2 Samuel 18:5

THE MESSAGE

Then the king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." The whole army heard what the king commanded the three captains regarding Absalom.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The king commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, “Treat the young man Absalom gently for my sake.” All the people heard the king’s orders to all the commanders about Absalom.

Hebrew Names Version
The king commanded Yo'av and Avishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Avshalom. All the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Avshalom.

King James Version
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

Lexham English Bible
The king ordered Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, "With respect to the young man Absalom, deal gently for me." And all the troops heard when the king ordered all of the commanders concerning the matter of Absalom.

English Standard Version
And the king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders about Absalom.

New Century Version
The king commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, "Be gentle with young Absalom for my sake." Everyone heard the king's orders to the commanders about Absalom.

New English Translation
The king gave this order to Joab, Abishai, and Ittai: "For my sake deal gently with the young man Absalom." Now the entire army was listening when the king gave all the leaders this order concerning Absalom.

Amplified Bible
The king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, "Deal gently with the young man Absalom for my sake." And all the men heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders about Absalom.

New American Standard Bible
But the king commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, saying, "Deal gently with the young man Absalom for my sake." And all the people heard when the king commanded all the commanders regarding Absalom.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And the King commanded Ioab and Abishai, and Ittai, saying, Entreate the yong man Absalom gently for my sake. and all the people heard whe the King gaue al the captaines charge concerning Absalom.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." And all the people heard when the king commanded all the commanders concerning Absalom.

Complete Jewish Bible
The king gave orders to Yo'av, Avishai and Ittai, "For my sake, deal gently with young Avshalom." All the people were listening when the king gave all the commanders this order concerning Avshalom.

Darby Translation
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, [Deal] gently for my sake with the young man Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

Easy-to-Read Version
The king gave a command to Joab, Abishai, and Ittai. He said, "Do this for me: Be gentle with young Absalom!" Everyone heard the king's orders about Absalom to the captains.

George Lamsa Translation
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Capture for me the young man Absalom alive. And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all commanders concerning Absalom.

Good News Translation
He gave orders to Joab, Abishai, and Ittai: "For my sake don't harm the young man Absalom." And all the troops heard David give this command to his officers.

Literal Translation
And the king commanded Joab, and Abishai, and Ittai, saying, For my sake deal gently with the young man, with Absalom. And all the people heard as the king commanded the commanders concerning Absalom.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And ye kinge comaunded Ioab and Abisai, and Ithai, and sayde: Intreate me the yonge man Absalom gently. And all the people herde it, wha the kynge comaunded all the captaynes concernynge Absalom.

American Standard Version
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

Bible in Basic English
And the king gave orders to Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Because of me, be gentle to the young man Absalom. And this order about Absalom was given in the hearing of all the people.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the king commaunded Ioab, and Abisai, and Ithai, saying: Intreate the young man Absalom gently for my sake. And all the people hearde that the king gaue all the captaynes charge concerning Absalom.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying: 'Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom.' And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

King James Version (1611)
And the king commanded Ioab, and Abishai, and Ittai, saying, Deale gently for my sake with the yong man, euen with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gaue all the captaines charge concerning Absalom.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the king commanded Joab and Abessa and Ethi, saying, Spare for my sake the young man Abessalom. And all the people heard the king charging all the commanders concerning Abessalom.

English Revised Version
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

Berean Standard Bible
Now the king had commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, "Treat the young man Absalom gently for my sake." And all the people heard the king's orders to each of the commanders regarding Absalom.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And the king comaundide to Joab, and to Abisai, and Ethai, and seyde, Kepe ye to me the child Absolon. And al the puple herde the kyng comaundinge to alle the princes for Absolon.

Young's Literal Translation
and the king chargeth Joab, and Abishai, and Ittai, saying, `Gently -- for me, for the youth, for Absalom;' and all the people heard in the king's charging all the heads concerning Absalom.

Update Bible Version
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

Webster's Bible Translation
And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, [Deal] gently for my sake with the young man, [even] with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

World English Bible
The king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom. All the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

New King James Version
Now the king had commanded Joab, Abishai, and Ittai, saying, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains orders concerning Absalom.

New Living Translation
And the king gave this command to Joab, Abishai, and Ittai: "For my sake, deal gently with young Absalom." And all the troops heard the king give this order to his commanders.

New Life Bible
The king told Joab and Abishai and Ittai, "Be gentle toward the young man Absalom because of me." And all the people heard him say this to all the leaders about Absalom.

New Revised Standard
The king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders concerning Absalom.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And the king charged Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently, for my sake, with the young man, even Absolom. And, all the people, heard when the king charged all the captains, for the sake of Absolom.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the king commanded Joab, and Abisai, and Ethai, saying: Save me the boy Absalom. And all the people heard the king giving charge to all the princes concerning Absalom.

