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

New King James Version

2 Samuel 20:6

And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord's servants and pursue him, lest he find for himself fortified cities, and escape us."

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Abishai;   David;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Abishai;   Amasa;   Sheba;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Joab;   Sheba;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Amasa;   Gibeon;   Joab;   Sheba;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Abner;   Cherethims;   Gibeon;   Sheba (1);   Holman Bible Dictionary - Abel-Beth-Maachah or Abel-Beth-Maacah;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Joab;   Samuel, Books of;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Amasa ;   Bichri ;   Joab ;   Sheba ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Abishai;   David;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Da'vid;   She'ba;   Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types - Toe;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Hebrew Monarchy, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Abishai;   Get;   Joab;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
So David said to Abishai, “Sheba son of Bichri will do more harm to us than Absalom. Take your lord’s soldiers and pursue him, or he will find fortified cities and elude us.”
Hebrew Names Version
David said to Avishai, Now will Sheva the son of Bikhri do us more harm than did Avshalom: take your lord's servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fortified cities, and escape out of our sight.
King James Version
And David said to Abishai, Now shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fenced cities, and escape us.
Lexham English Bible
Then David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bicri will do us more harm than Absalom. You take the servants of your lord and pursue after him, lest he find fortified cities for himself and escape from us."
English Standard Version
And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord's servants and pursue him, lest he get himself to fortified cities and escape from us."
New Century Version
David said to Abishai, "Sheba son of Bicri is more dangerous to us than Absalom was. Take my men and chase him before he finds walled cities and escapes from us."
New English Translation
Then David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba son of Bicri will cause greater disaster for us than Absalom did! Take your lord's servants and pursue him. Otherwise he will secure fortified cities for himself and get away from us."
Amplified Bible
And David said to Abishai [his nephew], "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom did. Take your lord's servants and pursue him, so that he does not find fortified cities for himself and escape from our sight."
New American Standard Bible
And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom; take your lord's servants and pursue him, so that he does not find for himself fortified cities and escape from our sight."
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then Dauid sayd to Abishai, Now shal Sheba the sonne of Bichri doe vs more harme then did Absalom: take thou therefore thy lords seruants and followe after him, lest he get him walled cities, and escape vs.
Legacy Standard Bible
And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom; take your lord's servants and pursue him, lest he find for himself fortified cities and deliver himself from our sight."
Contemporary English Version
So David said to Abishai, "Sheba will hurt us more than Absalom ever did. Take my best soldiers and go after him. We don't want him to take over any walled cities and get away from us."
Complete Jewish Bible
David said to Avishai, "Sheva the son of Bikhri is going to do us more harm than Avshalom. Take your lord's servants and pursue him, so that he won't take over fortified cities and escape us."
Darby Translation
And David said to Abishai, Now shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom. Take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fortified cities and escape our sight.
Easy-to-Read Version
David said to Abishai, "Sheba son of Bicri is more dangerous to us than Absalom was. So take my officers and chase Sheba. Hurry before he gets into cities with walls. If he gets into the well-protected cities, we will not be able to get him."
George Lamsa Translation
And David said to Joab, Now Shamoa the son of Bichri will do us more harm than did Absalom; take your lords servants and pursue him, lest he find him fortified cities, and stay in them and incite a revolt against us.
Good News Translation
So the king said to Abishai, "Sheba will give us more trouble than Absalom. Take my men and go after him, or else he may occupy some fortified towns and escape from us."
Literal Translation
And David said to Abishai, Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do more evil to us than Absalom. You take the servants of your lord and pursue him, that he not find fortified cities for himself, and deliver himself from our eye.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And Dauid sayde vnto Abisai: Now shall Seba the sonne of Bichri do vs more harme then Absalom. Take thou yi lordes seruauntes, and folowe vpon him, yt he fynde not some stroge cities for him, and so escape out of oure sighte.
American Standard Version
And David said to Abishai, Now will Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fortified cities, and escape out of our sight.
Bible in Basic English
And David said to Abishai, Sheba, the son of Bichri, will do us more damage than Absalom did; so take some of your lord's servants and go after him, before he makes himself safe in the walled towns, and gets away before our eyes.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Dauid saide to Abisai: Now shal Seba the sonne of Bichri do vs more harme then did Absalom: Take thou therefore thy lordes seruauntes, and folowe after him, lest he get him walled cities, and escape vs.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And David said to Abishai: 'Now will Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom; take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fortified cities, and escape out of our sight.'
King James Version (1611)
And Dauid said to Abishai, Now shall Sheba the sonne of Bichri doe vs more harme then did Absalom: take thou thy lords seruants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fenced cities, and escape vs.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And David said to Amessai, Now shall Sabee the son of Bochori do us more harm than Abessalom: now then take thou with thee the servants of thy lord, and follow after him, lest he find for himself strong cities, so will he blind our eyes.
English Revised Version
And David said to Abishai, Now shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou thy lord’s servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fenced cities, and escape out of our sight.
Berean Standard Bible
And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord's servants and pursue him, or he will secure fortified cities and elude us."
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Sotheli Dauid seide to Abisai, Now Siba, the sone of Botri, schal turmente vs more than Absolon dide; therfor take the seruauntis of thi lord, and pursue hym, lest in hap he fynde strengthid citees, and ascape vs.
Young's Literal Translation
and David saith unto Abishai, `Now doth Sheba son of Bichri do evil to us more than Absalom; thou, take the servants of thy lord, and pursue after him, lest he have found for himself fenced cities, and delivered himself [from] our eye.'
Update Bible Version
And David said to Abishai, Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than did Absalom: you take your lord's slaves, and pursue after him, in case he found himself fortified cities, and tears out our eye.
Webster's Bible Translation
And David said to Abishai, Now shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than [did] Absalom: take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue him, lest he get for himself fortified cities, and escape us.
World English Bible
David said to Abishai, Now will Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom: take your lord's servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fortified cities, and escape out of our sight.
New Living Translation
Then David said to Abishai, "Sheba son of Bicri is going to hurt us more than Absalom did. Quick, take my troops and chase after him before he gets into a fortified town where we can't reach him."
New Life Bible
David said to Abishai, "Now Bichri's son Sheba will bring us more trouble than Absalom. Take your lord's servants and go after him. Or he might find strong cities for himself, and get away from us."
New Revised Standard
David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom; take your lord's servants and pursue him, or he will find fortified cities for himself, and escape from us."
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then said David unto Abishai, Now, shall Sheba son of Bichri, do us more harm than Absolom, - thou, take the servants of thy lord, and pursue him, lest he have got him into fortified cities, and so have escaped our eye.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And David said to Abisai: Now will Seba the son of Bochri do us more harm than did Absalom: take thou therefore the servants of thy lord, and pursue after him, lest he find fenced cities, and escape us.
Revised Standard Version
And David said to Abi'shai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Ab'salom; take your lord's servants and pursue him, lest he get himself fortified cities, and cause us trouble."
New American Standard Bible (1995)
And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom; take your lord's servants and pursue him, so that he does not find for himself fortified cities and escape from our sight."

