Your servant would merely cross over the Jordan with the king. So why should the king compensate me with this reward?
Parallel translations
- WEB Your servant would but just go over the Jordan with the king. Why should the king repay me with such a reward?
- KJV Thy servant will go a little way over Jordan with the king: and why should the king recompense it me with such a reward?
- BSB Your servant could go with the king only a short distance past the Jordan; why should the king repay me with such a reward?
- NKJV Your servant will go a little way across the Jordan with the king. And why should the king repay me with such a reward?
- NLT Just to go across the Jordan River with the king is all the honor I need!
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
Barzillai said he wished only to cross the Jordan a little way with the king, not to be lavishly rewarded. It matters because his loyalty sought no payment.
Overview
Barzillai's desire was simply to honor David briefly, asking nothing in return for his kindness. His refusal of reward reveals a heart that served out of love rather than self-interest. The verse commends selfless devotion that finds its joy in honoring the king, not in being repaid.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- Luke 6:38“Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be given to you. For with the same measure you measure it will be measured back to you.”
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 19:36 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.