2 Samuel 17:2

2 "1I will come upon him while he is weary and exhausted * and terrify him, so that all the people who are with him will flee. Then 2I will strike down the king alone,

2 Samuel 17:2 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 17:2

And I will come upon him while he [is] weary
With travelling, and with grief, and when endeavouring to get some rest by sleep, and so surprise him unawares, when not on his guard, and in no posture of defence:

and weak handed;
while the number of men with him is small, and before the people from different parts can come to his assistance:

and will make him afraid;
strike terror into him and his then, by surprising them suddenly in the night with such a number of men:

and all the people that [are] with him shall flee;
one one way, and another another, for their own security, and leave David alone:

and I will smite the king only;
dispatch him, and let the people flee without pursuing them.

2 Samuel 17:2 In-Context

1 Furthermore, Ahithophel said to Absalom, "Please let me choose 12,000 men that I may arise and pursue David tonight.
2 "I will come upon him while he is weary and exhausted and terrify him, so that all the people who are with him will flee. Then I will strike down the king alone,
3 and I will bring back all the people to you. The return of everyone depends on the man you seek; then all the people will be at peace."
4 So the plan pleased Absalom and all the elders of Israel.
5 Then Absalom said, "Now call Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear what he has to say."

Cross References 2

Footnotes 1

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