Replies

From: 2 Samuel 1:1-4, 11-12, 19, 23-27

David Learns of Saul’s Death

[1] After the death of Saul when David had returned from the slaughter of the
Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag, [2] and on the third day, behold,
a man came from Saul’s camp, with his clothes rent and earth upon his head.
And when he came to David, he fell to the ground and did obeisance. [3] David
said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I have escaped
from the camp of Israel.” [4] And David said to him, “How did it go? Tell me.”
And he answered, “The people have fled from the battle, and many of the peo-
ple also have fallen and are dead and Saul and his son Jonathan are also dead.”

[11] Then David took hold of his clothes, and rent them; and so did all the men
who were with him; [12] and they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for
Saul and for Jonathan his son and for the people of the LORD and for the house
of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.

David’s Elegy over Saul and Jonathan (Continuation)

(David said:)
[19] “Thy glory, O Israel, is slain upon thy high places!
How are the mighty fallen!

[23] “Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely!
In life and in death they were not divided;
they were swifter than eagles,
they were stronger than lions.

[24] “Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,
who clothed you daintily in scarlet,
who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel.

[25] “How are the mighty fallen
in the midst of the battle!

“Jonathan lies slain upon thy high places.
[26] I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan;
very pleasant have you been to me;
your love to me was wonderful,
passing the love of women.

[27] “How are the mighty fallen,
and the weapons of war perished!”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

1:1-8:18. The second book of Samuel covers the career of David from just before
he becomes king. In the first part we are told about vicissitudes in the period be-
fore he consolidates his position as king in the Holy City of Jerusalem (chaps.
1-8); the second deals with his sons’ intrigues about the succession (chaps. 9-
24). Chapter 1 serves as a link between the Saul period (Saul’s death is related
again) and that of David. From the second chapter onwards the focus of attention
is David and all the difficulties he has before gaining general acceptance: to be-
gin with he is elected king of Judah only, at Hebron (2:1-4); then he has to use
all his wisdom and astuteness to thwart the attempts of Saul’s descendants to
succeed their father (2:5-4:12), and eventually he will be recognized as king of
all Israel again at Hebron (5:1-5). Once he has won general acceptance, he will
have to work to set his throne on a secure foundation at Jerusalem (5:6-8:18).

As in 1 Samuel, the main thing about this book is its religious interpretation of
events: David the king is an instrument used by God who is there in the back-
ground, governing his people and delivering them from all their enemies. In this
sense David occupies a very important place in salvation history and he is a fi-
gure of Jesus Christ, for with him the tradition of royal messianism begins (cf.
7:1-17).

1:1-16. “After the death of Saul” (v. 1): these words, similar to those in Joshua 1:
1 and Judges 1:1, may be why the two books of Samuel are divided at this point
(that is, if they ever did form a unit). In any event, it is a form of words which indi-
cates that a new stage is beginning.

David learned of the death of Saul from a fugitive (vv. 1-10), an Amalekite, who
gave quite a different version of Saul’s capture from the one in 1 Samuel 31:4-5:
there the king fell on his own sword; here the Amalekite says he killed him. He
may have thought he would be rewarded for bringing the news and the royal in-
signia (v. 10), but he is quite mistaken. David always respected “the Lord’s anoin-
ted” (v. 16). He mourned him as he deserved (vv. 11-12), and he never sought his
own advantage by overthrowing the king chosen by God.

1:17-27. David’s elegy over Saul and Jonathan is one of the most beautiful poems
in the Bible; it is attributed to David and it is known to have been part of the Book
of Jashar (or, the Book of the Upright: v. 18), a collection of national and military
writings rather than a religious book such as the Psalms. There is in fact no men-
tion of God in the elegy, nor any religious themes; whereas it is full of patriotic (vv.
19-20, 24-25, etc.) and martial language (vv. 19, 21). Its elevated lyrical tone (vv.
23-25) indicates that the time and circumstances in which it was composed were
marked by very great sorrow and anxiety about the future.

Also, the strategic position it has in the book brings the Saul period to an end,
and marks the start of the Davidic period. From now on, the way is open for David,
whom Samuel privately anointed king (cf. 1 Sam 16:13), to become accepted as
such by the people.

1:19. “Thy glory, O Israel, is slain,”: the Hebrew original is given various transla-
tions in early versions of the Bible. The Greek takes it to start with a verb: “Con-
sider, O Israel, those who have died slain on the mountains”; the Syriac uses a
noun: “The gazelle of Israel lies slain”; the Latin, an adjective: “The glorious
(ones), O Israel, have been wounded?”

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.