2 Samuel 20:9
in 2 Samuel 20“Are you well, my brother?” Joab asked Amasa. And with his right hand Joab grabbed Amasa by the beard to kiss him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Joab said to Amasa, Is it well with thee, my brother? And Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him.
KJV
And Joab said to Amasa, Art thou in health, my brother? And Joab took Amasa by the beard with the right hand to kiss him.
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This verse in 2 Samuel 20
Commentary
6 notes on this verseSo with the wicked severally, because they have evil not upon the tongue, but under the tongue, in the words of their mouth they hold out sweet things, and in the thoughts of their heart are plotting mischiefs. For it is hence that Joab held the beard of Amasa with his right hand, whilst secretly putting his left hand to his sword, he shed out his bowels. For to hold the chin with the right hand is to caress as if in kindness. But he puts his left hand to his sword, who in secret strikes in malice.
This site's exposition
the great stone which is in Gibeon
on 2 Samuel 20:8-9
Amasa reaches Joab's column first, and Joab's sword falls loose from its sheath as he steps forward, a detail the older commentators read as staged rather than accidental. Joab greets him as a brother and takes him by the beard to kiss him, the customary greeting between kinsmen, with the loose sword already in his other hand. The friendliness is the weapon; Amasa has no reason to watch a hand that seems only to be reaching for an embrace.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
A commentator
John ChrysostomHOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW 42.2 · Written in the 5th century.
proposed
Would ye that in another way also I should make what I say plainer? Let us look into their case, who avenge themselves even justly. For as to the wrong doers, that they are the most worthless of all men, warring against their own soul; this is surely plain to every one. But who avenged himself justly, yet kindled innumerable ills, and pierced himself through with many calamities and sorrows? The captain of David's host. For he both stirred up a grievous war, and suffered unnumbered evils; not one whereof would have happened, had he but known how to command himself. Let us flee therefore from this sin, and neither in words nor deeds do our neighbors wrong.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
The more there is of plot in a sin the worse it is. He did it treacherously, and under pretence of friendship, that Amasa might not be upon his guard.
And Joab said to Amasa,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
No wonder, then, that while this act of friendly gratulation after long absence occupied Amasa's attention, he did not perceive the sword that was in Joab's left hand.
The words behind it
14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֤אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| יוֹאָב֙ | yoav | Joab | H3097 → | 144 times |
| לַעֲמָשָׂ֔א | laamasa' | to Amasa | H6021 → | 16 times |
| הֲשָׁל֥וֹם | hashalom | ¿ peace | H7965 → | 236 times |
| אַתָּ֖ה | ʾatah | [are] you | H859 → | 1094 times |
| אָחִ֑י | ʾachi | O brother my | H251 → | 630 times |
| וַתֹּ֜חֶז | vatochez | and it took hold | H270 → | 67 times |
| יַד־ | yad- | [the] hand of | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| יְמִ֥ין | yemin | [the] right of | H3225 → | 140 times |
| יוֹאָ֛ב | yoav | Joab | H3097 → | 144 times |
| בִּזְקַ֥ן | bizkan | on [the] beard of | H2206 → | 19 times |
| עֲמָשָׂ֖א | ʾamasa' | Amasa | H6021 → | 16 times |
| לִנְשָׁק־ | linshok- | to kiss | H5401 → | 35 times |
| לֽוֹ׃ | lo | <to> <the> him |
וַיֹּ֤אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
יוֹאָב֙Joab
yoavH3097 →144 times
לַעֲמָשָׂ֔אto Amasa
laamasa'H6021 →16 times
הֲשָׁל֥וֹם¿ peace
hashalomH7965 →236 times
אַתָּ֖ה[are] you
ʾatahH859 →1094 times
אָחִ֑יO brother my
ʾachiH251 →630 times
וַתֹּ֜חֶזand it took hold
vatochezH270 →67 times
יַד־[the] hand of
yad-H3027 →1618 times
יְמִ֥ין[the] right of
yeminH3225 →140 times
יוֹאָ֛בJoab
yoavH3097 →144 times
בִּזְקַ֥ןon [the] beard of
bizkanH2206 →19 times
עֲמָשָׂ֖אAmasa
ʾamasa'H6021 →16 times
לִנְשָׁק־to kiss
linshok-H5401 →35 times
לֽוֹ׃<to> <the> him
lo
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 55:21His speech is smooth as butter, but war is in his heart. His words are softer than oil, yet they are swords unsheathed.
it leads to
- Psalms 57:4
My soul is among the lions; I lie down with ravenous beasts— with men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.
- Proverbs 5:3–4
Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil,
- Proverbs 26:28
A lying tongue hates those it crushes, and a flattering mouth causes ruin.
- Psalms 28:3
Do not drag me away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, who speak peace to their neighbors while malice is in their hearts.
- Psalms 57:4
Through
Micah 7:2The godly man has perished from the earth; there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; they hunt one another with a net.
it leads to
- Psalms 12:1
Help, O LORD, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men.
- Psalms 14:1–3
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their acts are vile. There is no one who does good.
- Jeremiah 5:26
For among My people are wicked men; they watch like fowlers lying in wait; they set a trap to catch men.
- Isaiah 57:1
The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; devout men are swept away, while no one considers that the righteous are guided from the presence of evil.
- Psalms 12:1
About 2 Samuel
This page draws on Gregory the Dialogist, Morals on the Book of Job, Book 15.11; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Chrysostom, HOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW 42.2; 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.