2 Samuel 4:6-12

6 They went right into the house, as if they were coming to get wheat, and stabbed him in the groin; then Rekhav and Ba'anah his brother escaped.
7 They entered the house as he lay on his bed in his bedroom, stabbed him and killed him; then they beheaded him, took his head and fled all night along the road through the 'Aravah.
8 They brought the head of Ish-Boshet to David in Hevron and said to the king, "Here is the head of Ish-Boshet the son of Sha'ul your enemy, who wanted to take your life. Today ADONAI has taken revenge on Sha'ul and his son for the sake of my lord the king."
9 But David answered Rekhav and Ba'anah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Be'eroti, "As ADONAI lives, who has rescued me from every kind of difficulty,
10 when someone told me, 'Here, Sha'ul is dead,' thinking to himself that he was bringing good news, I didn't reward him for his news but seized him and killed him in Ziklag.
11 How much more, when criminals have killed an innocent man in his own house on his own bed, shouldn't I hold you responsible for his death and rid the earth of you?"
12 David then gave the order to his men, and they put them to death, cutting off their hands and feet and hanging them up next to the pool at Hevron. But they took the head of Ish-Boshet and buried it in Avner's grave at Hevron.

2 Samuel 4:6-12 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO SECOND SAMUEL 4

This chapter relates the concern the death of Abner gave to Ishbosheth, and the men of Israel, 2Sa 4:1; the murder of Ishbosheth by two of his captains, who cut off his head, and brought it to David, 2Sa 4:2-8; by whom they were rewarded according to their deserts, he putting them to death, and exposing their bodies to shame and ignominy, 2Sa 4:9-12.

Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.