2 Samuel 20:25
in 2 Samuel 20Sheva was the scribe; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and Sheva was scribe; and Zadok and Abiathar were priests;
KJV
And Sheva was scribe: and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests:
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This verse in 2 Samuel 20
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd Sheva was scribe,.... Either the same with Benaiah, or he was dead or removed, and Sheva was put in his place, see 2Sa 8:17, and Zadok and Abiathar were the priests; as before; See Gill on 2Sa 8:17.
This site's exposition
Joab was over the whole army of Israel
on 2 Samuel 20:23-26
The chapter closes with an officer list that answers the one at 8:16-18. Adoram, in charge of the forced labor, holds an office the first list did not have, and Sheva is scribe where Seraiah was. Ira is named David's priest, where 8:18 had named David's sons priestly leaders.
This site's exposition
Sheva was the scribe
Adam Clarke calls the scribe the king's secretary. John Gill takes Sheva as either the earlier scribe of 8:17 under another name or his successor after death or removal. Zadok and Abiathar hold the priesthood as before, and Abiathar keeps it until Solomon removes him at 1 Kings 2:27.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
When a reconciliation is newly made, it ought to be handled with great tenderness and caution, lest the peace break again before it be settled. A broken bone, when it is set, must have time to knot. That the ring-leader of this rebellion was Sheba, a Benjamite by birth (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Shevah was scribe - The king’s secretary.
The words behind it
5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּשְׁוָ֖א | usheya' | and Sheva | H7724 → | |
| סֹפֵ֑ר | sofer | [was] secretary | H5608 → | 159 times |
| וְצָד֥וֹק | vetzadok | and Zadok | H6659 → | 53 times |
| וְאֶבְיָתָ֖ר | veevyatar | and Abiathar | H54 → | 30 times |
| כֹּהֲנִֽים׃ | kohanim | [were] priests | H3548 → | 750 times |
וּשְׁוָ֖אand Sheva
usheya'H7724 →
סֹפֵ֑ר[was] secretary
soferH5608 →159 times
וְצָד֥וֹקand Zadok
vetzadokH6659 →53 times
וְאֶבְיָתָ֖רand Abiathar
veevyatarH54 →30 times
כֹּהֲנִֽים׃[were] priests
kohanimH3548 →750 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 Kings 4:4Benaiah son of Jehoiada was in charge of the army; Zadok and Abiathar were priests;
it leads to
- 1 Kings 2:35
And the king appointed Benaiah son of Jehoiada in Joab’s place over the army, and he appointed Zadok the priest in Abiathar’s place.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Kings 2:35
Through
1 Chronicles 18:16Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was the scribe;
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 8:17
Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was the scribe;
- 1 Kings 4:3
Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were secretaries; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;
- 2 Samuel 8:17
Through
2 Samuel 8:17Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Seraiah was the scribe;
it leads to
- 1 Chronicles 18:16
Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was the scribe;
- 1 Chronicles 6:8
Ahitub was the father of Zadok, Zadok was the father of Ahimaaz,
- 1 Chronicles 24:3–4
With the help of Eleazar’s descendant Zadok and Ithamar’s descendant Ahimelech, David divided them according to the offices of their service.
- 1 Chronicles 16:39
And David left Zadok the priest and his fellow priests before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high place in Gibeon
- 1 Chronicles 6:53
Zadok his son, and Ahimaaz his son.
- 1 Chronicles 18:16
About 2 Samuel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.