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2 Samuel 15:2

in 2 Samuel 15

He would get up early and stand beside the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone had a grievance to bring before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out and ask, “What city are you from?” And if he replied, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel,”

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate: and it was so, that, when any man had a suit which should come to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him, and said, Of what city art thou? And he said, Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel.

KJV

And Absalom rose up early, and stood beside the way of the gate: and it was so, that when any man that had a controversy came to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him, and said, Of what city art thou? And he said, Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel.

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This verse in 2 Samuel 15

Commentary

6 notes on this verse

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Ambitious projects are often carried on by a show of humility, Col. ii. He knew what a grace it puts upon greatness to be affable and courteous, and how much it wins upon common people: had he been sincere in it, it would have been his praise; but to fawn upon the people that he might betray them was abominable hypocrisy.

This site's exposition

fifty men to run before him

on 2 Samuel 15:1-3

Absalom stages himself as king before he is one. The chariots, horses and fifty runners going before him are the very furniture Samuel had named years before as the manner of the king that would take from Israel, in 1 Samuel 8:11. He borrows the picture of royalty rather than wait for the office, and every man who watches him pass at the gate reads the message he intends.

This site's exposition

stand beside the road

The city gate was the place where cases were heard, as Boaz settles his at Ruth 4:1, which Albert Barnes cites here. Absalom posts himself where the petitioners must pass. Matthew Henry calls it ambition carried on by a show of humility.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

And Absalom rose up early,....

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

This dissatisfaction was artfully fomented by Absalom, who addressed himself to the various suitors; and after briefly hearing their tale, he gratified everyone with a favorable opinion of his case.
Beside the way of the gate - See Rth 4:1 note.

How the passage was read

What the Jewish commentators add

On the verses either side of this one

And [an enfourage of] fifty men etc. All of them had their thighs removed and the heals of their feet cut out. 1 Sanhedrin 21a.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on II Samuel 15:1:1, via Sefaria, The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J

This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.

Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 5 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.

The words behind it

31 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • וְהִשְׁכִּים֙and he rose early

    vehishkimH7925 →

  • אַבְשָׁל֔וֹםAbsalom

    ʾavshalomH53 →110 times

  • וְעָמַ֕דand he stood

    veamadH5975 →521 times

  • עַל־at

    ʾal-H5921 →5755 times

  • יַ֖ד[the] side of

    yadH3027 →1618 times

  • דֶּ֣רֶךְ[the] road of

    derekhH1870 →707 times

  • הַשָּׁ֑עַרthe gate

    hashaarH8179 →374 times

  • וַיְהִ֡יand it was

    vayhiH1961 →3559 times

  • כָּל־every

    kol-H3605 →5413 times

  • הָאִ֣ישׁ<the> person

    haishH376 →1663 times

  • אֲשֶֽׁר־whom

    ʾasher-H834 →5497 times

  • יִהְיֶה־it belonged

    yihyeh-H1961 →3559 times

  • לּוֹ־to <the> him

    lov-

  • רִיב֩a case at law

    rivH7379 →61 times

  • לָב֨וֹאto come

    lavo'H935 →2568 times

  • אֶל־to

    ʾel-H413 →5510 times

  • הַמֶּ֜לֶךְthe king

    hamelekhH4428 →2525 times

  • לַמִּשְׁפָּ֗טfor <the> judgment

    lamishpatH4941 →422 times

  • וַיִּקְרָ֨אand he called out

    vaiyikra'H7121 →733 times

  • אַבְשָׁל֤וֹםAbsalom

    ʾavshalomH53 →110 times

  • אֵלָיו֙to him

    ʾelavH413 →5510 times

  • וַיֹּ֗אמֶרand he said

    vaiyomerH559 →5305 times

  • אֵֽי־where?

    ʾei-H335 →39 times

  • מִזֶּ֥הfrom this

    mizehH2088 →1180 times

  • עִיר֙city

    ʾirH5892 →1090 times

  • אַ֔תָּה[are] you

    ʾatahH859 →1094 times

  • וַיֹּ֕אמֶרand he said

    vaiyomerH559 →5305 times

  • מֵאַחַ֥ד[is] from one of

    meachadH259 →971 times

  • שִׁבְטֵֽי־[the] tribes of

    shivtei-H7626 →190 times

  • יִשְׂרָאֵ֖לIsrael

    yisraelH3478 →2507 times

  • עַבְדֶּֽךָ׃servant your

    ʾavdekhaH5650 →799 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

10 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Exodus 18:16“Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me to judge between one man and another, and I make known to them the statutes and laws of God.”2 worksExodus 18:26And they judged the people at all times; they would bring the difficult cases to Moses, but any minor issue they would judge themselves.2 worksMatthew 27:1When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people conspired against Jesus to put Him to death.2 worksExodus 18:14When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he asked, “What is this that you are doing for the people? Why do you sit alone as judge, with all the people standing around you from morning till evening?”2 worksJob 24:14When daylight is gone, the murderer rises to kill the poor and needy; in the night he is like a thief.2 worksRuth 4:1Meanwhile, Boaz went to the gate and sat down there. Soon the kinsman-redeemer of whom he had spoken came along, and Boaz said, “Come over here, my friend, and sit down.” So he went over and sat down.2 works
The other 4 cross-references, with their words ▾
1 Kings 3:16–28At that time two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.2 works2 Samuel 19:8So the king got up and sat in the gate, and all the people were told: “Behold, the king is sitting in the gate.” So they all came before the king. Meanwhile, the Israelites had fled, each man to his home.2 worksProverbs 4:16For they cannot sleep unless they do evil; they are deprived of slumber until they make someone fall.2 worksGenesis 34:20So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city and addressed the men of their city:2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    Matthew 27:1

    When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people conspired against Jesus to put Him to death.

    it leads to

    • Mark 15:1

      Early in the morning, the chief priests, elders, scribes, and the whole Sanhedrin devised a plan. They bound Jesus, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate.

    • John 18:28

      Then they led Jesus away from Caiaphas into the Praetorium. By now it was early morning, and the Jews did not enter the Praetorium, to avoid being defiled and unable to eat the Passover.

    • Luke 22:66

      At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and scribes, met together. They led Jesus into their Sanhedrin and said,

    • Micah 2:1

      Woe to those who devise iniquity and plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they accomplish it because the power is in their hands.

    • Psalms 2:2

      The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together, against the LORD and against His Anointed One:

  • Through

    Exodus 18:26

    And they judged the people at all times; they would bring the difficult cases to Moses, but any minor issue they would judge themselves.

    it leads to

    • Exodus 18:22

      Have these men judge the people at all times. Then they can bring you any major issue, but all minor cases they can judge on their own, so that your load may be lightened…

  • Through

    Exodus 18:16

    “Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me to judge between one man and another, and I make known to them the statutes and laws of God.”

    it leads to

    • Exodus 24:14

      And he said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. Aaron and Hur are here with you. Whoever has a dispute can go to them.”

    • Deuteronomy 4:5

      See, I have taught you statutes and ordinances just as the LORD my God has commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land that you are about to enter and possess.

Where this verse is studied

About 2 Samuel

David Mourns the Death of Absalom, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
David Mourns the Death of Absalom, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
2 Samuel: the study guide →Read 2 Samuel 15 →

This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); 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.

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