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Read the Bible

New Revised Standard

2 Samuel 18:21

Then Joab said to a Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." The Cushite bowed before Joab, and ran.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Ahimaaz;   Cushi;   Readings, Select;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Ahimaaz;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Gospel;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Cushi;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ahimaaz;   Cushite;   David;   Samuel, Books of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Abishai;   Ahimaaz;   Cush;   Cushi, Cushite;   Samuel, Books of;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Ahimaaz ;   Cushi ;   Zadok ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Absalom;   Ahimaaz;   David;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Ahim'a-Az;   Cu'shi;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Hebrew Monarchy, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Cushi;   Cushite;   Ethiopia;   Gesture;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Ahimaaz;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Esther, Apocryphal Book of;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Joab then said to a Cushite, “Go tell the king what you have seen.” The Cushite bowed to Joab and took off running.
Hebrew Names Version
Then said Yo'av to the Kushite, Go, tell the king what you have seen. The Kushite bowed himself to Yo'av, and ran.
King James Version
Then said Joab to Cushi, Go tell the king what thou hast seen. And Cushi bowed himself unto Joab, and ran.
Lexham English Bible
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen"; then the Cushite bowed down to Joab and ran off.
English Standard Version
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." The Cushite bowed before Joab, and ran.
New Century Version
Then Joab said to a man from Cush, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." The Cushite bowed to Joab and ran to tell David.
New English Translation
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go and tell the king what you have seen." After bowing to Joab, the Cushite ran off.
Amplified Bible
Then Joab said to the Cushite (Ethiopian), "Go, tell the king what you have seen." And the Cushite bowed to Joab and ran.
New American Standard Bible
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." So the Cushite bowed to Joab and ran.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then said Ioab to Cushi, Goe, tel the king, what thou hast seene. And Cushi bowed himselfe vnto Ioab, and ran.
Legacy Standard Bible
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." So the Cushite bowed to Joab and ran.
Contemporary English Version
Someone from Ethiopia was standing there, and Joab told him, "Go and tell the king what you have seen." The man knelt down in front of Joab and then got up and started running.
Complete Jewish Bible
Then Yo'av said to the Ethiopian, "Go, tell the king what you saw." The Ethiopian bowed to Yo'av, then ran off.
Darby Translation
Then said Joab to the Cushite, Go, tell the king what thou hast seen. And the Cushite bowed himself to Joab, and ran.
Easy-to-Read Version
Then Joab said to a man from Ethiopia, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." So the Ethiopian bowed to Joab and ran to tell David.
George Lamsa Translation
Then Joab said to Cushi, Go tell the king what you have seen; and he ran.
Good News Translation
Then he said to his Ethiopian slave, "Go and tell the king what you have seen." The slave bowed and ran off.
Literal Translation
And Joab said to Cushi, Go, tell the king that which you have seen. And Cushi bowed to Joab, and ran.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But vnto Chusi sayde Ioab: Go thou thy waye, and tell the kynge what thou hast sene. And Chusi did his obeysauce vnto Ioab, and ranne.
American Standard Version
Then said Joab to the Cushite, Go, tell the king what thou hast seen. And the Cushite bowed himself unto Joab, and ran.
Bible in Basic English
Then Joab said to the Cushite, Go and give the king word of what you have seen. And the Cushite, making a sign of respect to Joab, went off running.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Then sayd Ioab to Chusi: Go and tell the kyng what thou hast seene. And Chusi bowed him selfe vnto Ioab, and ranne.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Then said Joab to the Cushite: 'Go tell the king what thou hast seen.' And the Cushite bowed down unto Joab, and ran.
King James Version (1611)
Then said Ioab to Cushi, Goe tell the King what thou hast seene. And Cushi bowed himselfe vnto Ioab, and ranne.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And Joab said to Chusi, Go, report to the king all that thou hast seen. And Chusi did obeisance to Joab, and went out.
English Revised Version
Then said Joab to the Cushite, Go tell the king what thou hast seen. And the Cushite bowed himself unto Joab, and ran.
Berean Standard Bible
So Joab said to a Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." The Cushite bowed to Joab and took off running.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Joab seide to Chusi, Go thou, and telle to the kyng tho thingis that thou hast seyn. Chusi worschypide Joab, and ran.
Young's Literal Translation
And Joab saith to Cushi, `Go, declare to the king that which thou hast seen;' and Cushi boweth himself to Joab, and runneth.
Update Bible Version
Then Joab said to the Cushite, Go, tell the king what you have seen. And the Cushite bowed himself to Joab, and ran.
Webster's Bible Translation
Then said Joab to Cushi, Go, tell the king what thou hast seen. And Cushi bowed himself to Joab, and ran.
World English Bible
Then said Joab to the Cushite, Go, tell the king what you have seen. The Cushite bowed himself to Joab, and ran.
New King James Version
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." So the Cushite bowed himself to Joab and ran.
New Living Translation
Then Joab said to a man from Ethiopia, "Go tell the king what you have seen." The man bowed and ran off.
New Life Bible
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go and tell the king what you have seen." So the Cushite bowed to Joab and ran.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then said Joab to a Cushite, Go tell the king, what thou hast seen. And the Cushite bowed himself down to Joab, and ran.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And Joab said to Chusai: Go, and tell the king what thou hast seen. Chusai bowed down to Joab, and ran.
Revised Standard Version
Then Jo'ab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." The Cushite bowed before Jo'ab, and ran.
THE MESSAGE
Then Joab ordered a Cushite, "You go. Tell the king what you've seen." "Yes sir," said the Cushite, and ran off.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then Joab said to the Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." So the Cushite bowed to Joab and ran.

