2 Samuel 3:34

34 Your hands weren't tied, your feet weren't fettered; you fell like one who falls at the hands of criminals." Then all the people wept over him more than ever.

2 Samuel 3:34 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 3:34

Thy hands [were] not bound, nor thy feet put into fetters,
&c.] As malefactors are when they are taken up for any crime, and especially when proved upon them, and condemned for it, and brought forth to be executed. This was not his case, and had he been aware of the design against him, as his hands and feet were at liberty, he might have defended himself; or if he found he had too many to deal with, might have made use of his feet and fled:

as a man falleth before wicked men, [so] fellest thou;
as a man being before bloodthirsty and deceitful men, falls before them, through treachery and deceit, privately and unawares, so fell Abner before Joab and Abishai; this David said in the presence of Joab, and before all the people, to declare the plain fact how it was, to express his detestation of it, and to show he had no hand in it; and Joab must be an hardened creature to stand at the grave of Abner, and hear all this, and not be affected with it:

and all the people wept again over him;
over Abner, being laid in his grave; they had wept before, but hearing this funeral oration delivered by the king in such moving language, and in such a mournful tone, it drew tears afresh from them.

2 Samuel 3:34 In-Context

32 They buried Avner at Hevron; the king wept aloud at Avner's grave, and all the people wept.
33 The king sang this lament over Avner: "Should Avner have died like a thug?
34 Your hands weren't tied, your feet weren't fettered; you fell like one who falls at the hands of criminals." Then all the people wept over him more than ever.
35 All the people came to David and tried to make him eat some bread while it was still daytime; but David swore, "May God bring terrible curses on me and worse ones yet if I taste bread or anything else until the sun goes down."
36 All the people took note of this, and it pleased them; whatever the king did pleased all the people.
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.