Lectionary Calendar
Tuesday, July 22nd, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

Easy-to-Read Version

2 Samuel 2:17

That contest turned into a terrible battle and David's officers defeated Abner and the Israelites that day.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Abner;   Armies;   Championship;   David;   Israel;   Joab;   War;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Gibeon;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Abner;   Joab;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Gibeon;   Israel;   Joab;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - War;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Gibeon;   Helkath-Hazzurim;   Samuel, Books of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Abner;   Joab;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Abner ;   Ishbosheth ;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Joab;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Gibeon;  

Encyclopedias:

- The Jewish Encyclopedia - Abner;   Ish-Bosheth;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The battle that day was extremely fierce, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by David’s soldiers.
Hebrew Names Version
The battle was very severe that day: and Aviner was beaten, and the men of Yisra'el, before the servants of David.
King James Version
And there was a very sore battle that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
Lexham English Bible
Then the battle became increasingly fierce on that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated before the servants of David.
English Standard Version
And the battle was very fierce that day. And Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.
New Century Version
That day there was a terrible battle, and David's men defeated Abner and the Israelites.
New English Translation
Now the battle was very severe that day; Abner and the men of Israel were overcome by David's soldiers.
Amplified Bible
There was a very fierce battle that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.
New American Standard Bible
That day the battle was very severe, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the servants of David.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And the battel was exceeding sore that same day: for Abner and the men of Israel fell before the seruants of Dauid.
Legacy Standard Bible
And that day the battle was very severe, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated before the servants of David.
Contemporary English Version
Then everyone started fighting. Both sides fought very hard, but David's soldiers defeated Abner and the soldiers of Israel.
Complete Jewish Bible
The battle that day was very fierce; Avner and the men of Isra'el were beaten by David's servants.
Darby Translation
And the battle that day was very severe; and Abner and the men of Israel were routed before the servants of David.
George Lamsa Translation
And there was a very fierce battle that day; and Abner was defeated, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
Good News Translation
Then a furious battle broke out, and Abner and the Israelites were defeated by David's men.
Literal Translation
And the battle was very hard on that day, and the men of Israel and Abner were stricken before David's servants.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And there arose a sore harde battayll the same daye. But Abner and the men of Israel were put to flighte of Dauids seruauntes.
American Standard Version
And the battle was very sore that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
Bible in Basic English
And there was hard fighting that day; and Abner and the men of Israel gave way before the servants of David.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And there was an exceeding cruell battel that same day: For Abner and the men of Israel fell before the seruauntes of Dauid.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the battle was very sore that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
King James Version (1611)
And there was a very sore battell that day: and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the seruants of Dauid.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the battle was very severe on that day; and Abenner and the men of Israel were worsted before the servants of David.
English Revised Version
And the battle was very sore that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
Berean Standard Bible
The battle that day was intense, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the servants of David.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And `batel hard ynow roos in that dai; and Abner and the sones of Israel `weren dryuun of the children of Dauid.
Young's Literal Translation
and the battle is very hard on that day, and Abner is smitten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
Update Bible Version
And the battle was very intense that day: and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the slaves of David.
Webster's Bible Translation
And there was a very severe battle that day; and Abner was defeated, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
World English Bible
The battle was very severe that day: and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.
New King James Version
So there was a very fierce battle that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.
New Living Translation
A fierce battle followed that day, and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated by the forces of David.
New Life Bible
The battle was very bad that day. Abner and the men of Israel were beaten by the servants of David.
New Revised Standard
The battle was very fierce that day; and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten by the servants of David.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
So the battle became exceeding obstinate, on that day, - and Abner and the men of Israel were defeated before the servants of David.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And there was a very fierce battle that day: and Abner was put to flight, with the men of Israel, by the servants of David.
Revised Standard Version
And the battle was very fierce that day; and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.
THE MESSAGE
The fighting went from bad to worse throughout the day. Abner and the men of Israel were beaten to a pulp by David's men. The three sons of Zeruiah were present: Joab, Abishai, and Asahel. Asahel, as fast as a wild antelope on the open plain, chased Abner, staying hard on his heels.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
That day the battle was very severe, and Abner and the men of Israel were beaten before the servants of David.

Contextual Overview

8 Abner son of Ner was the captain of Saul's army. Abner took Ish Bosheth son of Saul to Mahanaim 9 and made him king of Gilead, Asher, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all Israel. 10 Ish Bosheth son of Saul was 40 years old when he began to rule over Israel. He ruled Israel two years, but the tribe of Judah followed David. 11 David ruled over the tribe of Judah from Hebron for seven years and six months. 12 Abner son of Ner and the officers of Ish Bosheth son of Saul left Mahanaim and went to Gibeon. 13 Joab, Zeruiah's son, and the officers of David also went to Gibeon. They met Abner and Ish Bosheth's officers at the pool of Gibeon. Abner's group sat on one side of the pool. Joab's group sat on the other side. 14 Abner said to Joab, "Let's have the young soldiers get up and have a contest here." Joab said, "Yes, let's have a contest." 15 So the young soldiers got up. The two groups counted their men for the contest. They chose twelve men from the tribe of Benjamin to fight for Ish Bosheth son of Saul, and they chose twelve men from David's officers. 16 Each of the men grabbed his opponent's head and stabbed him in the side with his sword, and then they fell down together. That is why this place in Gibeon is called "The Field of the Sharp Knives." 17 That contest turned into a terrible battle and David's officers defeated Abner and the Israelites that day.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Abner: 2 Samuel 3:1

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 2:14 - play before 2 Samuel 18:7 - the people

Cross-References

Genesis 2:1
So the earth, the sky, and everything in them were finished.
Genesis 2:4
This is the story about the creation of the sky and the earth. This is what happened when the Lord God made the earth and the sky.
Genesis 2:6
So water came up from the earth and spread over the ground.
Genesis 2:9
Then the Lord God caused all the beautiful trees that were good for food to grow in the garden. In the middle of the garden, he put the tree of life and the tree that gives knowledge about good and evil.
Genesis 2:10
A river flowed from Eden and watered the garden. The river then separated and became four smaller rivers.
Genesis 2:12
(There is gold in that country, and that gold is pure. A kind of expensive perfume and onyx are also found there.)
Genesis 2:13
The name of the second river was Gihon. This river flowed around the whole land of Cush.
Genesis 2:18
Then the Lord God said, "I see that it is not good for the man to be alone. I will make the companion he needs, one just right for him."
Genesis 2:20
The man gave names to all the tame animals, to all the birds in the air, and to all the wild animals. He saw many animals and birds, but he could not find a companion that was right for him.
Genesis 2:21
So the Lord God caused the man to sleep very deeply. While he was asleep, God took one of the ribs from the man's body. Then he closed the man's skin where the rib had been.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And there was a very sore battle that day,.... When the twenty four men fell together, and no decision could be made thereby, or any triumph on either side, both armies drew up in battle array, and fought very furiously:

and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David; the army under him had the worst of it, and were routed, and obliged to flee before the army of David under the command of Joab.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Neither side had the advantage in the combat of twelve a side; hence, the quarrel was fought out with great fierceness by the two armies, and the victory was won by David.


 
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