2 Samuel 21:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Saul 's son Jonathan, because of the oath of the Lord that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.

NIV: The king spared Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath before the Lord between David and Jonathan son of Saul.

NASB: But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath of the Lord which was between them, between David and Saul’s son Jonathan.

CSB: David spared Mephibosheth, the son of Saul’s son Jonathan, because of the oath of the Lord that was between David and Jonathan, Saul’s son.

NLT: The king spared Jonathan’s son Mephibosheth, who was Saul’s grandson, because of the oath David and Jonathan had sworn before the Lord.

KJV: But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the Lord'S oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.

NKJV: But the king spared Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the Lord’s oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.

Second Samuel 21:7–9 continues the prior story as David decides which of Saul's descendants should pay for the family sin. God has punished Saul's ill treatment of the Gibeonites with a famine in David's kingdom. The Gibeonites demand seven sons of Saul. David spares Jonathan's son but gives them Saul's concubine Rizpah's two sons and his daughter Merab's five. Rizpah will stay near the hanging bodies for months, scaring away birds and wild animals. David hears and has them taken down. Saul and Jonathan's bones are retrieved, and all the men are buried in the family tomb (2 Samuel 21:10–14).

Second Samuel 21 records several varied stories of David's reign. A famine strikes the land because Saul and his household had attacked the Gibeonites, who had tricked Joshua into a treaty (Joshua 9). The Gibeonites ask for seven of Saul's descendants, whom they kill and hang in their city. Saul's concubine Rizpah protects them from birds and beasts until David orders them removed and buried in the family tomb. Next, David's men forcibly retire him from active military service and go on to slay several giant Philistine warriors. The battles against the giants are also recorded in 2 Chronicles 20:4–8.

Second Samuel 21 presents the first two levels of a mirrored view of David's reign (2 Samuel 21—24). First, David learns a famine is due to Saul's attack on the protected Gibeonites (Joshua 9). David gives them seven of Saul's male descendants, and God lifts the famine. In the second section, David retires from military service, and his men kill Philistine giants. The giants are also mentioned in 1 Chronicles 20:4–8. Section three is David's praise to God (2 Samuel 22:1—23:7). The fourth records David's mighty men's exploits (2 Samuel 23:8–38). The fifth is David's sinful census (2 Samuel 24).

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.