2 Samuel 20:4

Young's Literal Translation

And the king saith unto Amasa, `Call for me the men of Judah [in] three days, and thou, stand here,'

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The king said to Amasa, “Summon the men of Judah to me within three days and be here yourself.”

Hebrew Names Version
Then said the king to `Amasa, Call me the men of Yehudah together within three days, and be here present.

King James Version
Then said the king to Amasa, Assemble me the men of Judah within three days, and be thou here present.

Lexham English Bible
Then the king said to Amasa, "Summon for me the men of Judah within three days, and be here yourself."

English Standard Version
Then the king said to Amasa, "Call the men of Judah together to me within three days, and be here yourself."

New Century Version
The king said to Amasa, "Tell the men of Judah to meet with me in three days, and you must also be here."

New English Translation
Then the king said to Amasa, "Call the men of Judah together for me in three days, and you be present here with them too."

Amplified Bible
Now the king said to Amasa [the commander of his army], "Summon the [fighting] men of Judah to me within three days, and be present here yourself."

New American Standard Bible
Now the king said to Amasa, "Summon the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself."

Geneva Bible (1587)
Then sayde the King to Amasa, Assemble me the men of Iudah within three dayes, and be thou here present.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then the king said to Amasa, "Call out the men of Judah for me within three days, and you yourself stand here."

Contemporary English Version
David said to Amasa, "Three days from now I want you and all of Judah's army to be here!"

Complete Jewish Bible
The king said to ‘Amasa, "Summon the men of Y'hudah to come to me within three days; and you, be here too."

Darby Translation
And the king said to Amasa, Call me the men of Judah together within three days, and do thou attend here.

Easy-to-Read Version
The king told Amasa, "Tell the people of Judah to meet with me in three days. You must be here, too."

George Lamsa Translation
Then said the king to Amasa, Assemble me the men of Judah within three days, and you yourself be present.

Good News Translation
The king said to Amasa, "Call the men of Judah together and be back here with them by the day after tomorrow."

Literal Translation
And the king said to Amasa, Call for me the men of Judah within three days; and you stand here.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And ye kynge sayde vnto Amasa: Call me all the men of Iuda together agaynst the thirde daye, & be thou here present also.

American Standard Version
Then said the king to Amasa, Call me the men of Judah together within three days, and be thou here present.

Bible in Basic English
Then the king said to Amasa, Get all the men of Judah together, and in three days be here yourself.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Then saide the king to Amasa: Call me the men of Iuda together within three dayes, and be thou here also.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
Then said the king to Amasa: 'Call me the men of Judah together within three days, and be thou here present.'

King James Version (1611)
Then said the king to Amasa, Assemble me the men of Iudah within three dayes, and be thou here present.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the king said to Amessai, Call to me the men of Juda for three days, and do thou be present here.

English Revised Version
Then said the king to Amasa, Call me the men of Judah together within three days, and be thou here present.

Berean Standard Bible
Then the king said to Amasa, "Summon the men of Judah to come to me within three days, and be here yourself."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Forsothe Dauid seide to Amasa, Clepe thou to gidere to me alle the men of Juda in to the thridde dai, and be thou present.

Update Bible Version
Then the king said to Amasa, Call together for me the men of Judah three days, and be present here.

Webster's Bible Translation
Then said the king to Amasa, Assemble to me the men of Judah within three days, and be thou here present.

World English Bible
Then said the king to Amasa, Call me the men of Judah together within three days, and be here present.

New King James Version
And the king said to Amasa, "Assemble the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself."

New Living Translation
Then the king told Amasa, "Mobilize the army of Judah within three days, and report back at that time."

New Life Bible
Then the king said to Amasa, "Call the men of Judah to come to me within three days, and you be here yourself."

New Revised Standard
Then the king said to Amasa, "Call the men of Judah together to me within three days, and be here yourself."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then said the king unto Amasa, Assemble me the men of Judah, within three days, - and, thou, here, take thy stand!

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the king said to Amasa: Assemble to me all the men of Juda against the third day, and be thou here present.

Revised Standard Version
Then the king said to Ama'sa, "Call the men of Judah together to me within three days, and be here yourself."

