2 Samuel 9:1
in 2 Samuel 9Then David asked, “Is there anyone left from the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for the sake of Jonathan?”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And David said, Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?
KJV
And David said, Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may shew him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?
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This verse in 2 Samuel 9
Commentary
7 notes on this verseIs there yet any that is left - David recollecting the covenant made with his friend Jonathan, now inquires after his family. It is supposed that political considerations prevented him from doing this sooner. Reasons of state often destroy all the charities of life.
This site's exposition
shew him kindness for Jonathan’s sake
on 2 Samuel 9:1-2
David's question opens the covenant he swore to Jonathan at 1 Samuel 20:14-15, an oath he has kept in memory through years on the throne. He does not ask for Jonathan's house by name, since he does not yet know a son survived, and Wesley reads the silence as honest ignorance rather than neglect. Ziba surfaces first as Saul's own servant, the man who will carry the story to Lo-debar and back.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
Of Saul - He saith not of the house of Jonathan, for he knew not of any son he had left, and therefore thought his kindness and obligation was to pass to the next of his kindred. As for Mephibosheth, he was very young and obscure, and possibly concealed by his friends, lest David should cut him off, as hath been usual among princes.
), and, when he met with a person that was likely to inform him, asked him particularly, Is there any yet left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness?
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And David said,....
This was a great while after his accession to the throne, for it should seem that Mephibosheth, who was but five years old when Saul died, had now a son born,
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
David said, Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul--On inquiry, Saul's land steward was found, who gave information that there still survived Mephibosheth, a son of Jonathan who was five years old at his father's death, and whom David, then wandering in exile, had never seen.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֣אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| דָּוִ֔ד | david | David | H1732 → | 999 times |
| הֲכִ֣י | hakhi | ¿ for | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| יֶשׁ־ | yesh- | [is] there | H3426 → | 140 times |
| ע֔וֹד | od | still | H5750 → | 490 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | [one] who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| נוֹתַ֖ר | notar | he is left | H3498 → | 106 times |
| לְבֵ֣ית | leveit | to [the] house of | H1004 → | 2046 times |
| שָׁא֑וּל | shaul | Saul | H7586 → | 402 times |
| וְאֶעֱשֶׂ֤ה | veeeseh | so I may do | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| עִמּוֹ֙ | imo | with him | H5973 → | 1050 times |
| חֶ֔סֶד | chesed | covenant loyalty | H2617 → | 247 times |
| בַּעֲב֖וּר | baavur | forsake of | H5668 → | 49 times |
| יְהוֹנָתָֽן׃ | yehonatan | Jonathan | H3083 → | 81 times |
וַיֹּ֣אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
דָּוִ֔דDavid
davidH1732 →999 times
הֲכִ֣י¿ for
hakhiH3588 →4482 times
יֶשׁ־[is] there
yesh-H3426 →140 times
ע֔וֹדstill
odH5750 →490 times
אֲשֶׁ֥ר[one] who
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
נוֹתַ֖רhe is left
notarH3498 →106 times
לְבֵ֣יתto [the] house of
leveitH1004 →2046 times
שָׁא֑וּלSaul
shaulH7586 →402 times
וְאֶעֱשֶׂ֤הso I may do
veeesehH6213 →2628 times
עִמּוֹ֙with him
imoH5973 →1050 times
חֶ֔סֶדcovenant loyalty
chesedH2617 →247 times
בַּעֲב֖וּרforsake of
baavurH5668 →49 times
יְהוֹנָתָֽן׃Jonathan
yehonatanH3083 →81 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
Matthew 25:40And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’
it leads to
- Matthew 10:42
And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My disciple, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.”
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Proverbs 19:17
Kindness to the poor is a loan to the LORD, and He will repay the lender.
- Proverbs 14:31
Whoever oppresses the poor taunts their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors Him.
- Mark 9:41
Indeed, if anyone gives you even a cup of water because you bear the name of Christ, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.
- Matthew 10:42
Through
1 Peter 3:8Finally, all of you, be like-minded and sympathetic, love as brothers, be tenderhearted and humble.
it leads to
- 1 Peter 1:22
Since you have purified your souls by obedience to the truth so that you have a genuine love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from a pure heart.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Romans 12:10
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another.
- Ephesians 4:31
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice.
- Philippians 4:8–9
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.
- 1 Peter 1:22
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About 2 Samuel
Who and where
3 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonUnited MonarchyDavidSecond king of united Israel, shepherd-turned-monarch, ancestor of the Messiah, and traditional author of many Psalms.
- PersonUnited monarchySaulIsrael's first king, head and shoulders above the people; began in humility, ended in rejection — sparing what God devoted, consul…
- PersonEarly monarchyJonathanSon of King Saul who climbed a cliff to rout a garrison on the conviction that nothing restrains Jehovah; cut a covenant of steadf…
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; 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.