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2 Samuel 5

KJV · Chapter 5/24

1Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spake, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh.

2Also in time past, when Saul was king over us, thou wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel: and the Lord said to thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt be a captain over Israel.

3So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the Lord: and they anointed David king over Israel.

4David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.

5In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah.

6And the king and his men went to Jerusalem unto the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land: which spake unto David, saying, Except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither: thinking, David cannot come in hither.

7Nevertheless David took the strong hold of Zion: the same is the city of David.

8And David said on that day, Whosoever getteth up to the gutter, and smiteth the Jebusites, and the lame and the blind, that are hated of David’s soul, he shall be chief and captain. Wherefore they said, The blind and the lame shall not come into the house.

9So David dwelt in the fort, and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Millo and inward.

10And David went on, and grew great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him.

11And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar trees, and carpenters, and masons: and they built David an house.

12And David perceived that the Lord had established him king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom for his people Israel’s sake.

13And David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron: and there were yet sons and daughters born to David.

14And these be the names of those that were born unto him in Jerusalem; Shammua, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon,

15Ibhar also, and Elishua, and Nepheg, and Japhia,

16And Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphalet.

17But when the Philistines heard that they had anointed David king over Israel, all the Philistines came up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the hold.

18The Philistines also came and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.

19And David enquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the Lord said unto David, Go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand.

20And David came to Baal–perazim, and David smote them there, and said, The Lord hath broken forth upon mine enemies before me, as the breach of waters. Therefore he called the name of that place Baal–perazim.

21And there they left their images, and David and his men burned them.

22And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.

23And when David enquired of the Lord, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees.

24And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the Lord go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines.

25And David did so, as the Lord had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

All the tribes of Israel come to David at Hebron and anoint him king over all Israel. He conquers Jerusalem from the Jebusites, making it his capital (the 'City of David'), and defeats the Philistines in two battles.

Explanation

This is a pivotal moment in Israel's history: the unification of the twelve tribes under a single king and the choice of Jerusalem as the capital, a city that would become the religious and political center of the people for millennia. Jerusalem had a strategic advantage (easy to defend) and belonged to no specific tribe, avoiding favoritism. The victory over the Philistines shows David seeking God's guidance before acting — a pattern that appears repeatedly and contrasts with the impulsive decisions of his later life.

Fun facts

  • The conquest of Jerusalem involved the 'water shaft' (probably Warren's Shaft, an underground water structure) that David's soldiers may have used to enter the city — an archaeological discovery confirmed at the site.
  • David was 30 years old when he began to reign and ruled for 40 years in all (7 in Hebron over Judah, 33 in Jerusalem over all Israel).

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. 2 Samuel 5:1All the tribes of Israel come to David at Hebron and say that they are “thy bone and thy flesh”—acknowledging their kinship and the shared identity of the whole people.
  2. 2 Samuel 5:2The tribes recall that even while Saul was still king, it was David who led Israel out and in, and that the LORD Himself had already said he would be shepherd and ruler over the people.
  3. 2 Samuel 5:3The elders of Israel make a formal covenant with David before the LORD in Hebron, and they anoint him king over all Israel—not only over Judah.
  4. 2 Samuel 5:4David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and his reign lasted forty years in all.
  5. 2 Samuel 5:5Summary of the reign: seven years and six months in Hebron over Judah, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem over all Israel and Judah united.
  6. 2 Samuel 5:6David marches against the Jebusites, who still held Jerusalem, and they mock him, saying that even the blind and the lame would be enough to keep him out.
  7. 2 Samuel 5:7Despite the mockery, David captures the stronghold of Zion, which becomes known as “the city of David.”
  8. 2 Samuel 5:8The saying “the blind and the lame shall not come into the house” grows out of the insult the Jebusites hurled at David, claiming that even the blind and the lame would be enough to keep him out of Jerusalem—David turns the phrase back on the Jebusites themselves after taking the city.
  9. 2 Samuel 5:9David settles in the captured stronghold, calling it the city of David, and keeps building around it, from the Millo inward.
  10. 2 Samuel 5:10David grows greater and greater, for the LORD God of hosts was with him.
  11. 2 Samuel 5:11Hiram, king of Tyre, sends messengers, cedar wood, and craftsmen to build a house for David—a friendly alliance between the two kingdoms.
  12. 2 Samuel 5:12David recognizes that it was the LORD who had established him as king and exalted his kingdom, all for the sake of His people Israel.
  13. 2 Samuel 5:13Now in Jerusalem, David takes more concubines and wives, and more sons and daughters are born to him.
  14. 2 Samuel 5:14The names of the sons born to David in Jerusalem are listed: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon, among others.
  15. 2 Samuel 5:15The list of sons born in Jerusalem continues: Ibhar, Elishua, Nepheg, and Japhia.
  16. 2 Samuel 5:16This verse closes the list of the eleven sons born to David in Jerusalem—among them Nathan and Solomon, whom the Bible will follow closely in the chapters ahead.
  17. 2 Samuel 5:17When the Philistines hear that David has been anointed king over Israel, they all mobilize to attack him, and David goes down to the stronghold for safety.
  18. 2 Samuel 5:18The Philistines arrive and spread out in the valley of Rephaim, ready for battle.
  19. 2 Samuel 5:19David inquires of the LORD before acting, asking whether he should go up against the Philistines, and receives the assurance that victory will be delivered into his hands.
  20. 2 Samuel 5:20David defeats the Philistines at Baal-perazim and says that the LORD had “broken forth” upon his enemies like a breach of waters—hence the name of the place.
  21. 2 Samuel 5:21The Philistines abandon their idols as they flee, and David and his men carry them off as plunder.
  22. 2 Samuel 5:22The Philistines try again, spreading out once more in the valley of Rephaim for another attack.
  23. 2 Samuel 5:23This time David inquires of the LORD again, and the instructions change: instead of attacking head-on, he is to circle around behind the enemy and attack from beyond the mulberry trees.
  24. 2 Samuel 5:24Hearing “the sound of a going” in the tops of the mulberry trees was the agreed signal for David to attack—a sound of wind or footsteps in the treetops understood as God Himself already moving ahead against the Philistine army.
  25. 2 Samuel 5:25David obeys God’s instructions exactly and defeats the Philistines all the way from Geba to Gezer.

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