Contextual Overview

19 Then Ahimaaz son of Zadok said, "Let me run, and carry tidings to the king that the Lord has delivered him from the power of his enemies." 20 Joab said to him, "You are not to carry tidings today; you may carry tidings another day, but today you shall not do so, because the king's son is dead." 21 Then Joab said to a Cushite, "Go, tell the king what you have seen." The Cushite bowed before Joab, and ran. 22 Then Ahimaaz son of Zadok said again to Joab, "Come what may, let me also run after the Cushite." And Joab said, "Why will you run, my son, seeing that you have no reward for the tidings?" 23 "Come what may," he said, "I will run." So he said to him, "Run." Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the Plain, and outran the Cushite. 24 Now David was sitting between the two gates. The sentinel went up to the roof of the gate by the wall, and when he looked up, he saw a man running alone. 25 The sentinel shouted and told the king. The king said, "If he is alone, there are tidings in his mouth." He kept coming, and drew near. 26 Then the sentinel saw another man running; and the sentinel called to the gatekeeper and said, "See, another man running alone!" The king said, "He also is bringing tidings." 27 The sentinel said, "I think the running of the first one is like the running of Ahimaaz son of Zadok." The king said, "He is a good man, and comes with good tidings." 28 Then Ahimaaz cried out to the king, "All is well!" He prostrated himself before the king with his face to the ground, and said, "Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delivered up the men who raised their hand against my lord the king."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Cross-References

Genesis 11:5
The Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which mortals had built.
Genesis 11:7
Come, let us go down, and confuse their language there, so that they will not understand one another's speech."
Genesis 18:1
The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day.
Genesis 18:24
Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it?
Exodus 3:8
and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
Exodus 33:5
For the Lord had said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.'"
Deuteronomy 8:2
Remember the long way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, in order to humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commandments.
Deuteronomy 13:3
you must not heed the words of those prophets or those who divine by dreams; for the Lord your God is testing you, to know whether you indeed love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul.
Joshua 22:22
"The Lord , God of gods! The Lord , God of gods! He knows; and let Israel itself know! If it was in rebellion or in breach of faith toward the Lord , do not spare us today
Job 34:22
There is no gloom or deep darkness where evildoers may hide themselves.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Then said Joab to Cushi,.... The Ethiopian, or blackamoor; who either was an Ethiopian by birth and proselyted, or he was an Israelite of a black complexion, and therefore so called; and was judged a proper person by the general to carry such dismal news to the king, as he knew it would be. Some Jewish writers a take him to be the same with Cush the Benjaminite, in the title of the seventh psalm, Psalms 7:1; and that he is the same that told Joab he saw Absalom hanging in an oak, and declared that, if a thousand shekels of silver were offered him, he would not have put forth his hand against him, 2 Samuel 18:10; though some think this was one of the ten young men that waited on Joab, and by his orders slew Absalom; but it would have been dangerous for one of these to have carried the tidings, had he been known by David to have done it:

go tell the king what thou hast seen: by which it should seem that he was present when Absalom was killed:

and Cushi bowed himself unto Joab; in reverence to him as his general, and in thankfulness for sending him on this errand:

and ran; as fast as he could.

a Pirke Eliezer, c. 53.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Cushi - “The Cushite,” a foreign slave, perhaps of Joab’s, whom he did not scruple to expose to David’s anger. If, however, it is a name, it must be rendered “Haccushi.” In the title to Psalms 7:0, “Cush, the Benjamite,” cannot mean this Cushi, since the contents of the Psalm are not suitable to this occasion.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Samuel 18:21. Tell the king what thou hast seen — At this time the death of Absalom was not publicly known; but Joab had given Cushi private information of it. This Ahimaaz had not, for he could not tell the king whether Absalom were dead. To this Joab seems to refer, 2 Samuel 18:22: "Thou hast no tidings ready."


 
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