2 Samuel 15:30 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
2 Samuel 15:30
And David went up by the ascent of mount Olivet, and wept as he went up, and had his head covered, and he went barefoot: and all the people that was with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up.
a people (as a congregated unit) · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
covered
חָפוּ֙cha.Fu
H2645
to cover · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person common plural
man
אִ֣ישׁ'ish
H376
a man as an individual or a male person · noun, common masculine singular absolute
head
רֹאשׁ֔וֹro.Sho
H7218
the head (as most easily shaken) · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
up
וְעָל֥וּve.'a.Lu
H5927
to ascend · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 3rd person common plural
weeping
וּבָכֹֽהu.va.Khoh
H1058
to weep · conjunction + verb, qal infinitive absolute
up
עָלֹ֖ה'a.Loh
H5927
to ascend · verb, qal infinitive absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Esther 6:12 And Mordecai came again to the king’s gate. But Haman hasted to his house mourning, and having his head covered.
2 Samuel 19:4 But the king covered his face, and the king cried with a loud voice, O my son Absalom, O Absalom, my son, my son!
Luke 19:41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,
Isaiah 20:2-4 At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from…
Jeremiah 14:3-4 And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empt…
Ezekiel 24:17 Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy…
Ezekiel 24:23 And your tires shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye shall pine away for your iniquit…
Zechariah 14:4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave i…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on 2 Samuel 15:24-30
Here we have, I. The fidelity of the priests and Levites and their firm adherence to David and his interest. They knew David's great affection to them and their office, notwithstanding his failings. The method Absalom took to gain people's affections made no impression upon them; he had little religion in him, and therefore they steadily adhered to David. Zadok and Abiathar, and all the Levites, if he go, will accompany him, and take the ark with them, that, by it, they may ask counsel of God for him, Sa2 15:24. Note, Those that are friends to the ark in their prosperity will find it a friend to them in their adversity. Formerly David would not rest till he had found a resting-place for the…
David went up by the ascent of mount Olivet--The same pathway over that mount has been followed ever since that memorable day.
had his head covered--with a mourning wrapper. The humility and resignation of David marked strongly his sanctified spirit, induced by contrition for his transgressions. He had fallen, but it was the fall of the upright; and he rose again, submitting himself meekly in the meantime to the will of God [CHALMERS].
Adam Clarke on 2 Samuel 15:30
Had his head covered - This was not only the attitude of a mourner, but even of a culprit; they usually had their heads covered when condemned. See the case of Haman. When the king had pronounced his condemnation, they immediately covered his face, and led him out to punishment; Est 7:8 (note). See also Quintus Curtius, De Philota, cap. vi.: I, Lictor; caput obnubito.
John Gill on 2 Samuel 15:30
And David went up by the ascent of Mount Olivet,.... So called from the olive trees that grew upon it, which is often mentioned in the New Testament, and where our Lord Jesus Christ, the antitype of David, often was, in his state of humiliation, Matthew 26:30, and from whence he ascended to heaven after his resurrection, Acts 1:12; it was about a mile from Jerusalem, to the east of it:
and wept as he went up; thinking perhaps of the wickedness and rebellion of his son, of his own hard case, to be obliged to quit his metropolis and palace, and make his flight afoot; and perhaps also of his own sins, which were the cause of his calamities:
and had his head covered; with his mantle, with whic…
The Church Fathers
Again, after Absalom's rebellion, when David was in flight, with many possible routes before him, he chose to make his escape by the Mount of Olives, as good as invoking in his own mind the Deliverer who should from there ascend into the heavens. And when Shimei cursed him bitterly he said, "Let him be." For he knew that forgiveness is for those who forgive.… As, then, brothers, you have many examples of people who have sinned and then repented and been saved, do you also make confession to the Lord with all your heart, so as to receive pardon of all your sins of the time past and be accounted worthy of the heavenly gift and inherit the heavenly kingdom with all the saints in Christ Jesus, to whom be glory, world without end. Amen.
