I drink? Can I any more listen to the voice of singing men and singing women? And why should your servant be any more as a burden to my lord the king?
2Sa 19:36 Just a little way your servant shall cross over the Jordan with the king. And why should the king repay me with this reward?
2Sa 19:37 Please let your servant return, and I shall die in my own city, near the burying place of my father and my mother. And, behold your servant Chimham! Let him cross over with my lord the king, and you do to him the good in your eyes.
2Sa 19:38 And the king said, Chimham shall go over with me, and I shall do to him that which is good in your eyes. Yea, all that you shall choose of me I will do for you.
2Sa 19:39 And all the people crossed over the Jordan, and the king crossed over. And the king gave a kiss to Barzillai and blessed him. And he returned to his place.
2Sa 19:40 And the king crossed over to Gilgal. And Chimham crossed over with him, and all the people of Judah. And they brought the king over, and also half of the people of Israel.
2Sa 19:41 And, behold, all the men of Israel were coming to the king. And they said to the king, Why have they, our brothers, the men of Judah, stolen you away? For they brought the king and his household over the Jordan, and all the men of David with him.
2Sa 19:42 And, behold, all the men of Judah answered against the men of Israel, Because the king is near to us. And why is this that you are angry about this matter? Have we at all eaten from the king, or has he given a gift to us?
2Sa 19:43 And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah and said, We have ten hands in the king, and we also have more in David than you. Why then did you despise us, that our word was not first to bring back our king? And the word of the men of Judah was more fierce than the word of the men of Israel.

2Sa 18:1 And David mustered the people who were with him, and he set over them commanders of hundreds.
2Sa 18:2 And David sent one third of the people by the hand of Joab, and one third by the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and one third by Ittai the Gittite. And the king said to the people. Going out I will go with you, I also.
2Sa 18:3 And the people said, You shall not go out, for if we flee they will not set their heart on us even if half of us die; for now you are like ten thousand to us. And now it is good that you be a helper for us from the city.
2Sa 18:4 And the king said to them, I will do that which is good in your eyes. And the king stood at the side of the gate, and all the people went out by hundreds and by thousands.
2Sa 18:5 And the king commanded Joab, and Abishai, and Ittai, saying, For my sake deal gently with the young man, with Absalom. And all the people heard as the king commanded the commanders concerning Absalom.
2Sa 18:6 And the people went into the field to meet Israel. And the battle was in the forest of Ephraim.
2Sa 18:7 And the people of Israel were stricken before David’s servants. And there was a great destruction on that day of twenty thousand.
2Sa 18:8 And the battle was scattered over the face of all the land, and the forest devoured among the people more than the sword had devoured in that day.
2Sa 18:9 And Absalom came before David’s servants. And Absalom was riding on a mule, and the mule came in under the thick branches of a great oak. And his head caught hold in the oak, and he was lifted up between the heavens and the earth. And the mule under him passed on.
2Sa 18:10 And a man saw and told Joab, and said, Behold! I saw Absalom hanging in the oak;
2Sa 18:11 and Joab said to the man who told him, And behold, you have seen. And why did you not strike him to the earth there and call on me to give you ten silverlings and a girdle?
2Sa 18:12 And the man said to Joab, Yes, though I weighed a thousand silverlings in my hand, I would not put forth my hand to the king’s son. For in our ears the king commanded you, and Abishai, and Ittai saying, Take heed, whoever goes against the young man, against Absalom.
2Sa 18:13 Or I would have dealt falsely against my soul. For no matter is hidden from the king, and you, you yourself would have set against me.
2Sa 18:14 And Joab said, I will not wait this wait before you. And he took three darts in his hand and struck them into Absalom’s heart while he was alive, in the midst of the oak.
2Sa 18:15 And they went around, ten young men bearing Joab’s weapons, and struck Absalom, and killed him.
2Sa 18:16 And Joab blew the ram’s horn, and the people returned from pursuing Israel, for Joab had held the people back.
2Sa 18:17 And they took Absalom and threw him into a great pit in the forest, and set up a very great heap of stones over him. And all Israel fled, each one to his tent.
2Sa 18:18 And during his lifetime Absalom had taken and set up for himself a standing-pillar, which is in the King’s Valley. For he said, I have no son to cause my name to be remembered. And he called the standing pillar by his name and it is called Absalom’s Monument to this day.
2Sa 18:19 And Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said, Please let me run, and I will bear news to the king. For Jehovah has vindicated him from the hand of his enemies.
2Sa 18:20 And Joab said to him, You are not a man of tidings today. But you shall bear tidings another day. And today you shall not bear tidings, because the king’s son is dead.
2Sa 18:21 And Joab said to Cushi, Go, tell the king that which you have seen. And Cushi bowed to Joab, and ran.
2Sa 18:22 And Ahimaaz the son of Zadok said yet again to Joab, Yet whatever may be, please let me run after the Cushite, I also. And Joab said, Why is this that you are running, my son? Also for you there are no tidings found.
2Sa 18:23 And he said, Yet whatever it may be, let me run. And he said to him, Run. And Ahimaaz ran the way of the circuit and passed by the Cushite.
2Sa 18:24 And David was sitting between the two gates. And the watchman went to the roof of the gate and lifted up his eyes, and looked. And, behold, a man running by himself!
2Sa 18:25 And the watchman called and told the king. And the king said, If he is by himself, tidings are in his mouth. And he came, coming on, and drawing near.
2Sa 18:26 And the watchman saw another man running. And the watchman called to the gatekeeper and said, Behold, a man running by himself! And the king said, Also this one is bearing tidings.
