2 Samuel 20:2
in 2 Samuel 20So all the men of Israel deserted David to follow Sheba son of Bichri. But the men of Judah stayed by their king all the way from the Jordan to Jerusalem.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
So all the men of Israel went up from following David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri; but the men of Judah clave unto their king, from the Jordan even to Jerusalem.
KJV
So every man of Israel went up from after David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri: but the men of Judah clave unto their king, from Jordan even to Jerusalem.
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This verse in 2 Samuel 20
Commentary
5 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
From Jordan ... - The men of Israel only escorted David from Jordan to Gilgal, and there left him; but the men of Judah in a body went with him all the way to Jerusalem.
This site's exposition
a man of Belial, whose name was Sheba
on 2 Samuel 20:1-2
Sheba is named a man of Belial, worthless, at the first line, and his trumpet call turns the tribal grievance from Absalom's failed revolt into open secession. His cry, we have no part in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse, is not a fresh complaint; it answers the men of Judah's claim that the king is near of kin to them, twisted into an insult. The same clause returns almost word for word when the kingdom actually splits at 1 Kings 12:16, so Sheba's one-man rebellion previews the division Rehoboam will make permanent. Judah alone stays with David from Jordan to Jerusalem, while all Israel follows a man named for worthlessness.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
(4.) The perverting of words is the subverting of peace; and much mischief is made by forcing invidious constructions upon what is said and written and drawing consequences that were never intended. The men of Judah said, The king is near of kin to us. "By this," say the men of Israel, "you mean that we have no part in him; " whereas they meant no such thing.
So every man of Israel went up from after David,.... Those that met him on the road departed from him, and went no further with him: and followed Sheba the son of Bichri; and made him their captain, who was the author of their mutiny and sedition: but the men of Judah clave unto their king, from Jordan to Jerusalem: never left him, after they had conducted him over Jordan, until they had brought him safely to Jerusalem.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
from Jordan even to Jerusalem--The quarrel had broken out shortly after the crossing of the Jordan, between Judah and the other tribes, who withdrew; so that Judah was left nearly alone to conduct the king to the metropolis.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
There, he invited. Invited Language like that of "He invited his guests." 1 Tsaphania:7. "Avsholom invited all the king's children." 2 Shmuel II,:23. Language denoting "inviting".
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. 4 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
18 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיַּ֜עַל | vaiyaal | and he went up | H5927 → | 890 times |
| כָּל־ | kol- | every | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| אִ֤ישׁ | ʾish | <the> man of | H376 → | 1663 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| מֵאַחֲרֵ֣י | meacharei | from after | H310 → | 715 times |
| דָוִ֔ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| אַחֲרֵ֖י | ʾacharei | after | H310 → | 715 times |
| שֶׁ֣בַע | sheva' | Sheba | H7652 → | 10 times |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| בִּכְרִ֑י | bikhri | Bicri | H1075 → | 8 times |
| וְאִ֤ישׁ | veish | and [the] man of | H376 → | 1663 times |
| יְהוּדָה֙ | yehudah | Judah | H3063 → | 819 times |
| דָּבְק֣וּ | daveku | they clung | H1692 → | 54 times |
| בְמַלְכָּ֔ם | vemalkam | to king their | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| מִן־ | min- | from | H4480 → | 1188 times |
| הַיַּרְדֵּ֖ן | haiyarden | the Jordan | H3383 → | 182 times |
| וְעַד־ | vead- | and to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| יְרוּשָׁלִָֽם׃ | yerushalim | Jerusalem | H3389 → | 643 times |
וַיַּ֜עַלand he went up
vaiyaalH5927 →890 times
כָּל־every
kol-H3605 →5413 times
אִ֤ישׁ<the> man of
ʾishH376 →1663 times
יִשְׂרָאֵל֙Israel
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
מֵאַחֲרֵ֣יfrom after
meachareiH310 →715 times
דָוִ֔דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
אַחֲרֵ֖יafter
ʾachareiH310 →715 times
שֶׁ֣בַעSheba
sheva'H7652 →10 times
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
בִּכְרִ֑יBicri
bikhriH1075 →8 times
וְאִ֤ישׁand [the] man of
veishH376 →1663 times
יְהוּדָה֙Judah
yehudahH3063 →819 times
דָּבְק֣וּthey clung
davekuH1692 →54 times
בְמַלְכָּ֔םto king their
vemalkamH4428 →2525 times
מִן־from
min-H4480 →1188 times
הַיַּרְדֵּ֖ןthe Jordan
haiyardenH3383 →182 times
וְעַד־and to
vead-H5704 →1261 times
יְרוּשָׁלִָֽם׃Jerusalem
yerushalimH3389 →643 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
Psalms 62:9Lowborn men are but a vapor, the exalted but a lie. Weighed on the scale, they go up; together they are but a vapor.
it leads to
- Psalms 39:5
You, indeed, have made my days as handbreadths, and my lifetime as nothing before You. Truly each man at his best exists as but a breath. Selah
- Isaiah 40:15
Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are considered a speck of dust on the scales; He lifts up the islands like fine dust.
- Isaiah 40:17
All the nations are as nothing before Him; He regards them as nothingness and emptiness.
- Psalms 118:9
It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.
- Psalms 39:11
You discipline and correct a man for his iniquity, consuming like a moth what he holds dear; surely each man is but a vapor. Selah
- Psalms 39:5
Through
Acts 11:23When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to abide in the Lord with all their hearts.
it leads to
- 1 Corinthians 15:58
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
- Acts 14:22
strengthening the souls of the disciples and encouraging them to continue in the faith. “We must endure many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.
- 1 John 2:28
And now, little children, remain in Christ, so that when He appears, we may be confident and unashamed before Him at His coming.
- 1 Corinthians 15:58
About 2 Samuel

Who and where
3 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonPatriarchsJudahJacob's fourth son who pledges himself for Benjamin; the tribe that carries the scepter to Shiloh (49:10) and the line to Christ (…
- PersonUnited MonarchyDavidSecond king of united Israel, shepherd-turned-monarch, ancestor of the Messiah, and traditional author of many Psalms.
- PlaceJerusalemJerusalemThe city David took from the Jebusites and made his capital, where Solomon built the temple, where Christ was crucified and rose,…
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.
