2 Samuel 18:10
in 2 Samuel 18When one of the men saw this, he told Joab, “I just saw Absalom hanging in an oak tree!”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And a certain man saw it, and told Joab, and said, Behold, I saw Absalom hanging in an oak.
KJV
And a certain man saw it, and told Joab, and said, Behold, I saw Absalom hanged in an oak.
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This verse in 2 Samuel 18
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThus was he set up for a spectacle, as well as a mark, that the righteous might see him and laugh at him ( Ps. lii. 6 ), while he had this further vexation in his breast, that of all the friends he had courted and confided in, and thought he had sure in his interest, though he hung long enough to have been relieved, yet he had none at hand to disentangle him.
This site's exposition
I saw Absalom hanged in an oak
on 2 Samuel 18:10-13
A soldier sees Absalom hanging and reports it to Joab, who asks why he did not strike him down on the spot for a reward of ten shekels of silver and a girdle. The man refuses outright: not for a thousand shekels would he raise his hand against the king's son, because he heard David's charge with his own ears and knows nothing stays hidden from the king. His answer holds the very order Joab is about to break, and the narrator lets an ordinary soldier state a loyalty the commander himself will not keep.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And a certain man saw it,.... Saw him in the above posture, one of David's soldiers: and told Joab, and said, behold, I saw Absalom hanged in an oak; caught by the neck in one, out of which he could not disengage himself, but there he hung, though alive.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
I saw Absalom hanged in an oak - He must have hung there a considerable time. this man saw him hanging; how long he had been hanging before he saw him, we cannot tell. He came and informed Joab; this must have taken up a considerable time. Joab went and pierced him through with three darts; this must have taken up still more time. It is therefore natural to conclude that his life must have been nearly gone after having been so long suspended, and probably was past recovery, even if Joab had taken him down.
The words behind it
12 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּרְא֙ | vaiyar' | and he saw | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| אִ֣ישׁ | ʾish | a man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| אֶחָ֔ד | ʾechad | one | H259 → | 971 times |
| וַיַּגֵּ֖ד | vaiyaged | and he told | H5046 → | 370 times |
| לְיוֹאָ֑ב | leyoav | to Joab | H3097 → | 144 times |
| וַיֹּ֗אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| הִנֵּה֙ | hineh | there! | H2009 → | 843 times |
| רָאִ֣יתִי | raiti | I saw | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אַבְשָׁלֹ֔ם | ʾavshalom | Absalom | H53 → | 110 times |
| תָּל֖וּי | talui | hung up | H8518 → | |
| בָּאֵלָֽה׃ | baelah | in the oak | H424 → | 13 times |
וַיַּרְא֙and he saw
vaiyar'H7200 →1300 times
אִ֣ישׁa man
ʾishH376 →1663 times
אֶחָ֔דone
ʾechadH259 →971 times
וַיַּגֵּ֖דand he told
vaiyagedH5046 →370 times
לְיוֹאָ֑בto Joab
leyoavH3097 →144 times
וַיֹּ֗אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
הִנֵּה֙there!
hinehH2009 →843 times
רָאִ֣יתִיI saw
raitiH7200 →1300 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אַבְשָׁלֹ֔םAbsalom
ʾavshalomH53 →110 times
תָּל֖וּיhung up
taluiH8518 →
בָּאֵלָֽה׃in the oak
baelahH424 →13 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
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; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.