2 Samuel 21:2
New International Version
The king summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were survivors of the Amorites; the Israelites had sworn to spare them, but Saul in his zeal for Israel and Judah had tried to annihilate them.)

New Living Translation
So the king summoned the Gibeonites. They were not part of Israel but were all that was left of the nation of the Amorites. The people of Israel had sworn not to kill them, but Saul, in his zeal for Israel and Judah, had tried to wipe them out.

English Standard Version
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the people of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites. Although the people of Israel had sworn to spare them, Saul had sought to strike them down in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.

Berean Standard Bible
At this, David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not Israelites, but a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had taken an oath concerning them, but in his zeal for Israel and Judah, Saul had sought to kill them.)

King James Bible
And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)

New King James Version
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; the children of Israel had sworn protection to them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.

New American Standard Bible
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel had made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).

NASB 1995
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).

NASB 1977
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).

Legacy Standard Bible
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the sons of Israel made a covenant with them, but Saul had sought to strike them down in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah).

Amplified Bible
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the sons (descendants) of Israel but of the remnant (survivors) of the Amorites. The Israelites had sworn [an oath] to [spare] them, but Saul in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah had sought to strike down the Gibeonites).

Christian Standard Bible
The Gibeonites were not Israelites but rather a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had taken an oath concerning them, but Saul had tried to kill them in his zeal for the Israelites and Judah. So David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The Gibeonites were not Israelites but rather a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had taken an oath concerning them, but Saul had tried to kill them in his zeal for the Israelites and Judah. So David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them.

American Standard Version
And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah);

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And the King called the Gebunites and spoke to them, and the Gebunites were not from the children of Israel, but from the remnant, those of the Amorites, and the children of Israel swore to them, and Shaul desired to kill them, as he was zealous to make the children of Israel and the children of Yehuda sin

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And King David called the Gabaonites, and said to them; - (now the Gabaonites are not the children of Israel, but are of the remnant of the Amorite, and the children of Israel had sworn to them: but Saul sought to smite them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Juda.)

Contemporary English Version
The Gibeonites were not Israelites; they were descendants of the Amorites. The people of Israel had promised not to kill them, but Saul had tried to kill them because he wanted Israel and Judah to control all the land. David had the Gibeonites come, and he talked with them.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Then the king, calling for the Gabaonites, said to them: (Now the Gabaonites were not of the children of Israel, but the remains of the Amorrhites: and the children of Israel had sworn to them, and Saul sought to slay them out of zeal, as it were for the children of Israel and Juda:)

English Revised Version
And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah:)

GOD'S WORD® Translation
(The Gibeonites were not a part of Israel but were left over from the Amorites. Although the Israelites had sworn [to spare them], Saul, in his eagerness, tried to destroy them for Israel and Judah.) The king called the Gibeonites

Good News Translation
The people of Gibeon were not Israelites; they were a small group of Amorites whom the Israelites had promised to protect, but Saul had tried to destroy them because of his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.)

International Standard Version
So the king called together the Gibeonites and conferred with them. Now the Gibeonites weren't part of the nation of Israel, but were the survivors from the Amorites. Although the Israelis had promised to spare them, Saul had started to execute them in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.

JPS Tanakh 1917
And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them--now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them; and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah--

Literal Standard Version
And the king calls for the Gibeonites and says to them—as for the Gibeonites, they [are] not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorite, and the sons of Israel had sworn to them, and Saul seeks to strike them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah—

Majority Standard Bible
At this, David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not Israelites, but a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had taken an oath concerning them, but in his zeal for Israel and Judah, Saul had sought to kill them.)

New American Bible
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not Israelites, but survivors of the Amorites; and although the Israelites had given them their oath, Saul had sought to kill them off in his zeal for the Israelites and for Judah.)

NET Bible
So the king summoned the Gibeonites and spoke with them. (Now the Gibeonites were not descendants of Israel; they were a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had made a promise to them, but Saul tried to kill them because of his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.)

New Revised Standard Version
So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not of the people of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; although the people of Israel had sworn to spare them, Saul had tried to wipe them out in his zeal for the people of Israel and Judah.)

