2 Samuel 4:12

And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ishbosheth, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
David	דָּוִ֨ד da.Vid	H1732	David · proper noun, a man's name
commanded	וַיְצַו֩ vay.Tzav	H6680	(intensively) to constitute · conjunction + verb, piel sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
men	הַנְּעָרִ֜ים ha.ne.'a.Rim	H5288	(concretely) a boy (as active) · definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
slew	וַיַּהַרְג֗וּם vai.ya.har.Gum	H2026	to smite with deadly intent · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
off	וַֽיְקַצְּצ֤וּ vay.ka.tze.Tzu	H7112	to chop off (literally or figuratively) · conjunction + verb, piel sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
hands	יְדֵיהֶם֙ ye.dei.Hem	H3027	a hand (the open one (indicating power · noun, common both genders dual construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
feet	רַגְלֵיהֶ֔ם rag.lei.Hem	H7272	a foot (as used in walking) · noun, common feminine dual construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
up	וַיִּתְל֥וּ vai.yit.Lu	H8518	to suspend (especially to gibbet) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
pool	הַבְּרֵכָ֖ה ha.be.re.Khah	H1295	a reservoir (at which camels kneel as a resting-place) · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
Hebron	בְּחֶבְר֑וֹן be.chev.Ron	H2275	Chebron · preposition + proper noun, a place name
took	לָקָ֔חוּ la.Ka.chu	H3947	to take (in the widest variety of applications) · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person common plural
head	רֹ֤אשׁ rosh	H7218	the head (as most easily shaken) · noun, common masculine singular construct
Ish-bosheth	אִֽישׁ 'ish-	H378	Ish-Bosheth · proper noun, a man's name
buried	וַיִּקְבְּר֥וּ vai.yik.be.Ru	H6912	to inter · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
sepulchre	בְקֶֽבֶר ve.ke.ver-	H6913	a sepulchre · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
Abner	אַבְנֵ֖ר 'av.Ner	H74	Abner · proper noun, a man's name
Hebron	בְּחֶבְרֽוֹן be.chev.Ron	H2275	Chebron · preposition + proper noun, a place name

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

2 Samuel 1:15 And David called one of the young men, and said, Go near, and fall upon him. And he smote him that he died.
2 Samuel 3:32 And they buried Abner in Hebron: and the king lifted up his voice, and wept at the grave of Abner; and all the people wept.
Deuteronomy 21:22-23 And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree:
2 Samuel 21:9 And he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the hill before the LORD: and they fell all seven together,…
Psalms 55:23 But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction: bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; but I will…
Matthew 7:2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 2 Samuel 4:9–end

We have here justice done upon the murderers of Ish-bosheth. I. Sentence passed upon them. There needed no evidence, their own tongues witnessed against them; they were so far from denying the fact that they gloried in it. David therefore shows them the heinousness of the crime, and that blood called for blood from his hand, who was now the chief magistrate, and was by office the avenger of blood. And, perhaps, he was the more vigorous in the prosecution because for reasons of state he had spared Joab: "Shall I not require the blood of the slain at the hand of the slayers, and, since they cannot make restitution, take theirs instead of it?" Observe, 1. How he aggravates the crime, Sa2 4:11.…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 2 Samuel 4:12

DAVID CAUSES THEM TO BE PUT TO DEATH. (Sa2 4:10-12) slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet--as the instruments in perpetrating their crime. The exposure of the mutilated remains was intended as not only a punishment of their crime, but also the attestation of David's abhorrence. Next: 2 Samuel Chapter 5

Adam Clarke on 2 Samuel 4:12

And they slew them - None ever more richly deserved death; and by this act of justice, David showed to all Israel that he was a decided enemy to the destruction of Saul's family; and that none could lift up their hands against any of them without meeting with condign punishment. In all these cases I know not that it was possible for David to show more sincerity, or a stricter regard for justice.

John Gill on 2 Samuel 4:12

And David commanded his young men, and they slew them,.... He ordered some of his guards about him to fall on them, and put them to death; and they accordingly did: and cut off their hands and their feet; their hands, which had smote Ishbosheth, and cut off his head; and their feet, which had been swift to shed his blood, and made haste to bring his head so many miles to David; this was what the Jews call measure for measure: and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron; not their hands and their feet, but the trunks of their bodies, thus mutilated; so Theodoret; though others think their hands and their feet were hung up, and not their bodies, because dead bodies were not to hang upon the t…

Dictionary and topics

Captive — One taken in war. Captives were often treated with great cruelty and indignity (1 Kings 20:32; Josh. 10:24; Judg. 1:7; 2 Sam. 4:12; Judg. 8:7; 2 Sam. 12:31; 1 Chr. 20:3). When a city was taken by…
Fish-pools — (Cant. 7:4) should be simply “pools,” as in the Revised Version. The reservoirs near Heshbon (q.v.) were probably stocked with fish (2 Sam. 2:13; 4:12; Isa. 7:3; 22:9, 11).
Punishments — The earliest theory of punishment current among mankind is doubtless the one of simple retaliation, “blood for blood.” Viewed historically, the first case of punishment for crime mentioned in…
Assassination · David’s abhorrence of — David’s abhorrence of
Feet, The · Of enemies often maimed and cut off — Of enemies often maimed and cut off
Hands, The · Criminals often: Deprived of — Criminals often: Deprived of
Hanging · General references — General references
Hebron · .The burial place of Ish-bosheth — .The burial place of Ish-bosheth
Ish-Bosheth · Avenged by David — Avenged by David
Kings · Often exercised power arbitrarily — Often exercised power arbitrarily
Pools And Ponds · Mentioned in scripture: Hebron — Mentioned in scripture: Hebron
Punishments · Secondary kinds of: Cutting off hands and feet — Secondary kinds of: Cutting off hands and feet

2 Samuel 4:12

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 2 Samuel 4:9–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 2 Samuel 4:12

Adam Clarke on 2 Samuel 4:12

John Gill on 2 Samuel 4:12

Dictionary and topics

2 Samuel 4:12

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 2 Samuel 4:9–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 2 Samuel 4:12

Adam Clarke on 2 Samuel 4:12

John Gill on 2 Samuel 4:12

Dictionary and topics

Keil & Delitzsch on 2 Samuel 4:12–end

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 2 Samuel 4:12

Rashi on 2 Samuel 4:10