2 Samuel 19:32 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Barzillai was a very aged man, eighty years old. He had provided the king with food while he stayed at Mahanaim, for he was a very wealthy man.

NIV: Now Barzillai was very old, eighty years of age. He had provided for the king during his stay in Mahanaim, for he was a very wealthy man.

NASB: Barzillai was very old: eighty years old; and he had provided the king food while he stayed in Mahanaim, for he was a very great man.

CSB: Barzillai was a very old man—eighty years old—and since he was a very wealthy man, he had provided for the needs of the king while he stayed in Mahanaim.

NLT: He was very old — eighty years of age — and very wealthy. He was the one who had provided food for the king during his stay in Mahanaim.

KJV: Now Barzillai was a very aged man, even fourscore years old: and he had provided the king of sustenance while he lay at Mahanaim; for he was a very great man.

NKJV: Now Barzillai was a very aged man, eighty years old. And he had provided the king with supplies while he stayed at Mahanaim, for he was a very rich man.

Second Samuel 19:31–40 records David's happy farewell to a good friend. When David heard Absalom had betrayed him and was marching to Jerusalem, there was no time to prepare. They just fled (2 Samuel 15:13–14). They found protection in Mahanaim where Barzillai brought everything from food to beds (2 Samuel 17:24–29). The rebellion is over, and David wants to reward Barzillai, but the old man just wants to return home. David takes Chimham, perhaps Barzillai's son or grandson, instead.

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 4/24/2026 1:19:27 AM