2 Samuel 24:7 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites; and they went out to the Negeb of Judah at Beersheba.

NIV: Then they went toward the fortress of Tyre and all the towns of the Hivites and Canaanites. Finally, they went on to Beersheba in the Negev of Judah.

NASB: then they came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and of the Canaanites, and they went out to the south of Judah, to Beersheba.

CSB: They went to the fortress of Tyre and all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites. Afterward, they went to the Negev of Judah at Beer-sheba.

NLT: Then they came to the fortress of Tyre, and all the towns of the Hivites and Canaanites. Finally, they went south to Judah as far as Beersheba.

KJV: And came to the strong hold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites: and they went out to the south of Judah, even to Beersheba.

NKJV: and they came to the stronghold of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and the Canaanites. Then they went out to South Judah as far as Beersheba.

Joab's census-takers (2 Samuel 24:1–2) continue to make their way throughout Israelite-occupied lands, counting all men eligible to participate in battle. They started east of Jerusalem, across the Jordan River, down to Aroer in Reuben. Then north up through the tribe of Gad to the city of Dan in the far north of the eastern half-tribe of Manasseh. From Dan, they recrossed the Jordan and went to Sidon on the Mediterranean Sea (2 Samuel 24:5–6).

Tyre is relatively close to Sidon, just to the south, and the two are often mentioned together. Tyre is one of the oldest cities on the coast. Originally, part of the city was on the mainland and part on an island. Alexander the Great managed to connect the two and take the entire city. David had particularly good relations with the king of Tyre, Hiram, who gave supplies for his palace and Solomon's temple (2 Samuel 5:11; 1 Kings 5:1–14; 9:11).

The narrative moves quickly south. The Hivites are infamous for the rape of Dinah (Genesis 34) and how they tricked Joshua into signing a treaty (Joshua 9). The Canaanites were the larger group of people who inhabited the land. Finally, the counters make their way down to Beersheba, the southern-most major city of Israel that sits on the edge of the Negev desert.

David tells them to count the men "from Dan to Beersheba" (2 Samuel 24:2). This is a common phrase that means "from the north to the south," and encompasses all of Israel. The areas mentioned describe a border around the area the census-takers cover. That doesn't mean they count the remaining Hivites and Canaanites as reserve soldiers; they count the Israelites who live in the cities they took from the Hivites and Canaanites within that rough border.

It takes the soldiers nine months and twenty days to count all the fighting men who are loyal to David. When Joab gives the number, however, he decreases the count in the northern tribes by almost a quarter (2 Samuel 24:8–9; 1 Chronicles 21:5–6). Joab knows David is sinning by ordering the census (2 Samuel 24:1–3). David may want to know whom he can tax for supplies for the temple, or he may be improperly proud of his army, forgetting that God is his rescuer. Whichever it is, Joab seems to think decreasing the numbers will mitigate the damage.

Second Samuel 24:1–9 (1 Chronicles 21:1–9) depicts a time when God was angry with Israel. He allows Satan to incite David to take a census. Though David may be trying to gauge taxes, it's more likely the census is a matter of national military pride. Joab takes nearly ten months to scour the nation. As a small rebellion, Joab's final report doesn't include the men from the tribes of Levi or Benjamin. David immediately realizes his mistake and accepts God's punishment: a plague that kills thousands (2 Samuel 24:10–15).

Second Samuel 24 (1 Chronicles 21) is the final story in the epilogue to 1 and 2 Samuel. God is angry with Israel and incites David to take a census. When it's finished, David accepts blame, and God punishes Israel with a plague. The plague's progress stops at a threshing floor just short of Jerusalem. David buys the land and offers a sacrifice. The land will later house the temple. In the chiasm—the mirror arrangement—epilogue of 1 and 2 Samuel, this story is partnered with God's punishment of Saul's family for their sin against the Gibeonites (2 Samuel 21:1–14).