2 Samuel — Chapter 4
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1And when Saul’s son heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands were feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled.
2And Saul’s son had two men that were captains of bands: the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon a Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin: (for Beeroth also was reckoned to Benjamin:
3And the Beerothites fled to Gittaim, and were sojourners there until this day.)
4And Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.
5And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came about the heat of the day to the house of Ish-bosheth, who lay on a bed at noon.
6And they came thither into the midst of the house, as though they would have fetched wheat; and they smote him under the fifth rib: and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped.
7For when they came into the house, he lay on his bed in his bedchamber, and they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and gat them away through the plain all night.
8And they brought the head of Ish-bosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold the head of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul thine enemy, which sought thy life; and the LORD hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed.
9And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
10When one told me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, who thought that I would have given him a reward for his tidings:
11How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth?
12And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up over the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth, and buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron.
1And when [Ish-bosheth], Saul`s son, heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands became feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled.
2And [Ish-bosheth], Saul`s son, [had] two men that were captains of bands: the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin (for Beeroth also is reckoned to Benjamin:
3and the Beerothites fled to Gittaim, and have been sojourners there until this day).
4Now Jonathan, Saul`s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel; and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.
5And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came about the heat of the day to the house of Ish-bosheth, as he took his rest at noon.
6And they came thither into the midst of the house, as though they would have fetched wheat; and they smote him in the body: and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped.
7Now when they came into the house, as he lay on his bed in his bedchamber, they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and went by the way of the Arabah all night.
8And they brought the head of Ish-bosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king, Behold, the head of Ish-bosheth, the son of Saul, thine enemy, who sought thy life; and Jehovah hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed.
9And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As Jehovah liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
10when one told me, saying, Behold, Saul is dead, thinking to have brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his tidings.
11How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed, shall I not now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth?
12And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up beside the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth, and buried it in the grave of Abner in Hebron.
1When Ish Bosheth the son of Saul heard that Abner had died in Hebron, he was very disheartened, and all Israel was afraid.
2Now Saul’s son had two men who were in charge of raiding units; one was named Baanah and the other Recab. They were sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, who was a Benjaminite. (Beeroth is regarded as belonging to Benjamin,
3for the Beerothites fled to Gittaim and have remained there as resident foreigners until the present time.)
4Now Saul’s son Jonathan had a son who was crippled in both feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan arrived from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but in her haste to get away, he fell and was injured. Mephibosheth was his name.
5Now the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite—Recab and Baanah—went at the hottest part of the day to the home of Ish Bosheth, as he was enjoying his midday rest.
6They entered the house under the pretense of getting wheat and mortally wounded him in the stomach. Then Recab and his brother Baanah escaped.
7They had entered the house while Ish Bosheth was resting on his bed in his bedroom. They mortally wounded him and then cut off his head. Taking his head, they traveled on the way of the rift valley all that night.
8They brought the head of Ish Bosheth to David in Hebron, saying to the king, “Look! The head of Ish Bosheth son of Saul, your enemy who sought your life! The Lord has granted vengeance to my lord the king this day against Saul and his descendants!”
9David replied to Recab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, “As surely as the Lord lives, who has delivered my life from all adversity,
10when someone told me that Saul was dead—even though he thought he was bringing good news—I seized him and killed him in Ziklag. That was the good news I gave to him!
11Surely when wicked men have killed an innocent man as he slept in his own house, should I not now require his blood from your hands and remove you from the earth?”
12So David issued orders to the soldiers and they put them to death. Then they cut off their hands and feet and hung them near the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish Bosheth and buried it in the tomb of Abner in Hebron.
1When Saul’s son heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands became feeble, and all the Israelites were troubled.
2Saul’s son had two men who were captains of raiding bands. The name of one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin (for Beeroth also is considered a part of Benjamin:
3and the Beerothites fled to Gittaim, and have lived as foreigners there until today).
4Now Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son who was lame in his feet. He was five years old when the news came about Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel; and his nurse picked him up and fled. As she hurried to flee, he fell and became lame. His name was Mephibosheth.
5The sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went and came at about the heat of the day to the house of Ishbosheth, as he took his rest at noon.
6They came there into the middle of the house, as though they would have fetched wheat; and they struck him in the body: and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped.
7Now when they came into the house, as he lay on his bed in his bedroom, they struck him, killed him, beheaded him, and took his head, and went by the way of the Arabah all night.
8They brought the head of Ishbosheth to David to Hebron, and said to the king, “Behold, the head of Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, your enemy, who sought your life! Yahweh has avenged my lord the king today of Saul, and of his offspring.”
9David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said to them, “As Yahweh lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
10when someone told me, ‘Behold, Saul is dead,’ thinking that he brought good news, I seized him and killed him in Ziklag, which was the reward I gave him for his news.
11How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house on his bed, should I not now require his blood from your hand, and rid the earth of you?”
12David commanded his young men, and they killed them, cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up beside the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ishbosheth, and buried it in Abner’s grave in Hebron.
Summary
Two captains assassinate Ish-bosheth in his bed and bring his head to David, expecting reward. David executes them for murdering an innocent man, again showing he will not profit from the blood of Saul's house.
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Mahanaim to Hebron: The murderers of Ish-bosheth travel from Transjordan to David's capital — a journey of about 50 miles
- Beeroth: Hometown of the assassins Rechab and Baanah — a Gibeonite city in Benjamin's territory
- The pool at Hebron: Where David hangs the murderers' hands and feet as a public display of justice
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik emphasizes that Rechab and Baanah completely misread David's character. They assumed David would reward them for eliminating his rival, but David consistently refused to benefit from the murder of God's anointed or their descendants. Guzik also notes the introduction of Mephibosheth as a narrative setup for chapter 9's beautiful display of covenant loyalty.
- Charles Spurgeon: "These murderers thought to please David, but they knew him not. He who would not stretch forth his hand against Saul when he had him in his power would never reward those who slew Saul's son in his bed. Let all men learn that God needs no help from wickedness to accomplish His purposes. Those who do evil that good may come shall find that their evil returns upon their own heads."
Reflection
- 1. God does not need our sin to accomplish His purposes (vv.8-11). Rechab and Baanah thought they were doing God's work — "The LORD hath avenged my lord the king." But God never commissions murder, treachery, or wickedness to fulfill His promises. When we are tempted to use sinful means to achieve "good" ends, we have misunderstood both God's character and His sovereignty.
- 2. Consistency of character builds trust (vv.9-11). David's response to Rechab and Baanah is identical in principle to his response to the Amalekite in chapter 1. He is the same man in every situation — he will not profit from the murder of his rivals. This consistency is what eventually wins all Israel's trust. People follow leaders whose character is predictable and principled.
- 3. The helpless are not forgotten (v.4). Mephibosheth is introduced as crippled, orphaned, and politically irrelevant — the last remnant of a fallen house. Yet God has not forgotten him. Chapter 9 will reveal David's extraordinary kindness to this helpless man "for Jonathan's sake." God sees those the world overlooks.
- 4. Justice must be proportional and principled (v.12). David executes the murderers but buries Ish-bosheth's head with honor. He distinguishes between the guilty (who deserve punishment) and the victim (who deserves dignity). Biblical justice is never mere vengeance — it is measured, principled, and honors the image of God in every person.
- 5. Those who misuse God's name for evil face judgment (v.8). Rechab and Baanah invoked the LORD's name to justify murder: "The LORD hath avenged..." Using God's name to sanctify wickedness is a violation of the third commandment — taking God's name in vain. God will not be made a partner in human evil.