2 Samuel 1:15

15 Then David called for one of his men. He said, "Go! Strike him down!" So he struck the man down, and the man died.

2 Samuel 1:15 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 1:15

And David called one of the young men
His servants that attended on him:

and said, go near, [and] fall upon him;
by smiting him with his sword:

and he smote him, that he died;
his orders were instantly obeyed. Kings and generals of armies had great power in those times and countries to execute a man immediately, without any other judge or jury: what may serve, or David might think would serve, to justify him in doing this, is what follows.

2 Samuel 1:15 In-Context

13 David spoke to the young man who had brought him the report. He asked, "Where are you from?" "I'm the son of an outsider, an Amalekite," he answered.

14 David asked him, "Why weren't you afraid to lift your hand to kill the LORD's anointed king?"

15 Then David called for one of his men. He said, "Go! Strike him down!" So he struck the man down, and the man died.

16 That's because David had said to him, "Anything that happens to you will be your own fault. What your own mouth has spoken is a witness against you. You said, 'I killed the LORD's anointed king.' "

17 David sang a song of sadness about Saul and his son Jonathan.