Lectionary Calendar
Saturday, August 23rd, 2025
the Week of Proper 15 / Ordinary 20
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Read the Bible

Bible in Basic English

2 Samuel 17:19

And a woman put a cover over the hole, and put crushed grain on top of it, and no one had any knowledge of it.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Abiathar;   Ahimaaz;   Ahithophel;   Corn;   Falsehood;   Friendship;   Jonathan;   Zadok;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Ahimaaz;   Ahithophel;   Hushai;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Mouth;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Ahithophel;   Prayer;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Well;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ahimaaz;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Bahurim;   Jonathan;   Samuel, Books of;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Ahimaaz ;   Ahithophel ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Absalom;   Ahimaaz;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Ahim'a-Az;   Ahith'ophel;   Jon'athan,;   Well;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Hebrew Monarchy, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Adonijah;   Ground;   Samuel, Books of;   Zadok;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Ahimaaz;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Then his wife took the cover, placed it over the mouth of the well, and scattered grain on it so nobody would know anything.
Hebrew Names Version
The woman took and spread the covering over the well's mouth, and strewed bruised grain thereon; and nothing was known.
King James Version
And the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth, and spread ground corn thereon; and the thing was not known.
Lexham English Bible
Then the woman took and spread a covering over the opening of the well; then she spread out dried grain on it, so nothing was discovered.
English Standard Version
And the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth and scattered grain on it, and nothing was known of it.
New Century Version
The man's wife spread a sheet over the opening of the well and covered it with grain. No one could tell that anyone was hiding there.
New English Translation
His wife then took the covering and spread it over the top of the well and scattered some grain over it. No one was aware of what she had done.
Amplified Bible
And the woman [of the house] took a covering and spread it over the mouth of the well and scattered grain on it; so nothing was discovered.
New American Standard Bible
And the woman took a cover and spread it over the well's mouth and scattered barley meal on it, so that nothing was known.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And the wife tooke and spred a couering ouer the welles mouth, and spred ground corne thereon, that the thing should not be knowen.
Legacy Standard Bible
And the woman took a covering and spread it over the well's mouth and scattered crushed grain on it, so that nothing was known.
Contemporary English Version
The man's wife put the cover on the well and poured grain on top of it, so the well could not be seen.
Complete Jewish Bible
His wife spread a covering over the cistern's opening and scattered drying grain on it, so that nothing showed.
Darby Translation
And the woman took and spread the covering over the well's mouth, and spread ground corn on it; and the thing was not known.
Easy-to-Read Version
The man's wife spread a sheet over the mouth of the well and covered it with grain. The well looked like a pile of grain, so no one would know to look there.
George Lamsa Translation
And the woman took and spread a covering over the wells mouth, and put barley upon it; and the thing was not known.
Good News Translation
The man's wife took a covering, spread it over the opening of the well and scattered grain over it, so that no one would notice anything.
Literal Translation
And the woman took and spread the covering over the well, and spread ground grain on it. And the thing was not known.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the woman toke and spred a couerynge ouer the welles mouth, & strowed firmentye corne theron, that it was not perceaued.
American Standard Version
And the woman took and spread the covering over the well's mouth, and strewed bruised grain thereon; and nothing was known.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the wyfe toke and spread a couerlet ouer the welles mouth, & spread ground corne theron: and the thing was not spied.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the woman took and spread the covering over the well's mouth, and strewed groats thereon; and nothing was known.
King James Version (1611)
And the woman tooke and spread a couering ouer the welles mouth, and spread ground corne thereon; and the thing was not knowen.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And a woman took a covering, and spread it over the mouth of the well, and spread out ground corn upon it to dry, and the thing was not known.
English Revised Version
And the woman took and spread the covering over the well’s mouth, and strewed bruised corn thereon; and nothing was known.
Berean Standard Bible
Then the man's wife took a covering and spread it over the mouth of the well and scattered grain over it, so nobody would know a thing.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Forsothe a womman took, and spred abrood an hilyng of the mouth of the pit as driynge `barli with the pile takun a wey, and so the thing was hid.
Young's Literal Translation
and the woman taketh and spreadeth the covering over the face of the well, and spreadeth on it the ground corn, and the thing hath not been known.
Update Bible Version
And the woman took and spread the covering over the well's mouth, and strewed bruised grain thereon; and nothing was known.
Webster's Bible Translation
And the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth, and spread ground corn upon it; and the thing was not known.
World English Bible
The woman took and spread the covering over the well's mouth, and strewed bruised grain thereon; and nothing was known.
New King James Version
Then the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth, and spread ground grain on it; and the thing was not known.
New Living Translation
The man's wife put a cloth over the top of the well and scattered grain on it to dry in the sun; so no one suspected they were there.
New Life Bible
Then the woman took the covering and spread it over the well's mouth, and spread grain on it, so nothing was known of it.
New Revised Standard
The man's wife took a covering, stretched it over the well's mouth, and spread out grain on it; and nothing was known of it.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
and the woman took and spread the cover over the face of the well, and spread thereon her pounded corn, - so nothing was known.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And a woman took, and spread a covering over the mouth of the well, as it were to dry sodden barley and so the thing was not known.
Revised Standard Version
And the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth, and scattered grain upon it; and nothing was known of it.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
And the woman took a covering and spread it over the well's mouth and scattered grain on it, so that nothing was known.