New Heart English Bible
The king called the Gibeonites, and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn to them : and Saul sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.)

Webster's Bible Translation
And the king called the Gibeonites, and said to them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn to them: and Saul sought to slay them, in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)

World English Bible
The king called the Gibeonites and said to them (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites, and the children of Israel had sworn to them; and Saul sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah);

Young's Literal Translation
And the king calleth for the Gibeonites, and saith unto them -- as to the Gibeonites, they are not of the sons of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorite, and the sons of Israel had sworn to them, and Saul seeketh to smite them in his zeal for the sons of Israel and Judah --

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
David Avenges the Gibeonites
1During the reign of David there was a famine for three successive years, and David sought the face of the LORD. And the LORD said, “It is because of the blood shed by Saul and his family, because he killed the Gibeonites.” 2At this, David summoned the Gibeonites and spoke to them. (Now the Gibeonites were not Israelites, but a remnant of the Amorites. The Israelites had taken an oath concerning them, but in his zeal for Israel and Judah, Saul had sought to kill them.) 3So David asked the Gibeonites, “What shall I do for you? How can I make amends so that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD?”…

Cross References
Joshua 9:3
But the people of Gibeon, having heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,

Joshua 9:15
And Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the congregation swore an oath to them.

2 Samuel 24:1
Again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He stirred up David against them, saying, "Go and take a census of Israel and Judah."


Treasury of Scripture

And the king called the Gibeonites, and said to them; (now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn to them: and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal to the children of Israel and Judah.)

now the

Joshua 9:3-21
And when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai, …

Joshua 6:19
But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the LORD: they shall come into the treasury of the LORD.

Genesis 15:16
But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.

in his zeal

Deuteronomy 7:16
And thou shalt consume all the people which the LORD thy God shall deliver thee; thine eye shall have no pity upon them: neither shalt thou serve their gods; for that will be a snare unto thee.

1 Samuel 14:44
And Saul answered, God do so and more also: for thou shalt surely die, Jonathan.

1 Samuel 15:8,9
And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword…

Jump to Previous
Although Amorites Annihilate Attempt Children Gibeonites Gib'eonites Israel Israelites Judah Kill Last Part Passion Remnant Saul Slay Sought Spare Summoned Survivors Sworn Tried Zeal
Jump to Next
Although Amorites Annihilate Attempt Children Gibeonites Gib'eonites Israel Israelites Judah Kill Last Part Passion Remnant Saul Slay Sought Spare Summoned Survivors Sworn Tried Zeal
2 Samuel 21
1. The three year Gibeonite famine ceases, by hanging seven of Saul's sons.
10. Rizpah's kindness unto the dead
12. David buries the bones of Saul and Jonathan in his father's tomb
15. Four battles against the Philistines, wherein four men of David slay four giants.














(2) For his bloody house.--Better, for the blood-guilty house. Saul's family and descendants are regarded, according to the universal ideas of the times, as sharers in his guilt. The story of the Gibeonites and of Joshua's league with them is told in Joshua 9, but Saul's attempt to destroy them is mentioned only here. It is plain, from what is said of them in 2Samuel 21:8, that they had never become incorporated with the Israelites by circumcision, but remained a distinct people. Saul's sin consisted in the violation of the solemn oath, in the Lord's name, by which the nation of Israel was bound to the Gibeonites. "His zeal" in that case was of the same ungodly character with many other acts of his reign, in which pride, arrogance, and self-will were cloaked under a zeal for God's honour and His people's welfare.

The Amorites.--More precisely, the Gibeonites were Hivites (Joshua 9:7); but they are called Amorites (=mountaineers) as a frequent general name for the old people of Palestine.

Two questions are often asked in connection with this narrative: (1) Why the punishment of Saul's sin should have been so long delayed? and (2) why it should at last have fallen upon David and his people, who had no share in the commission of the sin? The answer to both questions is in the fact that Israel both sinned and was punished as a nation. Saul slew the Gibeonites, not simply as the son of Kish, but as the king of Israel, and therefore involved all Israel with him in the violation of the national oath; and hence, until the evil should be put away by the execution of the immediate offender or his representatives, all Israel must suffer. The lesson of the continuity of the nation's life, and of its continued responsibility from age to age, was greatly enhanced by the delay. Besides this, there were so many other grievous sins for which Saul was to be punished, that it was hardly possible to bring out during his lifetime the special Divine displeasure at this one.

