2 Samuel 2:23 BSB — MannaFest

2 Samuel 2:23

But Asahel refused to turn away; so Abner thrust the butt of his spear into his stomach, and it came out his back, and he fell dead on the spot. And every man paused when he came to the place where Asahel had fallen and died.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

Howbeit he refused to turn aside: wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote him in the body, so that the spear came out behind him; and he fell down there, and died in the same place: and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still.

KJV

Howbeit he refused to turn aside: wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote him under the fifth rib, that the spear came out behind him; and he fell down there, and died in the same place: and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still.

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Commentary

4 voices

John Gill

1697–1771

Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)

Howbeit, he refused to turn aside,.... Determined on making him his captive if possible. Wherefore Abner, with the hinder end of the spear; he had in his hand, which seems to have had a pike at both ends; so that with the hinder end of it, next to Asahel, he thrust it at him, without turning to him: and smote him under the fifth rib; the place where hang the gall and liver, as the Jewish commentators from their Talmud (i) observe.

The record, by era

The Medieval Church1 voice

Gregory the Dialogist

The Book of Pastoral Rule, Part 3, Chapter 16 (604)

But when the passionate so attack others that they cannot be altogether shunned, they should be smitten, not with open rebuke, but sparingly with a certain respectful cautiousness. And this we shall shew better if we bring forward what was done by Abner. For, when Asahel attacked him with the violence of inconsiderate haste, it is written, "Abner spake unto Asahel, saying. Turn thee aside from following me, lest I be driven to smite thee to the ground. Howbeit he scorned to listen, and refused to turn aside.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

Albert Barnes

1798–1870

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

With the hinder end ... - i. e. the wooden end, which was more or less pointed to enable the owner to stick it in the ground 1Sa 26:7. The fifth rib - The word so rendered here (and in marginal references) means the abdomen, and is not etymologically connected with the Hebrew for five, as the translation “fifth rib” supposes, but with a verb meaning to be fat, or strong.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Asahel pursued after Abner--To gain the general's armor was deemed the grandest trophy. Asahel, ambitious of securing Abner's, had outstripped all other pursuers, and was fast gaining on the retreating commander. Abner, conscious of possessing more physical power, and unwilling that there should be "blood" between himself and Joab, Asahel's brother, twice urged him to desist.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

26 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
וַיְמָאֵ֣ן	vay.ma.'En	and he refused	H3985 →
לָס֗וּר	la.Sur	to turn aside	H5493 →
וַיַּכֵּ֣הוּ	vai.ya.Ke.hu	and he struck him	H5221 →
אַבְנֵר֩	'av.Ner	Abner	H74 →
בְּאַחֲרֵ֨י	be.'a.cha.Rei	with [the] back end<s> of	H310 →
הַחֲנִ֜ית	ha.cha.Nit	the spear	H2595 →
אֶל־	'el-	into	H413 →
הַחֹ֗מֶשׁ	ha.Cho.mesh	the belly	H2570 →
וַתֵּצֵ֤א	va.te.Tze'	and it went out	H3318 →
הַֽחֲנִית֙	ha.cha.Nit	the spear	H2595 →
מֵאַחֲרָ֔יו	me.'a.cha.Rav	from behind him	H310 →
וַיִּפָּל־	vai.yi.pol-	and he fell	H5307 →
שָׁ֖ם	sham	there	H8033 →
וַיָּ֣מָת	vai.Ya.mot	and he died	H4191 →
תַּחְתָּ֑יו	ta.cha.tov	in place his	H8478 →
וַיְהִ֡י	vay.Hi	and it was	H1961 →
כָּל־	kol-	every [one]	H3605 →
הַבָּ֣א	ha.Ba'	who came	H935 →
אֶֽל־	'el-	to	H413 →
הַמָּקוֹם֩	ha.ma.kOm	the place	H4725 →
אֲשֶׁר־	'a.Sher-	where	H834 →
נָ֨פַל	Na.fal	he fell	H5307 →
שָׁ֧ם	sham	there	H8033 →
עֲשָׂהאֵ֛ל	'a.sa.h.'El	Asahel	H6214 →
וַיָּמֹ֖ת	vai.ya.Mot	and he died	H4191 →
וַֽיַּעֲמֹֽדוּ׃	Vai.ya.'a.Mo.du	and they stood still	H5975 →

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
2 Samuel 20:10
Amasa was not on guard against the dagger in Joab’s hand, and Joab stabbed him in the stomach and spilled out his intestines on the ground. And Joab did not need to strike him…
leads to
- 2 Samuel 3:27
  When Abner returned to Hebron, Joab pulled him aside into the gateway, as if to speak to him privately, and there Joab stabbed him in the stomach. So Abner died on account of the…
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Judges 3:21
  And Ehud reached with his left hand, pulled the sword from his right thigh, and plunged it into Eglon’s belly.
Through
2 Samuel 3:27
When Abner returned to Hebron, Joab pulled him aside into the gateway, as if to speak to him privately, and there Joab stabbed him in the stomach. So Abner died on account of the…
leads to
- 2 Samuel 20:9–10
  “Are you well, my brother?” Joab asked Amasa. And with his right hand Joab grabbed Amasa by the beard to kiss him.
- 1 Kings 2:5
  Moreover, you know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me—what he did to Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether, the two commanders of the armies of Israel. He killed them…
- 1 Kings 2:32
  The LORD will bring his bloodshed back upon his own head, for without the knowledge of my father David he struck down two men more righteous and better than he when he put to…
- Deuteronomy 27:24
  ‘Cursed is he who strikes down his neighbor in secret.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’
Through
2 Samuel 5:6
Now the king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land. The Jebusites said to David: “You will never get in here. Even the blind and lame can repel…
leads to
- Judges 1:8
  Then the men of Judah fought against Jerusalem and captured it. They put the city to the sword and set it on fire.
- Joshua 18:28
  Zelah, Haeleph, Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath-jearim—fourteen cities, along with their villages. This was the inheritance of the clans of the tribe of Benjamin.

About 2 Samuel

Combat between Soldiers of Ish-bosheth and David — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

2 Samuel: the study guide →Read chapter 2 →The featured study →

Continue: 2 Samuel 2 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

06About 2 Samuel

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

About 2 Samuel