According to the word of God, misfortunes were piled up from this time on. The father suffered long from the treachery of his son.…Is the spectacle of David's flight to be added to this account? Of such a nature was the flight that such a great king, of so great a reputation, greater and more honored than all other kings in the world, fled from his people with but a few servants. In comparison with his recent state, he was indeed poor; in comparison with his customary entourage, he was indeed alone. He fled in fear, disgrace and sorrow, "walking," says Scripture, "with head covered and barefoot." He was a witness of his former estate, an exile from his former self, almost one who lives after his own death. He was cast down so low that he received the scorn of his own servants, which is grave, or their pity, which is graver still. Sheba fed him, and Shimei did not fear to curse him in public. He was so changed from his former self by God's judgment that he, whom the entire world had once feared, was insulted to his face by a single enemy.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Ahimaaz — Brother of anger = irascible. (1.) The father Ahinoam, the wife of Saul (1 Sam. 14:50). (2.) The son and successor of Zadok in the office of high priest (1 Chr. 6:8, 53). On the occasion of the…
Barefoot — To go barefoot was a sign of great distress (Isa. 20:2, 3, 4), or of some great calamity having fallen on a person (2 Sam. 15:30).
Dress — (1.) Materials used. The earliest and simplest an apron of fig-leaves sewed together (Gen. 3:7); then skins of animals (3:21). Elijah’s dress was probably the skin of a sheep (2 Kings 1:8). The…
Kidron — = Kedron = Cedron, turbid, the winter torrent which flows through the Valley of Jehoshaphat, on the eastern side of Jerusalem, between the city and the Mount of Olives. This valley is known in…
Kidron, Or Kedron — (turbid), The brook, a torrent or valley, not a “brook,” or, as in the margin of Revised Version, “ravine;” Gr. winter torrent. It was close to Jerusalem, between the city and the Mount of Olives. it…
Mourning — One marked feature of Oriental mourning is what may be called its studies publicity and the careful observance of the prescribed ceremonies. (Genesis 23:2; Job 1:20; 2:12)
Olives, Mount Of — “The Mount of Olives” occurs in the Old Testament in (Zechariah 14:4) only. In (2 Samuel 15:30) it is called “Olivet;” in other places simply “the mount,” (Nehemiah 8:15) “the mount facing Jerusalem”…
Olivet — (place of olives). (2 Samuel 15:30; Acts 1:12) [Olives, Mount Of, Mount, Mount, Mountain OF]
Olves, Mount of — So called from the olive trees with which its sides are clothed, is a mountain ridge on the east of Jerusalem (1 Kings 11:7; Ezek. 11:23; Zech. 14:4), from which it is separated by the valley of…
Sandal — was the article ordinarily used by the Hebrews for protecting the feet. It consisted simply of a sole attached to the foot by thongs. We have express notice of the thong (Authorized Version “shoe…
Ahithophel and Hushai. - Sa2 15:30, Sa2 15:31. When David was going by the height of the olive-trees, i.e., the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went, with his head covered, and barefooted, as a sign of grief and mourning (see Est 6:12; Eze 24:17), and with the people who accompanied him also mourning, he received intelligence that Ahithophel (see at Sa2 15:12) was with Absalom, and among the conspirators. הגּיד ודוד gives no sense; for David cannot be the subject, because the next clause, "and David said," etc., contains most distinctly an expression of David's on receiving some information. Thenius would therefore alter הגּיד into the Hophal הגּד, whilst Ewald (131, a) would change it into ה…
Feet, The · Of the Jews: Bare in affliction — Of the Jews: Bare in affliction
Head · In grief: Covered up — In grief: Covered up
Loyalty · .Israelites — .Israelites
Olives, Mount Of · over it — over it
Shoes · The Jews: Never wore, in mourning — The Jews: Never wore, in mourning
Weeping · .Of David — .Of David
Zadok · Absalom’ s usurpation; returns with the ark of the covenant at David’ s command — Absalom’ s usurpation; returns with the ark of the covenant at David’ s command
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
