2 Samuel 19:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: You are my brothers; you are my bone and my flesh. Why then should you be the last to bring back the king?’

NIV: You are my relatives, my own flesh and blood. So why should you be the last to bring back the king?’

NASB: You are my brothers; you are my bone and my flesh. Why then should you be the last to bring back the king?’

CSB: You are my brothers, my flesh and blood. So why should you be the last to restore the king?’

NLT: You are my relatives, my own tribe, my own flesh and blood! So why are you the last ones to welcome back the king?'

KJV: Ye are my brethren, ye are my bones and my flesh: wherefore then are ye the last to bring back the king?

NKJV: You are my brethren, you are my bone and my flesh. Why then are you the last to bring back the king?’

Second Samuel 19:11–15 depicts David chastising the elders of Judah into reconciliation. The northern tribes have welcomed David back as king after Absalom's rebellion failed (2 Samuel 19:8–10). Judah hasn't responded. David sends the priests to inspire them to act. David then makes a bold move: he fires his long-time general Joab and replaces him with Absalom's general, Amasa. Judah remains faithful to David, but Joab will soon murder Amasa (2 Samuel 19:41–42; 20:8–10).

David comes home after a tragic and costly rebellion. His son Absalom is dead, and rebel fighters have fled back home (2 Samuel 18). David falls into self-indulgent grief until Joab reminds him of his soldiers' honor. On the journey back to the Jordan, David reconciles with Shimei, Mephibosheth, and the elders of Judah, and blesses Barzillai. The elders of the northern tribes arrive and argue with Judah over who loves the king more—the king they tried to kill. The first chance they get, the men from Israel leave and try to start another rebellion (2 Samuel 20:1–2).

David's son, Absalom, manipulated the elders of the tribes, convincing them that he would make a better king than David (2 Samuel 15—17). During the one-day civil war, Joab killed Absalom, against David's orders (2 Samuel 18). David falls into a very public expression of mourning until Joab tells him to honor his living servants, not his dead, traitorous son. On the way to Jerusalem, David tries to forgive his enemies. The elders of Israel claim to welcome him back. But after squabbling with the elders from Judah, they join a new rebellion (2 Samuel 10:1–2).

Second Samuel continues the story of David, who will become king over Judah. The other tribes of Israel are resistant, eventually sparking a civil war. David wins and makes Jerusalem his capital. Early success is followed by moral failure and controversy in David's house. The book of 1 Kings will begin by detailing David's decline and death.

Accessed 4/22/2026 1:08:56 PM