Contextual Overview

4 And the king said to Amasa, "Assemble the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself." 5 So Amasa went to assemble the men of Judah. But he delayed longer than the set time which David had appointed him. 6 And David said to Abishai, "Now Sheba the son of Bichri will do us more harm than Absalom. Take your lord's servants and pursue him, lest he find for himself fortified cities, and escape us." 7 So Joab's men, with the Cherethites, the Pelethites, and all the mighty men, went out after him. And they went out of Jerusalem to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri. 8 When they were at the large stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came before them. Now Joab was dressed in battle armor; on it was a belt with a sword fastened in its sheath at his hips; and as he was going forward, it fell out. 9 Then Joab said to Amasa, "Are you in health, my brother?" And Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him. 10 But Amasa did not notice the sword that was in Joab's hand. And he struck him with it in the stomach, and his entrails poured out on the ground; and he did not strike him again. Thus he died. Then Joab and Abishai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri. 11 Meanwhile one of Joab's men stood near Amasa, and said, "Whoever favors Joab and whoever is for David--follow Joab!" 12 But Amasa wallowed in his blood in the middle of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people stood still, he moved Amasa from the highway to the field and threw a garment over him, when he saw that everyone who came upon him halted. 13 When he was removed from the highway, all the people went on after Joab to pursue Sheba the son of Bichri.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Abishai: 2 Samuel 2:18, 2 Samuel 3:30, 2 Samuel 3:39, 2 Samuel 10:9, 2 Samuel 10:10, 2 Samuel 10:14, 2 Samuel 18:2, 2 Samuel 18:12, 2 Samuel 21:17, 2 Samuel 23:18, 1 Samuel 26:6, 1 Chronicles 11:20, 1 Chronicles 18:12

do us: 2 Samuel 19:7

thy lord's: 2 Samuel 11:11, 1 Kings 1:33

escape us: Heb. deliver himself from our eyes

Reciprocal: Joshua 10:19 - suffer them Joshua 10:20 - fenced cities 2 Samuel 19:43 - We have 2 Samuel 20:11 - He that Jeremiah 8:14 - enter Mark 3:24 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 3:3
but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, "You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die."'
Genesis 20:6
And God said to him in a dream, "Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.
Genesis 20:7
Now therefore, restore the man's wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours."
Genesis 20:18
for the LORD had closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham's wife.
Genesis 26:11
So Abimelech charged all his people, saying, "He who touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death."
Genesis 31:7
Yet your father has deceived me and changed my wages ten times, but God did not allow him to hurt me.
Genesis 35:5
And they journeyed, and the terror of God was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Jacob.
Genesis 39:9
There is no one greater in this house than I, nor has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?"
Exodus 34:24
For I will cast out the nations before you and enlarge your borders; neither will any man covet your land when you go up to appear before the LORD your God three times in the year.
Leviticus 6:2
"If a person sins and commits a trespass against the LORD by lying to his neighbor about what was delivered to him for safekeeping, or about a pledge, or about a robbery, or if he has extorted from his neighbor,

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And David said to Abishai,.... For it seems he would have nothing to say to Joab, being displeased with him for slaying Absalom, and having removed him from his posts; and therefore speaks to the next officer in his army, Abishai; though Josephus p says, he addressed himself to Joab, contrary to the express words of the text:

now shall Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than [did] Absalom; gain a greater party, and give more trouble to subdue him, unless suppressed in time:

take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue after him; without waiting for Amasa, and the troops he was assembling; delays in such a case as an insurrection being dangerous, which ought to be nipped in the bud, and crushed as soon as possible; in order to which, he bids him take his servants that were about him, his bodyguards, and pursue Sheba:

lest he get him fenced cities; where he may secure himself, and hold out a siege a long time, and give a great deal of trouble:

and escape us; for the present; or "escape our eyes", as the "Keri", or marginal reading is; we shall lose sight of him, and not know which way he is gone, if he is not pursued quickly.

p Antiqu. l. 7. c. 11. sect. 6.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

To Abishai - Probably, as the king was on bad terms with Joab, and wished to deprive him of his post as Captain of the host, he gave his orders to Abishai, and weakly connived at the execution of them by Joab, which was inevitable.


 
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