THE MESSAGE
The king ordered Amasa, "Muster the men of Judah for me in three days; then report in." Amasa went to carry out his orders, but he was late reporting back. So David told Abishai, "Sheba son of Bicri is going to hurt us even worse than Absalom did. Take your master's servants and hunt him down before he gets holed up in some fortress city where we can't get to him." So under Abishai's command, all the best men—Joab's men and the Kerethites and Pelethites—left Jerusalem to hunt down Sheba son of Bicri. They were near the boulder at Gibeon when Amasa came their way. Joab was wearing a tunic with a sheathed sword strapped on his waist, but the sword slipped out and fell to the ground. Joab greeted Amasa, "How are you, brother?" and took Amasa's beard in his right hand as if to kiss him. Amasa didn't notice the sword in Joab's other hand. Joab stuck him in the belly and his guts spilled to the ground. A second blow wasn't needed; he was dead. Then Joab and his brother Abishai continued to chase Sheba son of Bicri.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then the king said to Amasa, "Call out the men of Judah for me within three days, and be present here yourself."

Contextual Overview

⁴ And the king saith unto Amasa, `Call for me the men of Judah [in] three days, and thou, stand here,' <sup>5</sup> and Amasa goeth to call Judah, and tarrieth beyond the appointed time that he had appointed him; <sup>6</sup> 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.' ⁷ And the men of Joab go out after him, and the Cherethite, and the Pelethite, and all the mighty men, and they go out from Jerusalem to pursue after Sheba son of Bichri; ⁸ they [are] near the great stone that [is] in Gibeon, and Amasa hath gone before them, and Joab [is] girded; his long robe he hath put on him, and upon it a girdle -- a sword [is] fastened upon his loins in its sheath; and he hath gone out, and it falleth. ⁹ And Joab saith to Amasa, `Art thou [in] peace, my brother?' and the right hand of Joab layeth hold on the beard of Amasa to give a kiss to him; <sup>10</sup> and Amasa hath not been watchful of the sword that [is] in the hand of Joab, and he smiteth him with it unto the fifth [rib], and sheddeth out his bowels to the earth, and he hath not repeated [it] to him, and he dieth; and Joab and Abishai his brother have pursued after Sheba son of Bichri. <sup>11</sup> And a man hath stood by him, of the young men of Joab, and saith, `He who hath delight in Joab, and he who [is] for David -- after Joab!' ¹² And Amasa is rolling himself in blood, in the midst of the highway, and the man seeth that all the people have stood still, and he bringeth round Amasa out of the highway to the field, and casteth over him a garment, when he hath seen that every one who hath come by him -- hath stood still. ¹³ When he hath been removed out of the highway, every man hath passed on after Joab, to pursue after Sheba son of Bichri.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Amasa: 2 Samuel 17:25, 2 Samuel 19:13, 1 Chronicles 2:17

Assemble: Heb. Call

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 20:8 - Amasa 2 Samuel 20:11 - for David 1 Chronicles 12:18 - came upon Amasai

Cross-References

Genesis 19:24
and Jehovah hath rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from Jehovah, from the heavens;

Genesis 20:6
And God saith unto him in the dream, `Yea, I -- I have known that in the integrity of thy heart thou hast done this, and I withhold thee, even I, from sinning against Me, therefore I have not suffered thee to come against her;

Genesis 20:17
And Abraham prayeth unto God, and God healeth Abimelech and his wife, and his handmaids, and they bear:

Genesis 20:18
for Jehovah restraining had restrained every womb of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah, Abraham's wife.

2 Samuel 4:11
Also -- when wicked men have slain the righteous man in his own house, on his bed; and now, do not I require his blood of your hand, and have taken you away from the earth?'

1 Chronicles 21:17
And David saith unto God, `Did not I -- I say to number the people? Yea, I it [is] who have sinned, and done great evil: and these, the flock, what did they? O Jehovah, my God, let, I pray Thee, Thy hand be on me, and on the house of my father, and not on Thy people -- to be plagued.'

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Then said the king to Amasa,.... Whom he had promised to make general of his army, 2 Samuel 19:13; and by the following order declared him such:

assemble me the men of Judah within three days; which was done by the sound of the trumpet, or by the proclamation of a herald; it seems that the men of Judah, who attended David to Jerusalem, were gone to their respective cities and places of abode, or there would have been no occasion for such a summons; though it is strange they should, when the men of Israel appeared so inclinable to a new rebellion:

and be thou here present; to take the command of them.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

To Amasa ... - Evidently feeling his way toward fulfilling the promise to Amasa (marginal reference).

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Samuel 20:4. Then said the king to Amasa — Thus he invests him with the command of the army, and sends him to collect the men of Judah, and to come back to receive his orders in relation to Sheba, in three days. It appears that Amasa found more difficulty in collecting his country-men than was at first supposed; and this detaining him beyond the three days, David, fearing that Sheba's rebellion would get head, sent Abishai, who it appears was accompanied by Joab, to pursue after Sheba.

Amasa, it seems, got up with them at Gibeon, 2 Samuel 20:8, where he was treacherously murdered by the execrable Joab.