2 Samuel 15:8
in 2 Samuel 15For your servant made a vow while dwelling in Geshur of Aram, saying: ‘If indeed the LORD brings me back to Jerusalem, I will worship the LORD in Hebron.’”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria, saying, If Jehovah shall indeed bring me again to Jerusalem, then I will serve Jehovah.
KJV
For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria, saying, If the Lord shall bring me again indeed to Jerusalem, then I will serve the Lord.
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This verse in 2 Samuel 15
Commentary
6 notes on this verseFor thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria,.... When at his grandfather's court there: saying, if the Lord will bring me again indeed to Jerusalem; which he might be sincerely desirous of: then I will serve the Lord; but it is a question whether he ever made a vow to this purpose, or concerned himself about serving the Lord; but it rather may be, this was a lie of his, now framed in order to get leave of the king to go to Hebron.
This site's exposition
After four years had passed
on 2 Samuel 15:7-9
The Hebrew and the King James both read forty years, a span that fits nothing else in David's reign. Barnes calls it a very old copying error for four years, and the Syriac, the Arabic and Josephus all read four.
This site's exposition
Geshur of Aram
Absalom claims a vow from his years in Geshur of Aram: worship of the LORD in Hebron once he was back in Jerusalem. Adam Clarke suspects Aram is a copyist's slip for Edom, as the two Hebrew letters look alike. John Gill doubts the vow was ever made.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
But how easy is it for children to take advantage of their good parents' credulity, and to impose upon them with the show of religion, while still they are what they were! David was overjoyed to hear that Absalom inclined to serve the Lord, and therefore readily gave him leave to go to Hebron, and to go thither with solemnity.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
While I abode at Geshur in Syria - Geshur, the country of Talmai, was certainly not in Syria, but lay on the south of Canaan, in or near Edom, as is evident from Jdg 1:10; 1Sa 27:8; 2Sa 13:37. Hence it is probable that ארם Aram, Syria, is a mistake for אדם Edom; ד daleth and ר resh being easily interchangeable. Edom is the reading both of the Syriac and Arabic.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Hebron was the spot selected for the performance of this vow, ostensibly as being his native place (2Sa 3:3), and a famous high place, where sacrifices were frequently offered before the temple was built; but really as being in many respects the most suitable for the commencement of his rebellious enterprise.
The words behind it
17 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כִּי־ | ki- | for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| נֵ֙דֶר֙ | neder | a vow | H5088 → | |
| נָדַ֣ר | nadar | he vowed | H5087 → | |
| עַבְדְּךָ֔ | ʾavdekha | servant your | H5650 → | 799 times |
| בְּשִׁבְתִּ֥י | beshivti | when dwelt I | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| בִגְשׁ֛וּר | vigshur | at Geshur | H1650 → | 9 times |
| בַּאֲרָ֖ם | baaram | in Aram | H758 → | 143 times |
| לֵאמֹ֑ר | lemor | <to> saying | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אִם־ | ʾim- | if | H518 → | 1069 times |
| יָשׁ֨וֹב | yeshov | certainly <to dwell> | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| יְשִׁיבֵ֤נִי | yeshiveni | he will bring back me | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| יְהוָה֙ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| יְר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם | yerushalim | Jerusalem | H3389 → | 643 times |
| וְעָבַדְתִּ֖י | veavadti | and I will serve | H5647 → | 288 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| יְהוָֽה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| בְּחֶבְרוֹן׃ | bechevron | in Hebron | H2275 → | 72 times |
כִּי־for
ki-H3588 →4482 times
נֵ֙דֶר֙a vow
nederH5088 →
נָדַ֣רhe vowed
nadarH5087 →
עַבְדְּךָ֔servant your
ʾavdekhaH5650 →799 times
בְּשִׁבְתִּ֥יwhen dwelt I
beshivtiH3427 →1079 times
בִגְשׁ֛וּרat Geshur
vigshurH1650 →9 times
בַּאֲרָ֖םin Aram
baaramH758 →143 times
לֵאמֹ֑ר<to> saying
lemorH559 →5305 times
אִם־if
ʾim-H518 →1069 times
יָשׁ֨וֹבcertainly <to dwell>
yeshovH3427 →1079 times
יְשִׁיבֵ֤נִיhe will bring back me
yeshiveniH7725 →1056 times
יְהוָה֙Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
יְר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔םJerusalem
yerushalimH3389 →643 times
וְעָבַדְתִּ֖יand I will serve
veavadtiH5647 →288 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
יְהוָֽהYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
בְּחֶבְרוֹן׃in Hebron
bechevronH2275 →72 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
1 Samuel 1:11And she made a vow, pleading, “O LORD of Hosts, if only You will look upon the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, not forgetting Your maidservant but giving her a son, then…
it leads to
- Judges 13:5
For behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son. And no razor shall come over his head, because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he will…
- Numbers 6:5
For the entire period of his vow of separation, no razor shall pass over his head. He must be holy until the time of his separation to the LORD is complete; he must let…
- Genesis 29:32
And Leah conceived and gave birth to a son, and she named him Reuben, for she said, “The LORD has seen my affliction. Surely my husband will love me now.”
- Ecclesiastes 5:4
When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, because He takes no pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow.
- Genesis 28:20
Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, and if He will provide me with food to eat and clothes to wear,
- Judges 13:5
Through
2 Samuel 14:32“Look,” said Absalom, “I sent for you and said, ‘Come here. I want to send you to the king to ask: Why have I come back from Geshur? It would be better for me…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 20:8
Therefore deal faithfully with your servant, for you have brought me into a covenant with you before the LORD. If there is iniquity in me, then kill me yourself; why should you bring me…
- Exodus 14:12
Did we not say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in…
- Proverbs 28:13
He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.
- 1 Samuel 20:8
Where this verse is studied
About 2 Samuel
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PlaceJerusalemJerusalemThe city David took from the Jebusites and made his capital, where Solomon built the temple, where Christ was crucified and rose,…
- PlaceJudean hill countryHebronThe city of the patriarchs, where Abraham bought the cave of Machpelah, Caleb took his inheritance, and David reigned seven years…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.