2 Samuel 20:24
in 2 Samuel 20Adoram was in charge of the forced labor; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and Adoram was over the men subject to taskwork; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder;
KJV
And Adoram was over the tribute: and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder:
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This verse in 2 Samuel 20
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd Adoram was over the tribute,.... Or over those that collected and brought it, as the Targum; this was a new office, and which respected both the revenue he received from his own people, and the tribute brought him from the nations conquered by him: and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder; who was in this office before, and now continued and established in it, 2Sa 8:16.
This site's exposition
Now Joab was over all the host of Israel
on 2 Samuel 20:23-26
The chapter closes with an officer list that answers the one at 8:16-18 almost office for office, Joab over the host again, Benaiah over the Cherethites and Pelethites, Zadok and Abiathar still the priests. Two differences stand out: Adoram now stands over the tribute David collects from conquered peoples, an office the first list did not have, and Sheva holds the scribe's post Seraiah held before. David's sons no longer close the list as chief rulers; Ira the Jairite does, a change the text does not explain, and the repetition marks a fresh start after two rebellions, Absalom's and Sheba's, closing the bracket the first list opened.
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 Century2 voices
Adoram was over the tribute - Probably the chief receiver of the taxes; or Chancellor of the Exchequer, as we term it. Jehoshaphat - recorder - The registrar of public events.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Adoram - Not mentioned before by name or office. Apparently, therefore, the office was not instituted until the latter part of David’s reign, and its duties probably were the collection of the tribute imposed upon vanquished nations, or the command of the forced levies employed in public works. Adoram was stoned to death in the beginning of the reign of Rehoboam 1Ki 12:18.
The words behind it
7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַאֲדֹרָ֖ם | vaadoram | and Adoram | H151 → | |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | [was] over | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| הַמַּ֑ס | hamas | the forced labor | H4522 → | |
| וִיהוֹשָׁפָ֥ט | vihoshafat | and Jehoshaphat | H3092 → | |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| אֲחִיל֖וּד | ʾachilud | Ahilud | H286 → | |
| הַמַּזְכִּֽיר׃ | hamazkir | [was] the recorder | H2142 → | 230 times |
וַאֲדֹרָ֖םand Adoram
vaadoramH151 →
עַל־[was] over
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
הַמַּ֑סthe forced labor
hamasH4522 →
וִיהוֹשָׁפָ֥טand Jehoshaphat
vihoshafatH3092 →
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
אֲחִיל֖וּדAhilud
ʾachiludH286 →
הַמַּזְכִּֽיר׃[was] the recorder
hamazkirH2142 →230 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 4:3Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were secretaries; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 8:16
Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was the recorder;
- 1 Chronicles 18:6
Then he placed garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and the Arameans became subject to David and brought him tribute. So the LORD made David victorious wherever he went.
- 2 Samuel 8:16
Through
1 Kings 12:18Then King Rehoboam sent out Adoram, who was in charge of the forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. And King Rehoboam mounted his chariot in haste and escaped to Jerusalem.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 4:6
Ahishar was in charge of the palace; and Adoniram son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor.
- 1 Kings 5:14
He sent them to Lebanon in monthly shifts of 10,000 men, so that they would spend one month in Lebanon and two months at home. And Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor.
- Acts 7:57–58
At this they covered their ears, cried out in a loud voice, and rushed together at him.
- 1 Kings 20:18–20
“If they have marched out in peace,” he said, “take them alive. Even if they have marched out for war, take them alive.”
- 1 Kings 4:6
Through
1 Kings 4:6Ahishar was in charge of the palace; and Adoniram son of Abda was in charge of the forced labor.
it leads to
- 1 Kings 12:18
Then King Rehoboam sent out Adoram, who was in charge of the forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. And King Rehoboam mounted his chariot in haste and escaped to Jerusalem.
- 1 Kings 9:15
This is the account of the forced labor that King Solomon imposed to build the house of the LORD, his own palace, the supporting terraces, and the wall of Jerusalem, as well as Hazor,…
- 1 Kings 12:18
About 2 Samuel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.