2 Samuel 2:1

1 Later, David prayed to the Lord, saying, "Should I go up to any of the cities of Judah?" The Lord said to David, "Go." David asked, "Where should I go?" The Lord answered, "To Hebron."

2 Samuel 2:1 Meaning and Commentary

2 Samuel 2:1

And it came to pass after this
After David had heard of the death of Saul and Jonathan, and made a lamentation over them, perhaps the next day; since David and his men are only said to mourn, and weep, and fast till even, ( 2 Samuel 1:10 ) ;

that David inquired of the Lord;
of the Word of the Lord, as the Targum, by Abiathar the priest, and through the Urim and Thummim, in the ephod he had put on on this occasion:

saying, shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?
though the Lord had promised him the kingdom, and he had been anointed by Samuel by his appointment, yet he was not hasty to take it into his hands, but was desirous of acting according to the will of God, and by his direction, and wait his time when and where he should go and take possession of it; he mentions Judah because it was his own tribe, and where he had the most friends:

and the Lord said unto him, go up;
from Ziklag into the tribe of Judah, but did not mention any particular place whither he should go; hence another question was put:

and David said, whither shall I go up?
To what town or city in the tribe of Judah? whether Jerusalem or any other?

And he said, unto Hebron;
a city of the priests, a city of refuge, ( Joshua 21:13 ) ( 1 Chronicles 6:57 ) , twenty miles from Jerusalem, or more, which is not directed to, because it was then chiefly in the hands of the Jebusites, and because, as Procopius Gazaeus says, Hebron was now the metropolis of Judah.

2 Samuel 2:1 In-Context

1 Later, David prayed to the Lord, saying, "Should I go up to any of the cities of Judah?" The Lord said to David, "Go." David asked, "Where should I go?" The Lord answered, "To Hebron."

2 So David went up to Hebron with his two wives: Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel.

3 David also brought his men and their families, and they all made their homes in the cities of Hebron.

4 Then the men of Judah came to Hebron and appointed David king over Judah. They told David that the men of Jabesh Gilead had buried Saul.

5 So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead and said to them, "The Lord bless you. You have shown loyalty to your master Saul by burying him.