# 2 Samuel 19 đ: David Returns to Jerusalem
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> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đ Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đ Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#đ¤ Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#đ§ Chapter Summary]]
> [[#âď¸ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#đ Key Principles / đ Life Application]]
> [[#đŹ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#âď¸ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đ Related Passages/Cross Reference]]
> [[#đ Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đ Internal Notes]]
## đ Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
[[#Verse 01.]] (19:2) Joab was told, âThe king is weeping and mourning over Absalom.âÂ
[[#Verse 02.]] So the victory of that day was turned to mourning as far as all the people were concerned. For the people heard on that day, âThe king is grieved over his son.â
[[#Verse 03.]]Â That day the people stole away to go to the city the way people who are embarrassed steal away in fleeing from battle.Â
[[#Verse 04.]] The king covered his face and cried out loudly, âMy son, Absalom! Absalom, my son, my son!â
[[#Verse 05.]] So Joab visited the king at his home. He said, âToday you have embarrassed all your servants who have saved your life this day, as well as the lives of your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your concubines.Â
[[#Verse 06.]] You seem to love your enemies and hate your friends! For you have as much as declared today that leaders and servants donât matter to you. I realize now that if Absalom were alive and all of us were dead today, it would be all right with you.
[[#Verse 07.]] So get up now and go out and give some encouragement to your servants. For I swear by the Lord that if you donât go out there, not a single man will stay here with you tonight! This disaster will be worse for you than any disaster that has overtaken you from your youth right to the present time!â
[[#Verse 08.]] So the king got up and sat at the city gate. When all the people were informed that the king was sitting at the city gate, they all came before him. But the Israelite soldiers had all fled to their own homes.Â
### David Goes Back to Jerusalem
[[#Verse 09.]]Â All the people throughout all the tribes of Israel were arguing among themselves saying, âThe king delivered us from the hand of our enemies. He rescued us from the hand of the Philistines, but now he has fled from the land because of Absalom.Â
[[#Verse 10.]] But Absalom, whom we anointed as our king, has died in battle. So now why do you hesitate to bring the king back?â
[[#Verse 11.]] Then King David sent a message to Zadok and Abiathar the priests saying, âTell the elders of Judah, âWhy should you delay any further in bringing the king back to his palace, when everything Israel is saying has come to the kingâs attention.Â
[[#Verse 12.]] You are my brothersâmy very own flesh and blood! Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back?âÂ
[[#Verse 13.]] Say to Amasa, âAre you not my flesh and blood? God will punish me severely, if from this time on you are not the commander of my army in place of Joab!ââ
[[#Verse 14.]] He won over the hearts of all the men of Judah as though they were one man. Then they sent word to the king saying, âReturn, you and all your servants as well.â
[[#Verse 15.]] So the king returned and came to the Jordan River. Now the people of Judah had come to Gilgal to meet the king and to help him cross the Jordan.
[[#Verse 16.]]Â Shimei son of Gera the Benjaminite from Bahurim came down quickly with the men of Judah to meet King David.Â
[[#Verse 17.]] There were 1,000 men from Benjamin with him, along with Ziba the servant of Saulâs household, and with him his fifteen sons and twenty servants. They hurriedly crossed the Jordan within sight of the king.Â
[[#Verse 18.]]Â They crossed at the ford in order to help the kingâs household cross and to do whatever he thought appropriate. Now after he had crossed the Jordan, Shimei son of Gera threw himself down before the king.Â
[[#Verse 19.]] He said to the king, âDonât think badly of me, my lord, and donât recall the sin of your servant on the day when you, my lord the king, left Jerusalem! Please donât call it to mind!Â
[[#Verse 20.]] For I, your servant, know that I sinned, and I have come today as the first of all the house of Joseph to come down to meet my lord the king.â
[[#Verse 21.]] Abishai son of Zeruiah replied, âFor this should not Shimei be put to death? After all, he cursed the Lordâs anointed!âÂ
[[#Verse 22.]] But David said, âWhat do we have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? You are like my enemy today! Should anyone be put to death in Israel today? Donât I know that today I am king over Israel?âÂ
[[#Verse 23.]] The king said to Shimei, âYou wonât die.â The king vowed an oath concerning this.
[[#Verse 24.]] Now Mephibosheth, Saulâs grandson, came down to meet the king. From the day the king had left until the day he safely returned, Mephibosheth had not cared for his feet nor trimmed his mustache nor washed his clothes.