Revised Standard Version
And the king ordered Jo'ab and Abi'shai and It'tai, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Ab'salom." And all the people heard when the king gave orders to all the commanders about Ab'salom.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
The king charged Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." And all the people heard when the king charged all the commanders concerning Absalom.

Contextual Overview

¹David organized his forces. He appointed captains of thousands and captains of hundreds. Then David deployed his troops, a third under Joab, a third under Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and a third under Ittai the Gittite. The king then announced, "I'm marching with you." ³ They said, "No, you mustn't march with us. If we're forced to retreat, the enemy won't give it a second thought. And if half of us die, they won't do so either. But you are worth ten thousand of us. It will be better for us if you stay in the city and help from there." ⁴ "If you say so," said the king. "I'll do what you think is best." And so he stood beside the city gate as the whole army marched out by hundreds and by thousands. ⁵ Then the king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." The whole army heard what the king commanded the three captains regarding Absalom. ⁶The army took the field to meet Israel. It turned out that the battle was joined in the Forest of Ephraim. The army of Israel was beaten badly there that day by David's men, a terrific slaughter—twenty thousand men! There was fighting helter-skelter all over the place—the forest claimed more lives that day than the sword!

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Deal gently: 2 Samuel 16:11, 2 Samuel 17:1-4, 2 Samuel 17:14, Deuteronomy 21:18-21, Psalms 103:13, Luke 23:34

all the people: 2 Samuel 18:12

Reciprocal: 1 Samuel 26:6 - to Abishai 2 Samuel 18:14 - thrust them 2 Samuel 18:20 - because 2 Samuel 19:1 - General 1 Kings 2:5 - Joab Philemon 1:10 - my son

Cross-References

Genesis 33:10
Jacob said, "Please. If you can find it in your heart to welcome me, accept these gifts. When I saw your face, it was as the face of God smiling on me. Accept the gifts I have brought for you. God has been good to me and I have more than enough." Jacob urged the gifts on him and Esau accepted.

Judges 13:15
Manoah said to the angel of God, "Please, stay with us a little longer; we'll prepare a meal for you—a young goat."

Judges 19:5
On the fourth day, they got up at the crack of dawn and got ready to go. But the girl's father said to his son-in-law, "Strengthen yourself with a hearty breakfast and then you can go." So they sat down and ate breakfast together. The girl's father said to the man, "Come now, be my guest. Stay the night—make it a holiday." The man got up to go, but his father-in-law kept after him, so he ended up spending another night. On the fifth day, he was again up early, ready to go. The girl's father said, "You need some breakfast." They went back and forth, and the day slipped on as they ate and drank together. But the man and his concubine were finally ready to go. Then his father-in-law, the girl's father, said, "Look, the day's almost gone—why not stay the night? There's very little daylight left; stay another night and enjoy yourself. Tomorrow you can get an early start and set off for your own place." But this time the man wasn't willing to spend another night. He got things ready, left, and went as far as Jebus (Jerusalem) with his pair of saddled donkeys, his concubine, and his servant. At Jebus, though, the day was nearly gone. The servant said to his master, "It's late; let's go into this Jebusite city and spend the night." But his master said, "We're not going into any city of foreigners. We'll go on to Gibeah." He directed his servant, "Keep going. Let's go on ahead. We'll spend the night either at Gibeah or Ramah." So they kept going. As they pressed on, the sun finally left them in the vicinity of Gibeah, which belongs to Benjamin. They left the road there to spend the night at Gibeah. The Levite went and sat down in the town square, but no one invited them in to spend the night. Then, late in the evening, an old man came in from his day's work in the fields. He was from the hill country of Ephraim and lived temporarily in Gibeah where all the local citizens were Benjaminites. When the old man looked up and saw the traveler in the town square, he said, "Where are you going? And where are you from?" The Levite said, "We're just passing through. We're coming from Bethlehem on our way to a remote spot in the hills of Ephraim. I come from there. I've just made a trip to Bethlehem in Judah and I'm on my way back home, but no one has invited us in for the night. We wouldn't be any trouble: We have food and straw for the donkeys, and bread and wine for the woman, the young man, and me—we don't need anything." The old man said, "It's going to be all right; I'll take care of you. You aren't going to spend the night in the town square." He took them home and fed the donkeys. They washed up and sat down to a good meal. They were relaxed and enjoying themselves when the men of the city, a gang of local hell-raisers all, surrounded the house and started pounding on the door. They yelled for the owner of the house, the old man, "Bring out the man who came to your house. We want to have sex with him." He went out and told them, "No, brothers! Don't be obscene—this man is my guest. Don't commit this outrage. Look, my virgin daughter and his concubine are here. I'll bring them out for you. Abuse them if you must, but don't do anything so senselessly vile to this man." But the men wouldn't listen to him. Finally, the Levite pushed his concubine out the door to them. They raped her repeatedly all night long. Just before dawn they let her go. The woman came back and fell at the door of the house where her master was sleeping. When the sun rose, there she was. It was morning. Her master got up and opened the door to continue his journey. There she was, his concubine, crumpled in a heap at the door, her hands on the threshold. "Get up," he said. "Let's get going." There was no answer. He lifted her onto his donkey and set out for home. When he got home he took a knife and dismembered his concubine—cut her into twelve pieces. He sent her, piece by piece, throughout the country of Israel. And he ordered the men he sent out, "Say to every man in Israel: ‘Has such a thing as this ever happened from the time the Israelites came up from the land of Egypt until now? Think about it! Talk it over. Do something!'"