2Sa 18:27 And the watchman said, I see the running of the first as the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok. And the king said, This is a good man and he comes with good news.
2Sa 18:28 And Ahimaaz called and said to the king, Peace! And he bowed on his face to the earth to the king and said, Blessed be Jehovah your God who has shut up the men who lifted up their hand against my lord the king.
2Sa 18:29 And the king said, Peace to the young man, to Absalom? And Ahimaaz said, I saw the great tumult, at the sending away of the servant of the king, even your servant sent by Joab, but I do not know what.
2Sa 18:30 And the king said, Turn aside, stand here. And he turned aside and stood.
2Sa 18:31 And, behold, the Cushite had come. And the Cushite said, News is borne, my lord, O king! For Jehovah has vindicated you today out of the hand of those rising up against you.
2Sa 18:32 And the king said to the Cushite, Peace to the young man, to Absalom? And the Cushite said, Let them be as the young man, the enemies of my lord the king, and all who have risen up against you for evil.
2Sa 18:33 And the king trembled. And he went up to the upper room of the gate and wept. And he said this as he went, My son! My son Absalom! My son Absalom! Oh that I had died instead of you, my son Absalom, my son!

2Sa 17:1 And Ahithophel said to Absalom, Please let me choose twelve thousand men, and I shall rise up and pursue David tonight.
2Sa 17:2 And I shall come on him, and he shall be weary and feeble handed. And I will make him tremble, and the people with him shall flee. And I shall strike the king by himself.
2Sa 17:3 And I shall bring all the people back to you when all return, except the man whom you are seeking. All the people shall be in peace.
2Sa 17:4 And the thing was pleasing in Absalom’s eyes, and in the eyes of all the elders of Israel.
2Sa 17:5 And Absalom said, Please call for Hushai the Archite also. And we shall hear what is in his mouth, also he.
2Sa 17:6 And Hushai came in to Absalom. And Absalom spoke to him, saying, Ahithophel has spoken according to this word. Shall we do this word? If not, you speak.
2Sa 17:7 And Hushai said to Absalom, The counsel Ahithophel counseled is not good at this time.
2Sa 17:8 And Hushai said, You have known your father and his men, that they are mighty men. And they are bitter of soul, like a bear bereaved of cubs in the field. And your father is a man of war, and shall not stay the night with the people.
2Sa 17:9 Behold, now he is hidden in one of the pits, or in one of the places. And it shall be, at the falling among them at the beginning, that whoever hears even shall say, There has been a slaughter among the people who follow Absalom.
2Sa 17:10 And also he, the son of valor, whose heart is as the heart of the lion, shall utterly melt. For all Israel knows that your father is a mighty man, and those with him sons of valor.
2Sa 17:11 So I counsel this: Gathering, let all Israel be gathered to you, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, as the sand that is by the sea for multitude. And you in person shall go into battle.
2Sa 17:12 And we shall come in to him, in one of the places, there where he shall be found. And we shall fall on him as the dew falls on the ground. And of all the men who are with him, not even one shall be left.
2Sa 17:13 And if he is taken into a city, then all Israel shall bear ropes to that city. And we shall draw it into the torrent bed, until there shall not be found even a pebble.
2Sa 17:14 And Absalom and all the men of Israel said, The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel. And Jehovah had ordained to break down the good counsel of Ahithophel, for the sake of bringing the evil of Jehovah to Absalom.
2Sa 17:15 And Hushai said to Zadok and to Abiathar, the priests, Ahithophel has counseled this and this to Absalom and the elders of Israel. And I have counseled this and this.
2Sa 17:16 And now send quickly and tell David, saying, Do not stay in the fords of the wilderness tonight. And, also, crossing pass over, that there not be a swallowing up of the king and of all the people with him.
2Sa 17:17 And Jonathan and Ahimaaz were standing at En-rogel, for they were not able to be seen going into the city. And a slave-girl went and told them. And they went and told it to King David.
2Sa 17:18 And a youth saw them, and told Absalom. And they went on, both of them in haste, and came into the house of a man in Bahurim. And he had a well in his court, and they went down there.
2Sa 17:19 And the woman took and spread the covering over the well, and spread ground grain on it. And the thing was not known.
2Sa 17:20 And the servants of Absalom came in to the woman, to the house, and said, Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan? And the woman said to them, They passed over the river of water. And they looked and did not find them. And they returned to Jerusalem.
2Sa 17:21 And it happened after they left, they came up out of the well and went and told King David. And they said to David, Rise up and quickly pass over the waters, for Ahithophel has counseled this against you.
2Sa 17:22 And David and all the people with him rose up, and they passed over the Jordan until the light of the morning, until there was not one lacking who had not crossed the Jordan.
2Sa 17:23 And Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not done. And he saddled the ass and rose up and went to his house, to his city. And he gave command to his household, then hanged himself, and died. And he was buried in the burying place of his father.
2Sa 17:24 And David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom crossed the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.
2Sa 17:25 And Absalom had set Amasa over the army instead of Joab. And Amasa was the son of a man whose name was Ithra the Israelite, who had gone in to Abigail, the daughter of Nahash, the sister of Zeruiah, the brother of Joab.
2Sa 17:26 And Israel camped with Absalom in the land of Gilead.
2Sa 17:27 And it happened as David came into Mahanaim, Shobi the son of Nahash, from Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, and Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite, from Rogelim,
2Sa 17:28 brought beds, and basins, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and flour, and roasted grain, and beans, and lentils, and roasted grain,
2Sa 17:29 and honey, and curds and sheep, and cheese from the herd, for David, and for the people who were with him to eat. For they said, The people are hungry and weary and thirsty in the wilderness.