2 Samuel 12:28
ESV
Now then gather the rest of the people together and encamp against the city and take it, lest I take the city and it be called by my name."
NIV
Now muster the rest of the troops and besiege the city and capture it. Otherwise I will take the city, and it will be named after me."
NASB
Now then, gather the rest of the people and camp opposite the city and capture it, or I will capture the city myself and it will be named after me.'
CSB
Now therefore, assemble the rest of the troops, lay siege to the city, and capture it. Otherwise I will be the one to capture the city, and it will be named after me."
NLT
Now bring the rest of the army and capture the city. Otherwise, I will capture it and get credit for the victory.'
KJV
Now therefore gather the rest of the people together, and encamp against the city, and take it: lest I take the city, and it be called after my name.
NKJV
Now therefore, gather the rest of the people together and encamp against the city and take it, lest I take the city and it be called after my name.”
What does 2 Samuel 12:28 mean?
This battle started the previous year. The new Ammonite king dishonored David's men and hired soldiers from Syria and other nations to join a fight against the Israelites. The Syrians and their allies quickly fled, the Ammonites hid in their walled city, and Joab returned home. But the Syrians returned with greater numbers. David gathered the Israelites and defeated them so badly the Syrians refused to fight for the Ammonites anymore (2 Samuel 10).Now, David returns to the battlefield to finish the job. This spring, he sent Joab to take care of the Ammonites once and for all. Joab is about to enter the city, but he sends one more message.
Joab's message to David from the battlefield is simple. Rabbah will soon be fully conquered. He wants David to come to lead the final march of the army into the defeated city so that he can get credit for defeating it. Joab adds a minor threat that the city will be called by his own name if David doesn't come to claim it for himself. Joab is likely not serious about this but uses it as motivation to get David to come quickly. He's David's nephew and has fought for David for a long time. David would have understood better than anyone that the one who gets credit for the military victory can become a threat to the one who sits on the throne. That's how he first became famous in Israel and a perceived threat to Saul's power (1 Samuel 18:7–8).
There's another reason David should be there. The war started because of Hunan's disgraceful treatment of David's messengers (2 Samuel 10:1–5). It's a matter of honor. Hunan needs to understand just how wrong he was.