Contextual Overview

15 Then Hushai said to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, This is the suggestion made by Ahithophel to Absalom and the responsible men of Israel, and this is what I said to them. 16 So now send the news quickly to David, and say, Do not take your night's rest by the way across the river to the waste land, but be certain to go over; or the king and all the people with him will come to destruction. 17 Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz were waiting by En-rogel; and a servant-girl went from time to time and gave them news and they went with the news to King David, for it was not wise for them to let themselves be seen coming into the town. 18 But a boy saw them, and gave word of it to Absalom: so the two of them went away quickly, and came to the house of a man in Bahurim who had a water-hole in his garden, and they went down into it. 19 And a woman put a cover over the hole, and put crushed grain on top of it, and no one had any knowledge of it. 20 And Absalom's servants came to the woman at the house and said, Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan? And the woman said to them, They have gone from here to the stream. And after searching for them, and seeing nothing of them, they went back to Jerusalem. 21 Then after the servants had gone away, they came up out of the water-hole and went to give King David the news; and they said, Get up and go quickly over the water, for such and such are Ahithophel's designs against you.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

spread a covering: Joshua 2:4-6, 5-24

the thing: Exodus 1:19

Reciprocal: Joshua 2:6 - hid them

Cross-References

Genesis 17:2
And I will make an agreement between you and me, and your offspring will be greatly increased.
Genesis 17:3
And Abram went down on his face on the earth, and the Lord God went on talking with him, and said,
Genesis 17:6
I will make you very fertile, so that nations will come from you and kings will be your offspring.
Genesis 17:9
And God said to Abraham, On your side, you are to keep the agreement, you and your seed after you through all generations.
Genesis 17:10
And this is the agreement which you are to keep with me, you and your seed after you: every male among you is to undergo circumcision.
Genesis 17:13
He who comes to birth in your house and he who is made yours for a price, all are to undergo circumcision; so that my agreement may be marked in your flesh, an agreement for all time.
Genesis 17:14
And any male who does not undergo circumcision will be cut off from his people: my agreement has been broken by him.
Genesis 17:16
And I will give her a blessing so that you will have a son by her: truly my blessing will be on her, and she will be the mother of nations: kings of peoples will be her offspring.
Genesis 17:17
Then Abraham went down on his face, and laughing, said in his heart, May a man a hundred years old have a child? will Sarah, at ninety years old, give birth?
Genesis 17:20
As for Ishmael, I have given ear to your prayer: truly I have given him my blessing and I will make him fertile and give him great increase; he will be the father of twelve chiefs, and I will make him a great nation.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth,.... This woman, very probably, was the man's wife of the house, as Abarbinel notes; who took a cloth, and spread it over the well's mouth, that it could not be seen or known that there was a well there:

and spread ground corn thereon: just taken out of the mill, before it was sifted, while in the bran; or corn unhusked, or just threshed out, in order to be dried in the sun, and then parched; or wheat bruised for that purpose: Josephus says q they were locks of wool she spread:

and the thing was not known; that the young men were in the well.

q Antiqu. l. 7. c. 9. sect. 7.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

A covering - Hebrew “the covering,” perhaps “the hanging” or “awning” at the door of the house, as the word seems to mean when spoken of the tabernacle.

Ground corn - Or “peeled barley,” which she spread out as if for the purpose of drying it in the sun.


 
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