2 Samuel 16:9 BSB — MannaFest

2 Samuel 16:9

Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head!”

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Then said Abishai the son of Zeruiah unto the king, Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head.

KJV

Then said Abishai the son of Zeruiah unto the king, Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head.

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Commentary

4 voices

Ambrose of Milan

On the Duties of the Clergy 1.48.236-38 (397)

We can show, too, that holy David was like Paul in this same class of virtue. When … Shimei cursed him and charged him with heavy offenses, at the first he was silent and humbled himself, and was silent even about his good deeds, that is, his knowledge of good works. Then he even asked to be cursed; for when he was cursed he hoped to gain divine pity.But see how he stored up humility and justice and prudence so as to merit grace from the Lord!

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Shimei unjustly upbraided him with the blood of Saul: from that his conscience acquitted him, but, at the same time, it charged him with the blood of Uriah. "The reproach is too true" (thinks David), "though false as he means it." Note, A humble tender spirit will turn reproaches into reproofs, and so get good by them, instead of being provoked by them.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Albert Barnes

1798–1870

Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)

This dead dog - See the marginal reference and 2Sa 9:8 note. Go over - The ravine, possibly with a stream of water 2Sa 17:20, which lay between them and Shimei.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

It is, however, only the confines of the district that are here meant. Shimei, . . . a man of the family of Saul--The misfortune of his family, and the occupation by David of what they considered their rightful possessions, afforded a natural, if not a justifiable cause for this ebullition of rude insults and violence.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

19 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר	vai.Yo.mer	and he said	H559 →
אֲבִישַׁ֤י	'a.vi.Shai	Abishai	H52 →
בֶּן־	ben-	[the] son of	H1121 →
צְרוּיָה֙	tze.ru.Yah	Zeruiah	H6870 →
אֶל־	'el-	to	H413 →
הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ	ha.Me.lekh	the king	H4428 →
לָ֣מָּה	La.mah	<to> why?	H4100 →
יְקַלֵּ֞ל	ye.ka.Lel	will he curse	H7043 →
הַכֶּ֤לֶב	ha.Ke.lev	the dog	H3611 →
הַמֵּת֙	ha.Met	<the> dead	H4191 →
הַזֶּ֔ה	ha.Zeh	<the> this	H2088 →
אֶת־	'et-	<obj.>	H853 →
אֲדֹנִ֖י	'a.do.Ni	lord my	H113 →
הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ	ha.Me.lekh	the king	H4428 →
אֶעְבְּרָה־	'e'.be.rah-	let me pass over	H5674 →
נָּ֖א	na'	please	H4994 →
וְאָסִ֥ירָה	ve.'a.Si.rah	and let me remove	H5493 →
אֶת־	'et-	<obj.>	H853 →
רֹאשֽׁוֹ׃ ס	ro.Sho	head his	H7218 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
1 Samuel 24:14
Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea?
leads to
- 1 Samuel 26:20
  So do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the LORD. For the king of Israel has come out to look for a flea, like one who hunts…
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
Through
2 Samuel 3:8
Abner was furious over Ish-bosheth’s accusation. “Am I the head of a dog that belongs to Judah?” he asked. “All this time I have been loyal to the house of your father Saul, to…
leads to
- 2 Samuel 9:8
  Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog like me?”
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
Through
Exodus 22:28
You must not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.
leads to
- Ecclesiastes 10:20
  Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich even in your bedroom, for a bird of the air may carry your words, and a winged creature may report your…
- Acts 23:5
  “Brothers,” Paul replied, “I was not aware that he was the high priest, for it is written: ‘Do not speak evil about the ruler of your people.’”
- Jude 1:8
  Yet in the same way these dreamers defile their bodies, reject authority, and slander glorious beings.
- Exodus 22:8–9
  If the thief is not found, the owner of the house must appear before the judges to determine whether he has taken his neighbor’s property.
- Exodus 21:17
  Anyone who curses his father or mother must surely be put to death.
Through
2 Samuel 9:8
Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog like me?”
leads to
- Matthew 15:26–27
  But Jesus replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”

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David Mourns the Death of Absalom — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

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01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About 2 Samuel

Where the connections lead

The record, by era

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About 2 Samuel