2 Samuel 2:9

9 There he made him king over Gilead, the Geshurites, Jezreel, Ephraim, and Benjamin—over all Israel.

2 Samuel 2:9 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 2:9

And he made him king over Gilead
Which lay beyond Jordan, and included the tribes of Gad and Reuben, and the half tribe of Manasseh; these he prevailed upon to acknowledge Ishbosheth, their king, and proclaimed him king over them:

and over the Ashurites:
that is, those of the house or tribe of Asher, as the Targum, and indeed none else can well be thought of; some indeed read the Geshurites, as the Vulgate Latin version; but these were never expelled by the Israelites, and had at this time a king over them, ( 2 Samuel 3:3 ) ; see ( Joshua 13:13 ) ;

and over Jezreel;
the great plain which went along the borders of Zebulun, Issachar, and Naphtali, and included these tribes:

and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin:
the tribes of Ephraim and Benjamin:

and over all Israel,
excepting the tribe of Judah; that is, he prevailed first on one of these, then on another, until he got all the tribes of Israel to own him for their king; David all this time being still and quiet, and not opposing him, waiting God's own time to open the way for his possession of the kingdom over all Israel, and having a strict regard to his oath to Saul, ( 1 Samuel 24:21 1 Samuel 24:22 ) .

2 Samuel 2:9 In-Context

7 So now take courage and be brave—yes, your master Saul is dead, but the house of Judah has anointed me king over them."

8 Meanwhile, Abner, Ner's son, the commander of Saul's army, had taken Ishbosheth, Saul's son, and brought him over to Mahanaim.

9 There he made him king over Gilead, the Geshurites, Jezreel, Ephraim, and Benjamin—over all Israel.

10 Saul's son Ishbosheth was 40 years old when he became king over Israel, and he ruled for two years. The house of Judah, however, followed David.

11 The amount of time David ruled in Hebron over the house of Judah totaled seven and a half years.

Footnotes

• [a]. Syr, Vulg; MT Ashurites or Assyrians; cf Tg, LXX L, Judg 1:32 Asherites