2 Samuel 4
4
1When Ishbosheth,#4:1. Both here and in verse 2, Ishbosheth is simply referred to as “son of Saul.” His name is not given. son of Saul, heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he was very discouraged,#4:1. “He was very discouraged”: literally, “his hands hung limply.” and everyone in Israel was shocked.
2Ishbosheth had two commanders of his raiding bands, brothers by the name of Baanah and Rechab. They were the sons of Rimmon of the tribe of Benjamin from the town of Beeroth. Beeroth is considered part of the territory of Benjamin, 3because the people who had lived in Beeroth before ran away to Gittaim and lived there as foreigners right up to the present.
4Jonathan, son of Saul, had a son lame in both feet. He was five years old when the news about the deaths of Saul and Jonathan had come from Jezreel. His nurse had picked him up and run away, but as she rushed to get away, he fell and became lame. His name was Mephibosheth.#4:4. Mephibosheth. His name is given as “Meribaal” in 1 Chronicles 8:34 and 1 Chronicles 9:40. The name here reflects the writer's reluctance to use the name of a pagan god in the name of one of the kings of Israel. See footnote to 2:8.
5Rechab and Baanah, sons of Rimmon from Beeroth, went to Ishbosheth's house, arriving in the heat of the day as the king was taking his midday rest. 6The woman doorkeeper had been cleaning wheat, but she had grown tired and fallen asleep, so Rechab and Baanah were able to slip inside.#4:6. There are a number of issues with this verse. Here this translation follows the Septuagint. The Hebrew text says, “They went inside the house as if to get some wheat, and they stabbed him in the belly. Then Rechab and his brother Baanah slipped out.” Sadly this verse is not extant in any of the Dead Sea Scrolls. 7They had gone into the house while Ishbosheth was asleep on his bed in his bedroom. After stabbing and killing him, they cut off his head which they took with them, and they traveled all night by the Jordan Valley road.
8They took the head of Ishbosheth to David in Hebron. They told the king, “Here is the head of Ishbosheth, son of Saul, your enemy who tried to kill you. Today the Lord has taken revenge on Saul and his family for my lord the king.”
9But David answered Rechab and his brother Baanah, sons of Rimmon from Beeroth, “As the Lord lives, who has saved me from all my troubles, 10when someone told me, ‘Look, Saul is dead’ and he thought he was bringing me good news, I grabbed him and had him put him to death at Ziklag. That was what he got for bringing me his news! 11Even more so then, when evil men kill a good man in his own house, and in his own bed, shouldn't I demand you pay for his life with your own lives, and exterminate you!”
12David gave the order to his men, and they killed Rechab and Baanah. They chopped off their hands and feet, and hung their bodies by the pool in Hebron. Then they took Ishbosheth's head and buried it in Abner's grave in Hebron.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
2 Samuel 4
4
Ish-Bosheth Murdered
1#Ezr 4:4; Isa 13:7When the son of Saul heard that Abner had died in Hebron, his courage failed, and all of Israel was disheartened. 2#Jos 18:25; 9:17Now the son of Saul had two men who were leaders of raiding bands. The name of one was Baanah and the name of the other Rekab, both sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, from among the sons of Benjamin. Now Beeroth is also regarded as part of Benjamin, 3#Ne 11:33; 1Sa 31:7because the Beerothites fled to Gittaim and have been sojourners there until this day.
4#2Sa 9:3; 1Ch 8:34Now Jonathan the son of Saul had a son with crippled feet. He was five years old when the report of Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but in her haste to escape, he fell and became lame. His name was Mephibosheth.
5The sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rekab and Baanah, went out and came to the house of Ish-Bosheth in the heat of the day, as he was resting in his bed at midday. 6#2Sa 2:23They entered the house as if to get wheat and stabbed him in the abdomen. Then Rekab and his brother Baanah fled to safety.
7When they entered the house, he was lying on his bed in his bedroom; they struck him, killed him, and beheaded him. Then they took his head and traveled by way of the Arabah all night. 8#1Sa 25:29; 23:15They brought the head of Ish-Bosheth to David in Hebron and said to the king, “Here is the head of Ish-Bosheth the son of Saul, your enemy who sought your life. This day, the Lord has given retribution against Saul and his descendent to my lord the king.”
9#1Ki 1:29; Ge 48:16David answered Rekab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As the Lord, who has delivered my life from every distress, lives, 10#2Sa 1:2–16when one reported to me that Saul was dead, although he was a bearer of good news in his own eyes, I seized him and killed him at Ziklag, which was my reward for his message. 11#Ps 9:12; Ge 9:5–6How much more so, when guilty men have slain an innocent man in his own house on his own bed, should I not now require his blood from your hand and wipe you from the earth?”
12#2Sa 1:15; 3:32David then gave orders to the young men. They killed them, cut off their hands and feet, and hung them at the pool in Hebron, but they took the head of Ish-Bosheth and buried it in the grave of Abner at Hebron.
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Military Bible Association