And, behold, Cushi came; and Cushi said, Tidings, my lord the king: for the LORD hath avenged thee this day of all them that rose up against thee.
Parallel translations
- WEB Behold, the Cushite came. The Cushite said, “News for my lord the king, for Yahweh has avenged you today of all those who rose up against you.”
- BSB Just then the Cushite came and said, “May my lord the king hear the good news: Today the LORD has avenged you of all who rose up against you!”
- NKJV Just then the Cushite came, and the Cushite said, “There is good news, my lord the king! For the Lord has avenged you this day of all those who rose against you.”
- NASB Then behold, the Cushite arrived, and the Cushite said, “Let my lord the king receive good news, for the Lord has freed you this day from the hand of all those who rose up against you.”
- NLT Then the man from Ethiopia arrived and said, “I have good news for my lord the king. Today the Lord has rescued you from all those who rebelled against you.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The Cushite arrives, announcing that the LORD has avenged David on all who rose against him. He brings the full report of victory.
Overview
The Cushite proclaims that God has vindicated the king over every rebel, framing the triumph as the LORD's doing. His arrival sets up David's pressing question about his son. The verse again credits the victory to God's hand defending His anointed, even as personal grief looms.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- 2 Sam 18:19Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the LORD hath avenged him of his enemies.
- Ps 58:10The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance: he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
- Luke 18:7–8And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?
- Deut 32:35–36To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste.
- 2 Sam 22:48–49It is God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me,
- Ps 94:1–4O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself.
- Ps 124:2–3If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us:
- 2 Sam 18:28And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the king, All is well. And he fell down to the earth upon his face before the king, and said, Blessed be the LORD thy God, which hath delivered up the men that lifted up their hand against my lord the king.
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Christ at the center
God's covenant with David — a son whose throne and kingdom would last forever (7:12–16) — finds its yes in Jesus, the Son of David who reigns without end.
How 2 Samuel 18:31 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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