2 Samuel 1:20
in 2 Samuel 1Tell it not in Gath; proclaim it not in the streets of Ashkelon, lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, and the daughters of the uncircumcised exult.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Tell it not in Gath, Publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon; Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.
KJV
Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon; lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.
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This verse in 2 Samuel 1
Commentary
10 notes on this verseTell it not in Gath,.... One of the five principalities of the Philistines, and the chief of them, being raised to a kingdom, and whose king was at the head of the armies of the Philistines that engaged with Saul.
This site's exposition
Tell it not in Gath
on 2 Samuel 1:20-21
David's wish that Gath and Askelon never hear the news is the shape of grief, not an actual instruction, since word of a battle this size had surely already reached the Philistine cities. Wesley reads it as sorrow expressing itself in a wish it knows to be impossible, spoken to relieve the speaker rather than to change events. The curse over the mountains of Gilboa that follows, no dew, no rain, no fields of offerings, is the same kind of poetic imprecation, and Barnes compares it to Job's curse on his own birthday at Job 3:3-10.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
A commentator
John ChrysostomDISCOURSES AGAINST JUDAIZING CHRISTIANS 8.4.10 · Written in the 5th century.
proposed
You have heard David's lament for Saul.… If David did not wish the matter paraded in public so that it might not be a source of joy to his foes, so much the more must we avoid spreading the story to alien ears. Rather, we must not spread it even among ourselves for fear that our enemies may hear it and rejoice, for fear that our own may learn of it and fall. We must hush it up and keep it guarded on every side. Do not say to me, "I told so-and-so." Keep the story to yourself. If you did not manage to keep quiet, neither will he manage to keep his tongue from wagging.
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
Tell it not - This is not a precept, but a poetical wish; whereby he doth not so much desire, that this might not be done, which he knew to be impossible; as, express his great sorrow, because it would be done, to the dishonour of God, and of his people.
And he said unto him, Out of the camp of Israel am I escaped. 4 And David said unto him, How went the matter? And he answered, That the people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:100%@v3-4
), that he had often been victorious over the enemies of Israel and vexed them whithersoever he turned, 1 Sam. xiv. His sword returned not empty, but satiated with blood and spoil,
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Good men are touched in a very sensible part by the reproaches of those that reproach God. (4.) He was deeply concerned for the public welfare. It was the beauty of Israel that was slain (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
, 27 ), and so the strength of the people is weakened. Public losses are most laid to heart by men of public spirit. David hoped God would make him instrumental to repair those losses and yet laments them.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
(2.) The curse he entails on the mountains of Gilboa, the theatre on which this tragedy was acted: Let there be no dew upon you, nor fields of offerings,
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Gath, the royal city of Achish 1Sa 21:10; 1Sa 27:2. Askelon, the chief seat of worship (1Sa 31:10 note).
The words behind it
15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אַל־ | ʾal- | may not | H408 → | 724 times |
| תַּגִּ֣ידוּ | tagidu | you tell | H5046 → | 370 times |
| בְגַ֔ת | vegat | in Gath | H1661 → | 32 times |
| אַֽל־ | ʾal- | may not | H408 → | 724 times |
| תְּבַשְּׂר֖וּ | tevaseru | you bear news | H1319 → | 24 times |
| בְּחוּצֹ֣ת | bechutzot | in [the] streets of | H2351 → | 164 times |
| אַשְׁקְל֑וֹן | ʾashkelon | Ashkelon | H831 → | |
| פֶּן־ | pen- | lest | H6435 → | 133 times |
| תִּשְׂמַ֙חְנָה֙ | tismachnah | they should rejoice | H8055 → | |
| בְּנ֣וֹת | benot | [the] daughters of | H1323 → | 588 times |
| פְּלִשְׁתִּ֔ים | pelishtim | [the] Philistines | H6430 → | 287 times |
| פֶּֽן־ | pen- | lest | H6435 → | 133 times |
| תַּעֲלֹ֖זְנָה | taalozenah | they should exult | H5937 → | |
| בְּנ֥וֹת | benot | [the] daughters of | H1323 → | 588 times |
| הָעֲרֵלִֽים׃ | haarelim | the uncircumcised | H6189 → |
אַל־may not
ʾal-H408 →724 times
תַּגִּ֣ידוּyou tell
tagiduH5046 →370 times
בְגַ֔תin Gath
vegatH1661 →32 times
אַֽל־may not
ʾal-H408 →724 times
תְּבַשְּׂר֖וּyou bear news
tevaseruH1319 →24 times
בְּחוּצֹ֣תin [the] streets of
bechutzotH2351 →164 times
אַשְׁקְל֑וֹןAshkelon
ʾashkelonH831 →
פֶּן־lest
pen-H6435 →133 times
תִּשְׂמַ֙חְנָה֙they should rejoice
tismachnahH8055 →
בְּנ֣וֹת[the] daughters of
benotH1323 →588 times
פְּלִשְׁתִּ֔ים[the] Philistines
pelishtimH6430 →287 times
פֶּֽן־lest
pen-H6435 →133 times
תַּעֲלֹ֖זְנָהthey should exult
taalozenahH5937 →
בְּנ֥וֹת[the] daughters of
benotH1323 →588 times
הָעֲרֵלִֽים׃the uncircumcised
haarelimH6189 →
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 18:6As the troops were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs, and…
it leads to
- Exodus 15:20
Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with tambourines and dancing.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 68:25
The singers lead the way, the musicians follow after, among the maidens playing tambourines.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Judges 11:34
And when Jephthah returned home to Mizpah, there was his daughter coming out to meet him with tambourines and dancing! She was his only child; he had no son or daughter besides her.
- Exodus 15:20
Through
Judges 11:34And when Jephthah returned home to Mizpah, there was his daughter coming out to meet him with tambourines and dancing! She was his only child; he had no son or daughter besides her.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 31:4
Again I will build you, and you will be rebuilt, O Virgin Israel. Again you will take up your tambourines and go out in joyful dancing.
- Judges 10:17
Then the Ammonites were called to arms and camped in Gilead, and the Israelites assembled and camped at Mizpah.
- Judges 11:11
So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him their leader and commander. And Jephthah repeated all his terms in the presence of the LORD at Mizpah.
- Jeremiah 31:4
Through
Micah 1:10Do not tell it in Gath; do not weep at all. Roll in the dust in Beth-leaphrah.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 6:26
O daughter of my people, dress yourselves in sackcloth and roll in ashes. Mourn with bitter wailing, as you would for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.
- Amos 6:10
And when the relative who is to burn the bodies picks them up to remove them from the house, he will call to one inside, “Is anyone else with you?” “None,” that person will…
- Jeremiah 6:26
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 2 Samuel
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Chrysostom, DISCOURSES AGAINST JUDAIZING CHRISTIANS 8.4.10; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.