Verse 2. - Saul sought to slay them in his zeal. We gather from various incidental circumstances that Saul, in some part of his reign, manifested great zeal in an attempt to carry out literally the enactments of the Levitical Law; but he seems to have done so with the same ferocity as that which he displayed in slaughtering the priests at Nob with their wives and children. Thus he had put to death wizards and all who dealt with familiar spirits (1 Samuel 28:9), in accordance with Exodus 22:18 and Leviticus 20:6. In the same way he seems to have tried to exterminate the aboriginal inhabitants of Palestine, in accordance with Deuteronomy 7:2, and had especially massacred a large number of Gibeonites, in violation of the covenant made with them by Joshua and all Israel (Joshua 9:3, 15-27). And as he would thus acquire "fields and vineyards" robbed from them to give to his captains, his conduct was probably popular, and the cause of a general system of wrong and oppression practised upon all the natives. It had thus become a national sin, and as such was punished by a national calamity. Amorites; that is highlanders, mountaineers. Strictly they were Hivites (Joshua 9:7).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
At this, David
הַמֶּ֛לֶךְ (ham·me·leḵ)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4428: A king

summoned
וַיִּקְרָ֥א (way·yiq·rā)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7121: To call, proclaim, read

the Gibeonites
וְהַגִּבְעֹנִ֞ים (wə·hag·giḇ·‘ō·nîm)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Noun - proper - masculine plural
Strong's 1393: Gibeonites -- inhabitants of Gibeon

and spoke
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

to them.
אֲלֵיהֶ֑ם (’ă·lê·hem)
Preposition | third person masculine plural
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

(Now the Gibeonites
לַגִּבְעֹנִ֖ים (lag·giḇ·‘ō·nîm)
Preposition-l, Article | Noun - proper - masculine plural
Strong's 1393: Gibeonites -- inhabitants of Gibeon

were
הֵ֗מָּה (hêm·māh)
Pronoun - third person masculine plural
Strong's 1992: They

not
לֹ֣א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

Israelites,
מִבְּנֵ֧י (mib·bə·nê)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1121: A son

but
כִּ֚י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

a remnant
מִיֶּ֣תֶר (mî·ye·ṯer)
Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3499: An overhanging, an excess, superiority, remainder, a small rope

of the Amorites.
הָאֱמֹרִ֔י (hā·’ĕ·mō·rî)
Article | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 567: Amorites -- perhaps 'mountain dwellers', a Canaanite tribe

The Israelites
וּבְנֵ֤י (ū·ḇə·nê)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1121: A son

had taken an oath concerning them,
נִשְׁבְּע֣וּ (niš·bə·‘ū)
Verb - Nifal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 7650: To seven oneself, swear

but in his zeal
בְּקַנֹּאת֥וֹ (bə·qan·nō·ṯōw)
Preposition-b | Verb - Piel - Infinitive construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 7065: To be, zealous, jealous, envious

for Israel
לִבְנֵֽי־ (liḇ·nê-)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 1121: A son

and Judah,
וִיהוּדָֽה׃ (wî·hū·ḏāh)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3063: Judah -- 'praised', a son of Jacob, also the southern kingdom, also four Israelites

Saul
שָׁאוּל֙ (šā·’ūl)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 7586: Saul -- first king of Israel, also an Edomite and two Israelites

had sought
וַיְבַקֵּ֤שׁ (way·ḇaq·qêš)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1245: To search out, to strive after

to kill them.)
לְהַכֹּתָ֔ם (lə·hak·kō·ṯām)
Preposition-l | Verb - Hifil - Infinitive construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 5221: To strike


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OT History: 2 Samuel 21:2 The king called the Gibeonites and said (2Sa iiSam 2 Sam ii sam)
2 Samuel 21:1
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