[[#Verse 25.]] When he came from Jerusalem to meet the king, the king asked him, âWhy didnât you go with me, Mephibosheth?âÂ
[[#Verse 26.]]Â He replied, âMy lord the king, my servant deceived me! IÂ said, âLet me get my donkey saddled so that I can ride on it and go with the king,â for IÂ am lame.Â
[[#Verse 27.]] But my servant has slandered me to my lord the king. But my lord the king is like an angel of God. Do whatever seems appropriate to you.Â
[[#Verse 28.]] After all, there was no one in the entire house of my grandfather who did not deserve death from my lord the king. But instead you allowed me to eat at your own table! What further claim do I have to ask the king for anything?â
[[#Verse 29.]] Then the king replied to him, âWhy should you continue speaking like this? You and Ziba will inherit the field together.âÂ
[[#Verse 30.]] Mephibosheth said to the king, âLet him have the whole thing! My lord the king has returned safely to his house!â
[[#Verse 31.]]Â Now when Barzillai the Gileadite had come down from Rogelim, he crossed the Jordan with the king so he could send him on his way from there.Â
[[#Verse 32.]] But Barzillai was very oldâeighty years old, in factâand he had taken care of the king when he stayed in Mahanaim, for he was a very rich man.Â
[[#Verse 33.]]Â So the king said to Barzillai, âCross over with me, and I will take care of you while you are with me in Jerusalem.â
[[#Verse 34.]]Â Barzillai replied to the king, âHow many days do I have left to my life, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem?Â
[[#Verse 35.]]Â I am now eighty years old. Am I able to discern good and bad? Can IÂ taste what I eat and drink? Am I still able to hear the voices of male and female singers? Why should IÂ continue to be a burden to my lord the king?Â
[[#Verse 36.]] I will cross the Jordan with the king and go a short distance. Why should the king reward me in this way?Â
[[#Verse 37.]] Let me return so that I may die in my own town near the grave of my father and my mother. But look, here is your servant Kimham. Let him cross over with my lord the king. Do for him whatever seems appropriate to you.â
[[#Verse 38.]]Â The king replied, âKimham will cross over with me, and I will do for him whatever I deem appropriate. And whatever you choose, I will do for you.â
[[#Verse 39.]]Â So all the people crossed the Jordan, as did the king. After the king had kissed him and blessed him, Barzillai returned to his home.Â
[[#Verse 40.]] When the king crossed over to Gilgal, Kimham crossed over with him. Now all the soldiers of Judah along with half the soldiers of Israel had helped the king cross over.
[[#Verse 41.]] Then all the men of Israel began coming to the king. They asked the king, âWhy did our brothers, the men of Judah, sneak the king away and help the king and his household cross the Jordanâand not only him but all of Davidâs men as well?âÂ
[[#Verse 42.]] All the men of Judah replied to the men of Israel, âBecause the king is our close relative! Why are you so upset about this? Have we eaten at the kingâs expense? Or have we misappropriated anything for our own use?âÂ
[[#Verse 43.]] The men of Israel replied to the men of Judah, âWe have ten shares in the king, and we have a greater claim on David than you do! Why do you want to curse us? Werenât we the first to suggest bringing back our king?â But the comments of the men of Judah were more severe than those of the men of Israel.
## đ Verse-by-Verse Commentary
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## đ¤ Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. The victory turned into mourning for the troops when they heard the king was grieving for his son (19:2).
2. The soldiers slipped into the city like men ashamed after running from battle (19:3).
3. David appointed Amasa, Absalom's commander, in place of Joab (19:13), likely to win back the support of Judah.
4. Shimei came with a thousand men from Benjamin to meet the king (19:16-17).
5. Shimei called himself the first of the house of Joseph to meet David (19:20), probably referring to the northern tribes.
6. Mephibosheth had not cared for his feet, trimmed his mustache, or washed his clothes since David left (19:24), all signs of mourning.
7. Barzillai was eighty years old (19:32).
8. Kimham went with David in Barzillai's place (19:37-38). Jeremiah 41:17 mentions a place near Bethlehem called Geruth Kimham.
9. The men of Israel claimed ten shares in the king (19:43), referring to the ten northern tribes.
10. The quarrel between Judah and Israel (19:41-43) foreshadows the kingdom's split after Solomon (1 Kings 12).
## đ§ Chapter Summary
> [!note] đą Still growing. This section is on its way.
## âď¸ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the King who returns with mercy for those who opposed Him. David spared Shimei and welcomed back the tribes (19:14, 23). Jesus reconciles former enemies to God (Romans 5:10), and He will return as King (Acts 1:11).
## đ Key Principles / đ Life Application
> [!note] đą Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đŹ Discussion Questions
1. Joab told David that his grief was shaming the men who had saved his life (19:5-7). How do we balance personal grief with responsibility to others?
2. Mephibosheth said he was content as long as the king came home safely (19:30). What does your response to loss reveal about what you value most?
3. Barzillai declined the king's reward and asked that it go to Kimham (19:34-38). What can we learn from his contentment and generosity?
## âď¸ Key Verses to Remember
- đ verse 7: Joab urges David to go out and encourage his servants.
- đ verse 23: David promises Shimei that he will not die.
- đ verse 30: Mephibosheth is content that the king has returned safely.
## đ Related Passages/Cross Reference
- đ [[Romans 05#Verse 10.|Romans 5:10]] - While we were enemies, we were reconciled.
- đ [[1 Kings 02#Verse 07.|1 Kings 2:7-9]] - David's final words about Barzillai and Shimei.
- đ [[Philippians 04#Verse 11.|Philippians 4:11-12]] - Learning contentment in every circumstance.
- đ [[Matthew 05#Verse 44.|Matthew 5:44]] - Love your enemies.
- đ [[1 Kings 12#Verse 16.|1 Kings 12:16]] - The northern tribes reject David's house.
## đ Devotional Reflection
đ SOAP: [[2 Samuel 19 - SOAP|You Can See Someoneâs Heart By What They Count]]
## đ Internal Notes