You are my brethren, you are my bone and my flesh. Why then are you the last to bring back the king?’
Parallel translations
- WEB You are my brothers. You are my bone and my flesh. Why then are you the last to bring back the king?’
- KJV Ye are my brethren, ye are my bones and my flesh: wherefore then are ye the last to bring back the king?
- BSB You are my brothers, my own flesh and blood. So why should you be the last to restore the king?’
- NASB You are my brothers; you are my bone and my flesh. Why then should you be the last to bring back the king?’
- NLT You are my relatives, my own tribe, my own flesh and blood! So why are you the last ones to welcome back the king?”
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
David appealed to Judah as his own kindred, asking why they should be last to bring him back. It matters because he sought to restore his throne through bonds of family and unity.
Overview
By calling the men of Judah his 'bone and flesh,' David appealed to kinship to win their renewed loyalty. He understood that his own tribe's hesitation could fracture the nation further. The verse highlights David's care to rebuild the kingdom on relationship rather than retribution.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- 2 Sam 5:1Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron, and spoke, saying, “Behold, we are your bone and your flesh.
- Gen 2:23The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken out of Man.”
- Judg 9:2“Please speak in the ears of all the men of Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that all the sons of Jerubbaal, who are seventy persons, rule over you, or that one rule over you?’ Remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.”
- Eph 5:30because we are members of his body, of his flesh and bones.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 19:12 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
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.