2 Samuel 21:6

6 hand over seven of his sons to us, and we will hang them before the LORD at Gibeon on the LORD's mountain." "I will hand them over," the king said.

2 Samuel 21:6 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 21:6

Let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us
They settled upon this number, either because they were seven, and no more of the Gibeonites, whom Saul slew, as the Jew say F9; two hewers of wood, two drawers of water, a keeper (of a synagogue), a scribe, and a servant; but perhaps the true reason was, they knew there were no more besides Mephibosheth, for whom David had a great respect, and therefore required no more:

and we will hang them up unto the Lord;
not to gratify a revengeful spirit of theirs, but in honour to the justice of God, and to appease his wrath:

in Gibeah of Saul, [whom] the Lord did choose;
which was Saul's native place, and where he always lived; so that to hang them there was to the greater disgrace of him and his family; and he being chosen of the Lord to be a king of Israel, was an aggravation of his crime in violating the oath made to the Gibeonites

and the king said, I will give [them];
for though he had sworn to Saul that he would not cut off his seed, yet as he had a divine direction in this case, as appears by the Lord's being pleased with it, and was entreated for the land by it, this oath of his was dispensed with; nor did he cut them off himself but delivered them to others, according to the will of God.


FOOTNOTES:

F9 T. Hieros. Kiddushin, fol. 65. 2.

2 Samuel 21:6 In-Context

4 The Gibeonites said to him, "We don't want any silver or gold from Saul or his family, and it isn't our right to have anyone in Israel killed." "What do you want?" David asked. "I'll do it for you."
5 "Okay then," they said to the king. "That man who opposed and oppressed us, who planned to destroy us, keeping us from having a place to live anywhere in Israel—
6 hand over seven of his sons to us, and we will hang them before the LORD at Gibeon on the LORD's mountain." "I will hand them over," the king said.
7 But the king spared Mephibosheth, Jonathan's son and Saul's grandson, because of the LORD's solemn pledge that was between them—between David and Saul's son Jonathan.
8 So the king took the two sons of Aiah's daughter Rizpah, Armoni and Mephibosheth, whom she had birthed for Saul; and the five sons of Saul's daughter Merab, whom she birthed for Adriel, Barzillai's son, who was from Meholah,

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Correction; cf LXX and 21:9; MT at Gibeah of Saul, the LORD’s chosen one
Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible