Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, December 24th, 2025
Christmas Eve
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Read the Bible

New Life Version

2 Samuel 2:17

The battle was very bad that day. Abner and the men of Israel were beaten by the servants of David.

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.
Easy-to-Read Version
That contest turned into a terrible battle and David's officers defeated Abner and the Israelites that day.
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 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 But Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's army, had taken Saul's son Ish-bosheth to Mahanaim. 9 He made him king of Gilead, the Ashurites, Jezreel, Ephraim, Benjamin, and all Israel. 10 Saul's son Ish-bosheth was forty years old when he became king of Israel. He was king for two years. But the family of Judah followed David. 11 David was king in Hebron over the family of Judah for seven years and six months. 12 Now Abner the son of Ner went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon with the servants of Saul's son Ish-bosheth. 13 And Zeruiah's son Joab and the servants of David went out and met them by the pool of Gibeon. One group sat down on one side of the pool, and the other group on the other side. 14 Then Abner said to Joab, "Let the young men get up and have a test of strength in front of us." And Joab said, "Let them get up." 15 So they stood up and went over by number. There were twelve for Benjamin and Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David. 16 Each one of them took hold of the head of the one fighting against him, and put his sword into the other's side. So they fell down together. That is why that place was called field of swords, which is in Gibeon. 17 The battle was very bad that day. Abner and the men of Israel were beaten by the servants of David.

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 heavens and the earth were completed, and all that is in them.
Genesis 2:4
This is the story of the heavens and the earth when they were made, in the day the Lord God made the earth and the heavens.
Genesis 2:6
But a fog came from the earth and watered the whole top of the ground.
Genesis 2:9
And the Lord God made to grow out of the ground every tree that is pleasing to the eyes and good for food. And He made the tree of life grow in the center of the garden, and the tree of learning of good and bad.
Genesis 2:10
Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden. And from there it divided and became four rivers.
Genesis 2:12
The gold of that land is good. Bdellium and onyx stone are there.
Genesis 2:13
The name of the second river is Gihon. It flows around the whole land of Cush.
Genesis 2:18
Then the Lord God said, "It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper that is right for him."
Genesis 2:20
Adam gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field. But there was no helper found that was right for Adam.
Genesis 2:21
So the Lord God put the man to sleep as if he were dead. And while he was sleeping, He took one of the bones from his side and closed up the place with flesh.

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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