Psalms 104:15
class="poetry"> O my soul, bless God ! God , my God, how great you are! beautifully, gloriously robed, Dressed up in sunshine, and all heaven stretched out for your tent. You built your palace on the ocean deeps, made a chariot out of clouds and took off on wind-wings. You commandeered winds as messengers, appointed fire and flame as ambassadors. You set earth on a firm foundation so that nothing can shake it, ever. You blanketed earth with ocean, covered the mountains with deep waters; Then you roared and the water ran away— your thunder crash put it to flight. Mountains pushed up, valleys spread out in the places you assigned them. You set boundaries between earth and sea; never again will earth be flooded. You started the springs and rivers, sent them flowing among the hills. All the wild animals now drink their fill, wild donkeys quench their thirst. Along the riverbanks the birds build nests, ravens make their voices heard. You water the mountains from your heavenly cisterns; earth is supplied with plenty of water. You make grass grow for the livestock, hay for the animals that plow the ground. Oh yes, God brings grain from the land, wine to make people happy, Their faces glowing with health, a people well-fed and hearty. God 's trees are well-watered— the Lebanon cedars he planted. Birds build their nests in those trees; look—the stork at home in the treetop. Mountain goats climb about the cliffs; badgers burrow among the rocks. The moon keeps track of the seasons, the sun is in charge of each day. When it's dark and night takes over, all the forest creatures come out. The young lions roar for their prey, clamoring to God for their supper. When the sun comes up, they vanish, lazily stretched out in their dens. Meanwhile, men and women go out to work, busy at their jobs until evening. What a wildly wonderful world, God ! You made it all, with Wisdom at your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations. Oh, look—the deep, wide sea, brimming with fish past counting, sardines and sharks and salmon. Ships plow those waters, and Leviathan, your pet dragon, romps in them. All the creatures look expectantly to you to give them their meals on time. You come, and they gather around; you open your hand and they eat from it. If you turned your back, they'd die in a minute— Take back your Spirit and they die, revert to original mud; Send out your Spirit and they spring to life— the whole countryside in bloom and blossom. The glory of God —let it last forever! Let God enjoy his creation! He takes one look at earth and triggers an earthquake, points a finger at the mountains, and volcanoes erupt. Oh, let me sing to God all my life long, sing hymns to my God as long as I live! Oh, let my song please him; I'm so pleased to be singing to God . But clear the ground of sinners— no more godless men and women! O my soul, bless God !

Isaiah 3:1
The Master, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, is emptying Jerusalem and Judah Of all the basic necessities, plain bread and water to begin with. He's withdrawing police and protection, judges and courts, pastors and teachers, captains and generals, doctors and nurses, and, yes, even the repairmen and jacks-of-all-trades. He says, "I'll put little kids in charge of the city. Schoolboys and schoolgirls will order everyone around. People will be at each other's throats, stabbing one another in the back: Neighbor against neighbor, young against old, the no-account against the well-respected. One brother will grab another and say, ‘You look like you've got a head on your shoulders. Do something! Get us out of this mess.' And he'll say, ‘Me? Not me! I don't have a clue. Don't put me in charge of anything.'

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the king commanded Joab, and Abishai, and Ittai,.... His three generals, to whom he had committed his army divided into three parts:

saying, [deal] gently for my sake with the young man, [even] with Absalom; he does not call him his son, being in rebellion against him, but the young man, who was young, and rash, and foolish, and so to be pitied; his request is, that they would spare him, and not take away his life, when in their power; that they would not aim at him, and push him hard, and fall upon him with wrath and fury; but if he fell into their hands, to take him alive, and bring him away, and not put him to death. This flowed from a natural affection to him, and a concern for the welfare of his soul, that he might not die in this sin; and also from a consciousness that it was for his own sins that he was raised up to rebel against him; and he seems to speak as if he was certain that the battle would go for him, and against Absalom; and which he might conclude from the answer of prayer he had in defeating the counsel of Ahithophel:

and all the people heard when he gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom; not only the three generals, but all the captains of hundreds and thousands, and this was heard by the common soldiers as well as by the people of the city that were spectators on this occasion, see 2 Samuel 18:12.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Samuel 18:5. Deal gently - with the young man — David was the father of this worthless young man; and is it to be wondered at that he feels as a father? Who in his circumstances, that had such feelings as every man should have, would have felt, or acted otherwise?